Technique One Step Away
BOWLING TECHNIQUES TO MAKE YOU A BETTER BOWLER
CONSISTENCY: Don’t pull back (left) or collapse forward (center). Keep your head and torso steady through the finish (right).
Trying to change that muscle memory that has you lunging forward in the slide and fi nish? A good drill to practice is the one-step drill. Stand two feet from the foul line and get the ball to your backswing. When the ball is at the top of your backswing, start your slide step and fi nish the shot. If you can break down the exercise into small pieces you will get comfortable with what consistent posture is supposed to feel like, and you will have a better chance of correcting that bad habit.
back, you’re likely to project ball in the air. Finally, allowing your posture to change can affect your balance. Bowlers who collapse forward from the waist and with their shoul- ders will have a diffi cult time main- taining good balance at the fi nish. Understand that there is no single “correct” body posture. Bowlers come in all shapes and sizes. The power players tend to lean forward. Other bowlers are more upright. In the fi rst couple of steps of your approach, your body can
move a little. But once the ball gets to the top of the backswing and starts to work itself into your down- swing, it’s important to keep that posture consistent to the fi nish. If your torso is bent slightly forward at the top of the backswing, main- tain that angle through the release. If your body is perfectly straight at the top of the backswing, maintain perfectly straight posture through the fi nish. The key, of course, is to keep your upper body still and drive to the foul line with your legs. Maintaining proper posture
13 USBOWLER APRIL 2012
through the release is a matter of discipline and conditioning. If you don’t use your legs a lot, they will get fatigued over time and your posture might start to change. So focus on your legs. Keep your head, upper body and shoulders steady, and bend at the knees in- stead of the waist. You will be amazed at how much more consistent your fi nish will be.
— Bryan O’Keefe is Assistant Coach and Facility Manager at the International Training and Research Center in Arlington, Texas.
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