While reading the resumes of 78 great bowling leaders, it dawned on me that there was one name missing and maybe for a reason: He was not a bowler, he was not a man who made a living through bowling, he never invented anything associated with bowling. All Lee Evans did was open the Western Hemisphere to international amateur bowling and he did it virtually all on his own. In the beginning, the bowling organizations in the United States laughed at Lee Evans' dream of "Uniting the Americas through bowling."
Eddie Elias, the man who founded the PBA in 1958, has been voted the most influential man in bowling
history in a survey of 17 veterans writers. Elias, who also negotiated the deal that brought the PBA instant fame
as a Saturday afternoon staple on the ABC Television Network, garnered
five first-place votes and finished with 262 points. The run-away winner in the decade survey was John Berglund,
executive director of the BPAA
for the past eight years and the man who has convinced all segments of
the bowling industry to join in the International Bowl Expo celebration
each year.
Australia's Jason Belmonte talks About becoming a father, difference between bowling fans and media on different continents, promoting the sport, tremendous pressure to win quickly and cheesecake
The jury may be out about Jason Belmonte's ability to dominate the PBA Tour, but there is no question that he could be the next Don Carter and Dick Weber when it comes to creating interest in the tour and attracting world wide media attention for the bowling industry. What Belmonte's brings to the tour is a combination of the appeal of both Carter and Weber. In my estimation, there only have been two bowlers who have become
favorites with bowlers, non-bowlers, media and advertisers on and off
the lanes.
The buzz in bowling cyberspace recently has been about the passing of Bill Taylor (pictured). For many years, I was his student, friend, and supporter. His incapacitation and death due to Alzheimer's disease was a terrible disappointment not only to me, but to so many in the bowling world that looked to Bill for inspiration and guidance. Rather than refer to him in a detatched way as "Taylor", or "BT" I prefer to refer to him warmly as "Bill."
Name any two people who had a bigger impact on the sport than Bill Taylor and Mark Roth. Maybe Dick Weber and a handful of others, but there is no question that Bill and Mark literally changed the sport; and we were, and are, lucky enough to call them good friends. There is an old tune by the pop-jazz group Blood, Sweat, and Tears with the lyric "The best you can hope for is to die in your sleep." And that's what Bill Taylor did on his 84th birthday, June 30 in California. He is survived by his wife Margaret, eight children, and bunches of grandchildren.
There are many debates on what makes up the game of bowling on bowling forums and in bowling circles. These discussions usually revolve around scoring pace, high tech balls, blocked lanes and even styles of players. But it seems to me, everyone, including sportswriters, tournament organizers, proprietors and even the leaders of bowling are confusing the issues when the real question we need to be asking and answering is, "What is bowling supposed to be, a test or a contest?"
My mind is still hanging out at the fabulous Eldorado Hotel in downtown Reno and soaking in all the exciting events, but my body is slowly recovering back in Daytona Beach. I learned so many things during the United States Bowling Congress Convention April 28-May 1 that my cup runneth over with facts and opinions and even memories. Let's start from the beginning and the first facts I learned during the breakfast that the Eldorado threw for the Bowling Writers Association of America on April 29 were...
Famous historical writer Stephen Ambrose made famous the E Company, 506th Regiment of the 101st Airborne in his "Band of Brothers" book about its many battles from Normandy to Hitler's Eagle's Nest during World War II. I won't make them famous, but I want to write about a "Band of Bowling Sisters" who competed in the 19th National Golden Ladies Classic at the Orleans Hotel/Casino's bowling center March 9-12. This particular "Band of Bowling Sisters" consisted of 71 bowlers, ranging in age from 50 into their 70s.
When I was young, I learned the first and last name of every super star in the two major sports – baseball and football. I scanned the papers every day looking to see what the super stars has done in a baseball or football game. There is no question that Babe Ruth helped make baseball the Greater American game and that Johnny Unitas' passing achievements were instrumental in the growing popularity of the National Football League. Great names were money in the bank for teams, leagues, players and sponsors. So I ask you, how many people in America outside of the bowling family itself knows or cares about a PA, WRW, ND, CB and their bowling accomplishments?
Living in Daytona Beach you quickly learn that bowlers and auto race fans have many things in common. So I guess that it only makes common sense that bowling and auto racing would be a natural fit. It all started in 1984 when the first Daytona charity bowling event featuring drivers/mechanics/owners was held in a local bowling center during Speed Weeks. Then came the NASCAR leagues formed by the BPAA to lure auto race fans to the sport of bowling. And now comes word that the "Mouth of the South" will be crashing the International Bowl Expo June 21-25 at the Mandalay Bay complex in Las Vegas.
Sometimes, fear and anxiety can get the best of us in bowling. The key is to know how to manage that fear and anxiety. As a result, here is a brief list of techniques that a bowler can use to help manage their fears without it affecting their bowling. Occasionally, you may become stressed when you have to play in an important match. When this happens, visualize yourself doing the task in your mind. For instance, you have to bowl in the championship match in front of a large group of people in the next few days.
