ABOUT | MISSION STATEMENT | JOIN THE USBC

About USBCThe United States Bowling Congress officially launched Jan. 1, 2005, as the organization to serve amateur adult and youth bowlers in the United States. It resulted from the merger of the American Bowling Congress, Women's International Bowling Congress, Young American Bowling Alliance and USA Bowling. Today, USBC serves more than 2 million members.USBC is the national governing body for bowling as recognized by the United States Olympic Committee.USBC stands for values that include: credibility, dedication, excellence, heritage, inclusiveness, integrity, philanthropy and sportsmanship.Mission
The United States Bowling Congress, as the national governing body, ensures the integrity and protects the future of the sport, provides programs and services and enhances the bowling experience.Vision
Grow the sport of bowling.Read More
Mission StatementThe United States Bowling Congress, as the national governing body, ensures the integrity and protects the future of the sport, provides programs and services and enhances the bowling experience.
Join the USBCBy joining the USBC you will become a part of a family of nearly 3 million members with access to the most exclusive offers, tournaments and opportunities available to bowlers throughout the United States. Enjoy USBC’s Valuable benefits and support the sport you love by becoming a USBC Member! Join USBC online or call 800-514-BOWL.

BENEFITS OF MEMBERSHIP PROGRAMS AND INITIATIVES

Benefits of Membership
Your USBC membership allows you to:
- Compete in certified league bowling – where each bowler has an internationally recognized average.
- Be eligible to compete in local, state, more than a dozen national USBC championships and other USBC-certified tournaments.
- Experience fair, competitive play with USBC-standardized rules and regulations.
- Be confident that your league money is safeguarded under USBC bonding protection.
- Receive a subscription to US Bowler or US Youth Bowler, USBC’s quarterly magazines. Adult members also receive the monthly US e-Bowler, USBC’s electronic newsletter.
- Earn individual and league awards based on standardized achievements.
- Access up-to-the minute bowling information on bowl.com, bowling’s premier Web site, featuring special member sections and chat forums, plus league and tournament standings.
- Locate a USBC-certified coach in your area by using the “Find a Coach” feature of the USBC Coaching section of bowl.com.
- Lead and grow the sport of bowling at the local level by becoming a USBC volunteer.
- Take pride in wearing and displaying your USBC official merchandise, available at USBC events and on bowl.com.
- Enjoy the fun and social opportunities of being a part of one of America’s largest participatory sport.
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Programs & InitiativesIn addition to numerous benefits, a USBC membership is an investment in bowling’s future, as it supports numerous programs and initiatives that ensure the sport’s continuous growth. These programs include:USBC Youth: Making bowling cool for kids through tournaments, scholarships and leadership opportunities.USBC High School: The national resource for America’s fastest growing high school sport.USBC Collegiate: Creating bowling opportunities to enhance students’ academic, athletic and personal development.USBC Team USA and Junior Team USA: Representing the United States in elite international competition.USBC Tournaments: More than a dozen national tournaments for youth, adults and seniors of all skill levels.USBC Coaching: Providing quality training programs and instructional tools for the bowling community.USBC Sport Bowling: Upholding the integrity of the game and providing the competitive bowling experience for those who are passionate about the sport.SMART: The Scholarship Management and Accounting Reports for Tenpins program is designed to help organizations set up, manage and disburse youth bowling scholarships as well as help USBC Youth members locate and ensure scholarship dollars for their continuing education.Registered Volunteer Program: Ensuring the safety of youth bowlers by introducing background screening and rules of behavior for USBC Youth volunteers.Equipment Specifications and Certification: Testing and research that enhance the sport’s credibility.Read More

ABOUT USBC | USBC LEADERSHIP | USBC COMMITTEES | EXECUTIVES | FINANCIALS

General Bowling HistoryFact. More than 66 million people in the United States bowl during a year. Fact. More than 2 million compete regularly in league play certified by the United States Bowling Congress. Staff at USBC Headquarters in Arlington works closely with about 3,000 local associations to serve over 2 million members.Bowling has soared into the upper echelon of sports, setting a steady pace by blending strong organization with modern centers in which to participate. Although the sport now appeals to people from all walks of life, entering a bowling center today would give few clues to its origin.Bowling has been traced to articles found in the tomb of an Egyptian child buried in 5200 B.C. The primitive implements included nine pieces of stone at which a stone "ball" was rolled, the ball having first to roll through an archway made of three pieces of marble.Another ancient discovery was the Polynesian game of ula maika, also utilizing pins and balls of stone. The stones were to be rolled at targets 60 feet away, a distance which today still is one of the basic regulations of tenpins.Bowling at pins probably originated in ancient Germany, not as a sport but as a religious ceremony. Martin Luther is credited with settling on nine as the ideal number of pins.The game moved throughout Europe, the Scandinavian countries, and finally to the United States, with the earliest known reference to bowling at pins in America made by author Washington Irving about 1818 in "Rip Van Winkle."The game was being played throughout the world and rules were different almost everywhere. Even basic equipment was not the same. In fact, why and when the extra pin was added from the European game of ninepins to the American game of tenpins still is a mystery.Regardless of how the game came into being, it became so popular by mid-19th century indoor lanes were being built throughout Manhattan and the Bronx and on westward, in Syracuse, Buffalo, Cincinnati, Chicago, Milwaukee and other cities with large German populations.In 1875, delegates from nine bowling clubs in New York and Brooklyn met in Germania Hall in the Bowery and organized the National Bowling Association. This was the first attempt to bring order out of chaos.Disagreement raged between East and West, principally the alignment of New York State bowlers against everyone else to the west. On Sept. 9,1895, the American Bowling Congress was organized in Beethoven Hall in New York City.A group of 40 women, encouraged by proprietor Dennis J. Sweeney of St. Louis, met at Sweeney's establishment in 1916 and formed what was known as the Women's International Bowling Congress.Read More
United States Bowling CongressThe initiative to create one organization to govern the sport of bowling started in January 2000 through a joint effort of the American Bowling Congress, Women's International Bowling Congress, Young American Bowling Alliance and USA Bowling.
ABC, founded in 1895, was a predominantly male organization of nearly 1.6 million members. WIBC, founded in 1916, was exclusively a women's organization with nearly 1.2 million members. YABA, founded in 1982, served bowlers younger than age 22 and had nearly 400,000 members. USA Bowling started in 1989 with the purpose of having a single organization represent the sport as the national governing body and support the national team. Merging the four organizations together would create one organization to serve more than three million bowlers nationwide.While all of the organizations had great histories, they provided many of the same programs and services to their constituents. Today's business climate demands that such duplication of efforts be eliminated. Following that logic, leadership determined that consolidating organizations with virtually identical programs and services while expanding services to bowlers made good sense, assuring the continuity of valued programs and services for adults and youth.
Benefits of the merger:
- It would provide consistent service to men, women and youth bowlers by eliminating the current duplication in the membership organizations.
- It would be a better way of doing business; it would cost far less to do business together than separately.
- It would provide one-stop shopping for league secretaries, members and proprietors.
- Associations would spend less time in meetings and performing administrative duties providing more time to be with the bowlers.
- Nearly 75 percent of adult bowlers told us they wanted to be together by competing in mixed leagues.
- It would take advantage of the growth of family activities.
- It would provide for unified marketing opportunities.
