When you first start bowling, it is the beginning of a great journey. Although the road to success won’t be smooth, there’s nothing to be disheartened about. To help beginners target better, and have a better understanding of the ball’s entry angle and motion, bowlers need a lot of guidance. Besides the good old “keeping the eyes on the boards/arrows”, there are a few bowling targeting guide tools, you can take help from to enhance your bowling skill. So if that seems like your cup of tea, stay tuned, my friends!
What are some of the bowling targeting guide tools?
The tools you need to help you bowl better can come in different forms. Here I will mention a few of them and you can choose yourself.
Lane Master Pro Bowling Instruction Guide Tool
Well, this is a very practical teaching tool that many teachers use at bowling schools and colleges. Beginners and even intermediate bowlers face the challenges associated with bowling the most. Basic bowling techniques like finding your target, moving your feet, and the ball motion, all of which depend on lane condition and the ball.
Creative Crafthouse has made a very useful and versatile tool for bowling instructors, coaches, and pro shop operators to demonstrate to new bowlers about target establishment, spare shooting, ball hoking, foot movement, and so on.
The board which is the lane has a beautiful and durable solid maple top. The measurement of this lane is about 18″ x 4.5″. The boards, texts, and markings are engraved with a laser, so there’s no way it will wear off. On one of the boards, you will see the pin deck where the pins easily come off and you can just set them up yourself.
Then there are five ball motion tools to show different ball motions and angles. There is one for straight shots, 2 tools for right-handed bowlers’ hooks, and 2 more for left-handers.
You can easily pin these motion curve tools into position at your chosen target boards to estimate or show the impacts of your ball rolling. It will also portray how you gotta move your feet right or left and how it is gonna affect the ball’s path. The male and female bowling figures the toolkit comes with are interesting. They are interchangeable in the slots of the ball direction tools.
This helps you visualize and teach others to have an idea of how feet movement, target setting, and angle selection change the ball’s overall direction and path. Many bowlers struggle to understand this because they see the mistakes they make from behind the foul line. With this tool, you get a drone view of how your position and target impact.
Tenpin Toolkit: Bowling Tools App
Do Do you think you don’t need elementary-level practical teaching using a kit, you can use something different. I am talking about an app called Tenpin Toolkit. Available on both App Store and Google Play, so downloading it on your mobile is very easy. Right after opening the app, you will see how many features it has. Spoiler alert! It’s loaded.
The app features a “Bowling Angles & Targeting Guide Tool” that helps you visualize and plan the line of your shot, starting from the approach to your target. As a result, you get to be more accurate and consistent with your shots.
Once you go to this option, you will see some numbers on the left side of the screen. You press on any of them to see the visualization. Optionally, you can just drag the bowling ball’s shot line to plot it on the displayed lane. Make adjustments in the distance if needed and see where your ball will have the breakpoint. You can see the breakpoint board in advance and the board you have to select for targeting. Besides arrows, the app will also show lane dots which you can use to aim better.
While you are adjusting your shots you will see the numbers change on the left to inform you where your bowling ball would be throughout the shot, from start to finish. Besides angles, you should also experiment with length adjustment of your approach. Don’t worry, you can always change the setting based on your dominant hand to visualize more effectively.
DIY Targeting Tool
Do you want the most practical and effective tool for target setting? I got your back! Sadly, I couldn’t find one in the market. So I guess, it’s a fun DIY project. So do you need to learn how to make one?
The DIY targeting tool is very effective in showing you how far or close you are to hitting your intended board. So build this tool from scratch, you will be needing
– 5 pieces of 2 feet x 2 inches PVC pipes
– 2 pieces of 5 feet x 2 inches PVC pipes
– 2 elbow joints
– 4 T-joints
– 4 end caps
Now, Now, this is completely optional. But you want the frame to be a bit higher and then put a second layer on top which you can easily remove if you don’t feel like blocking the pins. This tool needs to sit with its feet in the middle of the gutters. So take the 5 feet long pieces and cut them 51 inches each. You will then have to cap one of these long pipes with T-joints and then cap the top one with elbow joints.
Now time to plug in the pipes to build the sides of the frames. To stand the whole thing will be needing feet. So take the last two feet of pipes and cut them into four equal pieces. So 6” for each piece. Place the t-joints at the bottom of the legs of the frames. Now, to close off the feet, use the end caps.
To block off the side of the pins, you can use any piece of lightweight cloth. You can use pieces of velcro tape to attach this cloth to the top bar. Now, take a key ring and attach reflector tape to it and hang it to the bottom bar. Once you place the guide tool on the lane, make sure your ball passes underneath the bottom bar and graze the taped key ring. You can set it at both the arrows and the breakpoint. You can move the key ring according to your target in a simple manner. Before you place this tool at your local bowling center’s lanes, do ask for permission.
Conclusion
Most bowlers rush to master bowling skills. Finesse in this sport requires patience, like every other great thing in the world. So take things slow. Choose a bowling targeting guide tool as per your need. Hope this article was helpful enough. For further queries, get in touch with me. Good luck and catch you later, my fellow bowlers!
Passionate Bowler and Bowling Enthusiast
Jess Pinelli is a dedicated bowling enthusiast with a deep love for the sport that spans over 6 years. With numerous strikes, spares, and a few gutter balls under hes belt, he has honed his skills on lanes across the country. Pinelli’s journey in the world of bowling has been a remarkable one, from casual weekend games with friends to competitive league play and even a few local tournaments.
Driven by her passion for the game, Pinelli decided to channel her expertise and knowledge into the digital realm, becoming a prolific author on this bowling website. She’s your go-to source for everything bowling-related, from mastering the perfect hook to choosing the right bowling ball and even navigating the world of bowling etiquette.
When she’s not busy writing informative articles or reviewing the latest bowling gear, you’ll likely find Pinellis at her favorite local bowling alley, helping newcomers improve their game or enjoying some friendly competition with fellow bowlers. She firmly believes that bowling is not just a game but a community, and she’s committed to fostering that sense of camaraderie both online and offline.
