Bowling Form Problems

[atambohmer]

Well, my friends mainly bowl without their thumbs. Like I said earlier, I do use my thumb, but I haven't been inserting it passed the first knuckle. Haha, and no, there isn't a great reason for it. It's just become a bad habit and I'm trying to get away from it and develop a more proper form, starting with inserting my thumb all the way, then making sure to use 4 steps and getting down the knee bend.

[75lockwood]

Well, my friends mainly bowl without their thumbs. Like I said earlier, I do use my thumb, but I haven't been inserting it passed the first knuckle. Haha, and no, there isn't a great reason for it. It's just become a bad habit and I'm trying to get away from it and develop a more proper form, starting with inserting my thumb all the way, then making sure to use 4 steps and getting down the knee bend.

could your span be off? if it doesn't come naturally to fully insert your thumb that is a little troubling, when you do properly insert your thumb, do your fingers reach the holes properly?

not inserting your thumb fully does explain why you tend to drop the ball on release, if get the thumb down you should have a lot more control

[atambohmer]

could your span be off? if it doesn't come naturally to fully insert your thumb that is a little troubling, when you do properly insert your thumb, do your fingers reach the holes properly?

not inserting your thumb fully does explain why you tend to drop the ball on release, if get the thumb down you should have a lot more control

No, the span is fine. I just developed a bad habit. When I cup my wrist with my thumb in all the way, I seem to lose the cup in my backswing, and I can only throw the ball straight. Would you suggest lifting weights and building up some more strength in my arm/wrist?

[billf]

Doesn't seem to be a very big league but it's a start. Are the lanes even oiled? What started the bad thumb habit? Either use it correctly or don't use it at all or it will mess with your progress. (before someone names the one pro that only three people on here have even heard of, stop naming the .1%ers as an example of what regular people can do).
To work on your swing just hold your ball in your hand and swing it back and forth. The less you muscle it the better your swing will be. Everyone's flexibility is different and affects the back swing height as does the amount of knee bend and bend at the waist.

[75lockwood]

No, the span is fine. I just developed a bad habit. When I cup my wrist with my thumb in all the way, I seem to lose the cup in my backswing, and I can only throw the ball straight. Would you suggest lifting weights and building up some more strength in my arm/wrist?

if your having trouble with holding your wrist there are wrist supports that can be used, but not cupping your wrist shouldn't remove all hook, sure you won't have the revs of a cranker, but you should still hook the ball.

try holding your wrist straight, can you hold this position through the back swing?

[atambohmer]

Doesn't seem to be a very big league but it's a start. Are the lanes even oiled? What started the bad thumb habit? Either use it correctly or don't use it at all or it will mess with your progress. (before someone names the one pro that only three people on here have even heard of, stop naming the .1%ers as an example of what regular people can do).
To work on your swing just hold your ball in your hand and swing it back and forth. The less you muscle it the better your swing will be. Everyone's flexibility is different and affects the back swing height as does the amount of knee bend and bend at the waist.

Okay, the bad thumb habit started from not having a coach and never learning the right way to hook the bowling ball. I just went off of what another student in my gym class said to do a couple years ago. I decided that I'm going to use my thumb correctly from now on, though. Bowling is an awesome sport, and I want to be able to do it right. I'm still filming most times I bowl so I can track my progress over time, and if I have any other concerns after figuring out the thumb issue and the knee bend, I'll be sure to post it on here. Thanks for all of the advice, everyone. I really appreciate it.

[75lockwood]

Okay, the bad thumb habit started from not having a coach and never learning the right way to hook the bowling ball. I just went off of what another student in my gym class said to do a couple years ago. I decided that I'm going to use my thumb correctly from now on, though. Bowling is an awesome sport, and I want to be able to do it right. I'm still filming most times I bowl so I can track my progress over time, and if I have any other concerns after figuring out the thumb issue and the knee bend, I'll be sure to post it on here. Thanks for all of the advice, everyone. I really appreciate it.

Bill's a Coach!


Just remember, if you want to work on something like this don't worry about the scores, i can guarantee that your scores will drop, but once you rid yourself of the bad habit your game will be better because of it!

[noeymc]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OoyRbBHXQOA

[atambohmer]

if your having trouble with holding your wrist there are wrist supports that can be used, but not cupping your wrist shouldn't remove all hook, sure you won't have the revs of a cranker, but you should still hook the ball.

try holding your wrist straight, can you hold this position through the back swing?

Yeah, I can hold a straight wrist position through the backswing. I can throw straight just fine without a cupped wrist. I guess I just don't know how to put a hook on the ball that way. Also, I might as well note that the backswing isn't a problem when I don't cup my wrist. I guess now I'd just like to know what I need to do to get the ball to hook stroker style without a cupped wrist. Thanks in advance.

[noeymc]

wont let edit but this is a good 4 step and 5 step video