The first step was to form the Single Membership Organization Task Force to research the concept. Later, experts in non-profit mergers and consolidations were consulted. After initial reports by the Task Force in 2001, two ad hoc committees, which included local/state association leaders, were appointed by the organizations to further develop the plan.After listening to feedback from thousands of members, convention delegates, association officials, national board members and others, the committees presented its status report in spring 2002. Further modifications led to a proposal presented to the respective merging organizations boards of directors who approved the plan in November 2002.Because the backbone of ABC and WIBC was their grassroots structure, one more step was required before the merger could move forward. While governed nationally from its offices in Greendale, Wis., ABC and WIBC had traditionally relied on a network of about 50,000 volunteers at approximately 4,000 state and local associations. Another 2,000 state and local associations and about 5,000 volunteers aided YABA, whose ultimate authority was vested in its national board of directors.About 4,000 of the ABC and WIBC volunteers, elected to represent their constituents back home, voted on rules, dues and bylaws by which organizations operate at annual conventions. As the ultimate voting authority for ABC and WIBC, any merger proposal had to be approved by a two-thirds majority of each voting body.The original plan of merger was approved by 50 percent of the ABC delegates and 60 percent of WIBC delegates. That show of support prompted organizational leaders to form an industry task force to revise the plan for another vote in 2004. In May 2004, 76 percent of ABC and 71 percent of WIBC delegates approved the merger. The YABA and USA Bowling boards of directors also approved the merger.The ensuing months were spent putting the new organizations infrastructure together. The USBC Board of Directors held its first meeting in late June, the same month the organization applied to the United States Olympic Committee to become the sports national governing body. Roger Dalkin, the organization's first CEO, was selected in October 2004 after which he began to put together his operational staff.On Jan. 1, 2005, the official launch of USBC signaled a new era in organized bowling. One of USBCs major goals is to become the central brand for bowling in the United States. It plans to do this by positioning the organization to grow the sport, encouraging more people to participate and increasing the power of the brand.USBC stands for values that include: credibility, dedication, excellence, heritage, inclusiveness, integrity, philanthropy and sportsmanship.
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American Bowling CongressABCs roots can be traced to many people. One was Thomas Curtis, who became ABC's first president and chaired several historic meetings that produced an organization that succeeded where others had failed.
The adoption of rules at the Sept. 9, 1895 meeting in New York's Beethoven Hall, and most important, the distribution of nearly 1,000 copies by mail to bowling groups in many parts of the United States, was the move which created interest and trust in the fledgling group. Within a few months, there were members in Buffalo, N.Y., Cincinnati, Lowell, Mass., Boston, Chicago, St. Louis, Wheeling, W. Va., Kansas City and Quebec.After that, representatives of local, state and provincial associations like these have annually met in convention to review rules and consider proposed changes. Also elected were officers and directors, all of whom serve voluntarily and without pay. The only exceptions were the executive director and assistant director, who oversaw the home office staff.
Service was ABC's aim since its early days. Service began when a league formed and applied for sanction. The sanction, with membership cards distributed to each bowler, gives ABC a record of its membership and entitled the league and its members to the following services:
- Automatic bonding to protect bowler funds from theft, burglary and misuse.
- Awards for every level of achievement from 300 games to 700 and 800 series to league champions, most improved league bowlers and those who bowl a game of 100 and a series of 150 or more pins above or more pins above average.
- Essential tools for league officers including rulebooks, schedules, handicap charts, average calculators and other aids.
- Rules advice and counseling.
- Free tournament sanctioning.
- Equally important in maintaining standard bowling conditions are the programs of lane certification and equipment testing and research. Every lane is checked and measured each season to assure it meets ABC/Womens International Bowling Congress specifications. Pins, automatic pinsetting machines, scoring devices and other allied equipment undergo thorough and lengthy testing before receiving approval for use in ABC sanctioned league or tournament competition.
- Publicizing the inner workings of the Congress, as well as the feats of bowlers coast to coast, is the role of the Public Relations department. Bowlers were as well informed as any sports group in the world through ABC's membership publication, American Bowler and through news releases, pamphlets, brochures and other publications.
Although the service programs have been thorough, new groups created special attention. In 1963, ABC added a Seniors program and designed a complete set of services for the nation's senior citizens. The ABC National Seniors Tournament for men 55 and older was initiated in 1964 and expanded to reach every state in 1982.In 1966, a Collegiate Division was initiated by the Congress to provide a program for the nation's college men while at the same time bridging the service gap between junior and adult competition.With the formation of the Young American Bowling Alliance in 1982, the Collegiate Division became a part of that organization. It was returned to the ABC/WIBC in 1998 and renamed College Bowling USA.The most spectacular of ABC's many services was the national championship tournament, the oldest bowling event in the nation. A fixture on the sports scene since 1901, it is unrivaled as a participant spectacle. Held in America's major cities, the ABC Tournament runs 12 to 16 hours daily for more than 100 consecutive days.On lanes specially-installed in public arenas, as many as 17,000 teams and 92,000 individuals participate each year. The prize fund exceeds $4 million.ABCs glamour event was the Masters, which matched the world's greatest bowlers in head-to-head double elimination competition following qualifying round play. Each match consists of three games throughout the competition unless the finals are televised. In that event, a stepladder format takes precedent.ABC started a new tournament in 1992 aimed at bringing the sport back to its team roots. The World Team Challenge features a nationwide qualifying tour leading to a Grand Championship.In conjunction with WIBC, ABC launched the Festival of Bowling in 1999. It provides a wide variety of formats for bowlers to enter as often as they like. It later became the National Mixed Championships.Whether through leagues or tournaments, ABC provided its members options, all with the aim of having fun.
