|
So, just getting back into bowling here. Used to bowl in leagues when I was a kid. Have pretty good form, somewhere between a stroker and a cranker. Currently using a 15 or 16 pound Ebonite Evolve bowling ball. I need to double check the weight I think it might be 16 though. Anyways, I'm decent enough, could probably carry a 165+ average in league if I practiced more. My issue is, after bowling 3 games, for the next couple days, my hand/wrist will be extremely sore/tight. Basically starting from the tips of my two middle fingers and following down straight through my wrist. I'm not sure if the ball is too heavy and I need to move down to maybe a 14(what do most guys throw nowadays anyways?) or there is something with my form/release. Anyone got any ideas what could be going on?
|
#
¿
Jan 18, 2012 20:40
|
|
|
|
| # ¿ Apr 23, 2024 18:21 |
|
|
Went and bowled 4 games at lunch today. Yay for BOGO bowling and working 5 mins from an alley! Anyways, was around 175ish all 4 games. I just can't seem to get a comfortable grip on the ball it seems. It is a 15pnd ball. It feels like I have to really grip the ball to hold onto it, and that puts a lot of stress on my thumb where it bends. I don't feel the numbness up my wrist yet, but there's definite numbness in my thumb and the top joints of my fingers. Unfortunetly the pro shop didn't open till 1 and I had to be back at work so I'm gonna hafta go a little bit later tomorrow and see what he thinks. Maybe the length between thumb/fingers isn't long enough, or maybe I just need to move to a 14pnd ball.
|
|
#
¿
Jan 19, 2012 18:54
|
|
|
Went to a different alley today and talked to the guy in the pro shop to see if he had any ideas what might be going on. I told him what was happening and he took a look at my grip and said, throw a piece of tape in your thumbhole and if that doesn't fix it come see me and I'll watch you bowl. First game with piece of tape was a 227! So, ya, just needed a piece of tape to help my grip better and that seemed to help a lot. Threw 4 games total, 227-159(was super hungry, ate after this game), 190-219. So, much better improvement over yesterday. I managed to record my last game too and I'm gonna edit it down and post it if anyone wants to check it out.
|
|
#
¿
Jan 20, 2012 20:39
|
|
|
Zahgaegun posted:Do it! Uploading it now and I'm gonna edit all out the dead air time, there was old peoples leagues goin on so I had some slowish people next to me. Gimme like 30 minutes and I should be done.
|
|
#
¿
Jan 20, 2012 21:06
|
|
|
Alright this took forever to edit in iMovie, on my freaking phone so you guys better watch it! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-bPjt0L3g9o This is my 219, 4th game of the day, 8th game in 2 days. I was kinda tired at this point and I somehow deleted one of my strikes in the 10th, but, there I am. Critique, comments, should I just give up now?  I'm using like I said an Ebonite Evolve and it is a 15pound ball I weighted it the other day. Also, it takes less than 5 minutes to bowl a complete game, lol. mattfl fucked around with this message at 23:08 on Jan 20, 2012 |
|
#
¿
Jan 20, 2012 23:04
|
|
|
Pander posted:Looks like you're not getting much of a backswing. It doesn't look like a very natural, pendulum swing. Makes your bowling motion seem a bit jerked, lots of stress on the arm. No wonder your tendons are getting tired after a few games. My average speed is between 14-16. I'm using a 4 step approach now and I seem to be taking the ball back about when my third step is coming down, so doesn't seem like much time to have a good backswing and then put the ball onto the lane. Maybe I'll experiment with a 5 step, or bringing the ball back sooner in my approach.
|
|
#
¿
Jan 20, 2012 23:49
|
|
|
Pander posted:Really? Wow, looked 17+ on your strike release. Figured it was a 4-step approach. I do a 4-step too, and I'm usually bringing the ball back on mid-step-2. Well, this lane didn't have the mph setup or something. Yesterday when I was bowling it was between 14-16. However, it felt better today so maybe it was a bit quicker. Think I'll goto the lanes tomorrow and experiment with different approaches, more steps, changing when I start my back swing.
