For many, tenpin bowling is just a fun social activity with friends. Being left- or right- handed in these cases makes no difference to your score as you are normally using the bowling center's house balls and bowling straight down the lane. More advanced and competitive bowlers, using their own balls, will want to understand and utilize the conditions of the lane, on both the left and right side.
Hooking Left
A left-handed bowler will deliver the ball at either the center of the foul line or to the right of center. The ball will cross the lane and move out to the left-hand side before then hooking back into the central pocket. This hook is generated by the bowler's fingertip release, as explained by The Basics of Grip and Ball website. The revolutions put on the ball by the release bite into the lane at the hook point, changing its direction.
Left Advantage
With so many people being naturally right-handed, a left-hander has a distinct advantage in bowling. The lane is frequently conditioned in a fine film of oil. With more ball traffic passing over it, the right-hand side dries out quicker. A right-handed bowler cannot rely on the ball hooking at the point he wishes it to do so, like the left-hander can. A right-hander may feel that he needs to alter the speed of his swing, as explained by Complete Bowling Index.
Left-Hand Balls
The best ball for a left-hander is a matte finish ball with a soft surface. These balls are designed to react well in the oily conditions. The left-hand side of the lane is more likely to be covered in fresh oil, and even have some of the oil pushed over from the right. The revolutions put on the ball at release will grip into the oily lane with ease.
Straight Ball
A left-hander using a matte finish ball for her strike ball should also have a shiny gloss finish ball, drilled to go straight, in her ball bag. This ball is an important tool when she needs to spare the 7, 4 or 8 pins. The matte ball will hook too early or the bowler may overadjust the release point and put the ball in the gutter. A straight ball will not be affected by the lane conditions.
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