DANNY WISEMAN, DAVE ARNOLD GRANTED
DEFERMENTS FOR 2009-10 SEASON

At age 42, Baltimore’s Danny Wiseman was coming off a disappointing 2008-09 Lumber Liquidators PBA Tour season. Heading into the inaugural PBA World Series of Bowling in Detroit in August, he told his mother Dorothy that if he didn’t have a successful World Series, he was thinking about retiring.

On Aug. 11, while Wiseman was bowling the first round of qualifying in the Cheetah Championship, his bowling future was put on hold by a phone call. His stepfather advised Wiseman’s 73-year-old mother was in the hospital, in a coma after suffering a brain hemorrhage.

“I was on a plane and home by 5 p.m. that day,” Wiseman said. “I left everything where it was – my truck, everything in my hotel room. I flew back later and got everything and drove back home.”

Because his of mother’s long-term care needs, the 12-time PBA Tour titlist applied for a deferment for the 2009-10 season, which has been granted by PBA Commissioner and CEO Fred Schreyer.

As the Lumber Liquidators PBA Tour resumes action this week with the opening round of the Pepsi Red, White and Blue Open presented by the United States Bowling Congress at Northrock Lanes in Wichita, Kan., another well-known name will be missing from the field. Schreyer also has granted a deferment to veteran Dave Arnold of Dublin, Calif. The 45-year-old Arnold, who had regained an exemption through the 2008 Regional Players Invitational after a seven-year absence from the Tour, suffered a stress fracture in his lower back the day after the Motor City Open in Detroit.

The deferments mean two additional spots will be available at most exempt Tour events for the balance of the season. Both players remain eligible to bowl in “open” events if they are able to do so.

Wiseman isn’t sure what his future holds.

“You never know when things like this will happen,” he said. “Bowling is now secondary for me and it will be for some time. It could take up to two years. As bad as it was, my mother is defying the odds and fighting very hard.

“Bowling just is not important right now,” he added. “I’ve been out there (on Tour) for 20 years. I’ve had a pretty decent career. What happens in the future, I don’t know. I’m signed up for the Tournament of Champions, but it’s a wait-and-see kind of thing. If I feel like bowling, and there are no issues with my mom, I’ll bowl.”

Wiseman has faced other challenges during his career. His father died in 1992. He tore up his wrist. He was injured when he was rear-ended in an auto accident.

“I came back strong from those situations. I have learned when my back has been against the wall, I know now where I got my fight from – my mom,” he said.

On the good news front, Wiseman was inducted into both the Greater Baltimore and Maryland State USBC Bowling Halls of Fame in November.

Arnold, a three-time PBA Tour titlist, said his injury was either aggravated or caused by jogging as he tried to get in shape for his comeback.

“I knew it was bad, but I was unaware of the magnitude of the injury until I went to the doctor when I got home,” Arnold said. “Looking back on it, I believe it was the culmination of training too hard for the six weeks leading into the event. I was jogging four miles a day every day plus bowling. My body wasn't used to it.”

REYES, WEBB RECEIVE EXEMPTIONS TO BOWL IN EARL ANTHONY MEMORIAL

PBA Commissioner and CEO Fred Schreyer has awarded Commissioner’s Exemptions to Tony Reyes, San Bruno, Calif., and PBA Hall of Famer Wayne Webb, Sacramento, Calif., for the Earl Anthony Memorial which will be held Jan. 12-17 at Earl Anthony’s Dublin Bowl in Dublin, Calif.

JUREK WINS “VERSATILITY SWING” POINTS COMPETITION

Jack Jurek of Lackawanna, N.Y., was a runaway winner in the Versatility Swing points competition, based upon consistency in the five Lumber Liquidators PBA Tour “animal pattern” events held during the World Series of Bowling. Jurek, winner of the Shark Championship, compiled 67,192 points from the Cheetah, Viper, Chameleon, Scorpion and Shark Championships to top Cheetah champion Norm Duke of Clermont, Fla., by nearly 10,000 points. Jason Belmonte was third followed by Wes Malott, Steve Jaros, Sean Rash and Chris Barnes.

Jurek placed ninth in the Cheetah Championship, 23rd in the Viper, sixth in the Chameleon, eighth in the Scorpion and first in the Shark Championship. Rhino Page was Viper champion, Bill O’Neill won the Chameleon title and Mike DeVaney won the Scorpion.

The winners of the five events earned berths in the end-of-season PBA Experience Showdown presented by BOWL.COM which will be held in April in the new USBC International Training Center in Arlington, Texas.

SCROGGINS WINS “BOWLING FOR WISHES” SUPER REGIONAL IN WICHITA

As a prelude to the Red, White and Blue Open, PBA Tour star Sean Rash helped organize a “Bowling for Wishes” Super Regional event in Wichita. Reigning U.S. Open champion Mike Scroggins of Amarillo, Texas, topped a field of 160 to win the event Sunday at Thunderbird Lanes, defeating Mike Edwards of Tulsa, Okla., 224-210, 225-237 and 258-208 in the best-of-three-game title match. Scroggins earned $6,000; Edwards $3,300.