|
|
#
¿
Jan 21, 2012 00:07
|
|
|
Critical posted:Ok, couple things I'm noticing. And before I go all super critical you actually look not that bad and a couple fixes will get you a lot more consistent. Thanks for all the advise! I will definitely be trying all those things today. I think my base comes from bowling since I was about 5. My dad has been bowling for 25+ years and always had me and my brother in leagues when we were kids, I wish I would've kept with it through high school. All those things seem pretty straight forward to fix, hoping to join some leagues this spring with him so thanks again for the advise!
|
|
#
¿
Jan 21, 2012 12:48
|
|
|
You guys like video right? Cuz here's some more! Ok so I went to a different alley this morning because the one I went to yesterday was booked with leagues until 9:30 tonight! The other ones only 10 mins away so no biggie. Here you can watch me throw 4 in a row. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dkMHJxuD6Tw I can see a noticeable difference in everything I did today, and the results were much improved from yesterday. Scores constantly above 190 every game. Things I did/concentrated on today. 1) Having a smoother ball motion. I forced myself so that when I made my first step with my right foot I pushed the ball out and started my back swing a lot earlier than I was. Result - Smoother and bigger backswing, increased ball speed. I've been in the 14-16mph range, today I was 18-20mph. This allowed kept me on balance for just about all my shots. I wasn't falling off to the right immediately after releasing the ball today. 2) Starting farther back on the approach. I was starting on the dots closest to the pins, today I tried starting farther back. Result - Smoother approach, this seemed to give me more time to get a nice pendulum back swing going, increasing the speed and allowing me to better hit my target. 3) Keeping my elbow behind the ball. Result - Ability to hit my targets better. The lanes were completely different at this alley, my ball wasn't moving nearly as much as it was yesterday, my first game I had 0 opens, but I couldn't find the pocket for poo poo. But just keeping my elbow behind the ball, I was able to hit my targets to pickup all my spares. 4) Finding the right fit for my thumb hole. Went to 2 pieces of tape and my grip felt even better and I have very little pain in my hand/wrist/arm area today. Now, the only thing I had a problem with today, and I'm not sure if it's because of the 13 games in 3 days. But my slide leg, my whole quad was in pretty bad pain after the 4th game and for about 30 minutes after I was done bowling. I'm not sure if it's because I've suddenly put all this extra stress on it, or what, but that poo poo sucks man. Anyways, I'm gonna rest for a day or two, and probably go at lunch sometime next week for some more practice. It's nice to go and make changes and see results right away though. Thanks again for everyone's advise!
|
|
#
¿
Jan 21, 2012 18:34
|
|
|
buffto posted:As for the whole balance thing, one thing I do (and a lot of the pros) is I intentionally walk from right to left. Not a lot, just 5 boards or so. This puts the momentum of your body towards your posting leg instead of away from it, making you less likely to fall off to the right. Some coaches will tell you to step into your shot, meaning to take your last step to the right. I suppose it's a personal preference thing. Just something to think about or try next time you bowl. All I know is that 5 or so years ago I went to a 5 step approach and started walking right to left and it made a huge difference in my bowling. You know, I used to do that, and didn't seem to have the balance issue. I don't know when I stopped doing it, but, I'm going have to try that. The g/f wants to go tomorrow, so, I'll give it a shot I guess. Will be going to another alley tomorrow, I think there's 4 alleys within 20-25 mins of me.
|
|
#
¿
Jan 21, 2012 19:48
|
|
|
buffto posted:Lucky. I have one in my town and then 3 others 30-40 min away. Mid Missouri isn't exactly the epicenter of bowling. There used to be one like 10 minutes from me, on the river, but they tore it down like 4 years ago to build condos.  The condos were never built and now there's a big empty spot.
|
|
#
¿
Jan 21, 2012 20:04
|
|
|
So I have a problem, I just ordered a sweet 2 ball roller bag from bowlingball.com (which is based out of my town, hello 2nd day shipping for free!) and yet I only have one ball. So I'm pretty sure I need to order a new ball. So here is where you guys recommend me something!
