There are two kinds of bowlers: the ones who throw hard and hope, and the ones who know a few bowling tips that actually work. The gap between them is surprisingly small and has almost nothing to do with strength. Here are the tricks that land on any lane straight away, plus a few for showing off to your group.
The Foundation in 60 Seconds: How to Roll the Ball
Quick bit first, because no trick works without it. Good bowling technique comes down to three things:
- Grip: thumb all the way into its hole, middle and ring fingers only to the second knuckle. The weight rests on your free hand, never on your throwing arm.
- Approach: four steps. Right-handers start on the right foot and push the ball forward, the arm swings back to shoulder height, and the last step is a slide on the left foot. Left-handers mirror it.
- Release: the ball is not thrown, it is set down next to your ankle. The arm keeps swinging up afterwards.
As for the ball: around ten percent of your body weight, capped at 16 pounds. If you cannot hold it steady at arm’s length for five seconds, it is too heavy. That is the theory done. Now the tricks.
Trick 1: Aim at the Arrows, Not the Pins
The most useful bowling tip of all costs zero practice. The pins sit a good 18 metres away; the seven arrows on the lane are only 4.5 metres out. A closer target is easier to hit. That is pure geometry, not skill.
Right-handers line up on the second arrow from the right, left-handers on the second from the left. From now on you do not look at the pins during the throw at all. It feels wrong and it works immediately.
Trick 2: The Pocket Is the Only Spot That Counts
A strike in bowling comes from angle, not force. The target is the pocket: the gap between pins 1 and 3 for right-handers, and between pins 1 and 2 for left-handers.
Hit it and the ball pushes the pins sideways into each other, setting off a chain reaction. Hit the head pin dead centre instead and you drive it straight through the middle, leaving two pins standing at the back. The most satisfying-looking hit is, annoyingly, the worst one.
Trick 3: The Hook, the One With the Biggest Payoff
A ball rolling straight meets the pocket at a shallow angle and loses energy. A ball with rotation enters the pocket from the outside and clears far more reliably. That is why every professional hooks the ball.
How to do it:
- Keep your hand behind the ball until release, not underneath it.
- On release, turn the hand slightly inwards, as if shaking someone’s hand.
- The thumb leaves the hole first, the middle and ring fingers create the rotation.
- Take the pace off. Rotation before speed, otherwise it all ends up in the gutter.
A realistic expectation: house balls are made of polyester and hook only weakly. If your curve is barely visible, that is the material, not you.
Trick 4: How to Bowl a Strike Without Spin
Cannot get a hook to work? A strike does not require one. The trick is angle instead of rotation: set up one or two boards further right than usual (right-handers) and keep aiming at the second arrow. The ball then travels diagonally rather than parallel to the lane and reaches the pocket from roughly the direction a hook would have given it.
Add less speed and more accuracy. A straight ball forgives nothing, but it is predictable. Plenty of players score more consistently this way than with a half-finished hook.
Trick 5: Move Your Feet, Not Your Technique
Lanes are oiled, more heavily at the front than at the back. That is why every lane behaves differently, and why the same lane changes over the evening as the oil gets carried down.
The move that separates regulars from beginners: if the ball consistently runs too far left, shift your starting position one or two boards to the right and keep aiming at the same arrow. The movement stays identical, only the angle changes. Rebuild your technique instead and you will spend all night searching for it.
Trick 6: The 3 6 9 Rule for Picking Up Spares
Spares win games, strikes just look good. And there is a ready-made formula for spares. Keep aiming at the same arrow and move only your feet, right-handers to the left:
- Single pin 3: move three boards left.
- Single pin 6: move six boards left.
- Single pin 10, the nasty one out on the right: move nine boards left.
For pins on the left side, mirror it and move right. The diagonal angle forgives small errors, whereas a straight throw at a single pin forgives nothing at all.
Trick 7: The Brooklyn, Your Best Accident
When the ball crosses over to the wrong side of the head pin and clears everything anyway, that is a Brooklyn strike. It counts in full, it looks like skill, and it was not. Nobody needs to know.
The Unsexy Trick That Pays Off Most: Throw the Same Way Every Time
The question casual bowlers ask is rarely how to throw a strike. It is why every throw comes out differently. The answer is almost always the same: because every throw starts differently.
- Starting position: remember the board your left foot stands on. Not roughly, the actual number.
- Step count: always four. Not three sometimes and five at others.
- Pace: even. Trying to make up for a bad frame by throwing harder never works.
- Target: the same arrow every frame. What changes is where you stand, never what you aim at.
It sounds like nothing and it is the difference between a 90 and a 130.
Show-Off Tricks for the Lane
These will not win you points, but they will get a reaction. All of them are legal as long as you stay behind the foul line and do not loft the ball onto the lane.
- Two-handed: both hands on the ball, thumb out of the hole. Looks wild and genuinely generates the most rotation of any style.
