How To Throw A Bowling Ball Properly To Boost Your Score

If you haven’t yet bowled with total satisfaction, you’re missing out on the most beautiful game. It’s also one of the most accessible sports to learn, but it’s also one of the hardest to get good at.

To get a good strike every time, you need to know-how. You need to know how to bowl.

It’s not even easy to play. As soon as you see it, you can tell that it is hard to aim, balance, and carry the bowling ball. The only way to make sure you can hit a home run every time is to think about some things and practice.

So, let’s start by learning how to throw a bowling ball properly.

5 Easy Steps For How to Properly Throw a Bowling Ball

To throw a bowling ball correctly, you must follow a few steps and suggestions. Let’s see how these steps work.

1. Hold the Ball Properly :

Yes, the very first step is to hold the ball properly. Perhaps you’re thinking, who doesn’t know how to keep a ball properly?

Nearly no one who has ever bowled before knows how to hold the bowling ball properly. Remember that we are not discussing any ball here; we are talking about a bowling ball.

Now, we’ll discuss how to hold the ball properly. First, we must assist you in selecting the appropriate ball for yourself.

Yes, this is also important—you must consider both your weight and the size of your fingers when choosing the right ball for you. Otherwise, you would feel uneasy when bowling.

• The Ball’s Weight:

Your bowling ball should weigh 10% of your body weight in pounds as a general rule. According to popular belief, if you weigh 140 pounds, your bowling ball should weigh 14 pounds. However, the maximum weight of a bowling ball is 16 pounds.

As a result, if you weigh more than 160 pounds, you may need to settle with a 16-pound ball or create your own. You can certainly choose a lighter ball if you’ve had an injury. As you can see, the primary concern is your comfort. While not everyone adheres to this rule, it serves as a guide.

Accept whatever enables you to function at your best.

Read More: What Pound Bowling Ball Do Pros Use?

• The Hole-to-Finger Ratio:

The bowling ball has three holes, and you must insert three of your fingers into each of them. Each hole should reach up to the second knuckle of your fingers – neither more nor less. If it is overly tight, it won’t be easy to throw.

On the other side, dealing with it will be rather dangerous if it’s too loose. As a result, the holes should be perfectly sized for your fingertips.

• How to Properly Hold a Bowling Ball:

Two holes are adjacent to one another, and one is separate from the two. The two holes next to each other appear for your middle and ring fingers, while the other hole seems to be for your thumb. This provides you with the most significant amount of control over the ball.

2. Take a Position:

After securing your ball, you must first do the aim. Indeed, you must either stand behind the line or maintain contact with the bar with your left foot.

Stand in a position where, when you keep your palm on the ball, it stays precisely along the path you want it to take.

Maintain a vertical grip on the ball and position your thumb directly where you want the ball to go.

This is how you aim and prepare for the hit. You can swing your ball a few times to determine if you’re on track.

3. Swing Your Arm:

After you’ve positioned yourself—you know where you’re going, and you’ve aimed—the time it’s to swing. Now you must bring your arm backward. When you do, ensure that your arm remains straight.

There are two different sorts of shots. One type of shot is a straight shot, while the other type is a hook shot. To throw a perfectly straight shot, maintain a straight wrist throughout the bowling ball’s backswing and release.

To throw a hook, keep your wrist in its natural position. After then, you must make a forward swing toward your objective. And everything changes immediately.

The first thing you must ensure is that you are on the right track. You must direct your swing precisely where you intend the ball to go, exactly where you aimed. Because your reflexes should take care of it automatically, most of the time, practice is required to get this right.

Now, there are two possible outcomes here. You may choose to bend your wrist slightly or not. There appear to be two types of shots: straight and hook. The straight one will demand you maintain a straight wrist, while the hook will ask you to keep your current wrist position.

Both types provide different results, but all have the same objective—to strike. It would help if you found the most comfortable swing and produced the best outcomes.

4. It’s Time to Throw:

You’ve made it this far; it’s time to let go of your fear and the ball. It would be best if you first released your thumb. After that, as you approach the final point, you remove the other two fingers.

Ensure that you bend slightly; otherwise, the ball will drop onto the lane and slowly move.

This produces an unsatisfactory sound. Also, ensure that you release the ball along the line you’ve been aiming for since the start.

Another critical aspect to bear in mind when releasing the ball is follow-through. If you’ve ever played golf, you’re probably familiar with the concept of follow-through.

It ensures that your ball continues to move in the direction you desire until the very finish.

