Sunday, May 6, 2018

The10 Pin in Bowling

Why We Leave the 10 Pin in Bowling

The 10 pin in bowling - why we leave the 10 pin in bowling

First there are 2 different types of 10 pins. 
One is the flat or weak 10 pin the other is the wrap or ringing 10 pin.
1.  The Flat 10 Pin - The first type of 10 pin in bowling is the flat or weak 10 pin. This is when the bowling ball rolls weak into the pocket and is due to a loss of energy. There are two reasons why this happens. Either the ball has never gone into a roll, or the ball has rolled too early and lost all of its energy before it gets to the pocket. So you must recognize two things. One being which type of 10 pin you are leaving. The other is whether the bowling ball is rolling too early or not rolling early enough. To determine whether you are leaving the flat 10 or the weak 10, look at the 6 pin. If the 6 pin is lying in the gutter, it indicates a weak or flat 10 pin. If you are leaving a flat 10, you need more angle or a ball that breaks later and sharper. You can do this with a change in the ball surface, handposition, type of ball, ball drilling layout, or a change in ball speed. If the bowling ball is rolling too early, you need to roll it harder. If it is skidding or not going into its roll, you may need less ball speed.
2.  The Wrap 10 Pin - The second type of 10 pin in bowling is the wrap 10, or ringing 10 pin. This occurs because the ball rolls into the pocket with too much angle or too much speed. The bowling ball does not have enough end-over-end roll. If the 6 pin goes around the 10 pin quickly, then you are leaving a wrap 10. A reason for this may be you are rolling the ball too hard. If you are leaving the wrap 10, you normally need earlier roll or more end-over-end roll. You can do this with a change in ball surface, hand position, reducing your ball speed, type of ball or ball drilling layout.



A Basic Rule of Thumb.
1. If the 6 pin is lying flat in the gutter, it is a flat 10 pin. 
2. If the 6 pin flies around the 10 pin, it is a wrap or ringing 10 pin. 

Let the 6 pin be your guide in recognizing your adjustment.
Note: Learn to recognize the type of 10 you are leaving, then learning how to adjust.
This is the key to increasing pin carry and a higher scoring potential..



Thursday, May 3, 2018

Understanding Lane Oil

Bowling equipment has changed the game drastically in recent decades, and while some effects are obvious, others are much more understated. Upgraded balls and new kinds of technology have allowed us to better understand what happens throughout the course of a bowling shot, as well as what happens in between shots.
We have always known that lane oil dries up and wears away throughout the course of a game, and that an evolving pattern affects shot selection, equipment choice and sometimes even mentality. However, only recently have we been able to easily show exactly what’s happening to your shot when you don’t adjust to changing bowling lane oil conditions. In this lesson, we go over some of the core concepts of using lane oil to your advantage and discuss what you should do throughout a game and tournament when a lane is in transition.

How Bowling lane oil transition dictates your choices

One of the biggest pitfalls bowlers face is not adjusting their play to changing bowling lane oil conditions. No matter how consistent your stroke is or how much power you generate in your swing, it’s not going to matter unless you work with the lane oil. So to help you figure out how to read oil patterns on bowling lanes so you can adapt to the transition, we teach you about the key concepts of lane oil changes, and talk about what to look for throughout the course of a game or multiple games.
As soon as you throw your first shot of a game the lane oil pattern begins to transition, which means you must judge bowling lane conditions and react accordingly. With each subsequent shot, the way you attack the pocket should be a little bit different, whether it’s a simple change in your approach or a switch to a new type of ball. Tune in to this segment to learn more about bowling lane oil conditions and see what else determines the way you go about your game.

Monday, April 9, 2018

Balance Holes

The most popular balance hole system or methodology in use today is the Gradient Line Balance Hole system, developed originally by Mo Pinel and his collaborators during his years owning and operating MoRich Enterprises. In short, this system defines four standard balance hole positions (P1, P2, P3, and P4) that can be used to alter the motion of the ball:
  • P1 holes slightly weaken the ball’s motion by reducing its differentials and cutting down on its track flare.
  • P2 holes have almost no effect.
  • P3 holes moderately strengthen the ball’s motion by moderately increasing its differentials and moderately increasing its track flare.
  • P4 holes significantly strengthen the ball’s motion by significantly increasing its differentials and significantly increasing its track flare.

