ALLEN PARK, MICH. (March 5, 2019) – Go Bowling! PBA Tour history will be made once again when Thunderbowl Lanes hosts the 10th anniversary PBA World Series of Bowling March 10-21. World Series of Bowling X will be highlighted by the first-ever prime-time live telecasts of four consecutive days of PBA Tour stepladder finals on FS1, plus a special USA vs. The World team match in prime time on the fifth day.

Since the World Series of Bowling was first hosted at Thunderbowl Lanes in 2009, the multi-event series has become the premier international showcase of professional bowling competition.

Twenty countries will be represented in the 2019 event which will culminate with the PBA World Championship, the third major of the 2019 Go Bowling! PBA Tour season. The PBA World Championship will also feature a $1 million bonus if a bowler can bowl a 300 game in the title match of the stepladder finals.

A field of 135 players is expected to compete in the qualifying and match play portions of the WSOB leading up to the FS1 telecasts March 18-21. In another WSOB first, all four Go Bowling! PBA Tour title events will award valuable points toward the new PBA Playoffs that will begin on April 8 in Portland, Maine.

PBA’s live streaming partner, FloBowling, also will provide approximately 50 hours of coverage during the qualifying and match play rounds.

Key storylines to watch for are:

Four live telecasts on FS1 – The World Series of Bowling X will be highlighted by four live prime-time telecasts of the stepladder finals on successive nights March 18-21, all beginning at 8 p.m. ET on FS1. A fifth event, the USA vs. The World, will be taped by FS1 for airing March 22 at 8 p.m. ET. The PBA Cheetah, Chameleon, Scorpion Championships and PBA World Championship finals will air on March 18, 19, 20 and 21, respectively.

PBA World Championship – The crown jewel of the World Series of Bowling is the PBA World Championship stepladder finals which will air live on FS1 from Thunderbowl Lanes March 21 at 8 p.m. ET. The World Championship is the third major of the 2019 Go Bowling! PBA Tour season.

PBA World Championship $1 million title match 300 game bonus – A $1 million bonus will be paid if a player bowls a 300 game in the title match of the PBA World Championship stepladder finals. If any player bowls a nationally-televised 300 game during the 2019 Go Bowling! PBA Tour season, Go Bowling.com will award a free game of bowling to anyone who pre-registers on the GoBowling.com website.

WSOB is an international showcase – The preliminary list of the 20 countries represented includes: Argentina, Australia, Canada, Colombia, Denmark, Ecuador, England, Finland, Germany, Ireland, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, Puerto Rico, South Africa, Sweden, Thailand, Venezuela and the United States.

Jason Belmonte to defend World Championship title and try to set record for most PBA major titles – Four-time PBA Player of the Year Jason Belmonte of Australia will try for a record 11th PBA major if he can make it to the stepladder finals of the PBA World Championship. The 35-year-old Belmonte won the recent PBA Tournament of Champions for his 10th major title to tie Hall of Famers Pete Weber and Earl Anthony for first on the all-time list. Belmonte, who uses the unique two-handed delivery, won the PBA World Championship when it was last held in November of 2017.

Norm Duke still making history at almost 55: At nearly 55 years of age and in his 36th full season, PBA Hall of Famer Norm Duke proved he is still a force to be reckoned with on the Go Bowling! PBA Tour after winning the recent Jonesboro Open for his 40th career tour title and his second consecutive win of the season. 

The WSOB field also includes five other PBA Hall of Famers – Chris Barnes, Parker Bohn III, Amleto Monacelli, Pete Weber and Walter Ray Williams Jr.

Michigan’s Andrew Anderson is reigning PBA Player of the Year:  Andrew Anderson of nearby Holly, Mich., earned 2018 PBA Player of the Year honors winning two titles including the USBC Masters for his first major win.

