Expand your arsenal without any new equipment

[GoodGravy]

Great discussion!!!

If you buy into the hype, you will think that you do need every ball on the market to bowl well.....just a testament to the unmitigated over-consumption of the American Bowler (of which I can say I am a proud member!)...

My two biggest go to adjustments: Ball speed and hand placement. I have found that a 1 inch movement of my pinky finger (tight on my ring finger or spread out) makes a significant difference in the motion down lane. Also, my 'go to' adjustment on the fly is ball speed. A 1 foot break early or break late adjustment down lane could be the difference between a 160 game and a 240 game....as evidence by what happened to me last week at league! I was throwing the ball past my break point in my first game, only changed my speed--slowed down--- and threw 10 strikes in my 2nd game. Didn't change balls, position or anything else, just speed.

And yes....still working on the right 3 ball mix....a work in progress....

[GeoLes]

I have to give a report on what I learned. I took my strongest ball - Raw Hammer Jacked - reactive resin cover stock that grabs lane all the way to the pins. It was difficult to keep the ball off the brooklyn side until I tucked both pinky and index finger in with broken wrist and dialed-down wrist position. This produced a full roller with less hook.

Now when I hit the pocket I often left splits. Not a problem because the object was simiply to adjust in order to get the ball on the right side of the pins. I learned a lot about this ball release. If i roll that exact ball through 3rd arrow it cleanly picks up the 3-10 split. I was even able to easily pick ut the 5-10 split simply because I knew the ball's path. I also just missed a 2-8 split by a hair the same way. ( I was a tad heavy on the 8 pin.)

I have heard bowling being compared to golf, only with invisible sand and water hazards - requiring the same kind of adjusment as golf course management demands (more roll, or spin, hook, flat or fade, etc.) Now I really see it. What lesson I learned.

[Tampabaybob]

Ray & George...... It's great that both of you have found out that very small adjustments can really come in handy when you need them. If and when you shoot tournaments, large or small, you'll be running into patterns and lane oil breakdowns that will require some quick thinking as far as what type of adjustments to make. These "tricks" are just that, things that you can pull out of your bag of tricks to overcome just those types of situations. You know darn well that the guys on tour face the same problems from one week to the next and they have to make the same kind of decisions and adjustments that we all need to do. The guys you see each week on TV are the smart ones that knew how to overcome those adversities and come out on top. Good job for both of you, don't forget what you've learned, and by all means feel free to pass them along to your ten members as someday, you might be in a title match and your team member may need some advise to overcome a situation they're facing. (just don't tell your opponents - LOL !!)

[GeoLes]

I have enhhanced respect for the pro bowler. i made adjusments that eventualy found the pocket with mixed results (splits and pinleaves). They seem to make the adjustment and find both the pocket and strike zone virtually all the time.

My best day on a THS will never compare with their profomance on the most demanding lane conditions.

[Tampabaybob]

That's very true, and those guys have run into the same types of problems we all do, the exception is they know WHEN to change almost immediately. Lane conditions are like the weather.....if you don't like it, wait a minute, because it's gonna change !!