With only four "standard" events remaining in the Lumber Liquidators PBA Tour regular season, newly-crowned U.S. Open champion Bill O'Neill (pictured) of Southampton, Pa., has taken a four-point lead over venerable Walter Ray Williams Jr. of Ocala, Fla., in the 2009-10 Chris Schenkel PBA Player of the Year points race. O'Neill, in making his tour-best fifth TV appearance of the season, earned 24 points for a total of 56 to take the lead from Williams.
Subscribers to pba.com's online live video-streaming service, Xtra Frame, were the first to see Brian Voss (pictured left) convert the 7-10 split in a critical eighth-frame situation during match play position round in the Bayer Don and Paula Carter Mixed Doubles last Friday. The successful conversion helped Voss and partner Diandra Asbaty earn the fifth qualifying position for Sunday's live ESPN finals, and from that point, they went on to win the tournament. Since Friday, Voss' "miracle shot" has become a YouTube sensation.
With his second USBC Masters title, Walter Ray Williams Jr. (l.) continues to write his own version of the PBA Record Book. The Masters was Williams' record 47th PBA Tour title, increasing his edge over the late Earl Anthony's (r.) 43 to four titles. Williams also has taken the lead in the 2009-10 Chris Schenkel PBA Player of the Year points race and is trying for a record seventh PBA
Player of the Year title. He is currently tied for the lead with
Anthony with six each.
The biggest question of the PBA Tour season is, who will become the next unlikely hero in a season filled with unlikely heroes. He or she could emerge from the 67th Lumber Liquidators U.S. Open, the final major championship of the 2009-10 season. Thus far, Tom Smallwood (l.) won the PBA World Championship and Kelly Kulick (r.) stunned the sports world with her victory in the PBA Tournament of Champions.
ESPN2 to air championship round Sunday at 1 p.m. Eastern
PBA Hall of Famer Norm Duke (l.) began defense of his One A Day® Dick Weber Open title Wednesday as competition got underway at Fountain Bowl in Fountain Valley, Calif. Sunday's finals will shift from the PBA's normal home on ESPN to "the Deuce" – ESPN2 (1 p.m. Eastern) – for this week only. In addition to Duke trying for his 34th career title, Hall of Famer Pete Weber (r.) will try to win his 35th in the event named after his legendary father.
Professional bowling continues to win attention from mainstream American news media, thanks to Tom Smallwood's compelling story. The laid-off General Motors employee who defied the odds to win the 2009 PBA World Championship (pictured) has been the subject of a steady stream of radio, television, newspaper, magazine and internet features. Most recently, Smallwood's story appeared on the inside back cover of
the Jan. 18 issue of The National Inquirer along with a feature in the
San Francisco Chronicle.
Tom Smallwood (l.) of Saginaw, Mich., who won his first PBA Tour title, and his first "major" in the 2009 PBA World Championship, leads the 2009-10 Lumber Liquidators PBA Tour in Earnings with $69,100 and is tied for first place in the PBA Player of the Year race with Bill O'Neill (r.), Southampton, Pa. at 28 points. Reigning PBA Player of the Year Wes Malott, Pflugerville, Texas, is the PBA World Ranking Points leader.
Because his of mother's long-term care needs, 12-time PBA Tour titlist Danny Wiseman (l.) applied for a deferment for the 2009-10 season, which has been granted by PBA Commissioner and CEO Fred Schreyer. Schreyer also has granted a deferment to veteran Dave Arnold (r.), who suffered a stress fracture in his lower back the day after the Motor City Open in Detroit. The deferments mean two additional spots will be available at most exempt Tour events for the balance of the season.
A half dozen of the top bowlers on the Denny's PBA Tour will gather in Orlando, Fla., this week for the fourth annual Motel 6 Roll to Riches, a season-ending special event with a winner-take-all $150,000 top prize, the biggest pay off in professional bowling. The event will take place Tuesday, April 8 at 6 p.m. ET at Colonial Lanes and will air as two back-to-back one-hour shows on ESPN Sunday, April 13 at 1 p.m. and 2 p.m. ET. This season's Major winners – Norm Duke, Michael Haugen Jr. and Sean Rash – will be joined by defending champion Doug Kent and Parker Bohn III and Chris Barnes.
