Struggling to Increase Ball Speed

[bowlingwebster]

This has been a big problem for me. I have tried moving my feet faster, stepping back further, all while trying to keep a smooth swing without forcing it. Right now with one hand, being left handed, my speed is around 12 mph. I struggle with consistency hitting the pocket because my speed is to slow, and It over hooks due to the slower speed.

When I get my speed up to 14-15 mph throwing 2 handed, my ball has great reaction.

What would be the cause for the slower speed? I have even tried holding the ball lower and I actually have a fairly long backswing as well. Any tips would be great.

thanks

[Mike White]

This has been a big problem for me. I have tried moving my feet faster, stepping back further, all while trying to keep a smooth swing without forcing it. Right now with one hand, being left handed, my speed is around 12 mph. I struggle with consistency hitting the pocket because my speed is to slow, and It over hooks due to the slower speed.

When I get my speed up to 14-15 mph throwing 2 handed, my ball has great reaction.

What would be the cause for the slower speed? I have even tried holding the ball higher, and I actually have a fairly long backswing as well. Any tips would be great.

thanks

Holding the ball higher causes slower speed, not higher.

Speed = distance divided by time.

Starting the ball lower, makes the time period from when the ball starts swinging down (going back) to when the ball reaches the bottom of the swing (going forward) shorter.

If you stand is the same place as before, and reach the release point (distance from foul line) the same, you've maintained distance, while decreasing time.

Speed = distance divided by time.

Reducing the denominator increases the quotient (answer to the division problem)

Speed is better generated from the large muscles in your legs, than the "smaller" muscles in your arm.

The muscles in your arm, when activated, tend to have a negative effect on accuracy.

[bowlingwebster]

Holding the ball higher causes slower speed, not higher.

Speed = distance divided by time.

Starting the ball lower, makes the time period from when the ball starts swinging down (going back) to when the ball reaches the bottom of the swing (going forward) shorter.

If you stand is the same place as before, and reach the release point (distance from foul line) the same, you've maintained distance, while decreasing time.

Speed = distance divided by time.

Reducing the denominator increases the quotient (answer to the division problem)

Speed is better generated from the large muscles in your legs, than the "smaller" muscles in your arm.

The muscles in your arm, when activated, tend to have a negative effect on accuracy.


Ok, so what you are saying is if I hold the ball lower I should be able to increase my speed by a few mphs, and I do not need to stand further back. I have heard people say the speed is from the lower muscles, I just do not quite get how I can get them to activate for more speed as I keep my arm relax. DO I simply need to slide deeper? Or is early or late timing causing me not to activate my lower muscles?

thanks for tips so far.

[Amyers]

I have a similar issue. My typical ball speed is in the 11.5 to 12.5 range on the monitors. I have tried many different things holding the ball higher, lower, speeding my approach, moving farther back on the approach and the most I have been able to change my speed is by about 1 mph. I've even experimented with throwing lighter balls 14 instead of 15 lbs. adds about .25 mph not worth it to me. The truth is as far as I can tell you can make minor changes .5 to 1 mph but your not getting much more than that through any of these methods. The best advice I have received is to throw less aggressive equipment, learn to use different hand positions, and have a plastic ball with a core that you can use on those conditions that just nothing else stays on the lane.

[fokai73]

simply put..... the feet follows the swing. Not the other way around.

So if you "shorten" your relaxed swing, your feet has to catch up, thus your cadence is faster. Also, the push off foot is the last "booster" or nitro to get your ball moving.

But.... I don't know how you look at the approach so it's hard to say. Best is to go see a coach if one is available.

[bowlingwebster]

simply put..... the feet follows the swing. Not the other way around.

So if you "shorten" your relaxed swing, your feet has to catch up, thus your cadence is faster. Also, the push off foot is the last "booster" or nitro to get your ball moving.

But.... I don't know how you look at the approach so it's hard to say. Best is to go see a coach if one is available.


Ok I should try to shorten my swing to gain ball speed. I will try that today as I practice. I will also make a video when I go today so you guys can get a better idea of how I look at the approach, swing and all. I will actually do my one handed version, as well as my two handed version to see how I can increase speed.

I just do not get how Im very athletic and I see these other guys get so much ball speed vs mine, so Im sure a video of me will help with figuring out why. I appreciate all of the tips.

[RobLV1]

Ok I should try to shorten my swing to gain ball speed. I will try that today as I practice. I will also make a video when I go today so you guys can get a better idea of how I look at the approach, swing and all. I will actually do my one handed version, as well as my two handed version to see how I can increase speed.

I just do not get how Im very athletic and I see these other guys get so much ball speed vs mine, so Im sure a video of me will help with figuring out why. I appreciate all of the tips.

You conveniently skipped the best advice given: go see a qualified coach. In a great majority of cases, lack of ball speed is a direct result of poor timing; usually late. A coach will get your timing straightened out which will get you the ball speed that you want without messing with the rest of your game.

[bowlingwebster]

You conveniently skipped the best advice given: go see a qualified coach. In a great majority of cases, lack of ball speed is a direct result of poor timing; usually late. A coach will get your timing straightened out which will get you the ball speed that you want without messing with the rest of your game.

ok great. What is the best way to find one in my area? I searched for a few near me, but they were low level. Thanks again.

