PBA Tour

PBA Tour
PBA Tour 2008-2011 logo
Formation	1958[1]
Purpose/focus	A series of professional ten-pin bowling events, governing body is PBA and USBC, and held between September and April annually.
Headquarters	Seattle, Washington
Location	United States and Japan
Membership	PBA members who are considered "exempt"
Chairman	Chris Peters
Website	http://www.pba.com/

The Lumber Liquidators PBA Tour is the major professional tour for ten-pin bowling, operated by the Professional Bowlers Association. Headquartered in Seattle, Washington, the PBA Tour consists of "exempt" bowlers who are a part of the almost 4,300 members worldwide.^[1] From September to April of each year, the PBA Tour puts on a series of events for exempt members, as well as other PBA members who are able to qualify for the remaining spots in a given event.

The events are held across the United States. In addition, the PBA Tour co-hosts the Dydo Japan Cup, along with the Japan Professional Bowling Association (JPBA). And, select American members compete against their European counterparts in the Weber Cup.

Qualifying for the PBA Tour

From the PBA Tour's inception through the 2003-04 season, most national PBA Tour events were open to the entire PBA membership. The initial tournament squads typically included well over 100 bowlers, who would roll a set number of qualifying games to determine the "cut line" for additional qualifying and/or match play (typically 64 bowlers).

The Exempt Tour (2004-05 through 2011-12)

Starting in October 2004, the PBA adopted an all-exempt national tour format. In this format, only 64 bowlers competed in most weekly events. Bowlers earned exemptions by winning a tournament during the previous season, winning one of the four major tournaments (thus gaining a multi-year exemption), placing among the top finishers in points, leading a region on the PBA Regional Tour (2005-2007), finishing in a high position at the PBA Tour Trials (2005-2008), or placing high enough at the PBA Regional Players Invitational Tournament (2008-2011).

Under this new format, bona fide status as a touring professional was not a guarantee; it had to be earned. The 2005 H&R Block Tournament of Champions was pivotal, as Randy Pedersen was facing the loss of his exempt status in the semi-final match against Norm Duke. On his final shot, Pedersen left a ringing 10-pin and immediately singled out the sidelines, accusing a spectator of distracting him as he made his shot. From that point, Pedersen would have to bowl in the Tour Qualifying Round (TQR) in order to try making the initial field of 64.

Criticism of the format was brought forth by long-time PBA fans when popular 24-time winner Brian Voss lost his tour exemption following the 2006-07 season. 19-time titleist Amleto Monacelli also lost his exemption at the same time.

Depending on the season, a set number of bowlers (for example, 58 bowlers in the 2008-09 season) earned exemptions which automatically placed them in the starting field of 64 bowlers each week. The remaining spots needed to bring the field to 64 were awarded each week through the PBA Tour Qualifying Round (TQR), also called the "rabbit squad". PBA Commissioner Fred Schreyer would often award one spot in the field to a former touring pro under the Commissioner's Exemption, meaning even fewer spots were available via the TQR. For example, PBA Hall of Famer and Medford, Oregon resident Marshall Holman competed on a Commissioner's Exemption at the Bayer Earl Anthony Medford Classic held in that city in January, 2009.^[2]

During the TQR, amateur and non-exempt PBA bowlers bowled 7 games of qualifying. The top amateur bowler advanced (no matter where he or she finished), along with the top-scoring PBA members needed to round out the field. In the 2007-08 PBA season, rookie Rhino Page made a remarkable five TV finals appearances (winning one title) despite having to bowl in the TQR every week.

Qualifying Via PBA Tour Trials and RPI

From 2005 to 2008, the PBA held the PBA Tour Trials in late May/early June to determine the bowlers who would will fill the remaining open spots on the following season's exempt player list. The number of exemptions awarded at the PBA Tour Trials varied -- 10 spots were available in 2006-07, but only seven spots at the start of the 2007-08 and 2008-09 campaigns. That number could increase or decrease due to injury deferments for currently exempt bowlers. At the Tour Trials, non-exempt PBA and international bowlers bowled nine games each day for five straight days on the five primary PBA oil patterns. (See "PBA Tour lane preparation" later in this article.)

