Kelly Kulick is an American professional bowler, bowling coach and sportscaster. She has won ten professional women's bowling titles, one PBA Tour title and a professional mixed doubles title. Kulick is the first woman ever to win a regular Professional Bowlers Association tour title and the only woman to win a major PBA Tour tournament. She is a 16-time member of Team USA. Kulick is currently a pro staff member for Storm Bowling, Vise grips and High 5 gear. In 2019, Kulick was inducted into the USBC Hall of Fame, Superior Performance category.
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.
Carolyn Dorin-Ballard is one of the top female ten-pin bowlers in the world. She is a member of the Professional Women's Bowling Association and has bowled in PBA Tournaments as well. She was an exempt competitor in the 2008–09 and 2009-10 PBA Women's Series seasons, which were sponsored by the United States Bowling Congress (USBC). Between the PWBA and the PBA Women's Series, she has won 22 professional titles. Carolyn was a 2008 inductee into the USBC Hall of Fame, and a 2020 inductee into the PWBA Hall of Fame.
Elizabeth Ann Johnson is an American professional bowler who currently competes on the Professional Women's Bowling Association (PWBA) Tour, and in some events on the PBA Tour and PBA50 Tour. She initially became known as an 11-time winner on the PWBA Tour, which included the first of her six U.S. Women's Open titles in 1996, before that organization suspended operations in 2003.
The PBA Women's Series was a mini-tour for female professional bowlers. It was started in 2007 as a way to bring women's bowling back to television after the Professional Women's Bowling Association (PWBA) disbanded in 2003. Sponsored by the United States Bowling Congress (USBC) and its website bowl.com, it ran concurrently with several stops on the Professional Bowlers Association's men's tour.
Leanne Barrette-Hulsenberg, from Roseville, California and currently of North Ogden, Utah, was one of the top female professional bowlers on the Professional Women's Bowling Association (PWBA) Tour. In a career that spanned 17 years, she won 27 PWBA titles and was a three-time PWBA Player of the Year. In 2007, she was elected to the USBC Hall of Fame for Superior Performance, and was inducted with the 2008 class. She was inducted into the PWBA Hall of Fame in 2019, as a member of the first Hall of Fame class since that organization suspended operations in 2003.
Wendy Macpherson is an American ten-pin bowler. She was born on January 28, 1968, in Walnut Creek, California, and currently lives in Henderson, Nevada.
Shannon O'Keefe is an American professional bowler and bowling coach now living in Jacksonville, Alabama. She has competed in the United States and internationally, and is currently the head coach at Jacksonville State University. She is an 18-time member of Team USA (2005–2022) and an eight-time World Champion. She also won the 54th QubicaAMF World Cup in 2018 in Las Vegas. Shannon also won the 2019 Doubles gold medal at the Pan American Games in Peru.
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:
The Professional Women's Bowling Association (PWBA) Tour expanded from 10 events in 2015 to 13 events in 2016, with one additional major. The season ran from April 29 to September 4. CBS Sports Network aired the final round of all PWBA Tour events this season on a tape-delay basis, except for majors which aired the final round live. TV tapings of the non-major stepladder finals were conducted in conjunction with first three major tournaments on May 26, June 26 and August 7.
The 2017 Professional Women's Bowling Association (PWBA) Tour retained a similar schedule to the 2016 season, with nine standard tournaments and four majors. The season ran April 27 to September 6. CBS Sports Network aired the final round of all standard PWBA Tour events this season on a tape-delay basis. The final round for the major tournaments aired live or on same-day delay. TV tapings of the non-major stepladder finals were conducted in conjunction with first three major tournaments on May 23, June 25 and August 6.
The 2018 Professional Women's Bowling Association (PWBA) Tour retains a similar schedule to the 2017 season, with nine standard tournaments and four majors, but includes two changes. First, the final round of each standard tournament will now be contested in the bowling center where the qualifying rounds occurred. Second, the final three standard events of the year will feature an “Elite Field” of 24 bowlers, based on season-to-date points list, that are automatically placed into the top 32 for match play. The remaining players will bowl a qualifying round for the other eight spots in match play.
The 2019 Professional Women's Bowling Association (PWBA) Tour retained a similar schedule to the 2018 season, with ten standard tournaments and four majors.
Shannon Pluhowsky is an American left-handed ten-pin bowler who competes in the Professional Women's Bowling Association (PWBA) and internationally. Pluhowsky is a 22-time member of Team USA, and a former four-time member of Junior Team USA (2000–2003). Pluhowsky has eight professional championships, including major wins at the 2006 USBC Queens in Reno, Nevada, the 2014 BPAA Women's All-Star in Rockford, Illinois, and the 2021 PWBA Tour Championship in Reno, Nevada.
Bowling on CBS is the de facto title for CBS Sports' professional ten-pin bowling television coverage.
The 2021 Professional Women's Bowling Association (PWBA) Tour season had a total of 20 title events scheduled, the most since the 2001 PWBA season. Overall, the season had 16 standard singles title events, three major tournaments, and the Striking Against Breast Cancer Mixed Doubles tournament. All singles events were broadcast on BowlTV, the USBC’s YouTube channel, except for the season-ending PWBA Tour Championship, which was broadcast on CBS Sports Network.
The 2022 Professional Women's Bowling Association (PWBA) Tour season had a total of 12 title events scheduled in eight locations. These included 8 standard singles title events, three major title events, and one mixed doubles event. While the 2022 schedule had a reduced number of tournaments from 2021, there were more events televised and prize funds increased over previous seasons. All qualifying and match play rounds were broadcast on BowlTV, the PWBA's YouTube channel, as were five final rounds. Seven final rounds were broadcast on CBS Sports Network, including the finals of three major events: USBC Queens, U.S. Women's Open and PWBA Tour Championship.
While some locations have changed, the 2023 Professional Women's Bowling Association (PWBA) Tour season matches the 2022 season with 12 title events scheduled in eight cities. These include eight standard singles title events, three major title events, and one mixed doubles event. Final rounds of the season's three majors were all broadcast nationally on CBS Sports Network. All other tournaments were broadcast on BowlTV, the USBC's YouTube channel. The USBC Queens major was held at Sam's Town Bowling Center in Las Vegas, Nevada, the Tour's first stop at this venue since the 2000 season. Another 2023 highlight was the season-opening Stockton Open, which marked the PWBA Tour’s 100th event since its 2015 relaunch.
Aleta Sill is a retired American professional ten-pin bowler and current bowling coach from Dearborn Heights, Michigan. She competed nationally on the Professional Women's Bowling Association (PWBA) Tour from 1980 through 2001. In her career, the left-handed Sill won 31 titles, including six major championships. She was the first female bowler to eclipse $1 million in career earnings. Aleta is a 1996 inductee into both the PWBA Hall of Fame and the USBC Hall of Fame.
While some locations have changed, the 2024 Professional Women's Bowling Association (PWBA) Tour season matched the 2023 season with 12 title events scheduled in eight cities. These include eight standard singles title events, three major title events, and one mixed doubles event. Final rounds of the season's three majors are broadcast nationally on CBS Sports Network. All other events are broadcast on BowlTV, the USBC’s YouTube channel.
