Two-Handed Bowling Sport's Next Revolution
Athletes over the years have experimented to gain an edge in their sports.
In the 1960s, track and field star Dick Fosbury invented a new technique by rolling over the bar backwards. The "Fosbury Flop" was so successful that it became the standard method for high jumpers. In tennis, players experimented by hitting backhand shots with both hands on the racquet instead of just one. That gave players more power, and the technique is common practice today.
The sport of bowling also has pioneers. Today, many young athletes worldwide are shunning the traditional one-handed style and using two hands to swing and deliver the ball, giving them incredible rotation and striking power never seen in bowling. Two-handed bowlers swing the ball with both hands by one side of their body as they approach the foul line. Inserting just their fingers or their fingers and thumb of one hand in the ball, they support the ball's weight with the other hand. At the release point, their top hand comes away, and they release and follow through with the gripping hand.
One of those young guns is USBC Team USA member Cassidy Schaub, who will put his two-handed style to the test in the 2007 USBC Masters Oct. 23-28 in Milwaukee. Schaub - who pocketed $10,000 for finishing third in the Open Division of the Panama Invitational Tournament Oct. 3-8 in Panama City, Panama - and the rest of the field of close to 500 of the world's best bowlers will vie for a chance to compete in the live, ESPN-televised finals at Miller Park on Oct. 28 and take home the $100,000 first prize check.
Two-handers such as Schaub use a traditional heel-toe walking approach while others - like Australia's Jason Belmonte and Finland's Osku Palermaa - use a short shuffle step late in the approach to create power and momentum.
This style offers bowlers the advantage of generating more hook and power than the traditional one-handed delivery. Because two-handers use one hand to roll the ball and the other to support it, they can keep their bowling hand under the ball longer. That positioning lets them generate extra rotation, hook and power on the ball and more options to play the lanes, which can translate to more strikes and higher scores.
To accommodate the new crop of bowlers who are electing to use the two-handed delivery, the USBC Coaching program - which trains and certifies bowling coaches - is researching and developing methods for teaching these athletes.
"The two-handed delivery is a hot trend in bowling today," said Rod Ross, head coach of USBC Junior Team USA, the U.S. junior national bowling team. "These kids do it because it comes naturally to them. This is a style to be reckoned with. It's here to stay."
Athletes over the years have experimented to gain an edge in their sports.
In the 1960s, track and field star Dick Fosbury invented a new technique by rolling over the bar backwards. The "Fosbury Flop" was so successful that it became the standard method for high jumpers. In tennis, players experimented by hitting backhand shots with both hands on the racquet instead of just one. That gave players more power, and the technique is common practice today.
The sport of bowling also has pioneers. Today, many young athletes worldwide are shunning the traditional one-handed style and using two hands to swing and deliver the ball, giving them incredible rotation and striking power never seen in bowling. Two-handed bowlers swing the ball with both hands by one side of their body as they approach the foul line. Inserting just their fingers or their fingers and thumb of one hand in the ball, they support the ball's weight with the other hand. At the release point, their top hand comes away, and they release and follow through with the gripping hand.
One of those young guns is USBC Team USA member Cassidy Schaub, who will put his two-handed style to the test in the 2007 USBC Masters Oct. 23-28 in Milwaukee. Schaub - who pocketed $10,000 for finishing third in the Open Division of the Panama Invitational Tournament Oct. 3-8 in Panama City, Panama - and the rest of the field of close to 500 of the world's best bowlers will vie for a chance to compete in the live, ESPN-televised finals at Miller Park on Oct. 28 and take home the $100,000 first prize check.
Two-handers such as Schaub use a traditional heel-toe walking approach while others - like Australia's Jason Belmonte and Finland's Osku Palermaa - use a short shuffle step late in the approach to create power and momentum.
This style offers bowlers the advantage of generating more hook and power than the traditional one-handed delivery. Because two-handers use one hand to roll the ball and the other to support it, they can keep their bowling hand under the ball longer. That positioning lets them generate extra rotation, hook and power on the ball and more options to play the lanes, which can translate to more strikes and higher scores.
To accommodate the new crop of bowlers who are electing to use the two-handed delivery, the USBC Coaching program - which trains and certifies bowling coaches - is researching and developing methods for teaching these athletes.
"The two-handed delivery is a hot trend in bowling today," said Rod Ross, head coach of USBC Junior Team USA, the U.S. junior national bowling team. "These kids do it because it comes naturally to them. This is a style to be reckoned with. It's here to stay."
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