So tonight I experimented with my backswing a bit

[zdawg]

Typically I have a very short backswing, for no reason other than I'm a beginner and since I started I've been holding the ball at or just under belt level (also I'm short not sure how much physical height has to do with this). Anyway, since tonight I was just practicing my approach I decided to start holding the ball somewhat higher, obviously this naturally increased my backswing as well. No added muscling or anything like that, but I noticed a LOT more revolutions (I think that's the term) on the ball. I also felt like I had a LOT more control over the ball and was more precise with my targeting than before.

Since my team isn't bowling again until after next week, I think I'm gonna play around a bit with this. But does this make sense? An increased backswing equals more revolutions and ball control? I'm thinking with the extremely short backswing I may be muscling it a bit as well, which I suppose would account for having less accuracy. Just wondering how the backswing would affect the spin/rev/hook. I'm still nowhere near PBA bowler backswings, or the scratch bowlers in my league, they go all the way back to at least shoulder level or higher.

[vdubtx]

A lower backswing could be keeping you out of timing resulting in muscling the ball at delivery. Having a good backswing without muscling it is imperative to accuracy.

How many steps are you taking and when do you start your push off? Do you push off or immediately let the ball get into swing? Check YouTube for a video that has Chris Barnes explains the 4 step and 5 step delivery. Check how he pushes the ball off on the 1st step of 4 delivery and from 2nd step of the 5 step delivery. This will help keep timing in check. I always go back to that video when I am slumping and need to get back down to basics.

Now for revs, not an expert but I don't think the back swing is going to give more/less revs. That is all in the hand position at delivery at the line and how your thumb and then fingers come out of the ball.

[e-tank]

It could be something else youre doing as a result of the higher backswing. I agree with vdub in that the back swing itself doesnt add revs, its all about hand postion

[noeymc]

why do you want to add revs is my first question

[zdawg]

A lower backswing could be keeping you out of timing resulting in muscling the ball at delivery. Having a good backswing without muscling it is imperative to accuracy.

How many steps are you taking and when do you start your push off? Do you push off or immediately let the ball get into swing? Check YouTube for a video that has Chris Barnes explains the 4 step and 5 step delivery. Check how he pushes the ball off on the 1st step of 4 delivery and from 2nd step of the 5 step delivery. This will help keep timing in check. I always go back to that video when I am slumping and need to get back down to basics.

Now for revs, not an expert but I don't think the back swing is going to give more/less revs. That is all in the hand position at delivery at the line and how your thumb and then fingers come out of the ball.

I'm using a 5 step approach, the first step being a small step like in the video you mentioned (I saw that about a week ago). I push the ball out in time with my right step (2nd step). As for the revs, maybe I'm just getting better at releasing the ball - I didn't know you were supposed to put your thumb all the way in until a few weeks ago, prior to that I was only putting it in to the knuckle and squeezing. Since then, I've been inserting the thumb all the way, but its taken me a little while to untrain myself from squeezing - the guys at the proshop have verified the thumb hole is the correct size and I'm getting less throws now where it "pops" off my thumb (as a result of squeezing).

[zdawg]

why do you want to add revs is my first question

I suppose I don't, necessarily. I really just was experimenting with a bigger backswing and the increased revs just sort of happened

[zdawg]

So I had a lesson with Mark Baker yesterday and one of the major issues he noticed was my backswing, or lack thereof. Due to poor mechanics, I had very little backswing whatsoever, so little that on most throws he noticed that I was using my shoulder and forearms to completely muscle the ball - this he explained is why I can start out the night throwing 18 - 21 mph strikes, and by the third game I'm lucky to get 12 - 14 and I have no idea where the ball is gonna end up, basically the muscles get tired and I lose any kind of accuracy.

He showed me how to increase my backswing to a point, I tend to carry a lot more muscle than the average guy (former athlete and amateur bodybuilder in my younger days) so my shoulder and tricep mass won't enable me to do one of those ridiculously high backswings you see a lot of the skinny pros/scratch bowlers do - but I was able to increase quite a bit using only gravity and it was a completely different feeling than I've had the last 9 - 10 weeks, it was like aha! that's how its supposed to feel. I suspect over the next couple of weeks a lot of the weird soreness I've been experiencing will subside as well.

[vdubtx]

Awesome, sounds like you had a good session. Will be interested to see what differences you see in a few weeks applying the things taught during the lesson.