The (JPBA) is the major sanctioning body for the sport of professional

ten-pin bowling Ten-pin bowling is a type of bowling in which a bowler rolls a bowling ball down a wood or synthetic lane toward ten pins positioned evenly in four rows in an equilateral triangle. The objective is to knock down all ten pins on the first roll ...

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

. The organization was founded by , and was established on January 27, 1967. The JPBA sanctions tournaments and other functions related to professional bowling for both men and women. Its headquarters are located in

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...

. The current president of the JPBA is Hideki Matsuda. The ''Japan Ladies Bowling Club'' is a sub-organization within the JPBA system, and sponsors women-only tournaments. The JLBC was co-founded by

Ritsuko Nakayama is a former professional bowler. She was born in Kusatsu, Gunma, Japan. She later moved to Kagoshima which is her parents' hometown. Nakayama became a member of the Japan Professional Bowling Association in 1969, representing Tokyo Tower Bowling ...

and Kayoko Suda.

Pro test

Professional bowling in Japan is a licensed profession, very much like passing the

bar exam A bar examination is an examination administered by the bar association of a jurisdiction that a lawyer must pass in order to be admitted to the bar of that jurisdiction. Australia Administering bar exams is the responsibility of the bar associa ...

for attorneys or getting a CPA to become an accountant. To become a licensed bowling professional, the candidate must pass a series of skill exams, referred to as the "pro test". The candidate needs to apply for the pro test. The application is available at the JPBA web site. Applicants must be 16 by the day before the 1st exam is held, and need two referrals from active (at least 30 games per year) pro bowlers who meet the average requirement of 190 (180 for women) and have been in the JPBA for at least five years. Once the application has been accepted and the 100,000¥ application fee is paid, the candidate will be assigned a number, and then added to the pro test schedule. The pro test is held simultaneously in two regions within Japan: west and east. The region is determined based on the candidate's home prefecture. The pro test is held every April to May. The pro test is broken into three parts: 1st exam, 2nd exam, and 3rd exam. The 1st and 2nd exams are to test the candidate's bowling skills. Each of the two exams consist of four days at 15 games (12 games for women) per day. All candidates participate in the 1st exam, which is held locally in both the east and west. In the 1st exam, the candidate needs to maintain a 190 average (180 for women) for the first 30 games (24 games for women) to be allowed to continue to the third and fourth days. The candidate then needs to average a 200 (190 for women) for the first 60 games (48 games for women) in order to be allowed to continue to the 2nd exam. The 2nd exam takes place in both west and east Japan, which requires bowlers to travel. At the end of the 2nd exam, the candidate needs to maintain a 200 average for 120 games (96 games and a 190 average for women) in order to be allowed continue to the 3rd exam. Both exams move bowling alleys every day, meaning a successful candidate to the 3rd exam would have bowled in 8 different alleys. The 3rd exam is a written exam and interview, where the candidate demonstrates bowling and procedure knowledge. The questions are scored, and the candidate needs to pass with a score of 60 or better. Once all the exams are completed successfully, the candidate receives his bowling professional license. Entry into the association requires a ¥50,000 payment, while annual dues are ¥70,000.

Emblem

All licensed professionals belonging to the JPBA must wear the JPBA emblem on their bowling shirts when they make public appearances. The emblem is highly regarded in Japan as a symbol of professional bowling. The emblem has been used as props in Japanese television dramas such as ''Beautiful Challenger'' (1971) and ''Golden Bowl'' (2002). The emblem displays the classification of a professional. There are two varieties of the emblem. All new members receive the General Class license patch (通常ワッペン) (see image above.) Before 2008, if a member has averaged 200 or better for 200 games in competition (190 or better for 200 games for women professionals) for five years in a row, he receives a gold-lined version of the insignia, referred to as the Class A permanent license patch (永久Ａ級ライセンスワッペン). From 2008, the average requirement was raised to 210 for men and 200 for women. In 2011, bowlers who are recognized as seeded (top 48 for men and top 18 for women in point ranking or through tournaments which guarantee a seed berth) for five years in a row may also become Class A. As of 2013, 97 men and 90 women are classified as Class A professionals.

JPBA sanctioned tournaments

ROUND1 Japan Cup ROUND1 Japan Cup is an annual PBA (Professional Bowlers Association) and JPBA (Japan Professional Bowling Association) bowling event sponsored by ROUND1. In its earlier years, the tournament typically featured the top 16 bowlers from each organizat ...

- JPBA and PBA sanctioned annual event. * ABS Japan Open Bowling Championship * HANDA CUP All Japan Women's Pro Bowling Championship * HANDA CUP Philanthropy * MK Charity Cup * Hiroshima Open Bowling Tournament * JLBC PRINCE CUP (women) * ROUND1 Cup Ladies (women) * Miyazaki Pro-Am (women) * Kansai Open (women) * JFE Chiba Cup Women's Open (women)

JPBA events

* Bowling Revolution P-League - Weekly made-for-TV series of tournaments for select women. *Select members of P-League also participate in the Japanese TV variety show '' Honoo-no Taiiku-kai TV'' ( 炎の体育会TV) in a

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making competition with various Japanese

tarento Television personalities in Japan, known as in Japanese, are celebrities who regularly appear in mass media in Japan, especially as panelists on variety shows. During the Golden Age of Hollywood, bankable stars in America were described as "tal ...

