LAS VEGAS – The five members of the 2025 United States Bowling Congress Hall of Fame class were celebrated during their induction ceremony Wednesday evening at the South Point Hotel and Casino.

Shannon O’Keefe of Jacksonville, Alabama, Bryan Goebel of Shawnee, Kansas, and Randy Pedersen of Orlando, Florida, were inducted in the Superior Performance category, and Tom Clark of Muskego, Wisconsin, and Keith Hamilton of Park Ridge, Illinois, were inducted in the Meritorious Service category.

All five inductees were in attendance for the ceremony on Wednesday night.

O’Keefe, a 46-year-old right-hander, was elected in her inaugural year on the ballot following an impressive international (Team USA) and professional career.

The right-hander has amassed 15 titles on the Professional Women’s Bowling Association Tour, including three major championships, and is a three-time PWBA Player of the Year.

Her competitive fire was stoked at an early age as a result of being the only girl among her siblings.

“I grew up with five brothers, and I’m the only girl,” O’Keefe said. “Sports was always a part of our lives, whether it was on TV or they were playing something. I was always the little sister running around with them, so, from a very early age, I was always trying to prove to them that it didn’t matter that I was small or that I was a girl; I could still do it.”

Eventually, that competitive spirit would lead her to achievements on the PWBA Tour few have equaled.  

Her first win was a doubles title with Professional Bowlers Association Hall of Famer Bill O’Neill at the 2015 PBA/PWBA Striking Against Breast Cancer Mixed Doubles in Houston. The pair successfully defended that title in 2016, and O’Keefe broke through with a pair of PWBA singles titles that same year.

In 2017, O’Keefe started a string of three consecutive years of winning a major championship by capturing the Smithfield PWBA Tour Championship in Richmond, Virginia. She collected the 2018 USBC Queens in Reno, Nevada, and completed the trifecta with another PWBA Tour Championship in 2019, again in Richmond, Virginia.

She garnered PWBA Player of the Year honors in 2018 (two wins, including one major), 2019 (five wins, including one major) and 2022 (one win). Twice she led the PWBA Tour in single-season earnings (2018 and 2019) and average (2021 and 2022).

In addition to her PWBA accolades, O’Keefe had a stellar career with Team USA where she spent 18 consecutive seasons from 2005-2022, earning nearly 50 medals in international competition. She also is a two-time USBC Team USA Trials champion (2018 and 2008).

Originally, O’Keefe’s dream of playing for Team USA centered around softball, but she suffered an injury after her freshman year at Portland State University that ended her softball career and shifted her focus to bowling.

“I always wanted to make Team USA, but I thought it was going to be for softball,” O’Keefe said. “That dream was in my heart when I was 15, and so for it to evolve the way that it did, for it to go from softball to bowling and then to be on the team – I just remember the first year I was on the team I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, this is so amazing; I want to do this again.’ For it to then feel that same way for 18 straight years was incredible.”

O’Keefe has left her mark at the USBC Women’s Championships, too. She owns four titles at the event (three team championships and the 2016 Diamond All-Events title).

Not only a great competitor, O’Keefe also excels as a coach. She’s currently the head coach of the women’s team at Jacksonville State University, where she guided the team to victory in the 2025 Intercollegiate Team Championships and 2024 NCAA Championships. Previously, as head coach of the women’s team at McKendree University, O’Keefe won the 2023 and 2017 Intercollegiate Team Championships and the 2022 and 2017 NCAA Championships.

O’Keefe’s impact on the sport is something that isn’t lost on her.

“I feel like I’ve helped pave the way for the next generation,” O’Keefe said. “To know that I’ve hopefully played a role in bringing awareness to the PWBA and hopefully igniting a dream in somebody else to want to chase that, that is very cool and at times is very humbling. I get some really sweet messages from people telling me how much I inspire them, and that is just very, very cool to get those messages and to know that I was a part of that. It’s pretty sweet.”

