Anthony, Earl

▪ 2002

      American bowler (b. April 27, 1938, Kent, Wash.—found dead Aug. 14, 2001, New Berlin, Wis.), was the winningest player in the history of the Professional Bowlers Association (PBA); he also became the first bowler to earn $1 million in his career. Anthony, whose childhood dream of becoming a major league baseball player was derailed by an ankle injury, joined the PBA Tour in 1963. After a slow start he went on to dominate professional bowling during the 1970s and early '80s. He won a record 41 PBA tournaments from 1970 to 1983, including 10 major titles. During this time professional bowling was regularly broadcast on television, and Anthony achieved widespread fame. He was named PBA Player of the Year six times and was the tour scoring leader five times. He retired from the sport in 1984 but made a brief comeback in 1987 and a year later joined the PBA Senior Tour, on which he won seven senior titles. He garnered a career total of $1,441,061 in prize money. Anthony was inducted into the PBA Hall of Fame in 1981. In later years he worked in television as a commentator on bowling broadcasts. He died from head trauma after falling down a flight of stairs.

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