Notable JPBA members

As of July 1, 2013, the JPBA membership is made up of 810 males and 309 females, as well as 11 teaching professionals.JPBA Information
Male * Hiroto Kimura ( 木村広人) * Isao Yamamoto ( 山本勲) *

Masayuki Koyama Masayuki (written: , ,, , , , , , , , , , , , , , or ) is a masculine Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include: *, Japanese animator and director *, Japanese actor *, Japanese baseball player and manager *, Japanese politician *, ...

( 小山雅之) *

Nobuaki Takahashi Nobuaki (written: 信著, 信朗, 信明, 信昭, 信秋, 伸顕, 伸明, 伸彰, 修光 or 陳爾) is a masculine Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include: *, Japanese Go player *, Japanese baseball player *, American Imperial Ja ...

( 高橋延明) * Park Jong-soo * Ryōta Ichihara ( 市原竜太) * Takeo Sakai ( 酒井武雄) * Shigenori Sakata ( 坂田重徳) * Shota Kawazoe ( 川添奨太) * Yoshiki Ōsawa ( 大澤義樹) * Subaru Nagano　( 永野すばる) Female *

Aino Kinjō is a Japanese female professional ten-pin bowler. She is a member of the Japan Professional Bowling Association The (JPBA) is the major sanctioning body for the sport of professional ten-pin bowling in Japan. The organization was founded by , ...

Aki Nawa is a Japanese female professional ten-pin bowler. She is a member of the Japan Professional Bowling Association The (JPBA) is the major sanctioning body for the sport of professional ten-pin bowling in Japan. The organization was founded by ...

* Akiko Tanigawa *

Ayumi Kobayashi is a feminine Japanese name, Japanese given name. It is rarely used as a surname. Possible writings Ayumi can be written using different kanji characters and can mean: *歩み, "course" "walking" "progress" ;as a given name *歩, "progress", "wal ...

Hiromi Matsunaga is a Japanese female professional ten-pin bowler. She is a member of the Japan Professional Bowling Association, license no. 384. Major accomplishments * 2006 - Pro Bowling Women vs Rookies　(2nd place) * 2007 - G Japan Championship　(4th ...

* Katsuko Sugimoto (two-time USBC Queens champion, 1981 and 1982) * Kazue Inahashi (USBC Queens champion, 1984) * Masami Abe ( 阿部聖水) * Masami Hasegawa ( 長谷川真実) *

Mayumi Yoshida is a Japanese voice actress. She is also known as . Filmography Video games ''Eroge'' :''As Misono Moriya'' *'' Akane iro Ni Somaru Saka'', Mitsuki Shiina *'' ef - the letter tale'', Mizuki Hayama / Akane Himura **''Tenshi no Nichiyoubi'' ...

( 吉田真由美) * Mika Sakai *

Mika Satō Mika is a given name, a nickname and a surname. Notable people and fictional characters with the name include: People known just as Mika * Mika (singer) (born 1983), Lebanese-born British singer-songwriter Michael Penniman, Jr. * Mika (footbal ...

( 佐藤美香) *

Miki Nishimura is a Japanese female professional ten-pin bowler. She is a member of the Japan Professional Bowling Association The (JPBA) is the major sanctioning body for the sport of professional ten-pin bowling in Japan. The organization was founded by ...

Nachimi Itakura is a Japanese female professional ten-pin bowler. She is a member of the Japan Professional Bowling Association, license no. 372. Biography As a 13-year-old, Itakura was into swimming. She was good enough to participate in the Junior Olympics ...

(37th AMF World Cup women's champion) * Reika Sakai ( 酒井玲佳) *

Risa Suzuki Risa may refer to: * Risa (given name), a feminine given name * Risa (Star Trek), a fictional planet * Radioiodinated serum albumin * Recording Industry of South Africa Recording Industry of South Africa (RISA) is a trade association repres ...

( 鈴木理沙) *

* Sanae Mori ( 森彩奈江) * Shinobu Saitō (US Women's Open Champion, 1982) *

Suzuna Miyagi Suzuna may refer to: *Suzuna Hīragi, a fictional character of Dog & Scissors. *Suzuna Kuraki, a fictional character of Moonlight Lady. *Suzuna Taki, a fictional character of Eyeshield 21 is a Japanese manga series written by Riichiro Inag ...

( 宮城鈴菜) * Urara Himeji ( 姫路麗) *

Wendy Macpherson Wendy Macpherson is an American ten-pin bowler. She was born on January 28, 1968, in Walnut Creek, California, and currently lives in Henderson, Nevada. Macpherson captured 20 career titles on the Ladies Pro Bowlers Tour and Professional Women's ...

Yachiyo Katō Yachiyo may refer to: *Yachiyo, Chiba, a city in Chiba Prefecture, Japan *Yachiyo, Hyōgo, a former town in Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan *Yachiyo, Ibaraki, a town in Ibaraki Prefecture, Japan *A fictional teenage Japanese-Hawaiian girl, the title charac ...

* Yuki Yamamoto ( 山本由紀) * Yukie Koyama ( 小山幸恵) *

Yūko Nakatani or Yuuko is a common feminine Japanese given name. Possible writings Yūko can be written using different kanji characters and can mean: *優子, "gentle, child" *裕子, "abundance, child" *祐子, "helpful, child" *夕子, "evening, child" *� ...

( 中谷優子) * Yurika Ōyama ( 大山由里香)

References

External links

JPBA web site
{{Ten pin bowling International Sports Promotion Society Bowling organizations

Bowling Bowling is a target sport and recreational activity in which a player rolls a ball toward pins (in pin bowling) or another target (in target bowling). The term ''bowling'' usually refers to pin bowling (most commonly ten-pin bowling), though ...