PBA Dreams: Easier now?

If you could give the PBA a shot and minimize the risk of time and expense, would you do it? The PBA has announced the World Series of Bowling.

The inaugural event, which begins Aug. 2 and runs through Sept. 7, 2009, promises to be a revolutionary festival of competitive bowling boasting a $2 million prize fund and seven ESPN telecasts. The schedule is available at a new dedicated website, www.pbaworldseriesofbowling.com.

The PBA is basically bowling half of the season in one month...in one location. In order to save logistical and production costs, the PBA is taping most of the season in one city to be televised in a succession of Sundays.

In my day, in order to fulfill your dreams of professional bowling, you suspended your college education or starting that first job to give the tour a shot. Get a sponsor and travel the country bowling in rabbit squads trying to make the tournament field. I had a few friends who tried this lifestyle. I did not have the confidence and liked graduating college at age 22. Now, thanks to the World Series of Bowling, your travel expenses are somewhat minimized by a month's stay in Detroit and at least half of a PBA season is condensed into a short month.

The schedule includes seven Lumber Liquidators PBA Tour events, five PBA Women’s Series presented by USBC events including the inaugural PBA Women’s World Championship, a rejuvenated PBA Senior World Championship and at least nine side-event sweepers or shootouts providing “something for everyone” in competitive bowling.

Are you willing to give a month to pursuing a dream? My bowling is like a sine wave. If I could catch that month while my bowling is riding the top of the wave, I would love the experience. Otherwise, it would be a month-long embarrassment while my game is at the low point on the graphical wave. I like the "something for everyone" theme. Not all people have a month's vacation, but if us older guys have joined 'fantasy' camps for baseball, this should give the professional bowling experience a lot more reality. If I seriously practiced, and the location was a little closer to Alabama, I would try it. My window of opportunity is closing fast as I approach the 'senior bowler' status.