Chris Barnes (bowler)

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Chris Barnes (born February 25, 1970) is an American professional bowler currently on the Denny's PBA Tour (Professional Bowlers Association). He bowled collegiately at Wichita State University, where he also earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Business Management. He was a member of Team USA for four years.

Barnes, a right-handed bowler, is currently one of the leading professionals on the tour. He has won over $1.5 million (USD) in total prize money during his ten-year career on tour, and has earned at least $100,000 in each of the last nine seasons. He also won the PBA Rookie of the Year Award in 1998 and earned PBA Player of the Year honors in the 2007-08 season. This makes him only the third bowler in PBA history to win both Rookie of the Year and Player of the Year honors in a career (joining Tommy Jones and Mike Aulby).

He has been married to Lynda Barnes (Norry) since 1999. Lynda, an accomplished bowler in her own right, currently represents the United States in international competition and made the four-player semifinals for the 2007 U.S. Women's Open.

The couple lives in Double Oak, Texas. Their twin sons, Troy and Ryan, were born in May 2002.

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[edit] Career achievements

Barnes currently owns ten career Denny's PBA Tour titles, including the 62nd U.S. Open and the 2006 Dexter Tournament of Champions. He has won at least one title in seven consecutive seasons, and has made 59 TV Finals appearances in 9-plus seasons on the Denny's PBA Tour. Barnes has also finished second in a tournament 18 times in his illustrious career.

On Sunday, March 25, 2007, Barnes attempted to become only the fifth bowler in Denny's PBA Tour history to win the Triple Crown—which consists of the U.S. Open, PBA World Championship and Tournament of Champions—at the 2007 Denny's PBA World Championship. After defeating Tony Reyes in the semi-final match, however, Barnes was taken down in the final by Doug Kent, 237-216, to finish in second place.

On January 27, 2008, Barnes faced Michael Haugen Jr. in the finals of the 2008 H&R Block Tournament of Champions in Las Vegas, Nevada. Through six frames, Barnes held a 53-pin lead over his competitor and going into the 9th frame seemed to have the match in hand. Up by 41 pins in the ninth, Barnes left the 10 pin standing on his first throw and narrowly missed his spare giving Haugen hope. Haugen, who had strikes in his previous two frames, struck in the ninth to cut the lead to 19. Haugen went on to throw two strikes and 9 pins in the final frame. Barnes, needing 20 pins to tie, spared in the tenth and needed a strike on his final throw to force extra frames, but left the 4 pin standing giving Haugen his first career major victory.

Barnes also won the first two PBA Motel 6 Roll to Riches tournaments in 2005 and 2006, which included a winner-take-all grand prize of $200,000. The 2006 tournament was held in Lewisville, Texas, a mere eight miles from his residence. In 2007, Barnes narrowly missed having an opportunity for a three-peat at the event. His first chance to earn a spot in the event would have been by winning a major title. He made the TV finals for the 2007 World Championship and Tournament of Champions, but he did not win either. He also could have earned a spot on the show as the World Point Rankings leader, but he finished second behind Wes Malott. And lastly, he could've made it as one of the top two vote getters in an online fan poll, held on www.pba.com, but Barnes finished third, with legends Walter Ray Williams Jr. and Norm Duke finishing in the top two.

Barnes was the fastest player to reach $1,000,000 in career earnings, eclipsing the previous record held by Pete Weber and Jason Couch. He eclipsed the $1.5 million mark in total PBA tour earnings during the 2007-08 season.

[edit] In the media

During the 2006-2007 Denny's PBA Tour season, fellow Denny's PBA Tour bowler Norm Duke took part in the ESPN telecasts for events in which he failed to reach the TV Finals. Along with Dave Ryan and Randy Pedersen, he served as a second color commentator. However, during events in which Duke made the TV Finals, Barnes filled in as the third commentator.

Barnes is also an official Sport bowling spokesperson for the United States Bowling Congress (USBC).

[edit] Skills Challenge

Barnes is one of the top trick-shot bowlers on the tour today. He has made the "Flying Eagle" more than anyone, but perhaps his greatest skills shot is his ability to bowl with his opposite hand, his left hand.

His skills paid off in the 2005 Miller High Life Skills Challenge, when he defeated Parker Bohn III for the $20,000 top prize. In the 2006 PBA Skills Challenge, Barnes lost to eventual champion Norm Duke in the semifinals. For the 2006-2007 Denny's PBA Tour season, bowlers competed in pairs. Barnes teamed up with twelve-time tour titleist Del Ballard, Jr. They were defeated in the opening round by Wes Malott and Chris Johnson.

[edit] A League of Ordinary Gentlemen

Barnes is featured in the 2006 documentary A League of Ordinary Gentlemen, along with current Denny's PBA Tour stars Pete Weber and Walter Ray Williams Jr., and 20-time Denny's PBA Tour titleist Wayne Webb. The film follows the four bowlers as they take part in the 2002-2003 Denny's PBA Tour season.

[edit] Professional putting

Prior to his bowling career, Barnes was a member of the Professional Putters Association, where he played professional Putt-Putt tournaments. In 1989, Barnes made his first television appearance earning $7,000 in the Putt-Putt SKINS game. [1]

[edit] External links

[edit] References

  1. ^ Putt-Putt TV Series Contestants