At the 2006 Denny's PBA Tour Trials, Kelly Kulick made history by becoming the first woman to ever gain a PBA exemption (she was exempt for the 2006-07 season). (Before it dissolved, Kulick was the 2001 Rookie of the Year on the PWBA, won the 2003 U.S. Women's Open, and was a three-time member of Team USA.) Kulick later earned a two-year exemption to the main PBA Tour with her victory in the 2010 Tournament of Champions; she had earned her spot in that event by winning the PBA Women's World Championship, the tour's first major championship in its Women's Series.

From 2009 to 2011, the Tour Trials were replaced by the PBA Regional Players Invitational (RPI). For the 2010-11 and 2011-12 seasons, the top eight finishers at the RPI were offered PBA Tour exemptions, though not all of them accepted. At the 2011 RPI, 58-year old Kerry Painter finished eighth and made history by becoming the oldest player to ever earn a PBA Tour exemption.^[3]

Exempt Tour Discontinued (2012-13 and beyond)

In November, 2011, the PBA announced that they will discontinue the exempt tour format for the 2012-13 PBA Tour season. Due to the changing climate of the Tour itself, the number of all-exempt events had been steadily declining in the 2009-10 and 2010-11 seasons, until there were only three exempt events for the 2011-12 season.

This change means that all events during the 2012-13 PBA national tour will be open to all players. (The one notable exception is the PBA Tournament of Champions, which requires participants to have won a title on the PBA Tour, PBA Regional Tour or PBA Senior Tour.)

While the "exempt player" designation was removed, the PBA announced that players will be able to earn "Touring 1" and "Touring 2" statuses, which will offer certain benefits and bonuses. "Touring 1" status will be awarded to all bowlers who enter at least 80 percent of a season's tournaments, including the World Series of Bowling, at least two majors, and at least three PBA Xtra Frame events. "Touring 2" status will be awarded for players entering at least 60 percent of a season's tournaments, including the World Series, at least one major, and at least one Xtra Frame event. To earn either status, players must also average 190 or higher in PBA Tour events.

While the PBA points list no longer affects exempt status, there will still be incentives for finishing high on the list -- such as qualifying for the season-ending Dick Weber PBA Playoffs (begun in 2010-11) and entry into the exclusive 36-bowler field for the Pepsi PBA Elite Players Championship (begun in 2011-12).^[4]

Finals formats

Prior to the debut of the PBA on ABC television in 1962, most tourneys bowled a set number of match-play games, with the champion crowned by final overall total pinfall.

Beginning in the 1960s through 1997 (with the exception of one year), televised events were done in a "stepladder" format. Four matches would be held, with the #5 and #4 seeds from the qualifying rounds meeting first. The winner of the first match would bowl the #3 seed, and likewise up to the top spot.

ABC experimented in 1993 with a King Of The Hill format. Under this arrangement, only the top four seeds made it to the television finals, instead of five, with the traditional stepladder format. The #4 and #3 seeds met first, with the winner facing the #2 seed, and that winner then facing the #1 seed. The winner of the tournament faced the current "King" for an additional cash prize. The winner of the King of the Hill match would then bowl the winner of the following week's tournament. The "King" could defend his title even when not competing in the event hosting it. The tour resumed its normal "stepladder" format the following year.

The bowler who won himself the most notoriety for winning "King" matches was Ron Williams, who won only four tourneys in his career, yet held the "King" spot for five consecutive weeks that year.

Special formats were also used on occasion in conjunction with Old Spice deodorant, which sponsored a Winning Never Gets Old challenge annually in the mid 1990s. The winner of the championship would bowl a Seniors Tour bowler for the rights to an extra $10,000.

When the PBA moved to CBS in 1998, a two-match format was adopted. Again going to four bowlers, the #2, #3, and #4 players bowled in one "shootout" match, with the winner to face the tournament leader for the championship.

The Road to the Finals

After the PBA's sale and move of broadcasts to ESPN, most tournaments used a "bracketed" format. Each bowler bowled nine qualifying games, with the top 64 by pinfall competing in best 4-of-7 head-to-head matches. The four remaining bowlers from match play competed in two semi-final matches, followed by a final match of the semi-final winners. A few tournaments still used the stepladder format for the finals.

