Whether or not it's the right call it will certainly be interesting to see what happens next year in terms of scores and who struggles without the softies.
The funny thing about urethane was that about 30+ years ago, reactive resin balls came out and became much more high scoring than urethane because of the additional hook from reactive balls. So for about 30 years, urethane was relegated to use as a spare ball or not used much by pros and amateurs. In the last several years, some good bowlers have figured out how to score with urethane and winning titles consistently. With the PBA's logic, they should have banned reactive resin balls in the 1990s because the scores went up exponentially and the # of 300 games went parabolic. The integrity of the sport of bowling was already damaged. IMO, the PBA is targeting a handful of bowlers because they are too successful. It's like Major League Baseball banning the bat that Aaron Judge used to hit his home runs with. Sounds purely arbitrary. Urethane balls are actually very weak balls because they have a low differential and will hook less than reactive resin balls when they encounter dry boards. I would say 80% of the bowlers can't score well with urethane because it rolls slightly more than plastic. It takes a lot of skill to score with urethane. The average league bowler's average would DECREASE if they were forced to use urethane balls only.
This is so funny. This is the second time in history that Urethane balls have been called an unfair advantage bowling ball. I funny JR is saying this with a straight face. I heard this same talk in 1983.
Will be interesting what companies come out with now and how bowlers will adjust to the new balls. 5 hardest points is big but it's not the end of Urethane, it's still will be a main piece in tournaments / PBA events. The new rule is good because it will lead to less issues on ball checks and players trying to replace a perfectly good urethane ball every year or 2
It's important to note this is PBA, NOT USBC. It only affects PBA events (National, Regional, PBA50, PBA Jr, etc). I like Beef and Barnzy's take on this. I think Mfrs will leave Purple Hammer and Pitch Black alone, but come out with a "Tour" variant that meets PBA specs.
@@Nova-BlackStrat That is the question I have, as well. I finally gave in and bought my first urethane ball for sport shots right before Nationals (a Pink Widow) and bought a Purple Pearl Hammer at the Brunswick booth after seeing how it operated for me. I'll be a little pissed if they decided to ban "old" urethanes now after I finally got some. 😐
As a competitive amateur lefty, i agree with you that urethane gives us a nutso advantage. However, it does allow the left to be in play when the righties come across and blow the mids up. We get trapped on patterns that start out inside because the right side can open up, and everyone jumps to the fifth arrow or deeper. I hate bowling tournaments where im trapped left of 10 after game three when i should be in around 15 or 20. a urethane option allows me to stay out of the way and be competitive. On the flipside, when the shot is great on fresh we can stay there and eat all day where the righties are constantly adjusting, moving, and guessing to keep up. I'd love to see urethane stay around and be usable, but i totally get the research and decisions the PBA is making.
A few other commenters have already considered this, but in my opinion the future for control pieces will be plastic with big cores, like The Spy, the Black Widow Spare, the Track Spare+ and the Pathogen Blue Dot. The Spy in particular in an interesting piece due to the textured plastic cover stock. And considering Radical is a brand of Brunswick, there's nothing preventing that coverstock from going to other brands like hk22 has done.
A better idea for manufacturers is for the balls to roll off the line already having the chemical changes that normally make them softer, but with a higher initial hardness. In other words, the ball comes out of the box at 73 because it is an already softened version of 78, and will not keep softening much.
I definitely think cuts should be by squad because of the difference in some events from morning to night squads. But…. Is there room for a left and right cut? I can think back to 4 lefties making the show - which shows a huge lane bias to the left. This is the only sport that the surface dictates so much of the results. If every game was fresh oil on perfect surfaces maybe it’s not like that….
The best ball Ive used that gives me a urethane shape is the old Roto Grip Riot from 2010. I recently bought one because i remember it being so good and it was so nice to have that smooth, controllable motion again
I just have to say , if the left is so easy all the time then why isn't it leftys winning every competition or major . As a lefty I've played on patterns which started hard with hardly any shape and didn't change because there wasn't enough people on that side to break down the pattern , as on the right it started to shape nicely and made it easier ! It's not always easy on the left people !
@@melov7629 No, simply put, sometimes the lanes get easier when more play occurs, especially if the bowlers are smart enough to create room. And bottom line one big problem with bowling is the ability to manipulate scores by the oil pattern (initial pattern or broken down).
I’m in the same boat my guy. When I do good it’s because I’m the only one on that side I’m supposed to do good, when I bowl like trash they ask how when I’m the only one on that side lol double edged sword. And another thing is I hardly EVER throw my purple hammer as a strike ball it’s my 7 pin ball.
Glad to hear somebody else is feeling my pain ! We have just changed centre as the last one was so dry you couldn't even throw plastic , but now the new centre is putting out a pattern which the seems to play well on the right . But as i'm the only lefty in the whole league I'm struggling to get any shape to the pocket ! And they are wondering why I'm getting the ump !
@@martinboyd3672 maaaan I know your pain! Just bowled on the 47ft Statue of Liberty last week and it was brutal. Being the sole one on that side not to mention we moved a pair after every game I could never get a track going🤣
If you really wanted to level the playing field, ban ball reps. I’ve always felt when you’re at that level, you shouldn’t really need any extra help with adjustments or ball changes.
Ball reps are there to help maximize pro bowlers performance, which then in turn, sells balls. Some pros rely on them more than others. It took Belmo years to find a ball rep he trusted and listened to. But ultimately in the end, ball reps are a win/win for us and the pros. The TV shows are basically infomercials, and selling balls keeps the companies in business, thus giving us more choices and more releases with the research and development $$$ to create new tech, like HK22, Rex covers, etc. So if you only want a handful of balls on the market and some of the companies to go out of business, then yes by all means, get rid of ball reps. But if you want to see youtube videos of new balls, have more choices for yourself, and see pros using them on vids and on TV, then keep ball reps.
@@nevinkinzel I don’t watch or play golf so I can’t comment on what a caddy does. But as to a coach for a sport, there’s a management aspect of it too (especially if we’re talking team sports) that I don’t feel is present for bowling and a ball rep.
@@patricktyler2347 That is only the head coach. Take MLB, for instance. They have hitting coaches and pitching coaches. NFL has a coach for everything and they even call the play each down. Caddies give notes on club selection, distances, hazards, etc. and carry their equipment for the players.
Motiv just came out with a new Tank yellow jacket that is the closest to their purple tank urethane ball. this happened before this will be new rule takes place, will motiv have to do a recall on this ball or did the bowling companies have an idea this was going to happen?
Looking forward to what the USBC's response to this will be. They could do nothing, that's always a possibility but I'd think they'd come up with something, otherwise you'll have different versions of essentially the same ball on the market. Personally, I'd like to see them "follow suit" but I don't think it would be reasonable to just ban all old balls. I think they should keep them legal for leagues but ban them from all tournaments (not just nationals). They also should re-evaluate the old urethane to find those manufactured within the new specs and keep them legal if they can.
JR, I've been using the "spread finger" trick for decades to control ball reaction. The new rules open up Pandora's box in the form of new layouts, which in turn will cause newer rules in limitations of layouts, weights, etc.
It is know that you can set lanes up to favor any hand. I’ve beem bowling for 47 years and i seen and heard it all on the lefty, righty differences, ball, lane conditions # of entries lefty to righty ratio. It will always be a topic
Hey jr just wondering were the old purple beast stands I have been rolling it in my summer trio league and it's been working well is it going to be useless this coming fall season thanks John from taylor mi
This is a rule change implemented by the PBA Tour. It only applies on the various levels of their organization (not including the new PBA certified leagues). So far, the USBC hasn't said they're doing anything similar, so no impact on your league.
I actually drilled my first urethane a couple weeks ago. I like how controlled the reaction is and how I can make it work in dry and wet conditions but I still like my black venom better lol
i wanted a urathane just to have one and see what they do but like every pro shop guy and person i talk to says its not good on a house shot and not to bother
@@cyan0xide they are great on a house shot with lots of carry down it reads earlier and doesn’t rely on backend motion when there’s lots of oil down lane
12:53 Getting back into bowling and found my old Ebonite Gyro I Black rubber ball. Not sure what any of this is about. We only had rubber or plastic. I guess I’ll need to update my ball. Can anyone get me up to speed. I’m 62 and haven’t bowled in 40 years 🤔😎.
