Getting the Right Ball in Your Hand

By Jason McEwen

When you walk into your pro shop and see the overwhelming options of bowling balls hanging on the wall, have you ever asked yourself why there so many to choose from?

There are three types of bowling balls used in today’s game: plastic, urethane and reactive.

Let’s go through each one and talk about how adding them to your arsenal will improve your game.

Plastic

A lot of bowlers think the first generation of bowling balls released to the market were plastic, but actually, the first bowling balls produced were made of rubber.

Plastic then became the primary surface for bowling balls, but the game was much simpler when bowlers used this for their strike shot.

Wood was the only lane surface, and the oil pattern laid out didn’t have a fraction of the volume of today’s games.

So that must mean there is no use for a plastic ball any more, right? Wrong.

If you want to fill frames, it’s imperative to throw at spares with a plastic ball. It cuts down angles to the pins and doesn’t have the reaction or down-lane hook the other bowling balls have.

Urethane

The next bowling ball, which was all the rage in the 90’s, was made out of urethane. It was really the beginning of the modern game changing how we played the sport.

Once again, the sport evolved adding more volume and changing the length of the patterns, but that doesn’t mean this ball is obsolete.

In recent years, manufactures have introduced a new line of urethane bowling balls because bowlers found a place for them in today’s modern game.

Bowlers turn to the urethane ball on short patternsand extremely dry conditions. Having a urethane ball in your arsenal for league night is a great way to get back to where you’re comfortable after nine other bowlers have helped rip apart the pattern.

Reactive

Now for the heavy hitter the reactive ball. It’s going to hook. This ball revolutionized the sport and the way it is played because it opened up parts of the lane that have never been played before.

For example, when watching the pros on tv, have you ever seen someone loft the gutter cap (sliding as far left as you can while airing the bowling ball out left of the center arrow) before these bowling balls were made? Simple answer: never.

Now that you know a little more about the different kinds of bowling balls and when to use them, you need to learn how to fine tune your equipment to get maximum performance.

Very rarely does a professional use a bowling ball out of the box without adjusting its surface to the lane condition they are competing on.

The reason they do this is to achieve what’s called “matching up”. When you are matched up, your strike percentage increases and your scores do too.

Getting the right ball in your hand, with the right surface, is vital to improving your scores in today’s game. Go out and give it a shot, you’ll like what you see.

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36 Responses to “Getting the Right Ball in Your Hand”

  1. duane fenton

    I throw a slow delivery standup on last dot left with a slow ball (9 to 10 miles per hour. What type of bowling serface should I be conserrding

    Reply
    • Customer Service

      Great question! The ‘Ask an Expert’ section is currently for members of our online community. By becoming a member, you will have access to our expert knowledge. With your membership you will also receive discounts on products and hundreds of hours of Premium content.

      If you are interested in becoming a member, please click on the offer below:
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      Thanks
      Sarah
      National Bowling Academy Video Membership

      Reply
  6. Freddie

    I have returned to bowling after 25 years but do not have a ball. Which is better suited for me? I once used a rubber Earl Anthony ball to hook slightly. Advise me please.

    Reply
    • Customer Service

      Hello Freddie,

      Thank you for contacting us. Great question! The ‘Ask an Expert’ section is currently for members of our online community. By becoming a member, you will have access to our expert’s knowledge. With your membership you will also receive discounts on products and hours of Premium video content.
      If you are interested in becoming a member to National Bowling Academy, please click on the special offer below:

      https://go.nationalbowlingacademy.com/C32881

      Sincerely,
      Sarah
      National Bowling Academy Video Membership

      Reply
  7. Buddy Hart

    I’m 77 years of age due to health and age I have lost ball speed. I now bowl with Hammer widow spare ball to keep ball in play. I want to throw reactive for better carry. Can you help me

    Reply
    • Customer Service

      Hello Buddy,

      Thank you for contacting us. Great question! The ‘Ask an Expert’ section is currently for members of our online community. By becoming a member, you will have access to our expert’s knowledge in bowling. With your membership you will also receive discounts on products and hours of Premium video content.

      If you are interested in becoming a member to National Bowling Academy, please click on the special offer below:

      https://go.nationalbowlingacademy.com/C21043

      If you have any further questions, please chat, email, or contact Customer Service at 1-855-208-7395.
      We greatly appreciate your business!

      Sincerely,

      Joan
      National Bowling Academy Video Membership

      Reply
  8. Rodney Hankins

    I bowling on lanes 7 and 8 at Funfest in Brooklyn NY the house shot I play on is you have to roll the ball on the second arrow the lanes dry up from 1 to 8 and since my bowling speed is around 14 to 16 I was going to used my hammer vide , my back widow urethane and my hammer Rodman p. to used what do you think?

