onefrombills
11-24-2008, 03:49 PM
Australian bowling sensation Jason Belmonte (Orange, New South Wales) will follow up his stellar performance at the PBA World Championship in Wichita, Kan. earlier this year on the 2008-09 Lumber Liquidators PBA Tour. Belmonte, famous for his unorthodox two-handed bowling style, will compete in the next two tournaments on the PBA schedule, the CLR Carmen Salvino Scorpion Championship, Nov. 26-30, in Vernon Hills, Ill., and the PBA Cheetah Championship, Dec. 3-7, in Cheektowaga, New York.
"To be awarded these exemptions makes me feel very honored,” Belmonte said. “The opportunity the PBA has given me is something I will take with both hands (excuse the pun). I can't wait to bowl and be a part of these next two events. The PBA is the greatest bowling tour in the world, it's where I want to be. This is just a small chance I get to prove to myself that it's where I belong as a bowler."
Belmonte was granted a Commissioners Exemption into the tournaments. He will be placed directly into the field of 64 for both events.
“Jason’s unique abilities and transcendent personality justify this somewhat unusual action,” said PBA Commissioner and CEO Fred Schreyer. “Bowling fans worldwide are eager to see how he will measure up on bowling’s biggest stage against the greatest bowlers in the world.”
The 25-year-old Belmonte has enjoyed success on stateside lanes: he led qualifying at the PBA World Championship by 240 pins after 27 games in October 2008 where he went on to finish 10th.
Internationally, Belmonte has made a name for himself with wins on both the European and Asian Bowling Tours. In 2006 he became the first non-European to lead the EBT rankings midway through the season and he is the first bowler to have qualified for the World Ranking Masters in two separate zones (Europe and Asia) finishing seventh in both. He was also named the 2007 World Bowling Writers Bowler of the Year.
The finals of both the CLR Carmen Salvino Scorpion Championship and the Cheetah Championship will be broadcast live on ESPN at 1 p.m. EST on Sunday, Nov. 30 and Dec. 7, respectively.
"To be awarded these exemptions makes me feel very honored,” Belmonte said. “The opportunity the PBA has given me is something I will take with both hands (excuse the pun). I can't wait to bowl and be a part of these next two events. The PBA is the greatest bowling tour in the world, it's where I want to be. This is just a small chance I get to prove to myself that it's where I belong as a bowler."
Belmonte was granted a Commissioners Exemption into the tournaments. He will be placed directly into the field of 64 for both events.
“Jason’s unique abilities and transcendent personality justify this somewhat unusual action,” said PBA Commissioner and CEO Fred Schreyer. “Bowling fans worldwide are eager to see how he will measure up on bowling’s biggest stage against the greatest bowlers in the world.”
The 25-year-old Belmonte has enjoyed success on stateside lanes: he led qualifying at the PBA World Championship by 240 pins after 27 games in October 2008 where he went on to finish 10th.
Internationally, Belmonte has made a name for himself with wins on both the European and Asian Bowling Tours. In 2006 he became the first non-European to lead the EBT rankings midway through the season and he is the first bowler to have qualified for the World Ranking Masters in two separate zones (Europe and Asia) finishing seventh in both. He was also named the 2007 World Bowling Writers Bowler of the Year.
The finals of both the CLR Carmen Salvino Scorpion Championship and the Cheetah Championship will be broadcast live on ESPN at 1 p.m. EST on Sunday, Nov. 30 and Dec. 7, respectively.