Friday, March 7, 1997 | 11:59 a.m.
At at time when professional bowling has so many questions to answer, at least everyone can depend on its annual trek to the Nevada desert.
The world's top pros are filtering into Las Vegas for the 38th annual Showboat Invitational, which begins Saturday with junior pro-am competition at the Showboat Hotel.
It ends eight days from now under ABC's bright television lights. The Professional Bowlers' Tour stop in Las Vegas is the longest-running event of any in the country.
The Showboat, with a purse of $200,000, usually attracts one of the year's strongest fields, which is the case again this year.
Defending champion Walter Ray Williams, Jr., the top-ranked bowler on the planet, heads the field. He beat Brian LeClair 258-257 in a tremendous final last year, striking out in the 10th frame.
Williams later went on to earn IOF/PBA Player of the Year honors after five wins in 1996.
A top-notch field will be out to knock Williams off. That group includes Pete Weber, who recently broke a three-year winless streak with a victory in Tucson; Tim Criss, one of the hottest players on tour with three straight television appearances; and the ever-dangerous Norm Duke.
That's just the short list. Mike Aulby, Brian Voss, John Mazza and Dave Husted should be considered strong challengers, too. Husted and Williams both are two-time Showboat champions; Aulby and Weber both have won here as well.
Las Vegas residents Wayne Webb, Joe Salvemini and Dave Wodka also are entered.
Hall of Famers Mark Roth and Johnny Petraglia were at the Showboat today for a media luncheon, which included an announcement certain to bolster the spirits of bowlers and the sport's fans.
The Showboat announced a two-year sponsorship package of the PBA, which is going to include umbrella sponsorship of the PBA Senior Tour. Other features of the deal are a return of the 'King of the Hill' for the national tour on ABC this year, and a $1 million shot contest in 1998.
"We're proud to make what we consider to be the most significant sponsorship announcement in PBA history," said the Showboat's director of bowling, Jack Cook. "We feel our new commitment will benefit both the PBA Tours and Showboat properties."
This marks the 36th consecutive year ABC is broadcasting bowling. The Showboat is the second stop on the Spring tour; the first national telecast of the year is Saturday, originating from Lakewood, Calif.
However, recently there has been some grumbling about whether or not ABC is going to stick with the PBA Tour in the near future. CBS reportedly is interested in gaining the rights, but ABC's tenure with bowling still makes it the most viable option. But everyone agrees that to survive, the PBA needs a national network behind it.
After the junior pro-am Saturday and four adult pro-ams on Sunday, qualifying begins Monday morning. The top 24 advance to match play, which starts Thursday night. The finals are March 15 from noon-1:30 p.m.
For more information on the pro-ams, call 385-9153.
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