    Reply
    • Sylvia Williams

      Is it true that balls under 11 lbs & under do not have a core weight in them?

      Reply
      • Customer Service

        Great question! The ‘Ask an Expert’ section is currently for members of our online community. By becoming a member, you will have access to our expert knowledge. With your membership you will also receive discounts on products and hundreds of hours of Premium content.

        If you are interested in becoming a member, please click on the offer below:
        https://go.nationalbowlingacademy.com/C39971
        Thanks!

        Reply
  10. Shaun Renard

    Then how should a person go about choosing which reactive ball to use? I am struggling with this devils right now. I average around 190 with equipment that is 10 years old. I through a 15 lb ball usually around 16.5 mph with a rev rate that is slightly higher than average but not sure on the exact number. I typically exceed the balls ability as far as back end reaction

    Reply
    • Customer Service

      Hello Shaun,

      Thank you for contacting us. Great question! The ‘Ask an Expert’ section is currently for members of our online community. By becoming a member, you will have access to our expert’s knowledge in bowling. With your membership you will also receive discounts on products and hours of Premium video content.
      If you are interested in becoming a member to National Bowling Academy, please click on the special offer below:

      https://go.nationalbowlingacademy.com/C20335

      If you have any further questions on becoming a member, please chat, email, or contact Customer Service at 1-855-208-7395.

      We greatly appreciate your business!
      Sincerely,

      Joan
      National Bowling Academy Video Membership

      Reply
  11. Ron Gartner

    After not bowling for 25 years I just started using my old hammer equipment
    Red and blue pearl hammers
    I only use Hammer brand Equipment any suggestions on new equipment in the hammer line would prefer something with the old style block like what’s in my urethane Hamish

    Reply
    • Customer Service

      Hello Ron,

      Thank you for contacting us. Great question! The ‘Ask an Expert’ section is currently for members of our online community. By becoming a member, you will have access to our expert’s knowledge in bowling. With your membership you will also receive discounts on products and hours of Premium video content.
      If you are interested in becoming a member to National Bowling Academy, please click on the special offer below:

      https://go.nationalbowlingacademy.com/C20335

      If you have any further questions on becoming a member, please chat, email, or contact Customer Service at 1-855-208-7395.

      We greatly appreciate your business!
      Sincerely,

      Joan
      National Bowling Academy Video Membership

      Reply
  13. Laura

    I don’t know if my question is related but I’m going to ask anyway. I would love to get a new reactive ball but all the ones I like are for medium to heavy oil. My house lanes are dry to little oil. Any suggestions would be sincerely appreciated. Thanking you in advance.

    Reply
    • Customer Service

      Dear Laura,

      Thank you for your patience while I got the experts on this, here is his response:

      Hello and thanks for the question.

      The most important factor in manipulating ball motion is surface. If there is a bowling ball you like and it says that it is only for one set of conditions, you have the power to change that bowling ball to make it play the conditions you are faced with.

      Check out this video on Making Adjustments to the surface of your bowling equipment aking Adjustments to the surface of your bowling equipment s and good luck with the new ball.

      Thanks for watching!

      Jason
      National Bowling Academy

      Reply
  14. gejaeger300

    I’m a tweener with med-high revs, right handed. I was wondering if symmetrical vs asymmetrical weight suit a type of bowling style better than others? I bowl best with mid-range symmetrical weight block balls. I have purchased balls with the asymmetrical core (usually the higher performance balls) only to find that they just sit in my bag. I do better with the mid-range symmetrical weight block even on heavy oil. I can’t seem to “control” the higher performance balls. I have an angular eye to the pocket. So do you buy for personality or lane I guess is what I’m asking? Which is more important?

    Reply
  15. Beverly Hill

    Ticket#21450 Why am I then hooking off the 10 when I use my plastic ball for this shot ?

    Reply
  17. John D. Fickett

    Right ball? I’m 85yrs old and my speed is around 12 miles.I love to throw the ball down the ten board looking for a lot of distance. Which ball would be good on medium oil 40Ft long?

    Reply
  18. Walt Donlyuk

    My ball speed is 13-14, sometimes the lanes don’t allow me to swing the ball with any any success. Wondering what drill/ball would allow me to play straight up 10 board with success? Most of my equipment is drilled to hook hard off the the oil.

    Reply
  19. lorenzo.aquiningoc

    I have never used a Urethane ball since returning back to bowling this past summer after a 15 year break. I have just about every different type of ball made since last year (from the Hammer line) and still hesitant on if the Black Widow U is going to fit. Thoughts anyone?

    Reply