PBA World Series of Bowling XVII Underway in Minneapolis
The best bowlers in the world have convened at Bowlero Brooklyn Park for the PBA World Series of Bowling XVII.
Five PBA Tour titles will be awarded during the event, including a major in the AMF PBA World Championship.
In each of the four animal pattern championships — Cheetah, Chameleon, Scorpion and Shark — players will bowl 10 games of qualifying. The top 12 players will advance to the televised bracket finals, airing May 9-12 on CBS Sports Network.
During each animal pattern finals, the semifinal round will feature two concurrent matches each game.
- Game 1: No. 8 seed vs. No. 9 seed + No. 5 seed vs. No. 12 seed
- Game 2: No. 7 seed vs. No. 10 seed + No. 6 seed vs. No. 11 seed
- Game 3: No. 1 seed vs. No. 8/9 seed + No. 4 seed vs. No. 5/12 seed
- Game 4: No. 2 seed vs. No. 7/10 seed + No. 3 seed vs. No. 6/11 seed
The four winners of each match will advance to the championship round, which will be a continuation of the bracket. The title match will be a Race-to-Two format.
The World Championship includes qualifying games from each of the four animal pattern championships. The top 40 players after those 40 games will advance, then bowl 10 more games on a fifth oil pattern to determine the 16-player field for round-robin match play.
After all 66 games are completed, the top nine players will advance to the stepladder finals, which will be held Saturday, June 13 at Thunderbowl Lanes in Allen Park, Mich.
All qualifying rounds will be livestreamed on BowlTV.
The full TV schedule for the WSOB is available here.
More information on the PBA WSOB XVII is available here.
AMF World Championship
Through the first 40 games of the World Championship, which includes 10 games on each of the Cheetah, Chameleon, Scorpion and Shark oil patterns, the three-time defending champion finds himself in familiar territory.
EJ Tackett averaged more than 226 to lead the field through the first 40 games of the World Championship, which includes 10 games on each of the Cheetah, Chameleon, Scorpion and Shark oil patterns.
Tackett, the three-time defending World Champion, looks to become the first player to win a PBA Tour tournament in four consecutive years.
“I'm in the position that I want to be in,” Tackett said. “Hopefully I can find some good ball reaction on the Earl Anthony pattern. I need to continue to keep executing good shots. I've done a really good job at that the last three days. The first day on Cheetah, it was marginal, and I feel like I've gotten a little bit better each day at my shot making. My scores may not reflect that completely, but the shot making is there.”
Chris Via, rookie sensation Brandon Bonta, Jason Sterner and Bill O’Neill round out the top five through the first portion of the major championship.
Two five-game advancer rounds on Tuesday, May 5 will determine the 16 players competing in round-robin match play on Wednesday.
Competition will begin at 12 p.m. CT (1 p.m. ET) and 6 p.m. CT (7 p.m. ET) on BowlTV.
World Championship Standings | 40 Games
- EJ Tackett, 9,042 pinfall, 226.05 average
- Chris Via, 8,991, 224.78
- Brandon Bonta, 8,898, 222.45
- Jason Sterner, 8,884, 222.10
- Bill O'Neill, 8,864, 221.60
- Kris Prather, 8,851, 221.28
- Darren Tang, 8,832, 220.80
- Jason Belmonte, 8,825, 220.63
- Thomas Larsen, 8,804, 220.10
- Ryan Barnes, 8,800, 220.00
- Tommy Jones, 8,779, 219.48
- Packy Hanrahan, 8,764, 219.10
- Cam Crowe, 8,751, 218.78
- Zach Weidman, 8,746, 218.65
- Mitch Hupé, 8,736, 218.40
- Tomas Käyhkö, 8,732, 218.30
- Kyle Sherman, 8,719, 217.98
- Spencer Robarge, 8,715, 217.88
- Santtu Tahvanainen, 8,697, 217.43
- Zach Wilkins, 8,693, 217.33
Complete standings are available here.
Cheetah Championship
FULL RECAP: Cam Crowe Leads PBA Cheetah Championship
Second-year player Cam Crowe led the field during the first title event of the WSOB, contested on the 35-foot Cheetah oil pattern.
The two-handed lefty was able to utilize his A-game, firing the ball up the lane near the gutter, to average more than 246 and lead the 120-player field.
