Adams finger billiards and exhibition work had its germination in his early bowling interest. By the time he was 17, Adams was an adept bowler; he often gave informal exhibitions of bowling tricks such as "cocked hat", "back frame", and letting the head pin remain standing. In a 1913 interview, Adams said that, "[i]n those days we rolled what was termed 'skew ball', similar to the put on a cue ball in Billiards."
