Original subtitles

[TV static drones]

[bright tone]

[indistinct chatter]

[flowing orchestral music]

- Patrick can still force some people

to mark in the tenth frame here if he can find a way.

♪ ♪

[audience gasps] Oh, my goodness.

[cannon blasts]

[Tchaikovsky's "1812 Overture"]

narrator: Oil is slippery,

but also essential in bowling.

Consider that every bowling shot starts with the approach.

The steps and slide to the line

are crucial to getting the ball

and/or your body to go where you want.

And whether you're an amateur or professional,

navigating that step and slide can be tricky.

♪ ♪

[cannon blasts] - Look at this!

narrator: All why bowling shoes are always required.

In the old days,

pros would put ash on their shoes to help them slide more

or spit on them to make them stick better.

And while bowling alleys now look pretty different

than they did in the days of smoking and spitting,

bowling shoes pretty much still look the same.

Though Jason Belmonte,

or Belmo, as the kids call him,

wants to change that.

- Over the last few years,

I've kind of fallen down the wells of sneakers.

[upbeat funky music]

"Research."

Because I wanted to bring sneaker culture into bowling.

narrator: Belmo capitalized on his superstar status

and produced his own shoe,

unmistakably reminiscent of a legend,

which might make you wonder

if footwear could be tied to on-lane success

as very famously postulated by the esteemed Mars Blackmon.

- Money's gotta be the shoes!

Shoes! Shoes! Shoes!

Shoes!

[upbeat rock music]

♪ ♪

[birds singing]

[upbeat folk music]

♪ ♪

- ♪ Here in Australia, I was born ♪

♪ Heavy away, haul away ♪

♪ Old Australia 'round Cape Horn ♪

♪ Going to Australia ♪

narrator: Now if you couldn't tell from his accent,

Belmo is from Australia,

where they call bowling tenpin bowling.

And here he is showing off the bowling alley

his parents bought when he was just a baby.

- ♪ Australia ♪

narrator: Yep, just like EJ Tackett.

[upbeat blues music]

Now, because of Belmo's endorsement deals

and the fact that he's won more majors

than any other bowler in history

by a lot, it means he can afford something

other bowlers can't.

Beyond a nice house and 200 pairs of Nikes,

he can take time off,

which is why he didn't think twice

to skip this year's Pete Weber Classic

and return home to New South Wales, Australia,

where he's been a bit of a celebrity

dating back to when he was a kid.

- Meet Jason Belmonte.

His highest score is 259

and his results are consistent,

and all from such humble beginnings.

- Dad said when you were just born, like 18 months,

I started bowling my first ball.

[dramatic western music]

♪ ♪

When my parents built a bowling center,

neither of them were bowlers.

It was purely this crazy idea for a business.

Bowling in my hometown was new.

No one--

no one knew how to do it.

♪ ♪

And I'm this 18-month-old kid and I want to bowl.

♪ ♪

And so I would just do my best to carry it

and kind of, you know,

throw it down the lane with two hands.

[upbeat music]

But it was really soon thereafter

that I was able to do something

that no one else in town was doing,

and that was create this hook.

Everybody that bowled, traditionally,

would bowl really, really straight.

I was just curving the whole lane

as like a four, five, six-year-old.

And that made me different, but it was cool.

♪ ♪

- Jason Belmonte is a rarity in tenpin bowling,

as is his bowling style.

♪ ♪

- It's been one of the wildest things,

to see how many people are bowling two-handed.

- A double-hander.

- When I was a rookie,

almost no one does it.

To today, where half the people on tour are bowling this way.

And I remember having conversations

you know, in my early 20s or late teens

when I'd have this success,

and then people would start to be like,

hey, I don't think you can do this.

- No story has gained as much national traction

as Jason Belmonte.

His two-handed style

has caught the attention of everyone.

- There was this underlying feeling of he's cheating.

- Two hands is a lot easier to do.

I don't agree with it.

I don't think that it's a part of the game

that should be in play.

- He's revving the ball so much

and he strikes so much and we can't do this

and so we gotta ban that style altogether.

