“Grow the sport of bowling.”
That’s the official vision of the United States Bowling Congress which, according to its corporate communications manager, is on the right track toward restoring integrity to the sport of bowling.
“What we do we do for the sport of bowling,” said Mark Miller, speaking by telephone Tuesday afternoon from his office in Greendale, Wis. “It used to be three membership groups (the American Bowling Congress, Women’s International Bowling Congress and Young American Bowling Alliance), trying to work together. Today, we’re a sports organization that happens to have membership.”
But Miller admits that it will take some time (“potentially years”) for the USBC to change the public’s negative perception of bowling.
“People still have trouble separating the bowler who has a beer from the professionals,” he said. “That’s why we emphasize that bowling is a sport. We have coaches; we have a strong high school program. We’re fighting a kind of stereotype that (says) bowling is done in the basement of a bar, in a smoke-filled room and only fat people do it.”
Miller said the USBC is committed to “doing what is best for the sport.” He pointed to the organization’s focus on equipment testing in the areas of bowling ball hardness, thickness of lane oil, lane dressing procedures and pin specifications.
“We have more specs and there are more to come,” he said. “We’ve added a number of people to our equipment testing staff … and we’re taking adherence to the rules much more seriously.”
He also noted the increased participation in youth, high school and collegiate programs, and the surge in the number of Sport Condition and PBA Experience Leagues across the country.
“PBA Experience Leagues really bring the pro tour to the grassroots level,” he said. “You can’t get that in any other sport. You can compete on the same conditions the pros compete on,” he said.
Miller said two keys to growing the sport of bowling are television exposure and getting more young people involved.
“We’ve had more events on television – the Women’s U.S. Open and the Women’s Series before that. And we’ve got the Clash of Champions coming in May,” he said.
“Television is where it’s at. Take a look at every other sport that has grown. Television is the reason why. Through television, you can attract people who aren’t bowlers, sponsors, advertising and the media.”
Recently, the USBC modified its awards program and Miller said some of the money saved will be used to promote the sport of bowling.
“A mistake we’ve made over the last 30 years is that we’ve emphasized awards too much,” Miller said. “We had nine million members in 1980 and we didn’t have that many awards – less than a dozen awards. Today we give away a lot more than that. Our thinking was that if we gave more awards, people would stick around. Now we have 2.6 million members. It didn’t work.”
It’s a matter of putting recognition before awards, Miller said. “Achievement is most important, not what you get for it.”
Beginning next season, adult and youth honor score awards in regular (non-sport or non-PBA Experience) leagues will become once-in-a-lifetime awards. For example, if someone rolls a 300 game, he or she will receive an award just once. Future honor scores will be recognized on a database at www.bowl.com.
Effective with the 2009-2010 season, the USBC’s emblem and pin awards for special achievements all will become emblem awards and also will be given on a once-in-a-lifetime basis.
The USBC will recognize bowlers in Sport/PBA Experience Leagues with a ring initially and then with a diamond to be added to that ring for subsequent honor scores.
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USBC CHAMPIONSHIPS UNDER WAY
More than 12,000 five-person teams will make their way to the Albuquerque (N.M.) Convention Center over the next five months to compete in the annual USBC Open Championships. The event, which runs through July 7, is the seventh largest in its 105-year history.
The tournament opened on Feb. 16 with the rolling of the ceremonial first ball by Martin Vitelli of Princess Anne, Md., who earned the distinction as this year’s “Joe Bowler,” a USBC tradition since 1951.
“Joe Bowler” is an apt description of Batavia pro shop owner Joe Mortellaro, who will be participating in his 41st USBC Open Championships (formerly the ABC’s) when he and nine other local bowlers travel to New Mexico on March 25.
Mortellaro, at 71 years of age, continues to bowl in three leagues a week and is averaging close to 210. He will be bowling with Paul Spiotta, Joe Trigilio, Vince Foster and Rich Mortellaro. His other team consists of Scott Gibson, Keith Bell, Nate Balduf, Gerry Balduf and Ron Starkweather.
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BATAVIA BOY WINS YBT EVENT
Batavian Bryan Johnson won’t ever forget his 13th birthday.
The seventh grader at the Batavia Middle School defeated four other bowlers on Feb. 17, his birthday, to win the Youth Bowlers Tour handicap division tournament at Gates Bowl in Rochester.
Bryan, a 149-average bowler in the junior program at Mancuso Bowling Center, finished with scratch games of 189 and 155 to earn a $75 scholarship and plaque. A regular YBT competitor, Bryan won a tournament for the first time.
His 10-year-old sister, Emily, also fared well on that day as she made the match play round for the first time. Emily has a 110 average.
They are the children of Mike and Heather Johnson, who are former King & Queen Tournament champions at Mancuso’s.
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BWAA HONORS TOM BAKER
For the third straight year, the Bowling Writers Association of America has named former Buffalonian Tom Baker as its Senior Bowler of the Year.
Baker, who now lives in King, N.C., won three PBA Senior Tour events in 2007, including the USBC Senior Masters, while earning $53,150. He also made $38,400 on the regular tour.
(Mike Pettinella’s Pin Points bowling column appears every Thursday during the bowling season. If you have an item of interest for his column, please contact him at mikepett2002@yahoo.com or at 343-3736 or by mail at 55 Edgewood Drive, Batavia).