Bowling Philosophy-September 2013

Pete Weber, Photo by Storm Products.

"Intellectual Property"
By Thomas Scherrer

    If you're an ardent fan of the sport of bowling, I strongly recommend reading Jeff Richgels' blog for personal consumption with this disclaimer from me: Jeff Richgels is a superior writer compared to me when it comes to bowling.  Forget the bowling comparisons-it's a figurative wet t-shirt contest where I'm an Olsen twin and Richgels is Christina Hendricks, but trust me, Richgels knows the inner and outer workings of the sport.  Some of it is an acquisition of years of bowling, cultivating friendships, and pure logic.  The bowling hotbed that is Wisconsin gives its top players a greater stance regarding bowling issues both locally and regionally, as well as national issues regarding the PBA and the USBC.  They speak, you best listen first, then formulate either a supportive narrative or a critique.

     Imagine this for a moment: imagine Richgels supporting a stance of an iconic player's take regarding the recent turnouts of what we can term a dual regional in Council Bluffs, Iowa.  This dual regional consisted of a PBA Regional event and a PBA50 Regional, with a special Baker tournament for the qualifiers.  Imagine if a well-respected bowler and sponsor decided to drum up the dual regional by adding money to the prize fund, because, after all, if you know bowling and especially bowlers, they openly gripe about how bowling tournaments are not profitable.  Now imagine that for the standard regional event, there were 28 bowlers and for the senior event there were 38 entrants, with a combined 48 PBA members attending.  Imagine that???  Forty-eight??? Is that bad???  It's not good!!!  Factor all this in, could you even imagine a scenario where there was a competing team tournament in the Midwest region occurring the same weekend, therefore taking away some PBA members?  Imagine that iconic player's stance?  Would it be dismissive of fellow members or of the competing tournament to run up against the Professional Bowlers Association?  Would it be both?  Would it be a diatribe with the CAPS LOCK on?

     Imagine no longer because it did happen and Pete Weber offered the retort (you can guess which stance he took, right?).  Without repeating everything on Richgels' blog so you can, you know, read some of his stuff and bow to his remarkable bowling career, let's get to some key points Weber was making on his Facebook page.  Weber was "disappointed by YOU" (PBA members) and staked that PBA members "1st PRIORITY should be to the PBA.  If you are not going to support the PBA, then why are you members?  Is it to be a part of something great?  Or is it just to say you have a PBA card?  Who do you think you are...?  I am!!!"  Okay, I made the last part up, but you got the gist of what Weber was getting at.

     In Weber, you have a PBA member since he was 1979.  This is truly the embodiment of the PBA. Weber has been a member for 34 years.  He has given 2/3rds of his life to this organization that oversees the elite bowling talent in the world.  Weber has earned just under $3.7 million in his career, with 37 titles and has a share of the modern PBA record for majors with 10.  He has gone through all the changes bowling has had to offer, from lane surfaces, bowling balls, formats, regimes, television and its purpose for the PBA, and lane oil becoming an intricate part of the game.  He has been suspended by the PBA on several occasions for basically being an ass to himself, fans, media, and officials alike, yet never left the PBA.  Maybe because there was no other place to go-after all, is not like Weber was a professional wrestler in the old territory days where if say, Weber wrote out his welcome in the old-WWWF, he could have gone to some regional outfit like Mid-South or World Class.  Maybe because there was nothing else for Weber to do.  He is after all, the son of the late Dick Weber-bowling was simply in his DNA, with no way of it being extracted Dom Cobb-style out of his blood.  Maybe...the truth lies somewhere in the middle, but I digress.

     Back to Richgels...himself a PBA member (like Weber), as well as a member of Storm Bowling (also like Weber), and a USBC Hall of Famer (again, similar to Weber) agreed with the sentiments of Weber during the end of his blog saying that "If PBA members want good tournaments with sponsors, they must support them...This is about the choices of the bowlers and it happens numerous weekends with numerous Regionals and other tournaments".

     Yes, choices.  That very choice most bowlers are usually placed into.  What to bowl...where to bowl...lather, rinse, repeat.  Allow me to play the contrarian here and argue that in today's world of bowling, if you carry a PBA card you are known as a person in support of the organization and its movement toward growing the sport of bowling...and not what you ought to be: an independent contractor working in a commission sales based sport, meaning your talent and subsequent performance is what allows you to make a living.  You, the bowling individual are the one backing yourself and investing your money back into the sport to bowl, virtually free of sponsorship, backers, or bowling ball companies...well, unless you're Australian.  Again, choices.  Yes, being a PBA member is a badge of honor amongst many in the industry: a sign that you are willing to make the sacrifice and the dedication to supporting the sport at its highest and most visible level.  While that might have been the case 20 years ago, hell, even 10 years ago...the ability to get noticed in bowling without the PBA is higher now than it has since the days of team bowling.  As much as I respect both Richgels and Weber for their bowling accomplishments as PBA members, I look at them as bowlers first, PBA members second and that is why as much as Weber 's venom might be justifiable, a bowler's first priority, no matter if he or she carries a card from the PBA, is to put themselves in the best position to succeed, both short and long term.

     Such as perhaps being prepared for the proliferation of a full-blown PBA League in the near future?

     Which leads us to the competing tournament, rather the competing team tournament held in Springfield, Illinois.  Former PBA champion Jeff Carter and Land of Lincoln Tournaments hosted the second Mary Teubner Memorial Team Tournament on the weekend of September 6th-8th (Friday-Sunday).  The tournament has been a massive fundraiser for the BOWLSTRONG fund, honoring the late Teubner as Carter discussed recently on Above180.com.  A closer look at the team event does feature several noticeable names such as PBA stars Tommy Jones and Bill O'Neill, as well as lesser known, yet recognizable names such as Jesse Buss, John Szcerbinski, Anthony LaCaze, and Steve Harman.  Not to mention former Tournament of Champions winner George Branham III also bowling on a team finishing high in the standings.  The point is that this tournament has become a big deal for pros to attend and be part of a legitimately good cause in the bowling community.  This was also a tournament Weber himself participated in last year, adding further credibility to what Carter-ironically a person Weber has a good relationship, and similar to both Weber and Richgels, are Storm staff members-is attempting to accomplish.  One could reasonably argue that Weber is simply defending the PBA and its events by making a candid statement about what a member of the PBA ought to do.  One could also argue that Weber should keep quiet, citing his participation in last year's fundraising event as an example that he is simply picking his spot to lash out at the membership of local PBA players for not attending a PBA Regional...with added money, no less on the same weekend Carter's event-also ironically sponsored by Storm Bowling.

