BOWLING.

Shannon News, 24 December 1929, Page 2

BOWLING.

WEIGHT-SENSE,

An interesting article on tlie above subject appears in the Bowlers' Annual from the pen of Fleming Lauren, son, who writes:—With young players weight-sense has to be developed over a period of months of practice, and even years. They are advised to daily handle their bowls. If they cannot get /down to the green they should take a bowl and practise by throwing it into the air about .two feet, and about thirty times in succession. By this means the muscles in hand and arm are gradually developed, and the sensitiveness of touch that is so necessary is attained. ' y With, regard to grip and size of bowl the primary point to be consider'ed is that of the size oi the bowl. Waxman, one of the leading singles players in Australia, advises that the bowl must fit the hand of the player to allow that it will, run smoothly and ' evenly off the tip of the fingers. To obtain the advantage of size the following rule is laid down: Take the bowl in the left hand. Place the right, hand on the bowl. Reach round with the thumb to the centre of the left disc, and with the little finger to the other disc. It will be seccn that the ! second finger lies truly down the exact dead-centre of the bowl, and that the first and third naturally arc equally distant to the second. Turn the bowl over. Immediately it will that the fingers, one, two and three, with their pads at the base of the fingers, form a perfect cradle for, the bowl, and that the bowl is naturally away from the butt of the ! thumb. If a bowler cannot reach the , two discs with thumb and little finger or if the bowl sits against the pad at the foot or butt of the thumb, then the bowl is too large for the player to use with perfect control. It will be no'tod from the above directions that there are actually only three bowling fingers used—first, second and third—and that the thumb and first finger are simply steadying factors only. In actual practice the bowl runs sweetly along these fingers, with the pads at the ends of the fingers as the final point where the sensitiveness of-touch is developed.

A modification of the above, in respect to the* thumb and little finger, can be obtained by placing them as near the discs as possible, but not to interfere with the sweet running of the bowl off the tips of the fingers one, two and three. The thumb grip on the'top centre of the bowl is roundly condemned as most inaccurate, being conducive to wobbling the bowl, and is considered not advantageous to correct bowling.