Not sure what I am doing wrong / right

[Justintoxicated]

Throwing a Storm 2 Furious on oily lane...  Pro Shop said he drilled the ball to break mid lane, starting to wish it was drilled to break later?

 

Everyone says I look funny when I throw the ball.  I seem to score the highest when I cup my wrist, 3 fingers in the ball.  I bring the ball back then turn my wrist so fingers are parallel to my body.  I guess, kinda let the ball drop after crossing my ankle. It makes a little thud and moves down lane at a medium speed with a ton of hook.  Seems like I get a ton of hook this way and it's pretty predictable, so much hook though that I end up usually hitting the left side near the pocket rather than the right side (might be able to fix this with some work).   But everyone says it looks like I drop or shotput the ball (just bowled a 164 doing this which is good for a newb like me).  

 

Some people say I should not be cupping my wrist, but to leave my wrist straight (So when swinging the ball my thumb would be pointed downward?)  Then turning my wrist just slightly to create some hook.  I do get a little hook when doing it this way but it just does not hook hard like my strange release where I kinda just drop the ball as I pull my arm upward on the forward swing).  In fact I'd  probably be lucky to break 100.

 

I see good people bowl and they are very fluid, but also create a ton of hook.  I seem to be getting much better with my strange ways but I'm not sure if I should continue down that path.  

 

(Just got this ball a week ago) 

 

Any advice? 

[bighook69]

post a video if possible... would be much easier to help you than to try and imagine what you are describing.

[usfan51473]

I'm a coach....what it sounds like you are doing is rolling your hand over top of the ball. Cupping the ball is fine, but you need to stay behind the ball to get maximum power and carry. When you roll over the ball its going to hook but when it hits, it hits flat.

[dizzyfugu]

 

usfan51473 wrote on 16.05.2011 3:16 AM:

I'm a coach....what it sounds like you are doing is rolling your hand over top of the ball. Cupping the ball is fine, but you need to stay behind the ball to get maximum power and carry. When you roll over the ball its going to hook but when it hits, it hits flat.

Second that. Do not confuse tons of revs with hook or a proper ball reaction. Sure, you CAN add revs until your hand falls off and it potentially makes the ball move more, but it is a futile "strategy" if you top the ball, so that the revs evaporate in spinning. It is IMHO by far more effective to keep the hand behind the ball and impoarting decent revs without force. If the ball has the chance to go through skid/hook/roll you will see the hook (and also carry!) you are talking about. But you need a clean release - thumb first, fingers later. Otherwise you will stay in the low track/spin/loft trap (esp. on slick lanes), trying to overpower the poor ball reaction with violence (and more potential sources of errors and inconsistency) and "artificial" revs. RPMs are a means, but not the ends.

 

Do not listen to the Dark Force calling for revs! It is the pathto mediocrity. Listen to a coach!

DizzyFugu - Reporting from Germany
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[JohnP]

Go to YouTube.com and search, for example, Chris Barnes Slow Motion Release and watch it.  Then look in the suggested videos they give you for other bowlers and watch theirs.  that will show you how it should be done.  --  JohnP

[Justintoxicated]

I'm not hooking over the top of the ball, one of my teammates does this though.  I think I'm generating most of my hook on the upward swing, which means I use the momentum from the swing to generate some power but then kinda drop the ball as my arm moves upwards.  It gets MAD hook when the lanes are not fresh.  I can't seem to hit the pocket on the right hand side.

 

I have been practicing an earlier release which seems to generate less hook, which I guess is a good thing.  My Ball seems to start hooking towards the center a little before mid-lane.  I'm thinking I should have had the ball drilled differently or perhaps went with a pearl version so that it would hook later down the lane.

 

Right now I'm stuck trying to throw the ball down the lane harder so that I can prevent it from hooking too early.  BUt when I try to do this I find my swing becomes farther off.

 

Right now I'm standing with my left foot 4 boards to the left of the leftmost dot, and when I release I aim for the 3 dot to the left from the right hand side.  (I can move over a number of boards if the lanes are more slick) I can strike when I don't get gutter balls, and when the ball does not hook too much and hit the center pin or roll past the back door.

 

I have found that my funny looking release where I kinda drop the ball down the lane will almost guarantee picking up any spares with pins to the left of the center pin.  

[milorafferty]

It sounds like you are making the same mistake a lot of new bowlers make. Don't worry about hooking the ball. Instead, concentrate on learning a consistent and repeatable release.

 

At the bottom of your swing, your hand should be behind the ball, not on the side. When you see the high average bowlers with the smooth, fluid motion, what they are doing is letting the thumb come out of the ball as it passes their ankle. Their fingers will stay in the ball a fraction of a second longer and this is what gives them the "controllable" rotation on the ball. As you become more proficient with your release, you will see the ball begin to hook more, but in a way that you can control it.

 

Find a coach, it will make all the difference.
 

Justintoxicated wrote on 5/17/2011 2:51 PM:

I'm not hooking over the top of the ball, one of my teammates does this though.  I think I'm generating most of my hook on the upward swing, which means I use the momentum from the swing to generate some power but then kinda drop the ball as my arm moves upwards.  It gets MAD hook when the lanes are not fresh.  I can't seem to hit the pocket on the right hand side.

 

I have been practicing an earlier release which seems to generate less hook, which I guess is a good thing.  My Ball seems to start hooking towards the center a little before mid-lane.  I'm thinking I should have had the ball drilled differently or perhaps went with a pearl version so that it would hook later down the lane.

 

Right now I'm stuck trying to throw the ball down the lane harder so that I can prevent it from hooking too early.  BUt when I try to do this I find my swing becomes farther off.

 

Right now I'm standing with my left foot 4 boards to the left of the leftmost dot, and when I release I aim for the 3 dot to the left from the right hand side.  (I can move over a number of boards if the lanes are more slick) I can strike when I don't get gutter balls, and when the ball does not hook too much and hit the center pin or roll past the back door.

 

I have found that my funny looking release where I kinda drop the ball down the lane will almost guarantee picking up any spares with pins to the left of the center pin.  

[Justintoxicated]

I had an instructor try to help me, I took his advice and I did HORRIBLE.  I threw the ball in the gutter 1/2 the time and my score dropped to a 102 LOL.   Prior to getting help I had picked up every spare but a split, but I guess I don't bring the ball back far enough on my swing.  

 

When I do bring the ball back farther I cannot keep my wrist cupped it has to be straight, I seem to generate little if any hook, and I can't seem to aim properly (every other shot is a gutter ball).

[dizzyfugu]

It's normal that trying out new things set us back - do not expect wonders over night. That's the next newbie trap to fall for - thinking that you can "buy" a good game instead of spending time and effort, trying new things, etc. Many bowlers think that they can buy hook with new/stronger balls or ever more bigger wrist devices. That's a delusion, because the game still is weak.

 

What really counts is good timing, a "free" ball on the lane and repeatability of what you do. If you are not used to keep your hand behind the ball (yet), you need to practice it. I remember well when our club's youth coach showed me this way of release, and it felt horrible and I sucked, just like you did. Don't get scared because of this - you just need practice and wrist strength, and building this up takes IMHO some weeks.

I had my moment of enlightenment when I had the timing and hand position right for the first time - I used a Power Groove that time. I was amazed how well and how much the ball would actually hook, once it was free to do what it was designed and drilled for!

 

Keep it up, and good luck!

DizzyFugu - Reporting from Germany
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