Earl Anthony

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Earl Anthony
Born Earl Roderick Anthony
(1938-04-27)April 27, 1938
Tacoma, Washington
Died August 14, 2001(2001-08-14) (aged 63)
New Berlin, Wisconsin
Other names Earl the Pearl, Square Earl, The Doomsday Stroking Machine
Occupation Ten Pin Bowler, Bowling Broadcaster
Years active 1963–97
Spouse(s) Susie

Earl Roderick Anthony (April 27, 1938 – August 14, 2001) was a left-handed American professional bowler who amassed records of 41 titles and six bowler of the year awards on the Professional Bowlers Association (PBA) Tour. His title count was amended to 43 in 2008, when the PBA chose to include ABC Masters titles earned by a PBA member as PBA Tour titles.[1] He is widely credited (along with Dick Weber) for having increased bowling's popularity in the United States. He was the first bowler to earn over $100,000 in a season (1975) and $1,000,000 in lifetime earnings (1982). His ten professional major titles—six PBA National Championships, two Firestone Tournament of Champions titles, and two ABC Masters (now USBC Masters) titles—are tied with Pete Weber for the most by any bowler.[2][3]

Never brash or flashy in a crew-cut and plastic-frame "marshwood" style eyewear (which he abandoned for more modern frames later in his career), Anthony was dubbed "Square Earl" by fellow pro bowlers.[4]

PBA career

Anthony's first of his 41 PBA titles came on June 7, 1970 by defeating Allie Clarke at the Heidelberg Open in Seattle, Washington. His final PBA title was a major — the 1983 Toledo Trust PBA National Championship. Six of his titles were achieved by a pair of improbable "three-peats" in the PBA National Championship, the first three from 1973–75 and the other three from 1981-83.

After a nine-month layoff, he came out of retirement and won the 1984 ABC Masters, which at the time was not part of the regular PBA tour.[5] The PBA later added ABC Masters titles as PBA titles, giving Anthony at least one PBA title in 15 consecutive seasons (1970–84). He joined the Senior Tour in 1988 and accumulated another seven titles there.[6]

By 1988 Anthony had 25 career 300 games, and had already won 41 career PBA Titles.[7]

After retiring, Anthony moved to broadcast booth as a color commentator[8] and operated a bowling center in Dublin, California.[9]

Personal

Anthony was born in Tacoma, Washington. He was a minor league baseball pitcher with the Baltimore Orioles organization before his days as a professional bowler. He was also an excellent golfer, achieving a near-scratch handicap at the age of 60. He once set the course record at Crow Canyon Country Club in Danville, California with a scratch score of 64.[citation needed]

He was married to Susie Anthony; and had a son, Mike, and two daughters, Tracy Nelson and Jeri Voyles.[10]

Earl Anthony died in 2001, succumbing to head injuries suffered after falling down a flight of stairs at his friend Ed Baur's home in New Berlin, Wisconsin. He was 63 years old.[11][12]

The "Earl Anthony Memorial Scholarship Fund" was established through funding by the ABC Championship Tournament, in order to provide scholarships to young bowlers. It is now administrated by the Bowling Foundation.

In January 2002, the PBA began the year with a tournament named after Anthony, "The Earl Anthony Memorial Classic." It was first held at TechCity Bowl in Kirkland, Washington. It was won by left-handed pro bowler Parker Bohn III, who beat Patrick Healey, Jr. in the final match 235 to 215. It later moved to Medford, Oregon, and re-titled as "The Earl Anthony Medford Classic." In 2010 and 2011, the event took place in Dublin, California, and was titled the Earl Anthony Memorial.