Goebel, 63, is a PBA Hall of Famer who won 10 times on the PBA Tour, including one major victory.

The right-hander bagged his first title in 1990 at the Miller Lite Challenge in Tucson, Arizona. Goebel defeated four competitors to take home the win at Golden Pin Lanes.

Goebel posted another win in 1991 then went winless in 1992 and 1993. He made up for his brief dry spell by having the best year of his career in 1994, collecting four titles, including a memorable title in Peoria, Illinois, and the season-ending Merit Mixed Doubles Championship with partner and PWBA champion Aleta Sill.

For many bowling fans, Goebel’s win in Peoria at the True Value Open is the one they remember most. In an epic battle, Goebel defeated Norm Duke, 296-280, narrowly missing out on a $200,000 perfect-game bonus.

While many people remember the near-miss of the 300 game, the win was memorable to Goebel for a different reason.

“The week I won in Peoria was two years after my dad had passed away,” Goebel said. “February 21 was the day my dad died, and that Monday, February 21 of ’94, was the start of Peoria, and I remembered my dad a lot that week. It was 20-below zero in Peoria that week; it was so cold, but when I won that week, I was thinking about my dad.”

In many years, winning four titles would be enough to garner PBA Player of the Year honors, but it was Duke who won the award in 1994 with five titles that included the PBA Tournament of Champions.

Golden Pin Lanes in Tucson proved to be truly golden for Goebel as he would add victories in that center in 1995 and 1996 to add to his 1990 title there.

His crowning achievement came at the 1998 Brunswick World Tournament of Champions in Overland Park, Kansas, where, bowling as the “hometown” favorite, he defeated Steve Hoskins to claim the lone major title of his career.

His final PBA Tour win came in 2003 in Medford, Oregon, and he also added a PBA50 title in 2016. A three-time Bowlers Journal and USBC First Team All-American, Goebel was inducted into the PBA Hall of Fame in 2017, but his induction into the USBC Hall of Fame carries special meaning.

“I certainly think that getting into the USBC (Hall of Fame) is icing on top of the cake,” Goebel said. “The bowling world is the USBC. They have their hands in college, high school, kids, pros and everything else, and to have them recognize me by putting me in this hall of fame means a lot. It means I’m part of the bowling world outside of the PBA as well, and that means a lot to me because I’ve given my heart and soul to the game of bowling in a lot of different ways. It means a lot to be recognized for that.”

Pedersen, 62, put together a PBA Hall of Fame career that featured 13 wins, including one major championship.

The right-hander broke into the win column in 1986 when he defeated four opponents to claim the title at the AC-Delco Classic in Union City, California.

A pair of wins the following year would include his lone major championship, the 1987 PBA National Championship in Toledo, Ohio. Pedersen would defeat three future hall of famers in David Ozio, Marshall Holman and, in the title match, Amleto Monacelli, to earn the victory.

It was that victory that highlighted some of the qualities that made Pedersen a great champion. He was noted for his dominance on TV that was fueled by a singular focus and drive.

“I didn’t even think about it being a major,” said Pedersen. “I didn’t think about my opponents. I was just so focused on my motion and what I was doing. I was just thinking about bowling – throwing the ball, where I was standing, looking at my target, any adjustments I was going to make – just eagle-eye focus on that and that alone. The money never entered the equation, the title never entered the equation, the guys I was bowling against never entered the equation. I think because of that, I was able to perform at that championship level.” 

Pedersen won the PBA Senior/Touring Pro Doubles Championship title with the legendary Carmen Salvino in 1988 and followed that up with his best year in terms of number of wins when he collected three titles in 1989.

He won one title each in 1990, 1993, 1994, 1995 and 1999, with his last tour title coming at the 2002 PBA Pepsi Open in Springfield, Pennsylvania. He added a PBA50 Tour title in 2013.