|
|
#
¿
Jan 24, 2012 17:20
|
|
|
PendingForaBending posted:It depends on what you already have. Its good to have a change of pace ball for sure. But like the above poster said, a good spare ball goes a long way and is generally dirt cheap. Right now I have an 15 pound Ebonite Evolve. I would like something a little different, or change of pace as you say. I know the Storm Nano series of balls are highly rated as are the DV8 Hell Raiser balls. So many dam choices, wish there was a way to test out these balls before I buy one, kinda like you can hit golf clubs before you buy.
|
|
#
¿
Jan 24, 2012 23:34
|
|
|
Went today at lunch and concentrated more on not falling off the shot and hitting my spot better. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dewL40GSLjE Slowly but surely I can see improvement in my overall form
|
|
#
¿
Jan 31, 2012 20:40
|
|
|
Devo posted:Pro shops don't sell at internet prices, but if you buy on the internet it's going to cost you anywhere from $50 to $100 to drill it at the shop. So keep that in mind while you're pricing things out. I was in my local pro shop yesterday asking the same thing. I too want a DV8 Hellraiser or a Storm Nano. He said he really can't compete with online stores at all, but he said by the time I order it and bring it in for drilling vs him ordering it and drilling it I would only be saving $10-20, so, there's that. However, one of the other pro shops in town is owned by bowlingball.com. I'm going to go check them out today or tomorrow and see if they match their online price and what it would be to get it from them.
|
|
#
¿
Feb 1, 2012 13:12
|
|
|
Going to the local pro shop today that's owned by bowlingball.com to pick out a new ball. Probably from the DV8 or Storm line. Hopefully they won't be busy and can maybe drill it today.
|
|
#
¿
Feb 3, 2012 12:56
|
|
|
Yay new ball! So went up there and picked up the Storm Frantic. Loving it so far! The pro shop guy really knows what he's doing too. When he was measuring my span he took a look at my old ball and noticed right away the span wasn't right. Said it was way to small and that's why I was having issues with the ball. Drilled up the Frantic right and 20 minutes later I was using it. Wow what a difference the correct span makes! He also came down and watched me bowl for a bit and was giving me some very very good pointers which helped immensely. Told me to slow way down in my approach and to cut the ball out of my hand a little later in my release. Immediate improvement when I did those things. Also, this ball hooks pretty dam hard. He watched me a few times and then mentioned the lanes were completely soaked in oil, the only line I was getting good results with was putting it inbetween the 1st and 2nd arrow and letting it come in from there. When I hit that spot, the ball hit hard and destroyed the pins. A few times I put it out to far, almost along the 1 and 2 boards and it still came back right in. Can't wait to try this ball out on properly oiled lanes. I've got some video I'll post up in a bit of a few shots. All in all, I paid $149 for the ball and drilling and the awesome advise he was able to give me it was definitely worth it. This alley is doing a demo day in March and recommended I come to it to throw some higher end balls that really hook as he sees my next purchase sometime down the road to be one of these balls. $20 and most of the manufactures will have their balls there. If you buy a ball you get $20 off, if not you get a $15 gift cert for the pro shop. So basically it's gonna cost $5 to bowl for a few hours with some of the nicer balls out there.
|
|
#
¿
Feb 3, 2012 20:36
|
|
|
PendingForaBending posted:Shot 728 last night, 236-247-245. My grandfather gave me a bunch of his old bowling equipment and I've been throwing his Track Nuke for the past couple of weeks and have been killing it. I had to slow down a bit to get the right reaction out of it but it hits so well. My team has been killing in league and were taking a big lead in first place now. It's pretty amazing how old equipment still holds up and can be used. My dad has been using the same Wizard(I think? It's purple and I think Wizard is the name on the side) for probably close to 10 years now. Averages 200+ in league and has thrown a sanctioned 300 game with it. He wants to get a new ball this year, but is in no hurry. Not many other sports where you can use equipment designed 10 years ago and still be competitive.
|
|
#
¿
Feb 14, 2012 18:55
|
|
|
Thom P. Tiers posted:No, but he did go batshit crazy Hey, me and ole Petey use the same ball! That means we're BFF's right?!