[RobLV1]

Go to the USBC website, www.bowl.com, and look under "Find a.... Coach" in your area.

[1VegasBowler]

Holding the ball higher causes slower speed, not higher.

Speed = distance divided by time.

Starting the ball lower, makes the time period from when the ball starts swinging down (going back) to when the ball reaches the bottom of the swing (going forward) shorter.

If you stand is the same place as before, and reach the release point (distance from foul line) the same, you've maintained distance, while decreasing time.

Speed = distance divided by time.

Reducing the denominator increases the quotient (answer to the division problem)

Speed is better generated from the large muscles in your legs, than the "smaller" muscles in your arm.

The muscles in your arm, when activated, tend to have a negative effect on accuracy.

Until last week, I used to hold my ball in a similar manner that Mark Roth did (used to be able to crank it like he could too..lol)

However, after being away for 25 years and seeing how much changed, I had to change.

I can only use 12 pound balls (bad shoulder, knee, back) with a very short arm swing.

Last week I had to have 2 kidney stones lasered and had a stent put in, so I had to change again to reduce strain and went with a similar approach that Marshall Holman had.

While my doc didn't say I couldn't bowl, I didn't ask him either..lol

The results since? 642 & 630 series. Better approach and release on both nights, and I'm going to stick with it.

It isn't always about speed as it is your rev rate and ability to work the angles that are present/available for the night.

[fordman1]

This has been a big problem for me. I have tried moving my feet faster, stepping back further, all while trying to keep a smooth swing without forcing it. Right now with one hand, being left handed, my speed is around 12 mph. I struggle with consistency hitting the pocket because my speed is to slow, and It over hooks due to the slower speed.

When I get my speed up to 14-15 mph throwing 2 handed, my ball has great reaction.

What would be the cause for the slower speed? I have even tried holding the ball lower and I actually have a fairly long backswing as well. Any tips would be great.

thanks

Maybe a little more information would get you some better answers.
First how old are you?
Are you male or female?
Are you tall of short?
What do you weigh?
Do you have any physical problems?
Everyone is different.
If you are a 12 year old girl who weighs 80 lbs. vrs. a 6 foot man who weighs 220 that might make a difference on the answer.
GO SEE A CERTIFIED COACH WHO CAN WATCH YOU BOWL.
Thank you.

[bowlingwebster]

Go to the USBC website, www.bowl.com, and look under "Find a.... Coach" in your area.

Thanks Rob as I did that. Im amazed at how many there are, but simply just have their names with no information to contact them. Is there a way around contacting them if it is just their name? I see a few level 2 and bronzes in my area. Just no information to call them.

[bowlingwebster]

Maybe a little more information would get you some better answers.
First how old are you?
Are you male or female?
Are you tall of short?
What do you weigh?
Do you have any physical problems?
Everyone is different.
If you are a 12 year old girl who weighs 80 lbs. vrs. a 6 foot man who weighs 220 that might make a difference on the answer.
GO SEE A CERTIFIED COACH WHO CAN WATCH YOU BOWL.
Thank you.

Great point on giving more information.

Im 33
Male
5'10
170 pds
no physical problems on my left side, as im left handed.
I currently locating a higher level coach once I can find information on them besides just a name.

Hopefully some of those answers can help me get better ones. Thanks.

[bowl1820]

Heres two old posts that might help


Here's another tip that may help you:

CONTROL YOUR ROLL INCREASING/DECREASING BALL SPEED
By Bryan O’Keefe

Bowling is about the ability to repeat shots and the readi- ness to adjust to changing conditions.
Today, we have bowling balls that absorb oil and we compete on an invisible playing field that changes with virtually every shot that goes down the lane. Bowlers need to con- stantly adjust to those changes.
Too often bowlers immediately feel the need to adjust by moving on the approach, left-to-right across the lane. Remember, the lane is 60 feet long but only 39 inches wide. There’s much more room to make front-to-back than left-to-right adjust- ments. Sometimes the best adjust- ment is stay on the same line and
simply increase or decrease the ball speed to better read the changes in the lane. If you need the ball to slow down faster, throw it slower. If you need the ball to not slow down quite as quickly, throw it faster.
Of course, increasing and decreasing ball speed is not a new concept in bowling, but the manner in which people attempt to adjust their ball speed is the subject of con- siderable debate.
One misconception is that you can adjust your ball speed by using your upper body. It’s a mistake to think that you can keep your lower body the same and simply use more muscle to throw the ball harder, or slow the ball down by grabbing it more and forcing yourself to throw the ball slower. In truth, you may

“The best way to increase or decrease ball speed is by using your legs, not your upper body.“