     Weber found it disrespectful; Richgels found it strange, given the extra money...the question that should be asked from all this is why?  Perhaps this simplest of answers is that in this fecundity of bowlers obtaining ball contracts that money from a sponsor is not as important as sponsorship from a bowling ball company to attract bowlers.  Perhaps a further explanation is needed: if you were a quality bowler, regardless of being an amateur or PBA member, and you were without a ball contact, which tournament are you more likely to attend?  The PBA Regional that has a few extra dollars tossed into its prize fund or the team tournament-perhaps a preview of what professional bowling might become-with the banner being sponsored by what many consider the preeminent bowling company in the world?  Again, this comes down to what a bowler really is at the current time: an independent contractor with free will to bowl in whatever they so choose.  It also stands to reason that in today's era of bowling, you are dependent not just on your talent but what brand it says on your shirt.  I've been using Storm as an example, given the names involved, which is coincidental, but this goes for the other major bowling ball companies-Ebonite and Brunswick to name the more prominent companies.

     A few days ago while this was all going down, I was being texted by my friend Eric Frost regarding bowling balls and why Storm is the best ball company in the sport and ostensibly, why the others are running behind?  Frosty got into the whole symmetrical/asymmetrical core debate saying due to measures that were implemented 20 years ago with symmetrical cores and being accurate, that drilling an asymmetrical core with symmetrical measures makes the degree of difficulty as to making it work right is extremely difficult.  All valid and cogent, but that premise works for lesser bowlers.  Elite, tournament players are usually consulting ball drillers who are held in the highest esteem with in the industry.  Let's use logic (and defy brand names) for a moment and say that if Matt O'Grady was looking into a layout for a specific ball and had both Lee Sandt and Mo Pinel at his disposal; he'll certainly consult Sandt, but he'd be foolish if he didn't consult Pinel.  So, if any top tier player has a new piece in their hands and it was asymmetrical, they will find a trustworthy suggestion on layouts.  Your local league bowler probably will have a harder time.

     As I listened to Frosty's take, I simply asked him that if he felt with the absurdity of many people obtaining ball contracts that it might actually hurt the sport, with my argument being that instead of the bowlers being the main draw it is actually the bowling ball companies that are truly the stars of bowling.  When he responded, he countered that without them, there would be no bowling from a competitive standpoint.  He based it off of product registration/exclusion and the simple branding of major events, such as the recent USBC Queens presented by Storm for example.  As a simple matter of fact, he's completely right...and that is completely sad.

     And that is one of the many reasons the sport of bowling is searching for answers as to how to reclaim some of its lost luster.  Instead of it being about the talent, it is about how fast the talent can get to the truck to remain relevant-this despite being the very best at what they do.  Sadly, Mr. Baer's attempt to sponsor a PBA Regional tournament is a friendly reminder that we live in a far more corporate and global society.  After all, the New England Bowlers Association (NEBA) had to scramble for another bowling ball company to be a sponsor for their tournaments this season, after Ebonite International withdrew their sponsorship from only, you know, the longest monthly scratch bowling tournament in the United States.  Even Ebonite looked at NEBA's half-century run of bowling and pulled out because they didn't deem it profitable anymore.  Period (Brunswick and its sister companies, DV8 and Radical eventually signed on for the current season).  And that is the issue at stake: profitability.  Storm saw profitability, exposure, and-malevolent or not-a sense of duty to help sponsor one of its own in Jeff Carter and the Mary Teubner Memorial Team Tournament.  The PBA simply hosted a competing regional with some extra cash added to it.  Isolation, apathy, and desperation.

     In closing, Richgels left his readers pondering this thought during the recap on the Council Bluffs bunch regional event: "it's a shame-and hard to understand-how a tournament can put up $13,000 in sponsorship money for a weekend of competition and not draw a big field".  He went on to finish that blog by saying hopefully the ban restricting what type of bowling shoes can be worn during PBA Regional and PBA50 events would help bolster entries.  You might be wondering what shoes the PBA were allowing only for their events.  The obvious first brand was Dexter; the other was made by Dexter, yet are branded by another name: Storm. Or, "The Bowler's Company".

     Hard to understand for a Hall of Fame bowler?  Imagine what the common bowler must think.




     For those with a love and knowledge for the Sport of Bowling...this IS Bowling Philosophy.  Namaste.

©2013 8th Floor Poet


     

Bowling Philosophy-August 2013

Wes Malott is now a major winner and maybe ready to step into history.

The Porthole: After the Warming (Part II)

By Thomas Scherrer

     As the creator of the Unofficial Official PBA Power Rankings and chairman of statistically dysfunctional information, you should understand how confusing this season has been to chart from the beginning to where we are right now.  There has been layered long-distance formats, formats with no match play, international tournaments that a) exist for the PBA if only one of their members win or b) are mere footnotes if someone else wins it, and 4 separate major winners which officially creates a race for the PBA Player of the Year that will come down to a) who steps up in the World Series of Bowling or b) who gets a leg up in the international events or c) whom, as PBA members, they don't want to vote for.  You see...being objective in an increasingly cynical sport makes voting by its membership even more dubious when you consider that in 10 of the previous 12 seasons where the Porthole members could have voted, you could make a reasoned argument that they got half of them wrong and in the two seasons where they based if off making television, they were both highly questionable decisions given the nature of both seasons (don't worry-that is its own blog marathon in itself).  If you've understood anything from the past 3 years of Bowling Philosophy, I never observe the game through the prism of average alone. It is/was/always will be an unfair barometer in bowling.  This isn't golf where after 72 holes the winner is the player most under par.  Bowling factors in game-in, game-out observation, and how you perform against your rivals as much as how you perform against the lanes.  Added to that, it is a game of a symbiotic nature where players can either survive, thrive, or die based off who is still bowling.  Most rational bowling fans see what direction the game has been heading in during the past few seasons and that direction is power.