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Team USA BowlingFounded as the United States Tenpin Bowling Federation in the summer of 1989 by the American Bowling Congress and Women's International Bowling Congress, USA Bowling was the worldwide representative of the United States in international competition until the formation of USBC in 2005.Governed by a 12-member board which included three athletes, USA Bowling was recognized as the sport's governing body in the United States by the U.S. Olympic Committee and the Federation Internationale des Quilleurs.USA Bowling coordinated all amateur international competition promoted by USOC or FIQ, and conducted the National Amateur Bowling Championships. In addition, it was the leader in providing instruction and coaching programs to help bowlers improve.Prior to USTBF's founding, ABC and WIBC jointly held Group C status with the USOC as bowling's governing body since the sport's acceptance by the USOC in 1986. The USTBF was eventually established to comply with the USOC Constitution and the Amateur Sports Act adopted by Congress in 1978. The USOC granted Group A membership to the USTBF in 1989.The Team USA bowling program was initiated by ABC and WIBC in 1986 with the first National Amateur Championships. Dan Nadeau of Las Vegas and Cora Fiebig of Madison Heights, Mich., were the first men's and women's national amateur champions.The United States has been represented in international competition since the 1930s when the late Dr. Joe Thum, a New York City proprietor later elected to the ABC Hall of Fame, organized teams to travel to Europe. Prior to the 1936 Olympics in Berlin, Germany, a large delegation of male bowlers participated in a special event.The FIQ was formed in 1951 with nine countries but now boasts more than 100 member nations. It first applied for International Olympic Committee recognition in 1963, but was continually refused until being officially recognized in 1979. Bowling was an official exhibition sport in the 1988 Games.The U.S. did not become a FIQ member until 1961, making its official international debut in the 1963 FIQ World Championships in Mexico, dominating the competition. Since that time other nations have improved tremendously, increasing the competition for the Americans.Read More
Women's International Bowling CongressThere are many colorful stories about when women began bowling in the United States. Seniors reminisce about the turn of the century, when their mothers or grandmothers sneaked in with (or without) their husbands to try out the bowling game. Often they did so at the risk of their reputations.Tales are told about women bowlers being screened off from view behind partitions or drapes or being allowed to bowl only when men were not using the alleys. Those were the days of high button shoes, skirts to the ankles, cumbersome apparel and tenpin accommodations that were hardly appealing.Old photos document scenes of women bowling as early as the 1880s. The first recorded formalized bowling for women began in 1907 in St. Louis, when Dennis J. Sweeney, a bowling proprietor and sports writer, organized a women's league.Inklings of national interest also were being shown. That same year (1907) many women accompanied their husbands to the American Bowling Congress Tournament in St. Louis, as they had been doing for several years. In St. Louis the women laid plans to hold their own tournament, the following year, on ABC Tournament lanes in Cincinnati after the annual men's event had concluded. A second women's tournament in 1909 followed the ABC event in Pittsburgh.Records show little activity until 1915, when Ellen Kelly, an avid bowler, formed the St. Louis Women's Bowling Association. Buoyed by her success, she wrote to proprietors across the country asking for names of women who might be interested in a national organization of their own. She followed with letters to those women, urging the organization of local associations and offering advice on rules and establishing an organization.By the Fall of 1916 in St. Louis, Sweeney was there to help Mrs. Kelly stage the first "national tournament." There were eight teams entered and champions were decided in team, doubles, singles and all events. The prize fund was $225.Following the tournament those 40 women from 11 cities met at Sweeney's Washington Recreation Parlor and created the national organization that became after several name changes - the Women's International Bowling Congress. Fifty years later a charter member described the initial tournament as "frankly plain, there were eight alleys and four rows of benches for visitors a small counter square in back of the benches was used to sell soda pop, popcorn, peanuts, etc." She also recalled that the "meeting was more of a social gathering, and we gave little thought that it would develop into such a big organization."The 40 pioneers elected their first national officers and adopted a constitution and bylaws that included the following purposes: To provide, adopt and enforce uniform rules and regulations governing the play of American tenpins; to provide and enforce uniform qualifications for tournaments and their participants; to hold a national tournament, and to encourage good feeling and create interest in the bowling game.Those original precepts became the foundation of WIBC, which has developed into the largest sports organization in the world for women. The 40 pioneers set the pattern for today's 1.2 million WIBC members, who bowl in more than 60,000 sanctioned leagues in approximately 2,700 local associations in every state and several foreign countries.That humble national tournament -- with its eight-team entry -- was the forerunner of what is now the largest women's sports event in the world. In tact, the 1997 WIBC Championship tournament held in Reno, Nev. attracted 14,872 five-woman teams, the largest entry for any team tournament in history. There were 88,279 individuals, a womens world record.That first tentative gathering on the benches in Washington Recreation Parlor has evolved into a model of bowling democracy, the WIBC annual meeting. More than 3,000 delegates representing local and state associations attended the WIBC annual meeting to adopt rules and select national leaders. Similar annual meetings at local, state and provincial levels assure the self-government concept. Nationally, WIBC was governed by a board of directors elected by the delegates. Administrative policies and procedures were implemented by a staff at WIBC headquarters in suburban Milwaukee.Along with growth and development came a multiplicity of services. Leagues received a wealth of rule books, record keeping materials and prepackaged kits to keep them functioning smoothly. Local, state and provincial associations benefited from a variety of materials to help them conduct their affairs more efficiently, ranging from handbooks, information sheets and forms to educational seminars, workshops and counseling from staff members and field representatives. A bonding and insurance program provided by WIBC covered association and league funds. A tournament sanctioning program was another important service.A description of WIBC's awards for members would fill a chapter in itself. They recognized achievements within the realm of every bowler, from the beginner to the world champion.From its humble beginnings, WIBC stood for tradition, friendship, fun, competition, leadership and success. It has meant this and more to the millions of women who proudly called WIBC my organization.Read More
Board of DirectorsJeff Boje
President
Jeff Bojé, Tampa, Fla., has been associated with the sport of bowling for nearly 45 years and became USBC's second president and chairman of the board on Aug. 1, 2007 after spending three years as a USBC director. He presides over a 25-person volunteer board of directors and serves as its principal spokesperson.In 2006, Bojé completed two terms as president of the Bowling Proprietors’ Association of America. He has served as chair of the BPAA Membership-State Relations, Pepsi/Beverage, Audit, Board Governance Policies Review, Budget and Finance, Awards, Executive Evaluation and Strategic Planning committees. He has been a member of the Awards, Association Action and Research and Study committees, as well as the Bowler TRAC, BPA Structure and Contemporary Bowling Association Task Forces. He previously served as BPAA secretary-treasurer and vice president. He also has been a BPAA director-at-large. He is a 2000 recipient of BPAA’s Special Projects Award for his work on BPAA’s new strategic plan. Bojé will remain on the BPAA Board of Directors until 2010 as past president.Bojé serves on the National Bowling Forum, Bowling Foundation, International Bowling Museum and Hall of Fame and Strike Ten Entertainment Boards of Directors. In the past, he served as BPAA’s representative on the Joint Industry Planning Group that oversees the industry high school bowling, coaching and technology initiatives.Bojé currently sits on the Bowling Centers Association of Florida Board of Directors after having served as vice president and secretary treasurer.Away from bowling, Bojé is a certified public accountant. He also is a co-owner and operator of his family-owned bowling centers; Brandon Crossroads Bowl in Tampa, Fla., and Sunset Lanes in St. Louis. He and wife Sherrie have five children.Read More
Darlene BakerDarlene Baker
President Elect
