New From DV8

Finished with a 2000 grit Siaair Micro Pad Finish, the new DV8 Hell Raiser Revenge has easy length through the front and mid-lane with a very quick response to friction on the backend creating a highly angular motion for a matte finish ball that tears through the pins on medium oily to oily lane conditions. Hell Raiser Ultra Low RG Core (RG – 2.480, Differential - .056) Is wrapped with “Class 7 Reactive” Coverstock finished 500 then 2000 Siaair Micro Pad.

Brunswick’s DV8 Brand adds the Green/White Misfit. The “Misfit” core is a high RG (2.552) and medium Differential (.040) surrounded by the “Class 1 Reactive veneer, finished with a 500 Siaair Micro Pad, Rough Buff and High Gloss polish.
 

The PBA Xtra Frame Tour

Ricart Ford in Columbus, Ohio, will be the title sponsor of the Professional Bowlers Association’s Ricart Ford Open presented by Columbia 300, Feb. 17-19 at Sequoia Lanes in Columbus. 

The tournament will be the third of four PBA Tour Xtra Frame tournaments on the 2011-12 PBA Tour schedule. The tournament will be webcast live, exclusively on pba.com’s Xtra Frame online bowling channel, from start to finish. 

The newly-created Xtra Frame Tour will also include the Cheetah Open presented by Ebonite, Jan. 21-22, in Fountain Valley, CA; the Detroit Open presented by Track, March 11-12, in Allen Park, MI, and the Dick Weber PBA Playoffs presented by Hammer, March 31-April 1, in Indianapolis, IN. 

PBA Tour titles and berths in the Round of 36 for the 2012 PBA Tournament of Champions will be awarded in all four events. 

The PBA Ricart Ford Open will also offer a $10,000 first prize. The tournament is open to all comers with a $350 entry fee for PBA members and a $400 fee for non-members. 

It will pay a prize fund of $66,000 based on a field of 130, with one in three players cashing. Thanks to the extensive live online coverage of Xtra Frame Tour events, PBA fans will be able to witness the pressures and drama of a complete PBA Tour event from qualifying through match play, concluding with the stepladder finals. 

Xtra Frame also will provide live coverage of the preliminary rounds of the Tour’s three major championships: the USBC Masters, Jan. 23-29, in Las Vegas; the U.S. Open, Feb. 20-26 in North Brunswick, NJ, and the PBA Tournament of Champions, April 8-15, in Las Vegas. 

Xtra Frame is available for a $7.99 monthly or 12-month subscription rate of $64.99 which includes year-round coverage of PBA activities, including PBA Tour, Senior Tour and selected PBA Regional events. The full-year package provides subscribers with hundreds of player and industry leader interviews, new product introductions, coaching tips and human interest features, and access to Xtra Frame’s huge archive of past PBA events plus much more.

USBC Intercollegiate Singles and Team Championships

The 2012 United States Bowling Congress (USBC) Intercollegiate Singles Championships will have a new format and be held in conjunction with USBC Intercollegiate Team Championships at Sun Valley Lanes in Lincoln, Neb. The singles event will take place April 17; team competition begins April 19.

The new one-day format will consist of six games of qualifying followed by head-to-head match play. The match-play portion will feature three-game total pinfall matches.

“We are excited to be marrying the USBC Intercollegiate Team Championships with the singles championship,” International Bowling Campus Collegiate Manager Gary Brown said. “This change will add more energy and exposure to the singles championships as many of the fans and media attending the team championships will now see both events.”

Qualifying for the USBC Intercollegiate Singles Championships takes place through one of the four sectional qualifiers. Bowlers at each sectional location bowl six games of qualifying and a total of 24 men and 16 women will advance. At each sectional, the top four men and top four women advance; the additional eight men’s spots will be based on the size of the field at each location.

Airfare, hotel, transportation and meals for each national finalist is paid for by USBC. The men’s and women’s USBC Intercollegiate Singles champions will also receive a paid entry into the USBC Masters and Queens respectively.

USBC will provide live video coverage of the ITC and ISC on BOWL.com.

Shafer Wins Hardwick Division of PBA World Chapionships

Four-time Professional Bowlers Association title winner Ryan Shafer of Horseheads, NY, earned another chance to win his first major title on Jan. 15 after advancing to the finals of the PBA World Championship in the Billy Hardwick Division finals that aired Sunday on ESPN.

Shafer, who has made a PBA-record 12 championship round appearances in major tournaments without a title, defeated Andres Gomez of Colombia, 191-177, to win the second of four PBA World Championship elimination rounds at South Point Hotel Exhibition Hall. The divisional finals consist of three one-game rounds, starting with four players, and eliminating the lowest-scoring player after each game.

Shafer will join Finland’s Osku Palermaa, winner of the Don Carter Division, and the winners of the Johnny Petraglia and Mike Aulby Division finals in the World Championship finals on ESPN on Sunday, Jan. 15, at 1 p.m. ET. The PBA World Championship offers a $50,000 first prize and the first major title of the 2011-12 PBA Tour season.

Shafer, who is celebrating his 25th season as a PBA Tour competitor, established command in the opening game, recovering from a missed split conversion in the second frame to reel off nine consecutive strikes for a 267 game. Venezuela’s Ildemaro Ruiz, making his PBA television debut, was second with a 258 followed by Gomez with a 222. The group’s top qualifier, 2009 PBA World Champion Tom Smallwood of Saginaw, MI, was eliminated with a 194 game after failing to convert 4-7-9 and 4-9 splits in the sixth and eighth frames, respectively.

Gomez led the group in game two, starting with five strikes on his way to a 219. Shafer was next with a 207 and Ruiz was eliminated after posting a 180.

Shafer jumped out to a 29-pin lead after four frames in the final game, but failed to convert the 3-6-10 in the fifth frame and the 3-6-7-10 split in the ninth. While Gomez had his own problems as the lane conditions deteriorated, he still had a chance to win after Shafer opened in the ninth frame. Needing two strikes and eight pins in the 10th frame to lock Shafer out, he left the 2-8-10 split.

