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Saturday, December 15, 2007
Leaving College Early For The Big LeaguesOnly a fool would argue that Tiger Woods' choice to leave college after his sophomore year to
pursue his golf career was the wrong decision. But what if old Tiger had been a bowler? Imagine his dad's
reaction to finding out that his son was leaving college early to join the PBA Tour. Actually, you don't have to!
Just click here http://jasonthomasbowling.com/id14.html and then choose the video titled "LETTER TO DAD" under BONUS CONTENT.
Oh, and don't forget to do two things:
1 - Sign up for a free 30-day trial of GamePass today!
2 - Support the SAVE P.B. ATKINSON cause!
Well, off to bowl a 6-gamer! Wish me luck!
Jason
1:48 pm est
Rob Glaser - The "REAL" DealFor those of us who love bowling, there may not be a more important person in
the world right now than RealNetworks CEO and founder Rob Glaser. The PBA Tour website currently lists 15
official sponsors, but none of these, including umbrella sponsor Denny's, have contributed even close to what
Glaser has to keep the sport of professional bowling alive for almost a decade now. And I've met the man personally
and even had dinner with him and I can tell you that he truly loves bowling!
As fans of the sport (oh, who
are we kidding? anyone who comes to my site has to be considered a little more than a fan at this point - rabid, raving, bowling lunatic
is more like it) I believe it is our duty to support those who have found it in their hearts to help our
favorite pastime. Which is why I have chosen to remove the paying advertising banner on my Home page
in lieu of one promoting an incredibly cool game service called GamePass that Glaser's company RealNetworks is now
offering.
GamePass gives users instant
access to 550+ of the top casual games in all of the popular genres: puzzle, word, arcade, board, sports and more. Each month you
are a GamePass member you get one game of your choice FREE (a $20 value). Plus you receive 25-75% savings on
any other games you'd like to purchase. Any games you purchase or earn through monthly free game credits are yours
to keep and play forever, even if you cancel your membership.
So right now, I'd like you to click on the
ad on the right of the page and at least sign up for a FREE 30-day trial of this awesome service that RealNetworks
is offering. In fact, I'd like you to even take it a step further and e-mail at least 5 friends the
message below (in blue) to tell them about it. I think it's the least we can do to thank Mr. Glaser for the tremendous
contribution that he's made to bowling.
Till tomorrow!
Jason
E-MAIL THIS MESSAGE TO AT LEAST 5 OF YOUR FRIENDS NOW!
Guys-
Check out this cool game service I just found!
They have over 550 puzzle, word, arcade, board, and sports games to choose from and each month you get
one game of your choice FREE! Plus you receive 25-75% savings on any other games you purchase. Any games you
purchase or earn through monthly free game credits are yours to keep and play forever, even if you cancel your membership.
Sign up for a FREE 30-day trial by going to www.jasonthomasbowling.com and clicking on the GamePass link on the right of the page.
Cheers!
Friday, December 14, 2007
Where is Tommy Boy?As Tiger Woods knows, us fans and so-called experts can become mighty hysterical when our heroes hit a patch
of failing to live up to the lofty expectations they've set for themselves. Tiger once finished third on the year-end
money list and was considered to be mired in a horrendous, Bob Ueker-esque slump.
For Tommy Jones, who has won
10 titles in the past three seasons, the time for his "slump" seems to be here. Without a television appearance
since last season, TJ is still 24th on the season's point list - indicating that he's not bowling all that bad, just
not having a lot of luck getting through match play.
The thing about slumps like TJ's is that for us fans,
it really illustrates just how impressive a run he had the last three years, and just how hard it is to get it going once
again. It should make us appreciate the accomplishments and consistency of Chris Barnes, Walter Ray and Norm Duke (who's
in a bit of a slump himself this season, albeit injury-induced, I understand) even more.
TJ did qualify for the
match play in this week's Spartanburg Classic and, with my knack for timing, will probably end up winning this weekend
and making everything I'm writing null and void. And if he does end up winning, he's liable to run off a few
more in the second half, given the rate he wins once he gets "on." With any luck, we'll be seeing
him soon, which is a good thing for bowling, because he has one of the coolest games to watch in the sport.
At any rate, by his lofty standards he's certainly due to break out of the "slump" soon.
Till tomorrow!
Jason
10:13 am est
Thursday, December 13, 2007
Brian Voss' Career a C-????When I was in school, when you got 70% on a test, it was a C-. And although, as my sister used to tell
my parents, "C's get degrees!" they aren't always the most awe-inspiring marks in the eyes of college
admissions officials.
So for Brian Voss, who belongs in the bowling equivalent of Harvard University on a Rhodes
scholarship, to get just 70% of the vote for acceptance into the USBC Hall of Fame, is a little shocking to me. I mean,
it's a little bit like barely accepting Albert Einstein into the Science Hall of Fame. Or asking Spiderman
for his ID before he can enter the building to save the world from certain doom.
Now, while I was involved
in the restructuring of the PBA Hall of Fame criteria back in 2003-2004, I must admit that I am not all that familiar with
the USBC criteria or the process for inducting their Hall members. I'm also not that familiar with BV's ABC/USBC
tournament record, which I assume carries more weight than say, the PBA Hall of Fame's criteria. But I'm sure
his record in the Masters and the ABC/USBC Tournament proper is pretty darn good.
