Andrew Frawley
Member
Bowlers Journal Cover Story
"what happened to competitive bowling in Australia"
The reputation of Australian bowling hit new lows this week when its was revealed that the new 6 game world record set January 2012 was played on Non conforming lanes.
After the embarassing revelation of 2011 when a university student admitted that his 26 perfect games in a league season was played with a remote controlled gyroscopic bowling ball, the latest news about the perfect 6 gamer is not surprising.
Officials from the USBC flew to Australia in an attempt to ratify the world breaking 72 consecutive strikes bowled by Duanye Chestair, during a qualification round for his State team. USBC officials found the lanes to be only 56 feet long with a inch dish like depression in the lanes that guided the ball from the outside 10 boards into the strike pocket. The centre owner know as Mr C. when asked about the peculiar lanes replied
"there is no checking and nobody told us we couldn't have shorter lanes, in any case I only had room for 56ft lanes."
Speaking from his home kitchen which also serves as the office of Tenpin Bowling Australia, President Mr Sydney Pies admitted that Australia unlike most of the major bowling nations has not measured equipment like lanes and balls since 2009 due to a lack of funds. Since 2009 most Australian league bowlers did not pay a required $12 membership fee, the federation runs as a one man office, and is basically incapable of doing anything other than keeping a record of its ever dwindling numbers.
Australia has been out of the international scene since 2010 when its national body failed to pay international fees to the FIQ for its membership. Since then no Australian bowler has been allowed to compete on the international tournament circuit in Asia, especially the new million dollar Samsung Tour, because of the ban.
Australia's 5 time world bowler of the year Jason Belmonte, was forced to use his grandparents heritage and take up an Italian passport just to compete on the lucrative asian circuit because of the ban.
The following is a snapshot of competitive bowling in Australia today 2012..
# There is one National scratch event per year offering good prizemoney with the remaining national events catering for bowlers with an average under 190. Needless to say that 'sandbagging' is alive an well downunder, with many ex-national team players averaging 220+ to win these events, but during league can only manage a mid 180's average.
# Since the demise of the annual Rachiug State challenge, there has been huge interest in the restricted average events. A number of bowlers who compete in these events have multiple 300 games, with one player well renowned for his highest and lowest game in a series, a 300-110-300. With ten 300 games to his name he competes in the all the restricted events yet holds a yearly average of 178.
# The once popular junior nationals have disappeared and been replaced by 3 proprietor operated events all calling themselves "nationals" The State of Queensland has the most popular version. Mr Pies said TBA could not run these events due to to a lack of funds and a lack of volunteers maily due to the continual harrassment of previous tournament volunteers.
# After Qatar won the right to host the Olympic Games 2016 and included bowling as a sport, TBA has made many unsucessful moves to be included. The AOC simply stated that since the Australian Sports Commission did not support TBA by way of funding or whatever, Australia would not be sending a bowling team.
# The ASC ceased funding in 2008 after deciding that the board of TBA was being over influenced by proprietors of bowling centres.
The kitchen office of the TBA is a strong message to the USBC of what could happen if membership drops. Along with all equipment specification checks, all coaching programs and accrediatation, and record keeping has ceased. Basically all pathways to elite bowling that has been growing in the USA and Asia with its various schools programs are non existant.
Mr Pies revealed that many proprietors have mentioned to him that adult and especially junior league bowling was slowly dying as many bowlers who strive to be better players were finally realising that elite level 'scratch' bowling was 'dead' not coming back.
The five year ban imposed by the ASC on TBA funding is up for review in 2013. Those with the most passion for the game, many of them volunteers have now left the sport and few here believe that Australian bowling will ever return to the days of the National team gold medals and close to 100,000 league bowlers.
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Its just a story, but any of the above could happen.... my message is very simple. When all of us, passionate bowlers, centre operators, disgruntled bowlers and parents realise that the national body is there for only the very basic.....EQUIPMENT SPECS, COACHING PROGRAMS and as we all know PATHWAYS TOWARDS ELITE LEVEL BOWLING, we will be able to accept what is square one and start from there...right now we all think TBA should do this and that. I think the basics is a great start. Anything after that is a bonus.
A small membership fee does not go very far and whilst I believe it could be spent better, there is very few ways of giving back anything to the masses of regular league players....I think most of us realise that.
In 99% of the cases TBA is not to blame why league bowlers have left or won't join our sport. Proprietors and league bowlers themselves sell league bowling...the reason why there is a drop is that the product called league bowling is not what the customer wants these days.
I don't post very often , but when I do its normally I long one. I am coming back to Australia next year and will be working and operating the best centre in Sydney and hopefully Australia. We will support sport bowling and TBA and the proprientor groups in a joint effort to get more people playing this great game.
