Ryu earns 2026 PWBA Rookie of the Year honors
September 09, 2026
ARLINGTON, Texas – Seo Yeon Ryu of South Korea became the first South Korean to compete on the Professional Women’s Bowling Association Tour in 2026, making the most of the opportunity by earning PWBA Rookie of the Year honors. Ryu is the fifth player from outside the United States to win the award since the tour relaunched in 2015.
“As the first Korean player to compete on the PWBA Tour, it was very exciting and something to be happy about, but at the same time I felt a lot of pressure,” Ryu said. “Winning Rookie of the Year made this season even more special and meaningful to me. I’m very proud to be the first Korean player to receive this award. This achievement has given me confidence in myself and reassured me that I can continue to compete on tour.”
The 38-year-old Ryu is the oldest Rookie of the Year winner since Sabrina Duncan, who was 36 when she won in 2002, and brought a wealth of experience with her from her time competing for South Korea. Ryu’s resume includes eight total medals at the International Bowling Federation World Championships, five of which are gold, and six gold medals at the Asian Games, tied for the most by a Korean athlete.
“I always wanted to compete on the PWBA Tour since I was in my 20s,” Ryu said. “Whenever I competed in international tournaments, I really enjoyed competing against bowlers from different countries, and I always dreamed of competing on the PWBA Tour myself. However, at that time, I had many commitments in Korea while at the same time I was representing the Korean national team, so it was difficult to make that dream a reality.”
She took a break from competition beginning in 2019 before preparing for the PWBA Tour in 2025.
“I never lost my passion for bowling and my desire to challenge myself,” Ryu said. “In 2025, I had the opportunity to start preparing for bowling again, and I decided not to let this opportunity pass.”
Ryu said her first season on tour also gave her memories and experiences beyond her performance on the lanes.
“This season was very special to me because it was my first time traveling and competing abroad alone for such a long period of time,” Ryu said. “Because of that, I think I will remember so many things from this season. At the tournaments, one of the most memorable experiences was communicating with bowlers from different countries in English. My English is not perfect, but I enjoyed talking with other players and competing with them. The atmosphere at the tournaments was very different from Korea, so I learned and experienced many new things.
“Outside of the tournaments, one of my favorite memories was visiting Niagara Falls with some of the other players I traveled with. This season gave me many great memories, not only from bowling, but also from meeting new people, experiencing different cultures and growing as a person.”
Ryu made the most of her opportunity as she bowled all 11 events, cashing six times, finishing in the top 12 four times and earning the distinction of being the only rookie to qualify for the PWBA Tour Championship. She had a high finish of fifth at the PWBA Barbara Chrisman Classic presented by Storm, rolled a 300 game and an 800 series in match play during the United States Bowling Congress Queens in Las Vegas and finished nearly 27,000 points ahead of second-place Morgan Kramer of Webb, Alabama, in the Rookie of the Year race.
Nevertheless, there were still a few things about the tour that surprised Ryu and brought challenges.
“The most surprising thing for me was that the lane pattern is released only one hour before official practice,” she said. “I was also surprised that you can drill and use a new ball after official practice is finished, which is very different from what I was used to in Korea. Another thing that was different was the formats, which change every tournament, and the scores are not reset after qualifying. That was quite different from tournaments in Korea.
“The biggest challenge for me was the language barrier. My English is not very strong, so sometimes it was extremely difficult to communicate with the tour reps, especially when I needed to quickly discuss equipment that I needed and about lane conditions.”
Despite that, Ryu was able to find success on tour this season and looks to build on that in 2027 while also inspiring those in other countries to make the jump to the PWBA Tour.
“I hope that my experience and achievements can inspire more bowlers from other countries and Koreans to challenge themselves,” Ryu said. “You don't have to prepare perfectly to take the first step in this competition. I want to show other bowlers that if you believe in yourself and have the courage to take on a new challenge, you can always create new opportunities. I hope my journey and achievements can give more bowlers confidence to pursue their own dreams and compete on the PWBA Tour.”
