England's Stuart Williams, a third-year PBA competitor, defeated Venezuela's Ildemaro Ruiz, 246-194, to win the PBA Bayer Viper Open at South Point Casino and Hotel, becoming the first English bowler ever to win a PBA Tour title. The finals of the PBA's first tournament of the 2011-12 season was the first of four PBA "animal pattern" championships and has been contested November 18, 20111. The tape-delay telecast of the championship round aired Sunday on ESPN.
The WTBA International Open is the first World Tenpin Bowling Association owned and operated event and the third stop on the 2012 World Bowling Tour. The tournament, which will be covered live on Bowlingdigital.com, begins Jan. 28 and runs through Feb. 5 at Sunset Station's Strike Zone Bowling Center in Henderson, Nev. The WTBA Open is held concurrently with the USBC Masters (Jan. 23-29), the second stop of the 2012 WBT, and the International Mini megabuck tournament (Jan. 22-Feb. 5).
The International Bowling Campus Youth Development Department announced Corey Robinson (pictured) has been hired as the new Bowler's Ed brand manager. Robinson will be helping centers get involved with their local schools to bring an In-School bowling program to the classroom or gym. The Bowler's Ed program is designed to introduce children to bowling in
the classroom. Teachers have access to a free step-by-step curriculum, a
video explaining the fundamentals of bowling, and special discounts for
equipment.
PBA Hall of Famer Brian Voss (right) of the United States and English international Hayley White (left) emerged as the men's and women's champions of the Columbia 300 Irish Open Tenpin Bowling Championships, which were held at Leisureplex Stillorgan in Dublin, Ireland from Jan. 19-22, 2012. Voss, a 25-time PBA champion and the PBA Player of the Year 1988, pocketed 3.500 Euro while White, who led the women's division in all rounds, received 1.200 Euro. The tournament drew 153 players from 15 countries. 
The lone woman remaining in the field - Missy Parkin (left) of Lake Forest, Calif. - was among 16 undefeated players after the opening rounds of double-elimination match play Thursday at the 2012 Alka Seltzer Plus Liquid Gels USBC Masters. Parkin went 2-0 in matches at Sunset Station's Strike Zone Bowling Center and with one more victory Friday would break the record for the high finish by a woman at the Masters. Dana Miller-Mackie (2000) and Liz Johnson (2006) hold the record by finishing in a tie for 17th position.
Rick Steelsmith (pictured) of Wichita, Kan., earned high-qualifier honors Thursday after 15 games at the 2012 Alka Seltzer Plus Liquid Gels United States Bowling Congress Masters. The 1987 Masters champion finished qualifying with 3,505, an average of 233.6, and will face defending champion and No. 64 seed Tom Hess of Urbandale, Iowa, in the opening round of the double-elimination match-play bracket at Sunset Station's Strike Zone Bowling Center.
Two-time runner-up Chris Barnes (pictured) of Double Oak, Texas, moved into the lead after two five-game rounds of qualifying Wednesday at the 2012 Alka Seltzer Plus Liquid Gels United States Bowling Congress Masters. Barnes has totaled 2,352 over the first two days of the event, averaging 235.2 at Sunset Station's Strike Zone Bowling Center. He leads a field of 305 of the best players in the world competing for a total prize fund of $235,000 and a spot on the televised finals, which will be broadcast on ESPN on Sunday at 12:30 p.m. Eastern.
The Wichita State men's and women's bowling teams have excelled both on the lanes and in the classroom this season. A record number 17 Academic All-Americans were named for the bowling program this season. This achievement is awarded by the National Collegiate Bowling Coaches Association to student-athletes with a GPA of 3.50 or higher on all course work. The bowling program broke its previous record of 14, which was set last year.
Mark Kelly, the commander of the final Space Shuttle mission and husband of retiring U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, D-Ariz., will be the keynote speaker at the 2012 International Bowling Expo in Reno, Nev. Kelly, will speak the morning of June 27 at the Silver Legacy Resort. He recently retired from the NASA and from the Navy as a captain and is helping his wife recuperate after being shot in the head in an assassination attempt in January 2011.
