April 2, 2025 Nolan Hughes

The second annual PBA All-Star Weekend is set to commence its festivities this weekend at Foxx View Lanes in Waukesha, Wis.

The PBA All-Star Weekend Powered by QubicaAMF’s EDGE String pinspotter features a baker battle between one-handed and two-handed teams on Saturday, followed by a high-flying strike derby on Sunday afternoon.

This event marks the first televised PBA event to utilize string pinspotting technology – the USBC-approved and PBA-approved EDGE String pinspotter from QubicaAMF.

PBA All-Star Weekend: One-Handers vs. Two-Handers Powered by QubicaAMF’s EDGE String pinspotter

Saturday, April 5 | 11am Central (12pm Eastern) on FS1

For generations, long before Don Carter and Dick Weber built the foundation of the PBA Tour,  bowling stars played the game one way. While an internal war between righties and lefties waged for decades, a revolution was bubbling under the surface.

In back alleys around the globe, children too weak to hold a bowling ball began to thrust the ball down the lanes using every ounce of strength they could muster. It didn’t matter how the ball was thrown — only how many pins fell over.

The homogeneity of the game came to a screeching halt in November 2011 when two international bowlers, each born in 1983 — the same year Earl Anthony won his last PBA Player of the Year award, changed the game forever.

Australia’s Jason Belmonte captured three titles and Finland’s Osku Palermaa brought home the PBA World Championship crown during the World Series of Bowling III.

Bowling would never be the same again. But the overnight transformation had little to do with the dominance of international players — and everything to do with how Belmonte and Palermaa threw the ball.

Using two hands.

The clash of styles that has defined the modern game and divided bowling fandom takes center stage on Saturday, April 5.

EJ Tackett, perhaps the last vestige of bowling’s heritage, leads a team of traditional one-handed players against two-handed trailblazer Belmonte and his squad of revolutionaries.

The five-player teams will compete in a Race-to-Three match. Teams were selected based on competition points earned during the 2025 PBA Tour through the PBA World Series of Bowling XVI.

The Baker format, utilized in the PBA Elite League, places an emphasis on teamwork. Rotating through the lineup, each player will bowl two frames per game. The anchor will bowl the fifth and 10th frames.

If the teams split the first four games, each team will select three players to each throw a single shot. The highest combined total will win; a one-ball roll-off will be used to break any ties.

One-Handed Team

  • EJ Tackett
  • Andrew Anderson
  • Graham Fach
  • Jakob Butturff
  • Kris Prather

Two-Handed Team

  • Jason Belmonte
  • Chris Via
  • Tim Foy Jr.
  • Matt Ogle
  • Kyle Troup
PBA All-Star Weekend: Strike Derby Powered by QubicaAMF’s EDGE String pinspotter

Sunday, April 6 | 11:30am Central (12:30pm Eastern) on FS1

The Strike Derby represents competitive bowling in its purest form: Players have two minutes to throw as many strikes as possible and the player with the most strikes moves on. It’s that simple.

Competitors were selected via a fan vote, which ran from March 24-28. Fans were invited to vote for one player from each team in the PBA Elite League: Battle of the Brands. Jesper Svensson qualified as the defending champion.

Play-in Round
Tommy Jones (Ebonite) vs. Jesper Svensson (defending champion)

Quarterfinals
Packy Hanrahan (Brunswick) vs. Boog Krol (Hammer)
Jason Belmonte (Storm) vs. Keven Williams (DV8)

Ryan Barnes (900 Global) vs. Kris Prather (Roto Grip)
EJ Tackett (Motiv) vs. winner of Jones/Svensson

Semifinals
Hanrahan/Krol vs. Belmonte/Williams
Tackett/Jones/Svensson vs. Barnes/Prather

Finals
Hanrahan/Krol/Belmonte/Williams vs. Tackett/Jones/Svensson/Barnes/Prather

PBA All-Star Weekend Schedule

All times are Central/local. TV air times are bolded.

Foxx View Lanes | Waukesha, WI

Friday, April 4

  • 3 p.m. — Practice - PBA All-Star Weekend: One-Handers vs. Two-Handers Powered by QubicaAMF’s EDGE String pinspotter (non-TV pair)
  • 4 p.m. — Practice - PBA All-Star Weekend: One-Handers vs. Two-Handers Powered by QubicaAMF’s EDGE String pinspotter (TV pair)
  • 5:30 p.m. — PBA Junior National Championships
  • 7 p.m. — Pro-Am (Sussex Bowl; Sussex, WI)

Saturday, April 5

  • 11 a.m. on FS1 — PBA All-Star Weekend: One-Handers vs. Two-Handers Powered by QubicaAMF’s EDGE String pinspotter (LIVE on FS1)
  • 1:15 p.m. — Practice - PBA All-Star Weekend: Strike Derby Powered by QubicaAMF’s EDGE String pinspotter (non-TV pair)
  • 3 p.m. — PBA All-Star Weekend: Strike Derby Powered by QubicaAMF’s EDGE String pinspotter (Taped for FS1)

Sunday, April 6

  • 11:30 a.m. on FS1 — PBA All-Star Weekend: Strike Derby Powered by QubicaAMF’s EDGE String pinspotter