I like the rule change to a point. If USBC makes that one of their rules. I'm a bilateral amputee. That means both of my feet are prosthetic. I can't generate enough ball speed to control the hook. Do I then have to roll plastic? I focus hard on staying behind the ball to cut the hook down, but it doesn't help all that much. Does anyone have any ideas to help me? When I had both of my feet, I was able to average 205-210 in league. I miss those days.
You could still use urethane, you'd just have to get one of the new ones that'll come out in the next year that conform to the new rule. Personally, I hope the USBC doesn't follow the PBA on this, but we'll see.
Haha! Love your comment about where you were in Match Play this past weekend. Where can I find all these balls that the PBA Players are going to be getting rid of?
I think that soon specific people in the PBA ask for all ball to be made only of polyurethane harder then the classic Crown Jewel and no resin balls allowed due to the wear.
Who's gonna be mad? Anybody currently enjoying a competitive advantage under the old rules. Should they be mad? No... but since when has fairness and integrity ever kept SOMEBODY from grumbling? 😂
It’s going to make everything more difficult overall and honestly I’m perfectly fine with that. It’s going to make a good number of 2 handers wake up and realize that they’re not as good as they think they are. It may also negatively affect some 1 handers with lower rev rates. I’m all for it though. It’s definitely frustrating when the scoring pace on the right is 200-210 and the left is 230. If they can fix that then it’s going to be successful.
Bowling needs to be harder.. There is a reason, bowling in the 1960's was so massive.. That is because the game was actually hard back then.. Everyone was forced to use the same equipment, the lanes were mopped with oil, and getting an honor score was a true test of ability. Now, I see 300's and 800's literally every single week in my league, whereas my Father told me, in the 60's you were lucky to see 1 or 2 300's in an entire league season.
@@mayaboylan5414 yes because people these days are soft, want everything to be easier, and could never handle bowling like it was in 50s n 60s. This is why bowling now is nothing compared to what it was back then in terms of participation and popularity
It has nothing to do with 2 handed bowlers I have carried over a 200 average for years and I bowl one handed and I throw only urethane and plastic and I get plenty on the bowling ball
@@mayaboylan5414 Its sad, but you're probably right. People are too used to the game being "easy" to be willing to accept they're maybe not as good as they thing they are.
JR!!! You are so real and your insights really help bring real perspective (with no punches pulled). Going from 73 to 78 should help patterns hold up right? Enjoy Orlando!
While it's true that less of the ball's surface touching the pattern will transition it slower, it's the resin balls with high oil absorption rates that shred them an order of magnitude faster than urethane.
I love it. Personally, I always felt that Urethane is a crutch for bowlers. I try to be a student of the game and I'm not learning watching pros throw urethane 80 percent of the time. I want to see big handed player create angle or manipulate reactive resin when the pattern is shorter, use the technology of these balls from every company with surface changes to match up properly. For bowling to be a sport, having a crutch that makes the game "easier" doesn't help the sport. The sport should be challenging, urethane is just a short cut, in my opinion.
Devil’s advocate here. If a ball helps you make a cut and cash… meaning you can afford breakfast… you just might walk with that crutch all the way to the bank.
@atbsigma That is true, I won't deny that. I bowled a college event with a Storm Black Ice because I didn't understand "getting the ball to roll forward" and I average 215 for 6 games. Left lane Cheetah and right lane Shark but as I gotten better and started actually learning different tricks, hand positions, angles, now I' I feel more comfortable after learning how to manipulate my hand, lengthing out my arm swing to get the ball to go further down the lane and understanding the idea of "going up the back of the ball." Appreciate the comment.
@@darrendunning4231 once those tricks and hand positions start working, I definitely see how much more versatile you (and most tourney and pro bowlers) become. Different ways to get the ball through the pins and cash. That’s where the new rule does help bring skill set back to the game. Case in point, baseball changed the ball after 2019. That pill flew out of every yard, and we thought we were back to seeing MLB players juicing it up. It turned out better for the game. In bowling if could be the same thing… promoting those very skills you learned in college.
I was just wondering if anyone can tell me why they are changing the hardness rule. I read the PBA posted rule change, and understand that the ball gets softer after time. But even a 72 hardness would not hook more than a high powered resin ball. So it wouldn’t be because it hooks to much.
Softness isn't necessarily about getting more hook it's about the forgiveness it gives the bowler on tougher shots. A softer ball can make a flat sport shot play like a challenge pattern for a regular bowler and like a house shot for a pro. The difference shows up more with sport shots than it does with house shots. With a reactive resin ball, getting softer could make the ball uncontrollable, but for urethanes it makes a huge difference. It may only give a board or two more mistake room, but for a pro that's enough. CtD (Creating the Difference) had a good video a while back on how changing the hardness of a ball effects it's forgiveness on tough patterns. Once you get below 70D on hardness, the difference shows up.
They CAN'T ban all urethane bowling balls - basically all current bowling balls that are not polyester, are urethane. What makes the difference, is what is added to the base urethane material to make a ball a "solid" or a "pearl". Even some of the "urethane" balls are now using plasticizers.
It's a weird one. Urethane is its own reaction, so it oughta be interesting to see whether or not there will be bowling meta changes like seeing more dull or shiny balls going down the lane, more strong cored, high flaring urethane balls coming out, or if it affects the reactive balls too like the whole Spectregate saga 😅
I am left handed I roll a 2019 purple hammer ( reactive resin and the works) and it’s still great. The left side to a degree is true. I have always wonder in league and tournaments, are the left side of the lanes truly oiled correctly and is the right side juiced?. Like I have seen so many times, once the right handlers make a track, they just follow each other and blow the scores up. I don’t think USBC cares to be honest. Thx for the great videos. Oh yeah buying a Buffalo-swag!
I believe it will qualify as urethane-like and thus be subject to the new out-of-box hardness minimum of 78D. Given that it's polyester, it likely is already that hard or harder, anyway, so it won't matter.
They still haven't explained why a new urethane ball is getting softer. From my understanding is that a urethane ball doesn't collect oil so how does it get softer? Is an older original urethane ball from the 80's or early 90's that much different today?
From what I've seen, they believe it's a combination of the modern urethane formulations and modern oils. There's likely a chemical reaction occurring that causes them to soften due to contact with the oil plus friction/heat from rolling on the lane surface. Older urethane balls from the 80s don't seem to have the same issue, but that may not be true (could just be due to lack of sample size).
I think it could be better for ball companies and tv veiwing for avid fans because it'll force players to use a wider variety of balls and angles instead of having shows were 4 outta 5 guys are using a purple hammer or pitch black and playing basic (boring) reactions. It's the right move for them sure but uping the hardness will make them less user friendly and we'll see more balls and different angles/game plans on playing these tougher patterns.
I never liked the resurgence of urethane equipment, and I always believed that two-handed bowling helped urethane equipment make a comeback. And with resin equipment so powerful, it made sense for it to return at the pro level, so I accepted it. Then urethane showed up in league play, which I never agreed with because there are plenty of options available among resin equipment for a league bowler to choose from on a house pattern. I ended up having to pay close attention to those bowlers who use it, so that when my team was bowling them, I'd bring a ball with a ton of surface on it so I could toss it on the urethane bowler's line, ruin it for him, so he'd have no choice but to change to a reactive ball. I hated resorting to such tactics, but the alternative was the urethane bowler pushing conditioner down lane and causing my equipment to wiggle, thus rendering it ineffective. It came down to either my line being messed up or his, so I chose the latter. I just hope the change at the pro level next year will be followed by the USBC at the league level. I'd love to see urethane equipment not be used in league anymore. It's bad enough that string pinsetters are being accepted, so ridding leagues of urethane equipment would be welcome, at least by this bowler. I'm sure I'll get hammered for what I've said here; so be it. I welcome dissenting points of view.
I use plastic on house due to severe nerve issues in my arm/wrist/hand. Dont kill me... Cant use my thumb, and even the weakest reactive equipment is way too strong these days and I cant control them. Since moving to plastic, Ive been averaging 220. I really have no choice tho and it is what works for me.
@@JonHop1 That's okay - you have a legitimate "medical" reason for the change. I'm glad you are doing well with a plastic ball. BTW - the guy who uses urethane in my league averages in the 240's with it but is in the 2'teens without it.