Cheetah Championship Finalists
- Cam Crowe, 2,465 pinfall, 246.50 average
- Spencer Robarge, 2,426, 242.60
- Matt Sanders, 2,399, 239.90
- Zachary Tackett, 2,364, 236.40
- Packy Hanrahan, 2,319, 231.90
- Bill O'Neill, 2,315, 231.50
- Brandon Kreyer, 2,314, 231.40
- Brandon Bonta, 2,308, 230.80
- Kris Prather, 2,301, 230.10
- AJ Johnson, 2,298, 229.80
- Hayden Stippich, 2,289, 228.90
- Chase Nadeau, 2,287, 228.70
Complete standings are available here.
Chameleon Championship
FULL RECAP: Jason Belmonte Leads PBA Chameleon Championship
Jason Belmonte, the Australian star who has dominated the WSOB throughout his career, led the field on the 39-foot Chameleon oil pattern.
Belmonte, a three-time champion on this oil pattern, averaged more than 231 to pace the field.
YouTube sensations Darren Tang and Kyle Sherman also advanced to the televised bracket finals.
This will mark Tang’s first show as a two-handed player. He made the switch early in the 2025 season.
Chameleon Championship Finalists
- Jason Belmonte, 2,318 pinfall, 231.8 average
- Darren Tang, 2,299, 229.9
- Jason Sterner, 2,289, 228.9
- Jakob Butturff, 2,274, 227.4
- Kyle Sherman, 2,259, 225.9
- Santtu Tahvanainen, 2,229, 222.9
- Tobias Börding, 2,228, 222.8
- Anthony Simonsen, 2,218, 221.8
- Mitch Hupé, 2,216, 221.6
- Boog Krol, 2,208, 220.8
- Deo Benard, 2,201, 220.1
- Riley Woodard, 2,196, 219.6
Complete standings are available here.
Scorpion Championship
FULL RECAP: Zach Wilkins Leads PBA Scorpion Championship
Zach Wilkins, perhaps the hottest player on the PBA Tour, led the field on the 43-foot Scorpion oil pattern.
Wilkins won his first career title two weeks ago in the Owen’s Craft Mixers PBA Roth/Holman Doubles Championship with AJ Chapman, then led last week’s Tournament of Champions.
The Canadian averaged north of 233 to narrowly eclipse Chris Via and EJ Tackett for the top seed.
Kris Prather, Darren Tang and Santtu Tahvanainen each advanced to their second animal pattern championship finals of the week.
Scorpion Championship Finalists
- Zach Wilkins, 2,334 pinfall, 233.4 average
- Chris Via, 2,332, 233.2
- EJ Tackett, 2,331, 233.1
- Zach Weidman, 2,319, 231.9
- Graham Fach, 2,309, 230.9
- Jesper Svensson, 2,309, 230.9
- Sean Rash, 2,271, 227.1
- Thomas Larsen, 2,244, 224.4
- Kris Prather, 2,231, 223.1
- Santtu Tahvanainen, 2,230, 223.0
- Nate Stubler, 2,230, 223.0
- Darren Tang, 2,215, 221.5
Complete standings are available here.
Shark Championship
FULL RECAP: Ronnie Russell Leads PBA Shark Championship
In his potential swan song as a full-time PBA Tour player, 46-year-old Ronnie Russell led all players on the 48-foot Shark oil pattern to lead Shark Championship qualifying.
“It's pretty awesome,” Russell said. “It’s been such a long road of struggling mentally and physically. I could not figure it out. That's why I announced my retirement today, because it's getting rough to be out here. Kids like Alex (Horton), they're hard to beat. There's no learning curve anymore. They come out and start beating everybody.”
Via qualified second in back-to-back events, making him the only player to qualify in a bye position multiple times during the WSOB.
Rookie sensation Brandon Bonta usurped two-time defending Shark Champion EJ Tackett for the fourth qualifying position with a late barrage of strikes. Tackett preserved his three-peat bid as the fifth qualifier.