Darlene Baker, Mahomet, Ill., who became USBC vice president Aug.1, 2007, has been associated with the sport of bowling for more than 40 years. Her involvement at the national, state and local levels has established her as a leader among her peers.At the national level, Baker was a USBC director from 2004-07, serving as chair of the Strategic Planning Committee. She previously served as a director on the Young American Bowling Alliance, Women's International Bowling Congress and USA Bowling boards of directors.She has been on the Illinois USBC Women's Bowling Association Board of Directors since 1993 and served as third vice president for nearly six years. She has been a director on the Clinton (Ill.) USBC for two years, and is serving her first year as third vice president of the Champaign Area USBC. She also has served on the Illinois State USBC Youth Board since 1994, with eight years as second vice president. She was Illinois Bowling Council secretary-treasurer for eight years and spent 20 years on the Clinton (Ill.) WBA Board, including three years as president. She is a member of the Clinton WBA Hall of Fame and Illinois WBA Hall of Fame, both for meritorious service.On the lanes, she won eight titles in the 1989 Clinton (Ill.) WBA championships. She also is a certified lane inspector.Baker bowled a high series of 675 to finish fourth in the USBC Championships Tournament Classified Division in 2006.Away from bowling, Baker is employed as director of finance and administration for Planned Parenthood of East Central Illinois. She and her husband Randy have four children and two grandchildren. She enjoys spending time with her family, reading, crocheting, crafts, flower arranging and serving on the board of the University of Illinois Women's Volleyball support group, the Networkers, since 1998, serving six years as president.Read More
Board of DirectorsTommy Gann
2 ^nd Vice President
Tommy Gann’s 40-plus-year involvement with the sport of bowling is marked by his service as a volunteer administrator at the local, state and national levels. A member of the Sapulpa (Okla.) Bowling Association Hall of Fame, Gann has served as Sapulpa BA president since 1986. He was an American Bowling Congress director for six years and was a member of the Young American Bowling Alliance Board of Directors for five years.Gann also serves as the commissioner of high school bowling in Oklahoma and was chairman of the ABC/WIBC Collegiate Committee.Gann was selected as the 2004 Jim Thorpe Man of the Year for bowling for the state of Oklahoma. The Man and Woman of the Year Awards recognize individuals who have made a significant impact or have attained an exceptional degree of accomplishment in a sport as a major contributor, administrator, leader, path maker or competitor in the state of Oklahoma.He owns a 299 high game.Away from bowling, Gann is a retired teacher, coach and assistant principal at Sand Springs Schools and currently is employed as a loan officer at Great Plains Mortgage in Tulsa, Okla. He is a member of the National Education Association and the Oklahoma Education Association, in addition to being a member of the Oklahoma Coaches Association. He and wife Leah have two children. He enjoys golf, fishing, travel and coaching youth bowlers.Read More
Board of DirectorsAndrew Cain
3 ^rd Vice President
Andrew Cain, Scottsdale, Ariz., is a three-time member of Team USA (2002, 2003, 2005) and was a member of Junior Team USA in 2001. The 2001 U.S. Amateur champion and two-time first-team Collegiate All-American was named the 2002 United States Olympic Committee Bowler of the Year and 2001 Bowling Writers Association of America Amateur Bowler of the Year.He finished fourth in the 2007 Dick Weber Classic, his first event after joining the Professional Bowles Tour.Cain started bowling at age 12 in California. He finished 10th in the first Junior Gold Championships in 1998, credentials that helped him earn the 1999 Chuck Hall Star of Tomorrow. He was a first-team All-American at Arizona State University in both the 2000-01 and 2001-02 seasons after earning second-team honors in 1999-2000.His biggest year as an amateur came in 2001. In addition to being named the 2001 BWAA Amateur Bowler of the Year, he was the BWAA Collegiate Bowler of the Year runner-up. He partnered with Amy Rocco to win the Association of College Unions-International Mixed Doubles championship and, competing in the ABC Masters, he qualified second against 480 of the world's best bowlers. He also five gold medals and one silver in the Tournament of the Americas.Internationally, he brought home a silver medal from the 2003 WTBA World Championships, was ninth in the 2003 WTBA World Tenpin Team Cup and second in the 2002 ABC World Team Challenge Grand Championship. A semifinalist in the 2002 AMF World Cup, Cain won the 2002 ABC World Team Challenge Phoenix qualifier and the 2002 High Roller Sweeper.He has rolled numerous 300 games and has an 845 high series.Read More
Board of DirectorsTamoria Adams
Secretary
Over the past 30 years, Tamoria Adams, Charlotte, N.C., has been an avid bowler and a dedicated leader at the national, state and local levels.Adams served as a director and fifth vice president and third vice president of the Women’s International Bowling Congress during her 10 years on the WIBC Board of Directors. She also was a member of the USA Bowling Board of Trustees.Her past bowling positions include Team USA state coordinator; Charlotte Women’s Bowling Association director and president; North Carolina WBA director; first vice president and president; North Carolina Bowling Council secretary; and WIBC and North Carolina WBA delegate.Adams has served on numerous committees including WIBC’s Joint Diversity, Legislation, Association Governance and Collegiate committees.She also has earned several honors including being inducted into the Charlotte WBA Hall of Fame in April 1995 for meritorious service and being a Charlotte WBA Life Member. She also was included into the former North Carolina WBA Hall of Fame for Meritorious Service.Adams serves as the current president of the Greater Charlotte USBC Association; president of the North Carolina State USBC Association and chair of the board of trustees of the Greater Charlotte Bowling Scholarship Fund. This season, she also serves as chair of the National Policy committee.Adams has four Charlotte (N.C.) WBA titles to her credit, in addition to career-highs of 164 average, 258 game and 599 series.Away from bowling, Adams enjoys golf, listening to classical music, operas, theater, gaming and cheering for the Duke University Blue Devils. She and husband Jerry have two children.Read More
Board of DirectorsLynda Barnes
Director
Lynda Barnes, Double Oak, Texas, is in her record 11th year as a member of USBC Team USA. She started 2008 strong by winning both the USBC Queens and Bowling's Clash of Champions. She beat top professional bowler Sean Rash for the latter title after earning her spot by winning the 2007 Team USA Trials.Internationally, she collected two silver medals and one bronze at the 2007 Women’s World Championships. The 2005 QubicaAMF World Cup champion also collected two silvers and two bronze medals at the 2005 Women’s World Championships.She earned three gold medals, one silver and one bronze at the 2005 American Zone Championships; two gold and one bronze at the 1997 American Zone Championships; a silver at 1996 World Tenpin Team Cup; five gold at the 1996 Tournament of the Americas; two gold and one silver at the 1989 World Youth Championships; gold, silver and two bronze at the 1989 American Zone Championships; a gold at the 1991 Pan American Games; and silver and bronze at the 1991 World Championships.Among her other achievements are: 1995, 2005 and 2007 U.S. Amateur champion; 1998 and 2004 USBC Women's Championships doubles champion (set record score in 2004 with Carolyn Dorin-Ballard); 1997 British Open champion; gold medal at 1997 United Arab Emirates Invitational; gold medal at 1997 Africa Cup; and 1989 Association of College Unions International champion.She bowled briefly as a professional, winning the 1999 Professional Women's Bowling Association doubles title with Kim Terrell.A member of two National Collegiate Bowling Championships women's national runners-up at San Jose State (Calif.) University, Barnes is a member of the Columbia 300 professional staff.She was inducted into the World Bowling Writers Hall of Fame in January 2007. Other honors include 2005 World Bowling Writers Female Player of the Year; 1991, 1998 and 2005 Bowling Writers Association of America Amateur of the Year; 1997 and 2005 Bowlers Journal International Amateur of the Year; 2004-05 and 2005-06 Bowlers Journal International All-America team; 1998 USOC Athlete of the Year for Bowling; 1996 Bowlers Journal Amateur All-America team; 1991 Bowling Writers Association of America Amateur of the Year; 1989-90 National Collegiate Bowling Coaches Association Most Valuable Player; 1988-89 and 1989-90 Bowling Writers Association of America Collegiate Player of the Year; 1988-89 and 1989-90 National Collegiate Bowling Coaches Association; All-America first team; 1989 Alberta E. Crowe Star of Tomorrow; 1989 National Collegiate Bowling Championships All-Tournament team; 1986-87 and 1987-88 National Collegiate Bowling Coaches Association All-America second team.She is married to professional bowling star and fellow Team USA member Chris Barnes. They have two children.Read More
Board of DirectorsKayla Chick
Director
Chick, 19, is a sophomore at Iowa State University where she is majoring in microbiology with the intention of attending veterinary school. She is active in the Iowa State marching band; playing the clarinet, and bowls on a regular basis when time allows from band and studying.The Muscatine, Iowa, native was the 2008 USBC Female Youth Ambassador of the Year. She was a member of the National Honor Society while at Muscatine High School. She bowled on the school's varsity team, was first chair clarinet in the wind ensemble, head drum major of the Mighty Muskie marching band and president of the science club. She also was president of both the Muscatine Future Farmers of America and her local 4-H.Chick is involved in the Microbiology Club at Iowa State and Tau Beta Sigma, a national band sorority. When she is not riding or showing her horse or playing the clarinet she can be found bowling.Read More
Board of DirectorsBarbara Chrisman
Director