In January 2005, the PBA tournament format was modified because of the all exempt tour. Non-exempt bowlers bowled on the first day to determine the additional six (or more) bowlers who qualify for the tournament (on top of the exempt field). The second day consisted of 64 bowlers rolling 14 games (two 7-game blocks) to determine the 32 bowlers who made "match play" on the third day. Seeding of the top 32 was based on a rolling points list of the 20 previous events.

The third day featureed 32 bowlers competing in potentially 21 matches in a single day. It started with the first round in the morning, followed by the second round ("Round of 16") after lunch. That night, the quarterfinal ("Round of 8") matches were conducted. All matches were a best 4-of-7 format. The four quarterfinal winners made the field for the televised finals. Depending on the finals format, a fifth bowler could be added based on highest pinfall among the quarterfinal non-winners.

The championship round remained single head-to-head matches for semifinals and finals on the final day. Beginning in the 2009-10 season, a majority of the finals had returned to the stepladder format.

2009-10 Changes

For the first five exempt events of the 2009-10 season, the starting field consisted of 72 bowlers all rolling 14 games of qualifying in one day (two blocks of 7 games each) to determine the top 28. The top four bowlers by pinfall automatically earned a spot in the Round of 16 match play. The other 12 spots for the Round of 16 were determined in a separate match play round for the #5 through #28 seeds. The eight winners from the Round of 16 match play then bowled a final match play round to determine the four bowlers who advanced to the TV finals.

All match play rounds were on the second day of the tournament, and all were best 4-of-7 matches.

Top 20 in PBA titles

The following are the top titles winners in PBA Tour history. The table lists the name and the number of titles; a check mark indicates that the player is still active.

Rank	Name	Titles	Active?
1.	Walter Ray Williams Jr.	47	Y
2.	Earl Anthony	43
3.	Pete Weber	35	Y
4.	Mark Roth	34
	Norm Duke		Y
6.	Parker Bohn III	32	Y
7.	Dick Weber	30
8.	Mike Aulby	29
9.	Don Johnson	26
10.	Brian Voss	25	Y
11.	Marshall Holman	22
12.	Dick Ritger	20
	Wayne Webb
14.	Amleto Monacelli	19	Y
15.	Nelson Burton Jr.	18
	Dave Davis
	Billy Hardwick
	Dave Soutar
19.	Carmen Salvino	17
20.	Jason Couch	16	Y

In May 2008, the PBA announced that it was revising its all-time records to include USBC Masters and BPAA All-Star titles if they were bowled by a PBA member.^[5] American Bowling Congress (the merger took place in 2005) Masters titles prior to 1998 and BPAA All-Star (U.S. Open prior to 1971) titles were previously not counted as PBA titles. They are now counted as both a PBA title and a major title. The most significant impact of this change is that Dick Weber moves from a 9th place tie on the all-time titles list to 7th place (30 titles) while picking up four more majors (all BPAA All-Star events). Also, Earl Anthony is credited with two more major titles, both being USBC Masters, giving him a record ten majors among his 43 total titles; he had previously shared the record of eight major titles with Pete Weber.

Player of the year

The PBA Player of the Year began being officially recognized in 1963. It was awarded by The Sporting News from 1963–70, and by the PBA membership from 1971-2007. Some factors used in the voting process for a given season included major titles, total titles, Tour average ranking, points ranking, season earnings and TV finals appearances. The mid-70's to early-80's were dominated by Earl Anthony and Mark Roth. The two won 10 of the 11 P.O.Y. awards between 1974–84, and faced off in many memorable finals. In the 2007-08 season, a new Player of the Year system was instituted, where a points system only determines the winner. Chris Barnes became the first Player of the Year winner under this new system in 2008, edging out Walter Ray Williams Jr. by two points.