- You know, everybody just wants a fair shake

and you could make rules that prohibit the two-handed style,

and I would be for that.

[dramatic music]

- Thankfully, those that write the rule book

said it's totally OK.

And if anything, that just gives you more confidence.

Like, you walk in going,

everyone here that has said something about my style

is threatened by me.

[birds singing]

I really don't think about my own bowling when I'm here.

I'm really engaged in what the family's doing.

- This. - Mango.

- Do you want some mango? - Yes.

- I'm gone for six, seven months of the year,

and so the months that I have here at home,

I want to be really present.

- No, no, no. - [laughs]

- I have to cut it.

Otherwise, how are we gonna get into it?

- Is that good?

- So my life when Jas is gone,

I guess it can become a little bit lonely at times.

But I definitely think it's harder for him.

- I know.

- You're really hacking into that.

- I am.

The best way that I can describe leaving is

I absolutely hate it.

But before leaving,

I'm very excited about going and competing.

[dramatic music]

Of the last ten Player of the Years,

I've won seven.

And the three that I hadn't won,

I was filthy with myself.

People say, like, you've won so much.

Like, you just enjoy what you have.

And that's just, again, not acceptable.

- Strike for the win.

- A strike does it.

Legendary!

- Jason can do anything with a bowling ball.

- And that's his third major win over EJ Tackett.

- Boom!

EJ and I have been battling

for the best part of this decade.

And I'm not ready to give up my crown.

I want to be the greatest that's ever

laced up a pair of shoes and rolled a ball down a lane.

And in order to do that,

what I want to achieve is

in a single word,

dominate again.

That's two words. [chuckles]

Dominate.

[upbeat music]

narrator: Belmo's next chance to dominate a major

will come back on the other side of the world,

in the Paris of Western Nevada.

♪ ♪

You could call the World Series of Bowling

the Mecca of bowling events.

♪ ♪

It's a month-long challenge

set this year in the heart of Reno, Nevada,

where 200-plus bowlers from over 18 countries

will fight until there's only one man left standing

on the lanes.

♪ ♪

Now if those lanes look familiar, they should

if you've seen the movie "Kingpin."

- Welcome to my church.

narrator: Which, by the way,

some say is the greatest bowling movie ever.

Anyway, the World Series of Bowling

isn't just a single big event

that gets its name from baseball,

it's actually five tournaments,

including the PBA World Championship,

rolled into one.

Now, the series' first four events

each use a distinctly challenging oil pattern

to affect the speed and spin of the bowl,

each inspired by a different animal.

Why animal patterns?

Well, in the words of Sir David Attenborough...

- It's a mystery. Nobody knows.

♪ ♪

[elevator bell rings]

- See if we can fit a couple guys in here.

- Reno's a little different

because in that little downtown area,

there's really not a whole lot to do.

[peaceful music]

♪ ♪

[soft upbeat music]

- At least the mountains are nice.

- We're all just stuck in the same place

doing the same thing.

- And we stayed at the Silver Legacy,

a fine establishment.

Next question. [laughs]

[quirky suspenseful music]

♪ ♪

My roommate, my best friend, Jesper Svensson...

♪ ♪

We're gonna spend almost a month in Reno.

He's tall, Swede, with a bunch of tattoos.

He's very quiet.

Uh, but he's a killer on the lanes.

He's the Iceman.

[dramatic music]

[soft upbeat music]

He's been there with me

through the last several years.

Once I got engaged to Brianna,

I knew my best man was going to be Jesper.

- I'm a long way from home,

so to have people here that treat you like family,

that's pretty special.

[soft upbeat music]

- Our kitchen is in the bathroom.

And our microwave and griddle and stuff stay in the closet,

so, you know.

♪ ♪

I think anywhere for 20 days

is gonna, you know, wear us down a little bit, so.

There's not really a lot to do around here.

Just bowl.

[wondrous ambient music]

♪ ♪

[upbeat electronic music]

♪ ♪

- Seventh frame, for a 44-pin lead.

You bet.

♪ ♪

- EJ Tackett...

got some help!

- One to win.

♪ ♪

And he got it! - And he got it.

