EAGAN, Minn. - The ninth season of the Professional Women’s Bowling Association Tour since its relaunch in 2015 is set to get underway as the PWBA GoBowling! Twin Cities Open starts May 2 at Cedarvale Lanes with a pre-tournament qualifier at 9 a.m. Eastern.
The PTQ will have 38 bowlers competing for 10 spots into the main field of 75, where all competitors will bowl 12 games of qualifying on May 3, before a cut to the top third for a third round of qualifying on May 4. After 18 games, one more cut to the top 12 will occur for the final six games of qualifying to determine the top five for the stepladder finals that night.
The event will be live streamed from start to finish on BowlTV with the stepladder finals set to begin at 7:30 p.m. Eastern on Saturday night.
Spectators and viewers on BowlTV will be in for some great bowling all season long as 2023 PWBA Player of the Year Jordan Richard of Tipton, Michigan, and 2023 PWBA Rookie of the Year Hope Gramly of Quincy, Michigan, will look to continue their success from last season.
Major champions from last year such as 2023 United States Bowling Congress Queens champion Lindsay Boomershine of Brigham City, Utah; 2023 U.S. Women’s Open champion Bryanna Coté of Tucson, Arizona; and 2023 PWBA Tour Championship winner Maria José Rodriguez of Colombia will also be in Eagan to kick off their seasons, and all will be eyeing more titles in 2024.
USBC Hall of Famers Liz Johnson of Niagara Falls, New York, and Kelly Kulick of Union, New Jersey, are both looking to add to their already impressive career resumes as well. Johnson also will be celebrating her birthday on May 2, as she turns 50 years old and becomes eligible to bowl senior events.
That’s just the main field.
The PTQ field is loaded with up-and-coming talent as well: 2024 U.S. Amateur champion and a key part of the Jacksonville State collegiate team that won the 2024 NCAA National Championship, Crystal Elliott of Palm Bay, Florida; 2023 U18 Girls Junior Gold champion Gianna Brandolino of Channahon, Illinois; 2024 National Collegiate Bowling Coaches Association Rookie of the Year Brooke Salzman of Inver Grove Heights, Minnesota, and more will compete for a spot into the main field.
Due to the high demand for all standard PWBA stops, PTQs were added to the PWBA GoBowling Twin Cities Open, the PWBA Bowlers Journal Rockford Open in Rockford, Illinois, and the PWBA Southern Indiana Open in Clarksville, Indiana, providing more competition than ever since the relaunch of the PWBA Tour.
The 2024 season features 13 events, including the inaugural PBA/PBA50/PWBA Trios event in Jonesboro, Arkansas. That event features two rounds of qualifying from PWBA, Professional Bowlers Association and PBA50 competitors after which the top 16 from each division will be put on a trios Baker team for match play and the stepladder finals.
Included in the event schedule will be three majors: the USBC Queens, U.S. Women’s Open and the season-ending PWBA Tour Championship. The stepladder finals for all three major events will be broadcast live on CBS Sports Network.
For the full 2024 National Tour schedule, visit PWBA.com/NationalTour.