 When you release the ball, your bowling arm motion is equally essential. Indeed, a great deal is dependent on your arm swing.

After you release the ball, the direction of your final swing becomes the direction of the ball at the end of its journey.

You believe your job is complete when you let go of the ball. That is not entirely true. You must complete the swing you take.

Sure that you do not step over the foul line. Hooking a bowling ball is entirely dependent on your release.

This will direct the ball precisely where you desire. The likelihood is that you will not achieve happiness even if you repeat the entire method numerous times.

However, with continued practice, you will improve. As a result, the final step here is the one that will assist you throughout.

5. Stability:

There are numerous factors to consider when bowling. And, let’s face it, you cannot be aware of all of them and strike a balance from the start. As a result, you’ll need to do it one at a time.

For instance, you can begin by adjusting your grip. Repeat the exercise several times until you get it right. Second, you can concentrate on your backswing.

Not only find the one that is right for you, but also refine it. Thirdly, you can concentrate entirely on the forward swing and release.

And, among all of this, you must maintain a laser-like focus on aiming correctly and swinging toward your target. After numerous repetitions of the correct action, you will be able to find your balance.

However, it is natural to obliterate one portion of the throw while rectifying others; this is the problem.

It would help if you persisted in your attempts and practice to achieve your goals. Thus, strike a balance between all the right moves and continue training to improve.

How do I get the best result when throwing a bowling ball?

There are a few key things to remember when throwing a bowling ball. First, you want to make sure that you grip the ball correctly. Your hand should be centered on the ball, and your middle and index fingers should be inserted into the holes on the ball. Your thumb should be placed underneath the ball. fourth, your grip should be firm but not too tight. If you’re not sure if you’re gripping the ball correctly, ask a staff member at the bowling alley for help.

Second, you want to release the ball at the right time. The timing will vary depending on the type of throw you’re making, but in general, you want to release the ball before it reaches your hip.

Finally, you want to follow through with your throw. This means that you don’t just stop your arm when you release the ball – you continue moving it in a smooth arc until it reaches the end of its natural range of motion. By following these simple tips, you’ll be able to throw the bowling ball more effectively and score more points.

A Bowling Ball Curved With Two Fingers?

Curving a bowling ball with just two fingers is relatively simple. It’s simply impossible to manage it without putting your thumb in a hole for balance.

Twist your middle and ring fingers up and to the side of the ball as you release it to form a rather sizable hook with two fingers.

Some two-finger bowlers also experiment with wrist rotation. Take care, as there is a delicate line between rotating your wrist and painfully snapping it.

The most excellent aspect about bending a bowling ball with two fingers is that you can usually curve any house ball using this approach because the ball does not need to be drilled to fit your specific thumb for a good release.

One thing to keep in mind regarding your swing on a two-finger curve is that you won’t employ the same straight pendulum shot as you do on a standard hook. Due to the lack of support from your thumb, you’ll likely have to tuck your arm more and swing shorter.

Be cautious, as tampering with your swing mechanics can result in a wrist or hand injury if done incorrectly.

How Do Keep Your Hand Under Your Bowling Ball!

Unless you’re using a plastic spare ball, modern bowling balls, particularly high-performance ones, are designed to enhance hook potential. With that said, the great majority of the labor involved in hooking a bowling ball is in the way your fingers are released and rotated.

Your arm should remain straight throughout your shot to allow you to stay behind and beneath the ball. If you turn your entire hand prematurely at the release point, you sacrifice pin motion and overall back-end reaction on your shot.

To keep your hand beneath your bowling ball, guide your forward swing with your ring finger down to your release point. This forces you to hold the bowling ball in your body and under your ball until you reach the flattest part of your swing.

Your middle finger should be in the six o’clock position at the release point and should be fluidly turned to three o’clock as soon as you release the ball.

 By keeping an eye on your finger location and utilizing it to your advantage, you can maintain contact with your bowling ball and enhance your total hook potential.

Last Thought

As you can see, throwing the ball correctly is dependent on a variety of factors. Learning to throw a ball is not an easy process for a new player. Even before you hold the appropriate ball for you, there are a few things to consider.

Then comes the most challenging part: swinging your arm and releasing the ball. You’ll notice that the swing has several components, and you’ll need to work on each one. Even when you remove the ball, there are many considerations to make. Among all of this, your objective is the most critical.

Most importantly, you must practice ensuring that you get everything correct. Only practice will direct your ball in the direction you desire and cause you to feel the way you want.