Bowling ball Speed

[Peit71]

What is the best way to slow down the bowling ball. Right now I can't get much slower that 19 MPH.
I'm 6'4" and have been bowling for about 4 years.

[Jord_84]

change up the height you start out holding your ball. When I want to go slower....I hold my ball at hip height instead of chest height. I also slow down my approach in general.

[jmainville]

also depending on how many step approach you have, i went from a 6 step to a 5 step to slow my speed down.

[MH1313]

a bit +1 to Jord,

she is right on. I typically need to throw as slow as possible so I will start my approach with the ball below my waist, my push out matches my first step, then I go through the motions from there.

good luck!

[Peit71]

Thanks Everyone, I will try doing both

[JAnderson]

change up the height you start out holding your ball. When I want to go slower....I hold my ball at hip height instead of chest height. I also slow down my approach in general.

Assuming the bowler is allowing the ball to swing freely from the shoulder, that's perfect advice. With a free arm swing, the bowler lets gravity do the work. Thus, like a pendulum, the higher the point from which the ball is dropped into the swing, the higher the back swing and the faster the ball speed. The lower the drop point, the lower the back swing and the lower the ball speed.

If everything else is the same, when using this method, for every inch the bowler lowers the ball in his/her stance, the bowler should also move his/her starting position forward an inch on the approach. A shorter approach helps get to the line slightly quicker to make up for the shorter swing.

If the bowler in question is using muscle to swing the ball, height of the swing make little or no difference.
The bowler will simply need to use less muscle.

The number of steps taken will only affect ball speed if the feet are being used to generate speed and the greater number of steps are used to create momentum. The best two examples I can think of in this area are Norm Duke and Jason Hurd. They both use a free arm swing, but Norm is quite short, so the height of his back swing is limited. When Norm wants to throw it faster, he gets his feet moving and creates momentum. The number of steps or the starting point on the approach doesn't change (he's all the way back) but the speed of the steps changes. Jason Hurd throws an above-normal ball speed and uses a short approach made up of slow, small steps. However, he's a taller guy, so he uses a free, high arm swing to the best benefit to generate ball speed.

So if the bowler is using faster footwork to increase ball speed, the bowler can move starting position closer to the foul line and slow the feet down, without increasing or decreasing the number of steps, and obtain the same result.

[Hammerguy529]

I'd like to point out that Im glad I found this thread, Im having quite the opposite issue, and upon thinking of my approach, I can try to hold the ball higher before moving towards the release. Thanks!