Needing only seven pins to clinch the win, Shafer struck on his next shot. “

I threw that shot in the ninth frame as good as I could possibly throw it,” Shafer said, “but I just didn’t move far enough right. “I thought I had blown another one. I’ve had some bad breaks in majors when I bowled pretty good and guys I bowled against bowled better, but I’ve blown a few, too. You just don’t want to make that your history, your reputation.

“I usually don’t get excited and show up my opponent,” Shafer said of his emotional display after his 10th frame strike, “but that one meant a lot to me. Andres is a great guy, and he made a great shot in the 10th, too. I know he can make a great shot when he needs to make one, but it just didn’t work. I definitely got a second life, but I got to the finals and now we’ll see what happens next.”

The Hardwick finals were conducted on the PBA’s Scorpion lane condition, selected by Smallwood as the highest qualifier in the Hardwick field.

The Johnny Petraglia Division finalists will be the next group to bowl, on New Year’s Day at 1 p.m. ET on ESPN. Sean Rash of suburban Chicago (Montgomery), IL, who led all World Championship qualifiers by 296 pins, has selected the Scorpion pattern as the lane condition for this elimination round.

Other Petraglia Division players will be PBA Hall of Famer Pete Weber of St. Ann, MO; left-hander Ryan Ciminelli of Cheektowaga, NY, and Nathan Bohr of Wichita, KS.

Weber, who has won 35 PBA Tour titles including eight majors, has won more titles and more majors than the rest of the 15 World Championship finalists combined (17 titles, two majors). Bohr, the only non-titlist in the group, will make his PBA television debut.

The Petraglia Division finals air on Sunday, New Year’s Day, at 1 p.m. ET on ESPN. The Mike Aulby Division finals, completing the preliminary elimination rounds, will air on Jan. 8, also at 1 p.m. ET. Special pre-game shows will be webcast beginning on the Wednesday preceding the ESPN finals on pba.com’s Xtra Frame and a post-game Xtra Frame interview with the winners will immediately follow the Sunday telecasts.

900 Global Introduces the Train

New from 900 Global, the Train, a Blue/Silver Hybrid "S76" coverstock prepared nEat (E=Performance of 1500 grit), contained within is the Symmetric “Combustion” Core (RG in #15/2.505, with Differential of .054. World Wide Release Date: 1/9/12

Tom Smallwood of Saginaw, MI, who won his only Professional Bowlers Association (PBA) title in the 2009 PBA World Championship, heads the field of four players who will do battle in the Billy Hardwick Division finals of the PBA World Championship Sunday at 1 p.m. ET in high-definition on ESPN.

The Hardwick Division is the second of four eliminator rounds that will trim the PBA World Championship field of 16 finalists down to four for a Sunday, Jan. 15, battle for the $50,000 first prize, the Earl Anthony Trophy and the PBA Tour’s first major title of the 2011-12 season.

All World Championship competition will be conducted on a pair of lanes specially installed in an exhibit hall at South Point Hotel and Casino.

Smallwood, 34, became an instant hero among America’s blue-collar work force when he defeated former PBA Player of the Year Wes Malott for the 2009 PBA World Championship. Smallwood, who had lost his job with General Motors, had decided to pursue his dream to become a professional bowler and stunned the bowling world with his upset victory in Wichita, KS. Last season, he won $100,000 as runner-up to Mika Kovuniemi in the PBA Tournament of Champions. 

Now Smallwood is back in position to try for another major title as the top qualifier in the Hardwick Division. He earned his place in the Hardwick group as the No. 2 qualifier over 40 games of World Championship qualifying on five different lane conditions, averaging 226.63 to finish 296 pins behind leader Sean Rash. As top qualifier in his group, Smallwood has selected the PBA’s Scorpion lane conditioning pattern for Sunday’s event when he will face Venezuela’s Ildemaro Ruiz, Colombia’s Andres Gomez and 25-year PBA Tour veteran Ryan Shafer of Horseheads, NY, in a battle for a berth in the World Championship finals.

Both South American players are trying for their first PBA Tour titles. Ruiz, who is making his PBA television debut, qualified for the elimination rounds in seventh place. Gomez was 10th and Shafer tied for 14th. No international player has ever won the PBA World Championship.

In Sunday’s eliminator round, all four players will bowl a one-game match. The player with the lowest score will be eliminated. The three survivors will bowl another game, with the low man knocked out. The two finalists will bowl a final game, with the survivor advancing to the World Championship finals.

The four World Championship divisional finals have been named for PBA superstars who excelled in the event during their careers. Finland’s Osku Palermaa has already won the Don Carter Division berth. The Johnny Petraglia and Mike Aulby Division finals, which will air on ESPN on Jan. 1 and Jan. 8, respectively, will complete the divisional elimination rounds. The championship trophy is named in honor of Anthony, the only player ever to win the event six times.

The Roto Grip Defiant

Future of Bowling Is In The Young

The popularity of bowling continues to increase each year, partially due to a younger demographic gravitating to the sport. Students, for example, find bowling a fun and inexpensive form of casual entertainment. However, there is also a growing trend among high school and college students joining competitive bowling. In 2010, a record number of students competed in bowling tournaments. 

The United States Bowling Congress (USBC) reports over 50,000 high school and 3,500 college athletes competed in bowling tournaments in 2010. 

According to the Bowling Proprietors Association of America (BPAA), a bowling industry trade association, as of 2010 high school bowling had seen double-digit growth in five of its last eight seasons, and the number of varsity bowlers has more than doubled within the past decade. In 2010, 47 states recognized bowling on the high school varsity or club level – a drastic increase from 20 states in 2002. During the 2010-2011 bowling season, there was a record number of participants at the varsity level. As a result of the popularity in bowling among students, many colleges now offer bowling scholarships through the NCAA.

“Bowling has become quite popular as a competitive sport among high school and college students, as we have seen trends change drastically to include bowling as a varsity sport. Many bowling centers helped nurture this growth by creating youth-oriented leagues to spark an interest in student bowlers and create a passion for bowling at a young age. This forward-thinking concept created a new generation of bowlers that will continue to impact the popularity of bowling in years to come,” says Gary Smith of Brunswick. 

