MISSY'S MEMO

by Missy Bellinder December 15, 2008 19:00
With the first half of the season complete and the Lumber Liquidators PBA Tour taking a small hiatus for the holidays, there’s plenty to look forward to for the start of the second half of the 2008-2009 season.
The biggest event of the season is yet to come- the H&R Block Tournament of Champions that will run from Jan. 19-25 at Red Rock Resort in Las Vegas, Nev. This event is monumental, not only because it is the coveted Tournament of Champions, an invitation only tournament, but also because of the many other special events that will be taking place throughout the week. 
Along with all of the Lumber Liquidators PBA Tour champions that will be competing in the event, the “50 Greatest Players” in PBA history will also be on hand all week. Bowling fans, collectors and fanatics alike will not want to miss the ultimate autograph session that will feature these 50 Greatest Players, taking place on Saturday, Jan.24 from 2-3 p.m. The 50th Anniversary Gala will also take place on the night of Jan. 24 from 7-11 p.m. that will honor these legends, along with the induction of the newest PBA Hall of Famers – Norm Duke, Del Ballard Jr. and John Handegard.
Speaking of Duke, everyone will want to keep track of his performance throughout the week of the H&R Block Tournament of Champions. Duke will be looking to capture the prestigious title, winning his fourth consecutive Major. Duke currently holds the record for most consecutive Majors with three, when he captured the PBA World Championship earlier this season.
Everyone should be sure to check out the event that will kick off the second half of the season -the Don and Paula Carter Mixed Doubles Championship that will run from Jan. 4-6 in Reno, Nev. This special event will feature the 16 exempt women’s series competitors along with 16 additional women that finished the highest at the PBA Women’s Tour Trials, an event that ran concurrently with the Women’s U.S. Open sponsored by the United States Bowling Congress (USBC) this past summer.
The 32 women and the exempt field of 64 men will all bowl two seven-game qualifying blocks and then separately cut to the top 16 in both divisions. Players will then be paired up for a mixed doubles finals in which the #1 women’s competitors will be paired with the #1 men’s competitor and so on.  After 16 games of baker round robin match play the top five teams will advance to the ESPN TV finals. 
The event marks the first time the PBA has held a Mixed Doubles tournament of current PBA professionals and women professionals since Steve Hoskins and Kim Canady (Terrell-Kearney) won the 1998 Philip-Morris Mixed Doubles in Las Vegas, Nev.
The second half of the season will also mark the last two PBA Women’s Series tournaments for the 2008-2009 season. Along with the Don and Paula Carter Mixed Doubles Championship, the final stop on the PBA Women’s series is the Earl Anthony Medford Classic in Medford, Ore. Jan. 14-18.
But that’s not all! Stay tuned for more information on the newly added PBA Women’s Series Showdown presented by USBC. The top six winners of each PBA women’s series event will qualify for this special televised tournament. If a player has already qualified for the PBA Women’s Series Showdown, the next highest finisher in that tournament will qualify. Thus far it is Stefanie Nation, Michelle Feldman, Carolyn Dorin-Ballard, Jodi Woessner and myself that have qualified, with one last spot remaining.   
Also in the second half of the season is one of the most controversial tournaments –the GEICO Plastic Ball Championship. See how your favorite PBA stars match up on today’s oil patterns using solely a plastic ball. Who will win? Only time will tell.
Stay tuned for the most up-to-date information regarding the PBA Tour, players and bios. Check it out! www.pba.com    
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MISSY'S MEMO