The final two weeks of the 2007-08 Denny’s PBA Tour kick off this week with the 2008 GEICO Classic at AMF Babylon Lanes in West Babylon, N.Y. A lot will be determined over the next two weeks, including exemptions for the 2008-09 season as well as the 2007-08 PBA Player of the Year award which could come down to the final Sunday of the season. Rhino Page had already locked up the 2007-08 PBA Rookie of the Year award, an exemption for the 2008-09 Denny’s PBA Tour season and the greatest season by a TQR bowler in the four years since the format changed.
With his seventh championship round appearance of the season and second in a Major, Walter Ray Williams Jr. opened up a 12-point lead over Chris Barnes in the 2007-08 PBA Player of the Year race with four events remaining. Thanks to his win last week, Norm Duke jumped from a non-factor to tied for 10th. Read on later for full standings. The Denny’s PBA Tour rolls into Columbus, Ohio, this week for the 2008 Don Johnson Buckeye State Classic, Feb. 26-March 2 at Sequoia Pro Bowl.
Chris Barnes took a big step toward earning his first PBA Player of the Year award by winning last week's Bayer Classic at Oasis Lanes in El Paso, Texas. Barnes, who has made a Tour-leading eight championship round appearances and is No. 2 in the PBA World Point Rankings, finally overtook Walter Ray Williams Jr., who had held the lead for 13 weeks. Williams dropped down to second, followed by H&R Block Tournament of Champions winner Michael Haugen Jr.
Over the first half of the 2007-08 Denny's PBA Tour it looked as if Walter Ray Williams Jr. (l.) might run away with his record-breaking seventh PBA Player of the Year award. With recent surges by Patrick Allen, Chris Barnes, Michael Haugen Jr. and Wes Malott, among others, the race has tightened. Haugen's (r.) win in the H&R Block Tournament of Champions gave him 24 points and pushed him into second in the race, just four points behind Williams, who hasn't made a championship round in the second half of the season.
PBA Hall of Famers Pete Weber and Walter Ray Williams Jr. will each look to reach historic milestones in the H&R Block Tournament of Champions, which gets underway Wednesday. Weber needs another T of C to become the first bowler to win each of the Triple Crown events twice (T of C, U.S. Open, World Championship), while Williams will look to become just the second bowler to win all five PBA Majors - the USBC Masters, PBA World Championship, T of C, U.S. Open and the now-defunct Touring Players Championship. Weber will also look to break a tie with Anthony for most career Majors as they are tied atop the list with eight. Williams, with seven career Majors, will look to pull into a three-way tie.
Fountain Bowl in Fountain Valley, Calif., plays host to the 12th event of the 2007-08 Denny’s PBA Tour this week with the third annual Motel 6 Dick Weber Open, Jan. 16-20. This week’s event marks the seventh consecutive season Fountain Bowl has hosted a Denny’s PBA Tour stop, tied with three other centers (Lava Lanes in Medford, Ore., Spectrum Lanes in Wyoming, Mich., and Taylor Lanes in Taylor, Mich.) for the longest current streak as a Denny’s PBA Tour host. The event also marks the third consecutive season Fountain Bowl has hosted a tournament in honor of the late Dick Weber, who was one of bowling’s biggest stars and its greatest ambassador.
The 11th event of the 2007-08 Denny's PBA Tour takes place this week with the 2008 Lumber Liquidators Earl Anthony Medford Classic at Lava Lanes in Medford, Ore., Jan. 9-13. This week's event marks the seventh consecutive season Lava Lanes has hosted a Denny's PBA Tour event, tied with Taylor Lanes in Taylor, Mich., Spectrum Lanes in Wyoming, Mich., and Fountain Bowl in Fountain Valley, Calif., for the longest streak of any current host center. Sean Rash (pictured right) will look to become the first bowler to successfully defend a title at Lava Lanes.