In 2010, the USBC created the Youth Education Services (YES) Fund. YES initially began developing a sports model for bowlers 12 years of age and older. This specially-designed program involves testing team-based competitions, development of training and recruitment programs which targets the younger demographic. “Brunswick is proud to be a part of the YES Fund industry initiative. It is great to see companies make an investment into the future of our industry as we work together to create a more positive experience for our youth bowlers,” states Brian Graham, Brunswick Consumer Products. 

Recently, Brunswick Bowling & Billiards announced its support of a new bowling exhibit located in the Iowa Hall of Pride. The exhibit was designed to celebrate notable achievements over the past 100-plus years by high school graduates in Iowa communities. A project of the Iowa High School Athletic Association (IHSAA), the Iowa Hall of Pride honors past and present Iowa high school students involved in extracurricular activities including athletics, academics, and the arts.

Most recently, Brunswick has offered $50,000 in matching funds to the World Tenpin Bowling Association for youth development worldwide. These funds will be used to help build the next generation of bowlers.

Second Bracket For PBA World Championships on Sunday



Tom Smallwood of Saginaw, MI, who won his only Professional Bowlers Association title in the 2009 PBA World Championship, heads the field of four players who will do battle in the Billy Hardwick Division finals of the PBA World Championship Sunday at 1 p.m. ET in high-definition on ESPN.

The Hardwick Division is the second of four eliminator rounds that will trim the PBA World Championship field of 16 finalists down to four for a Sunday, Jan. 15, battle for the $50,000 first prize, the Earl Anthony Trophy and the PBA Tour’s first major title of the 2011-12 season.

All World Championship competition will be conducted on a pair of lanes specially installed in an exhibit hall at South Point Hotel and Casino, Las Vegas, NV.

Smallwood, 34, became an instant hero among America’s blue-collar work force when he defeated former PBA Player of the Year Wes Malott for the 2009 PBA World Championship. Smallwood, who had lost his job with General Motors, had decided to pursue his dream to become a professional bowler and stunned the bowling world with his upset victory in Wichita, KS. Last season, he won $100,000 as runner-up to Mika Kovuniemi in the PBA Tournament of Champions.

Now Smallwood is back in position to try for another major title as the top qualifier in the Hardwick Division. He earned his place in the Hardwick group as the No. 2 qualifier over 40 games of World Championship qualifying on five different lane conditions, averaging 226.63 to finish 296 pins behind leader Sean Rash. As top qualifier in his group, Smallwood has selected the PBA’s Scorpion lane conditioning pattern for Sunday’s event when he will face Venezuela’s Ildemaro Ruiz, Colombia’s Andres Gomez and 25-year PBA Tour veteran Ryan Shafer of Horseheads, NY, in a battle for a berth in the World Championship finals.

Both South American players are trying for their first PBA Tour titles. Ruiz, who is making his PBA television debut, qualified for the elimination rounds in seventh place. Gomez was 10th and Shafer tied for 14th. No international player has ever won the PBA World Championship.

In Sunday’s eliminator round, all four players will bowl a one-game match. The player with the lowest score will be eliminated. The three survivors will bowl another game, with the low man knocked out. The two finalists will bowl a final game, with the survivor advancing to the World Championship finals.

The four World Championship divisional finals have been named for PBA superstars who excelled in the event during their careers. Finland’s Osku Palermaa won the Don Carter Division berth. The Johnny Petraglia and Mike Aulby Division finals, which will air on ESPN on Jan. 1 and Jan. 8, respectively, will complete the divisional elimination rounds. The championship trophy is named in honor of Anthony, the only player ever to win the event six times.

A special preview of the Hardwick Division finals will be webcast on pba.com’s Xtra Frame beginning Wednesday, and a post-game show will be presented on Xtra Frame Sunday immediately following the ESPN finals.

Palermaa First Finalist For PBA World Championships

Finland’s Osku Palermaa took a big step forward in his quest to win his second Professional Bowlers Association (PBA) title, advancing to the finals of the PBA World Championship by eliminating PBA Tour veteran Jack Jurek of Lackawanna, NY, and England’s Stuart Williams and Dom Barrett in the Don Carter Division finals that aired Sunday on ESPN. 

Palermaa, Europe’s premier two-handed bowling star, won the first of four PBA World Championship elimination rounds at South Point Hotel Exhibition Hall in Las Vegas, NV, with a 223-188 victory over Barrett in the final game of the Carter finals. The divisional finals consist of three one-game rounds, starting with four players, and eliminating the lowest-scoring player after each game with the surviving player advancing to the PBA World Championship finals on Jan. 15.

In the opening game, Barrett led the group with a 257 game, Williams followed with a 215, Palermaa posted a 187 and Jurek was the first man eliminated with a 169. Back-to-back unconverted splits in the second and third frames contributed to Jurek’s early exit.

Barrett again led the group in the second game with a 201, Palermaa was second with a 188 and Williams was eliminated with a 170 game. In game three, three splits which he failed to convert doomed Barrett’s bid to advance to the World Championship final round.

The Carter finals were conducted on the PBA’s Viper lane condition, selected by Williams as the highest qualifier in the field of four.

Palermaa, who won his first PBA Tour title in the GEICO Shark Championship during the 2010 PBA World Series of Bowling, will join the winners of the Billy Hardwick, Johnny Petraglia and Mike Aulby Division finals in the PBA World Championship finals on Jan. 15 on ESPN. The PBA World Championship offers a $50,000 first prize and the first major title of the 2011-12 PBA Tour season.

“It was difficult today,” Palermaa said. “We didn’t make the lane condition easy. The key was to try to bowl a clean game, because no one was going to strike a lot.”

Palermaa, one of 52 international players who represented 16 countries in the World Series of Bowling, said his international experience was a big help in Las Vegas.

“We bowl on everything in all different kinds of environments,” Palermaa said of his world-wide experience. “We have to be good on all kinds of conditions or we don’t get a paycheck.

“I’ve been battling a flu-like virus for almost two months,” he added. “I’m feeling better, but if I can bowl like this in the finals, maybe I’ll want to be sick again.”