by Missy Bellinder December 8, 2008 19:00
Another week complete on the Lumber Liquidators PBA Tour. With the first half of the season almost over, we spent last week in snowy Cheektowaga, N.Y., just outside of Buffalo. The week marked the seventh stop on the Lumber Liquidators PBA Tour and the fourth stop for the PBA Women’s Series. 
As I arrived at the Buffalo airport today, while being dropped off by the rental car company, the gentleman kindly asked “Where are you off to?” “Baltimore,” I replied. “Is that where you are from?” “No, I’m traveling there for work. I’m a professional bowler.” 
The man’s eyes lit up as he asked, “Were you competing in that tournament that was in town this week?” “You know a local guy came in 4th place. I read about it in the newspaper.” (He was referring to Jack Jurek.)
As I continued the conversation, it made me realize (even more) how many people are truly amazed and curious about what we do. 
As he continued to ask me questions about what I do and how much I travel, etc., it made me think about how many people don’t really know what it’s like to be out on the PBA Tour. So, I’m going to give you a brief rundown.
Sundays and Mondays are usually travel days. Bowlers and staff alike are going from one stop to the next, either by personal vehicles or plane. Most bowlers have roommates and will travel together, making the journey less painstaking. 
I opt to fly because Southwest Airlines has pretty cheap flights and being from California, I did not want to drive my car out to the East Coast.
The other great option we have is to put all of our bowling balls on the PBA semi trucks, so that they are transported from one stop to the next. This helps out tremendously, as most players have 20+ bowling balls, allowing you to fly with ease, especially with the strict baggage allowances these days. 
The other perk for putting your bowling balls on transport is that when you arrive at the next stop, your bowling balls have already been put in the paddock of the bowling center. So you don’t have to lug all of those heavy bowling balls in, which is especially good if it’s snowing outside!
These travel days also allow bowlers to compete in local tournaments that may be going on in that region. Many bowlers who don’t make it to Sunday’s telecast will go and bowl a 5-gamer or PBA regional in the area. That is if they don’t have a pro-am squad on Saturday (which I will talk more about later).
On Tuesdays, we usually have an unofficial practice session, primarily for the TQR players, but all bowlers are allowed to practice during this time. This unofficial practice session marks the first time the PBA oil pattern is put out on the lanes and gives players the option to work on their game or just get used to bowling again after a few days off.
Everyone knows what the tournament schedule consists of on a daily basis. Wednesdays mark the Tour Qualifying Round, official practice session and a night Pro-Am squad. For exempt players, Wednesdays also are good for getting laundry done, which is usually what I do in the mornings, as practice doesn’t start until 4:30 p.m. 
Wednesday also marks the first day that exempt bowlers are allowed to get bowling balls drilled on the PBA truck.  The “PBA truck” is like a traveling pro shop for Tour bowlers, complete with two drill presses and a large stock of bowling balls. Approximately 150-275 balls are drilled on the PBA Truck every week. 
Thursdays and Fridays are the meat of the competition. We compete all day, which makes for a grueling few days. These are the days, I personally go to bed early the night before and make sure I am well rested for a lot of bowling.
Saturdays are set aside for Pro-Ams. With several squads throughout the day, this is a great way for fans to meet, talk and get autographs from the PBA Tour professionals. All exempt players are required to bowl at least one Pro-Am per week and up to as many as two. Note: there is a hefty fine of $1,000 if you do not show up to your assigned Pro-Am.
So as you may have gathered, there is a lot of downtime out on Tour. The most popular extracurricular activities during downtime include: going to the mall, playing video games in your hotel room (many of the bowlers brought their gaming system with them) and going to see a movie.
Being away from home and traveling as much as we do, isn’t as bad as it may seem. Everyone out on tour is like one big family. From the staff, crew, ball reps and bowlers we all look out for one another, celebrate special occasion and make tour life a little easier. 
Don’t get me wrong, if you hate traveling and being away from home, then tour life is probably not for you. However, I absolutely love it! I love traveling and seeing new places! 
This past week I went with my roomie, Shalin Zulkifli to Niagara Falls. I had been there before but had never seen the falls covered in snow. It was absolutely gorgeous, even thought we nearly froze to death. 
This week, I am in Baltimore, a place I have never been to before.  So I am spending a few extra days sightseeing in the Washington D.C. area before heading home for the Holidays. 
Well that should give you a little more insight into life on the PBA Tour. 
Stay tuned for the last tournament of 2008 – The Lumber Liquidators Shark Championship this week in Baltimore, Md. Check it out!
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MISSY'S MEMO