WSOB X begins stretch drive for PBA Tour Playoffs: The four title events of the WSOB will be critical for tour players as they try to make the top 24 in points at the conclusion of the USBC Masters on April 1 to qualify for the PBA Playoffs which begins in April in Portland, Maine. The winner of the Playoffs will take home a $100,000 first prize. The Cheetah, Chameleon, and Scorpion Championships are Tier 3 points events while the World Championship is a Tier 1 points event. Details about the PBA Playoffs and how points are awarded can be found on pba.com (https://www.pba.com/SeasonStats/PointsLists/132).

Past World Championship winners entered:  Jason Belmonte (2017), EJ Tackett (2016), Gary Faulkner Jr. (2015), Dom Barrett (Dec. 2013), Parker Bohn III (Jan. 2013), Osku Palermaa (2012), Chris Barnes (2011), Tom Smallwood (2009), Walter Ray Williams Jr. (2001, ’03, ’06) and Pete Weber (1989, ’98), are all past winners of the PBA World Championship.

Woman standout Liz Johnson tries for another PBA Tour title: USBC Hall of Famer and three-time and reigning PWBA Player of the Year Liz Johnson will be trying for a second PBA Tour title. Johnson won the PBA Chameleon Championship in WSOB IX to join 2010 PBA Tournament of Champions winner Kelly Kulick as the only women to win a PBA Tour title.

PBA Tour events include diverse lane conditions – Three of the World Series events – the Cheetah Championship, Chameleon Championship, and Scorpion Championship – are named after specific PBA lane conditioning patterns. Each different lane condition requires players to be on top of their games in making the right lane and equipment adjustments to be successful. The ability to excel on all three lane conditioning challenges will ultimately determine the finalists who will compete for the PBA World Championship which will be conducted on the Earl Anthony lane condition.

USA vs. The World – The USA vs. The World team event will feature the top five U.S. performers against a team of the top five international players. Teams will be determined through players’ pinfall in WSOB qualifying rounds. PBA Hall of Famer Marshall Holman will manage the U.S. Team and fellow Hall of Famer Amleto Monacelli will manage the international team.

Qualifying and match play round coverage on FloBowling: Fans can catch all the preliminary round action (approximately 50 hours) via PBA’s online streaming partner FloBowling. For subscription and schedule information visit www.flobowling.com. PBA’s international fans will be able to watch the FS1 finals as they happen on FloBowling.

Tickets and Pro-Am entries available: Tickets are still available for the FS1 telecasts and may be purchased by visitinghttps://www.eventbrite.com/e/pba-world-series-of-bowling-x-tickets-49606041004

Qualifying rounds are scheduled for March 12-15 at 12:30 and 6:30 p.m. Two World Championship match play rounds will be conducted on March 16 at 9 a.m. and 3 p.m., which will determine the top five players for the World Championship stepladder finals on March 21. Cheetah, Chameleon and Scorpion match play rounds will take place March 18-20 at Noon and 3 p.m. Tickets for qualifying and match play rounds will be available at Thunderbowl Lanes’ door.

Pro-am events will be held on Sunday, March 10 at 6 p.m. and March 17 at 4 p.m. A pro-am entry form is available at Thunderbowl Lanes’ website, home page at www.thunderbowl.org or by calling (313) 928-4688.

2019 PBA WORLD SERIES OF BOWLING X SCHEDULE

Thunderbowl Lanes, Allen Park, Mich., March 10-22 (all times are Eastern)

Sunday, March 10

10 a.m. – Unofficial practice session

1 p.m. – Pre-Tournament Qualifier

6 p.m. – WSOB X Pro-Am

Monday, March 11

10 a.m. – Cheetah 33 and Chameleon 39 practice session

2:30 p.m. – Scorpion 42 and Earl Anthony 43 practice session

Tuesday, March 12

(Contested on 33-foot Cheetah lane oiling pattern. Coverage by FloBowling)

12:30 p.m. – Cheetah Championship Qualifying Round 1, 5 games

6:30 p.m. - Cheetah Championship Qualifying Round 2, 5 games

            Top 16 qualifiers after 10 games advance to single-elimination match play, March 18; 10-game qualifying totals carry over to PBA World Championship

