PBA

(Harrisburg, PA) -- Professional bowling returns to the Greater Harrisburg/Hershey area on July 12-14 as ABC North Lanes hosts the PBA Greater Hershey Open. The event, sponsored by Hershey Harrisburg Sports & Events Authority (HHSE), is part of the 18-event PBA East Region schedule. A field of 120 bowlers from throughout the northeast is expected to participate in the three-day event.

"The Bower family that owns ABC Lanes has always been supportive of the PBA Tour. We are proud after so may years to be able to bring some of the best bowlers in the world back to the Hershey/Harrisburg area." says Earl Burger, manager of ABC North. "It will be a great tournament to showcase their skills and show why 70 million people bowl each year."

"We are excited to welcome the PBA back to our region,” said HHSE Executive Director Gregg Cook. “We are grateful for the Bower family for agreeing to host the event, and for their years of support and promotion of the sport of bowling at all levels.”

Friday evening provides an opportunity where amateurs can pair up with the pros to bowl in a no-tap doubles tournament.

Saturday, the field competes in an 8-game qualifying round. Half the field bowls at 8 a.m, while the other half competes at 2:30 p.m. At the conclusion of Saturday’s qualifying round, the top one-third advance to Sunday’s finals, beginning at 8 a.m.

The finalists, who carry over their qualifying pinfall, bowl 4 additional games. The field will then reduce to the top 16 based on their accumulated 12-game pinfall. The remaining bowlers roll three additional games to reduce the field to 8, then two additional games to determine the top four. Those players will bowl a TV-style stepladder finals to determine the champion. The winner will receive $3,000 out of an estimated prize fund of $30,000.

There will be no admission fee charged. Fans are encouraged to attend the event and enjoy bowling competition at its highest level. For further tournament details, visit www.pba.com. For details on Friday’s pro-am event, contact ABC North Lanes at (717) 545-4254.