- Kyle Troup is bowling beautifully.

♪ ♪

- Belmo...

said, don't forget about me.

At 41 years old, still at the top of his game.

narrator: The four animal pattern tournaments

always separate the predator from the prey.

- Is this a good one?

Oh!

narrator: And not everyone survives.

Simo has a terrible showing.

- He didn't like it at all.

- And that's the result.

- You fucking dumb fuck.

narrator: And then packs it in.

- Damn it, man.

♪ ♪

- Meanwhile,

EJ reaches the final round of every animal pattern,

but loses over and over and over again.

[soft dramatic music]

And--

- I know. I--

[sighs]

[upbeat country music]

narrator: It's important to remember

that the greatest bowlers in the world

don't get there on their own.

Their skills only take them so far.

- Watch his balls.

No, he's got me. I just want him to watch.

narrator: Their ball reps do the rest.

Bowlers will tell you they're like caddies,

but really, a ball rep's more like a cutman.

- Cut me, Mick.

- I don't want to do it. - Come on, cut me.

narrator: Keeping their guy fighting,

or a psychologist without a license.

- You want a fresh one?

narrator: Ultimately, more than anything,

a ball rep's a friend who's there for you.

- What if I throw it like that, dickface?

narrator: No matter how poorly you treat them.

- ♪ Oh, it's so nice to be with you ♪

♪ I love all the things-- ♪

narrator: Someone who's looking out for your future...

narrator: To guide you...

narrator: Sweet-talk you...

narrator: And be the friend who will always

take care of your balls.

- ♪ Oh, it's so nice to be with you ♪

♪ I love all the things you say and do ♪

[car horn honking]

- Category for Final Jeopardy is Games People Play,

and here's the clue.

Unable to lift the ball as a toddler,

Jason Belmonte devised a two-handed throw

that made him an outcast...

- Oh, someone better get it. [laughs]

narrator: Then a champ in this sport.

What is basketball?

- B--no. - I'm afraid that's not it.

Oh, what is the shot put? - Shot put? Shot put?

- What sport did you think of, Roy?

Bowling. - Roy.

- That is correct. - Gets it right.

- Jason Belmonte is a professional

two-handed bowler.

- I mean, I think that's good.

One out of the three knew who I was,

so I'm famous enough to be a question on Jeopardy,

but not famous enough that all the people know.

I think that's a perfect blend of fame.

[laid-back upbeat music]

- I hate to ask this question,

but people think because you're not winning

as much as you were that you are not at the caliber.

How do you deal with that?

- In terms of rivalry, EJ's been my biggest rival

even before I was washed-up, as Kimberly calls it.

- I didn't--I--no, no, no, no, no, no.

- Yeah, oh, you didn't do the-- - No, it's not me.

- You didn't do the quotes. - No, it's not me.

- You didn't do the quotes. - No, I said people said.

I did not say that. - Yeah.

- I did not say that. That's not fair.

- When it comes to my career,

it is very much what have you done for me lately?

From fans, from myself.

- Oh, my. - [indistinct]

- No one else seems to be scrutinized the same way.

You know, if EJ has a bad week

or if Anthony has a bad season,

no one really cares about it.

you know, I have a bad week or two or three,

it's time to retire.

What's wrong with this guy? He's past his prime. You know?

And EJ is proving to be quite the adversary.

- You know, you can only sit atop the mountain for so long

before Father Time knocks you off.

[tense music]

- In 2023, World Series World Championship...

[dramatic rock music]

Ooh.

I remember bowling up against EJ and the title.

- For the win, Tackett!

- Yeah! - He's done it!

[upbeat rock music]

- Come on! Let's fucking go!

Let's go!

- Yeah, it was a pretty amazing moment.

- Boom! Boom! Yeah! [indistinct]

- [shouts indistinctly] - Damn right, man.

- You know, he was able to beat me,

which at that point I had a really strong record

against him in major championships.

That's why I think it's a little more special for him

than it was for me.

But I still appreciated it.

[somber music]

♪ ♪

Now that I'm not number one, I kind of want it back.

But with the opportunity to win the World Championship,

it's a make-or-break for me.