Wednesday, March 13

(Contested on 39-foot Chameleon lane oiling pattern. Coverage by FloBowling)

12:30 p.m. – Chameleon Championship Qualifying Round 1, 5 games

6:30 p.m. – Chameleon Championship Qualifying Round 2, 5 games

            Top 16 qualifiers after 10 games advance to single-elimination match play, March 19; 10-game qualifying totals carry over to PBA World Championship

Thursday, March 14

(Contested on 42-foot Scorpion lane oiling pattern. Coverage by FloBowling)

12:30 p.m. – Scorpion Championship Qualifying Round 1, 5 games

6:30 p.m. – Scorpion Championship Qualifying Round 2, 5 games

            Top 16 qualifiers after 10 games advance to single-elimination match play, March 20; 10-game qualifying totals carry over to PBA World Championship; top 40 qualifiers based on composite 30-game totals from Cheetah, Chameleon and Scorpion Championships advance to PBA World Championship cashers round.

Friday, March 15

(Contested on 43-foot Earl Anthony lane oiling pattern. Coverage by FloBowling)

12:30 p.m. – PBA World Championship Cashers Round 1, 5 games

6:30 p.m. - PBA World Championship Cashers Round 2, 5 games

            Top 16 qualifiers after 40 games advance to round robin match play

Saturday, March 16

(Contested on 43-foot Earl Anthony lane oiling pattern. Coverage by FloBowling)

9 a.m. – PBA World Championship Round Robin Match Play, 8 games

3 p.m. - PBA World Championship Round Robin Match Play, 8 games

            Top 5 qualifiers after 56 games advance to FS1 stepladder finals, Thursday, March 21, 8 p.m.

Sunday, March 17

4 p.m. – WSOB X Pro-Am

Monday, March 18

(Contested on 33-foot Cheetah lane oiling pattern. Match play rounds covered by FloBowling)

Noon – Cheetah Championship Round of 16 (best of five games, single-elimination match play)

3 p.m. – Cheetah Championship Round of 8 (best of five games, single-elimination match play)

8 p.m. - Cheetah Championship Finals (live on FS1)

            Match 1 – Four finalists, one game, lowest score eliminated

            Semifinal Match – Three finalists, one game, lowest score eliminated

            Championship – Two survivors, best of three games (game three is 9th and 10th frame if needed)

Tuesday, March 19

(Contested on 39-foot Chameleon lane oiling pattern. Match play rounds covered by FloBowling)

Noon – Chameleon Championship Round of 16 (best of five games, single-elimination match play)

3 p.m. – Chameleon Championship Round of 8 (best of five games, single-elimination match play)

8 p.m. - Chameleon Championship Finals (live on FS1)

            Match 1 – Four finalists, one game, lowest score eliminated

            Semifinal Match – Three finalists, one game, lowest score eliminated

            Championship – Two survivors, best of three games (game three is 9th and 10th frame if needed)

Wednesday, March 20

(Contested on 42-foot Scorpion lane oiling pattern. Match play rounds covered by FloBowling)

Noon – Scorpion Championship Round of 16 (best of five games, single-elimination match play)

3 p.m. – Scorpion Championship Round of 8 (best of five games, single-elimination match play)

8 p.m. - Scorpion Championship Finals (live on FS1)

            Match 1 – Four finalists, one game, lowest score eliminated

            Semifinal Match – Three finalists, one game, lowest score eliminated

            Championship – Two survivors, best of three games (game three is 9th and 10th frame if needed)

Thursday, March 21

(Contested on 43-foot Earl Anthony lane oiling pattern)

4 p.m. – USA vs. The World team match (top five U.S. qualifiers for PBA World Championship vs. top five international qualifiers, best of three Baker scoring team matches  (taped to air on FS1 on Friday, March 22, at 8 p.m.)

8 p.m. – PBA World Championship Stepladder Finals (live on FS1)

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