Or, just a thought, learn how to adjust to the carry down. It’s really not that difficult. I get it, it seems easier to be passive aggressive and try to destroy your opponents line (which can be overcome with a parallel move keeping urethane in play). You’re just setting yourself up for failure. Reduce your ball speed, move right, square up and roll it forward. Your ball wiggles because it’s trying to hook through the carry down. Make it hook sooner so it’s rolling when it’s going through the carry down. You can also switch to something faster off the spot and change your break point to use the carry down, playing like it’s a longer pattern.
I'd like to know a little bit more about the short pin layouts. What type of cover stock would you recommend? And what core type? I'm just curious to see what would work best.
Id like to see the pba make a ball for each event stop, hence oil pattern.. and that's the only ball for those select events. Let the youth see how different people do different things with their hands to make the ball do what it does. I'm tired of hearing my ball doesn't do that!.
It would be nice if they were all truly on a level playing field with everyone bowling with very similar equipment, so that it would just be the skill, knowledge, and execution that determined the winner. Something like the Plastic Ball tournament they did several years ago, but with reactive resin (or urethane) instead. For that tournament, they still used a ball made by their sponsor manufacturer, but they were all required to fit within very narrow specs (narrower than current) for hardness, radius of gyration, etc.
yeah its so boring watching pitch blacks and purple hammers every show,, and they sand their balls down so hard that even the colorful balls look dull and dark going down the lane
@@cyan0xide just going to be two different balls over and over or they will reuse the branding and it will be purple hammer 2 electric boogalo and totally not pitch black version 2
I remeber Sean Rash talking to kimberly on a pba telecast about urethane and saying that he tried it but could not play with it. "Its a feel thing" (something like that). Thats my problem with Shawn. You cant just say you dislike something because someonelse does it better than you. If i ever find the clip i will post it.
@@Tenpindoctors That he would use it if he was better at it and then not complain. It just make him sound like a sore looser. But I still think the rule change is correct and a good thing. I liked your video and agree with you. Thats just my opinion on Shawn.
So, if the reactive ball loses reactivity over time and a pro drags his old reactive ball with him and rolls it like a urethane from tournament to tournament, will there have to be a rule change for that as well?
Reactive balls do lose their aggressiveness over time, but they don't generally become softer and thus fall too far outside of the legal hardness minimum like modern urethanes do (they actually typically become harder over time), so there's nothing illegal or "unfair" about them like there is with modern urethanes which have been proven to soften significantly below the legal minimum spec. The 73D hardness spec doesn't just apply to balls fresh from the manufacturer, it also applies anytime the ball is used "in the field." It's always been illegal to play with a ball that's softer than the minimum spec (currently 73D). This isn't new. The PBA is just now FINALLY enforcing the rule with respect to modern urethanes. On a side note, the PBA is allowing the in-the-field readings to be as low as 71D to account for the stated margin of error in the testing instruments (as should the USBC, but that would make too much sense). This is the reason the PBA only banned the Spectre last year and not the additional five Storm balls that the USBC deemed as "excluded but not banned" because the Spectre was the only one that fell below 71D in their testing. For some reason, the USBC refuses to account for the stated margin of error given by the durameter manufacturer in their field testing (it's +/- 2D). Regardless of any of this, the PBA is also banning ALL balls manufactured prior to 8/1/2022 starting with the 2024 season (only on the National tour), so it's all a bit of a moot point regarding old reactive balls, anyway. Personally, I think the PBA should have kept the hardness spec at 73D for all balls and just continued to field test balls (perhaps with a focus on urethanes) and ban any that fall below 71D over time. This would force new urethane balls to be legal in the field regardless of their measured hardness out of the box without making the assumption (as they are) that whatever the manufacturers do to change their urethane balls to 78D won't also stop them from softening by 5 points with use, which is a possibility.
When I bowled the Western Regional circuit in the late 80's, ABC (that's right, the ABC) allowed 72 hardness while the PBA allowed 75 hardness. Man the difference was huge then. Going from 73 now to 78 will be an epic change in ball motion.
Yes, from what I read in the PBA's report on the issue, they're being classed as urethane-like along with other balls that aren't "true" urethanes but are still similar in coverstock.
Will the one handers have a chance later in blocks now that urethane is banned? Or will 2 handers Belmo Simonsen Buttruff Svenson or the big handers like EJ Tackett continue to dominate the tour. Kinda miss the Prather's Oneil type bowlers. Maybe Norm will come back. And ball sales may get back on track hmmm other than Urethane's 😮
So are they going to have inspections on each bowling ball prior to each tournament for the PBA national tour? If it’s deemed out of regulation, then they hav to come out of pocket to purchase another ball. What about bowlers that don’t have the funds to purchase new equipment that bowl tournaments outside of the tour to maintain the regulations of the other balls they want to preserve for tours. Please note that the tone of this comment/questions are not intended to be interpreted or directed toward you. Just expressing genuine concern especially from the financial component and how it can potentially affect the sport of bowling in the future.
Ball manufacturers will have to release balls that stay a consistent hardness, and not soften into illegal territory. Once they do that, there will not be any extra costs for bowlers.
How do i find out the hardness of a urethane ball? I have a purple and pitch black and I love throwing urethane, it would really suck for me if it turns out its just money waisted because the PBA decided its too good
@@cameronmcisaac1384 haven't a clue... there are some rules that only apply to the national tour. But they can extend rules as far down the totem pole as they like. You'll have to read the fine print...it's gotta be spelled out somewhere.
@@cameronmcisaac1384 The new urethane hardness rule applies to all levels of the PBA except their PBA certified leagues. The other new rule (all balls manufactured prior to 8/1/2022 are banned starting 1/6/2024) only applies to the National Tour.
Honestly, it should be done, Look at the PBA finals, Pitch Black vs. Pitch Black. A duel pattern and the same ball and shot was used for both lanes. How fun!!! Only way PBA could get away from urethane without banning it is creating a pattern so thin that it's shot after the 1st game.
could they not just make them at 78 but then come up with a method of aging them(softening) and that will naturally bring it back down to 73 and they’ll stay at that hardness after being sold or would they go even lower then that over time?
I imagine that's somewhat of a "wait and see" with the PBA. No manufacturer currently produces a 78+ hardness "urethane" ball, so it's unknown how much such a ball will end up varying in hardness over time.
I'd be interested in knowing how they'll approach urethane. They can't ban one single type of urethane (they did that with the 2016/17 purple hammers and look where that got them). Seriously though. You have to evolve in this game. If you don't, you quit.
Just yesterday i was bowling with a guy throwing a urethane ball. we were talking about them being band eventually and i find this video today 😂 cant wait to see him later today and have a laugh about this.
I just bought a urethane ball for the first time a few weeks ago and then a second one the next week (for Nationals). I finally caved in to the movement and they ripped the rug out from under me. The ban/rule change may not apply to leagues, but it's possible the USBC will do something similar for their national tournaments, which is what I got them for (and other sport shot tourneys/leagues).
Admittedly i just bowl for fun... why not just say all manufacturers have to make 2 balls. I strike ball and 1 spare. No ball reps allowed to coach during game. I quit watching/participating in bowling 30 years ago and have been amazed at how its changed. Seems to me that it would force players to play a more knowledgeable and nuanced game from a physical and body control standpoint.
a lot of local bowlers use urethane and throw it all over the place with no control and trash the lanes during local tournaments. So its good to ban urethane and stop people who don't have good control of their shot to trash the lanes.
The late Mo Pinel advocated using short pin layouts in lieu of using Urethane. So would totally banning Urethane be that detrimental in the grand scheme of things bowling wise?
Why not just restrict how much you can throw urethane, both in a row and in total, as well as when you can use it within each block? Also, you can solve the left side problem by either banning left-handed bowling or requiring some right-handers to throw left-handed if lefties are competing to even things out.
I'm not sure where to begin... in all my years, I don't think I've ever seen that many utterly absurd proposals all in one place. You actually think it's feasible to dictate that they can only throw Ball X for 3 frames in a row, or only in games 2,4, and 6 of a block? And then we're going to punish people for being left handed and just say "fuck you, you can't play this sport"?!? Have you hand any serious blows to the head recently? If so, you should have that checked before it festers...
