Beginning Bowling Technique - Do Not Overlook The Value Of Spares

New bowlers are often so excited to hit a bunch of pins that they are too distracted to hit the remaining pins on the second attempt. As you get more advanced at bowling, you might be able to concentrate on hitting some pins, but not with any concept of the importance of hitting the pins just right to take all of the remaining pins down. No matter how hard it is for you as a beginner to learn how to hit a strike each time, learning to make spares regularly is not that difficult and it will dramatically improve your scores. In fact, learning how to clean up with a spare is the first step to learning how to aim your bowling ball for regular strikes.

Secret to Spares that Most Beginning Bowlers Do not Know

Even if you own your own bowling ball, do not take your second attempt with that ball, nor should you use one of those pretty marble balls at the bowling alley on your attempt for a spare. The plain-colored balls supplied by the bowling alley are similar to what professional bowlers carry just for those rare occasions when they miss a strike and need a spare. These balls are drilled and weighted to roll perfectly straight, making it much easier for you to aim the ball at the pin you want to hit.

Relax

Most bowlers do not play with a time limit, so do not grab your ball as soon as it comes out and throw it right back down. Concentrate on being relaxed. Then concentrate on how you want the ball to hit the pin. Then imagine the ball coming out of your hand, going down the lane, and hitting the pin. Do not forget to throw the ball though.

In a very relaxed, postured stance, make your run and release the ball with a straight wrist. Your whole arm should be relaxed as it flows in an arc in the direction of the pin. Unless you have set up some kind of bad split, you do not need anything but a straight line aim.

Maybe It Is Not All Your Fault

If you find you just keep missing the target, there is a very remote possibility that you not the one at fault for your misses. Often an extremely dirty ball can take some really weird rolls. It is also possible that your ball needs polished or the floor needs a fresh coat of wax. If the ball does a lot of funny movements at the same point in the lane each time, there could be some fluid or a divot in the lane. But you will not make any friends or get extra help for throwing out accusations at bowling alley employees. Simply move over a lane and try a few different balls to find out if the problem is in the lane, ball, or you.

Are you a beginner bowler looking for more Tips For Bowling [http://www.tipsforbowling.net]? Or are you a seasoned bowler looking to take your game to the next level? You CAN dramatically improve your bowling if you have the right information. For more tips on bowling, go to: [http://EzineArticles.com/?id=947394]

Sean Bailey is a fitness and sports enthusiast. He has written for a number of fitness websites and publications. He currently runs a website giving bowling tips at [http://www.tipsforbowling.net]

Tuning Up Your Bowling Technique - Picking Up Spares

Why bother to pick up your spares?

All too often, beginning bowlers overlook clearing their frames. They're just delighted to have knocked down any pins at all, and laugh as they shoot yet another obvious gutter ball down the alley.

Picking up spares is the one thing that even a beginner bowler can learn to dramatically improve their game. It can easily make the difference between a 110 and 180 average!

While strikes are an important thing to learn, for a beginning to intermediate level bowler, I advise this: Clear your spares and the strikes will come. You will beat most of the competition by simply clearing your frames.

Tools of the trade

Professional bowlers use a "spare ball". That being a regular, plastic ball they use solely for the purpose of picking up their spares.

Even if you have your own ball, try using one of the regular, plain-colored, plastic "house" balls to pick up your spares. They are drilled to roll perfectly straight, enabling you to better hit your target.

Ready... Aim... Bowl!

Take the time to learn how to effectively pick up your spares. Start by looking at your body posture and stance. The way you hold yourself makes a difference. When your wrist is straight yet relaxed and your arm flows smoothly and in a straight arc forward (not curving around your body and back) your aim will be more accurate.

The easiest bowling technique to knock down your spare pins is to aim the ball directly at them in a straight line. It's not the time to use your $300 hook ball; you want to minimize any spin.

Be sure to relax your wrist as you release the ball and it will roll smooth and straight. Take the time to practice picking up your spares every chance you get. Many experienced league and professional players practice by aiming for the 7 or 10 pin. This method allows them to see how the ball reacts to the effort of crossing the lane.

Practice, relax, concentrate and take your time when going after your spare. A moment taken to line up your shot and take a deep, relaxing breath will make all the difference.

A good rule of thumb is to aim your ball at the pin closest to you, striking it on the side opposite any other pins. Always start from the arrow to the left or right of whichever pins remain standing. Roll across the strike target at the pins you're aiming for and before you know it you will be picking up your spares!

What can stop your efforts to pick up spares?

There are a few instances in which your efforts may prove futile. If you know that you're doing the right bowling techniques but are missing your targets, one of the following culprits is usually to blame:

If your ball is too dull or dirty, it can roll early and use up all its energy instead of storing it up until it reaches the back-end. Pop it in the ball-polishing machine.

If your ball is consistently hooking early and slowing down on the back end, it could be the ball's surface. Again, use the polisher or have it buffed with very high-grade sandpaper.

If your ball seems to slip, or obviously moves funny at the same spot on a lane, it could be a divot, oil, or other flaw in the lane. Try a different lane and see if that helps.

If you've tried a new ball surface and a new lane and your ball is still hooking too early, move your feet a little to the left if you're right handed or right if you're left handed to compensate.

With just a little extra effort you can learn to improve your average and clear your frames. You will have a newfound appreciation for the sport, admiration of your teammates and the envy of your competitors once you've mastered the bowling tips and techniques to effectively pick up your spares.

