Thank you for the reply.TonyPR wrote:Different coaches will have different points of views, the disadvantage we have as two handers is that there are not many coaches with experience coaching two handers. Also being certified doesn't make you a great coach. I am very new to coaching, got certified just last May but I have been obsessed with the game ever since I got back about 3 years ago from a 25 yr break. My daughter who was 8 at the time got hooked so I decided to learn as much as possible to help her develop competitively and also to help myself with the come back. I have been lucky enough to be friends with coach Mike Perez who coached the PR national team for many years. I have also had the privilege to meet and take a seminar with hall of fame coach Jeri Edwards who is currently team PR's coach. Along the way I have been a bowling alley rat and have made many friends who are in the pro shop business and many local athletes as well as some PBA pros. Bowling Chat has been one of the best resources too with guys like Jim Merrell, Dean Champ, Mo Pinel, Eric Hartwell and others who have been kind and patient enough to answer all my questions. I am also a nerd and a Physics fan and have enjoyed reading many articles by other great bowling minds and also visited Kegel and spent a day picking Del Warren's brain.
It is very important to know who you listen to as some may have the best intention of helping but may not have either the knowledge or the experience to do it right. I don't have much experience as I have only coached my daughter for 3 years and have recently started as part of the coaching staff in our youth league but I am very confident in my knowledge. I am currently coaching 3 two handers, one is 11, one is 15 and myself 39 years old.
It is important that we understand that just as there are many styles of 1 handers there are many styles of two handers and Belmo may or may not be the one who's style will feel more natural to you. I recommend you watch videos of Kyle Troup, Anthony Simonsen, Jesper Svenson, Shawn Maldonado, Osku Palerma and Brian Valenta and you will see their styles will be different in many ways.
I will give you my opinion of the points you are outlining. It is only my opinion and I am in now way saying your coach is right or wrong.
First, if she is against two handers then why take a class with her in the first place?
1) When you start the ball in the third step of a 5 step approach you are creating late timing, your right foot will be moving forward while your right arm will be moving back towards the backswing. If you try to open your shoulders this will create elastic tension in your hips and shoulders as they will be moving in oposite directions. This style of late timing may work if you decide to be more of a straighter traditional approach player but will be largely dependant of your flexibility, think Kyle Troup.
2) Belmo keeps his balance arm low and it works for him. I like to do my swim stroke up and in an angle higher than parallel to the ground as I feel it helps keep my bowling shoulder under my head but keep in mind I follow through towards my face like Sean Rash does. Whatever works for you is fine as long as it doesn't give you shoulder rotation problems (over rotation, under rotation).
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4) Most two handed bowlers will have the balance leg up in the air as this will help get your spine angle lower and will aleviate stress on your back from trying to bend your back while keeping the balance leg on the floor (Del Warren told me this one and he has a lot of experience with two handers). Belmo does put his leg on the ground to post his shot after he delivers the ball. The two important things are: not to fall off the shot and not to lean so much forward as to have your head in front of your foot. Kyle Troup does not lift his balance leg but again, he is very flexible and has a more "traditional" style.
5) Bending the knee is a good thing, it helps your release to be close to your ankle and helps with creating a good flat spot which, along with a good slide and forward spine tilt, also aid in creating a good flat spot. A good long flat spot will help in having a smooth release by giving you time and margin of error to get under the ball and do the yoyo release into the lane (never lifting up).
-Finally a word on tempo. I am currently working on my tempo, this is a very important part and should not be overlooked. Two handers are thaught to do: one.....two.....three-four-sliiiide
I am currently trying a more traditional timing which seems to be helping me smooth things out, I am doing 4 steps so my tempo is more like: one-two...four-sliiiide which for five steps would be: one...two-three...four-sliiide
This is what is now working for me but it may or may not work for you, I am not recommending this to you, just giving it as an example to show there is no cookie cutter approach and we should try to develop our own style instead of trying to copy someone else's.
I know this is a lot of info so take time to digest it and remember to work on only one part of your game at a time.
Good luck and stay positive.
If I knew she was against our style, I wouldnt have taken her lesson.
She didnt really say anything about it while we were talking on the phone/via email..
Anyway, this means I should just incorporate only SOME points made by the coach into my practice.