Bowling is considered one of the most unique sports in the world. It is played quite differently from other games and as such, the rules are also quite different. There is so much to know and understand before you can master it completely. The toughness of the sport is exactly why only a fraction of people who pick up sports chooses bowling.
That must make you wonder, is bowling hard to play? Well, if you are looking for the answer, you are in the right place because that is precisely what I am here to tell you.
In this article, I am going to talk about bowling, how tough a sport it is, how long it takes for you to master it and become a professional, and a few bowling lessons for beginners so they can speed up their bowling career. Just make sure you read this article until the end.
Is Bowling Hard?
This is an age-old question. Well, if I am frank with you, yes, bowling is hard to master the sport. However, how hard is it? Is it harder than the other sports like baseball, basketball, and others? This is a debate that I find illogical; we cannot compare the toughness of sports.
Nevertheless, for someone who is not proficient at bowling or has just begun his or her bowling career, bowling is a tough sport to learn. From understanding the pins’ placement to the lane and the gutters, finger placement, movement, throwing position, stopping before the foul line, different variations of the game, there is so much you need to know.
Bowling is a tough sport. Ask any professional about their journey, and you are going to heard stories of how they overcame their negative mental attitude to get where they are. If you want to be good at a sport as tough as bowling, you are going to have to perseverant.
Telling you how tough bowling is is not to get you to leave it. It is to let you know that if you are struggling, it is because you have picked up the sport that requires struggle, determination, and incredible practice to master. In addition, you can become a professional in bowling if you try hard enough, as have many.
Why Bowling is a Tough Sport to Master
Well, why is bowling such a tough sport? You might be wondering. There are a lot of reasons. Here are some of them to get an idea of how extremely tough the sport is and how failure in learning the sport should only feed your hunger for becoming a pro at it. Here are a list of 5 useful things to know.
- No Luck is Involved – When you are playing a game of ten-pin bowling, you cannot win by chance. One-shot might be great because of luck, but the next will not. Therefore, luck plays truly no part in winning you a whole game of bowling.
- Complete Focus – There is no aiming helper or anything that allows you to hit all the pins and get a strike. There is just you, the ball, the lane, and the pins. You need to completely focus on the pins and make sure no noise from anywhere takes your focus off at any time.
- Invisible Obstacles – From the bowling lane pattern to the oil splattered all over it, everything is invisible to the naked eye. Therefore, while bowling, you are going to have to deal with invisible obstacles to get to the pins and knock all of them at once.
- Every shot counts – There are 10 frames in the game, with each frame consisting of two shots. Each of the shots in every frame counts as much as the other one, so there is no resting time or chances to skip out on one of the shots.
- Combination of Movements – From the body’s movement to the motion of the arm, twirling of the fingers, and releasing the ball, different motions are combined to make a single shot, making bowling a tough sport.
How to be good at bowling?
Have you ever wondered how long it takes to become good at bowling?
Well, that truly depends upon how much you practice, how serious you are about the sport, and how much passion you have. Professionals who chose bowling as a career have said that it took 2 years of professional training, practice, and learning to master the sport.
However, if you are taking your time, keeping bowling as a side-activity, you can get to a professional level with over 3-5 years of practice. Moreover, I think that would be an incredible achievement to make. Therefore, it would help if you surely learned to a bowl and become a professional at it.
Lessons for Beginners
What should the beginner bowler know about the sport that will help their journey to become a professional? I have compiled some instructions I have used and found them helpful so you can kick-start your professional bowling career as well.
Keep Your Eyes on the Arrows
A common mistake people make is looking at the pins when throwing the ball. It would help if you looked at the aiming arrows; that way, you will know where to shoot the ball to get the strike or spare you are looking for.
Know when to hook
Hooking every ball is not what a professional does. Only hook when you see an opportunity to get a strike. Spares usually require pin action and a straighter throw in general so keep that in mind.
Practice what you learn
From techniques to skills, whatever you learn, make sure you implement it into your practice sessions. That is the only way of becoming a professional. Increase your training and practice sessions and bowl as much as you can with friends, family, on your own, and with professionals even.
Conclusion
Bowling is a tough sport to master, but that should not stop you from becoming a professional at it. You need to keep a positive mind, learn from the professionals, and implement all the guidance in practice. That is how you will become a master at it. I hope you have an amazing bowling career and become a professional very soon.
