Expert: - 11/21/2007

Question
My grandson is going to bowl on a school team this year.  He is brand new to bowling.  What type of grip is best to start off with conventional or fingertip.  He is 12 years old and its a 12 pound ball.  Thanks

Answer
You mentioned your grandson is 12, but didn't say what he weighs? I usually start out new bowlers at about 10% of their body weight or more. Is your grandson at least 120lbs? Did your local pro shop operator recommend the 12lb ball?

As a new bowler, especially a bowler still growing, I'm a big fan of the conventional grip. As your grandson becomes more consistent, using his own ball, he'll benefit from the ease of control.

The fingertip is a performance grip. Starting out with a performance grip, adds one more element effecting his learning curve and the frustration level of trying to gain new skills and unlearning bad habits and muscle memory.

One of my sons still uses a conventional grip, he is out of college, and out hooks most bowlers, including me!

I'd also suggest a more basic ball. The demanding cover and core of a shiny plastic ball goes very straight on most lane conditions. It's demanding because if you can hook a plastic ball, as my son learned to do around the age of 7, you can hook anything.

Ball speed comes into play here, too. The harder you throw, the harder it is to get a ball to hook on anything but the driest lanes.

Good luck to your grandson. Hopefully he benefits from the over 6 million dollars of college scholarships that were available in 2006 and growing. Happy Thanksgiving.