I've been bowling on and off for a long time and did allright sometimes I guess.  I was a slightly better than average player with little knowledge of fundamentals.  My game has improved alot over the last year after reading some bowling books, tips from staffers, and pros here and there.  Couple 600's and 700's here and there.  I've bought lots of the best equipment over the past year but couldn't figure out what my last major flaw was until the other day.  I've been muscling the ball all along with poorly fitting and loose thumbholes.  This never allowed me to get the "pendulum" armswing. I developed a pretty clean release with 300-360 rpms, I feel I have decent footwork, knee bend, good follow through, and line up pretty well, but there was something lacking consistency in my game I couldn't figure out causing me to pull and tug shots.

BTW, sometimes I fall off the shot because I have bad knees, that and to get outta the way for a camera.

Sometimes that smallest things make the biggester difference...like...tape.

I used to like big thumbholes so my thumb wouldn't get stuck with low pressure from my thumb sealing in the hole, but I always muscled it to hang onto it.  I learned about tape and getting the ball to actually fit with little to no hand pressure.  I can now get the ball back easier, probably into a higher backswing, with such a strong, quick, and smooth release I didn't think I could ever get and wondered how some did it to include working more "insidet the ball".

When I felt this release I was shocked at how much more balance I had, how much the ball revved through the heads and tried to rip the cover off in the backend.  Not to mention totally shredding the rack.

Such a simple thing transformed the game for me.  And it was so natural, and effortless.  I'll never forget how that felt and the adjustments I need to make to my fit to get it again.  I think I just gained about another mph, another 50 rpms, and a huge amount of confidence, feel for the ball, control, a straighter spare ball, consistency, and will bowl with alot less pain from this one little change.  It didn't happen right away, but I finally got it.

People talk about the pendulum armswing but it leaves alot open to interpretation.  They tell you to relax, and land the ball onto the lane like an airplane, but how do you do it?  The key for me, was in ball fit.  Your ball needs to fit snug on the thumb, and you must use tape so that your thumb isn't held in by a vacuum, 3 pieces minimum but probably no more than 6.  Only then will you be able to actually relax the arm.  

It's tough to describe the feel of the release, but you have to "bowl" the ball out, and off of your hand, kinda like one of those chuck it dog toys, be firm wristed and soft handed.  Let gravity take the ball out of your hand at the bottom of your swing and use a slight knee bend to get more leverage on the hand to come up and through the ball.  Timing is everything.  I used to generate good revs with what I didn't feel to be alot of effort, but now I can generate even more with less effort!  It's kinda like using a yo yo, except bigger.  And when you finally get it once, it feels so awesome and is permanently there.

The more I learn about bowling, the simpler and more effortless it's becoming.  You can't tell me my release isn't sweet now.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gmvDM1-vwaY