Season	Winner	Season	Winner	Season	Winner
1963	Billy Hardwick	1979	Mark Roth	1995	Mike Aulby
1964	Bob Strampe Sr.	1980	Wayne Webb	1996	Walter Ray Williams Jr.
1965	Dick Weber	1981	Earl Anthony	1997	Walter Ray Williams Jr.
1966	Wayne Zahn	1982	Earl Anthony	1998	Walter Ray Williams Jr.
1967	Dave Davis	1983	Earl Anthony	1999	Parker Bohn III
1968	Jim Stefanich	1984	Mark Roth	2000	Norm Duke
1969	Billy Hardwick	1985	Mike Aulby	2001-02	Parker Bohn III
1970	Nelson Burton Jr.	1986	Walter Ray Williams Jr.	2002-03	Walter Ray Williams Jr.
1971	Don Johnson	1987	Marshall Holman	2003-04	Mika Koivuniemi
1972	Don Johnson	1988	Brian Voss	2004-05	Patrick Allen
1973	Don McCune	1989	Amleto Monacelli	2005-06	Tommy Jones
1974	Earl Anthony	1990	Amleto Monacelli	2006-07	Doug Kent
1975	Earl Anthony	1991	David Ozio	2007-08	Chris Barnes
1976	Earl Anthony	1992	Dave Ferraro	2008-09	Wes Malott
1977	Mark Roth	1993	Walter Ray Williams Jr.	2009-10	Walter Ray Williams, Jr.
1978	Mark Roth	1994	Norm Duke	2010-11	Mika Koivuniemi

PBA Tour lane preparation

Unlike the typical "league condition" or "house shot", which facilitates a fairly consistent pattern and wider target area, the PBA rotates five challenging lane oil patterns throughout the season. The patterns — known as Cheetah, Viper, Scorpion, Shark and Chameleon — feature varying oil volumes and lengths that require pros to adjust ball angle, rotation and speed accordingly. On some patterns, certain "strike lines" (areas of the lane) are unplayable, and spare shooting becomes much more important. This means a 220 average on the PBA Tour would easily translate to 20-30 pins higher on a typical league shot.

To put this theory to the test, the PBA held a special "Ultimate Scoring Championship" in the 2008-09 season, with pro bowlers competing on a typical league lane condition. The event took place November 9–11, 2008 in Taylor, Michigan, prior to the PBA Chameleon Championship that took place in the same bowling center. The lane conditions indeed proved easier for the professionals, as 3 of the 4 finalists averaged better than 250 during match play.^[6]

Custom oil patterns are used for the four major tournaments. In addition, the PBA introduced the Dick Weber pattern for two 2008-09 tournaments (including the Denny's Dick Weber Open), plus a newly-designed "Earl" pattern for the Earl Anthony Medford Classic.

Though most PBA pros tend to bowl their best on one or two of the PBA oil patterns, two players, Mika Koivuniemi and Tommy Jones, have managed to win at least one title on all five standard patterns.

The USBC is also grasping the PBA lane conditions. Called the USBC PBA Experience,^[7] amateurs are able to experience and test their bowling skills against PBA-like conditions, by participating in a USBC sanctioned league style called Sport Bowling.

2009 and later PBA Tour season changes

2009-10 World Series of Bowling

Main article: PBA Bowling Tour: 2009-10 season

In a cost-cutting effort, the PBA split the 2009-10 season into two segments. The first, the 2009 World Series of Bowling, consisted of seven PBA Tour events—including one major tournament (PBA World Championship) -- held in August and September 2009 in Allen Park, MI, near Detroit.^[8] All of the events ran in a split format: the early rounds of each tournament were held on consecutive days in August and September, and ESPN television taped the final rounds for the tournaments on Labor Day weekend (September 5–7). These were aired on seven Sundays, October 25 through December 6, 2009.

The final rounds for the Women's and Senior PBA World Championship were taped September 5 and were broadcast on October 25. The final round for the "open" PBA World Championship was broadcast live on December 13.

The Motor City Open and PBA World Championship were open to the entire PBA membership. The fields for the five exempt events were increased from 64 to 72, with the additional spots going to TQR qualifiers and the new "Golden Parachute" entry reserved for a formerly-exempt player. Under the Golden Parachute rule, any formerly exempt PBA member who lost his/her exemption during past four years was able to apply for this new exempt position. (It was awarded to 24-time PBA titleist Brian Voss.) Following the 2009-10 season, the Golden Parachute exemption will come only from the previous year’s crop of players who lose their exemption due to points.

