Going back to bowling with a thumb!

[Bigdad_e875]

Hello all, i have been bowling for quite awhile, but have taken the last few years off, mostly due to frustration. That frustration being my inconsistency of bowling with no thumb. I originally bowled with a thumb, but like many, i wanted to learn to hook the ball, and that wasn't happening with the equipment i had at the time. When i got my first reactive fingertip ball and started to attempt throwing a hook, i got nowhere fast. After trying and trying, i eventually ended up throwing with no thumb and finally got the hook i wanted, and have been throwing that way for about 10-12 years. I have heard a few reasons by people that have watched me bowl (when using my thumb )and think most of them are right. Most of what i have heard is that i throw to hard, although i dont completely think so. When i decided to get back into the game, i stopped in and talked to a highly recommended guy at a local pro shop. He is telling me that most of my problem was that my ball was never fit right, and the balls that i was previously told were good choices for me, just wasn't aggresive enough due to throwing style and ball speed. I recently went to the lanes to try practicing with my thumb in the ball again, but it wasn't a ball fit for me, just trying to get the feel of things as far as release. My wife did take a short vid on her phone and i figured out what i believe most of my problem is. Even though i feel as though i am releasing with my hand behind the ball, the vid reveals that my hand was almost completely on top of the ball. No matter what i tried, it didn't seem to matter, same release issue. I would like to mention that i broke my wrist as a kid, so i wonder if this is a wrist strength problem and wonder if a brace may be the answer. I have been told by some, that if i am able to cup the ball to throw with no thumb, that my wrist should be strong enough otherwise. So after all that rambling, my question is, does this sound more like an equipment issue or a physical one..or a combination of both? One last thing, i was recommended by this pro shop that the Hammer Plague would be a good fit for me. I ended up ordering one and should get it Wednesday and get it drilled on Thursday or Friday. Thanks in advance!

[gparks]

hello ,i too have wrist/hand issues and thought i needed more revs/hook. i never went the no thumb route,i just adjusted my line and accepted the fact ill never have a massive amount of revs on the ball.over the summer i played in my first pbax league and somewhere i found more revs and learned to slow my ball speed down.

along with the lower ball speed i was told by my pro shops guys my timing is the reason i'm getting more revs. they are correct about ball fit, since i found the awesome guys @score more pro shop here in missouri.release issues are a thing of the past.

as far as your hand on top of the ball on release without seeing a video of ya rolling myself or others cannot help there.but you need to get away from that it would be all top spin and no forward roll in that position. good luck and let us know how the new ball works :)

[Bigdad_e875]

I am definitely looking forward to getting my new ball drilled on Thursday or Friday and seeing what it brings. I was just thinking alot about all the time that i have rolled with a thumb with no hook, and wondered if all that time it could be because of my previous wrist injury, or just a fit issue all along. I guess time will tell, i know i am looking forward to getting my game back on track, thanks!

[kev3inp]

I got into a bad habit of breaking my wrist back in a league where there was no, and I mean no, oil and couldn't seem to stop. I'd swear I wasn't doing it, too, until I saw it on tape. Lucy Sandelin, a silver level coach in the Tampa area, recommended a Torbo bulldog wrist support and I've been very happy with it. And I can remove the top part closest to the hand for spare shooting where I want wrist break. Someday I hope not to have to use it, but, for now, it works.

[Bigdad_e875]

I finally got my new ball yesterday and had it drilled today. I have only rolled a couple games so far, but i can definitely tell that part of my problem before was a fit issue. The guy that did it really did a nice job, the ball fits so nice and really comes off my hand smooth as silk. As far as hook, well i ended up having to start on the approach with my left foot on the third dot from the right, and shoot for the second arrow. This gave me more of a gradual arc then the snappy hook that i was used to before with no thumb, but its a start and the first time i hooked a ball with my thumb in the ball. The pro shop guy told me he thinks i need a wrist brace like a Robby's Rev, mostly just to train my wrist and to help get more revs on the ball. Overall i am happy with my first time out with the ball, and hopefully it gets better.

[Bigdad_e875]

Over the weekend i went back to my pro shop guy so i could try out a wrist brace that he recommended, the brace he recommended is the Moro Pro Release. All i can say is, wow what a difference, i was finally able to get the hook out of the ball that i was hoping for. It still isn't as drastic as when i rolled without my thumb, but it is close, and much easier to repeat. He believes i just need it as a training aid for awhile, which is what i am hoping for. I rolled a dozen or so games over the course of the weekend, and my scores were already much more consistent, which was my main struggle before. For the first time in along time, my game is finally improving and i am extremely happy so far.

[ffemtreed]

Good Job on getting your thumb back in the ball. I been bowled thumbless in H.S. and College because I screwed up my shoulder playing hockey and couldn't have a back swing. Now 10 years later I am trying to get back into bowling and I am having a really really really really hard time learning how to bowl with my thumb in the ball. I just can't get the release down at all.

All summer long I bowled with my thumb in the ball and never got any hook and averaged only around 110 or 115. When my league started in Sept I went back to bowling without my thumb in league and I average around 180. I even throw all my spares with no thumb and I can hit the 10 pin 8 out of 10 times.

My big problem now is that bowling thumbless has put a LOT of strain on my wrist and it hurts a lot to bowl. My average has been decreasing slowly for the past few weeks because I can't throw the ball with the speed I used to.