Best Bowling Ball for Straight Bowlers: Top 5 Reviewed

Are you a beginner or amateur bowler? Then you must be very familiar with straight ball throw rather than curved or hooked ones. Straight bowling is important for every bowler because it’s the best way to learn bowling. Every pro-bowler played straight bowling before they started to curve or hook their bowling ball. So if you’re just new to this game, or a professional bowler who is looking for a spare ball, you’ve come to the right place! Today we’re going to talk about the best bowling balls for straight bowlers that have great values and positive feedback. So take a look!  

Top 5 Bowling Ball Reviews for Straight Bowlers

1. Brunswick T Zone Bowling Ball

Looking for a ball that won’t hook, spin, or curve before or after it hit the lane? Then Brunswick T Zone Patriot Blaze bowling ball is the one for you! Being a polyester ball, it is great for beginners to bowl straight. It has the T Zone Bullet symmetric core that makes the straight or spare shots accurate and smooth.

The plastic coverstock has a high polish finish. Ever since Brunswick released this bowling ball, bowlers loved its eye-catching colors and coloring process. Do you know that under black light this Patriot Blaze looks completely different? According to the pictures on the internet, it looks black and bright blue, instead of shiny red, silver, and blue. Cool, right?

This high polished bowling ball works best in dry lane conditions. Because of low RG and low differential, the ball also has low hook potential. So no matter how hard you throw it, the ball will go straight down the lane. Also, this lets you have control over the ball’s rolling and pin-carry.

The T Zone Patriot Blaze also offers high durability and keeps you accompanied until you get promoted to the next level. Even after your transcendence, you can use this as a spare ball in your upcoming challenges. So get this high disciplined polyester bowling ball today!

Pros:

Cons:

• Not ideal for heavy or medium lane conditions

2. Columbia 300 Savage Life Bowling Ball

If you want to improve your spare shots or are just a beginner trying to do better, this Columbia 300 Savage Life Bowling Ball is perfect for you. This ball features everything you need for straight shots. The Exciter Pearl reactive polished coverstock is finished at 500/1000 Abralon with Powerhouse Factory Finish Polish.

The Savage Life gets down the lane and then Boom! comes right off the spot. It reads the lane fast and its strong move down lane ensures on-point Length with Aggressive Backend breakpoint as it goes into the pocket. It also has incredible pin carry. You’ll definitely enjoy its color combination as it rolls on the lane then make the pins fly in its way.

Columbia brought back the Asymmetric Savage core that has low RG and high differential from which you can expect a top-notch continuation and a strong backend motion. What’s amazing about this ball is, it’s extremely versatile. You can use it to play straight and can even hook if you want to. The flare potential is pretty good, medium to high. The ball stores a lot of power and energy when it hits the pins.

As it comes in various weight ranges, both beginners and pros can use it for their gameplay. Although it may seem quite fancy for beginners, it’s a great ball to own. You can later practice with it for hooking. So add this beautiful ball to your arsenal!

Pros:

• Opens up your angles
• Consistent and durable
• Clean through the front and mid-lane
• Aqua, Violet, and the Black color combination looks amazing
• Suitable for both young and senior beginners for straight shots
• Advanced bowlers can hook with it
• Excellent control
• Medium to heavy lane friendly

Cons:

• Not Affordable
• Not for dry lane conditions

3. Hammer Black Widow Spare Bowling Ball

For all those hammerheads out there, we have good news for you! Hammer made Black Widow spare bowling ball just for beginners like you. The bonus is that you can use it for tough spare shots as well. The ball features the asymmetrical Gas Mask core paired with a shiny polyester coverstock that is finished at 800/1000/2000 Abralon with Factory Finish Polish.

Being highly polished, you can use it on dry lanes without any trouble. The spider and the net print is actually embedded in the surface, so there’s no way it will wear off. Right after release, it will read the lanes and will go clean through the front and mid lanes. You’ll see the right amount of backend that would help you carry the corner pins in the pocket.

If you play it right, the ball will go straight into the pockets with the highest energy intact in it and hit the pins like Hammer. The breakpoint shape is also marked as straight. As this ball can provide a precise straight-line lane carry, beginners would love to score strikes with it. Additionally, advanced bowlers can keep it in their arsenal for shooting spares.

Pros:

• Accurate and powerful straight ball travel
• Good for spares and straight strikes
• Suitable for dry to extremely dry lanes
• Most unique design
• Consistent and durable
• Excellent control
• High flare potential
• Easy to pick-up and throw

Cons:

• Not affordable
• Ball might go into the gutter in played on medium to heavy lane conditions

4. Ebonite Maxim Northern Lights Bowling Ball

We all know how beautiful the northern lights are, don’t we? Ebonite successfully represented the beauty of northern lights in their very own Ebonite Maxim Northern Lights bowling ball. You’ll fall in love just by looking at it, so wait till you acknowledge its features!

Right off the bat, the Northern lights bowling ball has a polyester coverstock with Crown Factory finish which gives it a polished outlook. Hence, it reacts the best in dry lane conditions. What makes this ball great for spare shots is the symmetrical Bullet core. This core type paired with low RG and low hook potential will ensure its straight breakpoint shape.