     Raw, unadulterated power.

     Now, that isn't to say there is no room for pure strokers, tweeners, and predominantly straight players to still be relevant.  In fact, they are still some bowlers having quality seasons without having a rev rate above 400, but if you looked at certain metrics, you might lose yourself in the noise of revolutions.  For instance, let's observe two players who are both on the rankings this year and let's look at them through only traditional raw statistics, per pba.com.  Ranking will be to the right in parenthesis.

     Bowler A: 139,130 points (3), $159,672.90 (3), 226.20 average (4), 5 TV finals (2).

     Bowler B: 69,212 points (25), $34,892.50, (20), 221.20 average (21), 2 TV finals (T13).

     On the surface, this doesn't look like any comparison at all.  Almost as if your intelligence is being insulted and you'd feel better reading something from Donnie Layman, Mike J., or Jason Thomas.  Nonetheless, let's dig deeper with some advanced metrics, utilizing our trusty Z-Score.

     Bowler A: .64 (7), 1.14 (15), 23.64 (4); Kuwait Champion.  31 Power Points (T8).

     Bowler B: .61 (9), 1.61 (10), 20.61 (5); Mark Roth Champion.  33 Power Points (7).

     Bowler A is Sean Rash and Bowler B is Michael Haugen Jr.  And this makes people scratch their heads.  How in any rational world would any rational internet freelance blogger write such an irrational notion that Haugen has had a better season than Rash has?  Rationally, it comes down to erasing a few preconceived notions about what makes players good (average, TV, power, and attitude) and digging deeper into process (consistent play, match play record, and winning).  Has Sean Rash had a very nice season?  He most certainly has.  But so has Haugen, and that shouldn't be ignored.  Sadly though, it has been.  ..but not here.  And this is where a degree of subjectivity does come into play against Rash, and for once, out has zero to do with his personality, but the quality of his win.  Rash does have a PBA International title this season, but due to those tournaments having multiple qualifying blocks, no pinfall carryover, and less quality opponents, a complication arises for me.  Do I simply ignore what Rash did in Kuwait or find a way to reward his performance by weighing his victory.  I chose the latter, awarding a +.50 to his Weighted Z-Score as well as wins in international play to Tommy Jones, Ronnie Russell, and Mika Koivuniemi.  After all, I did award Chris Barnes +1.50 for his WTBA Finals victory to start the season and he did everything in power the first half of the season to make me look foolish until he woke up with a flurry on Milwaukee.

     How foolish you may ask???  Observe Barnes's season before the Summer Swing in relation to the UOPBAPR:

     Average Z-Score: .33 (15th), Weighted Z-Score: 1.83 (8th), Adjusted Z-Score (Match play): 1.33 (14th), Finals Appearances: 4 (T 8th), WTBA Finals champion.  Power Rank: 15.

     Now observe his numbers after the U.S. Open:

     Average Z-Score: .83 (4th), Weighted Z-Score: 3.33 (2nd), Adjusted Z-Score (Match play):  6.83 (9th), Finals Appearances: 8 (T 8th), WTBA Finals champion, Milwaukee Open champion.  Power Rank: 4.

     Simply put, Barnes went all-world on us for a stretch of bowling and suddenly, he is in the PBA POY conversation.  As for everyone else???  Well, let's have a look, eh?

     T1. Jason Belmonte (1.30/4.30/29.30)
     T1. Wes Malott (1.02/3.02/38.02)
     3. Pete Weber (.77/2.77/29.77)
     4. Chris Barnes (.83/3.33/6.83)
     5. Jason Sterner (.74/1.74/19.74)
     6. Parker Bohn III (.58/2.58/16.58)
     7. Michael Haugen Jr. (.61/1.61/20.61)
     T8. Brad Angelo (1.57/2.57/N/A)
     T8. Sean Rash (.64/1.14/23.64)
     10. Scott Norton (.62/2.62/1.62)
     11. Mika Koivuniemi (.41/2.41/8.41)
     12. Chris Loschetter (.45/1.45/2.45)
     13. Tom Daugherty (.57/1.57/.57)
     T14. Bill O'Neill (.39/1.39/6.39)
     T14. Jake Peters (.42/1.42/2.42)
     16. Tommy Jones (.23/.73/3.23)
     T17. Andres Gomez (-.22/.78/-6.22)
     T17. Ronnie Russell (.05/.55/-3.05)

     #= Major winners in Bold.

     Here's to a new fall season of league bowling, folks.  Mary your strikes be many...May your balls be plentiful.


     For those with a live and knowledge for the Sport of Bowling...this IS Bowling Philosophy.  Namaste.


   
   

Bowling Philosophy-August 2013

The Big Nasty finally won the big one, but where will he rank on the UOPBAPW?

 
"The Porthole": After the Warming (Part I)
by Thomas Scherrer

     After a long hiatus from blogging on the world of bowling, there has been a return to glory for the August edition of BP; namely the return of the Unofficial Official PBA Power Rankings, a quick update on how the hell I decided to evaluate things that happened overseas, the USBC Masters as well, but today...a Final Frame.

     In 2002, I picked up the first edition of Bowling Execution, written by John Jowdy.  Coach Jowdy had long been an advocate of a free armswing delivered from the shoulder, coinciding with the Over-and-Under drill to permit a smooth and free release delivering the ball onto the lane.  His most ardent student was the man who wrote the Foreword, PBA/USBC Hall of Famer David Ozio:
  

"At the end of mt first PBA tournament in 1985, he (Jowdy) walked up to me, grabbed me by the scruff of the neck, and said, 'You're going with me.'  He informed me that he had seen enough good players struggle.  He convinced me to join him and two other PBA bowlers, Dave Husted and Kent Wagner, at another bowling center to work on our games.  He was intent on teaching me the art of the free armswing.  At first, I was hesitant; but having nothing to lose, I made the smartest decision of my career.  I set my ego aside and listened to what he had to say.  The first hour was a little perplexing.  I had thoughts of opening the parachute and jumping out, but I decided to continue the experiment a little longer.  This was the turning point that launched  my career into the PBA Hall of Fame."

