Two-Handed Bowling: Finish Position

The finish position happens at the foul line after you have taken all your steps on the approach. The knee bend, balance arm placement, and trail leg position will all play a factor in achieving a good release that has the ball follow your determined ball path.

In this free video, Scott Pohl, owner of On Track Pro Shop, walks you through the two-handed bowler’s finish position.

Reverse Angle

From behind, you can see a number of key components in the two-handed bowler’s finish position.

The trail leg is in line with the right side of the body. The hand is inside the bowling ball, meaning that most of the hand is on the left side of the bowling ball. A good knee bend will help generate more leverage and greater hook potential.

After the release of the bowling ball, the hand should follow through with the shot, and it does look like a traditional bowler’s release. Your head should be stable and to the outside of the ball release. The elbow should be inside of the shot. If it comes around the shot you are trying to help the ball hook. A term used by bowlers to illustrate this point is “chicken winging” the arm swing.

Side Angle

A different perspective provides additional feedback on most of the aspects of the two-handed bowler’s finish position that were previously discussed.

The knee bend and body positioning are easier to see from this angle. Head positioning is also more clear from this angle because you can determine if it is in front of the sliding knee. This keeps the body stable when coming to a stop at the foul line. If the head isn’t in front of the sliding knee, the release will be in a weaker position, and your hook potential will be less.

Check out “Two-Handed Bowling: Hand Positioning” and “Two-Handed Bowling: Trail Leg” for more expert instruction pertaining to the finish position.