The exempt PBA Women's Series fields were increased from 16 to 20. The Women's Series added qualifiers for the exempt events to fill two of the four additional spots.

The second half of the season, running January–April 2010, consisted of 11 traditional touring weekly tournaments, including the remaining three majors. Each event ended with the live ESPN television finals on Sundays. The second half also included three special (non-title) televised events: the Chris Paul PBA Celebrity Invitational, the PBA Experience Showdown, and the PBA Women's Series Showdown.

2010-11 Season

Main article: PBA Bowling Tour: 2010-11 season

The PBA announced in May, 2010 that it would again cover all of the Fall tournaments for the upcoming season at the World Series of Bowling. The second annual event was held October 24 through November 6, 2010 at South Point Hotel, Casino and Bowling Center in Las Vegas, Nevada. It consisted of five title events, qualifying for the PBA World Championship, and one non-title, made-for-TV event. Based on input from players, as well as corporate partner and ESPN television needs, there were some revisions to the series:^[9]

• All events were "open," meaning any PBA member could enter the entire World Series of Bowling via $750 entry fee. There were no Tour Qualifying Rounds or "World Series Trials."
• Over the first five days (starting Oct. 25) all players bowled 12 games on each of the PBA's five "animal" oil patterns (Cheetah, Chameleon, Viper, Scorpion and Shark). The Top 16 qualifiers on each pattern advanced to a 9-game match play the following week. Top 5 qualifiers after the match play rounds in each event advanced to the televised stepladder finals, contested on November 5–6 and taped by ESPN for broadcasts on five consecutive Sundays, starting November 28.
• The standings after all 60 animal pattern qualifying games also determined the rankings for the PBA World Championship. The World Championship was again be the first major and first live ESPN broadcast of the season, but this time it featured the Top 8 qualifiers bowling over three consecutive days (January 14–16, 2011).
• The Top 6 U.S. qualifiers and Top 6 International qualifiers after the 60 animal pattern games competed in a special (non-title) televised event called "USA vs. The World," which was taped on November 6 for a January 9, 2011 broadcast.

The format for the second half of the 2010-11 season included the remaining three majors (USBC Masters, Tournament of Champions and U.S. Open), as well as the first-ever Dick Weber PBA Playoffs. The 2011 Tournament of Champions had the largest prize fund ($1 million U.S.) and largest first-place prize ($250,000 U.S.) in PBA history.^[10]

2011-12 Season

Main article: PBA Bowling Tour: 2011-12 season

The PBA announced in June, 2011 that it will again cover all of the Fall tournaments for the upcoming season at the World Series of Bowling, and that the event would have a $1 million prize fund. The event will be held November 4–20, 2011 and returns to the South Point Hotel, Casino and Bowling Center in Las Vegas, Nevada.^[11] It will include both the qualifying and final rounds of the PBA World Championship, the first major tournament of the season.

The second half of the PBA Tour season includes the three remaining majors (USBC Masters, Lumber Liquidators U.S. Open and Tournament of Champions), plus four additional title events.^[12]

PBA Tour Major Championships

The PBA Tour currently has four major championship events:

• The USBC Masters;
• The Lumber Liquidators U.S. Open;
• The PBA World Championship;
• The H&R Block Tournament of Champions.

USBC Masters

Main article: USBC Masters

Current Defending Champion: Tom Hess

• The USBC Masters became an officially sanctioned PBA event in 1998. (Prior to 2005, this event was known as the ABC Masters.)

NOTE: In May, 2008, the PBA announced that it was revising its all-time records to include ABC Masters titles prior to 1998 if the person who earned the title was a PBA member at the time.^[5]

• Winners of the USBC Masters now earn a two-year PBA Tour exemption, meaning that for the following two seasons they do not have to qualify for the Top 64 each week through the TQR.
• Walter Ray Williams Jr. won a memorable 2009-10 Masters at age 50, firing a 290 game in the final to defeat Chris Barnes.