The Denny's PBA Tour returns from a two-week break this week to ring in the New Year with the 2008 ConstructionJobs.com Championship at the National Bowling Stadium in Reno, Nev. The Tour returns to the NBS for the second consecutive season after a three-year hiatus with the season's 10th event from Jan. 2-6. Lefty Patrick Allen will be defending his title as he went 14-0 and defeated PBA Hall of Famers Pete Weber and Walter Ray Williams Jr. in the finals en route to the 2007 H&R Block Classic title last season.
The ninth event of the 2007-08 Denny's PBA Tour and the final event of the first half takes place this week at Shamrock Lanes in Spartanburg, S.C., with the 2007 Spartanburg Classic, Dec. 12-16. The live ESPN-televised finals will take place Sunday, Dec. 16 at the Spartanburg Memorial Auditorium at 1 p.m. EST. This marks the first-ever Denny's PBA Tour event in the state of South Carolina. The Tour was invited to Spartanburg because Denny's, a PBA sponsor since early 2005 and the PBA Tour's title sponsor since October 2005, bases its headquarters in the South Carolina town.
The eighth event of the 2007-08 Denny’s PBA Tour takes place this week at AMF Country Club Lanes in Baltimore, with the 2007 Lumber Liquidators Championship, Dec. 5-9. The event, which started Wednesday with the Denny’s PBA Tour Qualifying Round, features a round robin match play format and a special prime-time, eight-bowler championship round. The finals will be taped at 1 p.m. Sunday and will air tape-delayed on ESPN from 8-10 p.m. EST.
The seventh event of the 2007-08 Denny’s PBA Tour and the fourth and final 2007 PBA Women’s Series event take place this week at Spectrum Lanes in Wyoming, Mich., with the 2007 Great Lakes Classic, Nov. 28-Dec. 2. The event, which starts Wednesday with the Denny’s PBA Tour Qualifying Round, features a single elimination match play format, with the top four men and top two women advancing to the live ESPN-televised finals, Sunday, Dec. 2 at 1 p.m. EST on ESPN.
With only four "standard" events remaining in the Lumber Liquidators PBA Tour regular season, newly-crowned U.S. Open champion Bill O'Neill (pictured) of Southampton, Pa., has taken a four-point lead over venerable Walter Ray Williams Jr. of Ocala, Fla., in the 2009-10 Chris Schenkel PBA Player of the Year points race. O'Neill, in making his tour-best fifth TV appearance of the season, earned 24 points for a total of 56 to take the lead from Williams.
Subscribers to pba.com's online live video-streaming service, Xtra Frame, were the first to see Brian Voss (pictured left) convert the 7-10 split in a critical eighth-frame situation during match play position round in the Bayer Don and Paula Carter Mixed Doubles last Friday. The successful conversion helped Voss and partner Diandra Asbaty earn the fifth qualifying position for Sunday's live ESPN finals, and from that point, they went on to win the tournament. Since Friday, Voss' "miracle shot" has become a YouTube sensation. 
With his second USBC Masters title, Walter Ray Williams Jr. (l.) continues to write his own version of the PBA Record Book. The Masters was Williams' record 47th PBA Tour title, increasing his edge over the late Earl Anthony's (r.) 43 to four titles. Williams also has taken the lead in the 2009-10 Chris Schenkel PBA Player of the Year points race and is trying for a record seventh PBA
Player of the Year title. He is currently tied for the lead with
Anthony with six each.
The biggest question of the PBA Tour season is, who will become the next unlikely hero in a season filled with unlikely heroes. He or she could emerge from the 67th Lumber Liquidators U.S. Open, the final major championship of the 2009-10 season. Thus far, Tom Smallwood (l.) won the PBA World Championship and Kelly Kulick (r.) stunned the sports world with her victory in the PBA Tournament of Champions.