Edwards eliminated Ronnie Russell of Camby, Ind., 2-1, in the semifinal round while Scroggins ousted Patrick Alley of Wesley Chapel, Fla., 2-0, including a 300-277 win in their first game.

PLAYERS HAVE UNTIL THURSDAY TO CHALLENGE CHRIS BARNES

Players have until 10 a.m. Central on Thursday to bid up to $5,000 to take on Chris Barnes of Double Oak, Texas, in the Chris Barnes Challenge presented by Columbia 300. The three-game total pinfall match will be shown live exclusively on pba.com’s Xtra Frame online bowling channel Saturday at 3 p.m.

Barnes was the only player to pony-up $5,000 on his own money for a special “winner-take-all” contest during the PBA World Series of Bowling in August, so in cooperation with the PBA, he has decided to extend the challenge again. Any player – PBA Exempt Tour or otherwise – who thinks he/she can beat the 2007-08 PBA Player of the Year is invited to put up to $5,000 on the line by 10 a.m. Thursday. PBA Tour assistant tournament director Corey Kistner will officiate the contest which will be conducted on the “Blue” lane condition used in the Red, White and Blue Open.

There is currently a $500 bid on the line. Fan who would like to watch the live competition will need to sign up for Xtra Frame on pba.com, where the subscription service offers monthly and annual rates.

MATS KARLSSON HONORED AS SWEDEN’S GREATEST BOWLER

Mats Karlsson, the first international player to win a PBA Tour title when he won the 1986 Southern California Open in Riverside, Calif., was honored as the best male bowler in 100 years of organized bowling in Sweden during ceremonies recently held in Stockholm.

Karlsson went on to win three PBA Tour titles in addition to an AMF World Cup (1991) and 10 FIQ World Championship medals. Asa Larsson was selected as Sweden’s greatest woman bowler.

PBA STARS SPAN THE GLOBE DURING “BREAK”

During three months between the PBA World Series of Bowling and the resumption of competition in the Red, White and Blue Open, PBA Tour exempt players have been busy competing and promoting the sport around the world. Some of the highlights include:

# Tim Mack won the Samho Korea Cup in Inchon, South Korea, defeating Kim Yoon Ho, 237-232, for the first-prize equivalent of $24,850. Kim had eliminated Wes Malott, 49-39 in a two-frame roll-off after a 235-235 tie in the semifinal round, and Sean Rash, 243-215, in the previous match.

# Doug Kent defeated Hong Kong’s rising star, 15-year-old Michael Mak, 192-180, to win the Euro-Med Storm International Masters Challenge in Manilla, The Philippines, for a $21,000 payday. Mak had eliminated Koren women’s pro star, Cha Mi-Jung, who in turn had eliminated 2009 USBC Masters champion John Nolen, 210-200, in the first stepladder finals match. Rhino Page finished seventh.

Walter Ray Williams Jr. finished fifth in the QubicaAMF World Cup in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

# During a five-city promotional tour in Germany, Sean Rash bowled in the Bundesliga (German league), thrilling fans in attendance by rolling a 300 game.

# Finland native Mika Koivuniemi and a group of European friends who competed in the PBA World Series of Bowling (Finland’s Osku Palermaa, Sweden’s Martin Larsen and England’s Paul Moor and Dominic Barrett) upset American stars Chris Barnes, Tommy Jones, Pete Weber, Jason Couch and Tim Mack to win the 10th annual PartyCasino.com Weber Cup – a team, doubles and singles competition - in Barnsley, England.

# Austria’s Thomas Gross defeated first-year Lumber Liquidators PBA Tour competitor Stuart Williams, England, 246-231, to win the Vienna Open.

# Bill O’Neill led Team USA with gold-medal performances in men’s singles, all-events, trios and team in the Pan American Bowling Confederation Championships in Puerto Rico. Chris Barnes won three gold medals and Tommy Jones two.

# Australia’s two-handed sensation, Jason Belmonte, left his homeland for a four-city tour in the U.S., sponsored by USBC, to introduce his unique delivery to interested bowling enthusiasts.

# Rhino Page and Robert Smith participated in a series of Japan PBA pro-am challenge events, visiting with fans and providing instructional help.

That’s just a partial list of charity events, exhibitions and instructional clinics, and promotional appearances PBA Tour stars – men and women – made in doing their part to help create more awareness for the sport.

PBA staff in Seattle contributed as well. Sandra Magatteri, Lori Friedt, Barb Wilt and Tim Morelli attended a Special Olympics “Bowl for the Gold” fund raiser along with a pair of PBA regional members, Dean Buchannan and Adam Ahmad, working with the young people and their families.