Barbara Chrisman, Pleasant View, Utah, began bowling as soon as she could hold a bowling ball. She joined the junior leagues at age 11 and has been bowling in a certified league ever since. She bowled her first WIBC Championship Tournament at the age of 19. Chrisman has held many league offices and was secretary and president of the Ogden Utah 600 club.Chrisman successfully managed and operated her own industrial supply company and in 1985 Chrisman and her husband Bill started Storm Products, Inc. Through her business knowledge and bowling awareness, she assisted in growing Storm Products, Inc. into an internationally recognized manufacturer of bowling balls, bags and accessories. With a genuine concern for the sport of bowling, Chrisman was instrumental in developing sponsorship programs for all areas of bowling competition.Chrisman is an advisor to the International Bowling Museum and Hall of Fame Salute Committee and is an invited industry advisor to the BPAA.Off the lanes, Chrisman loves to golf and is a member of the Breakfast Exchange Club of Ogden, Utah.Read More
Board of DirectorsPerry Daniels
Director
Perry Daniels, Carrollton, Texas, has been involved with the sport of bowling for nearly 30 years, and has proven his leadership both on and off the lanes. Daniels, a member of The National Bowling Association, has held TNBA leadership positions such as local senate president, member of the Constitution Committee, Southern regional tournament director, national president, national king, national life member and marketing director.On the local level, Daniels served as American Bowling Congress director for the Greater St. Louis Bowling Association.He retired after 30 years of service to IBM Corporation and had owned his own service industry business for five years. He is currently the President of the Dallas Basketball Officials Association. On the lanes, Daniels has amassed a 290 high game, a 760 high series and a 196 high bowling average.Daniels and his wife of 24 years, Linda, have four children and nine grandchildren. He bowls in one USBC league and is an avid golfer.Read More
Board of DirectorsCarolyn Dorin-Ballard
Director
Carolyn Dorin-Ballard, North Richland Hills, Texas, is the director of development for the Bowling Proprietors' Association of America Foundation and a coach in BPAA's Coach-It-Up program.A star high school, collegiate and professional bowler, she also serves as spokesperson for the USBC High School program. She also currently works on the professional staffs of Brunswick, Dexter Shoes and Turbo 2-N-1 Grips.Dorin-Ballard has a bachelor of arts degree in communications with a minor in marketing from West Texas A&M University. She owned a line of women's bowling shirts called Carolyn's Collection. She previously worked on the professional staffs of Ebonite International and Storm Products.The 20-time Professional Women's Bowling Association winner captured the inaugural event on the 2007 Professional Bowlers Association Women's Series presented by USBC. She also was a semifinalist in the 2007 U.S. Women's Open, a USBC event. She spent seven years as PWBA player president and extensive time as a color analyst for PWBA telecasts. Seven of her titles came in 2001 when she tied the record for most titles in a season. Among those wins was the Women’s International Bowling Congress (now USBC) Queens.She joined the Professional Bowlers Association shortly after the PWBA ceased operations in 2003 and competes regularly in regional and national events. In 2006 her Together Once Again team won the USBC Women’s Championships Classic Division title with a record 3,350 total. She also has won the 2004 WIBC Tournament doubles crown and 2001 all-events title. In August 2005, she rolled back-to-back 300 games in a PBA regional event.Prior to joining the professional ranks, she was a three-time All-American at West Texas State University (now West Texas A&M) and was a standout bowler at Linden High School in Linden, N.J.She and her husband Del, a 2009 PBA Hall of Fame inductee, have one daughter.Read More
Board of DirectorsMargaret (Libbi) Fletcher
Director
Margaret (Libbi) Fletcher is the president of the Metro Detroit USBC Bowling Association and has extensive experience as a leader and administrator at the local, state and national levels.She was a director for the Women’s International Bowling Congress for four years serving on the Strategic Planning, Certification Review, Collegiate, Transition and Bowling Technology Task Force committees, among others.Fletcher, who is a sales support specialist for Logicalis, an international provider of high-performance IT integration solutions, was instrumental in the merger of Detroit area local associations, serving as chairperson for the transition committee for the merger of the Detroit Women’s Bowling Association, Greater Detroit B.A., Greater Detroit Young American Bowling Alliance Association and Pontiac (Mich.) WBA.Fletcher was the 2004-05 Detroit WBA Woman of the Year. She was a 2001 Pontiac WBA doubles champion, has a high average of 180, high game of 268 and high series of 689.Read More
Board of DirectorsNicholas Hoagland
Director
Nicholas Hoagland, Indianapolis, is currently employed as the Chief Operating Officer for Harris Diversified, LLC., a business management company based in Indianapolis.Prior to his current position, the Indiana University star bowler served as the Director of Tournament Marketing for Columbia 300 and as the Manager of Consumer Programs for the Professional Bowlers Association.Hoagland helped develop the PBA Tour's pro-am business, exempt tour model, and lane maintenance program which evolved into the patterns used in PBA Experience Leagues. He also has created lane patterns and conditioned lanes for the USBC Masters and USBC Senior Masters.A bowler since age 5, Hoagland was a four-year member of Indiana University's bowling team. He also is the 1997 Collegiate Masters champion and won the 2001 USBC Open Championships singles title.Read More
Board of DirectorsSuzanne Huebel
Director
Suzanne Huebel, Oscoda, Mich., is a youth committee representative on the USBC Board of Directors after serving more than a decade on the committee. She has been the proprietor/manager of the 12-lane Vista Lanes for more than 25 years, managing employees and organizing the center's youth leagues.She was on the Bowling Proprietors' Association of America Youth Committee for 10 years and helped resurrect the In-School Bowling Program. She also has volunteered at the USBC Junior Gold and Pepsi Championships for many years.The Bronze level coach was the secretary-treasurer on the board of directors of the former Young American Bowling Alliance in its final season in 2004-05. She also has served as president of the Northern Michigan Bowling Proprietors Association.Before involvement with the bowling center, she was a secretary for a high school for six years and a bank teller for four years.In 2006, she was one of 17 people to earn the distinguished Proprietor of the Year award from the Bowling Proprietors' Association of America.Read More
Board of DirectorsMichael Italia
Director
Michael Italia, of Warrington, Pa., currently is an assistant manager for Limerick Bowl. Previously, he worked for the Montgomery County Industrial Development Corporation as a consultant. Italia holds a bachelor’s degree in business management and administration from the University of Phoenix, and holds many certificates in fire and rescue services. He serves as a fire marshal and career firefighter, and has used bowling as a fundraiser for local non-profit groups.A third-generation bowler and a member of USBC and the former American Bowling Congress and Young American Bowling Alliance for more than two decades, he has a 299 high game and 756 high series. He has won two junior league tournaments and several adult tournaments. He also enjoys coaching youth bowlers and helping form new leagues and getting new members.In 2006 he joined the Professional Bowlers Association as a full member and bowls in regional events in his spare time. He currently resides with his wife, Tami, his daughter, Johanna, and his son, Luciano. Read More
Board of DirectorsBob Klatt
Director
Bob Klatt, Prior Lake, Minn., is self employed. He owns Bowler Bob LLC and facilitates team building events and speaks to groups using bowling metaphors to teach his can-do positive “Klattitude” success strategy. He holds a Master's degree in business with a focus on leading and managing organizational change from the University of St. Thomas, Minneapolis.He has accumulated extensive business and management experience in privately and publicly held companies in various industries (construction, hospitality, information technology, manufacturing, real estate, recreation, sporting goods, and textiles). He worked in corporate marketing at G&K Services headquarters and as director of marketing and sales for the Lind Shoe Company.Bob worked five years in management at Cedarvale Lanes, Eagan Minn., home to 65+ leagues. He hosted successful tournaments including PBA regional’s, World Team Challenges, the Amateur Bowlers Tour and Minnesota Junior Bowlers Tour. He also orchestrated Special Olympic fundraising events. Bob has conducted marketing seminars and provided consulting services to small and large bowling centers.He is a former nine-year PBA member with multiple 300 games. Bob is a volunteer coach for the Prior Lake High School bowling team. He also umpired professional minor league baseball and trains youth baseball umpires. Bob is proud that he worked on the assembly line at John Deere in his hometown of Horicon, Wis.Read More
Board of DirectorsWendy Macpherson
Director
Wendy Macpherson began 2009 in stellar fashion being elected to the USBC Hall of Fame. She was inducted May 1 at the USBC Convention in Reno, Nev.The 20-time Professional Women's Bowling Association champion and 2008 and 2009 Team USA member made her presence known on the women's scene as an 18-year-old amateur when she won the Women's U.S. Open for her first title. Since then she became the youngest woman to win the tour's Triple Crown, captured three USBC Queens titles, was selected Woman Bowler of the Year four times and became the all-time earnings leader in women's professional bowling with $1.2 million in 2003 when the PWBA ceased operations.Macpherson also is the only woman to win a USBC Open Championships title, firing an 812 series to win the 2006 Regular Singles crown in Corpus Christi, Texas.Read More
Board of DirectorsTony Manna Jr.