The whole goal of every ball manufacture that they advertised a new ball that would strike more than any others then when somebody makes it, they legislate against it
Uh ... if the reason urethane is being used is to defeat the challenge of the oil patterns, then doesn't that mean the oil pattern challenge has been defeated? If y'all want to make it about the ball material vs the oil pattern (which seems what's been done) then have only one coverstock and one core allowed on the tour. I wonder how that would go over with the ball manufacturers?
I love this change that the PBA will be doing, and hope that USBC follows suit. It's no secret that Urethane has just become the auto ball to go to whenever the lanes are remotely difficult, and it also makes it where the majority of the times bowlers do not need to be as creative with how to get the ball to roll earlier and smoother in the backend. The real bowlers will be able to adjust relatively quickly and easily where as the bowlers that have solely benefitted and relied on throwing urethane will struggle with over/under reaction. I do believe it will hurt the higher rev bowlers that don't have much versatility with releases and ball speed, but at the same point, you live by that sword, you can die by that sword. I'm looking forward to seeing who can excel with it, and who will falter. And i do believe many will be surprised with who will struggle. I also do believe the bowling companies are smart, they know what has the most success of working on difficult patterns. Companies will develop more earlier rolling type bowling balls via coverstocks/weight block combinations, to offset this a little bit to help it, but i definitely believe this is a great step in the right direction for bowling
Trust me it's not gonna hurt anyone The guys that bowl good We'll bowl good The companies are just gonna take another bowl ball And make it to do this act the same thing as a urethane ball I won't change anything And you probably don't even average 200
Nobody owes Sean Rash an apology. The issue with him had nothing to do with him calling out the urethane, it was because how and when he did it. It overshadowed Matt Russo winning his first PBA title. Wrong place and wrong time. It was disrespectful.
It’s not even about that instance it’s because he’s been the one calling this out since the beginning and everyone called him a cry baby? Well he was right. These balls continue to cause issues so yes people owe him an apology when he’s standing up for the integrity of the game. Even when he was on staff and could throw them he called them out
@@Tenpindoctors Yep, he even bit the bullet of the fine and suspension. People don't have to like his personality or whatever but the dude ended up being right
I agree,Sean Rash was crying because it was screwing with his shot. I’ve seen bowlers do the same thing,because a bowler used dull stuff and ate the shot up. He’s a crybaby !
As a bowler looking to better myself, I refuse to give up on a pattern and throw plastic down the side or urethane. I know those balls will strike, I can practice that on house shot anytime. I don't like how many bowlers throw urethane when they can't figure out the pattern or the breakdown. I feel it makes the sport more boring. I think this is the bowlers fault more than anything else. Most of us will do anything to win. To the point where its predictable and makes competative play less interesting. Imo
At the highest pro level on the pba tour, they don’t need the ease of urethane to make the patterns play easier and then to score. They can still use trick layouts, the skill of hand positions. The biggest element they can do especially belmo is loft the caps! Using reactive it seemed more a shot makers game vs the recent Urethane era.
How is that great news resin has made the game to easy for a lot of bowlers they should ban resin not urethane let's go back to the old days when you had to put something on the bowling ball to score
@@parnellifalcioni5082 I don't disagree with you on the reactive resin front but purple hammers have made the game just as easy , it blends out difficult patterns and when in play on the left its almost unbeatable , I have 2 purples and love them but there is a time and a place for it, here in Europe they are used on almost every pattern, the recent European Championships if you weren't throwing purple you were out of it. Lots of European records + loads of 300s all on a low ratio1.92 pattern. urethane isn't the issue per se, it's the softness that gives unfair advantage
What do you mean by mandatory asymmetrical patterns? Are you saying oil patterns should be asymmetrical from left to right (so basically one pattern for the righties and one for the lefties) or all bowling balls should be asymmetrical? I'm guessing it's the former.
@@jglotzbach oil patterns, the toughest challenge in modern bowling is the transition, those that get it right and matchup at the right time do well, those that don't tend to fall away as the tournament progresses, the right side transitions like crazy - the left hardly ever - lefties don't need to loft gutters or throw backup balls - The PBA do use Asymmetrical patterns a lot of the time but no one else seems to.
Urethane is a pain in the you know what. Guys throw them in local tourneys and by game 3-4 everyone’s score is coming down because the urethane is destroying the front and pushing oil down lane and toward the gutter. So there is early hook and no down lane hook. It sucks. You can try lofting but not many amateurs can go that effectively. I’m all for banning them because it makes everyone else have to play different simply based on the equipment choice you make.
Whether or not it's the right call it will certainly be interesting to see what happens next year in terms of scores and who struggles without the softies.
The Purple Hammer is the Devin Hester of bowling. If you can't stop it, change the rules 🐐🐐
W comment
Devin Hester scored 16 career touchdowns in over 150 games…
@@enigmazero8624 *20 TDs and a NFL record but who's counting 😏
Devin Hester didn't have or use anything that was against nfl rules. He's still the goat though. 🐐
Love the Devin Hester analogy!
The funny thing about urethane was that about 30+ years ago, reactive resin balls came out and became much more high scoring than urethane because of the additional hook from reactive balls.
So for about 30 years, urethane was relegated to use as a spare ball or not used much by pros and amateurs.
In the last several years, some good bowlers have figured out how to score with urethane and winning titles consistently.
With the PBA's logic, they should have banned reactive resin balls in the 1990s because the scores went up exponentially and the # of 300 games went parabolic. The integrity of the sport of bowling was already damaged.
IMO, the PBA is targeting a handful of bowlers because they are too successful. It's like Major League Baseball banning the bat that Aaron Judge used to hit his home runs with. Sounds purely arbitrary.
Urethane balls are actually very weak balls because they have a low differential and will hook less than reactive resin balls when they encounter dry boards. I would say 80% of the bowlers can't score well with urethane because it rolls slightly more than plastic. It takes a lot of skill to score with urethane.
The average league bowler's average would DECREASE if they were forced to use urethane balls only.
This is so funny. This is the second time in history that Urethane balls have been called an unfair advantage bowling ball. I funny JR is saying this with a straight face. I heard this same talk in 1983.
Will be interesting what companies come out with now and how bowlers will adjust to the new balls.
5 hardest points is big but it's not the end of Urethane, it's still will be a main piece in tournaments / PBA events.
The new rule is good because it will lead to less issues on ball checks and players trying to replace a perfectly good urethane ball every year or 2
PBA: “No urethane balls”
USBC: “Sanction string pin bowling”
Dafaq is happening to bowling?
gonna be dead very soon
Great things are happening.
What's happening to bowling?
The short-bus commandos have taken it over and are running it straight into the ground.
@gwencrawford737 it's become woman's swimming. It's gone downhill since 08.
@@gwencrawford737 🤣👍
Somehow EJ is a right hander that gets it done and usually without using urethane
EJ is a freak of nature 😉
Exactly! I'm so glad they FINALLY are doing something about urethane!
what purple hammer is for lefties is venom shock for ej
Can't use EJ as the yardstick... he's such a beast, I'm not sure he's human. 🤣
He just used a microcell polymer (basically urethane) ball in the PBA tour finals.
Urethane balls get better over time and reactive loses reactivity over time. I think we all know what this rule is about $$$.
Yup. Never had a urethane crack. Have had reactive balls crack within a year or two all the way around. Reactive must not be selling well
But...the PurpleHammer/PitchBlack Open was so entertaining this week.
It's important to note this is PBA, NOT USBC. It only affects PBA events (National, Regional, PBA50, PBA Jr, etc).
I like Beef and Barnzy's take on this. I think Mfrs will leave Purple Hammer and Pitch Black alone, but come out with a "Tour" variant that meets PBA specs.
Good point, but for how long until that trickles down to usbc and whatnot, 🤔
@@Nova-BlackStrat That is the question I have, as well. I finally gave in and bought my first urethane ball for sport shots right before Nationals (a Pink Widow) and bought a Purple Pearl Hammer at the Brunswick booth after seeing how it operated for me. I'll be a little pissed if they decided to ban "old" urethanes now after I finally got some. 😐
EJ Tackett might have an even bigger season next year!
That is a true statement! What he can do without urethane to help is phenomenal.