The Billy Hardwick Division finalists will be the next World Championship group to bowl. Tom Smallwood of Saginaw, MI, who won the 2009 PBA World Championship for his only PBA Tour title, is the top qualifier in the Hardwick group and selected the Scorpion pattern as the lane condition for the second eliminator round. Other Hardwick Division players will be Venezuela’s Ildemaro Ruiz, Colombia’s Andres Gomez, and four-time PBA Tour titlist Ryan Shafer of Horseheads, NY. Ruiz, who is making his PBA television debut, and Gomez are both seeking their first PBA Tour titles.

The Hardwick Division finals air Sunday, Dec. 18, at 1 p.m. ET on ESPN. A special pre-game show will be webcast beginning Wednesday on pba.com’s Xtra Frame and a post-game Xtra Frame interview with the winner will immediately follow Sunday’s telecast.


PBA WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP DON CARTER DIVISION FINALSSouth Point Exhibition Hall, Las Vegas

Round One (lowest score eliminated): Dom Barrett, England, 257; Stuart Williams, England, 215; Osku Palermaa, Finland, 187; Jack Jurek, Lackawanna, N.Y., 169 ($4,000).

Round Two (lowest score eliminated): Barrett 201, Palermaa 188, Williams 170 ($4,500).

Championship (winner advances to PBA World Championship finals): Palermaa def. Barrett ($5,000), 223-188.

PBA World Championships on ESPN

Columbia 300 – Dark Encounter

The “Elastin” chemical breakthrough carries into the Columbia 300 Dark Encounter. The original Encounter featured a pearl version of the revolutionary Elastin coverstock. The chemical engineers at Columbia 300 have taken this technology to a new level by creating even larger pores and increasing the length of the polymer chains in a solid version of “Elastin.”

The Dark Encounter's “Encounter” core is the same dynamic core found in the original Encounter. Columbia explains “The proven core along with a great new cover will provide the big hook you’ve been looking for.” 
Available January 5th, 2012.

First Ever World Bowling Tour Champions Crowned

Mika Koivuniemi reinforced his position as an international bowling 
star, defeating Sean Rash of suburban Chicago (Montgomery,) IL, 237-224, to win the inaugural 
GEICO World Bowling Tour (WBT) Finals title at South Point Casino and Hotel. American 
women’s star Carolyn Dorin-Ballard of Keller, Texas, won the WBT women’s title, 
207-162, over Sweden’s Sandra Andersson.

Koivuniemi, a native of Finland who now resides in Hartland, MI, completed a 
10-month international quest to win the World Tenpin Bowling Association’s 
inaugural WBT title, presented by the Professional Bowlers Association, by 
reeling off a string of six strikes to erase Rash’s early 11-pin lead and taking 
advantage of Rash's missed 10 pin in the ninth frame.

Both finals, conducted as part of the third annual PBA World Series of Bowling, 
aired Sunday on ESPN.

Koivuniemi, a 44-year-old two-time PBA Player of the Year, has won titles in 15 
different countries during his career and easily won the WBT qualifying points 
title over Rash. World Bowling Tour points were awarded in eight tournaments 
held in Finland, the United States, France, Kuwait, Thailand, Korea and 
Australia.

“It has been a good year for me,” Koivuniemi, the reigning PBA Player of the 
Year, said. “I really feel like I bowled well and I deserved to win. It all 
started in Helsinki last January when I won the Brunswick Ballmaster Open. I’ve 
been battling for 10 months to get here, and it came full circle back in Las 
Vegas.”

The opening men’s match between Rash and Australian two-handed player Jason 
Belmonte had been highly anticipated after the two rivals had exchanged heated 
words during a summer GEICO PBA Team Shootout confrontation when Rash accused 
Belmonte of deliberately making distracting noises with his plastic water 
bottle. Their rivalry had intensified during WBT meetings since the June 
episode. But in their first televised showdown since that episode, Rash took 
advantage of a pair of open frames by Belmonte for a 214-204 victory. Belmonte 
had a chance to win, but needing two strikes in the 10th frame, he left a solid 
10 pin on his first try.

“Belmo and I are fierce competitors. We don’t think we can lose at any time when 
we’re on the lanes,” Rash said of the rivalry. “I hope the fans enjoyed the 
match. Jason threw a great shot in the 10th frame, but he left a ringing 10 pin 
which was good for me, bad for him.

“That bottlegate thing happened months ago. People need to move on," Rash 
continued. "Things happen. Jason and I are going to bowl against each other for 
many years to come. But when I’m on the lanes, no one is my friend. The only 
people cheering for me are my wife and my parents and Team Brunswick, and that’s 
all that matters to me.”

In the women’s finals, Dorin-Ballard, a PBA Women's Series champion and 20-time 
Professional Women's Bowling Association titlist, cruised to a 207-162 victory 
over Andersson after the 20-year-old Swedish player missed single-pin spares in 
her first two frames and failed to strike until the seventh frame. Andersson 
advanced to the title match by defeating her Swedish national teammate, Nina 
Flack, 190-160, in the opening match after Flack started her game with 
back-to-back splits.

Koivuniemi and Dorin-Ballard each won $10,000. Rash and Andersson won $6,000 as 
runners-up, and Belmonte and Flack earned $4,000 each.

The WTBA has announced the World Bowling Tour will return in 2012 with an 
expanded 14-event schedule.

Next Sunday the 2011-12 PBA Tour season officially gets underway with the first 
of four elimination rounds leading up to the Jan. 15 PBA World Championship 
finals. The Don Carter Division finals will air Sunday at 1 p.m. ET on ESPN. 
Carter Division finalists are England’s Stuart Williams and Dom Barrett, 
Finland’s Osku Palermaa and Jack Jurek of Lackawanna, NY.

St. Ambrose freshman Lockport's Kyle Anderson named Chuck Hall Star of Tomorrow

Kyle Anderson of Lockport, IL, has been selected as the 2012 Chuck Hall Star of Tomorrow Award recipient. Presented by the United States Bowling Congress (USBC), the award annually recognizes star qualities in a male high school senior or college student who competes in the sport of bowling.

“It means so much to me to be selected for this award,” Anderson said. “I am honored to be selected for a national award honoring Chuck Hall and one that has been given to others who I have admired as bowlers. It actually humbles me to think about it.”