The Bowling Proprietors' Association of America (BPAA) has announced the recipients of the 2012 Bowling Industry Service Awards, the most prestigious awards presented by the bowling industry, at its Town Hall Membership Meeting at the Meritage Resort in Napa, California, Tuesday, January 24, 2012. Jeff Bojé (pictured), Brandon Crossroads Bowl, Inc., Tampa, Fla., has been selected as the 2012 BPAA Hall of Fame Inductee and recipient of the Victor Lerner Memorial Medal.
Venezuela's Amleto Monacelli (pictured) took the lead after the first round of qualifying Tuesday at the 2012 United States Bowling Congress Masters by averaging 247.8 over the opening five games. Monacelli, a 19-time PBA champion and PBA Hall of Famer, fired 1,239 in the opening round to lead a field of 305 players vying for a piece of the $235,000 prize fund at Sunset Station's Strike Zone Bowling Center. The finals of the event will be broadcast live on ESPN on Jan. 29 at 12:30 p.m. Eastern.
The Egyptian Bowling Federations will host the 16th Asian Youth Tenpin Bowling Championships from Feb. 1-10 at the International Bowling Center, a 24-laner in Nasr City, Cairo, Egypt. Just 50 youth bowlers, 32 boys and only 18 girls, from 8 countries will compete in Singles, Doubles, Team, All Events and Masters. This is lowest number of participants since 1983 and the third-lowest in the history of Asia's premier youth bowling event. The Asian Bowling Federation (ABF) currently has 39 member federations.
Throwing his traditional rocket to the pocket, Eugene McCune (l.) of Munster, Ind., successfully defended his PBA Cheetah Open presented by Ebonite title Sunday at Fountain Bowl. McCune, who was the top qualifier for the stepladder finals on the high-scoring PBA Cheetah lane conditioning pattern, defeated PBA Hall of Famer and 35-time Tour titlist Pete Weber (r.) of St. Ann, Mo., 245-229, in the championship match for his third career win.
Team USA's Shannon Pluhowsky (pictured) of Kettering, Ohio, capped off a record-setting year by capturing her third World Bowling Writers Female Bowler of the Year honor and a spot in the WBW Hall of Fame. She joins Australia's Cara Honeychurch (1998) and Colombian standout Clara Juliana Guerrero (2009) as the only bowlers to receive both awards in the same year. The 2011 WBW Male Bowler of the Year is PBA star Mika Koivuniemi of Finland, and Sweden's Raymond Jansson will join Pluhowsky in the WBW Hall of Fame.
After a one-year absence, the Japan Cup has been resurrected for the fall of 2012 and will provide additional incentive for PBA players to perform at a high level during the 2011-12 season. Sixteen PBA Tour players, based upon competition points at the close of the current season, will earn automatic berths in a field that will include top Japan and Korean PBA competitors, and international amateurs. An additional four PBA players will receive special invitations from the host organization.
Pre-qualifying is underway for the main event of the International Bowling Championship 2012 supported by DHC which will be staged Feb. 9-11 at Hakata Star Lanes in Hakata, Japan. The tournament is the fourth stop of the 2012 World Bowling Tour and offers total prize fund of more than 380,000 U.S. Dollars. Each division consists of 84 players - 45 local bowlers (15 each from three pre-qualifying tournament), the top 15 of the international trials and 24 seeded players.
The Cyprus Bowling Federation, host of the inaugural World Tenpin Bowling Association World Singles Championships, has released the Bulletin No. 1 for the championships which will be held from Sept. 18-26, 2012 at Galactica Bowling Center in Limassol, Cyprus. Each country can send up to two men and two women. Each player must have reached the age of 15 years on January 1, 2012. The deadline for submitting the entry form is June 1, 2012..
A memorial get together to celebrate the life of the late PBA Hall of Famer Don Carter (pictured left with his wife Paula) has been scheduled for Saturday, Feb. 4, at 2 p.m. at West Orlando Baptist in Winter Garden, Fla., followed by a gathering for friends and family at Carter Family Bowl, 715 S. Dillard St., Winter Garden. The Carter family invites all who attend to bring your bowling ball. Food and refreshments will be provided. 