PBA Struggling Heading into 2014

[Aslan]

Here's a link to an interesting article about the state of the PBA and upcoming changes in 2014.

http://11thframe.com/news/article/6302

[zdawg]

That's not particularly good news. I haven't researched the history much, I just remember bowling being more prevalent when I was a kid in the 80's. We had a local chain of alleys called Bowl America (I think they still exist on the east coast), and they had commercials all the time (so did Putt Putt before they disappeared from the DC area), and bowling was on every Saturday.

I just think they need to do something to perk up public perception of bowling as a sport and interest overall, I would think there has to be some marketing/PR "A team" that can offer help with that, I know the poker boom was due in part to the proliferation of online poker, the hole card camera, but the fact that Chris Moneymaker won the world series in 03' certainly helped push it over the edge - the marketing teams took that ball and ran with it.

Not sure it would be possible for a total noob to ever show up at a major tournament and oust an all time great bowler, in fact I suspect it would be almost impossible. But take the fact that there is a PBA league in existence, I would NEVER EVER have known about it if I hadn't been watching the World Series of Bowling this year (due to my new bowling hobby) and wondered why these guys were wearing shirts with team names, and why the hell TO was on TV bowling LOL

[got_a_300]

It is not looking good for the PBA to be around several years
from now just like the WPBA folded and disappeared quite a
few years ago.

I truly hope they can can pull themselves up again and save
the PBA Tour from folding like it almost did back in what was
it 2000 I think it was or there abouts before the Redmon boys
stepped up and bought it out and saved it.

[tccstudent]

Not sure it would be possible for a total noob to ever show up at a major tournament and oust an all time great bowler, in fact I suspect it would be almost impossible.

You mean like Tom Smallwood did a few years ago

[Aslan]

You mean like Tom Smallwood did a few years ago

Ironically…a lot of the PBA "purists" don't like that idea. I think it would add excitement…but opinions vary.

[zdawg]

You mean like Tom Smallwood did a few years ago

Ah ok, I was unaware. I just started bowling 4 months ago, and following it on TV a few weeks ago...

But yeah, that's the kind of thing that sells well to the audiences, the thought that maybe some of these champs are regular everyday guys

[Aslan]

I think the PBA is trying to be more like Nascar where you have the same drivers every weekend…maybe they change uniforms every other year…but it's the same 30 guys. Unfortunately, fans haven't really responded with allegiance to a bowler or brand the way they did in Nascar. In Nascar most people have an allegiance to the car maker (Ford, Chevy, Dodge, etc…) and then choose a driver or two or three. For some reason bowlers with allegiance to Hammer, or Storm, or DV8…the allegiance just isn't as strong for some reason.

[J Anderson]

I think the main problem with the PBA league ( and the PBA in general) was trying to do it on the cheap. Any other team sport, the teams actually have a home field, stadium, or arena. While there have been teams like the Green Bay Packers under Lombardi, that have had a national fan base, the appeal of most teams is local. Had they had at least one week in each of the home cities it might have developed more of a local following.

[Bunny]

I think the main problem with the PBA league ( and the PBA in general) was trying to do it on the cheap. Any other team sport, the teams actually have a home field, stadium, or arena. While there have been teams like the Green Bay Packers under Lombardi, that have had a national fan base, the appeal of most teams is local. Had they had at least one week in each of the home cities it might have developed more of a local following.

The PBA has no "gate" so to speak. A big hurdle to overcome IMO.

[sprocket]

The PBA is doomed, period. Non-bowlers don't watch the PBA. There are no gimmicks that will make them watch. We can't go back in time anymore to when non-bowers were fascinated to watch the great skill of pro bowers. You now have top pros like Belmonte or Rash that can absolutely blow rack apart. It is very impressive and you would think it would be cool to watch even for a non-bowler. But it isn't. At least not enough to keep them coming back for more. The only hope is that it continues on just as advertising for ball companies and other stuff and that advertizing money will be enough to pay the bills. All the PBA is now is advertizing. They just hope enough bowlers will watch and then go out and buy more stuff.

The only tournament in recent years that I thought was really cool was the plastic ball tournament, but they cancelled that. Of course it wasn't a true plastic ball tournament because they were allowed to bring the surface down to like 240 and use whatever layout they wanted.