Drifting Right - A Unique Approach

[RobLV1]

Many traditional right-handed bowlers find that they tend to drift to the right when changing lane conditions dictate that they move left to find more oil. I have posted a new article on my website entitled "Faux First Step," in the physical game section at www.Modern-Bowling.com. The article introduces a unique technique to help bowlers to keep their feet going in the correct direction.

[MICHAEL]

Many traditional right-handed bowlers find that they tend to drift to the right when changing lane conditions dictate that they move left to find more oil. I have posted a new article on my website entitled "Faux First Step," in the physical game section at www.Modern-Bowling.com. The article introduces a unique technique to help bowlers to keep their feet going in the correct direction.

ONE thing I have noticed, in my case, is when I start my move left to get back in the oil, my entry does change into the pocket! Good you would think, right?

It goes in JUST A LITTLE Shallow, and doesn't carry well. leaving splits, or single pins. It takes some of the snap movement out of the ball. I usually go back to the position I started at, and try chancing speed, increasing it, then my accuracy many times goes to heck!!

I don't drift one way or the other, that I am aware of,,, I focus on my approach. I do seem to have the above problem of carry when I start moving left.

Can you help me Rob? Anyone else have that Carry Problem after making a move?

[RobLV1]

I don't know what your rev rate is, but if it in the lower range like mine (270+), you might try changing your mindset about ball changes. Most bowlers assume the ball changes involve balling down to keep from moving too much, but those of us with lower rev rates can often benefit from going to more aggressive balls as we move left. Since more aggressive equipment hooks earlier, it covers more boards and helps to keep the same angle to the pocket as you move left.

[Amyers]

ONE thing I have noticed, in my case, is when I start my move left to get back in the oil, my entry does change into the pocket! Good you would think, right?

It goes in JUST A LITTLE Shallow, and doesn't carry well. leaving splits, or single pins. It takes some of the snap movement out of the ball. I usually go back to the position I started at, and try chancing speed, increasing it, then my accuracy many times goes to heck!!

I don't drift one way or the other, that I am aware of,,, I focus on my approach. I do seem to have the above problem of carry when I start moving left.

Can you help me Rob? Anyone else have that Carry Problem after making a move?

Iceman you may not be getting enough angle to the right if you don't bump it up against the dry farther down the lane the ball can just slide and not roll you want to keep it in the oil for a while but its got to come out to roll and hook back to the pocket. I struggle with this when i get mote than half way between the third arrow and the forth.

[Aslan]

Dangit. I can't get it to open for some reason. Probably my stupid company IT security or something.

I used to make adjustments right to get a better angle into the pocket. But that was at a higher speed on wood lanes. Now that I use the lanes more and the oil more...I usually don't adjust right unless the lanes are so slick I am struggling to get back into the pocket and missing way right. It was a LOT easier to adjust right when the outer 6-7 boards were bone dry. On synthetic lanes with wider oil patterns...when you only have 1-2 boards of moderately dry...its a lot harder from what I've experienced.

I'll try to read the article when I get home.

[MICHAEL]

I don't know what your rev rate is, but if it in the lower range like mine (270+), you might try changing your mindset about ball changes. Most bowlers assume the ball changes involve balling down to keep from moving too much, but those of us with lower rev rates can often benefit from going to more aggressive balls as we move left. Since more aggressive equipment hooks earlier, it covers more boards and helps to keep the same angle to the pocket as you move left.

HUMMMM My go to ball is the Deadly Aim,,, on the ( new to me), Brunswick Lanes! NOT sure why but the Byte has much more kick then the Deadly Aim, ( hokey stick type movement)

I like the control and predictability of the Deadly AIM,,, but IF I do have to move left, I might try the Byte next time to see what happens. That just might work!

Thanks for the advice,,, makes sense?

[MICHAEL]

Iceman you may not be getting enough angle to the right if you don't bump it up against the dry farther down the lane the ball can just slide and not roll you want to keep it in the oil for a while but its got to come out to roll and hook back to the pocket. I struggle with this when i get mote than half way between the third arrow and the forth.

ANOTHER GOOD point! I know I had that incredible day, with the Byte, on Storm Demo Day! playing far LEFT, shooing between 4 and 5 arrow!

It went through the oil and made a beautiful hokey stick type of movement to the pocket.... like you said it need to stay in the oil and conserve energy, then when it hit the dry, it made a massive perfect flip toward the pocket. ((PERFECT angle and great carry))!

That ANGLE was a new one for ME! I kid you not it was one strike after the other on 4 different lanes! My new byte is drilled the same as the one they had that day. ( as close as possible that is,, we took measurements ect.) It has its moments, but it just to damn flippy!

If I do have to move, I might try what Rob said, and then try more angle with the Byte, and see if it does its thing like it did that DEMO DAY!

Bowling is one hell of a sport, with lots of different ways to approach situations that need to be addressed, depending a LOT on your style of bowling!

[RobLV1]

I was bowling yesterday near the high end of a 60 lane center. Lanes 57-60 are notorious as they are directly in line with the hallway that leads into the bowling center from the casino. I was on 57-58, and a good friend of mine was on 59-60. He has a high rev rate, and can play pretty much anywhere on the lane, though he bowls primarily on house shots, so he is not real familiar with more radical adjustments. I saw that he was struggling, so I suggested that he move further left which he did, and found a pretty good shot between the fourth and fifth arrow. Before too long, I noticed that he left an 8-10 split, so I quickly explained the Dead Zone to him, and suggested that he move further left with his feet, and keep the ball inside the far tracer at 10 board. It worked pretty well for him. My point is that once you understand what is going on with ball reaction, you can usually figure out a way to move in to get the job done.

