I volunteer to help coach the local college bowling club and a bowler showed me that her thumb was bruising. She has the same bruise for the past 10+ years with several different fits. Her last fit was from a local IBPSIA certified shop that looks accurate, but of course there is the bruising. She bowls right handed. Her span is 3 15/16 and 3 7/8. Thumb pitches are 1/16 forward and 1/8 right. She has average flexibility and to be honest I am not sure on the length of her thumb, it maybe slightly short.
At her release she tends to come around the ball before his thumb has completely cleared. Part of me thinks that the bruising is a release issue, but I am also wondering if there is fit problem as well.
As I am typing this, I think my suggestion would be to add forward pitch. Start with adding 1/4, so final forward would be 5/16. I have added a picture of my thumb with ink pen marking her bruising area.
I would appreciate your thoughts and recommendations about the bruising.
Thumb Bruising
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Thumb Bruising
Last edited by moonlightPS on September 24th, 2010, 3:16 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Thumb Bruising
Bump
Re: Thumb Bruising
I second your bump.
Ps. You say shes right handed but your photo is of a left handed thumb.
Ps. You say shes right handed but your photo is of a left handed thumb.
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Re: Thumb Bruising
The first photo was of my thumb showing the bruising area with an ink pen. At the time, I did not have a photo of the actual thumb in question. Below is her actual thumb. I hope this helps. Sorry if the first photo was confusing, it has been removed.
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- kellytehuna
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Re: Thumb Bruising
it seems to me that she's not clearing her thumb fast enough. That suggests that she's either grabbing it at the bottom, or she has too much forward already, which unfortunately require solutions in opposite directions! Also, I would not recommend increasing forward by that much in one step. You're much safer increasing it 1/16" at a time. Mo could definitely give you a better, more concise suggestion but those are my thoughts.
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Re: Thumb Bruising
Is she taking her thumb partially out of the ball during the swing and attempting to hang on with the tip of her thumb?
I would think bruising like that would be possible hanging onto it.
I would think bruising like that would be possible hanging onto it.
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Re: Thumb Bruising
If she really tries to get around the ball, or on top of the ball while her thumb is still in the ball, her thumb might be slightly rubbing or grabbing in the area where she is trying to twist the ball around because the lateral pitch of the thumb does not naturally allow her thumb in direction she is trying to twist the ball up at.
It sounds like she doesn't go through the ball with her fingers, that she circles them around her thumb and her thumb exit is very late, and not at the proper angle.
In an effort to twist the ball, in a radical motion like said above, the thumb does the twisting of the ball, causing alot of grip pressure in unconventional areas.
I do not like suggestions without seeing a release, this is where you need somebody like Mo to chime in because he has seen every release there is, and can visualize it.
It sounds like she doesn't go through the ball with her fingers, that she circles them around her thumb and her thumb exit is very late, and not at the proper angle.
In an effort to twist the ball, in a radical motion like said above, the thumb does the twisting of the ball, causing alot of grip pressure in unconventional areas.
I do not like suggestions without seeing a release, this is where you need somebody like Mo to chime in because he has seen every release there is, and can visualize it.
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Re: Thumb Bruising
Shorten the middle finger span 1/16" to start with. If she loses the ball, a thumb pitch change may be required (less reverse, ormore forward). Check her fit using the fitting instructions in the Wiki.moonlightPS wrote:The first photo was of my thumb showing the bruising area with an ink pen. At the time, I did not have a photo of the actual thumb in question. Below is her actual thumb. I hope this helps. Sorry if the first photo was confusing, it has been removed.
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