There is a big difference between being in control and being in charge. If you alphabetize your canned goods, you’re probably an over-controller. We’ve all had bosses who were controllers. You felt like no matter what you did the scrutiny would be ominous. You tried to be perfect in everything you did. You checked and rechecked your work to avoid being wrong and you were always uptight when your work was being reviewed.

You will not ever be able to release the ball in a consistent and effective manner if it doesn’t fit. Bowling is not supposed to hurt. A ball properly fitted to your hand will not cause injury. If you only bowl once a week, you might not notice that your fit is incorrect. But what happens once a year when you go to the state or city tournament and you bowl six games in a day? If your hand, fingers, or shoulders are sore, get your fit checked by an IBPSIA Certified Pro Shop Technician. An improperly fitted ball can cause severe tendon damage in your fingers and elbow.

Remember that the ball is supposed to swing your arm. Your arm does not swing the ball. If your ball doesn’t fit right, you tend to squeeze it so you don’t drop it or to muscle the ball instead of allowing it to free-fall into your swing. These compensations for a bad fit can cause shoulder problems and prevent a consistent execution of the shot. There can be pain on the inside of the elbow or the outside of the elbow or down the forearm or in the wrist. This is both frustrating and painful and it doesn’t have to be that way if the ball fits your hand like it should.

Remember that the ball is supposed to swing your arm. Your arm does not swing the ball. If your ball doesn’t fit right, you tend to squeeze it so you don’t drop it or to muscle the ball instead of allowing it to free-fall into your swing. These compensations for a bad fit can cause shoulder problems and prevent a consistent execution of the shot. There can be pain on the inside of the elbow or the outside of the elbow or down the forearm or in the wrist. This is both frustrating and painful and it doesn’t have to be that way if the ball fits your hand like it should.

To really improve your consistency, try this: close your eyes after your second step. Once you close your eyes the imprint on your mind will be of whatever you saw last – in other words, your target! It becomes your whole focus and you’ll be pleasantly surprised how easy it is to hit it. After you’ve let the ball go, open your eyes. You’ll see the ball roll right over that target. When you are used to the feeling of closing your eyes and you accept you’re not going to step off the edge of the flat earth, you’ll be able to concentrate on other things. You can really FEEL your armswing or release or cadence or slide or power step or whatever you have chosen to concentrate on for that shot. A very eye-closing experience!

Bowling etiquette is important to your enjoyment of the sport as well as others enjoyment. Don’t ever put your hand in another person’s ball. The feel of the bowling ball on the hand is a very personal thing as well as part of great execution. You wouldn’t want someone who uses rosin or slick powder to put his or her hand in your ball and leave a residue.

Always pick up your ball from the ball return with both hands. Picking up your ball using your grip holes fatigues the hand unnecessarily and can cause excessive swelling.

If it’s not your towel, don’t touch it. No telling what’s on it that could get on your hand

The difficult skills needed for bowling must be acquired through learning and continued practice over a long period of time. The mechanics of the sport are complex and diverse. Dedicated players will find they peak after several years and often find they are still improving after their “prime” athletic years. That’s why bowling is truly a lifetime sport.

Solid 8 pins, ringing 10 pins, and swishing 7-10’s are just as much a part of the game as Brooklyn strikes, messenger pins or rolling the bucket for a strike. Don’t get crazy over it! Over the long haul the player who makes the best shots will win. It’s just that the ‘long haul’ is not always a league night…

Always be ready to bowl when it is your turn. If you’re not, it disturbs the rhythm and pacing of the game for everyone including those leagues which follow you. It is usually true that the longer in between shots, the more inconsistent you become. A good rule to follow is that when the pins are ready, so are you!

Hold your position at the line until the ball leaves the pin deck. This does not mean that you should look like the Statue of Liberty but that all of your body is still after you have delivered the ball EXCEPT your bowling arm. It is swinging back and forth and will eventually stop without your help. Several good things happen when you do this:

You don’t miss any of your great shots because you get to stay at the foul line and watch them.
It builds the discipline of keeping your balance at the line and thus helping you make your shots repeatable.
If you’re falling off your shots, you won’t be completing them to the best of your ability because you get too concerned about not falling down and therefore cut your shot off short. Balance at the line is critical to a well-executed and consistent delivery.
Pins tend to fall more when they feel your icy stare.