John Jowdy (a PBA hall of fame member, a great bowler and a coach to many great

bowlers of the country) has developed the Over and Under Drill, to perfect the
maneuver of a free armswing. It works like this.
9 Think of two imaginary bars
9 One is at the starting, and the other at release points
9 Place the first imaginary bar 4 to 6 inches above the starting ball position
9 Push the ball over this bar and disengage fore arm muscles
9 Gravity will move the ball to its next position of descent and swing
9 Imagine the imaginary bar at release point about 12 inches above the foul line
9 Release the ball just under it
The drill aims to familiarize you with the tactic of shifting the weight of the ball from the
shoulder to the arm, which is the main aspect of a free swing. Superstar David Ozio
mastered the art of free arm swing with this drill.

Semi-controlled Armswing
Though the free arm swing is best recommended for beginners, it is worthwhile knowing
the other variations of the armswing.
The semi-controlled swing is executed with minimum muscle application. It is a
movement that is begun downwards or slightly upward, controlled by the forearm
muscles. Again a slight use of the muscles pulls the ball into the backswing. Most
bowlers who adopt the semi-controlled method take up their stance in a lower or
crouched position
Beyond this point, all muscles are relaxed and disengaged, and the ball moves due to
gravity and its own weight.
There are a number of bowlers who have achieved remarkable success while adopting the
semi-controlled movement, Earl Anthony and Don Carter being two of them.
However, as a learner of the game, it is preferable you adopt the free arm swing strategy
as it can be well coordinated into the second step of the five step approach or the first step
of the four step approach.
- 27 2004, HowToBowlStrikes.com