According to Team USA Head Coach Rod Ross and Team USA Assistant Head Coach Kim Terrell-Kearney, many bowler’s who come to the ITRC are trying to determine how to get more RPMs. The coaches discuss the keys to increasing your rev rate and debunk some misconceptions regarding it as well.
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The most important thing for me was posture at the point of release. Keep your back straight and bend at your hips and nee. Try to keep the ball close to your left ankle. As long as your hand is in an aggressive position, all you have to do is let it go and you won’t believe the amount of revs you’ll get.
I’m 51 and I’ve been bowling for about 6 years and I’ve gone from 0 revs to about 225 just on my with a pretty decent hook I might add, so don’t tell me what you think I can’t do just show me what I should do. Last part of the video was actually useful, thank you for that.
Funny I’ve picked up bowling recently and just got my first ball. I’m 41 and have been running into these elitist bowling snobs lately online and at a pro shop. I grew up playing baseball and hockey. I’ve already improved quite a bit on my own and from some help from a good pro shop pro. It’s just practice like anything else. You can always improve and its never too late to get better! Bollocks to any “coach” who tells you its too late or says “it won’t happen for you even though I don’t know you.”
When I was much younger back in the days when we only had polyester and hard rubber bowling balls, I lost count of the number I went through because I tore the covers off the bowling balls. If I tried to do that just once at my age now, my arm would come out permanently deformed in the shape of a corkscrew!!
I just want to know some tips of what to do at my release, like popping the wrist, bending the elbow or other techniques. This video says “want more revs? You’re outta luck” thanks for helping me :)))
I have to agree with some of the commenters here. Two years ago my average was 160 in senior league. Now, because of a lot of practice , learning new release, increasing my speed from 13.45 to 15.98, my average is 190. You can do anything if you set your mind to it.
Last week i bowled 7 out of 10 games over 200. I have very little hook. Im trying to get more, but its hard because all the advice ive gotten is about how you roll it off your finger tips. which would explain why i have no hook because i dont even do that. trying to do it hurts, but i probably try too hard. Either way, you dont need a ton of hook to hit high scores regularly.
Just actually try to pick up spares. pick up every spare, every game if you can. just check the scores. a few strikes and all spares, even miss a spare or two, you’ll still be pushing 170-190.
I dont think im great at bowling. When i miss a spare, it upsets me, not because of my average, but because of the fact that i feel like a gimp for missing that. its similiar to throwing a baseball way off course from the catcher… like… cmon
If you want to get more revs, check out Ron Clifton’s website. A big key to gaining rpms for any bowler is timing, wrist position, and keeping a loose grip on the bowling ball. I was able to learn these things, and I didn’t seriously start bowling until I was almost 30
The best part of this video is telling you about fit and grip pressure.
I’ve learned how to bowl right handed and left handed or ambidextrous at age 29 years old and I’m in my late 30 ties. I’m able to play deep inside angle, mid-lane and outside Lane for both left hand and right hand. It requires a lot of patience, practice and experimenting. I can play stroker to cranker both left and right hand. The more you practice the more you gain experience from lots of practice. To have that versatility need to play different angle so you become more comfortable playing different angles. The versatility is about “control” ball speed and rev rate. In order to play from stroker to cranker.
I’ve learned a lot from USBC Bowling Academy videos, but this one is not a learning video, it’s just coaches venting because they are not able to meet student expectations (which I’m sure can sometimes be unrealistic).
But it’s never too late to learn. I didn’t start bowling until after I retired and after much struggle and practice I finally am able to get some decent rotation on the ball, even if consistency still eludes me.
If you are experimenting with different releases to get more rotation, don’t forget that stability at the foul line will do a lot to give you more leverage. Don’t give up.
Excellent show of the various bowling techniques great job.
I didn’t start bowling until I was 47 years old and my rev rate is 370-425 RPM. It’s a matter of a good strong lift during release all the way to follow-through. I always use a wrist support, BTW.
My revs are right around 500, two handed bowling helps a lot! I actually can’t bowl with one hand so that was the best option for me!
Hey, let’s show some respect here. Thanks for emphasizing the relaxed grip, cause my thumb gets stuck every time I try to change the way I hold the ball. Especially when trying to change my axis of rotation. I seem to do better when I keep my wrist straight and hand relaxed, just as you say. The slow-mo videos are helpful, too. (Ok, I was never that athletic, but can still enjoy the game.)
I never had someone teach me to properly throw a bowling ball but I have bowled my entire life I am a 180 average and just realized a short time ago I do not release the ball properly at all. At the age 35 and being the perfectionist I am I took it upon myself to learn the proper release, all I can say is it has taken a lot of work and adjustment but the difference in my consistency is nothing short of amazing. My revs have shot up drastically. I absolutely understand the age expressions in this video but its never too late to learn something new and improve, I’m a perfect example of this, granted throwing the ball properly changes everything but do not let this discourage you from trying something new at any age.
Very good point. I just joined a leauge early this year (2022) after only playing casualty on and off for years. I’ve improved my release, target accuracy, approach, etc, all through practice and excellent YouTube channels. I am actually starting to see errors in my leauge team members play, but if you are willing and able to try new things, you can improve your game. Go bowl !
I just started bowling a little bit over a year ago since August of 2018. Im 20 years old and always kept changing my style to make it a footprint in my head and now its set in stone for life basically. but ive also been training 2 handed here and there and training with thumb. My standard throw is 16.4-17.6 mph, at around 500-550 rpm’s throwing a 16 lbs ball, with 2 finger 1 hand. Yea i do use quite a bit of energy, i do sweat a bit but not dripping of sweat or to exhausted. I can bowl 12 games back to back without getting exhausted with some water
One thing that can help is to keep your fingers on the inside of the ball on the backswing and then turn at the release with the fingers at around 4:00 PM.
You can always get better and have more revs. Saying it’s “too difficult” or “impossible” is a lazy answer. Just teach people how to stay behind the ball, create the angle of the elbow before release, and the yoyo effect at the release. You can do this step by step over time with practice. So start by keeping the hand behind the ball and having a good roll. Then work on the bend to generate more revs after you have that down. Finally practice putting both together and work on the release point to do the “yoyo” effect. So once you can constantly do this you will be able to repeat it and not think about it. Practice and repetition of these 3 simple things will give you immense improvement on your rev rate. The person just has to want to get better and do it. Just like working on shooting basketballs, throwing a football, getting in shape, etc. Change is different and difficult but not impossible if someone is putting their mind to it.
Very well said.
I feel like that’s almost a cop-out to not train someone how to generate more revs. But I do agree that as one gets older, and more set in a certain style, it becomes a lot harder to teach. I also agree that learning this can be detrimental, even ruinous, to one’s game. It can be taught later on in life. The difference is, it can take months, or years, to incorporate the change into your game and make it instinct; because if it’s not, you’ll revert to your old ways under pressure. Yes, relaxed muscles move freer and faster, which is one key to generating power. But to RELEASE indicates that your muscles are in another state, specifically tension, prior to release. So I think firm but not muscled is a better way to describe the muscles of the wrist prior to release.
Bob Benoit started out throwing relatively straight on tour. He couldn’t compete with the power players so he went home to train himself how to generate more revs. He strengthened his fingers, wrist, and forearm, and learned how to cup the ball. He came back and became a champion on tour and bowled 300 on TV. I think it’s all individual, and the training method has to tailor the individual based on his skills, physical abilities, and dedication.