by Missy Bellinder December 1, 2008 19:00
The Lumber Liquidators PBA Tour spent the Thanksgiving holiday week at Brunswick Zone Hawthorn in Vernon Hills, Ill. for the CLR Carmen Salvino Scorpion Championship. 
Thanksgiving Day proved to be a really long day of competition, as the tournament was delayed for a couple of hours due to mechanical problems. After re-oiling the lanes and re-pairing lane assignments to accommodate five on a pair, we were ready to roll with the first seven-game qualifying block. 
This week proved to be really high scoring as Ken Simard (who bowled on the pair to my left) seemingly had the front nine (strikes) every other game and Wes Malott (who I crossed with) was throwing pins all over the place shooting huge numbers. 
One of the bowlers even commented, “I think Kenny (Simard) is averaging the front ten at least three times a block.” Simard shot two out of the ten 300 games that were shot during this week’s competition, along with nearly reaching perfection on the TV show, shooting 289 against Brad Angelo in the second semifinal match.
Fortunately, I too threw my fair share of strikes, trying to keep up with the pace of the people around me, including Michelle Feldman (who was also bowling on the pair to my left). After the first seven games of qualifying, I was leading the women’s series at +239, averaging 234.14 and Terrance Reeves led the men at + 348, averaging 249.71. 
During the break, all of the bowlers, their guests and the staff had the pleasure of enjoying a Thanksgiving Day meal that was catered in to the bowling center, complete with turkey, salad, mashed potatoes and gravy, cranberries, yams, and of course pumpkin pie!
Then scores soared even higher during block 2. Not sure if the yummy turkey had anything to do with it, but everyone seemed to be striking, including myself. When we were finished bowling (at almost midnight), my www.bowlingenergy.com Verve teammate, Simard was leading the men with +700, averaging 250 over the 14-game qualifying block. In the Women’s Series, I remained in the lead with +552, averaging 239. 43, having to double in the 10th frame to remain in the lead, as Feldman had the front ten shooting 289 the final game, keeping things close. 
 I was really surprised at the amount of fans that watched qualifying throughout the entire day of Thanksgiving. The grand stands were full of spectators in both the morning and night blocks, which was a pleasant surprise. I guess it was a good escape from cooking, being in charge of washing dishes or just plain getting out of the house after eating a huge meal.
A fan approached me after competition on Thursday night and excitedly said, “Missy do you know that you’d be sixth in the guys tournament right now?” I actually wasn’t paying attention to that fact and was merely trying to keep up with Feldman during the night block.
Although the entire week went really well, the TV show was another story. 
Bowling on TV is the most unique experience and it is truly a privilege, something you dream about since you were a kid. 
It is by far the quickest game you will ever bowl and everything seems like it’s on fast-forward. 
We only get four practice shots before our match. We have four shots to figure out how the lanes have changed from practicing on the pair before the show, to an hour later after three matches have been bowled.  So making decisions becomes a very educated guessing game. 
The TV lights make the lanes dry up pretty fast and trust me, they make you feel like you’re in Las Vegas in the middle of July! I don’t usually get hot while I bowl and am generally always freezing (being from Southern California and used to warm weather). However, after practicing on the TV pair before the show had started, I got a bag of ice to hold while I was waiting for my match to start because my hand had puffed up so much from the heat (mind you it was snowing outside the building). 
However, the lights on the TV show are also one of my favorite elements. I remember bowling on my first TV show and seeing my ball go down the lane for the first time with the effects of the ultra bright lights. It’s crazy because the ball looks like it is actually glowing. The colors are completely different and the rotation even looks magnified, almost like it sparkling down the lane.       
Back to the TV show. Yes, I shot 147 on TV and yes, I am disappointed. However as much as that really stinks, life goes on. There will be more TV shows and more opportunities (such as the Women’s Series Showdown presented by USBC that I have now qualified for).
Everyone has bad games on TV and makes mistakes, whether that be missing a spare or making a bad decision (or both in my case); it’s all part of the learning curve that you go through throughout your entire bowling career. We’ve all been there. 
There are bad days and there are good days. The bad days remind us to learn from our mistakes and make us stronger as individuals and competitors. Then the good days remind us why we love bowling and the competition. 
So no matter what point you are in with your personal bowling career, remember that everyone has ups and downs and getting upset about it won’t solve anything. Think about what you can do to turn it around and stay positive. Those are my words of wisdom for the week. 
For more inside information complete with pictures from this week, visit www.missybellinder.com
Until next week!    
 
