How To Develop A Smooth Bowling Release
If you wish to learn
how to develop a smooth bowling release, then begin with understanding a few important release techniques to regulate a consistent bowling ball release motion. First, begin with the proper gripping pressure with your fingers in the bowling ball. In an effort to identify how to develop a smooth bowling release, avoid squeezing the bowling ball so hard with your bowling fingers and thumb as to prohibit the quick and consistent release of the ball.
The majority of gripping pressure should be with the pads of your bowling fingers with very little pressure on the pad of your thumb. Your thumb must exit the ball slightly before the fingers at the "moment of release" as you are entering the sliding step of your approach. If you are squeezing your thumb so tightly as to prohibit your thumb from exiting the ball, then the release of the ball will be adversely affected and the ball will leave your hand at non-predicable times with the possibility of "over-turning" or "over-rotating" your hand with the bowling elbow following in the same incorrect manner. Remember, use a very light gripping pressure with your thumb and keep the thumb in the ball straight with no knuckle-bend to slow down an otherwise quick and smooth exiting of the thumb from your bowling ball.
Keeping most of the firm gripping pressure on the pads of your gripping fingers (not your thumb) will enable the fingers to rotate the ball consistently each delivery at the precise "moment of release." A good idea is to maintain constant grip pressure on your fingers from the stance position on the approach and throughout the entire swing motion and into the critical release area at the bottom of the forward swing as your hand nears the back of your sliding shoe. If you release the ball between the shoe laces of your sliding shoe and the toe of the shoe, the momentum developed from the swinging of the bowling ball will carry the ball onto the lane surface beyond the foul line. The closer you can regulate the moment of release to that precise area of your sliding shoe, the more consistent your release will become.
Gripping pressure of your bowling fingers is the single most overlooked key to making a good release. The relationship of gripping the ball more firmly with your fingers than your thumb and maintaining that relationship throughout the entire swing and release motions will help to produce a smooth delivery and a consistent one.
Another factor in developing a smooth release is the placement of your bowling hand on the bowling ball. To produce a small and consistent hook, less finger rotation at the moment of release is required than if you wish to produce a larger hooking action as the ball travels down the lane. Less hook is easy to control. A strong hook requires more discipline because of a faster and larger rotation by the fingers during the release of the ball.
For a modest, smooth hook and one which is easy to control, set-up on the approach with your hand holding the ball not flatly underneath the ball and not completely on the side of the ball as if you were going to shake hands with someone, but rather in between the two positions. If you were to allow your hand to maintain this position through the entire swing cycle and into the release area, you will rotate the axis of the ball perhaps only 15-20 degrees and the result will be a controllable hook on the back end of the lane.
You can also hold the ball in a complete handshake position, or on the side of the ball, and maintain that position through the swing and release to get a similar result but the danger is that you may "over-turn" your hand and bowling elbow while releasing the ball as to have your hand pass over the top of the ball and your palm of your bowling hand face the floor. That type of release will certainly cause inconsistencies and result in poor direction toward your target as well as an ineffective roll. By all means, keep you bowling hand positioned between the handshake and flat, palm-up positions throughout the swing cycle and the release with your elbow directly behind your hand entering the release zone and you will achieve a smooth and moderate hook on the bowling ball.
It is possible to achieve a sharper and more stronger hooking motion on your ball by setting-up on the approach with your hand under the ball with the palm of your hand facing toward the ceiling. This type of hand position is commonly known as "behind the ball" positioning. As your hand reaches the critical release zone with your hand maintaining the "behind the ball" positioning on the forward swing, you must rotate your fingers quickly and decisively from left to right or about about two or three hours on a visualized clock dial from "behind the ball" to the side of the ball at about three o' clock or four o' clock positions. This quick and decisive rotation of the bowling ball by your bowling fingers will tilt the rotating axis of your ball causing it to hook more sharply than the previous example of maintaining your hand between the "behind the ball" position and the "handshake" position.
In either case, be careful not to rotate your entire arm but rather only your fingers and wrist action. Another tip is to use a wrist device when practicing (if you do not already use one) which allows for a setting to be adjusted to create a speedy thumb release and a crisp axis tilt rotation motion. Tilting the wrist upward while you are releasing the ball will fly your thumb out of the ball well before the fingers so the fingers can rotate the ball decisively and create additional revolutions on the ball and/or increase the amount of tilt in the rotating axis of the ball which will undoubtedly work toward maximizing your release hook potential.
bowlingball.com always recommends you consult with a certified
coach so you can sharpen your skills and develop a smooth bowling release. We hope these tips help! By the way,
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