About Russ King Expertise 21 years in drilling balls,9 years running Pro Shop,cure grip problems,Fix approach problems,coach handicaped bowlers, certified coach instructor, coach Crankers,Tweeners,Strokers,Ex Ball Tester,A Mechanic on Bruswick machines,B Mechanic on AMF,Resurfaced lanes (Wood),change oil patterns for different ball reactions to train & test on.Hints on ways to clear/relax your mind on the lanes.
Experience American Bowling Congress 32 yrs.,PBA 20 yrs., I learned from 3 Ball Drillers & then, develped my own styles of drilling.I EXPERIMENT ALL THE TIME (THE BEST WAY TO LEARN!).
Question i'M A RT HANDED LEAGUE BOWLER AND RECENTLY I'VE NOTICED THAT WHEN I RELEASE THE BALL MORE AND MORE I HAVE THE PROBLEM OF ROLLING OVER MY THUMB HOLE. I'VE TRIED CHANGING THE TIMING OF MY RELEASE BUT IT WOULD SEEM THAT EACH ADJUSTMENT THAT I MAKE WILL CAUSE THE BALL TO ROLL OVER THE THUMB HOLE EARLY PART OF THE LANE OR 1/2 WAY DOWN THE LANE. IT HAS ALSO COME TO MY ATTENTION FROM THE TRACK LINES THAT ASIDE FROM THE THUMB HOLE I ALSO SEEE IT OVER THE FINGERTIP HOLES. ANY HELP U CAN SUGGEST WOULD GRATELY APPRECIATED.
Answer Changing timing & messed up timing can cause hole rolls.Probably it is your hand position at the release point.
While standing on the approach,try to change your hand position & lock it into position all the way thru the approach & release.Like change your thumb point (on a clock face)from 12:00 noon to say 12:30 1/2 hour intervals until you get a different roll.You can even go a little further (but this may cause a flying elbow)caulk your hand a little.Line up your pointing finger so it is straight in line with your arm.Allways keep your arm in close to your side.
I did see a person who rolled over the holes bending his elbow never locking it at release. This can cause flying elbow & can cause hole roll.Lock your elbow as the pushaway starts down & keep it locked thru the release.Follow thru past your head.Do not cut it short.Follow thru should go beyond your line of sight up to the sky.Don't flop your wrist. Your wrist should be locked into position as you stand there on the approach all the way thru the release into the follow thru.
On the outside, it maybe the balls surface being too soft & the heads of the lanes where the ball first comes in contact gets way too much friction & takes all the energy off the ball making it roll out.If you are throwing a (sponge) a very soft dull surfaced ball , this can happen.There is a quick way to see a difference in this. Get some car wax & put a few coats(Turtle wax)on the ball buffing it out to a semi shine. This will give you a temp.shine to see if this is the problem.Do this in a practice game not in league.
The last this it could be is the thumb pitches (angle of the hole).If you are fighting the angle of the pitches,your thumb comes out at the wrong angles creating a bad roll.
Try some of the adjustments of your hand/arm first. Those you can change back fast. The thumb hole will need plugging & redrilling is more permanent.