Republished courtesy of MiamiHerald.com - Miami, FL, USA (Dec. 28, 2008)
The world of boutique bowling unfolds here in the midst of an in-town hipster district, wedged between a noveau Northern Italian restaurant and a big-box chain store. Past the suited door guy and the velvet rope, a flight of stairs takes you up and away from the buzz of consumerism to Ten Pin Alley, a dramatic space that opens in the most unexpected ways: Floors carved from subtle leather patches. Chandelier sconces bursting from brochade panels. Vintage columns wrapped in mesh. A reading nook chock with titles by novelists Irving Wallace and Robert Harris.
In over 65 years in the bowling game, Bill Lillard (left in the 1969s, right today) stands out to me as the most impressive bowler I have seen. Sounds pretty strange coming from someone who has watched such performers as Don Carter, Dick and Pete Weber, Earl Anthony, Don Johnson, Buddy Bomar, Carmen Salvino, Marshall Holman, Mike Aulby, Mark Roth, Norm Duke, Walter Ray Williams and almost every superstar since the 40's…that is, with the exception of Junie McMahon.
It's great when one of our locals distinguishes him or herself locally, and better when it happens statewide. But something rare has just occurred and it's an achievement that only one in more than a million can only dream of accomplishing. Marianne DiRupo (pictured), Succasunna, has been informed that she posted the highest average for a (sanctioned) female USBC Bowler for the 2007-2008 season at 240.27. This was in the Strikes and Spares League at Circle Lanes. "I was speechless when I read the letter (from USBC)," she said. "I had to read it three times."
Minutes after the USBC announced that it would not hold its 2011 Open Championships at the Walt Disney World complex in Florida, my trusty crystal ball came to life and started spitting out predictions. 1. The USBC will leave no stone unturned in an effort to move the 2011 Open to the Arlington, Texas, area. 2. The Florida economy is so bad that there is no guarantee that the proposed 100-lane center ....
Remember when even the professional bowlers only had a one-ball arsenal? Those days are gone forever and even the amateurs these days walk into the bowling center with inter-changeable sliding sole shoes and upwards of six balls. In the immortal words of Bob Dylan "the times they are a-changin'". What else is new in our bowling world? I can think of at least a half a dozen items…
Whenever I interview someone who has had an honor score or achieved some other form of bowling greatness, I always ask him or her for bowling goals. Usually the answer is "to keep bowling" or "an 800 series" or maybe "to get into a Hall of Fame." But someone once said to dream big, and that's exactly what Steve Pancoast, Hackettstown, did. "I wanted 50 by 50." Was he talking about adding on to his house? No. He wanted to post 50 games of 300 by the age of 50. It has happened, and Steve is not quite 49 yet.
Team USA's Lynda Barnes is widely considered one of the best bowlers in the world - male or female. So when she arrived to compete in the 2008 Columbia 300 Vienna Open, she was a little stunned to find out that even she would get eight pins a game handicap. Like all female participants in European Bowling Tour events, Barnes receives the customary eight-pin advantage each game, which adds up to 48 pins for each six-game qualifying block. After arriving in Vienna on Thursday, Barnes competed Friday in two squads attempting to overcome not only the lane conditions at Plus Bowling Center, but also jetlag.
For years, Jason Belmonte struggled with the burden of being a world-class bowler based in the distant country of Australia. When he got on the plane to travel to the 2008 Columbia 300 Vienna Open on Thursday, it took him just an hour and a half. Belmonte is adjusting to some big changes in his life. He recently moved to Nice, France, with his new wife, Kimberly. The result is the ability to quickly and easily bowl more tournaments in Europe, and he will now be able to compete more in the United States. Belmonte is one of nearly 300 bowlers from 28 countries competing this week at the 2008 Columbia 300 Vienna Open.
When Wolfgang Lohschmid and Helmut Amstätter (r-l) invested thousands of dollars into a new event called the Vienna Open in 2003, they were labeled as "crazy" by their friends in Austria. But their crazy, yet necessary, risk is finally starting to pay dividends. The Columbia 300 Vienna Open is now one of the biggest events on the European Bowling Tour, helping to raise Austria's profile as a bowling nation. This year's Vienna Open, which began Tuesday and concludes with Sunday's finals, is expected to draw 291 players from 28 countries to compete for a prize fund of more than 65,000 Euro, or about $90,000 in U.S. dollars.
While reading the resumes of 78 great bowling leaders, it dawned on me that there was one name missing and maybe for a reason: He was not a bowler, he was not a man who made a living through bowling, he never invented anything associated with bowling. All Lee Evans did was open the Western Hemisphere to international amateur bowling and he did it virtually all on his own. In the beginning, the bowling organizations in the United States laughed at Lee Evans' dream of "Uniting the Americas through bowling."
