Bowling has often been regarded by the elitists as a small-town sport, but is actually a game that takes years of practice to become good at, much less to perfect. The 300 game (a perfect score in Bowling) has been extremely difficult to achieve historically, but recent advances in technology has made it a bit more commonplace these days.
Don’t feel bad if you have never scored a 300. There are so many pros who haven’t either. But to be any good at this sport, you need to be able to consistently bowl a strike, and a combination of techniques are needed to make this possible.
Preparing for the throw
Choose your bowling ball wisely. There’s a misconception that a game gets better the heavier the balls are, but most pros are now scaling down from their 16-pounders to 14.5- or 15-pound balls. This is because heavy balls may only tend to make the pins fly all over the place instead of them hitting each other.
Know your angle. If you are a right-handed bowler with a relatively small hook, you should position yourself a bit right of center as you let go of the ball. If you have a sharp hook, on the other hand, you need to stand left of center while angling the ball out toward the right.
The ball doesn’t curve the same way in different lanes, however, and even when you’re bowling on the same lane each time, the amount of oil on it varies over the duration of your game. This is the reason why it’s important to warm up and have a few practice shots – specifically to familiarize yourself with the lane and to make the necessary adjustments.
Keep your arm straight. On the back swing, it’s best to keep the arm straight and close to the body, coming up at the level of your shoulders.
Know where to focus on. Instead of keeping your eye on the pins all the time, focus on the same spot each time you approach the foul line.
Take that perfect power step. The power step is that penultimate step to the foul line. Therefore, if you’re a righty, your power step would be your right leg. Bend it considerably to allow your left foot to smoothly slide forward.
The throw technique
Release the ball as you reach the bottom of your downswing, with your thumb releasing it at knee level. Gravity takes over from here on in. If you release too early or too late, your shot would result in lofting, or bouncing the ball on the floor.
Get rid of the straight ball. Strikes need a curve ball, not a straight ball that goes right in the middle of the pins and results in an undesirable split. Right-handed bowlers’ balls must curve from right to left.
Know what you’re aiming for. If you’re a righty, you should be targeting that pocket between the one-pin and the three-pin. A left-handed bowler, on the other hand, should aim for the space between the one-pin and the two-pin.
Don’t rush or lose patience. Folks who are losing patience with their game often rush to the foul line or throw the ball too hard. Remember that a potential strike requires ball speeds of 18-19 mph, taking about 2.1 to 2.2 seconds to get to the pins.
