The PWBA Tour Championship is one of the four major events on the PWBA (Professional Women's Bowling Association) Tour. The tournament has been the final event of the PWBA Tour season since the Tour's rebirth in 2015. It has been held in Arlington, Texas (2015), Midlothian, Virginia (2016) and Richmond, Virginia (2017 through 2019).[1] Since 2021, the PWBA Tour Championship has been the final event of a three-tournament "classic series" stop and has been held in Reno, Nevada (2021), Dallas, Texas (2022), Waterloo, Iowa (2023) and Allen Park, Michigan (2024).
The original PWBA Tour (1960–2003) had three major events: The U.S. Women's Open (since inception), USBC Queens (since 1961), and the PWBA Players Championship (began as the PWBA Championships in 1960, and has been held on and off under similar names since). When the Tour was restarted in 2015, the PWBA Tour Championship was added to serve as a season-ending playoffs.
Prior to 2021, the PWBA Tour Championship was an invitational event with a starting field of 16 players. Any full-fledged PWBA member who won one of the prior events in the current season automatically made the field of 16, regardless of her season point total. The remaining spots in the field were filled with the women holding the highest point totals among non-winners. (Because a given player could win more than one tournament during the season, the number of at-large invitations could vary.) Invited players are then re-seeded 1 through 16 based on season point totals.
From 2015 through 2019, the tournament was set up in four bracketed elimination rounds. The #5 through #16 seeds bowled in the first round, consisting of head-to-head, best three-of-five matches. The six winners joined the #3 and #4 seeds (who earned first-round byes) in the second round, which consisted of four head-to-head, best three-of-five matches. The four winners of those matches bowled head-to-head, best three-of-five matches in the third round to determine the two bowlers who join the #1 and #2 seeds in the televised finals. The televised final round featured two head-to-head, single-elimination semifinal matches, with the #1 and #2 seeds each facing one of the survivors from the third round. The two winners of those matches then squared off in a single-game final match to determine the champion.[1] Despite being automatically placed into the televised finals, no #1 or #2 seed had ever won the tournament in this format until 2019.[2]
In 2021, the PWBA incorporated a "classic series" format for three tour stops. In this format, the top 24 qualifiers from two stand-alone tournaments form the starting field for a third tournament in the same location. For the 2021 Fall Classic Series, the PWBA Tour Championship was scheduled as the final of the three tournaments for the October 24–31 series, and featured a five-player stepladder final round.[3] By 2023, the 24-player field had returned to a season-long qualifying, with all tournament winners from the current season (if a PWBA member in good standing) gaining automatic entry, and the remaining field being filled by the top season point earners among non-winners.[4]
The 2024 PWBA Tour Championship was held August 11-13 at Thunderbowl Lanes in Allen Park, Michigan, with the 24-player starting field consisting of seven tournament winners from the 2024 season (PWBA members only) plus the top 17 points earners among non-winners. Total prize fund was $183,300, with a $50,000 top prize.[5] The tournament used a five-player stepladder finals format. Second-seeded Sin Li Jane of Malaysia, who had locked up 2024 PWBA Player of the Year honors earlier in the tournament, defeated top seed and 2023 PWBA Player of the Year Jordan Richard in the final match. This was Jane's fourth title of the season, fifth title overall, and second career major title.[6]
1. Sin Li Jane (Malaysia) – $50,000
2. Jordan Richard (Tipton, Michigan) – $25,000
3. Missy Parkin (San Clemente, California) – $8,000*
4. Stefanie Johnson (McKinney, Texas) – $12,000
5. New Hui Fen (Singapore) – $9,000
| Season | Winner | Runner-up | Championship match score | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 233–205[8] | |||
| 2016 | 258–235[9] | |||
| 2017 | 222–203[10] | |||
| 2018 | 236–228 | |||
| 2019 | 268–179 | |||
| 2020 | --- | --- | Not held–COVID-19 | |
| 2021 | 244–178 | |||
| 2022 | Shannon Pluhowsky | 252–181 | ||
| 2023 | Dasha Kovalova | 234–200 | ||
| 2024 | 215–209 |