In bowling, it’s not whether you win or lose, but how many times you earn the right to do a celebratory dance in front of your friends. The sport of Fred and Barney may be easy to pick up, but it doesn’t come with innate knowledge of how to bowl a strike. That’s why we put together these bowling tips on how to shape up your game and start racking up those turkeys.

Tip #1: Select the Right Bowling Ball

The ideal bowling ball weight seems to land around 11–12 pounds for women, and 14–15 pounds for men, but that’s just a general guideline. As it turns out, weight matters a lot less than finding a snug fit. Though ball weight does make a difference (heavier balls knock down pins with more force), ill-fitting finger holes are the surest way to steer your game into the gutter. Try for holes that are just a little larger than your ring size, and don’t be afraid to swap your ball for another if you can’t grip it well.

Tip #2: Keep Your Swing Relaxed

Counterintuitively, trying to put too much muscle into the swing results in slower, wonkier throws. But relaxing your swing involves more than taking a deep breath or whispering positive self-affirmations before each turn. It requires balancing the swing with the approach, and knowing where to position the ball at the outset.

Tip #3: Time Your Approach With The Swing

Look to your own bowling speed to determine your ball’s ideal starting position. Matching your swing to your approach creates a natural harmony, and you’ll be less likely to tense up and throw gutterballs.

• If you like to saunter up to the line, start with the ball at chest level. This ensures that your swing takes as long as you to complete the approach.

• If you sprint to the line, you’ll need to start with the bowling ball somewhere between your thigh and waist since there’s not as much time for a full swing.

Tip #4: Line Up The Shot (But Be Flexible)

Those little dots and arrows on the lane are your friends, but they don’t always give the best advice. Rather than always aiming for the center arrow, play around a little.

• To Start: most experts suggest shooting for the second arrow to the right for right handed bowlers, but only to gauge your own personal sweet spot.

• Follow The Golden Rule: move in the direction of the miss. If you just whiffed by slamming the ball into the far-left pin, move left but aim at the same target.

• Repeat: every lane is different—and even the same lane changes depending on wax levels, warp, and even humidity—so you’ll inevitably have to self-correct.

• Hit The Books: for a more detailed blueprint on pinning down the elusive strike, read our article on how to bowl using lane markings.

Tip #5: Throw a Hook (The Easy Way)

Throwing a mean lane-crossing hook isn’t the only way to land strikes, but it’s the best way to crack the code of how to bowl a strike consistently—or at least how to get better at bowling. It’s not a quick or easy skill to master, but thankfully there’s another way. Start off with a light ball, leave the thumb out, and let your palm guide the spin and hook. You may actually feel like you have less control over the ball at first, but give it a couple of frames. Once you’re comfortable with the grip, the rest will come naturally.

Tip #6: Don’t Sweat the 7–10 Split

To score a spare on the dreaded 7-10 split, your ball has to knock one far rear pin across the lane and into the other far rear pin. This is about as hard as it sounds, and pro-bowlers take years to master it. If you knock down just one of the pins, you’re doing pretty well.