A freshman at St. Ambrose University in Davenport, Iowa, Anderson is studying accounting, finance and business. He also is taking sports management courses, and someday would like to have a career in the bowling industry.

Anderson started bowling at age 5, and when he was 6, he said his league director gave him a medal for Bowler of the Year. From that point, he was hooked on the sport.

A May 2011 graduate from Lockport High School, Anderson had a weighted grade-point average of 4.13 on a 4.0 scale. He was a three-time winner of the Porter Pride Award, given to a Lockport student for athletic leadership and academic achievement.

On the lanes, he was the first individual to win back-to-back high school bowling titles in Illinois, winning the state title in 2010 and 2011. A five-time competitor at the USBC Junior Gold Championships, he finished eighth at the 2011 event in Las Vegas. He placed 17th at the 2011 North Pointe High School Singles Championships.

Anderson was selected to the Dexter/USBC High School All-American Team for 2010-11. He has been active in community service projects and helps with the care of his 87-year-old neighbor, a widow who lives alone and cannot drive, by bringing food, newspapers and books and walking her dog.

The Chuck Hall Star of Tomorrow Award is named for the former Young American Bowling Alliance executive director, who spent much of his life helping young people through his association with junior bowling.

For being selected for the award, Anderson will receive a $6,000 scholarship that will be formally presented at the 2012 USBC Convention to be held in April in Arlington.

Rockford's Megan Buja named Alberta E. Crowe Star of Tomorrow

Rockford, IL's, Megan Buja from University of Maryland Eastern Shore (UMES) has been selected to receive the 2012 Alberta E. Crowe Star of Tomorrow Award. The award is presented annually by the United States Bowling Congress (USBC) to a female high school senior or college student who has excelled in the sport of bowling as well as off the lanes.

"Being selected as the Alberta E. Crowe Star of Tomorrow winner is definitely an honor," Buja said. "Former winners of this award have gone on to become important figures in the world of competitive bowling, and it is incredible to receive the same award that these women received."

Buja is a sophomore at the University of Maryland Eastern Shore, where she is majoring in Human Ecology - Dietetics. She plans to become a physician's assistant or attend medical school.

A two-time member of the Dexter/USBC High School All-American Team, she was a four-year member of the Jefferson High School bowling team and was captain her last two years. She helped her team win the state title in 2008 and had a 300 game as Jefferson was the state runner-up in 2010, her senior year. Off the lanes, she was class valedictorian, editor of the school yearbook, class secretary and student council member.

Sue Williams, coach of the Jefferson High School program, has known Buja since she started competing in the area's middle school program.

"At age of 12, she showed the determination to be the best she could be, not only on the bowling lanes, but also academically and socially," Williams said in her recommendation. "I have come to appreciate her many fine qualities, and I have watched her grow as a bowler and a person."

Buja already has enjoyed success on the collegiate level as a member of the UMES team that captured the USBC Intercollegiate Team Championships and NCAA Women's Bowling national titles in 2011. She also qualified for the USBC Intercollegiate Singles Championships. She made the Dean's List in fall 2010 and spring 2011 and was a National Collegiate Bowling Coaches Association Academic All-American.

Her community volunteer activities include serving as a middle school and junior league bowling coach, working as a lane monitor for Special Olympics, church mission trips and participating in the Relay for Life.

Named in honor of the seven-term president of the Women's International Bowling Congress, the Alberta E. Crowe Star of Tomorrow Award is presented to a female USBC member who exhibits star qualities such as distinguished bowling performances on the state and national levels, academic achievement and extracurricular and community involvement.

For being named the Alberta E. Crowe Star of Tomorrow, Buja receives a $6,000 scholarship that will be presented at the 2012 USBC Convention in Arlington in April.

GEICO World Bowling Tour Finals Kicks Off Bowling Coveage

An international journey that began in Helsinki, Finland, in January 2011 and ended 10 months later in Las Vegas will kick off the Professional Bowlers Association (PBA)’s 2011-12 television season Sunday when the men’s and women’s finals of the inaugural GEICO World Bowling Tour (WBT) Finals presented by the Professional Bowlers Association airs at 1 p.m. ET on ESPN.

The men’s field will feature reigning PBA Player of the Year Mika Koivuniemi, a resident of Hartland, MI, who returned to his native Finland to win the Brunswick Ballmaster Open and take a lead in the WBT points race that he never gave up. The World Tenpin Bowling Association’s inaugural World Bowling Tour series included stops in France, Kuwait, Thailand, Korea and Australia, plus the U.S. Open and United States Bowling Congress Masters. 

 

In Sunday’s WBT men’s final, Koivuniemi will meet the winner of a one-game match between No. 2 qualifier Sean Rash of Suburban Chicago (Montgomery, IL), and No. 3 Jason Belmonte of Australia. Rash and Belmonte made news over the summer after a confrontation over distractions Belmonte allegedly made with his plastic water bottle during the PBA’s GEICO Team Shootout series in Chicago.

In the one-hour women’s finals which immediately follows the men’s finals on ESPN, Carolyn Dorin-Ballard of Keller, Texas, a PBA Women’s Series champion and 20-time Professional Women’s Bowling Association title winner, will meet the winner of a match between veteran Swedish star Nina Flack and her Team Sweden teammate, 20-year-old Sandra Andersson.

The winner in each division will receive $10,000. Second place will pay $6,000 and third will receive $4,000.

The GEICO World Bowling Tour Finals are the first shows in an 18-event PBA Tour series that will air on Sundays on ESPN, concluding with the live PBA Tournament of Champions telecast from Red Rock Lanes in Las Vegas on April 15. In addition to the ESPN telecasts, the PBA will produce four Xtra Frame Tour events which will be webcast exclusively on the PBA’s online bowling channel.

Xtra Frame also will air a World Bowling Tour Finals pre-game show starting Wednesday and will immediately follow the ESPN telecast with a post-game show. To subscribe to Xtra Frame, visit pba.com and click on the Xtra Frame logo.

Coming in 2012, The Defiant from Roto Grip

On the way to store shelves, the Roto Grip Defiant. 

The 3000-grit Abralon® finished Blue/Purple/Black “MicroBite Solid Reactive” coverstock wraps the “Paragon™” core.  With a Radius of Gyration (RG) of  2.49 in a #15 ball with an RG Differential of .054. 

