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Bowling Concepts & Strategies Spare Making Spare shooting is the key to achieving good scores. Spares are easier to convert than they appear. An old bowling saying is, "If you cannot strike, spare them to death." To pick up a spare, move to the side of the approach opposite the location of the standing pins. When multiple pins are left standing, the spare adjustment is based on the pin closest to the bowler. Three keys to spare shooting are: Consistent delivery Consistent arm swing Rolling the ball over the target Team Play Bowling is an individual sport. However, bowlers are often paired together to form teams to compete in bowling leagues. Pairing is also done to permit tournament competition in doubles events (two bowlers) or team events (three to five bowlers). Each bowler's score is added together to arrive at doubles or team score. Special Olympics recognizes these groupings and has competition levels for both types.   Targeting Techniques Most bowlers use one of two basic targeting techniques to aim their delivery at the pocket: pin bowling or spot bowling.   Pin Bowling Bowlers using this technique fix their eyes on the pins from start of the approach to the follow through. The athlete proceeds, selecting the 1-3 pocket for right-handed bowlers or the 1-2 pocket for left-handed bowlers as their objective for the first ball. If all 10 pins do not go down on the first ball, then they fix their eyes on the remaining pins when bowling their second ball.         Spot Bowling   Athletes, instead of aiming for the strike pocket 60 feet down the lane, use either of two sets of seven markings placed on the lanes. There are lane dots 6-8 feet beyond the foul line, or arrows approximately 15 feet down the lane. These serve as aiming aids: bowlers can figure out which board their ball lands on and what boards it rolls over on the way to the pins. The athlete must draw an imaginary line from the point of release to the target spot to have a precise idea of the path the ball will take.   Four Basic Shots     Straight Ball   The straight ball travels in a relatively straight line and will be subject to considerable deflection, since it will tend to shove its way through the pins. Therefore, a straight ball that enters the pocket at anything other than the precisely perfect spot — the right side of the headpin — is not likely to result in a strike. Therefore, the straight shot is not a high-percentage shot. The ball needs to roll close to the second arrow, rather than down the center of the lane, where the ball will have a better chance of entering the strike pocket and getting good mixing action among the pins.   Hook Ball Most beginning bowlers will have a tendency to bowl the hook ball or the curve ball. If the athlete has a natural hook, do not try to change it, let the athlete work with it. The hook ball is a very effective shot, since it allows for more margin of error than the straight ball. The hook of the ball comes from the lifting motion of the middle and ring fingers during the release. The primary reason it is so effective is the mysterious mixing action it generates among the pins.   Curve Ball In throwing the curve, an exaggerated hook, the arm and wrist will be turned to the left, and the thumb will generally come out of the ball at about the 9 o'clock position. Its wide circling path makes it hard to control. However, if the ball crashes into the strike pocket just right, it can sweep away all 10 pins.   Backup Ball Instead of breaking into the 1-3 pocket, the backup ball will break away from it. If it is the bowler's natural shot and you find that you are unable to have the athlete adapt to another one, have the athlete move to the left side of the approach and aim the ball over the second arrow from the left, the same as a left-handed bowler. That way, it will break into the 1-2 strike area normally used by left-handers.

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