The price is right: Pinacle Events' Steve Sanders steps forward to revitalize the women's tour

Bowling Digest, Spring, 2004 by Rick Woelfel

"If he can't do it the right way," she says, "he's not going to do it at all. That's important, because if you do it halfway, then we're right back where we were when we closed the door: At least he's stepped up to the plate and said, 'The ladies are a great entity and we can't let them go.' At least he's stepped up to try and make it work."

At age 41, with 21 seasons behind her, Dorin-Lizzi's friend and colleague Ann Marie Duggan has been part of the tour through good times and bad. She views Sanders as an optimist, but also a realist.

"He knows his stuff," Duggan says. "I don't think he tries to do anything he knows he can't do. I don't think he would have taken this on if he didn't think he could make a go of it."

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IT'S A GORGEOUS AUTUMN AFTERNOON in central Pennsylvania, and the HersheyPark entertainment complex is bustling with visitors. But next door, the Grant Center is filled with bowling fans. The indoor arena has been converted into a bowling venue, and more than 5,000 fans are preparing to watch the championship match of the Hershey Foods PWBA Challenge of Champions, the climactic event of the tour's 2005 season.

The top 32 players in the sport have been in nearby Harrisburg all week, engaging in single-elimination matches. seeking a snare of a $500,000 purse--the largest n the history of women's bowling. Two of the tour's brightest stars. Tiffany Stanbrough and Cara Honeychurch, have emerged as the finalists.

In a few moments, the pair will bowl a one-game match for a winner's check of $100,000. Right now. they are trying to collect their thoughts while ABC-TV is airing its commercials.

Both have had a full weekend. Stanbrough, the second seed at the start of the competition on Friday, defeated Brenda Norman in the opening round in a three-game match, 642-577. In the round of 16 a best-of-five affair. Stanbrough averaged 221 while eliminating Kim Adler three games to one. In the best-of-seven quarterfinals Saturday evening, Stanbrough took out Wendy Macpherson in six games, averaging 219 in the process. Earlier on this day, she beat Kelly Kulick, 227-219, in a semifinal match.

Honeychurch, the fourth seed, had to work just as hard getting past Karl Schwager in the opening round, 661-604. In the second round, she bested Marianne DiRupo three games to two while averaging 214. Michelle Feldman was next, in a quarterfinal that went a full seven games. with Honeychurch averaging 217.

In today's semifinal, Honeychurch defeated top-seeded Carolyn Dorin-Ballard in the best match of the tournament, striking out in the 10th to win. 241-234. She's hoping to carry that momentum into her match with Stanbrough.

ABC's last commercial ends, and commentators Michelle Tafoya and Cathy Dorin-Lizzi are back on the air, live. Millions are watching not just across the United States but also in Honeychurch's native Australia, where it's already Monday morning. For fans who don't have access to a television, me PWBA offers live Webcasting on PWBA.com.