Best Bowling Ball For Hook Beginners
Whether you’ve been bowling straight balls for a while or are just getting started, these are the best bowling balls for hook beginners. Their reactive overstock allows for a more aggressive hook when you’re just learning, and makes things easier. It’s far too early to be concerned with things like mid-lane action and back-end movement. These balls are inexpensive, yet perfect for teaching you how to get started with your new “hook” style of bowling.
Brunswick Rhino Bowling Ball
✔ 10-16 lbs Options
✔ R-16 Reactive Coverstock
✔ 500 Siaair Finish
✔ Good Value/Starter Hook Ball
✔ Great Balance between Power and Control
✔ Lots of Great Color Options – Click to See
10/10
Pyramid Path Rising Pearl Bowling Ball
✔ 8-16 lbs Options
✔ Path Reactive Pearl Coverstock
✔ 1500-Grit Polished Factory Finish
✔ Lots of Color Options – Click to See
✔ Great Entry-Level Reactive Bowling Ball
✔ Many Previous Positive Reviews Online
9.9/10
Motiv Venom Shock Bowling Ball
✔ 12-16 lbs Options
✔ Turmoil MFS Reactive Coverstock
✔ 4000 Grit Sanded Finish
✔ Hook Potential: Mid
✔ Length: Early
✔ Best For Light to Medium Oil Conditions
9.9/10
Brunswick Twist Bowling Ball
✔ 8-16 lbs Weights
✔ R-16 Reactive Coverstock
✔ Lots of Color Options – Click to See
✔ Great Value
✔ Perfect for any Age or Skill Level
✔ Customers Love this Ball!
9.7/10
Storm Tropical Breeze Bowling Ball
✔ 10-16 lbs Weights
✔ Reactor Pearl Reactive Coverstock
✔ 1500-Grit Polished Finish
✔ Camber Core
✔ Great Beginner Hook Ball!
9.7/10
Hammer Rebel Yell Bowling Ball
✔ 10-16 lbs Ball Weights
✔ Juiced Pearl Coverstock
✔ 500/2000 Abralon Polished
✔ One Colorway Only
✔ Carbon Fiber Infused Ball – Strong!
9.4/10
Roto-Grip Hustle Ink Bowling Ball
✔ 10-16 lbs Ball Weights
✔ “Thrilled” Solid Reactive Coverstock
✔ 1500-Grit Polished Finish
✔ “Sleeper Ball” – Looks Like House Ball, but High-Performance
✔ Perfect for Light Oil Conditions
9.3/10
Columbia 300 Nitrous Bowling Ball
✔ 10-16 lbs Options
✔ Boost/R Coverstock
✔ 500/2000 Abralon Polished
✔ Good Performance vs Price
✔ Strong Feedback from Customers!
9.3/10
Hammer Vibe Orange Bowling Ball
✔ 10-16 lbs Weight Options
✔ CT Reactive Plus Coverstock
✔ 500/2000 Abralon Polished
✔ Orange Color Only
✔ Best with Medium to Light Oil
8.9/10
Our Proprietary Ranking System Takes The Following Factors Into Consideration
Reactive Coverstock
Competitive Pricing
Appealing Colorways
Feedback/ Reviews
Range of Weights
Customer Satsifaction
Reactive Bowling Ball Buying Guide
When just starting out in bowling, you might not even notice that bowling balls have different features that make them act in different ways when the go down the lanes. There are also different grips and approaches to bowling that include either throwing the ball straight or spinning it so it curves or “hooks” as it rolls towards the pit, or area where the pins are set up. In this guide, we are looking at the features that make a ball good for beginners to learn how to throw a great hook. This is typically someone that either a) doesn’t have much experience in hooking the ball yet or b) doesn’t want to invest in an expensive high-end ball made specifically for throwing hooks. These balls are also known as reactive bowling balls.
What to Look For in Reactive Bowling Balls for Beginners
As mentioned above, there are specific features in bowling balls that make them better for different types of approaches to the game. We’re going to focus on the features that give an edge to those learning how to throw hooks. In bowling lingo, we call these players boomers.
The coverstock, a bowling term for the outer surface of a ball, has as much to do with how much a ball with hook as anything else. It’s this reactive material that helps the ball grip the lane and curve. In addition to the coverstock, the finish or polish on the ball also affects the movement.
