Del Ballard Jr.

Last updated

Del Ballard Jr.
Personal information
Birth nameDelmas Perry Ballard Jr.
Born (1963-07-01) 1 July 1963 (age 60)
Keller, Texas, U.S. [1]
Years active1982-2007 (competition)
Height5 ft 10 in (178 cm)
Sport
Sport Ten-pin bowling
Turned pro1982
Achievements and titles
National finals13 PBA Tour (4 majors)
17 PBA Regional Tour
Medal record
Representing Flag of the United States.svg  United States
World Senior Championships
Silver medal icon (S initial).svg 2013 Las VegasFours [2]
Bronze medal icon (B initial).svg 2013 Las VegasDoubles [3]

Delmas Perry "Del" Ballard Jr. (born 1 July 1963) is a professional ten-pin bowler and member of the Professional Bowlers Association. He was a 2009 inductee into the PBA Hall of Fame, and a 2011 inductee into the USBC Hall of Fame. [4] Ballard is the husband of top female bowler Carolyn Dorin-Ballard with whom he has one daughter. The Ballard family now resides in North Richland Hills, Texas. He is also the brother-in-law of another top female bowler, Cathy Dorin-Lizzi.

Contents

In recent years, Ballard has appeared laneside in several televised PBA matches, as a ball representative and coach for Storm Bowling. [5]

Bowling career

Ballard entered the PBA Tour in 1982 at the age of 19. He won two titles in 1987, including his first major at the U.S. Open Championship which earned him a then-record $100,000. In 1988, Ballard won his second major, the ABC Masters. [1] (The Masters was not considered a PBA Tour event at the time, but is now recognized as a PBA title and a major). He went on to win two additional majors, the 1989 Firestone Tournament of Champions and the 1993 U.S. Open. In 1991, he had his most successful year on the tour, winning 4 titles. He won 13 PBA Titles in his career (all between 1987–1993) and has career total earnings of $1,130,857. He cashed in 259 of 482 tournaments. In 31 TV appearances (the championship round of a Tour event) he had a 30–21 record, with a 216.29 average.

Ballard received an exemption for the 2006–07 PBA tour season, by finishing tenth in the Tour Trials. He was unable to retain the exemption the following year.

No longer an active bowler on the standard PBA Tour, Ballard continues to work on tour as a ball rep/coach for Storm. He also manages the Motown Muscle PBA League team, while wife Carolyn manages the NYC Kingpins. [6]

The "Ballard Gutter-Ball" Moment

On March 2, 1991, Ballard was on the receiving end of one of the most bizarre and infamous incidents in PBA history. In the nationally-televised championship match at the 1991 Fair Lanes Open tournament in Baltimore, Ballard faced Pete Weber for the title. Weber closed off with three strikes in the tenth frame, putting Ballard in a position where he needed two strikes and at least seven pins on the third ball to win. Ballard did throw the two strikes that he needed, but the third shot unfortunately came too close to the right channel and fell in, thus handing Pete Weber the title. [7] Ballard recovered from this loss a few weeks later, defeating Jim Johnson Jr. to win the Long Island Open.

Ballard said the gutter ball incident changed him forever, and not in the way many would think:

"The next week was in New Jersey. As soon as I checked in, I received a phone call in my room. It was a male who asked if I was Del Ballard. I said 'yes'. The next comment...he says, 'you threw the ball in the gutter against Pete and it cost me, and now I’m going to get you.' I immediately hung up and called the front desk. I know I joke around a lot and expected some razzing from the guys, but they said this same person had called the hotel numerous times during the day from an outside number. I immediately checked out and changed hotels. I was a changed man from that day forward. I knew then the impact of what you do on the grand stage." [5]

Personal life

Ballard is married to Carolyn and has a daughter, Alyssa. [1] Alyssa is a standout freshman bowler for Vanderbilt University in 2022-23.