|
|
#
¿
Feb 27, 2012 19:24
|
|
|
So, I've finally signed up for my first league! Starts May 1st. Will be bowling with my dad who carries a 225 average and 2 other guys who are 200+ averages. I'm going to shoot to hopefully carry at least a 175. My question is, should I pickup a spare ball? Right now I have my Storm Frantic and my Ebonite Evolve(needs to be redrilled, not using at the moment). Should I pickup a cheap plastic ball and start practicing spares with it? How many of you guys use a dedicated spare ball?
|
|
#
¿
Mar 2, 2012 15:24
|
|
|
So I wanted to post a new updated video of me bowling. You'll remember a month or 2 ago I posted some videos and got some great advise. Well I've been practicing a lot lately and start a league with my dad who has been bowling 20+ years May 1st. So this was the first video I posted Horrible form, falling all over the place, muscling the ball, rushing up to the line, pretty much everything you could do wrong I was doing. http://youtu.be/-bPjt0L3g9o And here is a 223 I shot today. Got a different properly fit ball(still need to have the Evolve from the first video redrilled), form is improved, not really falling everywhere, smoother backswing and follow through and nice and slow up to the line. http://youtu.be/MkoPLr-UYB0 I was freaking robbed on the 7th shot with that dam 7 pin as well Feel like I've mad a ton of improvement and all my practice games are in the 175+ area with a 235 I bowled last week. Can't wait to start league!
|
|
#
¿
Mar 24, 2012 23:06
|
|
|
Kouerson posted:I bowl 5-pin, how ostracized am I here? I still haven't gotten up to a 200 average, so I'm still learning. I remember when I moved from florida up to canada. I had bowled for a good 5 years down here and was excited to bowl again after I moved up there. We get to the bowling alley and it's a 5 pin alley and I'm like, what the gently caress is this!? I had never ever seen it before. You get 3 shots to knock down 5 pins, and the pins are on strings and the ball is a little bigger than a croquet ball?? I only bowled a few games and never really did it again. It was a completely foreign concept to me and after bowling 10 pin since I could remember, 5 pin just didn't do it for me.
|
|
#
¿
Apr 25, 2012 00:00
|
|
|
I have a question. Yesterday me and my dad went to get in some practice before our league starts next week. My normal approach is my feet are between the 1st and 2nd dots nearest to the foul line and I put my ball anywhere between the 3rd and gutter and it'll come back into the pocket. I'm throwing a Storm Frantic ball. Well my first couple balls I tried my normal approach and according to my dad the lanes were pretty much without oil, extremely dry because my ball would hook just about all the way across the lane. I adjusted and moved my feet to the left of the center dot and was putting my ball out towards the 2nd/3rd arrow but I just could not get a consistent line to the pocket. I didn't feel too bad because neither could my dad and he told me that the lanes probably wouldn't even get that bad during league, although by the 3rd game they are going to be pretty dry. What's the best way to shoot in a situation like that? I've been consistently in the 210+ everyday on normal lanes and was barely breaking 175 on these dry conditions. Is a different ball in order or should I be throwing more straight at the pocket on extremely dry lanes?