  
 
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MISSY'S MEMO

by Missy Bellinder November 24, 2008 19:00
With the one week hiatus of the Lumber Liquidators PBA Tour, there was time for some rest, relaxation and recapping of the 50th anniversary season of the PBA Tour thus far.
Through five events of the PBA Tour season, Norm Duke is currently atop the season earnings list with $56,920, while Bill O’Neill leads in the average category with a 226.67 average over 169 games. The Player of the Year race is proving to once again be close, as Duke currently leads with 24 points over Walter Ray Williams Jr. and O’Neill who both have 20 points. Thus far it is young gun standout O’Neill who is taking over the spotlight on Sundays with the most TV appearances (3) for the 2008-2009 season.
In the PBA Women’s Series, it is Michelle Feldman who is currently atop the point leaders after capturing the Chameleon Championship and finishing runner-up in the Pepsi Viper Championship to Stefanie Nation. Both players have already qualified for the PBA Women’s Series Showdown presented by USBC, which was recently announced by the PBA. All six winners of the PBA Women’s Series tournaments will come back for a special televised event. Stay tuned for more details.
The Lumber Liquidators PBA Tour also saw the PBA Senior players compete on TV for the first time since 2001, as dancing funny-man Timothy Kauble defeated Hugh Miller 235-185 to clinch the Senior Lake County Indiana Golden Anniversary Championship in Hammond, Ind.
The Lumber Liquidators PBA Tour has already had events in both the Versatility and Extreme Swings.
The Extreme Swing is comprised of five events which debuted with the Ultimate Scoring Championship this past weekend. The other events include: the GEICO Plastic Ball Championship, GoRVing Match play Championship, Don Johnson Buckeye State Eliminator Championship and the Etonic Marathon Championship. 
There will be a separate points list awarded for the Extreme Swing, with the top eight in points receiving an automatic invitation to the Six Flags Summer Series, which will be held during the summer in 2009 at Six Flags Great Adventure in Jackson, N.J.  Mike Wolfe currently sits atop the point leaders in the Extreme Swing after winning the Ultimate Scoring Championship this past weekend. 
The Versatility Swing is also already underway as Brad Angelo captured the Pepsi Viper Championship and Mike Machuga clinched the Chameleon Championship. The other events included in the versatility swing are the CLR Carmen Salvino Scorpion Championship (which gets underway this week), Cheetah Championship, Lumber Liquidators Shark Championship and Earl Anthony Medford Classic. There will also be a separate points list for the versatility swing.  Be sure to check out these special point lists on pba.com as the season progresses.
That recaps the start of the 50th anniversary season of the PBA Tour. 
As far as rest and relaxation goes, I did manage to enjoy the sunny Southern California 80 degree weather by hanging out at my favorite surf location, surf city USA - Huntington Beach. I also got to meet up with a few of my international friends who happened to be flying through the L.A. area while on the way back home from the QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup. 
My time home was also spent celebrating Thanksgiving early with my family and friends. We enjoyed a complete turkey dinner with all of the trimmings with my personal favorite – pumpkin pie for dessert. 
I even managed to visit the famous mouse (a couple times) and won a mixed doubles tournament with my best friend, Scott Norton. It was absolutely amazing to watch him bowl the qualifying round as he shot 300, 246, 300, 300 for games 4-7 of the nine game block and averaged 248 for the entire tournament. 
With the week off complete, the PBA Tour is back on the road this holiday week with the CLR Carmen Salvino Scorpion Championship in Vernon Hills, Ill. Be sure to check out the action!  
For more on my week at home, complete with pictures and videos, check out   www.missybellinder.com/missysblog.  
 