World Wide Release Date: 1/10/12

Professional Bowling Returns to ESPN

Hammer Adds A Brick

Hammer plans to add a Brick. With an advanced new core design matched with the strongest veneer (GTR Hybrid) ever used on a Hammer ball at this performance level, Hammer touts “the Brick is destined to be a staple in every bowler’s bag.”

The new “Brick Mirror Plane Asymmetric (MPA)” core design is completely asymmetric in shape, a highly unusual feature of the ball. The core is not high mass bias; however the low Radius of Gyration (RG) is not in the geometric center of the ball.

“This core shape was designed for a specific purpose,” explained Ron Hickland, Ball Design Engineering Manager. “The pro shop operator can tweak ball motion by making smaller layout changes when drilling the Brick. Those smaller layout changes will produce bigger performance changes in ball motion for the bowler.”

When you have a core as special as the Brick MPA, you have to make sure you have a coverstock that makes the most of the core’s performance. The Black/Blue/Red “GTR Hybrid” cover does the trick (finished 500/500/1000/2000 Abralon® Sanded). Look for the Hammer Brick just before Christmas on December 20th.

Video of the Roto Grip Shooting Star

The Omen From Columbia 300

Columbia 300 introduced yet another new ball, this time the mid-performance Omen. The Omen, a Purple/Gold/Silver “Bend-It” pearl reactive coverstock finished aggressively (500, 500, 4000, 4000 Abralon®) in order to enhance the Omen’s footprint on the lane, surrounding the “Capsule core with Magnetite”.

Columbia reports “The “Capsule core” was designed to provide great performance and versatility while also being very simple. A simple symmetric shape with great performance characteristics was chosen in order to be very driller and bowler friendly. The low RG Capsule revs up early and the high Differential helps create a large amount of flare for great continuation in the backend.”

The new core, cover and finish process for the Omen makes it one of the best choices in the Columbia 300 lineup for heavier oil conditions. Look for the Omen December 15^th, 2011.

Field/Partners Set for PBA Mark Roth-Marshall Holman Doubles Championships

Ronnie Russell of Marion, IN, who is trying for his first Professional Bowlers Association (PBA) Tour title, secured help Thursday from the hottest player in the PBA World Series of Bowling, selecting Sean Rash of suburban Chicago (Montgomery), IL, as his partner for Sunday’s Mark Roth-Marshall Holman PBA Doubles Championship finals.

Russell, the top qualifier in the PBA Elite Players Championship, earned the right to pick his partner from among the 15 other top qualifiers in the Elite Players field during a special “doubles draft” session Thursday at the special bowling arena that will host the finals at South Point Casino and Hotel. During previous World Series events, Rash had qualified for a record five consecutive ESPN finals.

Selecting second in the draft, conducted by PBA Commissioner Tom Clark and tournament co-namesake Mark Roth, Wes Malott of Pflugerville, Texas, picked PBA Hall of Famer Norm Duke of Clermont, FL, for his partner. The other teams are veteran international players Andres Gomez, Colombia, and Martin Larsen, Sweden; long-time friends Mike Fagan, Dallas, TX and Bill O’Neill, Southampton, PA; second-year Tour players Ryan Ciminelli, Cheektowaga, NY, and Dan MacLelland, Saginaw, MI; PBA Hall of Famer Pete Weber, St. Ann, MO, and Australian two-handed star Jason Belmonte; Jason Couch, Clermont, FL, and Mike DeVaney, Murrieta, CA; and Dick Allen, Columbia, SC, and Mike Scroggins, Amarillo, Texas.

In addition to splitting a $15,000 first prize, the doubles champions will earn PBA Tour titles and berths in the Round of 36 for the season-ending PBA Tournament of Champions.

The selection of the doubles teams completed the lineup for the World Series of Bowling television finals, all of which will be conducted on a special two-lane installation at South Point. The PBA will publish results after each tape-delayed telecast airs. The PBA Tour’s season on ESPN begins Sunday, Dec. 4, with back-to-back one-hour telecasts of the GEICO World Bowling Tour men’s and women’s finals, starting at 1 p.m. ET.

2011 PBA WORLD SERIES OF BOWLING TV LINEUP

South Point Exhibition Hall A, Las Vegas, Nov. 17-20

(All competition will be taped for delayed telecast on ESPN; results will be published by the PBA after each tape-delayed telecast airs)

  

THURSDAY, NOV. 17, 5:30 p.m. – GEICO World Bowling Tour Finals presented by the PBA: Men’s Stepladder Finals – Mika Koivuniemi, Hartland, MI; Sean Rash, Montgomery, IL; Jason Belmonte, Australia. (ESPN telecast Sunday, Dec. 4, 1 p.m. Eastern). 

Women’s Stepladder Finals – Carolyn Dorin-Ballard, Keller, Texas; Nina Flack, Sweden; Sandra Andersson, Sweden. (ESPN telecast Sunday, Dec. 4, 2 p.m. Eastern).

FRIDAY, NOV. 18, 1 p.m. - Bayer Viper Open Finals (four players, three one-game elimination matches): Mike Fagan, Dallas; Stuart Williams, England; Sean Rash, Montgomery, IL; Ildemaro Ruiz, Venezuela. (ESPN telecast Sunday, Jan. 22, 3 p.m. Eastern).

FRIDAY, NOV. 18, 3 p.m. - Chameleon Open Finals (four players, three one-game elimination matches): Jason Belmonte, Australia; Osku Palermaa, Finland; Sean Rash, Montgomery, IL; Ildemaro Ruiz, Venezuela. (ESPN telecast Sunday, Feb. 12, 3 p.m. Eastern).

FRIDAY, NOV. 18, 6 p.m. - Scorpion Open Finals (four players, three one-game elimination matches): Dom Barrett, England; Dave Wodka, Henderson, NV; Sean Rash, Montgomery, IL; Patrick Allen, Baltimore. (ESPN telecast Sunday, Feb. 19, 3 p.m. Eastern).