ImproveBowling offers a bowling guide ebook that is great for bowlers interested in improving their bowling game especially for beginner and recreational bowlers. Visit http://www.ImproveBowling.com to learn more about what the ebook has to offer and you can download it instantly.

Bowling Tips - Bowling Strikes Or Bowling Spares! Which Really Is Best?

It's pretty evident that most people think that getting the bowling strikes is the major goal in bowling.. They are always looking for the strikes and get excited the more they make. And trust me, I am no different than the majority. As long as I have been bowling, I still get a thrill seeing that bowling ball mow those pins down in a clean sweep. It is an empowering feeling!

When we think of strikes we think of them as being the top score, ten points and also they give you that added bonus of the total points you score on the next two throws. One other positive purpose of a strike is that once you strike you don't have to worry about missing picking up a spare or worry about getting a split.

It doesn't matter if you are a pro bowler, or a beginner. No matter where you fit in with the bowlers, everyone is impressed by strikes. This can lead to taking the focus off of other parts of the game and putting the focus on just one area of expertise. Strikes are great but you also need to be proficient in picking up those spares too.

When the focus is on how many X's you can chalk up you then find yourselves concentrating on only that phase of the game and in many cases your improvement in the game of bowling is slowed or impaired. Actually, those bowlers who work more on the accuracy of their spare delivery are the ones who will also be improving most in throwing those strikes too.

It does not take long for those "strike chasers" to learn that those strikes are really just one part of the game. He soon realizes that he needs to mix things up by varying his bowling tactics. Once he learns this he will be able to learn to be a better bowler.

A lot of bowlers believe, at first, that speed and power will score more strikes too. These "Power Balls" seem to look good as they are thrown with all the bowlers strength. Trouble is that they most often end up missing the head pin and only picking up a few pins. In their spare shots they most often miss and are usually surprised if they even pick up those remaining pins. So it ends up that the game of bowling, to these bowlers, is to strike or do nothing at all. These bowlers usually do not succeed in becoming proficient bowlers.

OK, now let's talk about how to become good at making strikes. First and foremost, remember the pattern that the ten pins are set up. All of the pins can be knocked down if you remember to throw your ball into the 1 - 3 pocket. (That is the space between the 1 pin and the 3 pin.)

It is possible to strike using different patterns but the 1 - 3 pocket seems to give them the greatest possibility for a strike. It is here that the bowling ball hits the 1 pin, then the 3 pin, next the 5 pin and finally the 9 pin. The other pins will go then go down as a result of these pins. Once you have determined that the hot spot for your ball is the 1-3 pocket you are well on your way to mastering the game of bowling.

See more bowling tips at http://secretbowlingtips.blogspot.com/.

Tips For Bowling To Achieve Consistent Strikes and Spares

Bowling strikes and cleaning up spares require that you concentrate and relax throughout your bowling motions. In case you don't know yet, a strike is when you knock down all ten pins on your first attempt. A spare is when you knock down all ten pins over the course of your two attempts. It is very hard to score points in bowling when you fail to at least get a spare. Here are some tips for bowling that will help you with your strikes and spares.

The first step to good bowling is learning to recognize the condition of the bowling lane. You need to take note of whether the lane is oily, with balls sliding a lot, or dry, with balls mostly rolling. Neither one of them is any easier than the other, but you do need to realize which you are dealing with.

Always visualize yourself bowling the strike or spare before you make an attempt. You want to then go out and make your attempt just like you visualized, so it is important that your visualized attempt included a smooth motion and a proper release. After proper visualization, you just go out and do what you visualized. A benefit to visualizing this way is that you are always making your attempts at strikes and spares with a clear plan in mind of how the ball will travel and how you will hit the pins. The biggest mistake a new bowler can make is just trying to toss a bowling ball down the center of the lane and hoping it hits something, without any specific goal in mind.

It used to be the hardest part of learning how to bowl was keeping score. It is truly a complex game to learn how to score in the beginning, but fortunately nearly all bowling alleys now feature computers that calculate your scores for you. The important thing to remember is that you get a lot of bonus points beyond the number of pins you hit when you hit consecutive strikes. You want to at least get spares when you can't get strikes or you could find yourself ending with a double digit score. You might note someone calling you a turkey or a chicken during the game. Don't worry, those are compliments in bowling. A turkey is three strikes in a row, while a chicken is three spares in a row.

Beginners should really concentrate more on learning to throw the ball straight. Spins are more for the professionals, and you can hurt yourself twisting your wrist instead of your fingers. It isn't unusual for a beginner to score in the triple digits by simply throwing a plastic ball straight towards the pins of choice. This is particularly true when trying to clean up with a spare. The best part of a plastic ball that travels straight is that the type of surface doesn't need to be gaged and calibrated in order to bowl straight. You can always learn how to play with hooks after you are consistently a triple digit bowler, but the straight shots will still serve you well.

Are you a beginner bowler looking for more Tips For Bowling [http://www.tipsforbowling.net]? Or are you a seasoned bowler looking to take your game to the next level? You CAN dramatically improve your bowling if you have the right information. For more tips on bowling, go to: [http://EzineArticles.com/?id=947394]

Sean Bailey is a fitness and sports enthusiast. He has written for a number of fitness websites and publications. He currently runs a website giving bowling tips at [http://www.tipsforbowling.net]