The United States Open

Main article: U.S. Open (bowling)

Current Defending Champion: Norm Duke

• The origins of the U.S. Open pre-date the PBA's founding by more than a decade, starting in the 1940s. Originally associated with the Bowling Proprietors Association of America (BPAA) it was known as the BPAA All Star from 1951 to 1970. It was renamed the BPAA United States Open in 1971, and shortened to U.S. Open thereafter. It has been held every year since, except for 1997.
• The U.S. Open is considered the most difficult of the tournaments to win today due to its demanding oil pattern, which differs from the five oil patterns the PBA generally employs. According to PBA.com, the U.S. Open uses a "flat" oil pattern, with equal amounts of oil being applied to every board.^[13] (Normal lane conditions feature a "crown" or larger amount of oil over the middle lane boards, to handle the heavier ball traffic.)
• Don Carter dominated the early BPAA All-Star events, winning four times between 1952 and 1960. Dick Weber also won this tournament four times when it was the BPAA All-Star.
• Mike Limongello won the first modern-day U.S. Open in 1971, defeating Teata Semiz.
• Marshall Holman became the first multiple modern-day winner with victories in 1981 and 1985.
• The purse for the 1987 event, sponsored by Seagram Wine Coolers, was a then-record $500,000, with $100,000 going to the eventual winner, Del Ballard Jr.
• The 1995 event, at Joe Louis Arena in Detroit, set a bowling attendance record with 7,212 watching Dave Husted notch the second of his three U.S. Open Crowns.
• Pete Weber holds the record with four modern-day U.S. Open titles (1988, 1991, 2003–04, 2006–07).
• Earl Anthony never captured the U.S. Open, despite runner-up finishes in 1973, 1979 and 1980.
• Norm Duke became just the seventh bowler in PBA history to win two majors in one season when he captured the 2008 U.S. Open. The victory made him the fifth Triple Crown winner (and third "grand slam" winner) in PBA history.

The PBA National / PBA World Championship

Main article: PBA World Championship

Current Defending Champion: Chris Barnes

• Don Carter won the inaugural National Championship in 1960 in Memphis, TN, defeating Ronnie Gaudern.
• Hall of Famer Wayne Zahn became the first bowler to win this event twice, defeating Nelson Burton Jr. both times.
• Earl Anthony staked his mastery in this event; twice capturing it three straight years (1973–75; 1981–83). His 1983 victory was his 41st title (under PBA rules at the time), a record that would stand until Walter Ray Williams Jr. broke it in 2006-07.
• Fellow Hall of Famer Mike Aulby won this event in 1979, the first of his 29 PBA titles. Ironically, he had to defeat Anthony to win.
• The following year, Johnny Petraglia won the final of his 14 titles at the Sterling Heights, MI, event. Petraglia became the second bowler to win bowling's original "Triple Crown" with this victory (after Billy Hardwick).
• A memorable 1994 PBA National featured brothers David Traber and Dale Traber squaring off in the final match, with David emerging victorious.
• With his runner-up finish in the February 2008 event, Ryan Shafer set a record with his fourth runner-up finish in a PBA major event without a victory. Overall, Shafer has made the TV finals in a PBA major event 10 times and has yet to win.
• The event moved from late season to become the season-opening tournament in 2008-09, meaning there were two World Championships during calendar year 2008.
• With his victory in the November 2008 World Championship, Norm Duke became the first PBA bowler to win three consecutive majors.
• The event was moved again for the 2009-10 season. In a split-format, the qualifying for the championship was held at the PBA World Series of Bowling in early September, 2009, and the TV finals aired live from Wichita, KS on December 13, 2009.

The PBA National Championship was renamed the World Championship in 2002-03.