In truth, you may actually accomplish faster or slower ball speed, but your accuracy and consistency is going to be very difficult to repeat.
The best way to increase or de- crease ball speed is by using your legs, not your upper body. Using your lower body to adjust your tem- po to the line will allow you to main- tain a fluid, natural swing and will greatly increase your ability to repeat shots.
To increase ball speed, start your approach a step behind your normal starting point, which will give you more room so that you can walk faster. By moving faster to the line, your stride will be slightly longer. That extra pace to the line will get your lower body working while your upper body stays relaxed and ball speed will still increase.
Conversely, if you want to decrease your ball speed, move up a foot in your approach. Whether you’re using a four-step or five-step approach, your steps will be shorter and your pace will be slower.
Naturally, a byproduct of quicker/ slower tempo to the line is that your timing must adjust with the tempo, and that’s where the biggest misconception about adjusting ball speed comes in.
Prevailing wisdom suggests that in order to throw the ball harder you start the ball higher (lengthening your swing), and to slow it down you start the ball lower in your stance (shortening your swing).
By adjusting your tempo to the line, the opposite is actually true. Start with the ball about six inches lower if you want to increase ball speed, and start with the ball slightly higher if you want to decrease
ball speed. Confused?

Here’s how it works: By speeding up your tempo to the line, you’ve actually got less time to get the ball from your stance, through your swing and to the release point. Let’s say your normal swing takes four sec- onds from stance to release point. There’s a natural tempo, so your feet are instinctively going to keep track of that to keep you in your timing. Now, if you cut your swing to 3.5 seconds, your feet are going to move faster to stay in synch.
It’s all about the distance your swing travels. If you take a shorter swing, your feet automatically have to go faster in order to stay in time.
In essence, your feet have to move faster to make up for the lost distance in your swing. If your swing is longer, your feet have to move slower to maintain proper timing.
So, to increase ball speed, move back one foot on the approach and adjust the ball position six inches lower in your stance. To decrease ball speed, start one foot forward on the approach and position the ball six inches higher in your stance.
To a certain extent, the distance of your swing dictates your foot speed. Adjusting the length of the swing shorter or longer than normal will allow you to increase or decrease ball speed.
That can come in handy because often times you’re on the right part of the lane. Instead of moving left or right, adjust your ball speed to adapt to the changing lane conditions.
— Bryan O’Keefe is Assistant Coach and Facility Manager at the International Training and Research Center in Arlington, Texas.

Again, there are many ways to do this and Brian is one of the outstanding coaches in the US. Try it and see if it helps.

Bob

Here's a post I made to go with that.


There's a old book "Bowling: Knowledge is Key" by Fred Borden in it there's a part where he talks about "vertical placement" (Holding the ball higher or lower).

In it he talks about not holding it higher or lower to increase or decrease speed. But use it as a way of controlling arm swing timing to match the tempo of your feet movements. Raising the ball retards the arm swing in relation to the feet movement, lowering the ball advances the arm swing timing in relation to the feet movements

So Bowlers with a naturally fast tempo, hold the ball lower to match up with their footwork. Those with a slower tempo, hold the ball higher because it retards the swing.

Now if holding the ball higher retards the swing, that would mean it would be basically a longer, slower swing. And so the higher you hold it, the longer and slower the swing be.

Now if your trying to increase speed , using a longer and slower swing wouldn't help. You would wind up having to accelerate your arm through that longer, slower swing. Not only To make up for the speed you lost with the longer swing, but to get that extra speed you wanted in the first place. That would mean adding muscle to the swing, but muscling isn't something we want to do.

Now if you increase or decrease speed using foot work (as Bryan O'Keefe's article suggests). then using a lower ball height for faster and higher one for slower makes makes sense, because it's just matching up the swing timing with the foot work. Plus you can still have a free swing, with no muscles involved to increase the speed.

It just seemed to me that you could infer from Fred's idea above, that if you wanted to increase ball speed by faster footwork. You would have to hold the ball lower. And that is the basic idea put forth by Bryan O'Keefe's article. Increase ball speed by holding ball lower with faster footwork. Hold higher with slower footwork for slower ball speed. So to me it would seem to support Bryan's idea.

It's kind of a old idea, now new again.


But how do I find a default position?

The "default position" would be where you normally start off at and could be different for everyone.

Most of the time in bowling the classic starting point is with the ball at waist height, forearm parallel to the floor. You would then go from there, seeing if you need to raise or lower the ball in your stance.

[bowlingwebster]

Heres two old posts that might help



Here's a post I made to go with that.





The "default position" would be where you normally start off at and could be different for everyone.

Most of the time in bowling the classic starting point is with the ball at waist height, forearm parallel to the floor. You would then go from there, seeing if you need to raise or lower the ball in your stance.


Thats some great stuff. Ok now that is well said and makes sense for me. So faster foot speed, along with a low ball location would help me activate my lower body. That is exactly what I trying to figure out how to do without feeling like I was muscling or swinging harder with my arms. Im excited to take this into practice and see if I can get faster footwork with proper tempo, that I can start to see if my speed can pick up. Because im naturally athletic, but after reading that article, I did hold the ball higher with a fairly long backswing, and since i have a free flowing swing i didnt muscle it, resulting in my slow speed.

Im excited to try this out and crossing fingers I can at least get my ball speed up to 15 mphs and build from there.

Thanks for articles and help. All of this is great. Im also still searching for a coach, hate that they dont put their contact info in though.