Can Strokers compete?

[Evan]

This may be a dumb question, but the majority of bowlers I see are crankers and have huge angles on their break, while I release my ball on the second mark from the right. Is that a style of bowling that can compete with crankers? Not only do I not know how to put that much hook on my ball I like the way I bowl now but I want to be able to progress further with my average.

[StriKING]

Sure we can. I consider myself a Tweener, but if I had to lean to one side, it'd be "Stroker." I stand left of centerand generally throw to between the second and third arrow. My ball speed is relatively slow, generally 15.5 to 15.8 mph. I do not crank on the ball. My two fingers give it just enough axis on release to let the ball do it's job. I'm not much of a showman, but my game is effective. This past Thursday I bowled a 685 series. The two "Crankers" o nthe pair next to me had series of 663 and 650. So, the answer is yes, we can compete.

[Drano]

Look at walter ray and norm duke, they're out showing the crankers up. When you look at the list of people above 20-30 pba titles, the majority of them are strokers.

Of the top 20 pba title holders, only maybe 3 or 4 of them crank/cranked the ball

[bigbowler76]

I know a guy who averaged 163 for years and throws a plastic ball for every shot, and he has thrown a 300 game... I avg in the upper 190's and I have not....

If you can find a way to get your ball into the pocket in a fashion that you can consistantly repeat, you will be a good bowler.

There is an amateur bowler(tournament player) in the New England area that has one of the oddest approaches you will ever see. He has a stutter step in his approach and you would think he would be all out of whack at the foul line, but he has won several titles and holds state records and such....

Do what works for you... As long as you can do it again, and again, and again.....

[BowlingObsessed]

bowling is not a game of how but of how many, all you gotta do is knock the pins down how you do that is irrelavant but how effectively you can do that is relavant however

[mrbill]

I also see alot of big hookers try to throw a strighter line for better carry on some patterns.
Getting max rotation is great but if you can get to the pocket consistantly, your a winner...

[Beech]

when i bowled in the 2 tourneys i bowled in i was bowling better than some people who i know carry 220+ avg's, why because i threw a nice small hook, about 10-7 and break near the end, some those 220+avg people were all crankers (btw this was on the cheetah pattern), and they all left splits and i was hitting the pocket so "strokers" FTW :D

[ward845]

I think its better to learn to crank it,seems like most of the better players do. yes it is true norm and walter are great but if you go by numbers most of the better pros and professional amateurs crank it. Now most crankers when they go on tour have to tone their revs down but there tone down revs are about 380 rpm which is still high.

[Beech]

ya im praticing a tweener PoV this summer and might swtich over to it, so far im liking it

[threeripmin]

i think cranking the ball is way over rated. sure, it looks cooler but i think you can run into more problems. the high average bowlers in my house are far from crankers.

[Stormed1]

I was a cranker for years but have been working at becoming more of a stroker and it has opened up a ton of options as to where to play.

As far as the greater entry angles the cracnkers have you can create some of that with drill patterns. An angle to the VAL of 20 degrees will create the most angularity that any given ball is capable of.I drll for several rev challenged bowlers and we use 4 1/2 x 60x20 for length and snap

[WAC4504]

I believe a stroker has the advantage when it comes to adapting to lane conditions. And there are no extra points for the way the ball looks going down the lane, it's pin count only.

[Steven B]

You bet you can. Ever heard of straighter is greater? There are lots of conditions that you can score higher on than the "crankers" can. I don't have a huge hook, but mine is effective for me. I'm more of a tweener but I prefer the down and in shot! Good Luck!

[tracy]

i think the stroker is more consistant overall.i think that we can play more consistantly on different conditions than a cranker.

[JAnderson]

Yes - and there are times strokers** have a definite advantage just as at other times crankers** have a definite advantage. The ability to repeat shots is the best bet for high scores, regardless of physical style.

** There seems to be a general lack of agreement on what these terms mean in bowling today. To me, having a high rev rate does not make a bowler a cranker any more than a low rev rate makes a bowler a stroker.

[J Anderson]

Yes - and there are times strokers** have a definite advantage just as at other times crankers** have a definite advantage. The ability to repeat shots is the best bet for high scores, regardless of physical style.

** There seems to be a general lack of agreement on what these terms mean in bowling today. To me, having a high rev rate does not make a bowler a cranker any more than a low rev rate makes a bowler a stroker.