During your approach and arm-swing, give the ball a gentle grip and once you’ll release it on the lanes see it glides clean on the lane and all the way to the pocket. Northern Lights will follow the path it has taken after releasing and will go in a straight line attaining the maximum length and force to knock all the pins down at the far end.

So, if you’re a beginner, don’t worry about the ball’s direction. Just learn the basics and perfect your bowling skill with the necessary practice. And, as for professionals, this ball will give you the same service during spare shots. It is not every day you come across the best bowling ball for straight bowlers. So, hurry up! Get one Northern Light for yourself today!

Pros:

• Works well for casual bowlers
• Perfect for beginners
• Available in almost all size variants
• Attractive color and design
• Reads the lane fast
• Super affordable
• Shows the best performance on dry lane conditions
• Doesn’t react to the lanes aggressively

Cons:

• No possibility of hooking
• Not for heavy or medium lane conditions

5. Motiv Allegiant Sniper Bowling Ball

Motive never fails to amaze bowlers like us, do they? One of their latest addition is the Motiv Allegiant Sniper Bowling Ball. But what is so special about this ball? Well, packed with versatility, this ball is every beginner’s and pro bowler’s dream. The polyester ball features the TruShot Polythane coverstock that is polished and finished at 5500 Grit LSP Factory Finish.

So, what makes it the best bowling ball for straight bowlers, or pros who wants to use it as a spare? The ball is very shiny and glides on the dry lanes smoothly. It also has a symmetric Hollow Point core paired with low RG, low hook and flare potential, and low Differential that makes the ball go straight into the pocket. No change of direction, no hooking!

Although made with traditional polyester, the ball acts like a urethane ball. It offers superb balance and control on the lanes. It reacts to the lanes immediately after release and because of the Straight breakpoint shape, it goes in a straight line with a heavy force and hits the pins like a truck. Moreover, as mentioned before, this ball is a great piece of equipment for scoring spares. In a nutshell, Allegiant Sniper makes bowling look easy, including picking up spares. 

Pros:

• A unique blend of durability and high-performance           
• High predictability
• Good price for the quality
• Pearly, and shiny with attractive color
• Ideal for all types of players
• Available in almost all weight variants
• Reads the lane fast
• Shows the best performance on dry lane conditions

Cons:

• No possibility of hooking
• Not for heavy or medium lane conditions

Frequently Asked Questions

Can you hook a straight bowling ball?

Most of the straight bowling balls have polyester coverstock. In addition to that, they have low RG, low Differential. And low hook and flare potential. When a bowling ball features these, you cannot possibly hook them on the lanes. But now man companies have developed straight bowling balls that can hook is thrown accordingly. The hooking depends on the player’s ball releasing style. These bowling balls are highly versatile. And oftentimes you can use them for both straight shots as well as tricky curved shots. So, yes, hooking is possible only if the ball features the requirements.

Why you should not use reactive balls for straight bowling?

Compared to the polyester balls and reactive resin, urethane balls fall right in the middle. This means reactive resin balls are for top-level, highly experienced bowlers. Reactive balls tend to produce more friction when released on the lane. This results in aggressive backend motions and a broader entry angle toward the pins. Even though these benefits sound tempting, but those aren’t ideal for straight bowling. A reactive ball will not go straight down lane and will have a change in direction. Hence, you shouldn’t use reactive balls for straight bowling.

Can you use straight balls for shooting spares?

As a matter of fact, yes, you can undoubtedly use straight balls to shoot spares. Straight balls are basically made with plastic or polyester. Since the polyester balls don’t need powerful hook potential as a feature and also create low friction on the lane, they are perfect for straight bowling shots.

Now let’s think about spares. What do we want when we want to pick up the spares? We want to knock down the remaining pin(s) at the end of the pocket. So to actually do that, you need to set the aim right and then roll the ball accordingly. During your spare shots, you want the ball to go straight toward the remaining pin(s) instead of hooking or curving. And, what can ensure your spare scores.? A Straight ball! Yes, you can use straight balls for shooting spares.

Where do you aim when bowling a straight ball?

The key to a better aim in straight-shooting is an on-point visualization. For visualization, what you should do is pay extra attention to the front part of the lane around the dots which is also known as the lay-down point. Then, take a look at the mid lane where the arrows are and then you have the breakpoint at the downl ane. So before you shoot the ball, you have to picture where your ball will go through in each section.

Different people have different focal points. You can focus on either the dots or the arrows. Once you have your frame of reference, you need to maintain a consistent standing position and approach. You’ll automatically notice improved performance if you start and finish at the same place. If you can keep your movement consistent, next you’ll have to aim. If your focal point is mid lane, pick one of the arrows you can see in the middle and then roll your ball so that it goes right over one of those middle arrows. If you’re a right-handed bowler, aim for the second arrow from the right. But if you’re a left-handed bowler, aim for the second arrow from the left. Remember, focusing on the pins for straight shots is never ideal.  

Conclusion

Bowling is not that hard you think it is. Sure hooked or curved shots look cool, but straight shots are equally fun. Beginners love to do it. Pros do it for shooting spares. So a high-performance and first-quality straight bowling ball is a must. Hence, we have picked some of the best bowling balls for straight bowlers like you! Go pick any one of them and get on the battlefield.

Last update on 2024-04-16 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API