I hope he does hes an absolute stud however urathane helped create hold and miss room and was stated in the last pba event
As a competitive amateur lefty, i agree with you that urethane gives us a nutso advantage. However, it does allow the left to be in play when the righties come across and blow the mids up. We get trapped on patterns that start out inside because the right side can open up, and everyone jumps to the fifth arrow or deeper. I hate bowling tournaments where im trapped left of 10 after game three when i should be in around 15 or 20. a urethane option allows me to stay out of the way and be competitive. On the flipside, when the shot is great on fresh we can stay there and eat all day where the righties are constantly adjusting, moving, and guessing to keep up. I'd love to see urethane stay around and be usable, but i totally get the research and decisions the PBA is making.
A few other commenters have already considered this, but in my opinion the future for control pieces will be plastic with big cores, like The Spy, the Black Widow Spare, the Track Spare+ and the Pathogen Blue Dot. The Spy in particular in an interesting piece due to the textured plastic cover stock. And considering Radical is a brand of Brunswick, there's nothing preventing that coverstock from going to other brands like hk22 has done.
If a ball like that can be successful, why would a urethane w a hardness of ~78 not be successful?
Can’t wait to see the next round of bowling ball tech that develops as a result of these changes.
A better idea for manufacturers is for the balls to roll off the line already having the chemical changes that normally make them softer, but with a higher initial hardness. In other words, the ball comes out of the box at 73 because it is an already softened version of 78, and will not keep softening much.
You can still use older reactive such as the "no mercy" ball?
I have a couple dozen of old reactive with no weight hole...
I definitely think cuts should be by squad because of the difference in some events from morning to night squads.
But…. Is there room for a left and right cut? I can think back to 4 lefties making the show - which shows a huge lane bias to the left. This is the only sport that the surface dictates so much of the results. If every game was fresh oil on perfect surfaces maybe it’s not like that….
Well that's the death of the "modern" urethane. Gonna be an interesting season coming up
The best ball Ive used that gives me a urethane shape is the old Roto Grip Riot from 2010. I recently bought one because i remember it being so good and it was so nice to have that smooth, controllable motion again
I just have to say , if the left is so easy all the time then why isn't it leftys winning every competition or major . As a lefty I've played on patterns which started hard with hardly any shape and didn't change because there wasn't enough people on that side to break down the pattern , as on the right it started to shape nicely and made it easier ! It's not always easy on the left people !
Finally someone said it! Lefties (i’m one myself) always have to be more precise with shots. If anything is off the whole shot is gone
@@melov7629 No, simply put, sometimes the lanes get easier when more play occurs, especially if the bowlers are smart enough to create room. And bottom line one big problem with bowling is the ability to manipulate scores by the oil pattern (initial pattern or broken down).
I’m in the same boat my guy. When I do good it’s because I’m the only one on that side I’m supposed to do good, when I bowl like trash they ask how when I’m the only one on that side lol double edged sword. And another thing is I hardly EVER throw my purple hammer as a strike ball it’s my 7 pin ball.
Glad to hear somebody else is feeling my pain ! We have just changed centre as the last one was so dry you couldn't even throw plastic , but now the new centre is putting out a pattern which the seems to play well on the right . But as i'm the only lefty in the whole league I'm struggling to get any shape to the pocket ! And they are wondering why I'm getting the ump !
@@martinboyd3672 maaaan I know your pain! Just bowled on the 47ft Statue of Liberty last week and it was brutal. Being the sole one on that side not to mention we moved a pair after every game I could never get a track going🤣
does anyone know if there is a graph somewhere with which urethanes are legal with the new rules?
If you really wanted to level the playing field, ban ball reps. I’ve always felt when you’re at that level, you shouldn’t really need any extra help with adjustments or ball changes.
Ball reps are there to help maximize pro bowlers performance, which then in turn, sells balls. Some pros rely on them more than others. It took Belmo years to find a ball rep he trusted and listened to. But ultimately in the end, ball reps are a win/win for us and the pros. The TV shows are basically infomercials, and selling balls keeps the companies in business, thus giving us more choices and more releases with the research and development $$$ to create new tech, like HK22, Rex covers, etc. So if you only want a handful of balls on the market and some of the companies to go out of business, then yes by all means, get rid of ball reps. But if you want to see youtube videos of new balls, have more choices for yourself, and see pros using them on vids and on TV, then keep ball reps.
Do you also think golfers shouldn't have caddies, or that other sports shouldn't have coaches (or only head coaches)?
@@nevinkinzel I don’t watch or play golf so I can’t comment on what a caddy does. But as to a coach for a sport, there’s a management aspect of it too (especially if we’re talking team sports) that I don’t feel is present for bowling and a ball rep.
@@patricktyler2347 That is only the head coach. Take MLB, for instance. They have hitting coaches and pitching coaches. NFL has a coach for everything and they even call the play each down.
Caddies give notes on club selection, distances, hazards, etc. and carry their equipment for the players.
So take away coaches in the NFL, NBA, etc... That makes no sense
Also the Columbia Shur D. Did the same thing. 68D is an advantage. That's not a surprise.
Motiv just came out with a new Tank yellow jacket that is the closest to their purple tank urethane ball. this happened before this will be new rule takes place, will motiv have to do a recall on this ball or did the bowling companies have an idea this was going to happen?
I DEFINITELY believe ball manufacturers seen this coming. Rash 'WON' with plastic bottle incident. Consider this Another 'ONE'. 😉
Looking forward to what the USBC's response to this will be. They could do nothing, that's always a possibility but I'd think they'd come up with something, otherwise you'll have different versions of essentially the same ball on the market. Personally, I'd like to see them "follow suit" but I don't think it would be reasonable to just ban all old balls. I think they should keep them legal for leagues but ban them from all tournaments (not just nationals). They also should re-evaluate the old urethane to find those manufactured within the new specs and keep them legal if they can.
JR, I've been using the "spread finger" trick for decades to control ball reaction.
The new rules open up Pandora's box in the form of new layouts, which in turn will cause newer rules in limitations of layouts, weights, etc.
What is it with the purple hammer? Always heard things
It is know that you can set lanes up to favor any hand. I’ve beem bowling for 47 years and i seen and heard it all on the lefty, righty differences, ball, lane conditions # of entries lefty to righty ratio. It will always be a topic
Hey jr just wondering were the old purple beast stands I have been rolling it in my summer trio league and it's been working well is it going to be useless this coming fall season thanks John from taylor mi
This is a rule change implemented by the PBA Tour. It only applies on the various levels of their organization (not including the new PBA certified leagues). So far, the USBC hasn't said they're doing anything similar, so no impact on your league.
Sean Rash 100% was in the right, and even I was hesitant at first since I'm a Belmo fan boy 😂
I actually drilled my first urethane a couple weeks ago. I like how controlled the reaction is and how I can make it work in dry and wet conditions but I still like my black venom better lol
The black venom is a monster for the dry
@@ryanhabura9927 i agree I was so surprised the shape is nice and it still rolls through the pins nice
i wanted a urathane just to have one and see what they do but like every pro shop guy and person i talk to says its not good on a house shot and not to bother
@@cyan0xide they are great on a house shot with lots of carry down it reads earlier and doesn’t rely on backend motion when there’s lots of oil down lane
@@Javinkay I use plastic with a core and Ive been averaging 220... I was averaging 190 with reactive.. Plastic has completely changed my game.
12:53 Getting back into bowling and found my old Ebonite Gyro I Black rubber ball. Not sure what any of this is about. We only had rubber or plastic. I guess I’ll need to update my ball. Can anyone get me up to speed. I’m 62 and haven’t bowled in 40 years 🤔😎.
I like the rule change to a point. If USBC makes that one of their rules. I'm a bilateral amputee. That means both of my feet are prosthetic. I can't generate enough ball speed to control the hook. Do I then have to roll plastic? I focus hard on staying behind the ball to cut the hook down, but it doesn't help all that much. Does anyone have any ideas to help me? When I had both of my feet, I was able to average 205-210 in league. I miss those days.
You could still use urethane, you'd just have to get one of the new ones that'll come out in the next year that conform to the new rule. Personally, I hope the USBC doesn't follow the PBA on this, but we'll see.
