Physical Game Adjustments: It’s the Little Things!

Although bowling has changed throughout time, some of the basic fundamentals haven’t changed much at all. Along with these fundamentals, there are some common physical adjustments that can be made in situations when the fundamentals just aren’t working correctly.

So, let’s take a look at some of these problems that are encountered while bowling, along with some possible solutions for each. To help you better understand each issue, I’m going to provide graphic examples to further explain each concept so you are able to visualize each one and—hopefully—better understand them.

Identifying the root cause

To know what adjustments need to be made in response to an errant shot, we first need to find what is known as its “root cause.” The root cause will lead us to the problem and then lead us to the adjustment needed.

It’s quite interesting, common, and—in my opinion—a bit annoying to hear someone call out, “You pulled it!” Really? Is that why it went across the lane? How is this statement even helpful? I’ll answer that: it’s not!

“You pulled it!” is one of the most common phrases I’ve heard throughout the years with absolutely no viable solution offered to help. I’m sure if you’ve been in this situation, then you can understand how frustrating it is. Every time I hear someone say, “I pulled it,” I can’t help but ask, “Yes, but why?” This is another one of those situations where the person usually gives that blank, confused look, as if I were speaking another language.

To be helpful, you have to know what caused the person to pull the ball and then know the adjustment that will help correct it. Is there a single, fix-all solution for each problem? Not really. Most things will not work 100% of the time because the problems we encounter can be caused in so ...