Grip strength?

[AngieHall]

Apparently I have been gripping my ball wrong. I have fingertip holes. I have been gripping equally hard with both fingers and my thumb. I just read something that said my fingers should be gripping harder than my thumb. I can't try this until league on Tuesday night.

My question is, did everyone know this but me? What kind of difference will there be when I change my grip strength? Will the ball hook more, hook less, no effect on the hook? I honestly have no clue.

[mc_runner]

You shouldn't really be gripping with your thumb much at all, it inhibits the free motion of it as it comes out of the ball (leading to inconsistent releases, as well as a risk of injury over repeated times).

It's more of an unconscious thing though, you can't really be "thinknig" about not gripping. As for what effect it would have - and this is totally an instinct call, could be wrong - I would guess that if you're having a free thumb release when you're used to gripping you'll see a lot of wide releases right (as a right) at first until you adjust.

Check around youtube, there might be some drills to help with the thumb so you're not going into league blind.

[Konvict1982]

From what I understand gripping with your thumb a.k.a. squeezing will cause blistering and joint pain over time as well as a tendency to tug the ball or inconsistent accuracy. Your thumb should fit snuggly in the ball so that you can swing it without squeezing. If you are worried about swelling causing your thumb to not be able to fit into the hole properly have the hole drilled slightly larger and use tape to adjust the hole to fit your thumb properly. I don't think it will effect the amount of hook you get so much as it will effect your accuracy in a positive way since your swing should become smoother and the ball will leave your hand cleanly.

[dnhoffman]

Thumb should be as loose as possible. No grip whatsoever. It goes into the hole last, and only works as a steering mechanism. The finger holes should be tight enough that you have to walk your fingers into them.

The thumb comes out first, and then fingers come through the ball to cause axis rotation onto the lane.

[zdawg]

When I first started bowling last year, my first night of bowling was also league night. I used a buddy's ball with a finger tip grip, and only stuck my thumb in halfway and gripped that sucker tight. I bowled like this for almost three months before somebody told me how you're actually supposed to grip/hold a bowling ball

[Konvict1982]

Thumb should be as loose as possible. No grip whatsoever. It goes into the hole last, and only works as a steering mechanism. The finger holes should be tight enough that you have to walk your fingers into them.

The thumb comes out first, and then fingers come through the ball to cause axis rotation onto the lane.

I have to disagree with this. The thumb should not be loose. If the thumb hole is too loose it cause you to squeeze the ball tighter throughout you swing. The best article I have found on the subject is one written by Ron Clifton which can be read here ...

http://www.bowl4fun.com/ron/btm04_files/btm4.htm

If you read the 4th section of ball fit and weight it specifically talks about thumb fitment ... The care and feeding of a thumbhole

If you keep reading the 5th section talks about how tight the thumbhole should be ... How tight should the thumbhole be? The very first sentence says it all ... "In my opinion, the thumbhole should be tight enough that you don’t have to squeeze the ball during the swing but not so tight that you have to really force your thumb into the ball."

It is a very good read so I hope it helps you.

[J Anderson]

I have to disagree with this. The thumb should not be loose. If the thumb hole is too loose it cause you to squeeze the ball tighter throughout you swing. The best article I have found on the subject is one written by Ron Clifton which can be read here ...

http://www.bowl4fun.com/ron/btm04_files/btm4.htm

If you read the 4th section of ball fit and weight it specifically talks about thumb fitment ... The care and feeding of a thumbhole

If you keep reading the 5th section talks about how tight the thumbhole should be ... How tight should the thumbhole be? The very first sentence says it all ... "In my opinion, the thumbhole should be tight enough that you don’t have to squeeze the ball during the swing but not so tight that you have to really force your thumb into the ball."

It is a very good read so I hope it helps you.

I don't think dnhoffman meant that the hole should be loose, just that the thumb shouldn't be gripping.

[fortheloveofbowling]

I prefer my thumb hole to be tight but that is my preference. The thing you need to consider also is the pitch in the thumb which even a 1/16 can make a huge difference. I made a change of that amount forward about 2 years ago and it made a big difference in relaxing my hand more. When that hand comes out of the ball you want it to be open and relaxed not a kung fu grip.

[dnhoffman]

I don't think dnhoffman meant that the hole should be loose, just that the thumb shouldn't be gripping.

Exactly. I didn't mean that... And I didn't state that either!

[Konvict1982]

Thumb should be as loose as possible. No grip whatsoever. It goes into the hole last, and only works as a steering mechanism. The finger holes should be tight enough that you have to walk your fingers into them.

The thumb comes out first, and then fingers come through the ball to cause axis rotation onto the lane.

Exactly. I didn't mean that... And I didn't state that either!

Sorry it isn't what you meant but you did say thumb should be as loose as possible in the very first sentence so you can see how it could be misinterpreted from what you meant.