So Jay, how do you define the terms?
I think of crankers as staring way inside, sending the ball out toward the gutter, and getting a very sharp, strong hook into the pocket. Strokers play a more direct line to the pocket, usually starting the ball off outside and parallel to the boards or angled slightly toward the pocket.
John

[bowlerdawg]

crank for show, stroke for dough

[JAnderson]

For me, the terms cranker, stroker, tweener have nothing to do with:

Rev Rate
Line (swinging or playing up the boards)
Accuracy


Crankers can play up the boards with a low rev rate and pin-point accuracy. Strokers can hook the entire lane while hitting a different target on every shot. Tweeners can out rev crankers and have more accuracy than strokers.

Before I define the terms, consider a couple of current bowlers from the PBA tour: Ryan Schafer, Chris Barnes, and Mike Scroggins. I classify Schafer as a cranker, Barnes as a stroker, and Scroggins as a tweener. Generally Barnes has the highest rev rate, followed by Schafer then Scroggins.

I judge by a combination of (purely physical) swing and release style.

Strokers tend to have smooth swings and smooth, clean releases next to or even slightly behind the ankle. They can have lower rev rates like Brian Voss or higher rev rates like Michael Fagan or something in between like Pete Weber. Today, the players with the higher rev rates that fit this category are often called "power strokers". "Smooth" does not mean accurate. It is difficult to find an inaccurate player on the tour, so it is difficult to give a well-known example.

Crankers tend to have jerky swings with more moving parts (bent elbows, hands that change position from one place to another in the backswing, etc). There is large amount of effort in the release, again with more moving parts. The ball is released later, usually in front of the sliding ankel and the bowler tends to "hit up" on the ball or create a release action that looks like the ball is being launched from a shovel. Look at the tremendous effort Mark Roth (the classic cranker) put into his swing and release. Ditto with Ryan Schafer, Jason Couch, Eugene McCune, and even Walter Ray Williams at times. Though nowhere near as much effort as Roth, compared to many bowlers today, these bowlers often have later release points, put more effort and snap into the release motion, and have more complex swings with effort. These are all outstanding bowlers, very accurate, who can play up the boards as well as cover the entire lane.

Tweeners - well that should be easy enough to guess. Maybe it is a bowler that puts effort or some complex motions into their swing but have a clean, smooth release like Mitch Beasely or Tommy Jones. Or maybe it's someone with a clean, easy swing with a hitch in their release (me) like Ritchie Allen or Mika Koivuniemi.

[J Anderson]

For me, the terms cranker, stroker, tweener have nothing to do with:

Rev Rate
Line (swinging or playing up the boards)
Accuracy


Crankers can play up the boards with a low rev rate and pin-point accuracy. Strokers can hook the entire lane while hitting a different target on every shot. Tweeners can out rev crankers and have more accuracy than strokers.

Before I define the terms, consider a couple of current bowlers from the PBA tour: Ryan Schafer, Chris Barnes, and Mike Scroggins. I classify Schafer as a cranker, Barnes as a stroker, and Scroggins as a tweener. Generally Barnes has the highest rev rate, followed by Schafer then Scroggins.

I judge by a combination of (purely physical) swing and release style.

Strokers tend to have smooth swings and smooth, clean releases next to or even slightly behind the ankle. They can have lower rev rates like Brian Voss or higher rev rates like Michael Fagan or something in between like Pete Weber. Today, the players with the higher rev rates that fit this category are often called "power strokers". "Smooth" does not mean accurate. It is difficult to find an inaccurate player on the tour, so it is difficult to give a well-known example.

Crankers tend to have jerky swings with more moving parts (bent elbows, hands that change position from one place to another in the backswing, etc). There is large amount of effort in the release, again with more moving parts. The ball is released later, usually in front of the sliding ankel and the bowler tends to "hit up" on the ball or create a release action that looks like the ball is being launched from a shovel. Look at the tremendous effort Mark Roth (the classic cranker) put into his swing and release. Ditto with Ryan Schafer, Jason Couch, Eugene McCune, and even Walter Ray Williams at times. Though nowhere near as much effort as Roth, compared to many bowlers today, these bowlers often have later release points, put more effort and snap into the release motion, and have more complex swings with effort. These are all outstanding bowlers, very accurate, who can play up the boards as well as cover the entire lane.

Tweeners - well that should be easy enough to guess. Maybe it is a bowler that puts effort or some complex motions into their swing but have a clean, smooth release like Mitch Beasely or Tommy Jones. Or maybe it's someone with a clean, easy swing with a hitch in their release (me) like Ritchie Allen or Mika Koivuniemi.

I like your logic on this. Now if we could only get the 'expert' commentators to to stop using Walter Ray Williams and Mike Scroggins as their typical strokers;)