Lining Up Your Shot

When one thing makes something else happen, it is known as a cause and effect. If your body is aligned incorrectly in the stance, you will miss your target. If you miss your target, you probably won’t strike; the list of causes and effects in bowling are endless.

In this premium video, Scott Pohl, owner of On Track Pro Shop, walks you through how to line up your shot with three components and demonstrates what happens to your ball motion when you just move your target.

Focal Point

How you align your body in the stance will dictate where the ball will go on the lane. In order to get started, you must be square to the pins with your body.

Breakpoint

Down the lane, the oil pattern ends and friction begins. This varies by the length of the oil pattern. The breakpoint in bowling is when the ball begins hooking at its farthest point away from the pins because it has hit the friction at the end of the oil pattern.

The rule of 31 is a quick way to know which board the breakpoint is located at the end of the oil pattern and the beginning of the friction. Subtracting 31 from the oil pattern distance will give you the breakpoint board.

Targeting

Visualizing a ball path from the breakpoint back to your target (dots or arrows) dictates how you align your body in the stance. Your shoulders and hips should be angled towards the target while your knees and feet should be facing the pins.

Adjustments

Kayle Triske threw three shots for this video, and the only adjustment she made is to move her feet one board left on the approach. Target, ball speed, and axis rotation all stayed the same. In general, when you move one board to the left and keep everything else about your shot the same, your breakpoint moves three boards right down the lane.

Check out “Breakpoint: How to Get Lined Up in Bowling” and “Targeting the 3 Parts of a Bowling Lane” for more expert instruction.