What line do you play?

[ghoul31]

It seems like most people play out to the 1st arrow.

Does anyone play a different line?

[J Anderson]

It seems like most people play out to the 1st arrow.

Does anyone play a different line?

The first arrow is a point about 15' from the foul line on the fifth board. It is not a line.

Do you mean that most people throw the ball down the fifth board? Or do you mean most people send the ball over the first arrow?

Left handed I often use the sixth board as my line although it may really be from the the 7th board at the line, over 6 at the arrows, to a break point around 4 or 5 down lane. Many of the other leftys are playing a similar line.

Right handed my target is usually some where between the 8 board and the 11 board. If I'm aiming at the 8th board, I release over the 10th and send the ball out to about the 5th or 6th at the break. Most right handers seem to play a bit inside of where I am, playing line that start further inside, closer to the center of the lane and going out toward the gutter.

There's usually a reason why every one seems to play the same line. While its good ( as well as fun ) to practice playing different lines every lane has a line that due to the oil pattern and the wear on the lane gives you the best chance of getting strikes. Watching where other people are playing is a good way to get your shot lined up, especially if you're at a different center than where you normally bowl or if its a different pattern.

[75lockwood]

the most commonly recommended line for beginners is straight up the 10 board (second arrow). Personally i love playing straight up outside 5 when i can (don't get to much)

when you say "play out to the 1st arrow",your talking about what you target at, there are dozens of lines that use 1st arrow, when describing a line you should give the lay down (where the ball is at the foul line) target (1st arrow) and break point (ball enters hook phase)

a good example of this is watching a ball reaction video by "videoballreviews" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yiMW5nzvjfE


anywho, on my league night i tend to start at by throwing straight up the 5 board (5laydown 5 target 5 break point) and gradually move in, by the end of the night im normally somewhere around 20 - 25 laydown 10-15 target and breakpoint still around 5

sticking with the same target as you move left can be a bad idea, it can lead to poor entry angle and as such poor carry. moving your target in 1 board for every 2-3 boards you move your lay down in.

[75lockwood]

The first arrow is a point about 15' from the foul line on the fifth board. It is not a line.

Do you mean that most people throw the ball down the fifth board? Or do you mean most people send the ball over the first arrow?

Left handed I often use the sixth board as my line although it may really be from the the 7th board at the line, over 6 at the arrows, to a break point around 4 or 5 down lane. Many of the other leftys are playing a similar line.

Right handed my target is usually some where between the 8 board and the 11 board. If I'm aiming at the 8th board, I release over the 10th and send the ball out to about the 5th or 6th at the break. Most right handers seem to play a bit inside of where I am, playing line that start further inside, closer to the center of the lane and going out toward the gutter.

There's usually a reason why every one seems to play the same line. While its good ( as well as fun ) to practice playing different lines every lane has a line that due to the oil pattern and the wear on the lane gives you the best chance of getting strikes. Watching where other people are playing is a good way to get your shot lined up, especially if you're at a different center than where you normally bowl or if its a different pattern.

It happened to me again -_- i'm typing away and someone beats me to the punch LOL

[sprocket]

I throw a pretty high RPM and can cover a lot of boards, but at the house where I bowl the shot is way outside. I spot about 25 ft down the lane at around the fourth to sixth board. My ball crosses the arrows usually between 7 and 9. I might get left of second arrow by the end of the night. I use an old ball from 2004 though. I could probably play deeper if I broke down and bought a new ball. I'm a bowling ball anti-hoarder. I don't have squat for balls but I take pride in making the old stuff work.

[ghoul31]

I guess I was talking about the break point.

The other day I was throwing from the 35th board with a break point of the 15th board. It seemed to work pretty well.

[swingset]

I play whatever works - there's no typical in my game. Depending on the ball, my release, the shot, the house, and the pair I'm on it might be up the 10, or out to the 5, or even straight up the middle.

My "benchmark" to find the good my line is usually standing on 20, throw to 8 and watch the breakpoint. That tells me whether to move left, or shift my target...depending on the reaction I get.

[ecub]

It seems like most people play out to the 1st arrow.

Does anyone play a different line?

It varies on the oil. If it's oily, I release the ball around 1st arrow and letting my ball cross over 2nd arrow. Or release the ball at 2nd arrow and letting the ball cross over 2nd arrow.

If it's dry, I release the ball around 3rd arrow and letting the ball cross over either between 2nd & 3rd arrow or 2nd arrow.