     Over a decade after I picked up that book, it has shown the scars of time.  Page corners folded over, water/soda/juice stains at the top of the book, fraying on the border of the cover.  But unlike the condition of the book, the content of what's inside of it has withstood the test of time.  John Jowdy had placed his thoughts into exactly 200 pages (perhaps ironic given 200 was the declination between being "plus" or "minus" in a tournament) and opened a window to the world of all bowlers.  Maybe because he had so much to offer, he needed to write it down.  Maybe he needed to upgrade his financial windfall for all those free lessons he doled out (Ozio included).  Maybe he thought time was running out for himself.  After all, Coach Jowdy was in his early 80's, always with an oversized cigar in his hands or mouth and perhaps a less than quality diet living in San Antonio all those years before heading to California.  Perhaps he thought it was time to share his thoughts with the world before he passed or went crazy or both-sometimes one can symbolize the other despite being physically alive.  This was as close to a bowling memoir as we might ever see.  

     Hopefully, we'll have some talented enough writer talk to Mark Roth about why he wanted to revolutionize the game with power and how his life has changed post-stroke.  Hopefully, we'll have some talented enough writer talk with Carmen Salvino so he can share a bunch of great action stories from his native Chicago and the sink of corruption that action bowling is.  Hopefully, we'll have some talented writer talk with Norm Duke or Pete Weber or Walter Ray and talk about the myriad of changes they've witnessed over their legendary careers regarding oil conditions, lane play, bowling balls, formats, television, earnings and above all things, all their hairstyles.  Luckily for us, Coach Jowdy took the time to share some of his stories with the many players he taught in his career; names like Ozio, Del Warren, Tim Criss, and Marshall Holman all looking to establish or re-establish themselves as stars on the PBA.  

     I only witnessed Coach Jowdy once in my life and it is a story worth writing about: it was the 2006 US Open in North Brunswick, NJ.  I travel down with my William Paterson teammate Greg DeJesus to watch the final 16 games of match play and we are there early enough to beat some of the finalists into the building.  You might remember some of the names: Walter Ray walking in, all 6 feet, 2 inches of him, looking unassuming (or bored), and quite tired.  Mika Koivuneimi walking in, all the more 6 feet, 4 inches-all arms and legs.  Really, an incomplete athletic body except when he puts a bowling ball in his hand.  Ryan Shafer saunters in, really, that's how he walks.  Jacket on, insulin pump hidden underneath his jacket, ready to eventually end the tournament at the top seed in the stepladder final.  Other names like Mike Fagan, Tommy Jones, and Robert Smith, who would all make the ladder (Jones would win the title); Norm Duke and Rhino Page (when Page was an amateur and had curly hair-yes, he had hair then) talking eye-to-eye while warming up because...well, they are the only two people that each other can talk to eye-to-eye without having to see a chiropractor the following day.  Randy Pedersen was making a deep run that week as well and gathering a very large cheering section, which showed me that true bowling fans respected Pedersen and were rooting for the color commentator to make an 11th hour comeback to make the television show as a competitor.  Tommy Delutz Jr. stopped by in the morning to watch along with Kelly Kulick and her then-boyfriend Jim Tomek.  There were several bowlers who had not made it to match play that were there, fully aware of what the US Open meant and how hard it was for the remaining 24 players to get just that far, waiting to see who would make it through the sport's greatest test.

     I also remember Nathan Bohr throwing the first shot of the day, as well.  There is one problem with this: Bohr wasn't one of those 24, he was bowling further down in the bowling center away from the action.  He was working on his game.  It showed his sensational ambition and dedication to his craft that at 8 in the morning, the only guy bowling was a player whose tournament was over.  But he wasn't alone-an elderly gentleman was with him, one hand on his right shoulder, the other hand slightly in front and above of the bowling ball.  He was imploring Bohr to deliver his pushaway to his free hand so he could push it down and let gravity take care of the rest.  It was the free armswing...it was John Jowdy in his mid to late 80's, at 8 in the morning working with a player no longer in the tournament.  Talk about passion for the craft, indeed.  

     As the day progressed, Jowdy would work with other players away from the tournament, mostly listening to players first, then basically suggesting this or that and then watching players turn into striking machines, players full of confidence once again after having their skulls bashed in by the demanding US Open lane pattern during the week.  I distinctly remembered the Bohr-Jowdy interaction the most, mainly because it was just the two of them and it made me reflect back to the Ozio story.  While Bohr has not reached the heights of what Ozio did while working with Jowdy, it is worth noting that Bohr has hung around on tour for 7 seasons in a sport where the attrition rate is higher than you think.  Whether or not Jowdy helped Bohr that one day is only known by the student, but the teacher had at least left his imprint.  

     On August 1st, we lost the teacher at 93.  But looking back on it, we really didn't.  The teacher left his mark on so many players that today's elite coaches such as Warren and Mark Baker stand on Jowdy's shoulders today.  The teacher will never give another personal lesson again but his students of the past will carry on at the very least, his message.  Maybe not the same message but a similar purpose: to make bowlers better.  Really, that's all we ask for as fans, observers, and players of the game.  Despite never having spoken to me or even known my existence (unless he loved reading my BP blogs in San Diego), the teacher taught me the fundamentals of bowling properly in today's game that I can say still hang with me today.  It was the best $19.95  I ever spent for bowling technique, yes but the teacher actually allowed me to see that somebody could write about bowling and remain engaging and fluid while doing it.  Perhaps that was his greatest lesson to me.  Rest In Peace, Coach.  Say hello to Don, Dick, and Earl.  

Bowling Philosophy-April 2013

This Is 50...