The 2027 PWBA National Tour begins May 6 with the PWBA Rhode Island Open in Rumford, Rhode Island.
“As the first Korean player to compete on the PWBA Tour, it was very exciting and something to be happy about, but at the same time I felt a lot of pressure,” Ryu said. “Winning Rookie of the Year made this season even more special and meaningful to me. I’m very proud to be the first Korean player to receive this award. This achievement has given me confidence in myself and reassured me that I can continue to compete on tour.”
The 38-year-old Ryu is the oldest Rookie of the Year winner since Sabrina Duncan, who was 36 when she won in 2002, and brought a wealth of experience with her from her time competing for South Korea. Ryu’s resume includes eight total medals at the International Bowling Federation World Championships, five of which are gold, and six gold medals at the Asian Games, tied for the most by a Korean athlete.
“I always wanted to compete on the PWBA Tour since I was in my 20s,” Ryu said. “Whenever I competed in international tournaments, I really enjoyed competing against bowlers from different countries, and I always dreamed of competing on the PWBA Tour myself. However, at that time, I had many commitments in Korea while at the same time I was representing the Korean national team, so it was difficult to make that dream a reality.”
She took a break from competition beginning in 2019 before preparing for the PWBA Tour in 2025.
“I never lost my passion for bowling and my desire to challenge myself,” Ryu said. “In 2025, I had the opportunity to start preparing for bowling again, and I decided not to let this opportunity pass.”
Ryu said her first season on tour also gave her memories and experiences beyond her performance on the lanes.
“This season was very special to me because it was my first time traveling and competing abroad alone for such a long period of time,” Ryu said. “Because of that, I think I will remember so many things from this season. At the tournaments, one of the most memorable experiences was communicating with bowlers from different countries in English. My English is not perfect, but I enjoyed talking with other players and competing with them. The atmosphere at the tournaments was very different from Korea, so I learned and experienced many new things.
“Outside of the tournaments, one of my favorite memories was visiting Niagara Falls with some of the other players I traveled with. This season gave me many great memories, not only from bowling, but also from meeting new people, experiencing different cultures and growing as a person.”
Ryu made the most of her opportunity as she bowled all 11 events, cashing six times, finishing in the top 12 four times and earning the distinction of being the only rookie to qualify for the PWBA Tour Championship. She had a high finish of fifth at the PWBA Barbara Chrisman Classic presented by Storm, rolled a 300 game and an 800 series in match play during the United States Bowling Congress Queens in Las Vegas and finished nearly 27,000 points ahead of second-place Morgan Kramer of Webb, Alabama, in the Rookie of the Year race.
Nevertheless, there were still a few things about the tour that surprised Ryu and brought challenges.
“The most surprising thing for me was that the lane pattern is released only one hour before official practice,” she said. “I was also surprised that you can drill and use a new ball after official practice is finished, which is very different from what I was used to in Korea. Another thing that was different was the formats, which change every tournament, and the scores are not reset after qualifying. That was quite different from tournaments in Korea.
“The biggest challenge for me was the language barrier. My English is not very strong, so sometimes it was extremely difficult to communicate with the tour reps, especially when I needed to quickly discuss equipment that I needed and about lane conditions.”
Despite that, Ryu was able to find success on tour this season and looks to build on that in 2027 while also inspiring those in other countries to make the jump to the PWBA Tour.
“I hope that my experience and achievements can inspire more bowlers from other countries and Koreans to challenge themselves,” Ryu said. “You don't have to prepare perfectly to take the first step in this competition. I want to show other bowlers that if you believe in yourself and have the courage to take on a new challenge, you can always create new opportunities. I hope my journey and achievements can give more bowlers confidence to pursue their own dreams and compete on the PWBA Tour.”
The 2027 PWBA National Tour begins May 6 with the PWBA Rhode Island Open in Rumford, Rhode Island.