Starting this month, the PBA Tour is changing its weekly format. Gone is the Round of 64, and instead will be not one, but two seven-game qualifying blocks before the Round of 32 head-to-head match play. Why you may ask? Please, go ahead. You might ask Walter Ray Williams, Jr., who was bounced by a couple of relative unknowns in that first round, with one of the those the week after career title victory number 40. Another reason may be the frustration from fans about seeing the best bowler of this generation in their center for just an hour and a half. The idea of the all-match play format was to give fans a chance to see their favorites for more than just one match, and not any other time during the tournament week. But throw in the top four from the PBA Tour Qualifier (the rabbit squad) to bowl against the top four seeded players, and who knows? As we have seen already, the idea worked too well. Some of rabbits worked their way as far as the round of 16 and have threatened to make a TV show. From a marketing standpoint, it is a very wise move. They want to protect the names, allow sponsors to see the names perform, meet the names, and re-sign the sponsors. That's why the all-exempt tour (well, almost all) was tour format was adopted in the first place, to keep familiar names making shows, allowing the players to develop a fan base. Another example would be NASCAR. As you tool down the tollway, what is the likelihood you see a #24 and a #8 sticker in the same rear window? Not real good. The point is those drivers have developed driving personalities through NASCAR. Part of the PBA gameplan is develop genuine personalities in that 90-minute show in exactly the same way, which would be why you may see a PDW fan rousing a WRW fan. You've seen it before, except replace drivers with Cubs and Sox fans in one of Don Ladas' favorite milkshake parlors. Let's just hope the PBA is not just reaching to pull a rabbit out of the hat.

     The bigger picture is getting beyond the hardcore fan group and building a casual fan base. Growing pains are common, mistakes are made while finding that group. This is one of those phases. Remember looking on the PBA website trying to figure who was in wild-card match from the Round of 8? Not always the clearest cut who would make the show. In fact, the method for choosing that fifth participant changed from one year to the next. Remember the first time we saw eight guys on a 90-minute show or five on the hour-long CBS show a few years ago? Wasn't that awkward after 35 years of the ABC and ESPN shows? Nonetheless, the clock is ticking on this version of the PBA. They said it themselves some time ago; the Association has to become self-sufficient without more added ownership money, period.

     While on that topic, not a peep has been heard from the USBC on the fledgling women's pro tour. At deadline, the former WIBC had not made any public announcement on its status. Two things must be in place to proceed, a TV show package and sponsors. Basic, yes. The degree of difficulty is finding those sponsors. Considering the fate of the recently departed women's pro soccer league last year and the WNBA continuing to hemorrhage cash, one has to wonder has the finite amount of sports sponsorship money been uncovered? Not if you are watching that new ESPN drama series about poker, yikes.

     Have you seen the reruns of the World Series of Poker finals on ESPN Classic? Even the shows from the mid 1990's look extremely tame compared to the show the last two years. No one is jumping around, thumping the chest, or high-fiving half the crowd after a successful hand. Today's players are definitely younger, qualifying online, and scaring the old timers in their 30's. The calmer veterans are not sure what to make of the kids, but the show's producers now have their new casual fan base. But, do we want to see what has happened to poker happen to bowling? Probably not. There aren't any new earth-shattering strategies and poker doesn't have to worry about constantly changing oil patterns. So as Randy Pedersen continues to improve his Australian accent while explaining the weekly oil pattern, the viewer understands how the patterns played during the week and are being played on the show.

     Two PBA Midwest Regional bowlers have been doing pretty well in the weekly Tour Qualifying rounds. Jeff Carter of Springfield and Belleville's Mike Mineman have made five and four cuts each into the Round of 64. Carter missed this year's exempt tour by only a few thousand points and is stating his case as to why he should be in next year's elite field. He nearly made the TV finals show at Vernon Hills in 2003, falling to Doug Kent in the Round of 8, 4 games to 2. Mineman took most of 2003 off recovering from injury and picked up where he left off in 2002. Both have been red hot going into January's tour swing, but the contrast between the two is their styles. Carter, who set the single-season ABC average record five years ago at 261.74, is a cranker who can cover all the boards if necessary while generating a high revolution rate. Mineman's style could not be more opposite. While using a much slower ball speed and rev rate, he can play parts of the lane a lot of others can't play. Using that to his advantage, he throws balls with more aggressive covers, creating more angle to the pins. And both are in excellent position to claim spots for the 2005-06 exempt PBA Tour. Both players take advantage of their best natural abilities to get the job done. Next month as JPA starts Year 8 (yikes, already?), a trip back to Pro Shop 101 to explain the critical relationship between ball speed and rev rate in today's game. And maybe some other stuff, too, like how waving a black and gold towel during Steeler games can be oh so very healthy.