|
|
#
¿
Apr 26, 2012 13:10
|
|
|
Devo posted:I'm not up on my balls but I'm assuming the Frantic is a medium to heavy oil ball? If you want to keep throwing that on torched lanes then you need to move way left, target near the center arrow, and swing it out to wherever gets you near the pocket. On a typical house shot that's been burned up like that if you swing it too far it'll come screaming back harder than before. Your other option is to switch to something with a coverstock that goes real long and move right. Take a lot of hand out of the ball and play it more or less straight up. Your heavy oil balls will be gripping way too early on a burnt up shot like that and even if you somehow manage to hit the pocket you won't have all that much drive. Ya, the frantic is a medium/heavy oil ball. This is the house I've been going to for the past couple months and I've never had the lanes been this bad. It was 30 mins before the nightly league starts and I don't usually go on wednesday's so maybe they hadn't oiled since the monday league. Either way, thanks for the advise. My dad who bowled there last year in league said the lanes wouldn't be this bad even during league so I'm not too worried, just wanted to know what to do in a situation like this so thanks for the advise! 5 more days until my first league in 20+ years! Oh one more thing. My dad had been using an almost 15+ year old Visionary Warlock bowling ball. Well last month was his birthday and since this is the first time we'll both be bowling league together I decided he needed an upgrade so I told him his birthday present is me buying him a new ball. We went a few weeks ago and had him try out a few different balls and had the pro shop guy who is really a great guy and knows his poo poo help him pick out a ball that suits him. Wound up getting him one of the new Brunswick C (System) versa-max balls. He was blown away at how different of a ball it was compared to his visionary. The ball hits and drives so much harder/better than his 15+ year old ball he couldn't believe it. He's super excited and can't wait to start league next week. mattfl fucked around with this message at 13:40 on Apr 26, 2012 |
|
#
¿
Apr 26, 2012 13:36
|
|
|
So I had my first league night in close to 20 years last night! Wasn't the best night, could have been worse. I will admit I was a little nervous and that probably played into my poor play last night, but it's still no excuse. I've been practicing for a few months now on the same lanes and was regularly shooting 190+ but I just couldn't find my spot last night. I also couldn't keep my hand dry no matter what I tried and my ball was sticking a lot more than usual. I wound up ending the night with a 170 average which I dam well better pull up by at least 20 pins or so. The lanes once again seemed pretty dry and my Frantic was all over the place, I moved left and right but just couldn't seem to find where it wanted to be. Thinking of hitting the pro shop guy up and see what he has for when the lanes are dry like this. All in all it wasn't all that bad, just a combination of a lot of little things that could have been better. We had fun and the other 2 guys on the team are good guys and we should do well in the league. It's a handicap league and so far it looks like I'll be the guy pulling in the pins, for now.
|
|
#
¿
May 2, 2012 13:01
|
|
|
Here's my update. gently caress 7-10 splits that happen when you absolutely bury the ball in the pocket. Why in holy hell does that happen? Has happened no less than 2 or 3 times per night to me in my league the past 4 weeks and I mean these balls are buried right where they should be in the pocket but loving solid 7-10s, so frustrating.
|
|
#
¿
Jun 6, 2012 16:32
|
|
|
Had my best series in league last night. Went 170-198-266! Think I finally figured out what I need to do on this house shot, adjusted my hand position a bit during the end of the first game and killed it the rest of the way out. Looking forward to next week to see if I can keep it up.
|
|
#
¿
Jun 13, 2012 23:31
|
|
|
 Yay awards! Had my first really decent week 2 weeks ago and got these last night. 266 game and 634 series.  First bowling league in almost 20 years and I think I'm finally finding my groove.
|
|
#
¿
Jun 27, 2012 14:02
|
|
|
Devo posted:That all depends on how good your association manager is. I get a nearly immediate turnaround on every award I turn in, but I also only turn them in monthly so he can just knock them all out in big blocks. Plus it's only a 8 team summer league so there's not much else for her to do. Anyone else here bowl in a handicap league? That's what this league is and we are getting absolutely crushed. We bowled a team last night that gave us 35 pins. We managed to win the first game by 3 pins but in the second game they beat us by 250+ pins! They are all a bunch of youngish kids(I'm 33 and the youngest on my team) and their averages are all around 200. Our team is made up of me(1st year league bowling, 174), my dad(198), and his friends jake(174) and john(190). We're either giving up 100+ pins a night or getting no more than 35 and still getting crushed. We seem to be in some kind of no man's land where we should be better than most of the other teams but still loose due to handicap or not good enough against the rest of the teams.
|
|
#
¿
Jun 27, 2012 17:45
|
|
|
2nd to last week and I was finally able to put together my best series. 195/239/238. Had 7 in a row in the 239 game. Seemed they finally fixed their oil machine and we had a consistent line tonight. Apparently the machine has been broken for the past 4 or 5 weeks since we've had a different patten every night. From what the other guys were saying, they do hardly no maintenance on the machine so the oil pattern it's been laying down has been so inconsistent. Normal oil pattern for us is supposed to be Easy Street and tonight it was finally there.