[got_a_300]

I'm like swingset said "there's no typical in my game" I might
play outside the first arrow on the right side of the lane on the
1 board one week and then I might have to move in and play
between the 5th and 6th arrows on the left hand side the next
week.

I always just play where the lanes tell me to throw the ball to
get to the pocket consistently.

[scottymoney]

I think the the better question here would be what line do you start off on?

Myself I start standing at 20 and throwing over 2nd arrow, that's my first ball every time I start in warmups. Depending on what I see I move accordingly. I first start with moving a board or boards left or right with my feet depending on how the first one missed. Then after a few moves with my feet I will then move my target right or left depending on what I saw my ball do and what everyone else is doing on the pair.

[zman1974]

I just started back in a league after a 13 year layoff, and one thing I picked up from this forum is how important it is to alter your ball speed to suit the conditions. I never really paid much attention to my ball speed until last night. I usually throw around 16 mph, but I lowered that to around 14.5 mph for the first game (where I usually struggle to get any kind of reaction). While the Marauder did not turn into a heavy oil ball, that change in speed did allow me to keep basically the same target (12 to 8) as in my last game. Pretty cool.

[BigErn32]

I throw two balls that are pretty different. With my Misfit I will stand at board 25 and my target is 15. With my Hammer I will stand on 15 and throw at 11. I've actually never paid attention to what board my breakpoint is at. Looks like I have something to pay attention to in my league tonight!

[Greenday]

All depends on what the lanes give me. Tonight, when I'm at league, I'll probably start around 23-24, hit the arrows around 12, have it break at at 8-9 board and snap in from there.

Lately, at my lessons, I've been doing 30-15-10 because they are drier on the outsides so I need the inside oil.

Other times I've played straight up the five board.

[billf]

Given that we are talking our home center on a THS, I play where I feel like at that time. Up 3. Or like last night lay at 40, cross at 22 break at 3. With my rev rate I have no problem getting to the pocket with my breakpoint at the third board no matter where I start from.

If you watch the top players on any shot, their break point on a good shot will be the same no matter the style or speed used to get it there. The lanes/conditions dictate the ideal break point.

[Greenday]

If you watch the top players on any shot, their break point on a good shot will be the same no matter the style or speed used to get it there. The lanes/conditions dictate the ideal break point.

Exactly. My team in Reno went out with a gameplan. We picked one board for our breakpoint and broke it down. We all had very different shots, but we all ended the same spot.

Tonight I started with about 20-12-8 (Dots-Arrows-Breakpoint) with my Sync. Once I dried that line up, I switched to my Frantic and went about 15-10-8. Dried that up, switched to my Tropical Breeze, went 12-10-8. It was just a matter of getting each ball to that same breakpoint and then watching with glee as they snapped into the pocket.

[Zothen]

Right now i'm playing between the 11-14 board for last couple weeks and have managed a 194 avg,which is 19 pins above current avg. I was playing the 10 board.

Zothen

[Hammer]

Our league night gets fresh oil before we bowl. At practice before it counts I will start out with the arch of my slide foot-I am a lefty- on
boards 15 to 20 and throw over the second arrow/board 10 and see where the breakpoint works best from. When the alleys break down
or on drier alley nights I will stand with my slide foot arch on board 26 to 28 throwing over the 3rd arrow from the left to a breakpoint
from board 3 to 9. It is hard to believe that I can do this with a urethane ball. My Blue Hammer has a nice controlled arc to the pocket.

[GoodGravy]

I'm also a farily high rev thrower, so I am usually starting around 30-35 (depends on lane) and target 15-17. I wish I could target break point, but 2 issues: (1) House lanes do not have markers down lane and
(2) even if they did, my poor 'ol eyes can't see the boards due to the glare of the lights anyhow....

Maybe I need some cool sunglasses like PDW???

[GeoLes]

It seems like most people play out to the 1st arrow.

Does anyone play a different line?

I was initially taught to roll my ball through the second arrow. (a good starting point that might change as your game evolves). No I prefer the third arrow. Las tleague,play I dept gettin a lot of funky splits - meaning the ball path through the pins is too direct, so I moved to the second arrow instead. I will switch between the two arrows in order to remedy 7 or 10-pin leaves as well.

[TCJ]

My line varies depending on conditions. I sometimes will play straight down the five board, sometimes angle in from the corner, sometimes play straight up the ten board, and sometimes I'll throw from the twenty boards left of center and across the middle arrow. It's rare that I throw the exact same shot on two separate days because the center's lanes just are not that consistent in the oil pattern. Some days it's bone dry and some days they have a lot of oil on them.