Director
Tony Manna Jr. has served six times on Team USA (2004, 2002, 2001, 2000, 1999 and 1998). He earned three gold and two silver medals in 2002 Tournament of the Americas, three gold medals and one bronze in the 2001 Federation Internationale des Quilleurs American Zone Championships, a gold medal in the 1999 Pan American Games, a silver medal in the 1999 FIQ World Championships and a silver medal in the 1998 FIQ World Tenpin Team Cup.A member of the Nebraska State and Omaha Bowling Hall of Fames, he was the 1994 Collegiate Bowler of the Year runner-up at the University of Nebraska and Intercollegiate Bowling Championships Most Valuable Player. Manna is a Senior Administrator at West Corporation in Omaha.Manna is a graduate of the University of Nebraska where he also was a member of the bowling club and served as president from 1992-94. Also a member of the Omaha Bowling Hall of Fame, he was the 1994 Collegiate Bowler of the Year runner-up and Intercollegiate Bowling Championships Most Valuable Player. His high game is 300 and his high series is 826.Read More
Board of DirectorsLavonne (Mitch) Mitchell
Director
Lavonne (Mitch) Mitchell, Buford, Ga., has been associated with the sport of bowling for more than 40 years.President of the recently merged Greater Atlanta USBC Association, Mitchell served as Young American Bowling Alliance president for four years. He also was an American Bowling Congress Director for 11 years.Mitchell was co-chair of the Single Membership Organization Structure Ad Hoc Committee. He is a current member of the Greater Atlanta Bowling Association Board of Directors including two terms as GABA president. He also is a former member of the Lake-Geauga (Ohio) BA Board of Directors.An avid league bowler since 1963, he rolled a career-best 298 game and 796 series in 1997 and also has a 234 triplicate. He is a certified youth bowling instructor. He also is the Georgia State Seniors 2000 all-events and singles champion.His off-lanes service has earned him induction into the Greater Atlanta BA and Georgia BA Halls of Fame.Away from bowling, his activities include being the retired president/owner of Allied Label Printing Systems, a specialty printer and converter. He and wife Janet have one child. He also enjoys traveling, golf, reading, acting and collecting coins and stamps.Read More
Board of DirectorsStephen Moehrle
Director
Stephen Moehrle is an associate professor of accounting at the University of Missouri-St. Louis. A bowling center employee during his youth, Moehrle has been in his current position for eight years. Prior to that, he served on the faculties at the University of Southern California and the University of California-Irvine. He also served as an associate instructor while completing the doctoral program at Indiana University. Before entering the academic profession, he was a member of the Ernst & Young audit staff and accounting policy officer at Citicorp Mortgage, Inc.Moehrle received a Bachelor of Science degree in business administration from the University of Missouri-St. Louis, a master of business administration from St. Louis University and a master of accounting and a doctorate in business from Indiana.He has previously served as an ambassador for the Missouri Society of Certified Public Accountants "Lead and Enhance the Accounting Profession" initiative and as treasurer of the University of Missouri-St. Louis Alumni Association Executive Board since 2000. He was a member of the Missouri Society of Certified Public Accountants Board of Directors from 2004-06 and the Center for Teaching and Learning Advisory Board from 2005-07.Moehrle bowled competitively for highly-regarded teams at Missouri-St. Louis and Indiana, the latter as a teammate of USBC Vice President-Media Pete Tredwell. He also won several scratch tournaments and was a long-time officer in the Junior Archway program in the St. Louis area. A200+ average bowler in St. Louis area leagues, Moehrle owns four 300 games and an 809 high series.Moehrle, wife Jennifer and their three children live in St. Louis.Read More
Board of DirectorsJay Nephew
Director
The Dallas resident is self-employed, providing marketing services for LEKI USA, Inc, the world's largest manufacturer of outdoor sporting poles. Nephew also is co-owner of www.DrillSheet.com, a free online data storage site for bowlers and pro shop owners.Previously, Nephew worked for AMF Bowling, where he was named "Manager of the Year" in 2004. Nephew also spent several years with Marcel Bowling Enterprises, managing one of the largest facilities in the U.S., the former 80 lane center Olympic Bowl in Rochester, N.Y. Among his duties was as special events coordinator for the Lilac City Tournament. He also helped orchestrate the Professional Bowlers Tour in Rochester.Nephew began his bowling career at age 3, becoming the youngest bowler in his small hometown of Plattsburgh, N.Y., to be certified at that time. Since then, Nephew has amassed a variety of bowling accomplishments, including the High Roller A-Game, World Team Challenge titles and the Rochester New York Masters. Nephew has competed in several PBA events and has traveled internationally to South Africa, where he captured the Menlyn Open title.Read More
Board of DirectorsJames Peters Jr.