Shark Championship Finalists
- Ronnie Russell, 2,366 pinfall, 236.6 average
- Chris Via, 2,337, 233.7
- Patrick Dombrowski, 2,318, 231.8
- Brandon Bonta, 2,310, 231
- EJ Tackett, 2,299, 229.9
- Hayden Stippich, 2,290, 229
- Tobias Börding, 2,282, 228.2
- Packy Hanrahan, 2,281, 228.1
- Tommy Jones, 2,265, 226.5
- Alex Horton, 2,259, 225.9
- Kyle Sherman, 2,254, 225.4
- Mitch Hupé, 2,253, 225.3
Complete standings are available here.
PBA World Series of Bowling XVII Schedule
Thursday, April 30 — Bowlero Brooklyn Park
10 a.m. (11 a.m. ET) — Official practice session (Cheetah and Chameleon oil patterns)
2 p.m. (3 p.m. ET) — Official practice session (Cheetah and Chameleon oil patterns)
Friday, May 1 — Bowlero Brooklyn Park — BowlTV
11 a.m. (12 p.m. ET) — Cheetah Championship Qualifying Round 1 (5 games)
6 p.m. (7 p.m. ET) — Cheetah Championship Qualifying Round 2 (5 games)
Top 12 players advance to televised rounds on May 9
Saturday, May 2 — Bowlero Brooklyn Park — BowlTV
11 a.m. (12 p.m. ET) — Chameleon Championship Qualifying Round 1 (5 games)
6 p.m. (7 p.m. ET) — Chameleon Championship Qualifying Round 2 (5 games)
Top 12 players advance to televised rounds on May 10
Sunday, May 3 — Bowlero Brooklyn Park — BowlTV
11 a.m. (12 p.m. ET) — Scorpion Championship Qualifying Round 1 (5 games)
6 p.m. (7 p.m. ET) — Scorpion Championship Qualifying Round 2 (5 games)
Top 12 players advance to televised rounds on May 11
Monday, May 4 — Bowlero Brooklyn Park — BowlTV
11 a.m. (12 p.m. ET) — Shark Championship Qualifying Round 1 (5 games)
6 p.m. (7 p.m. ET) — Shark Championship Qualifying Round 2 (5 games)
Top 12 players advance to televised rounds on May 12
Top 40 players advance in PBA World Championship
Tuesday, May 5 — Bowlero Brooklyn Park — BowlTV
9 a.m. (10 a.m. ET) — World Championship practice session
12 p.m. (1 p.m. ET) — World Championship Advancers Round 1 (5 games)
6 p.m. (7 p.m. ET) — World Championship Advancers Round 1 (5 games)
Top 16 players advance to World Championship round-robin match play
Wednesday, May 6 — Bowlero Brooklyn Park — BowlTV
11 a.m. (12 p.m. ET) — World Championship Match Play Round 1 (8 games)
6 p.m. (7 p.m. ET) — World Championship Match Play Round 2 (8 games)
Top nine players advance to World Championship televised rounds on June 13
Saturday, May 9 — Lucky Strike Lakeville — CBS Sports Network
2 p.m. (3 p.m. ET) — PBA50 Ballard Championship finals
3 p.m. (4 p.m. ET) — PBA Cheetah Championship semifinals
5 p.m. (6 p.m. ET) — PBA Cheetah Championship finals
Sunday, May 10 — Lucky Strike Lakeville — CBS Sports Network
2 p.m. (3 p.m. ET) — PBA50 Monacelli Championship finals
3 p.m. (4 p.m. ET) — PBA Chameleon Championship semifinals
5 p.m. (6 p.m. ET) — PBA Chameleon Championship finals
Monday, May 11 — Lucky Strike Lakeville — CBS Sports Network
5 p.m. (6 p.m. ET) — PBA50 Petraglia Championship finals
6 p.m. (7 p.m. ET) — PBA Scorpion Championship semifinals
8 p.m. (9 p.m. ET) — PBA Scorpion Championship finals
Tuesday, May 12 — Lucky Strike Lakeville — CBS Sports Network
5 p.m. (6 p.m. ET) — PBA50 World Championship finals
6 p.m. (7 p.m. ET) — PBA Shark Championship semifinals
8 p.m. (9 p.m. ET) — PBA Shark Championship finals
Saturday, June 13 — Thunderbowl Lanes — CBS and Paramount+
11 a.m. ET — PBA World Championship semifinals
1 p.m. ET — PBA World Championship finals