Legacy

Anthony was voted into the PBA Hall of Fame in 1981 and the ABC Hall of Fame in 1986.[13] In 2000 he was voted "Master of the Millennium" by a wide margin in a nationwide vote conducted by Bowling Magazine.[14] In a Sports Illustrated Magazine national vote he was named the 2nd Greatest Athlete in the history of the state of Washington (behind only former NBA star John Stockton).[15]

The late bowling legend Dick Weber dubbed Anthony "the greatest speed-control bowler ever."[16] When Anthony won the 1978 Tournament of Champions to become the first bowler to ever reach 30 titles, Weber was in the broadcast booth and proclaimed Anthony to be "the undisputed King of Bowling."[17] Earl's record of 41 titles stood for 23 years before it was broken by Walter Ray Williams Jr. in 2006,[18] though it increased to 43 in 2008 when the PBA started including ABC Masters titles if they were won by a PBA member.[19]

In 2008, the PBA celebrated fifty years in existence by commissioning a panel of experts to rank the "50 Greatest Bowlers of the Last 50 Years." Anthony was ranked #1 on the list over Williams, despite the fact that Williams had broken many of Anthony's records. However, Williams himself said, "I feel Earl’s record is better than mine because it was more condensed. Earl bowled 14 years and 400 or so events. I’ve bowled well over 600 by now, maybe 700." [20] Williams also added, "When Earl Anthony retired, he didn't have anyone to push him. He probably would have kept going to 50 if that were the case. It's hard to say what would've happened then."[21]

Awards and recognition

  • Six-time PBA Player of the Year winner (1974–76 and 1981–83)[22]
  • Five-time George Young High Average award winner (1973–75, 1980, 1983)
  • Established a record for most consecutive PBA seasons winning at least one tournament (15), which stood until 2008 when it was broken by Walter Ray Ray Williams Jr.
  • Holds PBA record of 15 televised finals appearances in one season (1975, 1981)
  • Holds the PBA and Professional Bowling record with 10 major tournament titles
  • Inducted into PBA Hall of Fame, 1981
  • Inducted into ABC (now USBC) Hall of Fame, 1986
  • Voted "Bowler of the Millennium" in a 2000 poll conducted by Bowling Digest[23]
  • Voted the greatest PBA player ever, when the PBA announced its "50 Greatest Players of the Last 50 Years" list in the 2008-09 season.

References

  1. ↑ All-time title leaders at www.pba.com
  2. ↑ Goldstein, Richard (16 August 2001). "Earl Anthony, 63, Bowling's First $1 Million Man, Dies". The New York Times. Retrieved 26 September 2010. 
  3. ↑ "PBA Hall of Fame: Earl Anthony". Professional Bowlers Association. Retrieved 26 September 2010. 
  4. ↑ Goldstein.
  5. ↑ Clark, Tom (15 August 2001). "Bowling legend Anthony dies at 63". USA Today. Retrieved 26 September 2010. 
  6. ↑ Goldstein.
  7. ↑ "ESPN". ESPN. 
  8. ↑ Jakubowski, MIke. "Earl the Pearl". Professional Bowlers Association. Retrieved 26 September 2010. 
  9. ↑ Goldstein.
  10. ↑ Earl Anthony, 63, Bowling's First $1 Million Man, Dies New York Times, 8/16/2001
  11. ↑ Goldstein.
  12. ↑ "Earl Anthony, 63, Bowling's First $1 Million Man, Dies". Richard Goldstein. 16 August 2001. 
  13. ↑ "Hall of Famers - USBC". Bowling Hall of Fame and Museum. Retrieved 26 September 2010. 
  14. ↑ "Who's No. 1? PBA to name its Greatest Player Ever on Sunday". bowlingdigital.com. 21 January 2009. Retrieved 26 September 2010. 
  15. ↑ "Sports Illustrated 50th Anniversary". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved 26 September 2010. 
  16. ↑ Goldstein.
  17. ↑ Thomas, Jason. "Top 10 Moments in T of C History." Article at www.pba.com on August 16, 2010.
  18. ↑ "PBA Hall of Fame: Earl Anthony"
  19. ↑ "PBA to grandfather Masters, BPAA All-Star Titles". bowlingdigital.com. 13 May 2008. Retrieved 26 September 2010. 
  20. ↑ "Experts Select Earl Anthony as Greatest Player in PBA History". Professional Bowlers Association. 25 January 2009. Retrieved 26 September 2010. 
  21. ↑ "The Jordan of ... Bowling." Article in ESPN the Magazine on March 26, 2008.
  22. ↑ "ESPN". ESPN. 
  23. ↑

External links

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