Tom Clark | |
---|---|
Commissioner of the Professional Bowlers Association | |
Assumed office November 1, 2011 | |
Preceded by | Fred Schreyer |
Personal details | |
Born | Thomas Peter Clark April 29,1969 Syracuse,New York |
Spouse | Kelli Quinn Clark |
Children | 2 |
Alma mater | Buffalo State University |
Thomas Peter "Tom" Clark (b. April 29,1969) is an American sports executive who has served as Commissioner of the Professional Bowlers Association (PBA) since 2011. Clark took over as commissioner following the retirement of Fred Schreyer,who had filled the dual role of PBA Commissioner and CEO since 2005. [1]
Clark was born in Syracuse,New York and attended West Genesee High School in Camillus,New York. He then attended Buffalo State University where he received his Bachelor's degree in journalism. [2] An avid bowler since early childhood,Clark says he chose Buffalo State specifically because it had a bowling program. He became a member of the school's bowling team and competed nationally. [3]
Clark spent over a decade in print journalism,including a stint as Sports Assignment Editor for USA Today . While filling that role,Clark says he pushed for better media coverage of bowling,feeling that the media "never treated bowling fairly." [3] As industry insiders read and responded to Clark's articles,it led to his first job in the bowling business as Chief Marketing Officer for the United States Bowling Congress (USBC) in 2005. [2] In April 2008,he was hired as Deputy Commissioner of the PBA,working under then-Commissioner and CEO Fred Schreyer.
Clark's time as Deputy Commissioner coincided with the collapse of the U.S. financial industry in 2008 and 2009. Faced with financial issues,the PBA and ESPN jointly worked on ways to cut costs. [4] One idea was to hold multiple tournaments in one location which could have the final rounds recorded and aired at a later date,thus saving on talent and crew travel costs. It also reduced the travel costs for PBA players,who are essentially independent contractors that take care of their own travel expenses. [4] The result was the very first PBA World Series of Bowling,which Clark takes credit for creating, [3] held August-September 2009 in Allen Park,Michigan. The World Series of Bowling continues through the present,and held its 15th annual event in April,2024.
Following Schreyer’s retirement in October 2011,his dual role was split. Tom Clark was promoted to PBA Commissioner (effective November 1,2011),while Geoff Reiss was named CEO. [1] With a staff of 19 people and a four-person advisory board, [5] Clark oversees the PBA membership,which numbers over 3,000 worldwide. The membership includes teaching professionals,but is mostly made up of bowling athletes who compete at all levels (PBA Tour,PBA Regional Tour,PBA50 Tour,PBA60 Tour,PBA Jr. and the recently added PBA League Bowler Certification program). Clark also oversees other agendas such as PBA sanctioned competitions,communications,sponsorships and media coverage.
In his early years as Commissioner,Clark presided over some key changes in the PBA:
In 2018,Clark oversaw the transition of the PBA's television media rights from ESPN (which had held the rights since 2001) to Fox Broadcasting. PBA Tournament broadcasts began airing on FS1 as well as Fox network terrestrial stations in the 2019 season. [6] In August 2023,the PBA and Fox agreed on a two-year extension of their broadcast partnership. [7]
Late in 2019,the PBA was purchased by Bowlero Corporation. Bowlero installed Colie Edison as CEO of the PBA,while retaining Clark as Commissioner. [8]
During the 2020 season,Clark presided over major scheduling changes as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The PBA was able to put on 14 title events this season,many held without an audience. [9]
In January 2022,Colie Edison resigned as PBA CEO to take a position with the WNBA. The CEO position has since remained vacant,making Clark the de facto leader of the PBA. [10]
After joining the USBC in 2005,Clark moved to Muskego,Wisconsin,where he currently resides with wife Kelli. The couple has two children,Rory and Quinn. [1] Rory is currently on the bowling team at Marian University in Fond du Lac,Wisconsin,after previously bowling for University of Wisconsin–Whitewater. [11]
In addition to his PBA duties,Clark briefly served as Director of Sport and Competitions for the International Bowling Federation (IBF) in late 2021. [12]
Ten-pin bowling is a type of bowling in which a bowler rolls a bowling ball down a wood or synthetic lane toward ten pins positioned evenly in four rows in an equilateral triangle. The objective is to knock down all ten pins on the first roll of the ball,or failing that,on the second roll. People approach modern ten-pin bowling as either a demanding precision sport or as a simple recreational pastime.
A perfect game is the highest score possible in a game of bowling,achieved by scoring a strike with every throw. In bowling games that use 10 pins,such as ten-pin bowling,candlepin bowling,and duckpin bowling,the highest possible score is 300,achieved by bowling 12 strikes in a row in a traditional single game:one strike in each of the first nine frames,and three more in the tenth frame.