A Perfect "Ten"

Pete Weber's Drive to Greatness

By Thomas Scherrer

Imagine yourself with Doc Brown's DeLorean in 2013 with the ability to travel back in time to talk to one person at their point of professional rock bottom.  Most would point to President Nixon in 1973 after Watergate or President Clinton after Sexgate or Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson after "Tooth Fairy" or Skip Bayless talking to Richard Sherman.  The point is: everyone has doubt and fear creep into their psyche.  It is the most inevitable disease a man or woman can have.  Nothing can stop its onset or determine its cause, nor can anyone diagnose its nature or determine its cure...once it is there, it stays there.  Sometimes, it looms larger over what made you great.  Other times, you would hardly know it exists.  It is like nothing ever happened to you.  You are free of fear and doubt, but instead overcome by confidence and assurance.  Every decision, every move is made with conviction and purpose.  All acts are definitive and assertive.  The results might not work, but the process has been trusted and with that comes a sense of pride and understanding that you did what you had to do and you believed in it.  There was no regression and no reverting.  There is clarity, purpose, and trust.
Back to the DeLorean...I'm a bowling fan as you all know by now, so why not use it to go back to 1995 and visit Pete Weber.  Why?  Let's look at these stats and you'll understand:

Events: 17
Cashes: 7
Match Play: 2
TV Finals: 0
Wins: 0
Earnings: $27,585

For all seasons in which Weber bowled at least 20 events, it was by far his worst in almost every category with the exception of money, which came in 1980-only his Rookie of the Year season.  It was the rarest of sights: how could a player of such talent-a rare blend of power and finesse, in game management, and overall swagger-suddenly lose it, just as he was entering his prime?  Had the game gotten away from him?  Was being the son of a larger-than-life father just too much?  Were the failed relationships hurting his ability to perform?  Was it the late nights of partying and perhaps drugs/alcohol taking its toll on an already undersized body?  Was it the exquisite mullet haircut perhaps presenting too much image over results?  Go back and read those last 6 sentences again and you'll ask yourself one question: why did I start writing about Andre Agassi all of a sudden???

No two athletes in the last 25 years shared so much promise, lost so much so fast, then recovered to become top stars, then superstars, then surefire legends of their game in such a short period of time, you wonder if it wasn't all part of an elaborate plan to remind those who had less natural talent than Agassi and Weber to never waste it.  After all, it looked as if for all the world that both Agassi and Weber were destined to never live up to what they might have been despite what they already had accomplished.  Agassi was arguably the cleanest the striker of a tennis ball and unquestionably the greatest returner in the game's history.  Weber arguably has the cleanest release in all of bowling and unquestionably has had the greatest ball roll in the game's history.  After all, how does one generate so much axis tilt without grabbing it?  Doug Kent tried and became a Hall of Famer, but always fought his timing in the process.  Jeff Carter tried it (along with Weber's golf glove) to the tune of just one title-ironically over Weber.  Many have tried to fire all 5 fingers open like that without grabbing it and they never can.  You can teach a lot of things in bowling: hand positions, grip pressure, lane play, spare shooting, and so on.  You know what you cannot teach?  Pete Weber.  He is as unique a prototype as you'll ever see in bowling.  We'll see a thousand more Jason Belmontes before we'll see another Weber duplicate.  It's a virtual improbability.

Which leads us to Sunday afternoon.  Fittingly, it was April Fool's Day.  A day in which people can say or do anything with enough validity to make it feel like its the truth before you are "catfished" by enough people.  And standing on top of the Barbasol Tournament of Champions after 48 games of bowling?  A man who is 50.  Yes, fifty.  In a generation where speed and revs dominate the sport, someone who once had the revs to be a power player was now relegated to a power stroker or even a power tweener.  This is a joke, right?  He didn't belong.  In fact, none of the old guard do anymore.  Yet, Norm Duke finished 12th; Walter Ray Williams Jr. finished 16th; Kent had a top 20 finish.  But Pete Weber led them all after 48 games.  He needed one more win Sunday afternoon to claim a historic win on so many levels.  But Sean Rash and Belmonte had other ideas.  You see, they tried to blow up the pattern so far to the left that they probably said in their own heads whoever wins our match will win the tournament.  There's no way Weber can get this deep anymore and loft it at this age.  And they were right.  Weber could not loft the left gutter...didn't need to.  Instead, Pete Weber decided to use his talent one more time to slay his 10th major championship.  One that now ties him with Earl Anthony and...oh, wait-that's it!  Weber became the only man to win all 3 PBA Triple Crown events twice in a career and set his own record of 9 Triple Crown wins as well.  He also became the oldest TOC winner in history and yes, did I mention this was his 10th major win?

That last one matters the most.  Now, history shows that Weber and the unmistakable legend Earl Anthony both have 10 majors.  Yes, I mentioned it again because it needed to be mentioned again.  It is very likely that Weber has possibly exceeded any expectations about his career in the past 12 months by winning his record 5th US Open and 2nd TOC to get to #10 while doing it when at his age, bowlers get ready to be called "rookies" on the senior tour.  He even said during the show that he will keep bowling 'til he passes, just like his father, Dick Weber, used to.  In winning #10, he has finally separated himself from Walter Ray and Duke as this generation's greatest big game performer.  He now stands 3 wins shy of joining Williams and Anthony as 40+ time champions, and can consider himself a viable Player of the Year candidate.  After all, #11 might be coming up at his favorite stomping grounds: Bowling's US Open.  Suddenly, we might have to rewrite what we think about PBA history and what Weber has done to place it in this proper perspective.  Chances are people won't rank him higher than Williams (has never beaten him for a title in their legendary careers) and slightly higher than Duke and Mike Aulby based off of majors alone.

But what if #11 comes?  Do we weigh the historical significance of majors over regular victories at long last and say Pete Weber is the greatest bowler of all time?  We honestly should have been doing this years ago but we got wrapped up in the dopey Walter Ray vs. Earl conversation when it was not really an argument as to who was greater.    Pete Weber has given everybody something else to look forward to: does he have one more major moment in him to get #11?  Hop in the DeLorean.

So...what would 2013 Me tell 1995 Pete Weber about 2013 Pete Weber?  I'd tell him that you might be at rock bottom right now, but don't give up the gift.  The struggles in 1995 are going to be worth it nearly two decades later, just you wait.  What would 1995 Pete Weber told me to do?  He'd probably tell me to crawl up my own ass and I'd laugh at it.  Truth be told, there is pretty much nothing I could tell '95 Weber that he already did not know about himself.  He just needed to hide the fear and doubt.  It will always be there.  It never dies.  And that is why Pete Weber has become one of the two greatest big game bowlers ever.  Fear and doubt won a few rounds, but Pete Weber won the fight...at long last.