Haha! Love your comment about where you were in Match Play this past weekend. Where can I find all these balls that the PBA Players are going to be getting rid of?
Man!! I thought I had a dead pixel. It was just the peephole lol.
Rash still doesn't deserve any apologies! To run his mouth before the end of the match was straight BS.
Rash is SO UNPROFESSIONAL!!!
would the harder urethane benefit from being asymmetric? just asking
Well explained.
I think that soon specific people in the PBA ask for all ball to be made only of polyurethane harder then the classic Crown Jewel and no resin balls allowed due to the wear.
Just interested how the change will affect the purple hammer heavy users. If it makes the game a bit more even who would be mad?
Exactly
Who's gonna be mad? Anybody currently enjoying a competitive advantage under the old rules. Should they be mad? No... but since when has fairness and integrity ever kept SOMEBODY from grumbling? 😂
Buttruff and Jesper and Packy will find away to
Solve For X!! ❤😊
Next USBC will tell right handers you can't stand left of center and vise versa for lefties.
Seriously. It's like if you put the ball inside of 10 you get a foul lol.
I can actually SEE something like that happening too. That's the scary part.
It’s going to make everything more difficult overall and honestly I’m perfectly fine with that. It’s going to make a good number of 2 handers wake up and realize that they’re not as good as they think they are. It may also negatively affect some 1 handers with lower rev rates. I’m all for it though. It’s definitely frustrating when the scoring pace on the right is 200-210 and the left is 230. If they can fix that then it’s going to be successful.
Bowling needs to be harder.. There is a reason, bowling in the 1960's was so massive.. That is because the game was actually hard back then.. Everyone was forced to use the same equipment, the lanes were mopped with oil, and getting an honor score was a true test of ability. Now, I see 300's and 800's literally every single week in my league, whereas my Father told me, in the 60's you were lucky to see 1 or 2 300's in an entire league season.
It's never gonna be back that way anymore Cause then people are not gonna wanna bowl Era is dead
@@mayaboylan5414 yes because people these days are soft, want everything to be easier, and could never handle bowling like it was in 50s n 60s. This is why bowling now is nothing compared to what it was back then in terms of participation and popularity
It has nothing to do with 2 handed bowlers I have carried over a 200 average for years and I bowl one handed and I throw only urethane and plastic and I get plenty on the bowling ball
@@mayaboylan5414 Its sad, but you're probably right. People are too used to the game being "easy" to be willing to accept they're maybe not as good as they thing they are.
JR!!! You are so real and your insights really help bring real perspective (with no punches pulled). Going from 73 to 78 should help patterns hold up right? Enjoy Orlando!
While it's true that less of the ball's surface touching the pattern will transition it slower, it's the resin balls with high oil absorption rates that shred them an order of magnitude faster than urethane.
@@coopergates9680 I agree the Resin Ball is what really shreds the lanes.
I love it. Personally, I always felt that Urethane is a crutch for bowlers. I try to be a student of the game and I'm not learning watching pros throw urethane 80 percent of the time. I want to see big handed player create angle or manipulate reactive resin when the pattern is shorter, use the technology of these balls from every company with surface changes to match up properly. For bowling to be a sport, having a crutch that makes the game "easier" doesn't help the sport. The sport should be challenging, urethane is just a short cut, in my opinion.
Devil’s advocate here. If a ball helps you make a cut and cash… meaning you can afford breakfast… you just might walk with that crutch all the way to the bank.
@atbsigma That is true, I won't deny that. I bowled a college event with a Storm Black Ice because I didn't understand "getting the ball to roll forward" and I average 215 for 6 games. Left lane Cheetah and right lane Shark but as I gotten better and started actually learning different tricks, hand positions, angles, now I' I feel more comfortable after learning how to manipulate my hand, lengthing out my arm swing to get the ball to go further down the lane and understanding the idea of "going up the back of the ball." Appreciate the comment.
@@darrendunning4231 once those tricks and hand positions start working, I definitely see how much more versatile you (and most tourney and pro bowlers) become. Different ways to get the ball through the pins and cash.
That’s where the new rule does help bring skill set back to the game. Case in point, baseball changed the ball after 2019. That pill flew out of every yard, and we thought we were back to seeing MLB players juicing it up. It turned out better for the game. In bowling if could be the same thing… promoting those very skills you learned in college.
Fair point.
I was just wondering if anyone can tell me why they are changing the hardness rule. I read the PBA posted rule change, and understand that the ball gets softer after time. But even a 72 hardness would not hook more than a high powered resin ball. So it wouldn’t be because it hooks to much.
The urethane balls in spec with 73 are softening into the 60’s with just a hand full of shots. 5 points that low makes a huge impact on ball motion
Softness isn't necessarily about getting more hook it's about the forgiveness it gives the bowler on tougher shots. A softer ball can make a flat sport shot play like a challenge pattern for a regular bowler and like a house shot for a pro. The difference shows up more with sport shots than it does with house shots. With a reactive resin ball, getting softer could make the ball uncontrollable, but for urethanes it makes a huge difference. It may only give a board or two more mistake room, but for a pro that's enough. CtD (Creating the Difference) had a good video a while back on how changing the hardness of a ball effects it's forgiveness on tough patterns. Once you get below 70D on hardness, the difference shows up.
@@jglotzbach appreciate the explanation. More to it than I realized. 👍
They CAN'T ban all urethane bowling balls - basically all current bowling balls that are not polyester, are urethane. What makes the difference, is what is added to the base urethane material to make a ball a "solid" or a "pearl". Even some of the "urethane" balls are now using plasticizers.
It's a weird one. Urethane is its own reaction, so it oughta be interesting to see whether or not there will be bowling meta changes like seeing more dull or shiny balls going down the lane, more strong cored, high flaring urethane balls coming out, or if it affects the reactive balls too like the whole Spectregate saga 😅
I am left handed I roll a 2019 purple hammer ( reactive resin and the works) and it’s still great. The left side to a degree is true. I have always wonder in league and tournaments, are the left side of the lanes truly oiled correctly and is the right side juiced?. Like I have seen so many times, once the right handlers make a track, they just follow each other and blow the scores up. I don’t think USBC cares to be honest. Thx for the great videos. Oh yeah buying a Buffalo-swag!
What about the textured polyester in the Spy? It's not urethane like... Is it?
I believe it will qualify as urethane-like and thus be subject to the new out-of-box hardness minimum of 78D. Given that it's polyester, it likely is already that hard or harder, anyway, so it won't matter.
Hi JR , Can you tell me which urethane bowling balls will this effect ?
They still haven't explained why a new urethane ball is getting softer. From my understanding is that a urethane ball doesn't collect oil so how does it get softer? Is an older original urethane ball from the 80's or early 90's that much different today?
From what I've seen, they believe it's a combination of the modern urethane formulations and modern oils. There's likely a chemical reaction occurring that causes them to soften due to contact with the oil plus friction/heat from rolling on the lane surface. Older urethane balls from the 80s don't seem to have the same issue, but that may not be true (could just be due to lack of sample size).
When will they ban 2 handed bowling???
I think it could be better for ball companies and tv veiwing for avid fans because it'll force players to use a wider variety of balls and angles instead of having shows were 4 outta 5 guys are using a purple hammer or pitch black and playing basic (boring) reactions. It's the right move for them sure but uping the hardness will make them less user friendly and we'll see more balls and different angles/game plans on playing these tougher patterns.
Wait so the hammer pearl purple will be banned? That’s the ball I use the most and it is urethane (I think)
Fk that Rash owes me an apology 🙂
I never liked the resurgence of urethane equipment, and I always believed that two-handed bowling helped urethane equipment make a comeback. And with resin equipment so powerful, it made sense for it to return at the pro level, so I accepted it. Then urethane showed up in league play, which I never agreed with because there are plenty of options available among resin equipment for a league bowler to choose from on a house pattern. I ended up having to pay close attention to those bowlers who use it, so that when my team was bowling them, I'd bring a ball with a ton of surface on it so I could toss it on the urethane bowler's line, ruin it for him, so he'd have no choice but to change to a reactive ball. I hated resorting to such tactics, but the alternative was the urethane bowler pushing conditioner down lane and causing my equipment to wiggle, thus rendering it ineffective. It came down to either my line being messed up or his, so I chose the latter. I just hope the change at the pro level next year will be followed by the USBC at the league level. I'd love to see urethane equipment not be used in league anymore. It's bad enough that string pinsetters are being accepted, so ridding leagues of urethane equipment would be welcome, at least by this bowler. I'm sure I'll get hammered for what I've said here; so be it. I welcome dissenting points of view.
