Thumb Savers??

[mattmc82]

I used to wear the actual thumbsaver, which is like a little glove. That was just until I unlearned the conventional grip. Bowlingball.com has them for like 7 bucks I think

[Phonetek]

Everyone else is covering the taping option so..

If your having to squeeze all the time then you should have your grip checked. (Span, Pitches etc.). Note too much forward pitch can cause you to hang, also if you add forward pitch you should adjust (shorten) span also.

Verbatim from the IBPSIA Fitting Manual:

" It is essential to adjust the span when changing forward or reverse pitch".

1) For the fingers, the span adjustment is 1/16” for each 3/8” pitch change.
2) For the thumb, the span adjustment is 1/16” for each 1/4” pitch change.
3) All adjustments should be made off of a good base grip.

You could be knuckling (Thumb is bent in the hole), that can affect how you clear the hole. Make sure to keep your thumb straight with the pad side flat pressed against the wall of the hole. Make sure you have the proper size and shape hole.

Now if your squeezing just before your release, that's called "Grabbing". What is Grab?

When you are in your stance, on a scale of 1 to 10 with 1 being a feather grip and 10 being a death grip what is your number?

Let's say your grip is a 6 for sake of discussion. Then 6 has to be maintained throughout the swing and release. If 6 turns into 7, 8, 9 or 10 at any point throughout the swing or release - that is grab and will cause problems.

The grip span was recently redone when he repaired the ball a couple weeks ago. When I throw the ball I try to mentally scrape the thumb hole with my thumb nail so the thumb isn't bent. I THINK I am doing that but I still may be re-gripping like you said because I know I was doing that right when I got the ball back. When I throw the ball I hear the pop sound and feel a slight tug. That makes me think I am re-gripping still if I hear that pop. To answer Ameyers: No I'm not getting blisters or callus on any part of my hand.

I guess I will start with the tape that was suggested to see if that solves it. If not I'll do the drills suggested. If all else fails I guess I can have the thumb opened up more or have it reslugged and made oval. I appreciate all the suggestions guys, I'll probably bowl again tomorrow

[Amyers]

The grip span was recently redone when he repaired the ball a couple weeks ago. When I throw the ball I try to mentally scrape the thumb hole with my thumb nail so the thumb isn't bent. I THINK I am doing that but I still may be re-gripping like you said because I know I was doing that right when I got the ball back. When I throw the ball I hear the pop sound and feel a slight tug. That makes me think I am re-gripping still if I hear that pop. To answer Ameyers: No I'm not getting blisters or callus on any part of my hand.

I guess I will start with the tape that was suggested to see if that solves it. If not I'll do the drills suggested. If all else fails I guess I can have the thumb opened up more or have it reslugged and made oval. I appreciate all the suggestions guys, I'll probably bowl again tomorrow

Don't be afraid to change those pitches a little it's not terribly expensive to slug and redrill the thumb to change it took 4 or 5 tries before I got mine right for me. I would try the tape and give it some time before I did that though.

[djp1080]

Phoneman, I left this sport for about 30 years and brought back with me probably all of the bad habits I had from then. Also, I probably developed several more bad things that didn't allow me to make use of gravity in my swing and a straight swing without grabbing at the ball. My guess is that you likely had a reverse pitched thumb hole early on and you had to squeeze your grip tight to hang on for dear life when you were bowling. If that's the case (or something similar), you'll have to teach your body and mind that grabbing at the ball is not a good thing. The change won't come quickly believe me. Doing the foul line and the one step drills should get you going in the right direction more quickly. The tape suggestion is just an insurance policy to help you along. This is not the fix. It's a treatment to cover the cause. Fixing the cause is to practice not grabbing the ball at the release. Hope this helps... Good luck...

[Phonetek]

Don't be afraid to change those pitches a little it's not terribly expensive to slug and redrill the thumb to change it took 4 or 5 tries before I got mine right for me. I would try the tape and give it some time before I did that though.

I agree, it's a cheap fix. I'll try the tape first since we have it at work, I confirmed today that we had it when they called me in to work. I honestly didn't feel much like bowling after work though, still a little sore from last night. By tomorrow I should be good to go again.

Phoneman, I left this sport for about 30 years and brought back with me probably all of the bad habits I had from then. Also, I probably developed several more bad things that didn't allow me to make use of gravity in my swing and a straight swing without grabbing at the ball. My guess is that you likely had a reverse pitched thumb hole early on and you had to squeeze your grip tight to hang on for dear life when you were bowling. If that's the case (or something similar), you'll have to teach your body and mind that grabbing at the ball is not a good thing. The change won't come quickly believe me. Doing the foul line and the one step drills should get you going in the right direction more quickly. The tape suggestion is just an insurance policy to help you along. This is not the fix. It's a treatment to cover the cause. Fixing the cause is to practice not grabbing the ball at the release. Hope this helps... Good luck...

I hear what your saying, it's difficult to come back after a long hiatus and be what you were. All and all I'm pleased with myself, I'm really not doing all that much wrong. I'm shooting some darn good games, at least 90% above 200 on up to one 279 since January so I can't really complain.

When I don't shoot over 200 it's usually because I was either overdoing it or overdid it the day before. It's my gauge to stop bowling. I can't get it into my head I'm 46 not 26. The only bad habit I seem to have is what's going on with my thumb. When I first came back I wasn't posting my shot and was frequently off balance at the line. I've since remedied that.

I'm sure I'll remedy this too before long, it just got me frustrated last night. I have a much cooler head today. I have no problem doing drills, adjusting pitches and using tape. Whatever it takes I will fix this. I ordered my Rip'd today from my PSO. It's gonna take a couple weeks to get though because he's gonna let me make payments on it. I think a ball from this century and a pound lighter will help me a little too and I'll make darn sure if it takes 10 times to get the grip right that I'll do it. Thanks everyone for your excellent suggestions.

[Blomer]

My thumb swells to much and then it shrinks. Last ear I switched to Switch Grips and it’s the best thing I have done. No worries about tape in ball, tape on thumb. HAve two of each size so I can have one in strike and spare ball. Best decision ever!

[Phonetek]

So I threw 4 games last night with my son and I only hung up in it twice. Strange to say the least but it felt great and I bowled extremely well. I don't know what changed. I just got off work and I spent a good hour doing a repair on a lane, maybe I had the right amount of lane oil on my hands or something? LOL I'm not gonna worry about it though, when I get the new ball next week I'll probably get a pitch adjustment. I'll play it by ear and see how it goes. I thought we stocked the hada tape, we have every kind but that. Go figure.

[TCJ]

The best thumb saver I've come across is removing the thumb. For years when I bowled one-handed I always struggled with the right feel for the thumb. It would stick, it would slip, then it would feel right. Then the next game the thumb would swell a bit and I've have to fiddle with the tape all over again. I'm very happy to not have that problem anymore. There's got to be an art to keeping the thumb releasing smoothly and I never picked it up properly (and no, I didn't bend my thumb!).

I do have a friend who will always use the thumb tape. I have to admit that I have never, ever, ever seen him have a day in which he has problems with his release. It seems that it is always smooth. He never sticks, he never drops.

[bdpeters]

I don't have anything to add helpful but I wanted to say thanks to Phonetek for bringing this up and everyone else for all the great answers. I can see that I could use this info in the future.

[Phonetek]

I don't have anything to add helpful but I wanted to say thanks to Phonetek for bringing this up and everyone else for all the great answers. I can see that I could use this info in the future.

LOL You're very welcome.