Chris Paul Welcomes Cast of Stars to 10th Anniversary CP3 PBA Celebrity Invitational

Terrell Owens, Mookie Betts, JJ Watt join PBA stars for Super Bowl Sunday special event’s debut on FOX

CONROE, Texas – National Basketball Association star Chris Paul will welcome an all-star lineup of athletes, entertainers and Professional Bowlers Association stars to his 10th anniversary CP3 PBA Celebrity Invitational, presented by Go Bowling!, when it makes its broadcast television debut on FOX on Sunday, Feb. 3 at 2 p.m. EST, at Bowlero at The Woodlands.

The Super Bowl Sunday special, benefitting the Chris Paul Family Foundation, will feature well-known athletes including returning competitors Terrell Owens, recently inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, and reigning American League MVP and World Series champion Mookie Betts of the Boston Red Sox, along with a guest appearance by Houston Texans superstar defensive end J.J. Watt. Also participating will be Paul’s Houston Rockets teammate PJ Tucker, Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver William Jackson III, and NASCAR champion Aric Almirola, driver of the No. 10 Go Bowling! Ford. Entertainers in the field will include Big Brother Season 20 star Tyler Crispen, model and Big Brother contestant Angela Rummans, and Grammy-nominated rapper/artist Bun B.

"This is totally different than any bowling I do during the summer or with my friends and teammates,” Paul said of his annual event. “The pressure is different, there are a lot of people here, the lights are bright, but I'll make sure I do enough to win." 

Regarding the 10th anniversary of the event, and its network debut on FOX, Paul added, “"It's crazy. I'm excited. It's amazing that it's been 10 years. I'm so grateful to the PBA and the bowlers, I can't say thank you enough."

The field of PBA stars will include Hall of Famers Norm Duke, Pete Weber and Chris Barnes; past PBA Players of the Year Jason Belmonte, Tommy Jones, EJ Tackett, Sean Rash and Andrew Anderson, and PBA Tour champion Kyle Troup. In the five-frame Baker format single-elimination match game battle for the prestigious Chris Paul trophies, Duke will be paired with Paul as defending champions, trying to help Paul claim the title for a record fifth time. Weber will again bowl with Owens, Barnes will be paired with Jackson, Jones with Betts, Tackett with Tucker, Belmonte with Almirola and Troup with Crispen. Rash and Anderson will engage in a two-minute “PBA Speed Strike Challenge” to determine who gets to bowl with Rummans.

The featured doubles competition will involve modified five-frame matches in which the PBA partner will bowl the sixth, eighth and 10th frames while the celebrity bowls the seventh and ninth frames. It’s a fast, fun format, but one that competitors take seriously, especially one as intense as Major League Baseball’s premier player in 2019, Mookie Betts.

"It means a lot,” Betts said. “It's tough to create friendships with athletes in different sports, but Chris Paul has been a great friend and great guy."

Despite his growing friendship with Paul, Betts has his eyes on the prize after losing to Paul and his PBA partners in the championship match the last two years.

"I can't lose again,” Betts said. “I lost the last two years. I can't lose again."

Also as part of the telecast, 2018 Teen Masters age-group winners Brandon and Justin Bohn (sons of PBA Hall of Famer Parker Bohn III), Tom Hankey Jr. and Jenna Williams; former University of Nebraska All-American Gazmine Mason, and PBA Tour champion DJ Archer, who will compete in a one-shot, low-count out “mini clash.” The winner will advance to a similar “super clash” with the celebrity stars.

The CP3 PBA Celebrity Invitational will air on FOX for the first time, and for the first time, PBA’s online streaming partner, FloBowling, will make the show available to its international subscribers. For more information, visit FloBowling.com. PBA fans also can watch a series of “red carpet” interviews with celebrity and PBA participants on PBA’s YouTube channel.

During the 2019 season, viewers can live stream the PBA shows on the FOX Sports app, through the FOX and FS1 streams. The shows will be available on desktop at FOXSports.com and through the app store or on connected devices including Apple TV, Android TV, Fire TV, Xbox One and Roku. In addition, all programs will be available on FOX Sports on SiriusXM channel 83 on satellite radios and on the SiriusXM app. For more information, visit FOX Sports Press Pass.           

HISTORY OF CP3 PBA CELEBRITY INVITATIONAL WINNERS (host city in parenthesis)

2018 – Norm Duke/Chris Paul (Houston)

2017 – Chris Barnes/Chris Paul (Los Angeles)

2016 – Pete Weber/Terrell Owens (Los Angeles)

2015 – Ronnie Russell/French Montana ((Los Angeles)

2013 – Chris Barnes/Chris Hardwick (Los Angeles)

2012 – Pete Weber/Jerry Ferrara/Blake Griffin (Los Angeles)

2011 – Jason Belmonte/Chris Paul (New Orleans)

2010 – Jason Belmonte/Chris Paul (New Orleans)

2009 – Jason Couch/LeBron James (Winston-Salem, N.C.)

HISTORY OF CP3 “CELEBRITY CLASH” WINNERS

2018 – Terrell Owens

2017 – Mookie Betts

2016 – John Burkett

2015 – Chris Paul

2013 – Quinton Aaron

2012 – Jesse Williams

2011 – Nelly