I use plastic on house due to severe nerve issues in my arm/wrist/hand. Dont kill me... Cant use my thumb, and even the weakest reactive equipment is way too strong these days and I cant control them. Since moving to plastic, Ive been averaging 220. I really have no choice tho and it is what works for me.
@@JonHop1 That's okay - you have a legitimate "medical" reason for the change. I'm glad you are doing well with a plastic ball. BTW - the guy who uses urethane in my league averages in the 240's with it but is in the 2'teens without it.
Or, just a thought, learn how to adjust to the carry down. It’s really not that difficult. I get it, it seems easier to be passive aggressive and try to destroy your opponents line (which can be overcome with a parallel move keeping urethane in play). You’re just setting yourself up for failure. Reduce your ball speed, move right, square up and roll it forward. Your ball wiggles because it’s trying to hook through the carry down. Make it hook sooner so it’s rolling when it’s going through the carry down. You can also switch to something faster off the spot and change your break point to use the carry down, playing like it’s a longer pattern.
@@batl_born702 Sounds like you've dealt with this before. Thanks! Do you think balling up would help too?
@@BowlerJ1 sometimes that’s all you need. Stronger balls hook earlier and that’s what you’re looking for.
I'd like to know a little bit more about the short pin layouts. What type of cover stock would you recommend? And what core type? I'm just curious to see what would work best.
Short pins are best on asyms as they lay the core down
You had mention about the glove rule can you go mor3 detail on it no I’m not a pro if a bowler has weak wrist they should be able to use a glove
Id like to see the pba make a ball for each event stop, hence oil pattern.. and that's the only ball for those select events.
Let the youth see how different people do different things with their hands to make the ball do what it does.
I'm tired of hearing my ball doesn't do that!.
It would be nice if they were all truly on a level playing field with everyone bowling with very similar equipment, so that it would just be the skill, knowledge, and execution that determined the winner. Something like the Plastic Ball tournament they did several years ago, but with reactive resin (or urethane) instead. For that tournament, they still used a ball made by their sponsor manufacturer, but they were all required to fit within very narrow specs (narrower than current) for hardness, radius of gyration, etc.
I just bought two new balls after a 10 year bowling hiatus, is there a list of balls that will be effected?
It only applies to the PBA Tour. League bowlers are not affected by this (unless the USBC decides to do something similar).
I wonder if ball manufacturers are behind this. If everyone on the PBA tour is throwing just urethane, it cuts sales of all the other balls.
I think with rare exception, this will favor shot makers and will bring more excitement to the match play .
yeah its so boring watching pitch blacks and purple hammers every show,, and they sand their balls down so hard that even the colorful balls look dull and dark going down the lane
@@cyan0xide just going to be two different balls over and over or they will reuse the branding and it will be purple hammer 2 electric boogalo and totally not pitch black version 2
@@BassRacerx I'd buy the Totally Not Pitch Black 2. Sounds like a good ball.
Purp hamm GOAT ball. Changes rules
🐐🐐🐐🐐🐐🐐🐐🐐🐐🐐
I remeber Sean Rash talking to kimberly on a pba telecast about urethane and saying that he tried it but could not play with it. "Its a feel thing" (something like that).
Thats my problem with Shawn. You cant just say you dislike something because someonelse does it better than you. If i ever find the clip i will post it.
What’s that have to do with the topic? He also called out the fact that illegal balls were being used
@@Tenpindoctors That he would use it if he was better at it and then not complain. It just make him sound like a sore looser.
But I still think the rule change is correct and a good thing. I liked your video and agree with you. Thats just my opinion on Shawn.
So, if the reactive ball loses reactivity over time and a pro drags his old reactive ball with him and rolls it like a urethane from tournament to tournament, will there have to be a rule change for that as well?
Reactive balls do lose their aggressiveness over time, but they don't generally become softer and thus fall too far outside of the legal hardness minimum like modern urethanes do (they actually typically become harder over time), so there's nothing illegal or "unfair" about them like there is with modern urethanes which have been proven to soften significantly below the legal minimum spec. The 73D hardness spec doesn't just apply to balls fresh from the manufacturer, it also applies anytime the ball is used "in the field." It's always been illegal to play with a ball that's softer than the minimum spec (currently 73D). This isn't new. The PBA is just now FINALLY enforcing the rule with respect to modern urethanes. On a side note, the PBA is allowing the in-the-field readings to be as low as 71D to account for the stated margin of error in the testing instruments (as should the USBC, but that would make too much sense). This is the reason the PBA only banned the Spectre last year and not the additional five Storm balls that the USBC deemed as "excluded but not banned" because the Spectre was the only one that fell below 71D in their testing. For some reason, the USBC refuses to account for the stated margin of error given by the durameter manufacturer in their field testing (it's +/- 2D). Regardless of any of this, the PBA is also banning ALL balls manufactured prior to 8/1/2022 starting with the 2024 season (only on the National tour), so it's all a bit of a moot point regarding old reactive balls, anyway. Personally, I think the PBA should have kept the hardness spec at 73D for all balls and just continued to field test balls (perhaps with a focus on urethanes) and ban any that fall below 71D over time. This would force new urethane balls to be legal in the field regardless of their measured hardness out of the box without making the assumption (as they are) that whatever the manufacturers do to change their urethane balls to 78D won't also stop them from softening by 5 points with use, which is a possibility.
When I bowled the Western Regional circuit in the late 80's, ABC (that's right, the ABC) allowed 72 hardness while the PBA allowed 75 hardness. Man the difference was huge then. Going from 73 now to 78 will be an epic change in ball motion.
Will this affect the Motiv MCP tanks?
Yes, from what I read in the PBA's report on the issue, they're being classed as urethane-like along with other balls that aren't "true" urethanes but are still similar in coverstock.
I think if everyone can use the same equipment I can't see an advantage.
I use the pitch black because my home ally sucks. It’s very inconsistent.
Will the one handers have a chance later in blocks now that urethane is banned? Or will 2 handers Belmo Simonsen Buttruff Svenson or the big handers like EJ Tackett continue to dominate the tour. Kinda miss the Prather's Oneil type bowlers. Maybe Norm will come back. And ball sales may get back on track hmmm other than Urethane's 😮
What the he!! Took you, been waiting all night.
So are they going to have inspections on each bowling ball prior to each tournament for the PBA national tour? If it’s deemed out of regulation, then they hav to come out of pocket to purchase another ball. What about bowlers that don’t have the funds to purchase new equipment that bowl tournaments outside of the tour to maintain the regulations of the other balls they want to preserve for tours.
Please note that the tone of this comment/questions are not intended to be interpreted or directed toward you. Just expressing genuine concern especially from the financial component and how it can potentially affect the sport of bowling in the future.
Ball manufacturers will have to release balls that stay a consistent hardness, and not soften into illegal territory. Once they do that, there will not be any extra costs for bowlers.
How do i find out the hardness of a urethane ball? I have a purple and pitch black and I love throwing urethane, it would really suck for me if it turns out its just money waisted because the PBA decided its too good
If you're not bowling on the PBA tour, then this has nothing to do with you... throw all the urethane you want.
@@notonyourlife7939 I have done a PBA event but I'm not a PBA member, do you think this would effect regional PBA tournaments?
@@cameronmcisaac1384 haven't a clue... there are some rules that only apply to the national tour. But they can extend rules as far down the totem pole as they like. You'll have to read the fine print...it's gotta be spelled out somewhere.
@@cameronmcisaac1384 The new urethane hardness rule applies to all levels of the PBA except their PBA certified leagues. The other new rule (all balls manufactured prior to 8/1/2022 are banned starting 1/6/2024) only applies to the National Tour.
Honestly, it should be done, Look at the PBA finals, Pitch Black vs. Pitch Black. A duel pattern and the same ball and shot was used for both lanes. How fun!!! Only way PBA could get away from urethane without banning it is creating a pattern so thin that it's shot after the 1st game.