The Tournament of Champions

Main article: H&R Block Tournament of Champions

Current Defending Champion: Mika Koivuniemi

• The Tournament of Champions has had many sponsors over the years; namely the Firestone Tire and Rubber Company from 1962 to 1993.
• Hall of Famer Joe Joseph captured the first Tournament of Champions crown in 1962.
• Billy Hardwick won the Tournament of Champions in 1965, besting finalists Dick Weber and Joe Joseph in a two-game set, 484-468-404. This was the first tourney in PBA history to offer a six-figure prize fund.
• Jack Biondolillo rolled the PBA's first-ever televised 300 game at the 1967 T of C.^[14]
• George Pappas became one of the first bowlers to lead a tournament wire-to-wire (from opening game of qualifying to championship match) when he won the 1979 event.
• The 1981 edition saw the only double two-frame roll-off in championship round history, with Pete Couture finally emerging victorious over Earl Anthony in the second roll-off. Steve Cook won the championship with a memorable 287 game over Couture, gaining the first ten strikes before leaving the 6-7 split.
• Only two men have ever won the TOC three times: Mike Durbin and Jason Couch. Couch's wins came in consecutive seasons, a feat no other bowler has accomplished.
• Kelly Kulick's 2010 win made her the first woman ever to win any event on the PBA Tour that was also open to men.
• The 2010-11 Tournament of Champions featured a $1 million purse and a $250,000 first prize, making it the richest PBA tournament ever.^[10] (See: PBA Bowling Tour: 2010-11 season.)

PBA Triple Crown

The three "original" major championships (PBA World Championship, Tournament of Champions and U.S. Open) make up the PBA's "Triple Crown."

Only six bowlers in the history of the PBA have won all three jewels of the Triple Crown in their careers:

• Billy Hardwick
• Johnny Petraglia
• Mike Aulby
• Pete Weber
• Norm Duke
• Chris Barnes

Despite 47 and 43 titles respectively, Walter Ray Williams and Earl Anthony are not Triple Crown winners. As mentioned, Anthony never won the U.S. Open, though he finished runner-up in the event three times. Williams has yet to win the Tournament of Champions.

PBA Grand Slam

Mike Aulby, Norm Duke and Billy Hardwick are the only three of the five PBA "Triple Crown" winners who have also won the ABC/USBC Masters, thus giving them the unofficial "grand slam" of pro bowling.

Don Carter is also noted for having won all four possible "majors" during his career (PBA National Championship, BPAA All-Star, World Invitational and ABC Masters), however some of these were not PBA events.

PBA Tour in the media

The PBA provided its first televised event in 1962, and became a Saturday afternoon staple on the ABC schedule from 1965.

Years	Network	Play-By-Play	Color Commentary	Notes
1962–1974	ABC	Chris Schenkel	Billy Welu	Various announcers filled in whenever Schenkel was on assignment. Keith Jackson did play by play for the second televised 300 game in 1969, while Bud Palmer did the same for a 300 in 1974.
1974-75	ABC	Chris Schenkel	Dave Davis, Dick Weber	Davis and Weber alternated on telecasts after Welu's death in 1974.
1975–1997	ABC	Chris Schenkel	Nelson Burton Jr.	Dave Diles was Schenkel's fill-in while on assignment. Dick Weber filled in for Burton in the 1970s-1980s when Burton was competing. Johnny Petraglia filled in from that time.
Late 1970s	HBO	Various	Various	Among the first sports broadcasts on HBO.
Late 1970s	CBS	Frank Glieber	Dave Davis	Part of the CBS Sports Spectacular summer series.[5]
1981–1982	USA Network	Al Trautwig	Mike Durbin	Spring and Summer tour events.
1984–1991	NBC	Jay Randolph	Earl Anthony	Fall Tour Stops.
Early 1990s	ESPN	Denny Schreiner	Mike Durbin	ESPN's first venture into bowling. Marshall Holman filled in for Durbin on occasion.
1998–2001	CBS	Gary Seidel	Marshall Holman	The "golden pin" era of the PBA. Chris Schenkel expressed interest in moving to CBS, but was passed over.
2002–2007	ESPN	Dave Ryan	Randy Pedersen	Chris Barnes and Norm Duke would fill in as extra commentators during select telecasts.
2007–present	ESPN	Rob Stone	Randy Pedersen	Current announcing team. Laneside reporters (Cathy Dorin-Lizzi or Carolyn Dorin-Ballard) have sometimes been added when a PBA Women's Series event was included in the telecast.

In its heyday, ABC's Professional Bowlers Tour outranked all sporting events on Saturdays with the exception of college football telecasts.