For those with a love and knowledge for the Sport of Bowling...this IS Bowling Philosophy.  Namaste.

Bowling Philosohpy-January 2013

"Looking Through the Porthole"
The Unofficial Official PBA Power Rankings Through the WSOB
by Thomas Scherrer

A Happy Holidays to all-that's it!  Goodnight, everybody.  OK, I made that up.  You're stuck with me for another calendar year talking about the sport of bowling and looking to try and solve a few of the issues that plague the game.  Not that there is anything wrong with bowling other than tape delayed telecasts, massive parity (too much is a bad thing-it creates zero stars instead of new stars), equipment regulations, lack of sponsorship, valuable television time slots, ambiguous league and tournament rules, the over-abundance of sandbagging and ball contracts, and the lack of identifying who the better bowlers are week in and week out.  The World Series of Bowling further brought the final thing to light.  In the 5 events that were contested during the WSOB, we found ourselves seeing the top seed win one event-repeat: one-while we saw Bill O'Neill, Tom Daugherty, and Parker Bohn III run the stepladder, thus further complicating the use of television to expose who the best bowlers are from each tournament.  In defense of the PBA, the WSOB events were condensed to have quick tournaments with qualifying for the World Championship being the first qualifying round for the 4 animal pattern events and determine 4 quickie winners.  It led to some bristling by some members of the old guard stating that the winners of years past had to bowl 42 games, plus the TV finals to win a regular tournament.  For this season's events, it took a grand total of sixteen.  Yes, you heard that right: sixteen games.  The adage of the "cream rising to the top" never materialized.  In fact, sometimes the cream was never poured into the mixture.  The PBA has to save operating costs, as we know and cream is something Bill Vint can't live without while downing his venti latte at Starbucks at 6am in Seattle.  Plus, Mr. Vint has to constantly ask himself this question:  "they gave Donnie Layman an article I have to print on pba.com, and he gave me THIS?"

Yes, that would be Layman's Top 10 Power Rankings through the WSOB.  First of all, I have nothing against Layman's work at all.  He writes good, compelling articles all the time.  It just bothers me, however, that Layman wrote this or was forced to write this or needed to write this with the obvious omission in mind: the World Championship was not aired yet on television.  Any time you stamp a Power Rankings and not include a major championship winner, for which was already contested, but not really if you catch my drift, you probably have an invalid Power Rankings list.

Now, as most of you who read/stumble upon me know that I like taking bold stances against the status quo of the PBA.  I enjoy taking slight digs at the PBA and some of its membership (translation: bowlers) merely to tweak the viewers (translation: fans who might have some loyalties to bowlers) of my articles.  Just know this: I try to be as objectionable as possible.  And when it comes to Power Rankings (and to a larger degree, the PBA Player of the Year Rankings), I aim to please the readers.  You deserve to have an objective, fair, and balanced view on things after the WSOB and to be quite honest, putting Sean Rash as the top of the WSOB PR by Layman is an insult to your intelligence when he a) did not win a major, b) did not win an event, and c) did not win a match on TV.  Did Rash have a solid WSOB?  Yes, he did.  After all, he finished the Worlds as the #2 qualifier and made two shows, but as I have stated before, shows don't matter-wins do.  On top of that, how dominant you are in getting there is more important than just getting there.  

(You're asking yourself: don't tell me he's going to the Z-Scores...please no.)
(Please, yes.)

Borrowing from my Z-Score article in September, we can scientifically deduce who had the best WSOB.  The concept is simple: we take all three measures I listed in and basically do the math.  Again, it might be purely hypothetical and it might not work, but we're going up in the clouds or down in flames with this, so without further ado, we're implementing it to bring some science in and remove some bias.  Now we get to how players qualify for the Unofficial Official Power Rankings.  We'll use two qualifying markers:
1) Players who make the match play finals or in this case second round qualifying in 60 percent of the tournaments, so for the WSOB's 5 events, 3 appearances gets you into the club).
2) Winning an event.

After the 6 tournaments (the WTBA Finals also gets tossed in, but had no match play finals or final round qualifying), we came across 16 members who made it in, and yes, we'll rank them all properly.  We shall do this by taking their rank for each category (Z-Score avg, Weighted Z-Score, and Adjusted Z-Score for Match Play) and giving them points for each category in inverted order, so say Jason Belmonte's average Z-Score was 1.72, good for first.  Then, out of the 16 bowlers, Belmo would get 16 points (this actually happened-Belmonte was that good during the WSOB), and we'd do this for the other two categories, add them up and we get our Power Rankings.  Any ties in points will be broken by the things that matter (highest finish, wins, and major wins).  Without delay, here are the Sweet 16 of the Unofficial Official Power Rankings (splits included).

The Donators
16. Mike Machuga (-.65/-.65/-11.65; 8 pts; highest finish: 7th)
The Once-Evolutionary Voss had himself a solid WSOB, making 3 finals and coming within 15 pins of making the BJ Scorpion Championship.  He is, for intents and purposes, the baseline for which all other men will be judged on for the rest of eternity, or for purposes of this conversation, this article.  Just know that when I look back fondly at the WSOB IV, I will always go back and say "Choogs got us started on the march to the greatest Power Rankings Ever Assembled For A Sport That Tapes Delays Finals" and you will too.

15. Hugh Miller (-.76/-.76/-.76: 10 pts; highest finish: 10th)
Everybody was glowingly trumping Walter Ray Williams Jr.'s record 6,839th television appearance during the Chameleon Championship in his early 50's, but did anyone notice how consistent Ole Hughie was?  I mean, he is closer to 60, right?  His fitness regimen has been bandied about before in PBA circles, but to bowl this many games at his age in a young man's sport is quite the impressive feat, no?  Sadly, Miller was unable to carry that into the Worlds, finishing with a 12-12-0 record in match play, and an historic first ever triplicate in the Power Rankings.  I mean, how historic is it?  We have literally TWO's of  examples of evidence stating this anomaly and Miller became the first ever.  Huuuuuuugh!