I’ll just continue to use my 1984 Black Hammer
could they not just make them at 78 but then come up with a method of aging them(softening) and that will naturally bring it back down to 73 and they’ll stay at that hardness after being sold or would they go even lower then that over time?
I imagine that's somewhat of a "wait and see" with the PBA. No manufacturer currently produces a 78+ hardness "urethane" ball, so it's unknown how much such a ball will end up varying in hardness over time.
I would love to be a lefty on a house shot, but out in tour next year? I don’t know man. That’s going to be really tough on a lot of them.
I'd be interested in knowing how they'll approach urethane. They can't ban one single type of urethane (they did that with the 2016/17 purple hammers and look where that got them). Seriously though. You have to evolve in this game. If you don't, you quit.
Just yesterday i was bowling with a guy throwing a urethane ball. we were talking about them being band eventually and i find this video today 😂 cant wait to see him later today and have a laugh about this.
Won't affect leagues and non PBA tournaments.
@@topthrilldragster20 I know it's just fun topic is all
I just bought a urethane ball for the first time a few weeks ago and then a second one the next week (for Nationals). I finally caved in to the movement and they ripped the rug out from under me. The ban/rule change may not apply to leagues, but it's possible the USBC will do something similar for their national tournaments, which is what I got them for (and other sport shot tourneys/leagues).
Admittedly i just bowl for fun... why not just say all manufacturers have to make 2 balls. I strike ball and 1 spare. No ball reps allowed to coach during game. I quit watching/participating in bowling 30 years ago and have been amazed at how its changed. Seems to me that it would force players to play a more knowledgeable and nuanced game from a physical and body control standpoint.
a lot of local bowlers use urethane and throw it all over the place with no control and trash the lanes during local tournaments. So its good to ban urethane and stop people who don't have good control of their shot to trash the lanes.
The late Mo Pinel advocated using short pin layouts in lieu of using Urethane. So would totally banning Urethane be that detrimental in the grand scheme of things bowling wise?
In my experience, short pin reactives are not a pure substitute for modern urethane. Rather they are an alternative option.
That's exactly what you'll start to see more of, now... short pin layouts with a LOT of surface. Bring on the 80 grit pads, lol🤣
Why not just restrict how much you can throw urethane, both in a row and in total, as well as when you can use it within each block?
Also, you can solve the left side problem by either banning left-handed bowling or requiring some right-handers to throw left-handed if lefties are competing to even things out.
I'm not sure where to begin... in all my years, I don't think I've ever seen that many utterly absurd proposals all in one place. You actually think it's feasible to dictate that they can only throw Ball X for 3 frames in a row, or only in games 2,4, and 6 of a block? And then we're going to punish people for being left handed and just say "fuck you, you can't play this sport"?!?
Have you hand any serious blows to the head recently? If so, you should have that checked before it festers...
I think USBC will probably follow the PBA rule if not they might go a little bit deeper with the urethane bowling ball rule
The whole goal of every ball manufacture that they advertised a new ball that would strike more than any others then when somebody makes it, they legislate against it
When it falls illegal….. yes… they should
Uh ... if the reason urethane is being used is to defeat the challenge of the oil patterns, then doesn't that mean the oil pattern challenge has been defeated?
If y'all want to make it about the ball material vs the oil pattern (which seems what's been done) then have only one coverstock and one core allowed on the tour. I wonder how that would go over with the ball manufacturers?
I love this change that the PBA will be doing, and hope that USBC follows suit. It's no secret that Urethane has just become the auto ball to go to whenever the lanes are remotely difficult, and it also makes it where the majority of the times bowlers do not need to be as creative with how to get the ball to roll earlier and smoother in the backend. The real bowlers will be able to adjust relatively quickly and easily where as the bowlers that have solely benefitted and relied on throwing urethane will struggle with over/under reaction. I do believe it will hurt the higher rev bowlers that don't have much versatility with releases and ball speed, but at the same point, you live by that sword, you can die by that sword. I'm looking forward to seeing who can excel with it, and who will falter. And i do believe many will be surprised with who will struggle. I also do believe the bowling companies are smart, they know what has the most success of working on difficult patterns. Companies will develop more earlier rolling type bowling balls via coverstocks/weight block combinations, to offset this a little bit to help it, but i definitely believe this is a great step in the right direction for bowling
Trust me it's not gonna hurt anyone The guys that bowl good We'll bowl good The companies are just gonna take another bowl ball And make it to do this act the same thing as a urethane ball I won't change anything And you probably don't even average 200
Nobody owes Sean Rash an apology. The issue with him had nothing to do with him calling out the urethane, it was because how and when he did it. It overshadowed Matt Russo winning his first PBA title. Wrong place and wrong time. It was disrespectful.
Matt Russo lost that match against Rash...
It’s not even about that instance it’s because he’s been the one calling this out since the beginning and everyone called him a cry baby? Well he was right. These balls continue to cause issues so yes people owe him an apology when he’s standing up for the integrity of the game. Even when he was on staff and could throw them he called them out
@@Tenpindoctors Yep, he even bit the bullet of the fine and suspension. People don't have to like his personality or whatever but the dude ended up being right
@@TenpindoctorsRash was right on this issue, but he was a cry baby long before the urethane controversy.
I agree,Sean Rash was crying because it was screwing with his shot. I’ve seen bowlers do the same thing,because a bowler used dull stuff and ate the shot up. He’s a crybaby !
Yeah Belmo with that purple hammer won so many titles...oh right he's storm. Stick to giving bowling lessons JR.
I do not think we have to apologize to Sean Rash. This is almost stupid. Everyone could buy a Purple Hammer.
False
What do you mean false. Unless you mean being a slave to a bowling ball company. Everyone in the pba just switches to a hammer rep.
As a bowler looking to better myself, I refuse to give up on a pattern and throw plastic down the side or urethane. I know those balls will strike, I can practice that on house shot anytime. I don't like how many bowlers throw urethane when they can't figure out the pattern or the breakdown. I feel it makes the sport more boring. I think this is the bowlers fault more than anything else. Most of us will do anything to win. To the point where its predictable and makes competative play less interesting.
Imo
Yeah, Sean Rash was right I guess.
Even the nail hammer is now illegal
So what are the numbers on the new Buffalo?
81
Lol this is great. I love it...
As a lefty 2 handed double jointed purple hammer thrower I am offended.
At the highest pro level on the pba tour, they don’t need the ease of urethane to make the patterns play easier and then to score.
They can still use trick layouts, the skill of hand positions. The biggest element they can do especially belmo is loft the caps!
Using reactive it seemed more a shot makers game vs the recent Urethane era.
I think it's great news, it would be even better if the USBC did the same!! Now lets get mandatory asymmetrical patterns as well
How is that great news resin has made the game to easy for a lot of bowlers they should ban resin not urethane let's go back to the old days when you had to put something on the bowling ball to score
@@parnellifalcioni5082 I don't disagree with you on the reactive resin front but purple hammers have made the game just as easy , it blends out difficult patterns and when in play on the left its almost unbeatable , I have 2 purples and love them but there is a time and a place for it, here in Europe they are used on almost every pattern, the recent European Championships if you weren't throwing purple you were out of it. Lots of European records + loads of 300s all on a low ratio1.92 pattern. urethane isn't the issue per se, it's the softness that gives unfair advantage
What do you mean by mandatory asymmetrical patterns? Are you saying oil patterns should be asymmetrical from left to right (so basically one pattern for the righties and one for the lefties) or all bowling balls should be asymmetrical? I'm guessing it's the former.
@@jglotzbach oil patterns, the toughest challenge in modern bowling is the transition, those that get it right and matchup at the right time do well, those that don't tend to fall away as the tournament progresses, the right side transitions like crazy - the left hardly ever - lefties don't need to loft gutters or throw backup balls - The PBA do use Asymmetrical patterns a lot of the time but no one else seems to.
@@cozzi67 I understand. Figured that's what you meant, but wanted to make sure.
Urethane is a pain in the you know what. Guys throw them in local tourneys and by game 3-4 everyone’s score is coming down because the urethane is destroying the front and pushing oil down lane and toward the gutter. So there is early hook and no down lane hook. It sucks. You can try lofting but not many amateurs can go that effectively. I’m all for banning them because it makes everyone else have to play different simply based on the equipment choice you make.