Bones and others, initially he did not see much wrong with my physical game. He said I have a very strong physical game that needed minor changes. I was pushing the ball out too far in front of me causing me to lean over and get my upper body ahead of my feet. That then caused me to muscle the swing to catch up to everything else. I worked that out and that alone has made me more consistent with alot of other aspects such as my ball speed and accuracy. He suggested I start with my elbow tucked in closer to my body and the ball up near my chest. Then on my second step, push out and down at the same time, hence the pendulum affect. I wasnt doing this previously. I was extending my arm completely in front of me, then dropping it. With the changes in my approach, I am now more upright at the line and bent over so much!!

Other things he is "changing" is my release, which is alot stronger now. I wasnt coming out of the ball properly. Now that I have changed that, my revs are through the roof. I have tried a few different hand positions and have become more comfortable with my index and pinky spread wide. This gives the ball more area to rest on in my hand and puts more of the ball on my fingers rather than my thumb. I had a tendency to squeeze the ball at the bottom of my swing and now, I dont do that anymore!!

The only other thing that I am still working on is my balance and knee bend at the line. I need a better knee bend to keep my balance in order to "stick" the shot. I am working on that and will improve on it.

Aside from the changes, he is helping me be more versatile by teaching me the "modern" game. He pulled up the pdf sheets from "Mo's Corner" on Morich's web page. I am looking those over as well as learning the direct, medium and open lines on the lane. All in all, I am very pleased with the results thus far.

Yes Bones, he is a good coach. He also said that I was a great student and praised me for working on everything we talked about. He was also impressed with all of the knowledge I have for the game. I just needed someone to help me apply it all!! Well, thats all I have to say for now!! I will keep all updated with my progress!

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"Why cant I just throw the ball the same way EVERY TIME??

That's fantastic that you found such a good coach.  Your scores have improved dramatically.  Also, thanks for sharing some of the tips he gave you.  I think they'll help me.

Debbie

On edit:  I worked with a coach on "sticking my landing" a while ago, and as long as my feet don't get too fast, I'm successful.  He had me "pose" at the line without the ball at first, just swinging my arm and bending my knee; then, at the line with the ball; then, a full approach.  I think that was the most difficult thing for me -- achieving balance.  I still hop a little from time to time, especially when shooting for corners.

Edited on 6/16/2004 9:49 AM

Hey Rock,

I finally got the vid to work, looks pretty good.  Just remember to try and center your left foot to your chest(at release) for better balance at the line vs having to use a lot of leg muscle to hold your upper body up.  If your left leg muscle starts to get sore or you feel the strain that pulls all up to thigh area(right below your rear), then you're using too much leg muscle to support yourself which means your sliding foot is not truly centered for balance.  Hope this helps some bud...

Rick