The buzz in bowling cyberspace recently has been about the passing of Bill Taylor (pictured). For many years, I was his student, friend, and supporter. His incapacitation and death due to Alzheimer's disease was a terrible disappointment not only to me, but to so many in the bowling world that looked to Bill for inspiration and guidance. Rather than refer to him in a detatched way as "Taylor", or "BT" I prefer to refer to him warmly as "Bill."
There are many debates on what makes up the game of bowling on bowling forums and in bowling circles. These discussions usually revolve around scoring pace, high tech balls, blocked lanes and even styles of players. But it seems to me, everyone, including sportswriters, tournament organizers, proprietors and even the leaders of bowling are confusing the issues when the real question we need to be asking and answering is, "What is bowling supposed to be, a test or a contest?"
Sometimes, fear and anxiety can get the best of us in bowling. The key is to know how to manage that fear and anxiety. As a result, here is a brief list of techniques that a bowler can use to help manage their fears without it affecting their bowling. Occasionally, you may become stressed when you have to play in an important match. When this happens, visualize yourself doing the task in your mind. For instance, you have to bowl in the championship match in front of a large group of people in the next few days.
The world of boutique bowling unfolds here in the midst of an in-town hipster district, wedged between a noveau Northern Italian restaurant and a big-box chain store. Past the suited door guy and the velvet rope, a flight of stairs takes you up and away from the buzz of consumerism to Ten Pin Alley, a dramatic space that opens in the most unexpected ways: Floors carved from subtle leather patches. Chandelier sconces bursting from brochade panels. Vintage columns wrapped in mesh. A reading nook chock with titles by novelists Irving Wallace and Robert Harris.
In over 65 years in the bowling game, Bill Lillard (left in the 1969s, right today) stands out to me as the most impressive bowler I have seen. Sounds pretty strange coming from someone who has watched such performers as Don Carter, Dick and Pete Weber, Earl Anthony, Don Johnson, Buddy Bomar, Carmen Salvino, Marshall Holman, Mike Aulby, Mark Roth, Norm Duke, Walter Ray Williams and almost every superstar since the 40's…that is, with the exception of Junie McMahon.
It's great when one of our locals distinguishes him or herself locally, and better when it happens statewide. But something rare has just occurred and it's an achievement that only one in more than a million can only dream of accomplishing. Marianne DiRupo (pictured), Succasunna, has been informed that she posted the highest average for a (sanctioned) female USBC Bowler for the 2007-2008 season at 240.27. This was in the Strikes and Spares League at Circle Lanes. "I was speechless when I read the letter (from USBC)," she said. "I had to read it three times." 
Remember when even the professional bowlers only had a one-ball arsenal? Those days are gone forever and even the amateurs these days walk into the bowling center with inter-changeable sliding sole shoes and upwards of six balls. In the immortal words of Bob Dylan "the times they are a-changin'". What else is new in our bowling world? I can think of at least a half a dozen items…
Whenever I interview someone who has had an honor score or achieved some other form of bowling greatness, I always ask him or her for bowling goals. Usually the answer is "to keep bowling" or "an 800 series" or maybe "to get into a Hall of Fame." But someone once said to dream big, and that's exactly what Steve Pancoast, Hackettstown, did. "I wanted 50 by 50." Was he talking about adding on to his house? No. He wanted to post 50 games of 300 by the age of 50. It has happened, and Steve is not quite 49 yet. 
Team USA's Lynda Barnes is widely considered one of the best bowlers in the world - male or female. So when she arrived to compete in the 2008 Columbia 300 Vienna Open, she was a little stunned to find out that even she would get eight pins a game handicap. Like all female participants in European Bowling Tour events, Barnes receives the customary eight-pin advantage each game, which adds up to 48 pins for each six-game qualifying block. After arriving in Vienna on Thursday, Barnes competed Friday in two squads attempting to overcome not only the lane conditions at Plus Bowling Center, but also jetlag.
For years, Jason Belmonte struggled with the burden of being a world-class bowler based in the distant country of Australia. When he got on the plane to travel to the 2008 Columbia 300 Vienna Open on Thursday, it took him just an hour and a half. Belmonte is adjusting to some big changes in his life. He recently moved to Nice, France, with his new wife, Kimberly. The result is the ability to quickly and easily bowl more tournaments in Europe, and he will now be able to compete more in the United States. Belmonte is one of nearly 300 bowlers from 28 countries competing this week at the 2008 Columbia 300 Vienna Open. 
When Wolfgang Lohschmid and Helmut Amstätter (r-l) invested thousands of dollars into a new event called the Vienna Open in 2003, they were labeled as "crazy" by their friends in Austria. But their crazy, yet necessary, risk is finally starting to pay dividends. The Columbia 300 Vienna Open is now one of the biggest events on the European Bowling Tour, helping to raise Austria's profile as a bowling nation. This year's Vienna Open, which began Tuesday and concludes with Sunday's finals, is expected to draw 291 players from 28 countries to compete for a prize fund of more than 65,000 Euro, or about $90,000 in U.S. dollars.