PBA’s ‘USA vs. the World’ Event Another Step In Bowling’s Evolution

When he took over as CEO of the Professional Bowlers Association earlier this year, Peter Murray spoke about the appeal of having an opportunity to “reimagine a sport and grow it globally.”

Another step in doing just that arrives this weekend with the sixth annual “USA vs. the World,” the PBA’s Ryder Cup-style competition featuring four top bowlers from the United States against a quartet from other nations. The event, which airs live starting at 2 p.m. ET, also serves as PBA’s debut on CBS and Paramount+, and comes on the heels of a series of strong viewership performances for the PBA this season.

The event Saturday will take place at Columbus Square Bowling Palace in Columbus, Ohio. The World team — which this year includes captain Jason Belmonte of Australia, Jesper Svensson of Sweden, Dom Barrett of England and Graham Fach of Canada — has won three of the first five editions of this event. The American roster for 2026 includes Andrew Anderson, Ethan Fiore and Anthony Simonsen alongside captain EJ Tackett, a 27-time winner on the PBA Tour and four-time Player of the Year whom Murray described as “the Tiger Woods of bowling, an icon.”

The showdown singles match between captains Belmonte and Tackett kicks off the event, which includes four matches in all: Match 2 is a doubles format featuring two of the non-captains selected by Belmonte and Tackett; and Matches 3 and 4 are full-team Baker format, where players rotate who bowls each frame.

This is a prime chance for the PBA: a network television showcase of a high-stakes international event featuring its best players, a testament to the rising talent level of the PBA which Murray said is “night and day from 20 years ago.”

“This particular event just illustrates the appeal around the word,” Murray said, noting that the PBA will expand its focus in “priority markets” such as Germany, Sweden, Japan and South Korea in the years to come.

Domestically the PBA is seeing a surge of interest. Viewership for the most recent event on the CW on March 29 was up to 440,000, an 11% gain over the prior week that included a 53% jump in the age 25-54 segment despite competing with the regional finals of the men’s NCAA basketball tournament.

The circuit is also benefiting from “Born to Bowl,” an HBO documentary series on the life of bowlers including Belmonte and Tackett that is shining a light on the challenges of pursuing a dream. The series, which includes five 30-minute episodes that release on Mondays, is executive produced by Ben Stiller and narrated by Liev Schreiber, who has long served as the voice of HBO Sports documentaries including the popular NFL show “Hard Knocks” that Murray helped bring to life when he worked at the NFL.

It’s all part of Murray’s grand ambition for the PBA, which includes putting an emphasis on elevating the sport’s five major tournaments that Murray pledges to make “much more of a spectacle,” though he didn’t offer specifics.

That should lead to new hosting opportunities, which Murray described as “a process in terms of who we partner with on the venue side as well as the city and their various promotional benefits.”

“We’re excited about the conversations we’re having with various host cities and partners,” he added. “We’ll be rolling out a new product strategy and the premium product on top is the majors. They’ll be elevated , they’ll be global and much more of a spectacle.”