It was announced on PBA.com in August, 2010, that Ballard was battling tonsil cancer. He underwent chemotherapy and radiation treatments at Texas Oncology, an affiliate of Baylor University Medical Center, and prognosis for a full recovery was good. [8] Wanting to turn a negative into a positive, he and wife Carolyn, along with a few friends, got together after one of his treatments and organized the "Ballard vs. The Big C" bowling tournament. By 2017, the tournament had raised over $300,000, which was donated to Cancer Care Services, Baylor Health Care and the North Texas Laryngectomy Society. Ballard was recognized by the PBA for his efforts, being presented with the PBA Tony Reyes Community Service Award for the 2017 season. [9]

Notable facts

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Norm Duke</span> American professional bowler

Norm Duke is an American professional bowler who previously competed on the Professional Bowlers Association (PBA) Tour and now competes on the PBA50 Tour. He has won 40 titles on the PBA Tour, including seven major championships, and another six titles on the PBA50 Tour. A member of both the PBA and USBC Halls of Fame, Duke is one of only three players in history to reach 40 career PBA Tour titles. He has bowled 73 perfect 300 games in PBA competition, including the 16th televised 300 game in PBA Tour history on January 5, 2003. Duke is a member of the Storm pro staff.

Peter David Weber is an American semi-retired bowler in the Professional Bowlers Association (PBA) and a member of the PBA and USBC Halls of Fame. Weber was one of the sport's most active players and became known for his maverick, chirpy and rebellious personality. He is also known for being incredibly versatile, with his high backswing and the side rotation he puts on the bowling ball helping him control numerous oil conditions. Weber is featured in the ten-pin bowling sports documentary A League of Ordinary Gentlemen. He has won 37 titles on the PBA Tour, including ten major championships, and another 14 titles on the PBA50 Tour. He is one of only three bowlers in history to have amassed at least 50 combined titles between the PBA Tour and PBA50 Tour. Weber and Williams Jr. are the only two bowlers to have amassed at least 100 total PBA titles, with PBA Regional events added.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Walter Ray Williams Jr.</span> American professional ten-pin bowler

Walter Ray Williams Jr. is an American professional bowler and competitive horseshoes pitcher. He currently holds the record for all-time standard PBA Tour career titles (47) and total PBA earnings. He is a seven-time PBA Player of the Year, and won at least one PBA Tour title in a record 17 consecutive seasons. He starred in the ten-pin bowling sports documentary A League of Ordinary Gentlemen. As of June 26, 2022, Williams is also the all-time title leaders on the PBA50 Tour, with 16. He is a three-time PBA50 Player of the Year and has won three majors on that Tour. He has rolled 110 career perfect 300 games in PBA competition through 2019.

The USBC Masters is a championship ten-pin bowling event conducted by the United States Bowling Congress. The Professional Bowlers Association (PBA) began recognizing it as a title event in 1998, and it was designated one of the four majors in 2000. A PBA rule change in 2008 retroactively awarded a PBA title to any Masters winners prior to 1998 who were PBA members at the time of the victory.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chris Barnes (bowler)</span> American professional bowler (born 1970)

Chris Barnes is an American professional bowler and member of the Professional Bowlers Association (PBA), who currently competes on both the PBA Tour and PBA50 Tour. He has also competed internationally as a member of Team USA.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jason Belmonte</span> Australian professional ten-pin bowler

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. He is one of two bowlers in PBA history to have won the Super Slam, winning all five PBA major titles. He is the all-time leader in both USBC Masters and PBA Tournament of Champions titles, winning each event four times. He is also the only three-time winner of the PBA Players Championship.

Wayne Webb is an American professional bowler from Rehoboth, Massachusetts. He was known for his success from the late 1970s to the end of the 1980s. Webb is one of only 17 players in history to win at least 20 PBA Tour titles, and is a member of both the PBA and USBC Halls of Fame.

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 PBA Tour is the major professional tour for ten-pin bowling, operated by the Professional Bowlers Association. Headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, 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.

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.

Tom Baker is a professional bowler in the Professional Bowlers Association and a member of the PBA and USBC Halls of Fame. He has won 10 titles on the regular PBA Tour, and 12 more on the PBA50 Tour. He currently resides in King, North Carolina.

