Please criticize my game

[mrgs]

Hello,

This is my first post here, have been reading a little before and finally made a video of me bowling, so decided to ask for advice.

A little about me:
I bowl somewhat regularly for ~10 months now, started my first league this month averaging 150 throwing straight house balls.
Recently got my own 15 pound ball (wanted 14 but they were sold out) with fingertip drill, to learn to hook.
I think my main problem is inconsistency. I can bowl really well and hit every spare I throw but sometimes miss even the easiest ones.
I know my mental game is lacking but I am trying to work on that.

So here are 2 videos of me playing my first real practice using no thumb and my own ball.
I see one of the biggest mistakes I have is inconsistent ball speed, which is one of the main problems I think for bowling without thumb, because I have to use muscle strength instead of gravity.
I did some testing in the first video with different speeds etc. but I still see that I did not adjust my starting location properly.
Another problem I have is that when I target closest arrows, I almost always miss my target. Ball usually goes left of the target. I was reading somewhere here about players with left dominant eye and I have that, so it could be the reason why.
But now I just usually target a bit more right than I need to hit and it works ok. I look at the pins when I throw straight spare balls and I consider myself a decent spare shooter. Should I try to change that?

If anyone could take a look at my videos and give some advice on what to improve (everything), it would be much appreciated.

P.S. While I am playing mostly for fun I will most likely continue throwing with 2 fingers because I enjoy it more.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M4pRxKb0dPE&feature=plcp

Don't be too harsh :rolleyes:

[mrgs]

Here is the 2nd video could not include that in 1st post, because of 1 video per post limit :


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ucPUKY7p0PU&feature=plcp

[billf]

More knee bend at the start stance. It will allow more knee bend at the slide. This will help create better balance and allow the balance leg foot to stay on the floor. For proper balance you need to keep three things in line; toe, knee chin.
Try to straighten the elbow sooner, before the release.

[Zothen]

I agree with billf! I would also suggest slowing down a bit on approach as this will help with timing & balance.

Zothen

[jimlc2001]

In addition to bending your knees, hold your position at the foul line until the ball hits the pins. This will help you slow down too.

[mrgs]

Thanks for advice guys. I was bending more knees at one point but not sure why have I stopped, must start doing that again.
Rushing things might be an issue as I know, when I am bowling alone and get frustrated because of my bad shots and start rushing even more and of course scores drop down even lower.
Trying to hold position after release might not only slow me down but also help to improve my release position as sometimes ball pulls me to the right after releasing it.

Great advice, really appreciated.

[rab91787]

What they said, balance balance balance. You should be able to hold your pose at release. Once you can stay balanced throughout your swing your accuracy and consistency will greatly improve.

[Tampabaybob]

Your feet seem to be at a decent pace, (slow, slow, quick, quick) but when you get to the line, you are leaning too far to the right and your ball/arm swing are too far away from your body (check your video and try to pause it as the ball passes your leg). Having the arm that far away also is making your slide foot face to the right, which in turn forces your torso to face the same direction. That makes you almost throw side arm. As someone already mentioned, you want to have your arm swing and ball directly under your chin, and not away from your body. Fixing that will increase your accuracy. Try to stay 100% balanced at the line and slide straight. A good practice habit is to actually try to slide your left foot towards your left. Your shoulders won't turn left due to the weight of the ball on the right, but it helps straighten out the slide. Eventually, you'll automatically slide straight.

As far as shooting your spares targeting the pins, I would say stay with it. As long as you're being accurate and making most of your spares, continue with what you're doing.

By the way, the videos are very good. Wish others could do the same. It's much easier to offer advice when you can actually see the action. Good luck and keep us updated.

Bob

[mrgs]

Ok, went to they bowling alley today, not the one in these video but different one. Here I usually play 9-pin tourneys two times a month. Tried to work on some things suggested here. Now here their standard oil pattern is very dry, which makes my ball hook very early (that is if I understand these things correctly). But ball doesn't hook almost at all at the end of the lane, so it's really hard to get a decent strike (not Brooklyn). I have to throw really strong but not too strong or ball wont hook at all at the end of the lane, or reduce my hook. Any suggestions for that?

[Zothen]

Sounds like its dry in front and oily in the back. I would try standing on the 18 board and throwing ball over 13 board. Also take polish off ball so it has grip in backend oil.

