rv driver
07-22-2015, 03:59 PM
After ... let's see ... 42 years of bowling -- off and on -- I think I've finally resolved a release issue that's been bugging me ever since.
While my average has been respectably high in the past, I've always struggled with consistency issues. One game would be 256, the next would be 130. Mind you, this was in the day before reactive balls and modern oil. I think that, had the issue been resolved long ago, my average and consistency may have improved enough to get me on the Tour back in the day (around 1980 or so).
I had identified the problem as a thumb issue (and, indeed, it was!). It seemed that my thumb kept getting hung up in the hole. I thought it was a size issue. I tried drilling out the hole. The problem continued. I tried different pitches. No help. In fact, I was still having problems with my Misfit since re-entering the game last year (which I attributed to the fingertip grip I'd never used before). It wasn't until I had the IT slug installed last week that I finally pinned the problem down.
My PSO used a slightly smaller slug than the original hole had been (I thought maybe my thumb had shrunk a bit) -- the black one -- and, guess what?! There was no longer room for my thumb to crook at the knuckle. Apparently, I've been doing that all these years without noticing it. By relaxing my thumb and letting my fingers do the work of gripping (I have to consciously push my nail against the wall of the slug, until I get muscle memory), My release, control, and consistency has markedly improved the last couple of days. And my thumb is less sore. I used to always rub a blister on the inside of my thumb (which I attributed to a sharp hole edge). Now, there's no longer a rub there. I think straightening my thumb has changed the geometry enough to remove the pressure off the inside of my thumb. Also, my wrist is more relaxed and, thus, less sore after bowling.
I know this is a fundamental issue that should have been caught long ago -- kind of a Homer Simpson "D'oh!" moment -- but I post it in order to raise awareness for other bowlers who may be having similar but unidentified issues.
While my average has been respectably high in the past, I've always struggled with consistency issues. One game would be 256, the next would be 130. Mind you, this was in the day before reactive balls and modern oil. I think that, had the issue been resolved long ago, my average and consistency may have improved enough to get me on the Tour back in the day (around 1980 or so).
I had identified the problem as a thumb issue (and, indeed, it was!). It seemed that my thumb kept getting hung up in the hole. I thought it was a size issue. I tried drilling out the hole. The problem continued. I tried different pitches. No help. In fact, I was still having problems with my Misfit since re-entering the game last year (which I attributed to the fingertip grip I'd never used before). It wasn't until I had the IT slug installed last week that I finally pinned the problem down.
My PSO used a slightly smaller slug than the original hole had been (I thought maybe my thumb had shrunk a bit) -- the black one -- and, guess what?! There was no longer room for my thumb to crook at the knuckle. Apparently, I've been doing that all these years without noticing it. By relaxing my thumb and letting my fingers do the work of gripping (I have to consciously push my nail against the wall of the slug, until I get muscle memory), My release, control, and consistency has markedly improved the last couple of days. And my thumb is less sore. I used to always rub a blister on the inside of my thumb (which I attributed to a sharp hole edge). Now, there's no longer a rub there. I think straightening my thumb has changed the geometry enough to remove the pressure off the inside of my thumb. Also, my wrist is more relaxed and, thus, less sore after bowling.
I know this is a fundamental issue that should have been caught long ago -- kind of a Homer Simpson "D'oh!" moment -- but I post it in order to raise awareness for other bowlers who may be having similar but unidentified issues.