Fred Schreyer served as the CEO and Commissioner of the Professional Bowlers Association (PBA). Schreyer joined the PBA in October 2002,serving as the Chief Operating Officer and General Counsel. He later became the PBA Commissioner in 2003. When Steve Miller resigned in September 2005,Schreyer took over the leadership of the PBA,but continued in his role as Commissioner,as well. After Schreyer retired in 2011,his role was split:Deputy Commissioner Tom Clark was promoted to Commissioner of the PBA and Geoff Reiss was named CEO.
Lynda Barnes is one of the world's leading female tenpin bowlers. She is a former member of the PWBA. Bowling as an amateur,Lynda won the 1998 USBC Queens championship,then known as the WIBC Queens. In 1999,Lynda married Chris Barnes,a leading bowler on the Professional Bowlers Association (PBA) tour. The couple's twin sons,Troy and Ryan,were born in May 2002. Lynda is a former member of Team USA.
Jason Belmonte is an Australian professional ten-pin bowler. He plays on the PBA Tour in the United States and in world events. He is known for being one of the first bowlers to gain media attention for using the two-handed approach style to deliver his shot. He has won 31 PBA titles,including a record 15 major championships;he is only one of eight bowlers in PBA tour history to achieve 30 wins,making him the only 30-time winner in PBA Tour history who is not currently a member of the PBA Hall of Fame.
The Professional Women's Bowling Association (PWBA) organizes and oversees a series of annual tournaments for the top competitive women ten-pin bowlers. The series is often referred to as the "women's tour" of bowling.
The PBA Tour is the major professional tour for ten-pin bowling,operated by the Professional Bowlers Association. Headquartered in Mechanicsville,Virginia,over 3,000 members worldwide make up the PBA. While most of the PBA members are Regional professionals,a small percentage of the bowling membership competes at the national and international level,forming the PBA Tour. Founded in 1958,the PBA Tour has been in continuous operation since the inaugural 1959 season.
The Professional Bowlers Association (PBA) is the major sanctioning body for the sport of professional ten-pin bowling in the United States. Headquartered in Mechanicsville,Virginia,the PBA membership consists of over 3,000 members worldwide. Members include "pro shop" owners and workers,teaching professionals and bowlers who compete in the various events put on by the Association.
Sean Rash is an American ten-pin bowler who is considered one of the top players on the Professional Bowlers Association (PBA) Tour. He currently owns 17 PBA Tour titles,including two major championships,and was the 2011–12 PBA Player of the Year. Rash has rolled two of his 30 career PBA perfect 300 games on television,making him the first player in history with multiple perfect games in the TV finals of a PBA Tour event. Canadian François Lavoie and American Chris Via,and Australian Jason Belmonte have since joined Rash in this exclusive club. Rash has also been on the losing end of four televised 300 games,more than any other player. Sean owns ten PBA Regional Tour titles.
This is a recap of the 2011–12 season for the Professional Bowlers Association (PBA) Tour. It is the tour's 53rd season,and the third straight season in which all of the first half events were condensed into the PBA World Series of Bowling (WSOB). The season consisted of 15 title events. This is also the final season in which the PBA is using an "exempt" player list. The "exempt" status for touring players will not be carried into the 2012–13 season.
Bowlero Corporation is an American bowling center operator. It is the largest ten-pin bowling center operator in the world with over 325 centers,almost all of which are located in the United States. The centers have an average of 40 lanes compared to the U.S. bowling center average of 21 lanes.
Anthony Walter Simonsen is an American professional ten-pin bowler. He has been a member of the Professional Bowlers Association (PBA) since 2014. Simonsen became known in bowling fan circles early in the 2016 season,when he earned the distinction as the youngest player in history to win a PBA major championship. He is now the youngest player in history to own five major PBA Tour titles. He uses the two-handed shovel-style delivery with a dominant right hand. At age 25,Simonsen eclipsed $1 million in career PBA earnings during the 2022 season. Simonsen has also bowled internationally as a multi-year member of Team USA.
The Professional Women's Bowling Association (PWBA) Tour returned from a 12-year hiatus in 2015,thanks to a three-year funding commitment from the USBC and BPAA. The 2015 tour had ten stops,running from May 13 to September 13. Major tour stops included the following:
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The 2019 PBA Tour season,the 60th season of play for the U.S. Professional Bowlers Association's ten-pin bowling tour,began in January 2019 with the PBA Hall of Fame Classic in Arlington,Texas. The season schedule had 27 singles title events,two doubles title events,and two non-title team events.
Jakob Butturff is a left-handed American ten-pin bowler from Chandler,Arizona and a member of the Professional Bowlers Association. He competes in events on the PBA Tour and in global events as a member of Team USA. He has won eight national PBA Tour titles and 27 PBA Regional Tour titles. Jakob also rolled the 28th of the PBA Tour's 35 televised 300 games.
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Bowling on CBS is the de facto title for CBS Sports' professional ten-pin bowling television coverage.
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