There are several different pushaway methods, all will work depending on the individual. Duke's "elbow over the knee" is designed to increase accuracy, as well as
create swing momentum--without overextending the pushaway beyond the knee, which could lead to timing problems. Overextending the pushaway also tends to cause the bowler to grip the ball with too much hand pressure.
John Jowdy was one of the top bowling instructors over the years . He advocated that the bowler push the ball in an upward motion (over the bar as he would say).
He believed that this created more natural swing momentum, one propelled by gravity. His method was a boon for many top PBA players.
Joe Slowinski, another top notch instructor suggests that today's bowler use a
hinge-type pushaway motion, where the arm simply uncoils in a downward arc
motion. The hinge style has 2 advantages that the other styles don't. First, the hinge
gets the ball into the correct timing zone on the initial downswing sooner. Second,
by not extending the pushaway elbow out too far, the bowler will not feel the need
to "grab" the ball with excessive pressure throughout the swing cycle. He is correct.
The $64,000 question is which is the best style. Again, it depends on the bowler.
Over the years, I have tried them all. All of them worked but for me, I always performed a little better by utilizing a traditional pushaway motion, being careful not
to overextend the bowling elbow in the process. It is my firm belief that long-armed bowlers like myself do better with this method due to our slower swing cycle. It takes us a little longer to successfully complete our approach in good timing. The hinge pushaway
has a tendency to get my feet moving faster---faster than my natural swing cycle, causing me to be out of time at the line.
Some very good instructors are also now advocating that most bowlers speed up their
footwork for better timing. This depends on the speed of your swing. The feet should
match the tempo of the armswing and not the other way around.
So, what works for one bowler may not necessarily work for another.