Director
James Peters Jr., Naperville, Ill., has worked as a vice president with Washington Mutual Bank since 2003. Before that he worked for three years as a personal financial representative for Old Second National Bank after three years as manager at Express/Limited Corp.He has served on the Board of Directors of Habitat for Humanity and been an active volunteer with Junior Achievement and a major sponsor for the Junior Achievement Bowl-A-Thon.He also served in the U. S. Navy as a Naval rescue swimmer during the Persian Gulf war.An avid bowler for more than 25 years and a longtime league secretary, he helped start the girls bowling program at Morton East High School in Cicero, Ill. His high average is 188, his high game is 278 and his high series is 680.Read More
Board of DirectorsJim Sturm
Director
Jim Sturm, South Charleston, W.Va., is the president-elect of the Bowling Proprietors Association of America. He has worked with numerous bowling centers in West Virginia and Indiana and presently owns and operates Dunbar Bowling Center, a 12-lane center along with his wife Missy.Before becoming BPAA vice president in 2006, he was BPAA Secretary-Treasurer after sitting on BPAA’s Board as an At-Large Director. As BPAA President-Elect, he serves as Chairman of the board of Strike Ten Entertainment.In addition to being one of the nation’s most successful small center operators, Sturm is a highly success bowling coach. He has been recognized nationally as one of the top 100 coaches in the United States.Sturm led a group of bowling coaches and professionals in developing the successful Coach It Up program that was launched in June 2005. He is a member of numerous USBC and BPAA national committees. A former professional bowler with two regional titles, he has bowled professionally and received many accolades as an amateur scholastic bowler. He is a graduate of the Vincennes University Bowling Lanes Management program and a graduate from West Virginia State College with a degree in Business Administration/Marketing.He has rolled multiple career 300 games and has a high series of 855. He owns a 219 high average.Read More
Board of DirectorsMarci Williams
Director
Marci Williams, Wichita, Kan., recently retired from Learjet, Inc. after 34 years, the last 20 as a corporate tax analyst. For 15 years she served on Learjet's management association board and the company's employees' association board.She has been Great Plains USBC Association president since 2005 with the association being named 2005 BPAA Association of the Year.A bowler for more than 35 years, Williams had a record qualifying round at the 2007 USBC Senior Queens. She was part of a team that won several Brunswick World Team Challenge women's events in the 1990s. She was named 2006-07 Great Plains USBC Senior Bowler of the Year.Read More
Board of DirectorsTom Bluth
Director-At-Large
Tom Bluth, a Davie, Fla., resident and son of USBC Hall of Famer Ray Bluth, was appointed in May 2008 to complete the unexpired term of Pete Tredwell plus serve the 2008-09 season beginning Aug. 1.Bluth has been executive vice president, chief financial officer and general counsel for Ellis Diversified, Inc. in Fort Lauderdale since 2003. A member of the American Bar Association and the Missouri Society of Certified Public Accountants, he has spent most of the past two decades in similar positions for several companies. He previously served as a member of the board of directors of ABCO, a for-profit subsidiary of the American Bowling Congress.Bluth earned his bachelor's degree in business administration from Washington University in St. Louis in 1979. He added advanced degrees in law (J.D. and LL.M.) from the school in 1982 and 1987.He started his work career in 1980 as a supervisor for Touche Ross & Co. in St. Louis. After five years, he became an assistant tax director for Southwestern Bell Corporation before moving to Florida in 1989. He worked in Maryland from 2000-03 before returning to Florida for his present position.Bluth is married with four children.Read More
Audit Committee
This Committee is to ensure that all financial matters of the organization are conducted legally, ethically, and in accordance with proper accounting rules. This committee is independent of the Finance Committee and will give the Board assurance that audited financial statements are accurate and comprehensive and reduce any possible conflicts of interest between outside auditors and paid staff of USBC.
James Peters, Chair
Kayla Chick
Sue Huebel
Vernon Peterson
Joe Spain
Susan Merrill, Staff Liaison
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Awards & Recognition Committee
Perry Daniels, Chair
Lynda Barnes
Barbara Chrisman
Tommy Gann
Sue Huebel
Bob Klatt
Wendy Macpherson
Jason Overstreet, Staff Liaison
BVL Committee
This Committee serves as the liaison to the Bowlers to Veterans Link.
Darlene Baker, Chair
Gary Anderson
Tony Manna
Diversity Committee
This Committee is to grow the sport of bowling through the commitment of the USBC leadership and staff in bringing diversity to all phases of the organization.
Libbi Fletcher, Chair
Barbara Chrisman
Perry Daniels
Carolyn Dorin-Ballard
Bob Klatt
Jay Nephew
Eric Kearney, Staff Liaison
Equipment Specifications Committee
In concert with the USBC Strategic Planning Committee, this Committee shall proactively maintain and protect the integrity of the sport of Bowling. It shall be guided by the USBC Vision to "Grow the Sport".
This Committee shall make final decisions regarding all equipment on which USBC approval is requested. This Committee shall also set policies and procedures regarding equipment, specifications and all activities associated with regulating bowling center certificates.
Tony Manna, Chair
Lynda Barnes
Andrew Cain
Carolyn Dorin-Ballard
Nicholas Hoagland
Jay Nephew
Mark Robey (Technical Advisor)
Gary Schenk (Technical Advisor)
Scott Sterbenz (Technical Advisor)
Jim Sturm
Steve Kloempken, Staff Liaison
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Executive Committee
This Committee has the authority to act on behalf of the Board when it is impossible or impractical for the Board to act and it is in the best interests of USBC. The Committee is comprised of five (5) members of the board, all of whom are elected by the Board to serve a one-year term beginning August 1 and ending July 31 of each year.
Tamoria Adams, Secretary
Darlene Baker, President Elect
Jeff Boje, President
Andrew Cain, 3rd Vice President
Tommy Gann, 2nd Vice President
Executive Director Review Committee
The purpose of this Committee shall be to carry out the Board of Directors' overall responsibility relating to executive compensation.
Mitch Mitchell, Chair
Darlene Baker
Lynda Barnes
Tommy Gann
Stephen Moehrle
Finance Committee
This Committee’s purpose is to ensure the appropriate financial structure is in place to support the overall organization needs and strategic direction of the USBC and its subsidiaries.
Tom Bluth, Chair
Gary Anderson
Debbie Boje
Michael Carroll
Stephen Moehrle
Marci Williams
Susan Merrill, Staff Liaison
Hall of Fame Committee
This Committee shall be dedicated to recognizing the outstanding bowlers and bowling contributors. Individuals will be recognized in the following categories: Superior performance (men and women), veterans and meritorious service.
Joan Feinblum, Chair
Nicholas Hoagland, Board Member
Mike Aulby
Cindy Carroll
Fran Deken
Jim Dressel
Anne Marie Duggan
Paul Egbers
Dick Evans
Steve James
Bob Johnson
Virginia Norton
Chuck Pezzano
Jan Schmidt
Linda Scott
Bob Sobon
Bill Spigner
Lyle Zikes
Pete Tredwell, Staff Liaison
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Legal & Legislative Committee
This Committee reviews proposed legislation, discusses items submitted by staff, other committees and if needed, may propose legislation or work with another committee to propose necessary legislation. Responsible for ensuring due process for members and athletes and to maintain the integrity of the sport of bowling.
Tamoria Adams, Chair
Andrew Cain
Carolyn Dorin-Ballard
Sue Huebel
Mike Italia
Tony Manna
Marci Williams
Mike Spridco, Staff Liaison
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National Policy Committee
This Committee’s purpose is to maintain approved policies and when needed to make recommendations to the Board.
Tamoria Adams, Chair
Andrew Cain
Carolyn Dorin-Ballard
Sue Huebel
Mike Italia
Tony Manna
Marci Williams
Bob Schoneman, Staff Liaison
Nominating Committee
This Committee prepares the slate for Board of Directors elections and selects the slate of Youth Committee members for Board approval.