The 1991 Tournament of Champions was delayed for over thirty minutes at the start due to a bomb threat being phoned in at Rivera Lanes in Fairlawn, Ohio. The ABC telecast joined in during the evacuation's final stages and featured interviews with local officials, as well as classic clips from previous T of C telecasts.^[15][16]

Mark Roth, whose first career title was captured at the 1975 King Louie Open in Kansas by rolling a televised 299 game, gained immortality by becoming the first bowler to convert the almost-impossible "7-10 split" on national television in the first match of the ARC Alameda Open on January 5, 1980. In 1991, John Mazza and Jess Stayrook also accomplished this feat on television. During the 2005-06 season, Walter Ray Williams Jr. became the only bowler to convert the 4-6-7-10 "big four" combination on television.

In 2005, ESPN Classic began televising old bowling broadcasts daily, including some of the more memorable ones in which bowlers shot perfect games or records were set. All of the telecasts originally aired on either ABC or ESPN since those are the tapes to which the network owns the rights.

Perfect and near-perfect televised games

There have been 18 perfect games bowled on the nationally-televised final day of regular PBA tournaments. Jack Biondolillo rolled the first one at the 1967 Tournament of Champions, and Ryan Shafer bowled the most recent one on March 18, 2007, at the semifinals of the 2007 Pepsi Championship in Indianapolis. Two of the eighteen perfect games (fifth and sixth overall) have been bowled in the final title match, first by Bob Benoit at the 1988 Quaker State Open and then by Mike Aulby at the 1993 Wichita Open.

There have also been two on Senior PBA Tour telecasts, by Gene Stus (1992) and Ron Winger (1993).

A most memorable televised 299 game occurred on April 4, 1970 when Don Johnson defeated Dick Ritger to win the 1970 Firestone Tournament of Champions. With 11 strikes already down, he threw his 12th ball, stepped back and dropped to the floor. The ball hit the pocket, but the 10-pin remained standing. Johnson, still on the floor, briefly lowered his face into his hands, then stood up to a thunderous ovation. Along with the trophy and $25,000 check from Firestone, Johnson also received the 10-pin that denied him both an extra $10,000 and a new Mercury Cougar automobile for a perfect game.

See also

• Professional Bowlers Tour - ABC telecast aired from 1961 to 1997.
• PBA Regional Tour
• PBA Women's Series
• PBA Senior Tour

References and footnotes

1. ^ ^{a b} http://www.pba.com/corporate/aboutus.asp
2. ^ Russell Leads Qualifying at PBA Bayer Earl Anthony Medford Classic. Article at www.pba.com, January 15, 2009.
3. ^ Vint, Bill. "Diverse Group of 49 'Exempt' Players Set to Kick Off 2011-12 PBA Tour Season at World Series of Bowling." Article at www.pba.com on September 23, 2011. [1]
4. ^ Vint, Bill. "PBA to Return to Non-Exempt Tour for 2012-13 Season." Article at www.pba.com on November 10, 2011. [2]
5. ^ ^{a b} All-time Denny's PBA Tour Titlists at www.pba.com
6. ^ "Robert Smith powers his way through to Sunday's finals of Ultimate Scoring Championship." Article at www.pba.com, November 11, 2008.
7. ^ PBA Experience
8. ^ PBA World Series of Bowling website
9. ^ Vint, Bill. "South Point in Las Vegas to Host 14-Day 2010 World Series of Bowling." Article at www.pba.com on May 24, 2010.
10. ^ ^{a b} Schneider, Jerry. "Williams Record Seventh PBA Player of the Year Honor 'Unimaginable.'" Article at www.pba.com on April 5, 2010.
11. ^ Vint, Bill. "Revised PBA World Series of Bowling Broadens International Appeal; Finals Set for South Point Arena." Article at www.pba.com [3]
12. ^ 2011-12 Schedule at www.pba.com
13. ^ http://www.pba.com/pbatour/tournament.asp?ID=1535
14. ^ Thomas, Jason. "Top 10 Moments in T of C History." Article at www.pba.com on August 16, 2010.[4]
15. ^ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rkaatvA_Sqw
16. ^ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b18c95geVm4

External links

• Professional Bowlers Association (PBA) homepage
• PBA Tour homepage
• PBA on ESPN