 
 
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MISSY'S MEMO

by Missy Bellinder November 17, 2008 19:00
The week in Taylor, Michigan was nothing shy of interesting. With two tournaments crammed into one week and one location – Taylor Lanes, excitement was just around every corner. 
With the jam-packed schedule, I got in my rental car and drove straight to Taylor on Sunday, immediately following the Lake County Indiana Golden Anniversary Championship telecast in Hammond, Ind. 
If the weather was any omen of how the week would turn out, I would have known that I was in store for a hectic, yet exciting week.  After driving in the snow for 4 hours straight (mind you, being a Southern California native I’ve only driven in the snow once with chains on), I arrived in Taylor safely with the TQR already completed and competition starting the next day for the Ultimate Scoring Championship. 
After day one, eleven 300 games were bowled and three players shot 300 but failed to make the cut to the Round of 32. It took +357, a 225.5 average to make the cut to 32, for the single-elimination best 4-out-of-7 match play. With the tournament living up to its name, the field averaged 226.18 in qualifying, as compared to the other weeks where the field average was 211.39 for the Pepsi Viper Championship and 214.88 for the Lake County Indiana Golden Anniversary Championship.
Match play for the Ultimate Scoring Championship saw a slew of 300s as well. Parker Bohn III topped the field with three perfectos during the event and at one point when interviewing the lefty Hall of Famer, I joked, “What happened? You didn’t shoot 300 this Round (Round of 16).” 
Another interesting note is that Michael Haugen Jr. lost in the Round of 32 (to Parker Bohn III, 4-2), averaging 261.33 and shooting 823 for the first three games. Talk about brutal! 
In the end, it was powerhouse Robert Smith, lone lefty Mike Scroggins, young gun standout Bill O’Neill and four-time PBA titlist Mike Wolfe who overcame the strike fest and advanced to the televised finals of the Ultimate Scoring Championship. Be sure to watch the finals on ESPN this Sunday, November 23 at 1 p.m. ET.
With the Ultimate Scoring Championship out of the way, the PBA women’s series, sponsored by the United States Bowling Congress (USBC), then joined the field of exempt players for the Chameleon Championship. With the lower scoring pace (only one 300 game was shot during the event) and the round robin match play finals, the race to make the TV show became extremely close. 
Michelle Feldman made history by becoming the first PBA women’s series competitor to advance to the televised championship match in two consecutive events (she finished second to Stefanie Nation in the PBA Women’s Series Pepsi Viper Championship in Omaha, Neb.).  
Ultimately, Feldman came out on top defeating hometown favorite Jodi Woessner 199-173, to capture her first PBA women’s series title. Side note - Feldman ripped her thumb in the second frame of the televised match, stating that is why she missed the first 10-pin. (Trust me her thumb didn’t look pretty.) New skin please!
Without ignoring the big white elephant in the room, the men’s race to make the TV show was rather interesting to say the least. With 8 frames of the position round already completed and Mike Machuga clearly claiming the final fourth spot on the telecast, a scoring malfunction was discovered forcing a re-bowl of the position round. Certain players were forced to re-bowl the position round because they had been paired up against the wrong bowlers and were competing on the wrong lanes. So after much confusion, another game was bowled, in which Sean Rash shot a huge 256 to jump around Mike Machuga and claim the No. 4 seed spot on the telecast. 
After many choice words in the paddock and numerous players disgusted at the events that occurred, PBA Commissioner and CEO Fred Schreyer decided to fairly change the televised stepladder to a five-person stepladder finals, thus including both Mike Machuga and Sean Rash on the telecast.
Machuga took full advantage of that decision. He was the first bowler down on the practice pairs on Sunday morning, even before the lanes were turned on (three hours before the show started) and then he proceeded to climb the ladder and claim his second title on the Lumber Liquidators PBA Tour. 
With the snow returning, creating a winter wonderland outside of Taylor Lanes during Sunday’s telecast, it was time for a trip back home to the 80 degree weather of Southern California for the first time in a month, as the PBA Tour will take a one week break.  
However, along with the 80 degree weather, I came home to a different kind of snow – black ashes. Best wishes to everyone in the Southern California area that has been affected by the fires! 
Stay tuned for more PBA action as the Ultimate Scoring Championship will air on ESPN this Sunday, November 23 at 1 p.m. ET. Check it out!    
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