October 18, 2023 Nolan Hughes

Tom Adcock of Forsyth, Ill., has been named the PBA50 Dick Weber Sportsmanship Award winner, an award given to the player who represented Dick Weber’s class and sportsmanship.

“It’s surreal, humbling and amazing,” Adcock said after receiving the news. “I'm just overwhelmed with emotion. It’s hard to fathom, you know, I can't thank these guys enough for the votes and the support."

Voting was open to PBA50 players who participated in at least half of the 2023 PBA50 Tour events. A list of nominated candidates was put to a vote, and Adcock received the most votes.

Adcock highlighted the tour’s camaraderie, sharing stories of players supporting each other throughout tournaments and hanging out together off the lanes.

"We have a great time out there on the PBA50 Tour," Adcock said. "It's like we're one big, giant family. I'm blessed that I can be a part of that. I'm very humbled that I got elected, no doubt about it.”

The honor brings Adcock’s PBA career full circle, as Dick Weber himself went above and beyond to help Adcock become a professional.

“Dick Weber was a very, very dear friend of mine,” Adcock said. “In fact, he was the one that actually signed my application way back in the 1980s when he was trying to convince me to join the PBA. 

“I needed three signatures from my peers… I had one signature, and it was his.”

On the lanes, Adock had a tremendous sophomore season. The 61-year-old won his first official PBA50 Tour title, earned three top-five finishes, and finished seventh overall in points.

However, Adcock came up just shy of PBA60 Player of the Year honors as PBA Hall of Famer Pete Weber of St. Ann, Mo., edged the Illinois native by one spot.

Despite battling a recurring back injury, Weber finished inside the top 25 in 12 of 13 tournaments. He won one title at the Bud Moore PBA50 Players Championship and averaged over 221 for the season.

“Even though it's not the PBA50 Player of the Year, it's another Player of the Year award,” Weber said. “That's still a pretty big honor.”

Weber’s victory, his sixth career PBA50 major title, helped him stave off Adcock’s strong finish to the season. That win marked Weber’s first PBA50 Tour title since May 2021.

“To win again after a few years of not winning, you know, it feels good to do that, too," Weber said.

Adcock’s 17,670 points were just 125 points behind Weber’s 17,795. Adcock could have usurped Weber for the award with a win in the season’s final tournament. After earning the top seed, he fell in the title match to John Janawicz. 

Though Adcock did not earn PBA60 Player of the Year honors, he said he’s happy to be healthy after solving a nagging biceps injury.

“(My success) was me finally getting healthy for the first time and I can't tell you how many years,” Adcock said. “I actually felt confident and comfortable for change. To come up just short, it is what it is — but look who I lost to. I lost to the man.”

2023 PBA50 Tour Award Winners

Player of the Year: Troy Lint
Rookie of the Year: John Janawicz
PBA60 Player of the Year: Pete Weber
Dick Weber Sportsmanship: Tom Adcock

Past PBA60 Player of the Year Winners

2023 — Pete Weber
2022 — Lennie Boresch Jr.
2021 — Walter Ray Williams Jr.
2020 — no award (COVID, season canceled)
2019 — Ron Mohr
2018 — Ron Mohr
2017 — Ron Mohr
2016 — Ron Mohr

Past Dick Weber Sportsmanship Award Winners

2023 — Tom Adcock
2022 — Jeff Johnson
2021 — Mark Sullivan
2020 — no award (COVID, season canceled)
2019 — Sammy Ventura
2018 — Chris Keane
2017 — Ted Staikoff
2016 — Kerry Fulford
2015 — Tom Carter
2014 — Chris Keane
2013 — Robert Harvey
2012 — Dave Soutar
2011 — Ray Randall
2010 — Robert Harvey
2009 — Larry Graybeal
2008 — Fred Baldwin

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