So, when selecting your first reactive bowling ball, we’re certainly concerned with the material and finish. However, this article is for the beginner, someone just learning to hook the ball. We’re trying our best to over-simplify the process and only show you affordable bowling balls with a wide range of weights and colorway options. Last but certainly not least, we always pay attention to product reviews and previous customer satisfaction. This is one of the best ways to ensure you’re getting a product that you’ll be happy with.
Reactive Coverstock
The coverstock and its material has the single largest impact in our opinion on throwing “boomers” (boomers are big hooking curves in bowling). Where plastic balls are inexpensive and make great bowling balls for straight bowlers, reactive balls are often made of urethane, giving them higher hook potential in dry conditions.
Furthermore, there are reactive resins can also be added to provide even more hooking action. As a beginner, you won’t need to pay too much attention to the specifics. You just want to ensure you’re getting a bowling ball with a reactive coverstock so you can get practicing and find out your comfort zone!
Bowling Ball Finish/Polish
Similar to the coverstock, the finish or polish of a bowling ball affects how it travels down the lane. More accurately, the more a ball is polished, the later it will curve. And in many cases, the fact that it curves later allows it to build up more rotational energy and it will hook even more. We’ve included the finish of the balls in our list above, but again, no need to pay too much attention to this as a beginner. You’ll likely get comfortable with whichever you end up with and grow from there.
Weight and Color Options
Since we’re specifically looking for reactive bowling balls for beginners and they come in all shapes and sizes, we want to identify balls that will match their needs. That means balls that cover a wide range of weights from 10lbs and under for the younger or smaller bowlers and over 10lbs for those that want to bowl with a bit more weight in their ball.
Beginner or not, we’re all individuals and we like for our stuff to reflect that. For this reason, we’ve selected many balls that have a wide variety of colors and designs to appeal to the masses. The pictures of the balls in our list are representative of only one of potentially many colorways that particular reactive bowling ball can be found in.
Affordability & Customer Feedback/Reviews
It doesn’t really matter what we’re ranking or reviewing, everyone wants to make sure they’re getting a good value when spending their hard-earned cash and not getting ripped off. Additionally, it’s important that we pay attention to those that have purchased a product before us.
We’re in an awesome position to critique literally thousands of products prior to buying one due to the internet and its vast reach of online retailers and their respective customer reviews. We research these reviews thoroughly when rating products for our lists and we encourage you to do the same rather than just blindly selecting one off the list.
Often times, you’ll see something in these reviews that pertains specifically to you, either good or bad, so it pays to read through them. Why not? The information readily available and free, and you don’t even have to take your pajamas off or leave your home to do it.
Conclusion
Reactive bowling balls make it easier for beginners to throw hooks. This has to do with several factors as we’ve discussed, but mainly it’s tk (outer shell of the bowling ball) material, its finish, and the core in the ball. These features assist the ball in spinning in the lane so that it curves into the pins, giving them more action, and thus a better likelihood of them all being knocked down.
It’s time to select your favorite off our list of best bowling ball for hook beginners above. Once it arrives, you’ll need to take it to the nearest pro shop to have it custom drilled for your grip. These pro shops are almost always found inside your local bowling alley or you can do a quick google search to find them. Once you get it drilled, you’re ready to throw and start practicing your hook.
Our Top Choice for “Best Bowling Ball for Hook Beginners”
We of course chose the Brunswick Rhino bowling ball as our favorite for the best reactive bowling ball for beginners. There are several reasons for our pick including it’s affordability and great history of positive customer feedback and reviews. It also has a wide range of weight and color options as you can see here. Click on any of the balls below to see the price at Amazon.
Blue Pearl
Pink Pearl
Orange/Green
Red/Black/Gold
Black Pearl
Cobalt/Aqua
Any of the reactive bowling balls listed above are good options for a beginner. If you’re looking for a higher-end, more premium premium ball for throwing big hooks, consider the Motiv Venom Shock for a great long-term reactive bowling ball.
Haven’t chosen yet? The best thing you can do is to just get a ball that you like the looks of and is affordable and get started practicing. There’s more to bowling than just picking the best ball. Practice, practice, practice. Good Luck!
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