Keep Your Bowling Game Tuned During The Summertime

By: bowlingball.com, 5/24/16

Regardless of your skill level, keep your bowling game tuned during the summertime.

Many of you live where the weather is very cold during winter months and when summer months roll around, you enjoy getting outdoors and not bowling, or not bowling much at all.

If you are trying to maintain a certain level of bowling efficiency, then get out about once a week and bowl as few as three games just to keep the feel of bowling fresh in mind and to keep your hand used to releasing your bowling ball.
If you cannot find time to bowl once a week, then bowl twice per month….some bowling is much better than no bowling if you want to shorten the time it takes to prepare for your fall leagues and tournaments.

What can you do when you find time to practice in summer months? One thing you needn’t do is worry about score.

This is a perfect time just to keep your timing in tact, to work on spare shooting where you may have suffered the past season, and maintain a good feel of walking and swinging your ball with good timing.

If you want to focus only a few keys, then develop a short practice routine emphasizing these areas of your game:

*Set-Up: Make sure you set your spine angle with perhaps a ten degree forward tilt and with your shoulders fairly level when positioning yourself on the approach.

Avoid setting your bowling shoulder too low in comparison to your basic set-up. Maintain a normal amount of knee flex in your set-up.

*Footwork: Walk lightly and not hurried to the foul line. Keep a constant tempo with your steps.

*Balance: Keep your upper body torso from making unnecessary movement when bowling and by all means, keep your head still.

*Swing: Work on a consistent timing sequence to initiate the swing. Arm tension is a major reason for ineffective releases, so relax your body muscles with most emphasis on your arm muscles.

Avoid "grabbing" at the ball and increasing tension in your hand just prior to your downswing and through the release area.

*Release: Allow your ball to flow smoothly off of your bowling hand so you can maintain a grasp of good ball speed control and skid distance.

Remember, let your ball do the work and allow your swing to smoothly accelerate to a full follow through position.



*Finish & Focus: Work on holding your form at the line after you release the ball and until your ball passes the targeting arrows. Focus of your eyes on your sight target on the lane until the ball passes the target.

These simple tips for practicing key aspects of your game when you do find time to bowl during the summer will help you tune your game more quickly when the new season begins as opposed to starting with a “rusty” feeling to your bowling.

These tips can help you self-monitor your physical game between visits with your coach. Work on your strengths and you will sharpen your skills.