Karen Jost, Chair
Andrew Cain
Barbara Chrisman
Nicholas Hoagland
Sue Huebel
Jay Nephew
Dan Patterson
C. Deane Smith
Marci Williams
Stu Upson, Staff Liaison
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Strategic Planning Committee
This Committee’s purpose is to create the strategic plan (vision, mission, values, etc.) for Board review and adoption; manage plan implementation and regularly report progress to Board.
To monitor, evaluate and refine the USBC Strategic Plan and ensure its continuation by creating additional plan(s) using input, tools and resources. Further concerns are to measure USBC’s current standings, further identify USBC’s needs for a productive future and develop a timeline to meet those needs.
Libbi Fletcher, Chair
Kayla Chick
Barbara Chrisman
Nicholas Hoagland
Bob Klatt
Wendy Macpherson
Jay Nephew
Jim Sturm
Stu Upson, Staff Liaison
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Youth Committee
This Committee monitors and promotes USBC youth programs. It also makes recommendations regarding youth-specific benefits; youth-specific events; youth leader programs and elects the three (3) Youth Representatives to the Board. This committee also presents recommended rule changes and youth dues to the USBC Board.
Tommy Gann, Chair
Josh Blanchard
Kayla Chick
Barbara Council-Armstead
Jeffrey Frye
Erik Galganski
Elbert Gibson
Sue Huebel
Paul Kreins
Kyle Mauerman
Mitch Mitchell
Frank Wilkinson
Lyle Worsley
Brian Graham, Staff Liaison
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ExecutivesStu Upson
Executive Director
Stu Upson joined the USBC on July 13th, 2009. He brings 20 years of sports and entertainment business management experience and a proven track record of success in a variety of organizations. Upson previously served as senior vice president for Skip Barber Racing, the world's largest automotive education and entertainment company.Based in Lakeville, Conn., Skip Barber Racing operates more than 1,000 events annually at more than two dozen venues across North America offering driving training, amateur and professional race series and corporate programs. While at Skip Barber Racing, Upson was instrumental in a corporate turnaround from bankruptcy in 2001.His leadership helped generate double-digit annual revenue growth, create new customer service quality guidelines and return the company to profitability. Prior to his position at Skip Barber Racing, Upson served as senior vice president for Venue3D, a joint venture between the William Morris Agency and Mills Corporation to provide marketing consulting services for retail developers and properties.Upson also spent four years as senior vice president of sports and entertainment marketing for First USA Bank. At First USA Bank, Upson established a sports affinity credit card program, signing agreements with more than 200 sports and entertainment properties.Earlier in his career, Upson served as vice president of business development for Major League Baseball Properties. A graduate of Claremont McKenna College in Claremont, Calif., Upson currently lives in New Canaan, Conn.Read More
ExecutivesSusan Merrill
Chief Financial Officer and Managing Director, Development
Susan Merrill joined USBC in October 2008 to oversee operations in Association Development, Finance, Human Resources, Membership Development, Travel/Housing and Youth Development. Most recently she served as corporate controller for Atlanta-based AmeriCold Logistics Inc., a leading provider of refrigerated warehousing with more than 6,000 employees.Merrill is a certified public accountant, holds a law degree and brings more than 20 years of accounting and finance experience.While at AmeriCold Logistics, Merrill oversaw a department responsible for accounting and financial management of about $900 million in annual revenue. She also served as a member on key executive committees including pension, quarterly disclosure and insurance.Prior to her position at AmeriCold Logistics, Merrill worked as controller for nearly eight years at KHOU-TV in Houston. While serving as the television station's senior financial executive, Merrill led operational initiatives to improve profit levels by aggressively focusing on the identification of inefficiencies. Her work helped the station consistently perform at a profit level above the industry average.Merrill also has worked as an expert consultant providing testimony in litigation proceedings related to sports and entertainment, oil and gas, patent infringement, breach of contract and fraud/forensic accounting.Merrill holds a bachelor's degree in business administration from the University of Nebraska and a law degree from South Texas College of Law. She is a member of the State Bar of Texas and a certified public accountant in the state of Georgia.Read More
ExecutivesNeil Stremmel
Managing Director, National Governing Body
Stremmel was named to oversee USBC operations in equipment specifications, Team USA, USBC Coaching, USBC Sport Bowling, USBC High School, USBC Collegiate and rules in March 2008.The Stillman Valley, Ill., native previously served as USBC Technical Director and Bowling Inc. Director of Research for eight years. He led the USBC Equipment Specifications and Certifications team which tests all bowling equipment to verify compliance with specifications set by USBC.A mechanical engineer (BSME from Bradley University in Peoria, Ill.), Stremmel is an International Bowling Pro Shop and Instructors Association certified technician and a Bronze certified coach. Neil is a member of the IBPSIA Board and also serves as co-chair of the World Tenpin Bowling Association Technical and Coaching Committee. He sits on multiple other industry panels including the IBPSIA Advisory Board.Stremmel previously worked in various engineering positions in the nuclear power and aerospace industries. He has served as a local American Bowling Congress director and is a lifetime bowler with multiple 300 games who began working in a center at age 13.He and wife Kari have one son and one daughter.Read More
ExecutivesPete Tredwell
Managing Director, Media
Pete Tredwell, Hamden, Conn., is a two-time Emmy award-winning producer for ESPN and a former collegiate bowler. He was USBC's first director-at-large on the USBC Board of Directors before joining the USBC staff in April 2008.He was with ESPN for more than 11 years after one year with CBS Sports in New York City, a year in media relations for the University of Florida athletic department in Gainesville, Fla., and a year in a similar position at the University of California-Berkeley. He graduated from Indiana University in 1995 with a Bachelor of Science degree in sports marketing and management. He also received a certificate from the Indiana School of Business.He started for three years and part of a fourth on Indiana University’s bowling team from 1991-95 including the 1994-95 season when the Hoosiers spent most of the season as the No. 1-ranked team in the nation by the Bowling Writers Association of America. He has a 300 high game and 794 high series. He also owns six Junior Bowlers Tour titles after joining his first league at age 9.Tredwell and his wife Kathy have two children.Read More
ExecutivesBrain Lewis
Managing Director, Tournament
Brian Lewis was named USBC Managing Director, Tournaments, in March 2010. Prior to being elevated to his new role, Lewis spent nearly 10 years working with the USBC Tournaments team.He originally joined the organization as the associate tournament director at the Open Championships and spent a year learning the event from retiring tournament director Hal Kaminski before taking the top spot on Aug. 1, 2001. In 2008, Lewis’ role expanded to include the USBC Women’s Championships, and while his main focus is still on the two major events, he now has a major strategic role in the operation of all USBC championship events. Lewis is a veteran of more than 30 USBC Open Championships. In 1978, at the age of 17, he took his first plane flight while traveling to his first ABC Tournament. It was the last year of the tournament’s old-style manual scoring.A degreed engineer, Lewis has 16 years of experience in the manufacturing field. From 1990-2000, he had managerial assignments at various locations in Texas, Pennsylvania and Tennessee.Originally from Pittsburgh, Lewis comes from a bowling family. His grandfather is a member of the 50-year tournament attendance club. All together, the Lewis family has well over 100 tournament appearances. Lewis carries a 185 lifetime average with a 693 high series in the 1999 singles in Syracuse.Lewis and his wife, Leslie, are the proud parents of identical twin boys.Read More
ExecutivesTBD
Managing Director, Technology
Financials