I saw this come up in a few threads lately....especially some of the ones regarding PDW at the USBC Masters. And I got thinking about it....do those of you hating the WSOB really understand where it came from? It is about saving money, period. The PBA has to pay to produce the TV shows we see. So they could pay to move the production equipment from town to town, all across the country, week in and week out....and by doing so the bowlers would bowl for about $500 for first place each week. By having the WSOB all together in one place, at one time, they only have to move the production equipment once (well maybe twice if you include moving it back afterwards). This is a tremendous cost savings to the PBA. But that's not the only savings. Without a sponsors, these events can't offer grandious prize funds. Do you think the bowlers could afford to travel from city to city week in and week out? The answer is no. The WSOB allows them to travel once (assuming round trip) and have the opportunity to bowl for 6-7 titles. It allows more players to attend, bringing in more dollars to the PBA. This is one of the which came first the chicken or the egg scenarios. The bottomline is without sponsorship, the WSOB is a win/win for the PBA and the players. Yes, it stinks not having live shows for every final, but would you rather have no bowling, no PBA at all?
 
While I have no perfect solution to this....I have one that maybe hasn't been looked at before (or maybe it has and I just missed it). Instead of looking for a sponsor for the entire tour....what if the PBA looked at getting sponsor's for individual tournaments? I can remember it used to be the "Firestone Tournament of Champions", the "True Value" Open, etc. Maybe find large companies that have a homebase and see if they would sponsor a tournament in that area. Where is Dick's Sporting Goods headquartered? Where is Academy Sports headquartered? Look to anyone and everyone and see if they are willing. Show them that it can cost less to advertise on the PBA telecasts, along with getting their name out there. Show them the people that watch, that attend, that are passionate about this sport, and see if they would be willing to take a chance. This could potentially solve two things....it gets the PBA actually touring again, even if only slightly, and helps bring in more money for the players to offset the added travel costs. Maybe, just maybe, if these companies see a return for this investment....they may sponsor more tournaments or maybe even look to sponsor the tour....but if we start small, we can get a foot in the door and grow the relationships into the future.
 
Or maybe this is just fantasy...but the PBA won't know until they try.

Spot on, Jorge. But part of the issue is the PBA's "partnership" with espn. I find it hard to believe that a slightly better deal couldn't be found at CBS Sports or Fox Sports. Why the blind devotion to espn?

As for Dicks, they are based in Pittsburgh. A tournament there would make sense.