How To Play A Bowling Lane

Information on How to Play the Lane


Bowling Lane Play. - There are 3 basic types of bowling lane lines; open, medium, and direct. (Note: this is for right handed bowlers – reverse everything for left handed bowlers.)
1. Open Line - The open line is inside from the 14th board on the bowling lane. The ball angle is directed toward the 6 pin as it is released. This is described in the illustration below. High revolution bowlers like this angle most the time.
2. Medium Or Indirect Line - The medium or indirect line is from the 13th to the 8th board, or the track area, on the bowling lane. The ball angle is a medium line directed toward the 3 and 6 pins as the ball is released. It is also described in the illustration below. Power strokers or tweener type bowlers like this line.
3. Direct Line - The direct line is outside from the 7th board on the bowling lane. The ball angle is directed toward the 1 and 3 pins, or the pocket, as the ball is released. It is also described in the illustration below. Most strokers like this line or angle.

How To Clean Your Bowling Ball


How To Clean Your Bowling Ball


Cleaning your bowling ball is an area that is discussed and talked about a lot in the bowling world, and there are many different methods that can be used to do this. Most bowlers neglect to clean and maintain their bowling equipment until the bowling ball performance stops, or it stops reacting the way they think it should.

The bowling ball manufacturers tell us to clean our ball with a microfiber towel and a special cleaner after every bowling session. But time and time again the bowlers just don’t take it seriously until their ball quits working for them.

Following is a line of procedure that one should try to follow if they want to keep their bowling ball in fairly good condition.

Please note: The new bowling balls of today soak up lane conditioner and will always eventually die. I am sorry to say this, but it is true. The following will help slow down the process, but will not stop it. In addition, some bowling balls last longer than others. I have some that are a few years old and others that only last a few months.

First you need to get a few things; a mirco fiber towel, some bowling ball cleaner, abralon pads, a bucket and water.

These are the things I use that have worked the best for me.

1. After each frame wipe the lane conditioner off your bowling ball.
2. After you are done bowling for the night clean your ball with the bowling ball cleaner and wrap it in a towel or get a see saw.
3. Every so many games, with some reactive bowling balls, you will have to rejuvenate the surface or put the grooves back in the cover stock so it will grab the lane surface again. So get some abralon pads and scuff up the cover stock. The bowling ball informational sheet should tell you the out of box finish.
4. Every 50 to 100 games soak the ball in a bucket of warm (not hot) water. Warm Soapy water will extract a lot of lane conditioner and give the ball back some of its original performance. Just simply put the ball in the warm soapy water for about 30 to 45 minutes and then rinse it off and let it dry a few days. Then rejuvinate the coverstock with the abralon and there you go. (Note: warm not hot and not to long. In addition make sure the ball is dry before using).

How Long Will a Bowling Ball Last

How Long Your Bowling Ball Lasts 

How long does a bowling ball last? This is a question I have gotten a lot. I will mainly be talking about the newer reactive bowling balls. I will not go into too much detail about the plastic, rubber, or urethane balls. 

I also must note that this is my personal opinion and experience only. This question could go into some detail and I may address it more in later posts. A plastic ball could last for quite awhile, but you will get lots of chipping and cracking. 

These balls do not absorb much lane conditioner and have a semi-hard cover even though it is brittle. You could have one of these balls for many years or only a few months. Remember, these are not high performance bowling balls so scoring will suffer. 

Urethane bowling balls have some oil abortion and have a durable cover, but usually do not have much track flare. They do not score as well as a reactive ball. These balls could last you a couple years if cleaned and maintained properly. Some problems are there are not many companies that make these balls anymore and they do not score as high as reactive balls. A reactive ball scores higher normally, but the longevity of the ball is short so you will sacrifice performance and scoring. 

I have seen some reactive bowling balls only last 30 to 50 games, yet I have seen some work well for a few years. Now the lane center’s choice in conditioner seems to play a factor, but I have no scientific proof of this. 

Some conditioners seem to have properties that kill the ball faster. One factor is the oil absortion rate. A lot of these balls are made to soak up oil like a sponge. It only makes sense the faster the ball is designed to soak up this lane oil, the faster it will lose it's hooking action. 

My point is a highly absorbing bowling ball will not last as long as one that has a slower absorbing rate. These are a couple factors. The question was how long will my bowling ball last. With the new high performance balls, the one time a week bowler will probably have to get a new ball every year or two because most the time the ball only last an average of 100 to 200 games. 

If you bowl a 33 week season at 3 games a night that would be 99 games. Then add probably at least one practise game weekly and you would equal 132 games a season. If you bowl more than that let say 2 or 3 times a week, you are looking at 2 or 3 balls a year for top performance. Proper cleaning and maintaining your ball can help make it last longer. In brief, the more you bowl, the more new equipment you will need. 

Good Luck and Great Bowling.