Top Rookie Doyle Switches To Storm From Ebonite

After winning the 2018 PBA Rookie of the Year award, Kamron Doyle has

decided to make a big move for 2019, leaving Ebonite International and signing a multi-year deal with Storm.

Doyle, 20, signed his first career contract with Ebonite three years ago but told FloBowling on Tuesday he decided to make the move to Storm, signing a two-year deal.

In his first full season on tour, Doyle earned top rookie honors after cashing in seven of 15 events. His best finish in 2018 was third at the Gene Carter’s Pro Shop Classic.

“This was definitely one of the hardest decisions I’ve ever made and making that phone call to Ebonite was probably the hardest thing I’ve ever done,” Doyle said. “Storm balls generally are more of the shape I like to see, and I feel like it’s going to give me a lot more confidence (in) making decisions and bowling in general.”

Watch the 2019 PBA Hall of Fame Classic starting this Thursday LIVE on FloBowling

Storm Vice President of Business Development Gary Hulsenberg told FloBowling Doyle’s move wasn’t about money.

“The truth is, just like other professional sports, professional bowlers usually change brands or teams for more money,” Hulsenberg said. “This isn’t the case with Kam. He grew up having a lot of success with Storm equipment but then got offered money as a college student to use another brand and took it. We’ve kept our relationship intact and now he is choosing to come back to the brand he had so much success with. We are happy to welcome him to Team Storm and can’t wait to help him win.”

Doyle knows the learning curve will be steep switching balls immediately before heading into the new season, which begins Thursday with the 2019 PBA Hall of Fame Classic.

“I think this was the big next step I had to take for me to be successful,” Doyle said. “It might take a couple tournaments for me to get used to the new balls, but I think in the long run it’s going to be better for me.”

Doyle’s entrance into the PBA Tour had been hyped for years. In 2010, he made huge news when, at age 12, he set the record for the youngest bowler in history to cash in a PBA regional. A couple years later as an eighth grader, Doyle cashed in one of the toughest bowling tournaments in the world, the U.S. Open.