Despite his hall of fame bowling career, to many, Pedersen is most recognizable as the TV color analyst and “voice of the PBA Tour.” It’s a role he has filled for the last 25 years on networks that include FOX, FS1, ESPN, CBS and CBS Sports Network.

A three-time Bowlers Journal First Team All-American, Pedersen was ranked 35th on the list of the 50 Greatest Players in PBA history in 2008 and was inducted into the PBA Hall of Fame in 2011.

The USBC Hall of Fame honor gave Pedersen a chance to reflect on an amazing career.

“If you would’ve asked me if this would’ve happened 40 years ago, I would’ve said, ‘Yeah, no chance,’” Pedersen said. “If you would’ve told some snotty 16-year-old kid from Southern California, he’s going to see the world because of bowling, I’d have been like, ‘Yeah, whatever. No chance.’ So, it’s been an incredible ride, and this is the icing on the cake. This is the bow on top; this is it, and I’m eternally grateful.”

Clark, 56, has held several positions in the bowling industry, getting his start with the USBC before moving to the PBA where he now serves as PBA Tour Commissioner.

For Clark, his love of bowling was passed down to him by his father.

“How I got involved in bowling is simple in my case – my dad,” Clark said. “My father bowled and, just this year, was inducted into the Central New York USBC Hall of Fame in the Veterans category for everything he’s accomplished in bowling. He loved bowling. He bowled league, so I went and watched. He watched the PBA on ABC and, from the time I could stand up, I would bowl on plastic pins in the hallway during the show and bowled against Marshall Holman and Mark Roth. My dad taught me everything about it.”

Clark’s USBC career started in 2005 as Director of Communications before transitioning to Vice President of Marketing from 2006-2008.

Among his most notable contributions during his time with USBC were Bowling’s Clash of Champions (2007) and the PBA Women’s Series (2007-2008). In 2007, he also was instrumental in the start of BowlTV, USBC’s online channel for livestreaming and video content.

Additionally, in 2007, he helped bring back women’s professional bowling for the first time since the PWBA went on hiatus in 2003 with the return of the U.S. Women’s Open. The event concluded with a series of five ESPN television broadcasts.

Clark moved on to a series of roles at the PBA that included PBA Tour Deputy Commissioner (2008-2011), PBA Tour Commissioner (2011-present) and PBA Chief Executive Officer (2013-2019).

His contributions at the PBA include the creation of the PBA World Series of Bowling (2009-present), Chris Paul CP3 Celebrity Invitational (2009-2021), PBA League (2013-2024), PBA Tour Finals (2016-present) and PBA Playoffs (2019-present).

Under his leadership, PBA bowling has appeared on ESPN, ESPN2, CBS, CBS Sports Network, FOX, FS1 and ABC, and his efforts helped secure multi-year deals with FOX Sports and Flo Sports in 2018. For countless hours and events, he has served as an executive producer for online and televised content.

A focus on the growth of the PBA and creating global membership and events led to PBA members in more than two dozen countries and a partnership with the International Bowling Federation (then World Bowling), allowing PBA Tour events to be held in 10 different countries.

Clark has been honored as the Bowlers Journal International Person of the Year (2005 and 2018), earned the Bowling and Billiards Institute of America Industry Service Award (2008), USBC Joyce Deitch Trailblazer Award (2009), John Davis Award presented by Kegel (2019), Bowling Proprietors’ Association of America Media Award (2020), IBMA Alberta E. Crowe Meritorious Service Award (2024) and IBMHOF Striking Contribution Award (2024).

But the satisfaction Clark derives from his time spent in the sport goes beyond those awards.

“Last year, Deo Benard – this 20-year-old kid – is bowling in the World Series, and the first thing he says (after winning) is, ‘This is the greatest moment in my life,’” Clark recalled. “And, when you’re sitting there, and you think about all those 15 years and how we fought to make sure that kid would have that chance, and he grew up on it, and he gets in there and we can give a family the greatest moment of their lives, you go, ‘All right, that was worth it.’”