- Backwards: turn your back to the pins and roll it through your legs. Low accuracy, high entertainment value.
- Granny style: two hands, swung forward between the legs like a boules throw. The only trick that works better with a heavy ball.
- The sniper: deliberately picking off one remaining pin instead of throwing and hoping. Unspectacular, and it ends every argument about who is winning.
Strike Killers: The Mistakes That Cost You Points
You will see all of these on any lane, and every one can be fixed inside a single frame.
| Mistake | What happens | The fix |
| Ball too heavy | The arm tenses and the swing turns into a heave | Drop two pounds |
| Looking at the pins | An 18 metre target means a wide spread | Focus on the arrows at 4.5 metres |
| Full power | The ball bounces and loses its roll | Take pace off, add rotation |
| No slide step | Stopping abruptly drops the ball onto the lane | Slide deliberately on the last step |
| Arm stops at release | Direction and rotation are lost | Follow through to shoulder height |
| Changing technique, not position | The movement gets reinvented every frame | Move your start one board across |
Bowling Vocabulary for the Rest of the Night
- Turkey: three strikes in a row. This is where you are allowed to get loud.
- Four-bagger: four in a row. Five is a five-bagger, seven a seven-bagger, and so on.
- Bedposts: the 7-10 split, two pins right out on the edges. Statistically close to unclearable.
- Gutterball: the channel. It happens. To professionals too.
- Perfect game: twelve strikes, 300 points. The maximum.
Try These Bowling Tips Out: Lane7 at Potsdamer Platz
Reading does not get you a strike. At Lane7 in Berlin you can test every one of these where they belong: on modern lanes right at Potsdamer Platz. Moody lighting, beats and stylish lanes, that is fun on a whole different level.
And if the hook is not landing tonight: besides bowling you will also find mini golf, darts, beer pong, karaoke and a full bar with us. All under one roof, all bookable.
ENOUGH WITH THE READING. JUST COME PLAY.
Bowling for Groups: Large Bookings at Lane7
Anyone planning an event knows: the venue makes all the difference. At Lane7, no event is too big.
Whether it is a corporate team night for 20 people, a birthday for 50 or an exclusive venue hire for 300 guests, Lane7 offers tailor-made packages that go far beyond an ordinary bowling night. Multiple lanes at once, exclusive areas, catering straight from our kitchen and a full bar for your group. No compromises, no stress.
Your large booking at Lane7:
- Exclusive access to multiple bowling lanes at the same time
- A dedicated point of contact for all your planning
- Individually customisable packages with food and drinks
- A combination of darts, mini golf, karaoke and other activities
- Flexible booking for corporate events, birthdays, stag and hen parties and more
READY FOR SOMETHING BIGGER?
FAQ: Bowling Tips
-
What is the trick to bowling?
Aim at the arrows rather than the pins, and target the pocket instead of the head pin. The arrows sit 4.5 metres away, the pins 18, so the closer target is far easier to hit. The pocket is the gap between pins 1 and 3 for right-handers and between 1 and 2 for left-handers, and it is the only spot that reliably clears all ten.
-
Where should you aim in bowling?
At the second arrow from the right if you are right-handed, and the second from the left if you are left-handed. Do not look at the pins during the throw at all. It feels wrong the first few frames and it works immediately.
-
How do you bowl a strike without spin?
Create the angle with your feet instead of with rotation. Set up one or two boards further right than usual, keep aiming at the second arrow, and the ball will cross the lane diagonally into the pocket. Take some pace off as well, because a straight ball is predictable but unforgiving.
-
What is the 3 6 9 rule in bowling?
A system for picking up single pin spares. You keep aiming at the same arrow and move only your starting position: three boards across for the near edge pin, six for the next one out, nine for the outermost. Right-handers move left for pins on the right and mirror it for pins on the left.
-
What should you not do when bowling?
Do not use a ball you cannot hold steady at arm’s length, do not watch the pins while you throw, do not stop your arm at the release, and do not throw at full power. The biggest one: do not rebuild your technique after a bad frame. Move your feet one board instead.
-
Why do I bowl so inconsistently?
Because the throw starts differently each time. Fix four things and the spread shrinks straight away: stand on the same board every frame, use the same number of steps, keep the pace even, and aim at the same arrow. Consistency comes from the setup, not from the release.
-
What are 12 strikes called?
A perfect game, worth 300 points, which is the maximum. Along the way, three strikes in a row is a turkey, four a four-bagger and seven a seven-bagger.
-
Can you play bowling at Lane7 in Berlin?
Yes. Lane7 is located right at Potsdamer Platz in Berlin and offers modern bowling lanes in a stylish setting. Besides bowling there is mini golf, darts, beer pong, karaoke and a bar. Bookings are available online, including for large groups and corporate events.