Billy Oatman
Chicago
Age 44 - 12/1/1965
| Bowls | Joined | Tour Earnings |
|---|---|---|
| L | 2006 | $127,982.50 |
2007-08 Rank: 39
Exempt Thru: 2008-09
Career PBA 300 Games: 4
Earned Exemption: 39th in the 2007-08 PBA World Point Rankings
Personal: William Howard Oatman IV… Nicknamed “Billy O”… Resides in Chicago, Ill.... Has one daughter, Taylor Imani… Bowled in three leagues when he was eight years old… Competed in the bowling programs at Vincennes University and Wichita State University … Says his best non-athletic talent is “running my mouth”… First job was working in his mother’s health food store… If he could be PBA Commissioner for a day he would “make all left-handed bowlers exempt”… Dream date is with Serena Williams.
2007-08: Followed up his 2006-07 PBA Rookie of the Year campaign with another solid season but it was a roller coaster as Oatman had to wait until the final week of the season to clinch his exemption… Missed the first week of the season due to a thumb injury… The injury affected him over the next few weeks as he missed match play in three of the first four events… Closed out the first half strong, finishing eighth in the Great Lakes Classic then making the finals in the Spartanburg Classic, his second career TV appearance… Won his first career TV match by knocking off Mike Scroggins, 209-207, in the first match of the stepladder finals; fell to eventual champion Parker Bohn III, 239-213, in the second match to finish fourth… Struggled in the first part of the second swing, missing match play in four of the first five events back from the holiday break… Went into the Pepsi Championship 38th in the PBA World Point Rankings, one spot inside the cut… Made the finals in Omaha to move up to 30th… It marked the first time in his career he’s made multiple championship rounds in a season… Faced Pete Weber in the first match of the stepladder finals; after opening the match with back-to-back washouts, Oatman rallied against the PBA Hall of Famer but came up just short, 211-203… Still, he earned much-needed points with his fifth-place finish as he would miss match play in each of the next two events… After finishing 19th in the Go RVing Classic and 21st in the GEICO Classic, Oatman sat 39th in points heading into the final event, the 65th Denny’s U.S. Open… Oatman finished just 105th in the U.S. Open, but he was able to hang on to 39th in points and earned the final exemption by just 150 points.
Career: Earned his first career exemption when he finished 11th in the 2006 PBA Tour Trials… The 11th-place finish was actually one spot shy of an exemption but Ritchie Allen deferred his exemption and Oatman took his place on Tour… Went on to be named PBA Rookie of the Year in 2006-07, becoming the first African-American to win the award and also the oldest bowler to win the award at the age of 41… Is still looking for his first career PBA Tour title, coming up empty in his first 37 career events… Has cashed 33 times and made match play 15 times… Is 2-3 with a 212.00 average in three career TV appearances… Owns one PBA Regional Tour title and $10,864 in PBA earnings... His total PBA career earnings stand at $97,232.
Awards: PBA Rookie of the Year (2006-07).
Exempt Thru: 2008-09
Career PBA 300 Games: 4
Earned Exemption: 39th in the 2007-08 PBA World Point Rankings
Personal: William Howard Oatman IV… Nicknamed “Billy O”… Resides in Chicago, Ill.... Has one daughter, Taylor Imani… Bowled in three leagues when he was eight years old… Competed in the bowling programs at Vincennes University and Wichita State University … Says his best non-athletic talent is “running my mouth”… First job was working in his mother’s health food store… If he could be PBA Commissioner for a day he would “make all left-handed bowlers exempt”… Dream date is with Serena Williams.
2007-08: Followed up his 2006-07 PBA Rookie of the Year campaign with another solid season but it was a roller coaster as Oatman had to wait until the final week of the season to clinch his exemption… Missed the first week of the season due to a thumb injury… The injury affected him over the next few weeks as he missed match play in three of the first four events… Closed out the first half strong, finishing eighth in the Great Lakes Classic then making the finals in the Spartanburg Classic, his second career TV appearance… Won his first career TV match by knocking off Mike Scroggins, 209-207, in the first match of the stepladder finals; fell to eventual champion Parker Bohn III, 239-213, in the second match to finish fourth… Struggled in the first part of the second swing, missing match play in four of the first five events back from the holiday break… Went into the Pepsi Championship 38th in the PBA World Point Rankings, one spot inside the cut… Made the finals in Omaha to move up to 30th… It marked the first time in his career he’s made multiple championship rounds in a season… Faced Pete Weber in the first match of the stepladder finals; after opening the match with back-to-back washouts, Oatman rallied against the PBA Hall of Famer but came up just short, 211-203… Still, he earned much-needed points with his fifth-place finish as he would miss match play in each of the next two events… After finishing 19th in the Go RVing Classic and 21st in the GEICO Classic, Oatman sat 39th in points heading into the final event, the 65th Denny’s U.S. Open… Oatman finished just 105th in the U.S. Open, but he was able to hang on to 39th in points and earned the final exemption by just 150 points.
Career: Earned his first career exemption when he finished 11th in the 2006 PBA Tour Trials… The 11th-place finish was actually one spot shy of an exemption but Ritchie Allen deferred his exemption and Oatman took his place on Tour… Went on to be named PBA Rookie of the Year in 2006-07, becoming the first African-American to win the award and also the oldest bowler to win the award at the age of 41… Is still looking for his first career PBA Tour title, coming up empty in his first 37 career events… Has cashed 33 times and made match play 15 times… Is 2-3 with a 212.00 average in three career TV appearances… Owns one PBA Regional Tour title and $10,864 in PBA earnings... His total PBA career earnings stand at $97,232.
Awards: PBA Rookie of the Year (2006-07).
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