Hookin' Bob Handley

This man's style is just plain awesome, pure power! This is a short clip of him competing in the 1987 Greater Hartford Open. Enjoy everybody! Many more videos to come.


For more bowling clips go to http://www.mrbowling300.com or great bowling talk at http://forums.mrbowling300.com

Category:

Sports

Tags:

• 1987
• Greater
• Hartford
• Open
• Hookin'
• Bob
• Handley
• PBA
• Bowling
• Pro
• Bowlers
• Tour
• Professional

[bacharles]

Terrific video -- easily my favorite bowler. I remember watching him as a kid and marvelling at that hook.

I miss those days -- back then you had to EARN a big hook. Nowadays, you just buy a "hook-in-a-box".

[MikeHL78]

@bacharles Forgot to mention Handley was the first player I ever saw put a strike ball into the ditch on TV -- it was 1984 or '85.

[blkv8fb00]

@bige300 Also at the plastic ball tournaments they give them a decent dry area so the ball can get back. If you notice most bowlers who make the show have bowl with balls of the past, weber, couch, barnes, you get the picture. They also use less oil than normal because if they didnt the balls would never hit and the scores would be very low.l

[blkv8fb00]

@bige300 i agree with you, today so called bowlers have no clue about how hard this game once was. To have a power game back then you had to have alot of revs and turn, not this back out release you see today. Hard patterns give me a break try bowling on a lane spray by a gun and then drag the whole lane you had to be accurate. I bowl in a house where there were only 3 300 games. The best bowlers from 2 counties bowl there and that all there was. Today game is a joke

[monkeeman1966]

In fact, I was at this center when they were qualifying.

[monkeeman1966]

@bacharles You're right! Heck, I am still bowling with a 20 year old ball and a 25 year old ball. A modest 179 average. Hard rubber ball.

[bige300]

@new2thehub

You talked to Norm recently? Yesterday perhaps? Did you tell him that he couldn't survive one round on today's lanes? Didn't he just win the Tournament of Champions recently? Walter Ray Williams, Jr. is another old school bowler who continues to have success on the tour. Furthermore, those guys had to put a lot more hand in the ball back in the day than players do today. That is a fact.

[bige300]

@new2thehub

Did you watch the Geico Plastic Ball tournaments? Those guys can turn any ball that you give them. I was referring to guys that only put about 5 revs on the ball getting a 10 board hook. As far as more than one center is concerned, I have bowled 800 series in 5 different centers...including an 846 series where I got boned in the 10th frame by a solid 9 pin. At least we both like the Cowboys and can agree on that.

[new2thehub]

@bige300 And, the fact that Pete Weber and Norm Duke are "holding their own" instead of dominating just goes to show that your "hook in a box" theory is crap. Unless they are keeping Duke and Weber on a different pair of lanes, only allowing them to use rubber, and giving them a special shot, but i don't think that's the case. Congrats on your 9th 300, but you're still wrong.

[new2thehub]

@bige300 Yeah, i used to watch my father bowl at Cowtown in Ft Worth with Norm Duke quite a bit, and recently asked him about your statement. He, in his professional opinion, said you are "out of your mind" and the pro shots on tour these days are 20 times harder than a wall to wall. He also wanted me to let you know that if you want to talk about bowling, try doing it in more than one center.

[bige300]

@new2thehub

Just bowled my 9th 300 game this season with the exact same model that Handley is using in this vid. Also shot 809 and 801 respectively using the Black U-Dot. Speaking of old school bowlers, Pete Weber and Norm Duke seem to be holding their own on the tour. For your information, no oil pattern was tougher than the wall to wall oil that bowlers had to shoot on over 30 years ago. Try shooting on that with a hard rubber or plastic ball and tell me how you do.

[new2thehub]

@bige300 All you "back in the day" guys need to give it a rest. This guy is playing an up and in game on the right side. Today's oil patterns are SO much harder than they used to be. Old school bowlers couldn't survive one round on today's lanes. Even with a shaped core and reactive skin. The only thing that's a joke is that people like you degrade today's bowlers because you never got your 300 ring. Sad, really.