Day 1 of Training, :(2 finger bowling)

[TheSheibs]

Do it at a pro shop. They would be your best bet on getting a ball drilled right.

[billf]

Plus building a rapport with your pro shop can have many advantages besides the fact usually by the time you buy a ball elsewhere, have it drilled, gripped and slugged it ends up costing more.

[J Anderson]

All my life I have been told lefties have a natural hook and don't have to work as hard to make it happen. I've never questioned it since I have caused a house ball to curve, which if I remember correctly are drilled in a nuturl(sp?) pattern. By that I mean that the finger holes are drilled the same size and the top of the finger hole and bottom of the finger hole are even. If I remember right house balls are drilled this way so that no matter what hand you bowl with, you can still use one. As the original poster of this thread stated: he can hook a house ball. Back to lefties having a natural curve. Think back to the 80s. We didn't have the cores in those ball like we do today that make it so that even someone new to bowling can make it curve. So you had to know how to throw it to get that hook. With a lefty, we start to notice the ball curving at an early stage in developing our bowling technique. You might not have heard it before because there aren't that many left handed people in the world, let alone that bowl on leagues. Next time your at your league count how many are left handed and then ask how long it took them to get the ball to curve. Also, I don't think anyone has actually done a study on it. Maybe one day I'll do a little research on the topic.

When I said that if the ball doesn't curve for you, it would be drilled wrong. I speak from a situation I cam across where the ball was drilled in such a way that the pin was above and centered between the finger holes and the oil ring(right term?) was going through my thumb hole and between my finger holes. When throwing it straight at the head pin I noticed(multiple times) that the ball would start to curve to the right but then go back to the left. When I showed it to another pro-shop I found out that it was conventional grip(what I wanted due to being how I've thrown for many years) and that he holes where drilled in a spot that the ball would only curve if you forced it. Therefore, the conclusion was it was drilled wrong for a lefty who used a conventional grip. Not saying that it is the reason for the ball to not curve but for a lefty who had no problem in the past and then switched to a heavier ball, how t was drilled was the problem. The pro-shop did suggest that I keep it for a spare ball. That's another Discusion though.

As for picking up spares. I have no problem throwing accross the lane to pick up the 7 pin or the 10pin. Most righties will use a spare ball and try to throw as straight as they can for the ten while standing in the same spot as their first ball. Please note that has been my observation made during league bowling and for all I know could be how they are taught in the Bay Area.

As for lane conditions. A right handed bowler has multiple people bowling on the right side of the lane. Which if the lanes are freshly oiled could have cause a poor bowler(right handed) to change the line to the pins and could affect how their ball breaks. A left handed person, goingwith the odds of another left handed bowler being on the same lanes, are more than likely the only left hander on that set of lanes. Therefore, a lefty can make a nice line to the pocket on the left side of the lane that would only be affected closer to the pines and after their ball has started breaking towards the head pin.

Please keep in mind that some of what I said are based on my own observations, not articles or statements made by any proffessional bowlers.

As for a ball. I have to admit that all of the new balls have cores that help a ball curve and keep the speed up. Most of the information on new balls are for a right handed bowler. I suggest asking around the pro shops to see if any of them are familiar with left handed bowling. Maybe even have them watch you bowl a game so they an make a good recommendation. I have a freeze hybrid with a fingertip grip that was just the set up and ball I needed to get my game back on track. I would imagine that a person from your local pro-shop would be able to make a good recommendation.

As for how I bowl. I have a four step approach, smooth fluid swing, ball starts to move on the second step, keeping my eye on the second mark from the left. I also hold the ball with my hand either on the side or 45 degrees to the side from the bottom. I start with a short first step too. I finish with letting the ball roll out of my hand and my thumb on top like I'm shaking hands. Once the ball passes my mark, I look at the pins.

I started bowling back in 1975 as the sixth man on a five man team. That is I joined the team to sub for someone who was out for two months after a hernia operation. After he came back we rotated with the low man sitting out, and everyone bowling at least two of the three games. Like Bowl1820, I have never heard of lefties having a natural hook. That said, I can only think of one lefty that throws straight. My original team had one lefty who threw a hook very much like Earl Anthony's. ( Started straight down the first arrow and broke toward the 1-2 pocket ) Most of us righties threw almost dead straight. We did have one righty who threw between the second and third arrows out to the five board and back.

It sounds like you use what Dick Ritger called a 4/3 approach. I watched a couple of Youtube clips of Earl Anthony teaching the 4 and five step approaches. Even though he was saying to push the ball out on the first step of the four step, and the second of the five, When he demonstrated, he didn't push the ball out. He just let the ball fall into the swing on the second or third step. I havent looked to see if that was what he was doing in his prime.

[TheSheibs]

I just had a thought for the creator of this thread.

That thought is more of a question. You are bowling with two fingers and let the ball drop away before you throw it. Have you tried two handed bowling? My thought here, with little knowledge about two handed bowling, is that you don't need to use your thumb since you are throwing with only two fingers in the ball. There would be less chance of your fingers getting stuck in the ball. This is just thinking out loud. If you want to give it a shot, feel free to.

[martinezsam2495]

I haven't used one, so I can't give you any personal opinion on it.

What ball do you use, if you release the ball with hook?

[martinezsam2495]

I just had a thought for the creator of this thread.

That thought is more of a question. You are bowling with two fingers and let the ball drop away before you throw it. Have you tried two handed bowling? My thought here, with little knowledge about two handed bowling, is that you don't need to use your thumb since you are throwing with only two fingers in the ball. There would be less chance of your fingers getting stuck in the ball. This is just thinking out loud. If you want to give it a shot, feel free to.

your information has been helpful ^.^
It is true I haven't met much left handed bowlers, and the ones who I have, can throw a good curve ball,

[martinezsam2495]

Plus building a rapport with your pro shop can have many advantages besides the fact usually by the time you buy a ball elsewhere, have it drilled, gripped and slugged it ends up costing more.

So I should go to my pro shop, and ask for a report for a ball I'm going to buy? Let's say the ball cost 130$ undrilled, what's a good estimate?

[GeorgiaStroker]

So I should go to my pro shop, and ask for a report for a ball I'm going to buy? Let's say the ball cost 130$ undrilled, what's a good estimate?

Not sure about your pro shop but most I've visited include drilling in the cost of the ball and charge extra for inserts and slugs. If you bring in an udrilled ball from an outside source they usually charge about $50 or so for drilling.

[martinezsam2495]

Not sure about your pro shop but most I've visited include drilling in the cost of the ball and charge extra for inserts and slugs. If you bring in an udrilled ball from an outside source they usually charge about $50 or so for drilling.

Can I go to find out my measurements for my fingers and all that? I want fingertips in there for the extra hook,
What are slugs?

[bowl1820]

What ball do you use, if you release the ball with hook?

Currently I use 4 balls
Rotogrip-
Nomad Solid for oil
Nomad Dagger for mediums

Storm-
Pyro for dry and shorter patterns

Columbia-
White Dot for spares and dry

I also have a Urethane ball, a org. Faball Burgundy Hammer

What are slugs?

www.youtube.com/watch?v=behRs4YrRUQ