I went bowling tonite just for the heck of it. Practicing for my upcoming league this Monday, which I'm excited for. I used my Brunswick BVP Rampage. Best series of my life. 776....267...265...244. Oddly enough my series when I got my 300 was lower than that because I totally screwed up one of the games. It was in the low 700's. I'm pretty happy about that. I know that I can get into the 800's if I keep it up. I don't do too shabby for a thumbless bowler. The owner of the bowling center says I'm one of the more consistent thumbless bowlers he's seen in awhile. Don't get my wrong I'm still working on using my thumb but I'm not ready to take that approach to league yet. I hope I can put up some good numbers in league!!!

Recpnbbs, nice shooting. On your 300 series being less, it is quite impressive that you maintained the consistency through 3 games.

Great series, Reconbbs!

Good job, bud!

Thanks! Consistency has been a problem for me. Especially my line to the pocket. I really need to work on being consistent with that.

i don't care how many fingers you use, nice shooting!

haha. Thanks! Most people at the bowling alley look down upon me because of the way I bowl. They don't think I can score well. I think its because they see all the 2 finger bowlers during glow bowl.

There have been some successful thumbless bowlers. One pro changed to thumbless release in the 90s and won a few titles. He went back to using the thumb for spares though. I've heard of others averaging 220+. It just takes a lot of work, a lot more than bowling with the thumb. Good going on the new high series.

We have a few thumbless bowlers locally, they nick named their team "Thumbs Out". Only 3 that I know of can really put the ball down well the others spray the ball. I know some people don't like the idea but there are a select few that are good at what they do. If you can get 300s and put numbers up like that an 800 is definitely a possibility. Good luck!

Congratulations! That's a great score--it beats my best score by 30 pins. And since you're only 18, I'm sure you're destined for even bigger and better things.


I've bowled in leagues for 10 years now, and for most of that time, I was either the best or the only thumbless bowler in my league. Then last season, I bowled against a thumbless bowler who averaged 210, and there's a 220 thumbless bowler in my current league.

The 210 bowler used three fingers for spares and was probably a better spare shooter than most 210 guys. (I'd guess he'd bowled with three fingers for a long time before he switched.) He used his 4th and 5th fingers on the strike ball, which I didn't get at the time; looking back, I'd say he was trying to get extra finger turn, go from 7 o'clock to 3 o'clock.

He had very smooth mechanics and a big hook, but I wasn't impressed with his strike shot, which IMO had too much finesse for a two-finger bowler: not much speed, and the roll wasn't that heavy, either, so he left a lot of single pins. 100% of the difference between us was spare percentage, maybe more than that.

I was really excited to get a close look at the 220 bowler, but the big difference between us was obvious immediately--his regular strike shot runs about 20 mph. He gets a very heavy roll (the ball is wedged against his forearm on the approach) but his finger turn is the usual 6-to-3, and with his speed he's not much more rev-dominant than a typical bowler. He throws two-finger spares, but again, he speed allows him to pick up the 10pin by throwing his usual strike shot with a regular plastic ball, with no fear of over-hooking.

I'm at 200 myself, but I've discovered I have unusual mechanics even by two-finger standards--when I lock my arm for the backswing, it's not just bent, it's curved inward, so I get heavy side roll without much finger turn.

To this point, my success has been a result of years of practice, though it doesn't hurt that I usually target the most forgiving part of the lane using the most forgiving equipment. Right now I'm trying to add speed and smooth out my mechanics, figuring I'll be able to make up for lost hook by switching to more modern equipment.