Bowling Ball Grip…Two Basic Grips, what is allowed and some Variations.
By Jim Newell
Bowling balls are made of hard smooth materials such as hard rubber, polyester, urethane and more recently reactive resin, are allowed to weigh up to 16 pounds, with no minimum weight, with a circumference of between 26.7 and 27 inches, and a diameter of 8.5 inches. An item this size would be rather hard to hold on to, let alone grip and throw if it were not for the holes that are allowed to be in the ball.
Typically there are 3 holes in a bowling ball, however you are allowed to have up to 12, one for each of your fingers and your thumb the other seven are allowed for air pressure relief (one for each finger hole) one for weight adjustment up to 1 ¼” in diameter, and one to check hardness of the cover stock.
For this discussion we are going to concentrate on the typical 3 holes, which are usually for the middle and ring fingers and the thumb. The more common configuration is finger holes that will allow your two fingers down to the second knuckle and your full thumb at a comfortable span (span is the distance between the fingers and the thumb). This is called a full finger or conventional grip. Most house balls found in your local bowling center are full finger conventional grip balls. This grip is usually very comfortable and allows some degree of control.
Our next grip is the fingertip grip; the main characteristics of this grip are that the finger holes only allow the fingers to be inserted to the first knuckle, with the thumb fully inserted and a wider span. The main advantage of this grip is that it allows you to apply much more leverage to the shot. You should be able to throw harder, smoother, and be able to control the natural hook in your shot pattern a lot better. If you are serious about becoming a better bowler, and you are going to invest in your own bowling equipment, you need to check out and learn the fingertip grip.
Inserts for the finger and thumbholes are allowed, only if they are non-removable without being destroyed and non adjustable. These inserts, if they are used, change the diameter of the holes, are a wearable part that can be replaced, and provide a smooth surface. Thumb inserts tend to be larger than your thumb, which allows for the use of tape to adjust your grip to compensate for swelling or shrinking of the thumb during your game. Finger grips, typically used with the fingertip grip, are usually softer and assist in being able to apply more torque and rotation to your shot.
There are a couple of variations of the 2 standard grips. The “Sarge-Easter grip, where the middle finger is drilled to the first knuckle and the ring finger is drilled to the second knuckle, supposedly helps cut down on extreme hook patterns, and is not very common. Another is more technique than grip and involves throwing the ball without inserting the thumb. Very few bowlers use this technique, and those that do, with a few exceptions, are typically not very accurate and do not score very high. Lack of control, and slipping off your hand are the hallmarks of this technique.If you are going to buy a bowling ball you need to find out who, in your area is the expert ball driller. Almost anyplace that will sell you’re a bowling ball can provide drilling, however if they are not really expert at fitting the ball to you and then drilling it to perform how it should you may end up with an expensive paper weight. Ask at your bowling center, or ask some of the accomplished bowlers in your area, where they get their bowling balls drilled. Some premium bowling balls can cost $200.00 and up, it is worth taking the extra time.