The Damaged Goods
14. Osku Palermaa (-.22/-.22/-8.22; 12 pts; highest finish: 2nd)
One of the brightest stars in bowling and the defending World Champion struggled with a biceps injury that clearly slowed him down and limited his effectiveness, which leads to this tangent regarding the two handers: if you noticed, Belmonte wore a compression sleeve on his bowling arm to possibly reduce inflammation in the right arm (or, another marketing ploy by Storm for you to buy more shit from them in an attempt to make you look more like a professional), then we heard about TwinFin's injury.  It does beg the question: we do know how powerful these two-handed deliveries are and what advantages they give players, but have we discussed the biomechanics of constantly delivering the bowling ball through the swing with a fully bent elbow and what type of damage they might be incurring on thier wings?  It begs the question at least to look further into it, right?  After all, Storm is footing  helping Belmonte's finances out.  Doesn't it make sense to see if there is some possible long-term damage with this revolution?

Still Relevant
13. Chris Barnes (-.51/.99/N/A; 16 pts; won WTBA Finals for +1.5wZ-score)
To All Fans Who Send Me Fictional Hate Mail Regarding Chris Barnes: I gave the future HOFer some dap for his WTBA win, simply because this is Barnes in the nuttiest of nutshells: when given the chance to showcase his talents of bowling over a long period of time, he usually does it.  He keeps adding to his resume week-by-week and given the long nature of this season where there will be more tournaments, including 4 new patterns on the Winter Swing, plus another WSOB to tackle at season's end, Barnes has the ability to truly gain so much in these next 10, 11 months for his legacy.  Giving him credit for a season long tournament based on points that weeded out the pretenders and left us with 3 superstar players (Barnes, Mike Fagan, and Mika Koivuneimi) sounded fitting and therefore, he becomes a man to be reckoned with in the Power Rankings for the entire season.  Consider this an early Birthday gift, Mr. Barnes.

12. Tommy Jones (.46/.46/-3.54; 20 pts; highest finish: 5th)
And speaking of relevant, we cannot forget Jones, who missed two Championship Rounds by 6 and 9 pins, respectively.  The major reason why Jones is ranked this low despite his consistent WSOB?  Jones was an uninspiring 10-14-0 in the World Championship matchplay, where one shot could have gotten him to television or one match win or, hell one tie could have helped.  Can we really reward a player for not winning matches in a sport where it invariably turns into a one-on-one matchup to determine winners and losers?  Of course not.

Winless, Volume I
11. Dan McLelland (.22/.22/8.22; 23 pts; highest finish: 4th)
Conversely, we must credit Danny Mac for his 16-8-0 performance in the WC matchplay portion to get him just outside the top 10, or where Donnie Layman finally started his list and embarrassed himself.  You see, if you took the time to read Layman's postage stamp article, he ranked McLelland 10th with the caveat that "his first title is just a matter of time".  With all due respect, winning a PBA of any kind is no walk in the park.  It is not like winning a JBT or something (hell, I even have 7 of those and I spent more time wondering who OG was trying to hook up with or why Frankie Calca was wearing Capri pants or why does Steve Roglen's face look like a traffic sign than I was winning...and if you needed clarification as to who 'OG' is, you should do your homework), it is a badge of honor.  Chris Monroy, whom I consider one of the 3 hardest working bowlers I've been around has only one regional title to his trophy case and few work harder at being good.  Is MacLelland talented and hard-working?  Absolutely.  But winning a PBA event just doesn't happen without those things as well as a little luck too.  "Just a matter of time" becomes something else soon.  Just ask #5 on this list.

Proud Daddy
10. Bill O'Neill (.26/1.26/.26; 26 pts; Cheetah Champion)
Congrats to Bill and Chrissy O'Neill on their first child, Gavin David O'Neill on January 15th.  Xtra Frame was on hand to get exclusive coverage of the birth but Ashly Galante's Power House Report bumped it to fit the 18-35 male demographic.  Anyway, O'Neill's win came in a consistent, yet unremarkable, WSOB for him.  Look, everyone knows I think Billy O is the future.  He's the guy you want to back your tour for the next decade.  You won't go wrong with him, just know that his recent title drought has led me to believe that perhaps O'Neill was trending more towards the Barnes/Malott group of guys who show you how good they are over long stretches of time, but when they have to pull it off in one game, things change.  But he's now a father and a champion; he'll need to win to pay for the diapers.  As for his win, it typified the O'Neill mystique in all its glory: give him 3 games and some below average performances, coupled with his talent (superb) and you get a rather dominant win.  Dang it all that he couldn't do more in the Worlds to get him higher in the penthouse.  Again though, he's in the Power Rankings for the year with his win-he can go on a massive roll.

The Man?
9.  Sean Rash (.43/.43/8.43; 27 pts; highest finish: 3rd-twice)
Last year's "Player of the Year" failed to cash in on two great performances in the WSOB and that is that.  He's 9th according to science.  I would ask him during the Worlds if he asked Belmonte if his wife tasted like Cinnamon Toast Crunch, but I should let that go.  Look, I don't mess with these numbers but this is a case where Rash controlled his fate by winning or being more consistent in his final round appearances and did not.  Anyone ranking him 1st on a Power Ranking list should have their head examined...oh, hold on a moment...

Tiebreaker Unbroken by Winning
8. Rhino Page (.72/.72/6.72; 31 pts; highest finish: 3rd)
7. Tom Daugherty (.87/1.87/N/A; 31 pts; Scorpion Champion)
The simple reason for Daugherty over Page: Mr. 100 won and Page did not.  OK, that was a shot at poor Tommy D but he bowled an excellent television final despite not really putting up big numbers but being smart and forcing the two-handers to come to him (which they couldn't).  Page could have and should have gotten deeper into the Worlds final but bowled a poor match against Parker Bohn III and watched as PB3 put on a PBS special against Donnie Layman's 1 and 2 Power Ranking bowlers (yes, I've read it 100 times already).  The silver lining for Page: he looks back to form.  The real silver lining for Daugherty: he is now a PBA champion and no longer just the guy who dropped the worst game in televised history on us.