See ya then.
Andrew Frawley
"what happened to competitive bowling in Australia"
The reputation of Australian bowling hit new lows this week when its was revealed that the new 6 game world record set January 2012 was played on Non conforming lanes.
After the embarassing revelation of 2011 when a university student admitted that his 26 perfect games in a league season was played with a remote controlled gyroscopic bowling ball, the latest news about the perfect 6 gamer is not surprising.
Officials from the USBC flew to Australia in an attempt to ratify the world breaking 72 consecutive strikes bowled by Duanye Chestair, during a qualification round for his State team. USBC officials found the lanes to be only 56 feet long with a inch dish like depression in the lanes that guided the ball from the outside 10 boards into the strike pocket. The centre owner know as Mr C. when asked about the peculiar lanes replied
"there is no checking and nobody told us we couldn't have shorter lanes, in any case I only had room for 56ft lanes."
Speaking from his home kitchen which also serves as the office of Tenpin Bowling Australia, President Mr Sydney Pies admitted that Australia unlike most of the major bowling nations has not measured equipment like lanes and balls since 2009 due to a lack of funds. Since 2009 most Australian league bowlers did not pay a required $12 membership fee, the federation runs as a one man office, and is basically incapable of doing anything other than keeping a record of its ever dwindling numbers.
Australia has been out of the international scene since 2010 when its national body failed to pay international fees to the FIQ for its membership. Since then no Australian bowler has been allowed to compete on the international tournament circuit in Asia, especially the new million dollar Samsung Tour, because of the ban.
Australia's 5 time world bowler of the year Jason Belmonte, was forced to use his grandparents heritage and take up an Italian passport just to compete on the lucrative asian circuit because of the ban.
The following is a snapshot of competitive bowling in Australia today 2012..
# There is one National scratch event per year offering good prizemoney with the remaining national events catering for bowlers with an average under 190. Needless to say that 'sandbagging' is alive an well downunder, with many ex-national team players averaging 220+ to win these events, but during league can only manage a mid 180's average.
# Since the demise of the annual Rachiug State challenge, there has been huge interest in the restricted average events. A number of bowlers who compete in these events have multiple 300 games, with one player well renowned for his highest and lowest game in a series, a 300-110-300. With ten 300 games to his name he competes in the all the restricted events yet holds a yearly average of 178.
# The once popular junior nationals have disappeared and been replaced by 3 proprietor operated events all calling themselves "nationals" The State of Queensland has the most popular version. Mr Pies said TBA could not run these events due to to a lack of funds and a lack of volunteers maily due to the continual harrassment of previous tournament volunteers.
# After Qatar won the right to host the Olympic Games 2016 and included bowling as a sport, TBA has made many unsucessful moves to be included. The AOC simply stated that since the Australian Sports Commission did not support TBA by way of funding or whatever, Australia would not be sending a bowling team.
# The ASC ceased funding in 2008 after deciding that the board of TBA was being over influenced by proprietors of bowling centres.
The kitchen office of the TBA is a strong message to the USBC of what could happen if membership drops. Along with all equipment specification checks, all coaching programs and accrediatation, and record keeping has ceased. Basically all pathways to elite bowling that has been growing in the USA and Asia with its various schools programs are non existant.
Mr Pies revealed that many proprietors have mentioned to him that adult and especially junior league bowling was slowly dying as many bowlers who strive to be better players were finally realising that elite level 'scratch' bowling was 'dead' not coming back.
The five year ban imposed by the ASC on TBA funding is up for review in 2013. Those with the most passion for the game, many of them volunteers have now left the sport and few here believe that Australian bowling will ever return to the days of the National team gold medals and close to 100,000 league bowlers.
---------
Its just a story, but any of the above could happen.... my message is very simple. When all of us, passionate bowlers, centre operators, disgruntled bowlers and parents realise that the national body is there for only the very basic.....EQUIPMENT SPECS, COACHING PROGRAMS and as we all know PATHWAYS TOWARDS ELITE LEVEL BOWLING, we will be able to accept what is square one and start from there...right now we all think TBA should do this and that. I think the basics is a great start. Anything after that is a bonus.
A small membership fee does not go very far and whilst I believe it could be spent better, there is very few ways of giving back anything to the masses of regular league players....I think most of us realise that.
In 99% of the cases TBA is not to blame why league bowlers have left or won't join our sport. Proprietors and league bowlers themselves sell league bowling...the reason why there is a drop is that the product called league bowling is not what the customer wants these days.
I don't post very often , but when I do its normally I long one. I am coming back to Australia next year and will be working and operating the best centre in Sydney and hopefully Australia. We will support sport bowling and TBA and the proprientor groups in a joint effort to get more people playing this great game.
See ya then.
Andrew Frawley
