Bowling can be a fun activity even if you never roll a strike, but improving your game can certainly boost your enjoyment. If you're a bowling newbie or just an occasional bowler who would like to lower your score, incorporating a few expert tips into your bowling strategy can help you roll a little better.
Vary Ball
If you want to bowl like a pro, you will need at least two bowling balls in your arsenal, says United States Bowling Congress coaching specialist Kim Terrell-Kearney on the USBC website. Choose one heavy-hitting ball with a little hook that will maximize the number of pins you can knock over on your first roll. Then grab a ball that rolls quick and straight so you can follow up with targeted rolls when you need to knock down individual pins to land a spare.
Avoid Dark Side
One of the trickiest parts of bowling is knowing when to release the ball. If your ball is hitting the pins at an unpredictable angle or with less strength than you'd like, it may be because you're letting go of the ball too late, explain the instructors at professional bowler Dick Ritger's Bowling Camp. If you regularly see the back side of the ball -- nicknamed "the Dark Side" -- before you release your grip, you're probably overturning the ball, and letting go earlier can significantly improve your game.
Know How to Change Speed
Knowing how to speed up and slow down your ball can make it easier for you to knock over more pins and more effectively target single pins, says coaching specialist Stephen Padilla on the USBC website. To speed up, Padilla recommends holding the ball lower, which makes you move faster to speed up your ball. Conversely, if you want your ball to travel slower, hold it higher so that you're forced to move more deliberately before you release it.
Master Moods
When you're rolling well, it's easy to get complacent and not focus on your shots -- which can lead to a less-than-stellar score, says coaching specialist Teresa Ross on the USBC website. Along the same lines, if you miss a seemingly perfect shot, letting yourself get caught up in the negativity can affect the rest of your game, say the Dick Ritger's Bowling Camp instructors. Force yourself to concentrate on every roll as though it's the first one in the game, and your score is likely to improve.
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