Obviously, the records
of all of the performance inductees this year are incredible. Parker Bohn, Brian Voss, Leanne Barrette-Hulsenburg, and
Carolyn Dorin-Ballard are not only four of the greatest athletes in the history of the sport, they are also four of the all-time
greatest ambassadors and just all-around good people. But for Brian Voss, who in my book is easily one of the ten best
ever to play the sport to barely make it in, well, they must be grading on one hell of a curve.
Till tomorrow!
Jason
11:47 am est
Wednesday, December 12, 2007
SAVE P.B. ATKINSON!Yes kiddies, I'm afraid it's true. Our beloved hero, P.B. Atkinson, everyone's favorite bowling
show host, has been banished to message board jail by the organization for whom he is named.
According to an e-mail
sent by PBA SARGE, P.B. was banished due to an alleged violation of the PBA Forum policy which prohibits advertising.
The thread P.B. started that announced the availability of episode 3 of The Bowling Show was also deleted.
That's why we've launched the SAVE P.B. ATKINSON campaign, to ask for your help in bailing P.B. out of message
board jail so he can return to his rightful place on The Bowling Show as soon as possible. SAVE P.B. ATKINSON merchandise
has been created in his honor (click here: http://www.cafepress.com/jtbowling), and your donation will go a long way toward setting him free and ensuring that justice is done.
I'm
sure that when all of this is over, we'll all laugh about it, (do I smell a joke about this on episode 4?) but now, what
we need is your help! Please do what you can to help P.B. He thanks you in advance for your support.
Jason Thomas
9:40 am est
Tuesday, December 11, 2007
The Good Times are Rollin'Can I just tell you guys how much fun I'm having right now?
I posted the latest episode of The
Bowling Show up to the site last night (click here to watch it: http://jasonthomasbowling.com/id14.html) and I already can't wait to see what you fans will say about it. I'll leave it up to you to
decide if it's any good (and please let me know what you think), but as for me, I sure had fun making it...which
is pretty amazing considering where I was just a few years ago.
You see, like a lot of you out there, I've
had a love/hate relationship with bowling throughout my life...starting about the time when I was a teenager and I first realized
that people saw bowlers on about the same social level as the guy who cleans out your neighborhood septic tank. But
my love kept me going and I actually got to be pretty decent at bowling...decent enough to be considered by many bowling
experts here in Socal in the same breath as Robert Smith (who just might have been the greatest junior bowler in the
history of the sport).
Then after I began to realize just how ridiculously hard it is to earn a living at bowling
(which I discovered right about the time I was researching what college graduates can expect to earn out of
college) I began to turn my back and hate bowling for "betraying me." I carried that attitude for a while
until I started to become interested in bowling once again, and it is around that time that I hooked up with Chris Peters
and moved to Seattle to work for the PBA.
The same cycle overcame me after 4 years there and I left the
PBA, certain that I would never find myself back in bowling. But here I am, like Al Pacino in Godfather 3. No
matter how hard I try to get out, they keep pulling me back in! But this time it's different. Really!
This time I get to do things my way and try out all of the crazy ideas I've had throughout my bowling life and share them
with you to see if I was right. And it's incredibly fun and I can't wait to get up each day to see just what
comes out of my brain and ends up on this site...and I especially love to hear what you have to say about it!
Any rate, I just want to say "Thank You" to all of you for coming to the site this past month and for supporting
what I'm doing here. I hope we can keep it going for a very long time to come and that we can keep making it
bigger and better. Oh, and please buy the new The Bowling Show merchandise we have available on the site!
I think my wife may kick me out of the house soon if I don't get all of those T-shirts and mugs out of the garage so
she can park her car in there again.
Till tomorrow!
Jason
10:09 am est
Monday, December 10, 2007
Sneaky PA Gets to 10In golf there is a term called "sneaky long," meaning, "hey, you look like you wouldn't
be able to hit it out there farther than my grandma and then when we get to our balls yours is by me." I think
Patrick Allen would appreciate that analogy as a way to describe his bowling game.
His dishevelled outward appearance
lulls you to sleep and drives fans crazy when it comes to putting PA in his all-time place in the history of the sport.
But if the old saying "a clean desk is the sign of a dirty mind" and, by implication its converse, was ever true,
it absolutely is for PA.
A great athlete who is known for his work ethic in basketball is
called a "gym rat." PA is a bowling alley rat. Believe it or not, the best lefty in the world (that's
right, he's the best - by a pretty big margin in my opinion) is one of the most dedicated, disciplined practicers in bowling.
He also has the mind of a driven perfectionist who refuses to accept medriocity. He loves to compete and bowls regional
events perhaps more than any other exempt player of his stature. And his record now proves as a reflection of his will
to succeed that we should mention his name alongside some of the best ever to play the sport.
There will be some who never give PA the credit he deserves simply because they can't get past his outward appearance.
I'm sure PA only hopes they are the people he'll face on the lanes to get his next 10 wins...but that's highly
unlikely because at least on Tour, the secret of how good he really is has long since been out of the bag.
And that's really about the only place where it counts.
Till tomorrow!
Jason
10:04 am est
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