My ball hooks well if I spin it like a top.

[Mad Professor]

Columbia Rock On! Tec2 Particle ball.

Long story short I'm trying to get back into bowling from being on hiatus for 8 years.

I haven't been able to hook my ball very well, was tempted to get a new ball. But I held off because I felt that I still need to find out why my ball isn't hooking.
So after so many practice sessions, tonight I think I found my hook, but it wasn't what I excepted.

Tonight was all you can bowl for 13$ 10p - 1a.

I bowled my heart out. My hand not so much.

Sometime around 11-11:30 the lights went out and UV lighting, crazy colorful light show and loud music started blaring while I was in mid-swing. During this time I had a "WHAT THE F***!?!?" moment looking at the lights not looking at the lane at all. My body took over and somehow I managed to get the ball on the lane but rode the edge of the gutter before it snapped and went into the pocket getting me a strike.

So I spent about 4 games enjoying the UV and lightshow and trying to recreate that hook but I couldn't see what my ball was doing. Eventually I did and it felt like curving the bullet in that movie "WANTED," for those that don't know what I'm talking about here's the clip from that movie.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XJTXpItCqFU

I kept repeating it despite the fact I couldn't see my ball rotation.

About 10 minutes before 1am on my last game. The normal lighting came on, and I saw what my ball was doing and it was rotating like a top as in left to right horizontal rotation. You can even hear it grind it's way across the boards. *Grinding, not rolling over holes.

I don't remember doing it like this but it seems to work. Tears up my thumb a little bit but then again I lost count how many games I bowled.


My ball below, is it even set up correctly? Fitted for a right hand.



Is it suppose to do this if "I" spin it like a "top?"

[Trex]

Columbia Rock On! Tec2 Particle ball.

Long story short I'm trying to get back into bowling from being on hiatus for 8 years.

I haven't been able to hook my ball very well, was tempted to get a new ball. But I held off because I felt that I still need to find out why my ball isn't hooking.
So after so many practice sessions, tonight I think I found my hook, but it wasn't what I excepted.

Tonight was all you can bowl for 13$ 10p - 1a.

I bowled my heart out. My hand not so much.

Sometime around 11-11:30 the lights went out and UV lighting, crazy colorful light show and loud music started blaring while I was in mid-swing. During this time I had a "WHAT THE F***!?!?" moment looking at the lights not looking at the lane at all. My body took over and somehow I managed to get the ball on the lane but rode the edge of the gutter before it snapped and went into the pocket getting me a strike.

So I spent about 4 games enjoying the UV and lightshow and trying to recreate that hook but I couldn't see what my ball was doing. Eventually I did and it felt like curving the bullet in that movie "WANTED," for those that don't know what I'm talking about here's the clip from that movie.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XJTXpItCqFU

I kept repeating it despite the fact I couldn't see my ball rotation.

About 10 minutes before 1am on my last game. The normal lighting came on, and I saw what my ball was doing and it was rotating like a top as in left to right horizontal rotation. You can even hear it grind it's way across the boards. *Grinding, not rolling over holes.

I don't remember doing it like this but it seems to work. Tears up my thumb a little bit but then again I lost count how many games I bowled.


My ball below, is it even set up correctly? Fitted for a right hand.



Is it suppose to do this if "I" spin it like a "top?"

Just by looking at the picture above, it looks like it is setup correctly for a right handed bowler. I don't know your span so I cannot tell if it fits your hand perfectly, nor do I know what your pitches should be, but just looking at the picture it looks to be about the norm. I can tell that by the thumb pitch that if measured by a Pro shop tech correctly that when you took the "coke bottle test" as I call it....or (by taking your right hand and gripping your left wrist) That your thumb was pointing towards your ring finger....If so then the thumb pitch would be correct.....But not for releasing the ball like a spinning Top!!!! Wow!! That might be a problem!! You might want to learn how to release the ball in a way that would not hurt your hand or wrist and would cause proper ball motion.

What I do see is that the Pin to Cg is 0-1" "This alone would be a good reason to buy a new ball in my opinion, unless you are happy spinning the ball like a Top ...Then it will be fine, but be aware that to release a bowling ball this way can hurt your wrist...especially if the ball weight is over 12lbs.

If the spinner release is the only thing that gets your ball to hook it might be due to the Pin to cg distance being what it is...or it could be the lane condition that is not allowing for proper ball motion even if it is released correctly...especially if it is an AMF center!!

AMF bowling centers that I have been to "do not oil the lanes properly", and or don't know how because AMF is too cheap to buy a decent lane machine and give the staff the proper training. AMF for the most part simply does not care.

With that being said you might want to try the ball you have at a Brunswick bowling center. Go at a time of day long before cosmic bowling when the lanes are decent...meaning they have not been bowled on very much, let's say early on a saturday morning...etc.

If you do buy a new ball....make sure the Pin to CG distance is 2.5 to 3.5 ..that would be the distance between the Pin and CG. This would be much better than what you have now, and would possibly work better for you. But Like I said if you are going to spin the ball like a top then don't waste your money...That type release makes the ball go straight for the most part!! It is how they bowl in Hong Kong or anywhere in Asia where that is the only way to get the ball down the lane due to the poor lane conditions from not oiling the lanes properly or often enough.

Hope this helps.

If you need any further help just ask the Mayor...he can recommend a ball for you that would work the best according to what you are wanting the ball to do, and that might work better than your current ball.