[distant pins clattering]

[upbeat music]

- Want us to lock arms?

[laughter]

- We've got a heavyweight fight

between two of the greatest in the game right now.

Jesper and Kyle are--

not only are they best friends,

but they're roommates.

When they get out on the lane,

it's gonna be a battle royale, man.

♪ ♪

- Jesper is my brother.

But then when we compete against each other,

it don't matter to me.

At the end of the day, it's about

rolling a ball down a lane and knocking down ten pins.

[pins clatter]

♪ ♪

- Fuck, man.

Fuck you, motherfucker.

- [chuckles] That's terrible.

- There's my fucking answer.

[pins clattering]

All right. [sighs]

Next time, just ball change

instead of fucking thinking about it, goddamn it.

[somber music]

Fucking pussy.

You know, I was definitely pretty hard on myself.

Feeling really low at that moment.

My emotions were just not in check again.

And that ultimately cost me.

- So Jesper, I know obviously, that's a tough match.

You never want to bowl Kyle unless it's on TV.

Walk us through how you got it done.

- I mean, it's a crazy match. You know, we got to five games.

- It's piling up.

The continued losing,

like, it's definitely a struggle mentally.

♪ ♪

- Welcome to Bowl TV's continuing coverage

of World Series of Bowling.

We talked about somebody that we both kind of like,

and that's gonna be Cam Crowe,

who seems to have the right attitude.

- Cam's always got the right attitude.

He's Mr. Positive all the time no matter what.

It's refreshing. It's great to see that.

- Practice is done. They're getting ready to start.

So I can't remember who told me.

He said, hey, you talked to Cam?

So I called him.

[phone buzzing]

- My alarms are usually set all the time.

[phone buzzing]

This is the one day we shut the blinds completely,

so it was just all dark.

- I called him again.

What? What? What's going on? I go, where you at?

- I look at my phone. I said, oh my God, it's 8:55.

- Bro, they're getting ready to start.

- [gasps] Oh, shit.

Oh, f-- oh, no.

Hung up the phone, put my clothes on.

We back.

Good morning.

[energetic orchestral music]

I grab my backpack.

I'm running. I'm like, oh my God.

I have to be there by 9:00.

That's when the first frame starts.

Thank you.

Thank God I used to run track.

Oh, thank you. How you doing?

I get there in frame two and I was like, oh my God.

I only missed two frames.

Right? Could have got a lot worse.

- He got here in two frames, which is pretty fast.

- Very mad at myself.

- F, F, F, F, F, F, F.

- What the...

[word echoing in slow motion] Fuck?

- So Cameron Crowe showed up late

and got zeros for his first two frames.

- Obviously, just pissed off at myself, very frustrated.

Smack me. Hit me. Do something.

- [laughs]

- 'Cause what the fuck is going on?

Ah, yes. Thank you. Let's go.

[upbeat music]

- This is a big, big morning for Cam Crowe right now

'cause he wants to make TV.

♪ ♪

- Crowe really needs a strike here to keep the pressure on.

Oh, no.

He needed to make a shot, he made a shot,

and the 8-pin just didn't cooperate.

You can just feel it.

He just feels sick right now.

[indistinct chatter]

- Every fucking time I need a fucking hit.

That can't happen right there.

That can't happen. That can't happen.

God fucking damn it. [sighs]

[sighs]

[groans] That was mine.

That was mine.

[sighs]

[exhales deeply]

[dramatic rock music]

- Hats off to Jason Belmonte.

Looks like he is definitely gonna be the number one seed.

EJ Tackett, looks like he's gonna be second.

- It's time to pack up and check out,

'cause today is the finals here in Reno.

- [grunts]

I travel with a fridge and a microwave

because I can't eat casino food for a month, right?

[energetic quirky music]

My concern when I'm leaving a hotel

or a casino with my fridge is that somebody's gonna think

I'm making off with their, you know, their appliance.

[laughs]

- Yeah, buddy.

- My man.

- Lifesaver. - Yeah.

♪ ♪

- [sighs]

- The things we do for one another.

- [chuckles] That's it.