PBA Hall of Famer Norm Duke (l.) began defense of his One A Day® Dick Weber Open title Wednesday as competition got underway at Fountain Bowl in Fountain Valley, Calif. Sunday's finals will shift from the PBA's normal home on ESPN to "the Deuce" – ESPN2 (1 p.m. Eastern) – for this week only. In addition to Duke trying for his 34th career title, Hall of Famer Pete Weber (r.) will try to win his 35th in the event named after his legendary father.
Tom Smallwood (l.) of Saginaw, Mich., who won his first PBA Tour title, and his first "major" in the 2009 PBA World Championship, leads the 2009-10 Lumber Liquidators PBA Tour in Earnings with $69,100 and is tied for first place in the PBA Player of the Year race with Bill O'Neill (r.), Southampton, Pa. at 28 points. Reigning PBA Player of the Year Wes Malott, Pflugerville, Texas, is the PBA World Ranking Points leader.
Because his of mother's long-term care needs, 12-time PBA Tour titlist Danny Wiseman (l.) applied for a deferment for the 2009-10 season, which has been granted by PBA Commissioner and CEO Fred Schreyer. Schreyer also has granted a deferment to veteran Dave Arnold (r.), who suffered a stress fracture in his lower back the day after the Motor City Open in Detroit. The deferments mean two additional spots will be available at most exempt Tour events for the balance of the season. 
A half dozen of the top bowlers on the Denny's PBA Tour will gather in Orlando, Fla., this week for the fourth annual Motel 6 Roll to Riches, a season-ending special event with a winner-take-all $150,000 top prize, the biggest pay off in professional bowling. The event will take place Tuesday, April 8 at 6 p.m. ET at Colonial Lanes and will air as two back-to-back one-hour shows on ESPN Sunday, April 13 at 1 p.m. and 2 p.m. ET. This season's Major winners – Norm Duke, Michael Haugen Jr. and Sean Rash – will be joined by defending champion Doug Kent and Parker Bohn III and Chris Barnes.
The final two weeks of the 2007-08 Denny’s PBA Tour kick off this week with the 2008 GEICO Classic at AMF Babylon Lanes in West Babylon, N.Y. A lot will be determined over the next two weeks, including exemptions for the 2008-09 season as well as the 2007-08 PBA Player of the Year award which could come down to the final Sunday of the season. Rhino Page had already locked up the 2007-08 PBA Rookie of the Year award, an exemption for the 2008-09 Denny’s PBA Tour season and the greatest season by a TQR bowler in the four years since the format changed. 
With his seventh championship round appearance of the season and second in a Major, Walter Ray Williams Jr. opened up a 12-point lead over Chris Barnes in the 2007-08 PBA Player of the Year race with four events remaining. Thanks to his win last week, Norm Duke jumped from a non-factor to tied for 10th. Read on later for full standings. The Denny’s PBA Tour rolls into Columbus, Ohio, this week for the 2008 Don Johnson Buckeye State Classic, Feb. 26-March 2 at Sequoia Pro Bowl. 
Chris Barnes took a big step toward earning his first PBA Player of the Year award by winning last week's Bayer Classic at Oasis Lanes in El Paso, Texas. Barnes, who has made a Tour-leading eight championship round appearances and is No. 2 in the PBA World Point Rankings, finally overtook Walter Ray Williams Jr., who had held the lead for 13 weeks. Williams dropped down to second, followed by H&R Block Tournament of Champions winner Michael Haugen Jr.
Over the first half of the 2007-08 Denny's PBA Tour it looked as if Walter Ray Williams Jr. (l.) might run away with his record-breaking seventh PBA Player of the Year award. With recent surges by Patrick Allen, Chris Barnes, Michael Haugen Jr. and Wes Malott, among others, the race has tightened. Haugen's (r.) win in the H&R Block Tournament of Champions gave him 24 points and pushed him into second in the race, just four points behind Williams, who hasn't made a championship round in the second half of the season. 