help with drifting

[nomad1721]

If not i put too much concentration on not doing it. I then have trouble hitting my mark.

[RobLV1]

If you are having trouble hitting your mark when you don't drift, then there's a good possibility that you are either standing on the wrong place on the approach or using the wrong target. If you are squared up to the foul line, your mark at the arrows shouldn't be more than about eight boards from your starting point. In other words, if your mark is at ten board, and you are playing squared up to the lane, you shouldn't be standing left of 18 board on the approach.

[fortheloveofbowling]

Excellent points from Rob on the targeting and feet at the line. It is imperative to be consistent with your approach in regards to your finish spot. So many people really don't pay attention to that and wonder why they hit their mark 2 frames in a row and the ball ends up in a different spot down lane. Something that everyone should do is record yourself with a close angle of your finish position and determine where the middle of the ball is as it crosses the foul line next to your ankle. I know that i drift pretty consistently 2 boards left except for like rob when i get inside then not at all. In addition, i know that the middle of the ball is 7 boards from the middle of my foot at the foul line. If my foot is on 15 i'm going to cross the line at 10 and if my foot is on 20 i'm going to cross 15 etc. So when i line up i know where the ball is going to be when it crosses the foul line. This is very important to be aware of because then you can visualize a line for the entirety of the lane, see your launch angle options, and be confident of what you are doing. If you become aware of these things i can assure you it is an advantage as most bowlers don't pay attention to that.

[Aslan]

I worked on drifting in practice yesterday evening and these are the results:

My drift was: 1R, 1R, 1.5R, stuck, 1.5R, 3R, 1L, 3R, 2R, 0, 3R. Game 2 was 2R, 2.5R, 2.5R, 1.5R, 2.5R, 2R, 1R, 1R, 1R, 2.5R, 1.5R.

# = boards
R= Right (of starting position)
L = Left (of starting position)

Generally during those two games I was standing left toe on 22-23 targeting around 11 (at the dots). That puts my right toe at about 2-3 boards right of the left toe (roughly center) and if the ball laydown point is 7 boards right of that then the laydown is roughly on board 13. For those that use arrows rather than dots...it's 1.5 to 2 boards difference so lets say laydown is 13 and the ball crosses 11 at the arrows. So that seems in line with what Rob was saying of trying to be within 8 boards of your starting point (starting about 20 and targeting 11 (at the arrows)).

As you can see...my drift is almost ever present and is remarkably consistent (average = exactly 1.5 boards right).

The questions are "why" and whether it's "bad". One school of thought is that as long as it's consistent...it doesn't matter that much. Another line of thought is that sliding right inhibits opening up your angles. It's also a potentially bad thing because it makes it more likely that you'll hit your ankle with the ball (which hurts like MAD).

Part of me thinks that I'm drifting because subconsciously my body wants to square up to the foul line and throw a straight shot...but when I'm too far inside...my target too far right...my body needs to adjust and it subconsciously moves right so it can square up to the foul line. Another theory is (also subconscious) that my mind isn't confident I can open up my angles...so the further left I move, the more my body wants to get back to the right and close that angle down.

So I don't know. Good? Bad? At least it's data. This is why we practice right??

[Amyers]

Where is the drift occurring.? Is it just the cross over on your slide or are you drifting during you approach?

[billf]

Nine months later and no update. Evidently not that important.

[RobLV1]

I worked on drifting in practice yesterday evening and these are the results:

My drift was: 1R, 1R, 1.5R, stuck, 1.5R, 3R, 1L, 3R, 2R, 0, 3R. Game 2 was 2R, 2.5R, 2.5R, 1.5R, 2.5R, 2R, 1R, 1R, 1R, 2.5R, 1.5R.

# = boards
R= Right (of starting position)
L = Left (of starting position)

Generally during those two games I was standing left toe on 22-23 targeting around 11 (at the dots). That puts my right toe at about 2-3 boards right of the left toe (roughly center) and if the ball laydown point is 7 boards right of that then the laydown is roughly on board 13. For those that use arrows rather than dots...it's 1.5 to 2 boards difference so lets say laydown is 13 and the ball crosses 11 at the arrows. So that seems in line with what Rob was saying of trying to be within 8 boards of your starting point (starting about 20 and targeting 11 (at the arrows)).

As you can see...my drift is almost ever present and is remarkably consistent (average = exactly 1.5 boards right).

The questions are "why" and whether it's "bad". One school of thought is that as long as it's consistent...it doesn't matter that much. Another line of thought is that sliding right inhibits opening up your angles. It's also a potentially bad thing because it makes it more likely that you'll hit your ankle with the ball (which hurts like MAD).

Part of me thinks that I'm drifting because subconsciously my body wants to square up to the foul line and throw a straight shot...but when I'm too far inside...my target too far right...my body needs to adjust and it subconsciously moves right so it can square up to the foul line. Another theory is (also subconscious) that my mind isn't confident I can open up my angles...so the further left I move, the more my body wants to get back to the right and close that angle down.

So I don't know. Good? Bad? At least it's data. This is why we practice right??

If you have improved your drift that much, you are doing remarkably well, considering that you were all over the map just a month ago when I worked with you. One clarification is in order though: sliding right is not a bad thing, in fact it is very helpful in projecting the ball from left to right for playing inside lines. What is bad is walking right that brings your release over the top of the ball and prevents you from projecting it. Many, many modern bowlers actually walk a little left (around the ball) and slide back right to their original starting position. This allows you to keep behind the ball and still project it from left to right.

[Aslan]

Where is the drift occurring.? Is it just the cross over on your slide or are you drifting during you approach?

The other good thing is that the drift tends to occur only on the slide.

As Rob mentioned...I was drifting more back in September...I think it was as bad as 6 boards. Then I got it down to about 5....but it was consistent and on the last step. Now I've gotten it down to 1.5-2.5.

[Amyers]

The other good thing is that the drift tends to occur only on the slide.

As Rob mentioned...I was drifting more back in September...I think it was as bad as 6 boards. Then I got it down to about 5....but it was consistent and on the last step. Now I've gotten it down to 1.5-2.5.

If it's just on the slide I wouldn't worry about it beyond checking periodically to make sure it doesn't get that large again. If I'm playing more outside (which is still inside to you) say 12 to 8 I do that too. If I'm playing farther in left of the 3rd arrow I tend to walk farther left and slide back more and am typically where I started to 1-1.5 left of where I started. As long as your not drifting while stepping blocking the swing path it's not a big deal.

Being able to vary your approach I'm finding is more and more important as you try to play more inside angles

[fokai73]

Some of the old school teachings that I learned years ago, I still carry with me in my wallet of bowling tips. This is one - the drift.

If you can find an article or video of Dick Ritger on this subject, it may give you a basic idea on how to understand drift. To drift or not to drift, that is the question? lol

If your drift varies, then seeing a good coach will identify why you drift. It could be one or three things in your physical game that's causing you to drift.

Likewise, if you drift 1 board left or right, or even 5 boards and you repeat it, it's not always a bad thing. I walk 1 to 1, unless my heel is 0.5 to 1.5 boards positive or negative. Once you understand your drift more, that'll be one thing you don't have to think about and you can just bowl.