The Roto Grip WINNER SOLID has turned out to be one of those balls that makes me wish I was 10 or 20 years younger, with the higher ball speed and rev rate I had back then.

That’s because it is so close to being a great ball for me, but it’s not quite there — and my educated guess is that I simply no longer have quite enough power for it.

I liked the WINNER PEARL that came before it — it actually was a bit of the opposite, leaving too many solid 9s and ringing 10s if anything — and the WINNER SOLID features the same Altered Hotshot symmetrical core. The difference is that the WINNER SOLID features the VTC-S18 Solid coverstock.

I drilled mine the same as my WINNER PEARL with the pin over the bridge and the CG kicked right. With my PAP of 4 7/8 over and 5/8 up, the ball numbers are 5 1/8 pin-PAP, 3 3/8 MB-PAP, and 3 5/8 pin buffer.

I’ve drilled all my stuff without a weight hole since the USBC made the no weight hole/3 ounce maximum an option starting last Aug. 1. Without a hole my WINNER SOLID has 1 1/2 ounces of positive side weight.

I’ve used my WINNER SOLID on a variety of lane conditions from house shots to challenge shots and seen decent reaction getting to the pocket on all but heavy oil volume and burned up shots.

I have not changed the 3,000 grit box finish, and shining the WINNER SOLID up likely would improve it on burned up shots. But I have lots of balls I like for those shots, so I have not tried shining it.

My problem with the WINNER SOLID is that while it gets to the pocket fairly easily, it just doesn’t strike a lot when it gets there. Even for my 14-pounders and slow speed and moderate revs, I have left a lot more flat 10-pins with the WINNER SOLID than I expected.

The one thing I have not tried that I am going to try before giving up on this ball is drilling a weight hole and bringing the side weight back down, perhaps to near zero. This may change the motion enough to make it a winner, pun intended, for me. (And the weight hole won't be illegal until Aug. 1, 2020.) 

I will update this review after I see how that works for me.

I would compare the WINNER SOLID to a rough surface HUSTLE INK, with the ink a little longer and more angular.

The one thing I liked about the WINNER SOLID is that it gave me a good look on tougher patterns, where carry was less important than control and keeping it in the pocket.

I would recommend the WINNER SOLID for anyone looking for a medium ball that is relatively easy to control, while keeping in mind that it might work best for those with higher rev rates and more speed — at least based on my experience.

I like everything about the WINNER SOLID except how it goes through the pins for me, which may not be an issue for many others with more game than I’ve got left, and may be something a weight hole will fix for me.