Accelerate Your Bowling Swing

bowlingball.com, Originally Posted: 9/4/2012; Updated: 9/8/2021

If you find yourself dropping your ball behind the foul line or if you seem to be losing ball speed, then try to accelerate your bowling swing to a full follow-through position. If you are a bowler losing ball speed or losing grip on the bowling ball, you just might just be slowing your forward swing.


It is important for your bowling ball to begin the down swing by allowing gravity to let the ball fall freely into the forward swing without forcing the forward swing or grabbing at the ball with your hand.


Once the ball begins a free swinging downward movement from the height of the back swing, then it is vital to accelerate your bowling swing not only through the release zone (at the bottom of your swing near the bowling shoe laces) but completely through to a full follow-through position.


When you decelerate your forward swing, several unwanted things can cost you accuracy and speed control. Losing speed of the forward swing might make you rotate your bowling fingers early. Turning the bowling ball early can cause pulled shots inside your desired ball path, it can cause an ineffective roll to be applied to the ball, and you might drop the ball on the approach floor behind the foul line.


Any successful and experienced player will accelerate the forward swing and release the ball over the foul line. All bowlers have a common challenge to not turn the ball early so it becomes extremely important to not decelerate the arm swing trying to be too careful where the ball is delivered.


In any sport, there is an attack element the player must address to be successful. We at bowlingball.com recognize your goal is to release your ball at an optimum average speed of about 16.5 mph average velocity.


Also, you are trying to hit a one inch target 60 feet away and knock over 35 pounds of lumber (bowling pins). There are certainly easier things to do. Losing ball speed by decelerating your swing is not the way to achieve desired results.


All players, power players, in-between players (tweeners), and stroker-type players have a common challenge and that is to regulate ball speed by maintaining the speed in a desired range, get the ball over the foul line without turning it early, and hit the sighting target on the lane.
If you find your bowling ball hooking at unpredictable times on the lane, then you are likely decelerating your swing and losing velocity, turning the ball too soon, and are not aligned properly due to a slow ball speed giving you a false reading of the oil pattern.


If you want to achieve good results, focus on a one-piece, accelerating forward swing to a full follow-through posted position making sure your ball is released over the foul line each and every delivery.
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