Zothen

[billf]

Play deeper. On a shot like that I usually play from the 30 across the 20 with a break around 13. Of course you can only go as far as you are comfortable with. Learning to reduce the amount of hook is also helpful if you want to play the right side straight up the oil line.

[mrgs]

Thanks for advice, tomorrow I will try to play my first league game using 2 finger style. Good thing it's in the alley I made these videos on. Got some decent results practicing today. I think I am finally understanding how to use different ball speeds with different angles :)

[AZBowla]

In watching your videos the thing that stood out most for me was that when you threw a strike, you weren't off balance and when you missed it, you were. The way your body is positioned when you release isn't just the main thing, it's everything. It literally changes the position that the ball lands when it makes contact with the lane. As others have said, if you're off balance when you release, you won't be able to consistently hit your mark and you'll miss the pocket (as you see in your video).

If I may humbly make a suggestion (I know it's fun and how you like to throw, BUT) I really think you should learn to bowl with your thumb in. Yes, you'll reduce revs a bit at first, and no the ball won't hook as sharply as a result, but you'll find you'll be much more consistent with your shots and it will be much easier to maintain balance and body position on release. As I've told my kids when they see someone who bowls one-handed with no thumb, if bowling that way really worked the pro's would do it too. And I'm not referring to the two handed style of pro's like Jason Belmonte and others who have turned no-thumbing-it into an art form, I'm talking about bowling like the guys you see in the alley all the time with houseballs, running at the lane and winging them off their hand from about hip high and trying to curve them out of the house and into the pro-shop next door. :) Are they fun to watch? Yes, but are they exceptionally good at bowling? No, not usually. There are a bunch of how to's and videos that explain how to release a fingertip ball and get your rev's up. With practice, you could hook it just as much with your thumb in as you do now without it, plus have the added benefit of more accuracy. I think it'd be worth it for you to try it and see if you notice any improvement.

The other suggestion I would make is to slow down a bit. Pace yourself, wait for the pinsetter to finish before you take your shot, etc. It's not a speed sport, so take your time and make each shot count. There's no extra points for finishing a game before anyone else.

I'm no pro at bowling either, I shoot maybe in the 180's on a good day, but these are the things I've learned and plan to build on. Hopefully some of what I've said is helpful, and thank you for sharing the video for us to critique.

[mrgs]

I am thinking about learning 3 finger style as well, but I don't really want to start learning completely new thing in the middle of league. Maybe after this one finishes and before the next one I will take some time to practice it.

In the meantime, does anyone have any advice on how to bowl on this pattern?

644

[billf]

Lay down at 35, cross 18 at the arrows, should slide to the 10 and break at 8. There's a ton of dry on that pattern so you will need to use the oil on the middle as much as possible.

[mrgs]

It seems that oil was different than what it should have been, don't know why. But still got average 170 in 3 games and we won 2 of them against one of the top teams so it's all good.

Today was another single 9 pin tournament, was 20 pins short to get into quarterfinals, but I won a bowling ball in competition after the tournament.
The ball I won is 15 pound Storm Polar Ice ( http://www.bowlingball.com/products/bowling-balls/Storm/10077/Polar-Ice-Red-Purple.html ) . I am thinking to use this for straight shots with fingertip grip. I have used to throwing spare shots with house balls and conventional grip.
Would drilling it with fingertip grip be a good idea? That way I could throw both my shots with same grip.

[J Anderson]

It seems that oil was different than what it should have been, don't know why. But still got average 170 in 3 games and we won 2 of them against one of the top teams so it's all good.

Today was another single 9 pin tournament, was 20 pins short to get into quarterfinals, but I won a bowling ball in competition after the tournament.
The ball I won is 15 pound Storm Polar Ice ( http://www.bowlingball.com/products/bowling-balls/Storm/10077/Polar-Ice-Red-Purple.html ) . I am thinking to use this for straight shots with fingertip grip. I have used to throwing spare shots with house balls and conventional grip.
Would drilling it with fingertip grip be a good idea? That way I could throw both my shots with same grip.

Yes! The idea is to keep eliminate as many variables as possible. Same grip, same weight is ideal.

[billf]

Definitely get fingertip grips. This is a good ball for spare shooting. I have a ball review posted on this site if you're interested in seeing that straight ball hook.