FRIDAY, NOV. 18, 8 p.m. – GEICO Shark Open Finals (four players, three one-game elimination matches): Chris Barnes, Double Oak, TX; Jason Belmonte, Australia; Sean Rash, Montgomery, IL; Finland's Mika Koivuniemi, now living in Hartland, MI. (ESPN telecast Sunday, March 4, 3 p.m. Eastern).

         SATURDAY, NOV. 19, 10:30 a.m. – PBA World Championship Don Carter Division Finals (four players, three one-game elimination matches): Stuart Williams, England; Osku Palermaa, Finland; Dom Barrett, England; Jack Jurek, Lackawanna, NY. (ESPN telecast Sunday, Dec. 11, 1 p.m. Eastern).

         SATURDAY, NOV. 19, 12:30 p.m. – PBA World Championship Billy Hardwick Division Finals (four players, three one-game elimination matches):

Tom Smallwood, Saginaw, MI; Ildemaro Ruiz, Venezuela; Andres Gomez, Colombia; Ryan Shafer, Horseheads, NY. (ESPN telecast Sunday, Dec. 18, 1 p.m. Eastern).

         SATURDAY, NOV. 19, 3:30 p.m. – PBA World Championship Johnny Petraglia Division Finals (four players, three one-game elimination matches):

Sean Rash, Montgomery, IL; Pete Weber, St. Ann, MO; Ryan Ciminelli, Cheektowaga, NY; Nathan Bohr, Wichita, KS. (ESPN telecast Sunday, Jan. 1, 1 p.m. Eastern).

         SATURDAY, NOV. 19, 5:30 p.m. – PBA World Championship Mike Aulby Division Finals (four players, three one-game elimination matches):

Jason Belmonte, Australia; Brian Kretzer, Dayton, OH; Josh Blanchard, Gilbert, AZ; Mike Fagan, Dallas, TX. (ESPN telecast Sunday, Jan. 8, 1 p.m. Eastern).

         SATURDAY, NOV. 19, 7:30 p.m. - PBA World Championship Eliminator Finals (four players, three one-game elimination matches): Carter, Hardwick, Petraglia, Aulby winners. (ESPN telecast Sunday, Jan. 15, 1 p.m. Eastern).

         SUNDAY, NOV. 20, 10 a.m. – Mark Roth/Marshall Holman PBA Doubles Championship, Baker format stepladder round one (not televised):

Match One – No. 7 Jason Couch, Clermont, FL/Mike DeVaney, Murrieta, CA. vs. Dick Allen, Columbia, SC/Mike Scroggins, Amarillo, TX. 

Match Two – Winners Match One vs. No. 6 Pete Weber, St. Ann, MO /Jason Belmonte, Australia. 

Match Three – Winners Match Two vs. No. 5 Ryan Ciminelli, Cheektowaga, NY/Dan MacLelland, Saginaw, MI. 

Match Four – Winners Match Three vs. No. 4 Mike Fagan, Dallas/Bill O’Neill, Southampton, PA.

SUNDAY, NOV. 20, Noon – Mark Roth/Marshall Holman PBA Doubles Championship Baker format stepladder finals: Match Five – Winners Match Four vs. No. 3 Andres Gomez, Colombia/Martin Larsen, Sweden. 

Semifinal Match – Winners Match Five vs. No. 2 Wes Malott, Pflugerville, Texas/Norm Duke, Clermont, FL. 

Championship – Semifinal Match Winners vs. No. 1 Ronnie Russell, Marion, IN/Sean Rash, Montgomery, IL. (ESPN telecast Sunday, March 25, 2:30 p.m. Eastern).

         SUNDAY, NOV. 20, 3:30 p.m. - Carmen Salvino Classic Eliminator Finals (four players, three elimination matches): Andres Gomez, Colombia; Wes Malott, Pflugerville, TX; Ronnie Russell, Marion, IN; Jason Belmonte, Australia. (ESPN telecast Sunday, April 1, 1 p.m. Eastern).

         SUNDAY, NOV. 20, 5:30 p.m. – Pepsi PBA Elite Players Championship Eliminator Finals (four players, three elimination matches): Norm Duke, Clermont, FL; Jason Belmonte, Australia; Mike Scroggins, Amarillo, TX; Mike DeVaney, Murrieta, CA. (ESPN telecast Sunday, April 8, 1 p.m. Eastern).

Hammer Moves To Save Bowling

On December 1, 2011, Hammer, the leading manufacturer of high-performance bowling balls since the late 1970s, will launch a crusade to save competitive bowling.

While scores have skyrocketed, league participation is at its lowest point in 30 years. In the past 10 years, the number of professional bowlers has dropped by 40% and amateur league bowling has dropped by 20%.Hammer’s Save Bowling campaign will awaken bowlers to what’s hurting the sport, like bowling centers that make striking easier by using less oil.

On December 1st, Hammer will unveil a revolutionary system that allows bowlers to compute their true averages based on where they bowl.

The bowling that dominated middle class life in America 30 years ago was a game of skill and hard-earned mastery. This is the game that Hammer will bring back.

Follow the movement at SaveBowling.com.

Latest PBA News

Professional Bowlers Association (PBA) Hall of Famer Norm Duke of Clermont, FL, will have an opportunity to move into a tie for third place on the all-time PBA titles list  after advancing to the finals of the Pepsi PBA Elite Players Championship Wednesday at South Point Bowling Center.

Duke, currently tied with fellow hall of famer Mark Roth for fourth place on the PBA career titles list with 34, eliminated Bill O’Neill of Southampton, PA; Andres Gomez of Colombia, and Dan MacLelland of Windsor, Ontario, in the Elite Players Eliminator Round to reach the finals. Roth was in the crowd, watching as Duke defeat O’Neill, 484-438, in their two-game finale.

Pete Weber of St. Ann, MO, who was eliminated in his final match Wednesday by Mike DeVaney of Murrieta, CA, is third on the PBA titles list with 35, trailing leader Walter Ray Williams Jr. (47) and Earl Anthony (43). DeVaney knocked Weber out of the event, 473-425, to win his group’s berth in the finals.