Depending on your rev rate, you can sometimes go to a more aggressive ball with a lower rg to utilize the free hook that exists in front of the Dead Zone, or, in your case, Michael, you may be able to utilize the higher rg of the Byte to use the dry area past the pattern if you stay further inside down the lane. Probably the most common error that house bowlers make when they try to play deeper is to keep trying to swing it out to the same spot down the lane that everyone else has been playing and totally destroyed. Often times as we move more inside, we have to move our entire line inside. Once you can learn to do that, it becomes apparent that you don't need an incredible high rev rate to play inside lines.

Make sense?

[Amyers]

I was bowling yesterday near the high end of a 60 lane center. Lanes 57-60 are notorious as they are directly in line with the hallway that leads into the bowling center from the casino. I was on 57-58, and a good friend of mine was on 59-60. He has a high rev rate, and can play pretty much anywhere on the lane, though he bowls primarily on house shots, so he is not real familiar with more radical adjustments. I saw that he was struggling, so I suggested that he move further left which he did, and found a pretty good shot between the fourth and fifth arrow. Before too long, I noticed that he left an 8-10 split, so I quickly explained the Dead Zone to him, and suggested that he move further left with his feet, and keep the ball inside the far tracer at 10 board. It worked pretty well for him. My point is that once you understand what is going on with ball reaction, you can usually figure out a way to move in to get the job done.

Depending on your rev rate, you can sometimes go to a more aggressive ball with a lower rg to utilize the free hook that exists in front of the Dead Zone, or, in your case, Michael, you may be able to utilize the higher rg of the Byte to use the dry area past the pattern if you stay further inside down the lane. Probably the most common error that house bowlers make when they try to play deeper is to keep trying to swing it out to the same spot down the lane that everyone else has been playing and totally destroyed. Often times as we move more inside, we have to move our entire line inside. Once you can learn to do that, it becomes apparent that you don't need an incredible high rev rate to play inside lines.

Make sense?

Playing the inside is not like playing the outside. On the outside your more limited with what you can do with your lines. Outside your basically throwing the ball over 5 or over 10 and that's it.

When you move in to the 3rd or 4th arrow things change. It becomes about the break point of the ball not where it goes over the arrow but where it ends up adjusted by how open your hips and shoulders are.

You can throw over 17 between third and 4th arrow and keep it inside say a break point of 14 and the ball will just kind of skid then make a small flip at the end in to the pocket or you can open up put your breakpoint out to 5 and watch it roar back to the pocket.

It's important to practice both different conditions can make one better than the other. There are a lot of games I target the same area the entire series and just change my angles of attack as the lanes change.

[MICHAEL]

I was bowling yesterday near the high end of a 60 lane center. Lanes 57-60 are notorious as they are directly in line with the hallway that leads into the bowling center from the casino. I was on 57-58, and a good friend of mine was on 59-60. He has a high rev rate, and can play pretty much anywhere on the lane, though he bowls primarily on house shots, so he is not real familiar with more radical adjustments. I saw that he was struggling, so I suggested that he move further left which he did, and found a pretty good shot between the fourth and fifth arrow. Before too long, I noticed that he left an 8-10 split, so I quickly explained the Dead Zone to him, and suggested that he move further left with his feet, and keep the ball inside the far tracer at 10 board. It worked pretty well for him. My point is that once you understand what is going on with ball reaction, you can usually figure out a way to move in to get the job done.

Depending on your rev rate, you can sometimes go to a more aggressive ball with a lower rg to utilize the free hook that exists in front of the Dead Zone, or, in your case, Michael, you may be able to utilize the higher rg of the Byte to use the dry area past the pattern if you stay further inside down the lane. Probably the most common error that house bowlers make when they try to play deeper is to keep trying to swing it out to the same spot down the lane that everyone else has been playing and totally destroyed. Often times as we move more inside, we have to move our entire line inside. Once you can learn to do that, it becomes apparent that you don't need an incredible high rev rate to play inside lines.

Make sense?

Yes that does make sense! That demo day, ( I swear I will NEVER FORGET), it was a huge First for me! Up to that point I had always playbed the outside arrow 10, standing with my right foot at 15.

Storm Demo DAY:

There were a lot of people throwing on the 8 lanes that Storm had reserved, and it lasted 4 hours. I started out throwing the outside like usual, but as the day proceeded, it became apparent to me that the balls I was throwing were going left using my regular marks that have given me some damn good game up to this point in my limited bowing years. ( Hey just started bowling at 62, what a WASTE MY LIFE HAS BEEN, that I waited that long!)

A friend said try throwing that Byte inside ,,, showed me where to stand, and aim between 3rd and 4th arrow for a start!

MAGIC!!! PURE MAGIC!! It was crazy how well THAT BYTE worked at that NEW angle, and target. I KID YOU NOT, it was strike after strike, on 4 different lanes, so I know it wasn't just a good pair of lanes suited to me!

I think one of the things I LOVE MOST about Bowing is this: Its can be very simple and fun, (cosmic bowling), or it can be every bit as challenging as a game of golf. So many adjustments to be made, and knowing how, and when to make them to maximize your score.

Knowledge, as has been said many times is POWER, and that power translates into being a better bowler. Thanks Rob for you time!