|
|
#
¿
Jul 18, 2012 03:06
|
|
|
Starting winter league here next week and I think I found my spare ball! http://www.bowlingball.com/products/bowling-balls/DV8/10436/Zombie-Spare.html#!prettyPhoto They had it in the pro shop for $120 and I've found it online as cheap as $85.
|
|
#
¿
Aug 19, 2012 21:20
|
|
|
Let's talk about balls! Currently I have 2 very similar balls. Ebonite Evolve and a Storm Frantic. Last night I probably had one of my worst nights bowling. I must have tried 5 or 6 different lane positions with each ball but I could not find a line. I was ready to throw balls in the woods after we were done, they probably would've missed the trees though. So this is a good excuse for a new ball right? I want something different than those 2, they both have the same coverstock and both about the same hook. I was thinking about something like the DV8 Hell Raiser Revenge or something with that type of coverstock. What do you guys think? Just to have something different when neither of my current balls will do what I want them to. mattfl fucked around with this message at 15:06 on Sep 5, 2012 |
|
#
¿
Sep 5, 2012 14:56
|
|
|
buffto posted:Honestly, the Evolve should roll much earlier and smoother than the Frantic. It might need a hot water soak and resurface. But to tell you the truth, I never thought the evolve was that great of a ball. You should probably get a mid performance solid coverstock bowling ball to replace the Evolve. Storm's Victory Road Solid is a good choice. Or if you want a ball in the same line as your Frantic, get a Storm Manic. The Evolve is the first ball I bought when I first got back into bowling. I knew nothing about balls at the time and it was on sale or something so that's why I bought it. It's a good 2 years old now I guess and has a nice gash in it so it's probably time to replace it anyways. Thanks for the suggestions. I'm gonna hit my pro shop up this weekend and see what he thinks as well.
|
|
#
¿
Sep 6, 2012 13:35
|
|
|
buffto posted:I wasn't trying to criticize your decision. Tons of people bought that ball, many of them liked it. I just didn't like it when I tried it. No worries, I was just trying to say it's kinda old now I guess and bought it before I knew anything.
|
|
#
¿
Sep 7, 2012 00:10
|
|
|
Just picked up the storm vivid. He's drilling it now. Should be a huge change from my frantic lol. Edit: update 5 games later and I love this ball! We'll see how I do with it in Tuesday night league. mattfl fucked around with this message at 20:11 on Sep 8, 2012 |
|
#
¿
Sep 8, 2012 17:09
|
|
|
First league night with new ball report. Love it! 180 first game and about the 6th frame I figured out where it wanted to be and shot 221 235. Very very happy with this Vivid. Also my hands smell like wintergreen now lol.
|
|
#
¿
Sep 12, 2012 02:18
|
|
|
There's a kid, can't be older than 18 that runs full speed for his approach. Like, a full on run. I have no idea how he stops in time or why he feels he has to bowl like that. He's a small kid so i guess to generate ball speed but jeez.
|
|
#
¿
Sep 25, 2012 16:34
|
|
|
Well I had a pretty lovely series tonight, not even worth mentioning the scores. I did get to watch my dad throw 11 in a row and miss the 300 by inches on the 12th. Hit it a little thin(he said he was pretty nervous) and left the 2 somehow and almost had a pin come from behind and take it out, but alas it was not meant to be. He had a 300 12 years ago, a 298 2 years ago and now has the 299. Pretty awesome to watch him do it during league.
|
|
#
¿
Sep 26, 2012 02:42
|
|
|
203-223-213 for my best series of the year so far. We gave up 115 pins to handicap and still wound up winning all 7. We've moved up into second place in the league as well. The past 4 or 5 weeks we've moved up positions every week and have just been killing it. No reason we shouldn't be able to win the whole league which would be awesome.
|
|
#
¿
Nov 14, 2012 13:37
|
|
|
|
| # ¿ Apr 23, 2024 18:21 |
|
|
Scarf posted:Eh, 221-183-186, not bad. Bowled the vacant team so I was able to stay on the same line for a good while. I've got the zombie spare ball from DV8 on my list. Hopefully my girlfriend gets it for me as I desperately need a spare ball!
|
|
#
¿
Nov 28, 2012 22:43
|
|