Bowling Capital of the World Hosts Historic International Bowl Expo

BOWLING CAPITAL OF THE WORLD HOSTS HISTORIC

2011 INTERNATIONAL BOWL EXPO

DFW Region Hosts Ground-Breaking 2011 Expo Highlighted by 2011 Bowling’s U.S. Women’s Open at Cowboys Stadium and Keynote Address by Sports and Business Legend Roger Staubach

GRAPEVINE, Texas – JULY 11, 2011 – It has been said that "everything’s bigger in Texas" and the bowling industry once again proved this to be true as more than 5,000 prominent bowling industry leaders gathered at the Gaylord Texan Resort and Convention Center in Grapevine, Texas for the 2011 International Bowl Expo, the bowling industry’s premier annual trade show. The ground-breaking event was highlighted by the historic 2011 Bowling’s U.S. Women’s Open finalist round played at the 50-yard line of Cowboys Stadium and a keynote address delivered by Pro Football Hall of Fame member and Dallas Cowboys legend Roger Staubach.   Hosted only a few miles from Arlington, TX – home of the International Bowling Campus and the "bowling capital of the world" – the 2011 International Bowl Expo served as a celebration of an industry-wide resurgence that has seen  bowling’s re-emergence as the  nation’s number one participatory sport with more than 70 million bowling annually.

Steve Johnson, executive director of the Bowling Proprietors’ Association of America (BPAA), kicked off the 2011 Expo during the general session on June 29 by riding into the Gaylord Texan Convention Center on a famed Texas longhorn.

"From start to finish this year’s International Bowl Expo was an exceptional event and one of the great moments in bowling history," said Johnson.   "With Expo arriving in the bowling capital of the world, we challenged ourselves as an industry to make this year’s event one for the record books and I am so glad to be a part of what was truly a historic event.  From hosting Bowling’s U.S. Women’s Open at the 50-yard line of Cowboys Stadium to Roger Staubach’s impassioned speech at Expo to the thousands of industry leaders who visited and toured International Bowling Campus, this year’s conference was an event unlike any other."

Pro Football Hall of Famer Roger Staubach delivered the 2011 Expo’s keynote address on June 29, where he shared his lessons learned both on and off the field as a Hall of Fame athlete and business leader with nearly 5,000 bowling industry leaders in attendance.

"It is a privilege to speak at International Bowl Expo," Staubach told the attendees.  "Like many Americans, bowling has been a part of my life through childhood, my teenage years and to this day.  I have tremendous respect for the thousands of bowling proprietors across the country whose business and entrepreneurial skills continue to keep bowling fresh, relevant and the nation’s number one participatory sport."

The sport of professional bowling was forever propelled into the annals of sports history, when for the first time in the history of the sport, a women’s major professional bowling event was held at a non-traditional bowling venue.   On June 30, 2011 the Finals of the 2011 Bowling’s U.S. Women’s Open were held from the "Star" on the 50-yard line of Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, TX - drawing more than 6,000 attendees.  Leanne Hulsenberg, was crowned 2011 Open champion as she held off fellow finalists Kelly Kullick, Lynda Barnes, Liz Johnson and Shannon O’Keefe in front of one of the largest crowds in bowling history.  The Open Finals were broadcast on ESPN 2’s "Best and the Brightest" on Saturday, July 2, 2011.

"This win means so many different things to me. For my family it’s a very special day because I met my husband after I stopped bowling full time," said Hulsenberg immediately after her championship victory.  "On a bowling level, it’s special because I’ve been with Ebonite for 20 years and they had so much to do with this tournament.

The International Bowl Expo featured more than 45 interactive seminars and ‘how-to’ workshops that aimed to assist proprietors leverage the latest tools and technology to improve and strengthen their businesses. The sessions served to educate and expose proprietors to new information about the industry.

About Bowling Proprietors’ Association of America

The Bowling Proprietors’ Association of America (BPAA) is a non-profit organization that has served as the voice of the bowling industry since 1932.  Headquartered in Arlington, TX at the International Bowling Campus, the BPAA provides it’s more than 4,000 member centers with group purchasing programs, business and educational seminars, legislative representation and proactively promotes the association and bowling industry.  The BPAA’s mission is to enhance the profitability of its member centers and raise the profile of bowling, America’s top-ranked participatory sport. 

For additional information please visit www.bpaa.com or call 1-800-343-1329.

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