“Bowling in the Elite Players Championship was like bowling three different formats in one, so you can imagine what that can do with your mind,” Duke said about surviving 30 qualifying games just to reach the Eliminator Round. “The physical part of the game is demanding enough, but mentally it’s even more tiring. You start to space out after a while and lose track of the little things like where you’re standing, how fast should I be throwing it, what ball you’re using. The one thing that helps is you’re not alone. I say to myself, look at the rest of the field – they’re going through the same thing.”

Regarding his quest to break his titles tie with Roth and catch Weber, the 47-year-old Duke said, “I look at everything I do now as to how will it round out my career. How much longer do I have? To be tied with Roth and have the chance to tie Weber, how great is that?”

In Wednesday’s Eliminator Round, 16 players were divided into four groups for two-game elimination rounds. After each round, the lowest scoring player was eliminated. In addition to Duke and DeVaney, the other two players advancing to the Elite Players Championship finals were Australia’s Jason Belmonte and Mike Scroggins of Amarillo, Texas.

Belmonte defeated Mike Fagan of Dallas, 473-407, to qualify for his fifth World Series television final, tying a World Series record for TV appearances set earlier in the event by Sean Rash of Montgomery, IL. Scroggins eliminated Jason Couch of Clermont, FL, 460-417, in their group’s final game.

The 16 Eliminator Round qualifiers will also compose the field for the Lumber Liquidators Mark Roth-Marshall Holman PBA Doubles Championship which will be contested on Sunday as part of a four-day PBA World Series of Bowling television extravaganza at South Point.

Ronnie Russell of Marion, IN, the top qualifier going into the Eliminator Round, was eliminated in the first game in Group A, but he will be the first player to select a doubles partner from among the remaining 15 during a special doubles selection session Thursday afternoon. After Russell selects his partner, the next highest qualifier will select a partner. That process will continue until the field of eight doubles teams has been determined. The doubles competition will be conducted Sunday afternoon as part of the World Series of Bowling’s weekend television package.

                

Beginning Thursday at 5:30 p.m. Pacific, the PBA will produce the first of 14 television shows for delayed telecast on ESPN in a special arena in South Point’s Exhibit Hall A. Admission is free for all of the shows.

PEPSI PBA ELITE PLAYERS CHAMPIONSHIP

South Point Bowling Center, Las Vegas, Nov. 16

ELIMINATOR ROUND (Two games, lowest scoring player eliminated; group winners advance to ESPN finals)

GROUP A

            Round One: Pete Weber 472, Mike DeVaney 463, Sean Rash 444, Ronnie Russell 378 (Russell eliminated, earned $3,000).

            Round Two: DeVaney 457, Weber 416, Rash 401 (Rash eliminated, earned $3,500).

            Round Three: DeVaney 473, Weber 425 (Weber eliminated, earned $5,000).

GROUP B

            Round One: Jason Couch 441, Mike Scroggins 439, Ryan Ciminelli 436, Wes Malott 410 (Malott eliminated, earned $3,000).

            Round Two: Scroggins 484, Couch 419, Ciminelli 400 (Ciminelli eliminated, earned $3,500).

            Round Three: Scroggins 460, Couch 417 (Couch eliminated, earned $5,000).

GROUP C

            Round One: Andres Gomez 531, Norm Duke 487, Bill O’Neill 479, Dan MacLelland 445 (MacLelland eliminated, earned $3,000).

            Round Two: O’Neill 495, Duke 458, Gomez 427 (Gomez eliminated, earned $3,500).

            Round Three: Duke 484, O’Neill 438 (O’Neill eliminated, earned $5,000).

GROUP D

            Round One: Mike Fagan 495, Jason Belmonte 482, Martin Larsen 381, Dick Allen 335 (Allen eliminated, earned $3,000).

            Round Two: Belmonte 494, Fagan 411, Larsen 410 (Larsen eliminated, earned $3,500).

            Round Three: Belmonte 473, Fagan 407 (Fagan eliminated, earned $5,000).

Final Qualifying Standings (after 30 games; top 16 advanced to Eliminator Round and to Lumber Liquidators Mark Roth-Marshall Holman PBA Doubles Championship)

1, Ronnie Russell, Marion, Ind., 7,294.
2, Wes Malott, Pflugerville, Texas, 7,150.
3, Andres Gomez, Colombia, 7,134.
4, Mike Fagan, Dallas, 7,069.
5, Martin Larsen, Sweden, 7,039.
6, Bill O'Neill, Southampton, Pa., 6,976.
7, Ryan Ciminelli, Cheektowaga, N.Y., 6,942.
8, Sean Rash, Montgomery, Ill., 6,917.
9, Pete Weber, St. Ann, Mo., 6,903.
10, Jason Couch, Clermont, Fla., 6,896.
11, Norm Duke, Clermont, Fla., 6,889.
12, Jason Belmonte, Australia, 6,863.
13, Dick Allen, Columbia, S.C., 6,829.
14, Dan MacLelland, Saginaw, Mich., 6,796.
15, Mike Scroggins, Amarillo, Texas, 6,776.
16, Mike DeVaney, Murrieta, Calif., 6,760.

Did not advance:17 (tie), Eugene McCune, Munster, Ind., and Tommy Jones, Simpsonville, S.C., 6,759, $2,490.
19, Patrick Allen, Baltimore, 6,756, $2,460.
20, Mika Koivuniemi, Hartland, Mich., 6,746, $2,440.
21, Michael Haugen Jr., Carefree, Ariz., 6,745, $2,420.
22, Rhino Page, Dade City, Fla., 6,727, $2,400.
23, Chris Loschetter, Avon, Ohio, 6,719, $2,390.
24, Parker Bohn III, Jackson, N.J., 6,717, $2,380.
25, Dino Castillo, Carrollton, Texas, 6,688, $2,370.
26, Brian Kretzer, Dayton, Ohio, 6,671, $2,360.
27, Amleto Monacelli, Venezuela, 6,655, $2,350.
28, Walter Ray Williams Jr., Ocala, Fla., 6,631, $2,340.
29, Tom Smallwood, Saginaw, Mich., 6,616, $2,330.
30, Steve Jaros, Yorkville, Ill., 6,605, $2,320.
31, Ryan Shafer, Horseheads, N.Y., 6,550, $2,410.
32, Tyler Jensen, Ft. Worth, Texas, 6,483, $2,300.