John Petraglia Sr. is an American professional bowler. He is a member of the Professional Bowlers Association (PBA), where he won 14 PBA Tour titles. He has also won eight PBA Senior Tour titles. He is a member of both the PBA and USBC Halls of Fame.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Liz Johnson (bowler)</span> American ten-pin bowler

Elizabeth Ann Johnson is an American professional bowler. She first became known as an 11-time winner on the Professional Women's Bowling Association (PWBA) Tour, which included the first of her six U.S. Women's Open titles in 1996, before that organization suspended operations in 2003.

Mike Aulby is a left-handed bowler and former member of the Professional Bowlers Association (PBA). He is one of only five PBA bowlers to win both a Rookie and Player of the Year award. He is also the first player in history to complete a career "Super Slam", in which a bowler wins all five PBA Tour major tournaments at least once. He has since been joined in this exclusive club by Jason Belmonte. Aulby owns 29 career PBA Tour titles, currently 9th place all-time, with eight major titles among these wins. He is a member of both the PBA and USBC Halls of Fame.

Amleto Monacelli is a Venezuelan professional bowler and a member of the Professional Bowlers Association (PBA). He has amassed 20 titles on the PBA Tour, making him one of only 17 players in history to accumulate at least 20 victories. He was the first international player to earn PBA Player of the Year honors, and the first to be inducted into the PBA Hall of Fame. He is also a member of the USBC Hall of Fame. In addition to his PBA Tour titles, he has won ten titles on the PBA50 Tour, including five majors.

Daniel Albert Wiseman is a right-handed professional ten-pin bowler who won 12 national titles as a member of the Professional Bowlers Association (PBA). He is a member of both the PBA and USBC Halls of Fame.

David Ozio of Beaumont, Texas is a retired right-handed ten-pin bowler and member of the Professional Bowlers Association (PBA). He won 11 titles on the PBA Tour, including one major championship, and was the 1991 PBA Player of the Year. He was the 2004 Senior PBA Rookie of the Year, and has won five titles on the Senior and Generations tours. Ozio is a member of both the PBA and USBC Halls of Fame.

John Handegard is a retired professional ten-pin bowler who has spent time on both the PBA Tour and the PBA Senior Tour. For over two decades, he ranked as the all-time leader in PBA50 Tour titles with 14, until being surpassed by Walter Ray Williams Jr. in 2021. Handegard is a three-time PBA Senior Player of the Year. On January 24, 2009, Handegard became the first inductee into the newly launched PBA Senior Hall of Fame. He is also a 2010 inductee to the USBC Hall of Fame in the Veterans category, and a 2019 inductee to the Oregon Bowling Hall of Fame.

Jeff Richgels, of Oregon, Wisconsin, is a former member of the Professional Bowlers Association who competes on the PBA50 Tour and PBA Regional Tour. He has won 30 PBA Regional titles.

2017 is the 58th season of the Professional Bowlers Association (PBA) Tour. The 2017 schedule includes 24 singles title events, two doubles title events, and one non-title team event.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Del Ballard Jr.. pba.com
  2. ↑ World Senior Championships 2013 – Men Team of Four [ permanent dead link ]
  3. ↑ World Senior Championships 2013 – Men Doubles
  4. ↑ Vint, Bill. "PBA Stars Ballard, Webb, Richgels Inducted into United States Bowling Congress Hall of Fame." Article at www.pba.com on 2 July 2011. Archived 11 November 2013 at the Wayback Machine
  5. 1 2 "Storm Athletes - Del Ballard". stormbowling.com. Retrieved 29 April 2021.
  6. ↑ Warner, K (18 May 2020). "PBA League Draft Results". pba.com. Retrieved 2 June 2020.
  7. ↑ YouTube video of Ballard's gutter ball
  8. ↑ Vint, Bill. "PBA Hall of Famer Del Ballard Jr. Successfully Battling Tonsil Cancer." Article at www.pba.com on 4 August 2010.
  9. ↑ Vint, Bill (17 January 2018). "Tuesday Jason Belmonte Wins Fourth Player of the Year Award; Sanders, Loschetter, Ballard Also Win 2017 Honors". pba.com. Archived from the original on 19 January 2018. Retrieved 18 January 2018.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.