Expert: - 11/20/2009

Question
Hello there, well I have been bowling in leagues over here in England for the past 3 - 4 years. I am planning on getting a new bowling ball soon and maybe some more training. The only problem is; where I bowl at the moment there seems to be a very high amount of oil and very little back-end (maybe between 6ft-10ft), I rev the ball a lot and my speed is quite high. I am finding that the ball starts to hook then skids near the pins, so was wondering on what ball to get or what style of drilling would compensate for the heavy oil and little back-end. I am currently using a 15lb Brunswick Speed Zone which is matte finish. I would sooner bowl from the left across with a strong back end reaction. I was looking at getting a Brunswick Ultra Zone, would this ball be any good for these conditions?

Answer
Ashley,
The Ultra Zone is a strong cover and core. Before recommending something, I'd rather know more specifically about your ball speed, rev rate, axis tilt and axis rotation. Has your local ball driller determined your Positive Axis Point? What kind of lane surface are you bowling on?

A strong rev rate would normally skid in heavy oil requiring the use of more surface (rougher cover) and possibly earlier rolling layout. Ball speed also usually needs more surface, especially if paired with strong revs. How is your ball laid out? Where is the pin (colored dot at the top of the weight block), center of gravity (CG), and weight hole (if you have one)?

What you describe could be the ball rolling out, over flaring, hitting some carry down (less likely) or some combination of the three. Pictures of the ball or video of you bowling would be helpful, but if you can provide more info at least, it would be helpful. With more info, I can begin to get a feel for what's happening now and what direction you might want to go. Thanks for your question.