As a key influencer in the bowling industry, Hamilton’s distinguished career spans more than five decades and is characterized as being creative, energetic and effective, which has led to advancing the brand of bowling internationally.

Hamilton, 62, played an important role in bowling as the president/co-owner of Luby Publishing, Inc. and as the publisher of Bowlers Journal International Magazine, which itself has a history that spans more than a century.

Hamilton and Mike Panozzo were just the fourth generation of owners of Luby Publishing and owned it for exactly 25% of its life when the publication was sold to USBC. The previous three generations of owners (David Luby, Mort Luby Sr. and Mort Luby Jr.) are all in the USBC Hall of Fame, and Mort Jr. also is in the PBA Hall of Fame.

“Mort Luby, to me, was one of the most influential people in my life,” Hamilton said. “Obviously, it was my father – my parents, right – and Mort. My life, as it is, is because I met Mort Luby. What he taught me – what he taught Mike and me – is if you want to be the leading publisher in the business, you got to be more than a publisher. You need to go out and be involved in the industry.”

As president, Hamilton doubled the size of LPI by creating several magazines, the first being Bowling Center Management, the official publication of the BPAA, to accompany its flagship publication, Bowlers Journal International. He also published a series of books, most notably The PBA 50 Greatest Bowlers, Earl and Revolutions II.

Hamilton led the effort in promoting the 100th anniversary of BJI in 2013. His innovative strategy resulted in national media coverage, including a featured story highlighted on the CBS Morning Show, a front-page story in the Wall Street Journal and scores of other national print and electronic media.

Hamilton explained his business philosophy.

“I would never tell anyone what to say, and I would never tell anyone what their opinion should be,” Hamilton said. “And I’m certainly not going to tell a guy who has been writing a heck of a lot longer than me – went to school for it – what to do. No. No. My main emphasis, make no mistake about it, was keeping the bus running, the business side, the advertising side. And I could be very good with that. And first-year advertisers, you know what they are now? They’re really good friends.”

As a volunteer, Hamilton continued his quest to further the cause of the bowling industry by occupying the following positions: President of the International Bowling Media Association (2014-2018), Chairman and President of the International Bowling Museum and Hall of Fame (2011-2014) and Chairman of the IBPSIA Advisory Board (2005-2009).

Hamilton played a key role in the building of the new museum and hall of fame that resides within the International Bowling Campus. He also worked in cooperation with the city of Reno in opening bowling’s first satellite museum within the National Bowling Stadium. With the IBMA, Hamilton restructured the Chuck Pezzano Scholarship by creating a corporate partnership program that led to an increase in the scholarship.

Now in his fifth decade serving bowling, Hamilton is currently the Executive Director of the Illinois State Bowling Proprietors Association and sits on the Board of Directors of the Bowlers to Veterans Link, occupying the position of treasurer. He also is the publisher of the BBIA Consumer Catalog.

For his efforts in co-founding and chairing the IBPSIA Advisory board, Hamilton earned the “Friends of IBPSIA Award” in two consecutive years (2014 and 2015). He also received the BPAA Special Projects Award (2005) for the creation of Bowling Center Management and the BPAA Media Award (2018). Hamilton received the IBMA Mike Hennessey Award of Merit in 2021 and was inducted into the IBMA Luby Hall of Fame the following year. In 2024, Hamilton received the BPAA Chief Wapensky Award.

Including the 2025 class, there are 465 members of the USBC Hall of Fame – 236 in Superior Performance, 129 in Meritorious Service, 55 in Veterans, 23 in Outstanding USBC Performance and 22 in Pioneer.

The USBC Hall of Fame was created in 2005 by merging the former American Bowling Congress and Women’s International Bowling Congress Halls of Fame.

Visit BOWL.com/HallofFame for more information on the USBC Hall of Fame.