I've got a friend who is a very unique bowler to say the least. He was in a motorcycle crash some years back and has some mobility issues in his right arm and shoulder.

He is very strong and muscular. But because of his arm issues, he tends to throw the ball almost sidearm. Anyone remember what Dan Quisenberry or Kent Tekulve looked like throwing a baseball in the 1980s can imagine my friend's delivery. Basically, it is hard for him to swing his arm back and forth while it is completely vertical/parallel to his body. He ends up tossing the ball from about the 4:30 mark rather than 6 o'clock, yet somehow he manages to do it with decent consistency.

His wrist is strong but hardly mobile at all these days. He tends to throw straight down the outside with a lot of speed.

At our house, because of the low oil volume, he tends to get most of his strikes on the wrong side. The outside dries up quickly for him, and he cannot maneuver his swing plane or wrist turn in a way that allows him to move left and swing the ball. He must continue to go off the corner.

I haven't measured his ball, but from looking at it, he tracks very high and I suspect his PAP is probably 6 over 0 up or close to it. There is no tilt involved at all, and he has very little axis rotation if any.

He has a Hammer Blue Vibe that, considering what part of the lane he plays (outside on a dry shot), often hooks too much. His plastic ball doesn't hook quite enough because of his speed. The Vibe is drilled CG in the palm and the pin straight up over the ring finger an inch or so.

He's toying with the idea of getting something to fit between the two. I suggested a Roto Grip Mercury -- mild ball, still has a real core.

I'm stumped on what to suggest as a drill pattern, though. I'd be cautious of sending the pin any further left than right over the bridge because I'm afraid he's going to start clipping holes. I'm toying with the idea of a balance hole on his NAP (he'd never come close to flaring over it).

Anyone have any ideas? He's a helluva nice guy, loves the game, even though he still has pain from his accident and is limited compared to most of the rest of us.

Jess

Edited on 3/12/2008 0:09 AM

We're actually trying to create a little skid for him. He starts it right up 5 and usually where he runs into trouble is in the heads and the first half of the mids.

He throws the ball almost downward into the floor rather than projecting it out onto the lane. Typically, you can watch what very little tilt/rotation he has move over in the first 30-40 feet. He has very little skid, then whatever hook he generates often takes it Brooklyn.

The ball then rolls out into the pins with an incredible amount of forward roll. He typically gets decent revs, but it's almost all forward revs. I'm trying to delay his breakpoint a little bit, if that makes any sense.

Thoughts?

Jess