What Are The Most Common Problems That Can Hurt Your Bowling?-Part 2

FIRSTLY, I WANT TO WISH ALL MY FOLLOWERS A VERY HAPPY AND HEALTHY NEW YEAR !!!

This is a continuation of my Blog Post from 12/20/21:
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    There are several problems one can encounter in the game of bowling. I've listed some below to help you be more aware of what may be happening if your bowling is NOT up to par:


6. LOFTING:

    When lofting the ball, you need to land it ONTO the lane smoothly like landing an airplane, and in the same area on the lane. If you don't use much loft, you may get a "FOUL" because your release was too close to the foul line. If you loft only a little, the ball will have more lane to travel on and hook too much by the time it reaches the pins, causing the ball to come up high on the headpin. If you loft the ball out more the next time than you did in the previous frame, the ball will have less lane to travel on and you'll come up short missing the pocket area. Doing this routinely will cause you to be inconsistent! You need to loft the ball out about 6-10 feet in order for the ball to get onto the oil that is applied on the lane so it can skid first and then be able to roll effectively when it reaches the pocket.
   
     In practice, you can put a piece of painters tape on the lane (it doesn't leave a sticky residue on the lane) and practice lofting the ball out to that spot each time. The lanes are slippery, so first ask if you can do it and if the mechanic isn't busy, he may be able to do it for you. You can also put an old washcloth on the lane instead. Doing this exercise often will help you get a FEEL of how far to loft the ball out and onto the lane to help you to get more consistent. Over time, your muscle memory will just do it without you having to even think about it.
   
    If you notice that you are holding onto the ball too long and lofting the ball out too far, your bowling grip may be the problem. The fingers need to fit into the ball just right. The opposite also holds true, if your grip is too loose, you may drop the ball short. Go to the pro shop and have him check your grip for you, just don't go immediately after bowling a few games because your fingers may swell a little and he may end up sanding too much causing the hole to become too large.


7. STANDING IN THE WRONG PLACE:

    You may know from your league practice time before the bowling begins, where you should stand for the strike shot on the pair of lanes you are bowling on and you stick with this until the lanes begin to change a bit. If you are standing on the wrong board, you may not get the strike that you were getting when you were on the correct board because you will be coming in at a slightly different angle.

    But what if you forget what board or dot you need to stand on, or what if you are in a deep conversation with another bowler and you rush to the lane because it's your turn? All these things can affect our focus and concentration, so if you are new to the game, I suggest writing down (on a piece of paper or in your notebook) which board you are standing on and what arrow or board you are aiming for. As you make adjustments to your game, don't forget to change the info on that little piece of paper.

8. OVERTURNING THE HAND:

    This can happen to many bowlers. "TOPPING THE BALL" means you did NOT finish with your FINGERS in that 12:00  position I spoke about in an earlier blog post. You have turned the ball too much to the left (for right handed bowlers) and finished with your FINGERS in the 10 or 9:00 position instead.  It can also happen if you turn your entire arm instead of just the wrist. Overturning will cause a low AXIS TILT which leads to a poor delivery and loss of ball power by the time it reaches the pins. On the backswing your hand should be flat (thumb in the 3 o'clock position) and then as you begin the downswing, you can rotate the hand so the thumb can finish in the 10 or 11:00 position on the release. Some bowlers will turn the hand even more to get more revs. It's crucial to have the thumb leave the ball first so the fingers can do that lifting as I have previously mentioned and rotate the ball properly so it can hook. 


Join me back here next week when I'll be discussing "What Are The Different Bowling Styles"? The first one I'll be discussing is the style of the "CRANKER".

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Good Luck and High Scoring!!