Tiebreaker Unbroken by Television Further Unbroken by Winning
6.  Wes Malott (.56/.56/8.56; 32 pts; highest finish: 6th-twice)
5.  Chris Loschetter (.77/.77/.77; 32 pts; highest finish: 4th)
4.  Scott Norton (.73/1.73/-3.27; 32 pts; Chameleon Champion)
Again...winning matters.  It trumps most and in this case, it trumps the WSOB of both Malott and Loschetter.  Even in a world where I throw my personal contempt out, Big Wesley cannot catch a break from me, although this is the Wes Malott we all want to see: consistent, taking over opponents head-to-head (AdZMP high 8.56), and gunning for major titles.  As for Loschetter, we briefly referred to it with MacLelland but that "sooner or later" mantra about winning a PBA title on the big stage becomes a Capuchin to an Old World to a Silverback on one's shoulder over time.  It cannot be ignored how important that first win can be.  It took Ryan Shafer 13 years to win a title despite his talent and, quite frankly, given the state of the PBA, Loschetter might not have as many opportunities more so than time to erase that primate.  He is arguably, one of the more well liked players amongst fans in the sport and there is a large base rooting for him to get the job done.  Only time will tell when.

Then we get to Norton, a man who deserves his own paragraph based on this simple notion: if he read this, which he might, he would hate the fact that I didn't give a pause in my affidavit to collect myself.  Digressing, Norton now owns two wins, he owns his own firm, owns his sexuality, and owns the most emotional win of the 2012-13 season.  There was a large contingent of California-based players watching his win.  Tony Reyes was a Californian.  Reyes is tragically gone but his spirit lives on and not to get all metaphysical, it lived on through Norton the day he beat Belmonte.  Another ladder-runner during the WSOB, but emotional on all levels.  You can't help but think that Norton carries a lot things on his shoulders as a person, a counsel, an openly gay man, a spouse, and a friend but few have handled it with such grace and humility as he has in his brief career.  He might not turn out to win 20 titles or win 4 majors or ever win a POY, but he can bowl under all circumstances and with great passion.  It has been a pleasure to see him go about his business and write about him.  If you're a bowling fan, you're sport is better with Scott Norton in it.

(Plus, my math tells me he's got more points than 3 fewer players, so we have that as well)

The Outlier
3. Brad Angelo (1.57/2.57/N/A; 33 pts; Viper Champion)
I know...you want to laugh at this ranking.  It makes no sense to you.  How can anyone who didn't participate in the World Championship matchplay be this high?!?  Simply stated, if you did not make matchplay, you got no credit for it, so there.  Angelo is properly ranked for these reasons: Angelo owned the 3rd highest Z-Score for the 4 animal pattern events (1.57), the second highest wZ-Score (2.57-his Z-score plus win in his only finals appearance), and was the only top seed to win the tournament.  This goes to the point of a dominant performance and what better way to judge power is by dominance.  Angelo dominated the Viper Championship and he is properly ranked in this regard.  In no way could you say he was better than the top 2 players on this list, based of their performances, and you can reasonably argue that he had the best individual performance of one tournament so far this season.  We're good, Brad.  You're safe with me in your corner and not that ninny, Layman.

The Debate
2.  Jason Belmonte (1.72/1.72/5.72; pts 39; highest finish: 2nd-twice)
Our top two players both accumulated 39 points in the Power Rankings, but the sole difference ranking one over the other comes to this: as great as Jason Belmonte was during the WSOB, he failed to win when he led two tournaments and the other one did win.  What's more convincing?  He beat Belmonte in the title match.  Want even more convincing?  It was for a major.  It is as simple as that.

As for Belmo, it is possible that he is becoming an undervauled bowler.  He has actually exceeded the expectations of myself but a lot of people with his remarkable versatility, underrated touch, and currently unmatched consistency.  This is now two consecutive years where the Jason Belmonte hype is not doing this guy enough credit.  When the sport needs a new face to latch onto and you are uncertain as to whether or not said player is ready and then he goes beyond your expectations?  Wow...talk about holding his end of the bargain.  He bowls well often, wins his fair share of tournaments, speaks with high regard for every bowler, and conducts himself like a professional for every fan to see.  I said earlier you couldn't go wrong with O'Neill as your face...you couldn't also go wrong with Belmo as well.

Sandy-Blaster
1. Parker Bohn III (.71/2.71/7.71; 39 pts; World Champion)
32 wins...1 major.  Then a hurricane hit and Parker Bohn III arrived to bowling's top 10 all-time greats.  To understand what most of us on the east coast saw a few months ago with Sandy put things into a brand new perspective.  Homes gone, power out with no timetable for repair, lives lost, roads flooded, towns on the shore swallowed up and eaten by nature's unmerciful wrath, and no way to justify anything trivial or recreational.  Not when people had nothing to grab onto but hope, but PB3 decided to do what he does better than any bowler ever-he took to helping.  The Striking Out Sandy fund is on his website, guys have donated money for pins he accumulated during his WSOB competition, and he has been able to provide need for those with nothing.  I have admittedly been critical of Bohn's bowling resume as being hollow.  After all, how can I sit down and tell my kids that Parker Bohn III was one of the 10 greatest ever if he had just one major championship.  I know of the runner-up finishes but we don't make that defense for Ryan Shafer (and we shouldn't) or for Chris Barnes (we excoriate him for it).  We judge players by how great they are when it counts.  Well, this major counted no matter how Bohn got there.  He made no top 16 rounds yet finished 24th, he won 15 games and wiggled into the television finals, then he won 4 more matches to lay claim to #33 and #2.  And with that win, not just our heads and hearts tell us Parker Bohn III is the leader in the Unofficial Official Power Rankings, but so does pen and paper.  Enjoy the first class seats, Parker.  Welcome to the Penthouse.




For those with a love and knowledge for the Sport of Bowling...this IS Bowling Philosophy.  Namaste. 

P

Proud Daddy
 

PrPProugo