Oh, shit. Forgot the truck was here.

[laughs]

♪ ♪

- We're in? - Yeah.

- Let's go.

- We survive.

[upbeat rock music]

♪ ♪

- Welcome to Reno's National Bowling Stadium

for the PBA World Championship

as two of the greatest bowlers of this generation,

Jason Belmonte and EJ Tackett, are your one and two seeds

as we wrap up the World Series of Bowling.

- I put myself into the best possible position I could

to win the championship, number one seed.

But when you're the number one guy for the TV show,

you have a lot to lose.

♪ ♪

- Now it's championship time.

- Come on, man. Good luck. Have a good one.

- Have a good one.

- It's the ninth time these two have met in a title match

and Belmo holds the advantage 5 to 3.

♪ ♪

[chuckling] Ooh.

- In the third frame, I left a 10-pin

on a shot that I thought was pretty much perfect.

So your mind is racing.

Do you slow down? Do you speed up?

Do you change ball? Do you change your target?

Do you--there's so many different possibilities.

But whatever you do, you get one crack at it.

And in a ten-frame game, that's 10% of your game.

You make two wrong decisions,

that's a fifth of your title match that is bad.

Oh, Jason.

[suspenseful music]

- Almost got away with it.

- I started off with four consecutive strikes.

And in the fifth,

I... [feedback screeching]

Threw one not so great.

This basically ties our match back up.

- Chance for Belmo to take the lead.

- And gives Jason the opportunity

to throw some punches.

- I looked at all my equipment.

I looked at all my possible answers.

And I was thinking...

[inhales deeply]

Do you make that change and really, really risk it?

95% of my career, I have had 100% confidence.

And in the last couple of years, doubt creeps in.

You're holding the ball in your hand

and you're thinking, is this the right ball?

♪ ♪

As the ball was going down,

think this is gonna be a pretty good shot.

- Oh, boy.

He had the opportunity right there and he lost it.

- How does that go that straight?

- He throws his own split and he opened the door for me.

And I was able to throw some punches back.

- Man, did he get back to business.

[upbeat music]

Has to have this one.

Oh, OK!

[chuckling] OK!

- How? How did that strike?

If there is a God

and He is a bowling fan and He likes me,

He'll let EJ miss and give me the moment.

- Couldn't ask for more.

Coming down to the tenth frame, needs two.

- I had to throw a double in the tenth frame.

But throwing two strikes when it's strike or you lose,

it's very, very difficult.

[upbeat funk music]

♪ ♪

[upbeat funk music]

- One more for the win.

♪ ♪

- In high-pressure situations,

I have a tendency to get kind of quick.

So reminding myself to say slow,

and I try to hyper-focus on this one thing.

It seems simple, but it's extremely difficult.

[exhales deeply]

♪ ♪

One more.

♪ ♪

[tense notes]

[suspenseful funk music]

♪ ♪

[energetic upbeat music]

- [shouting]

♪ ♪

- And I guess God is not a bowling fan.

- Holy shit. - What a fight, man.

What a fight.

Go get that trophy.

♪ ♪

- If there is no God

or there is, then He doesn't like me very much,

'cause he just made EJ bowl two of the greatest shots

EJ's ever thrown.

- What a match. Jason is--[chuckles softly]

he's not old by any means, but he's still unbelievable.

And he showed it again this week, how great he is.

[sparse somber music]

This match was awesome.

I mean--[chuckles]

It was two of the best shots I've ever thrown in my life.

[sparse somber music]

♪ ♪

- That was a tough one, yeah.

♪ ♪

Fuck.

♪ ♪

Well, good news is I get to

get on a plane now, go to Detroit.

[soft upbeat music]

narrator: After bowling 80 games

and spending a month in the same hotel room,

the change in scenery might improve Belmo's mood

as much as a new pair of high tops.

As for EJ, fresh off his second major win in a row,

he's about to drive 30 straight hours

to the Motor City, Detroit,

hoping a third straight victory awaits.

He'll bring the $100,000 check with him,

which could buy a lot of Dr. Peppers for the road.

- Nice.

[energetic hard rock music]

♪ ♪