A spherical particle lies on a sinusoidal surface under the force of adhesion. Both the sphere and the wavy body are considered to be elastic. Because the radius of curvature of the surface varies with position, the composite radius of curvature of the sphere and the surface also varies with position. The total energy of the system, which includes the adhesion energy, decreases as the composite radius of curvature increases. As a consequence, it is energetically favorable for the sphere to move away from the surface peaks and toward the valleys. The existence of this adhesion-energy-induced driving force is demonstrated theoretically and its value is determined for a range of sphere positions. Linear theory predicts that it can be as large as similar to 2% of the pull-off force. The inclusion of nonlinear effects would be expected to increase this driving force.