Earl Anthony

Earl Roderick Anthony
(Earl the Pearl, Square Earl, The Doomsday Stroking Machine)

• Bats ?, Throws Left
• Height 6' 0", Weight 185 lb.

• Born April 27, 1938 in Tacoma, WA, USA
• Died August 14, 2001 in New Berlin, WI, USA

Biographical Information

Earl Anthony is considered by many as the greatest bowler ever. Before his illustrious bowling career, he was offered a $35,000 signing bonus by the Baltimore Orioles to pitch, but the deal was negated when he tore his rotator cuff.

Bowling Career

Anthony won 43 career championships and was PBA Player of the Year six times (1974-1976, 1981-1983). On February 27, 1982, he became the first man ever to reach $1 million in career winnings in bowling by defeating Charlie Tapp in the PBA National Championship; that was the fifth of his record six victories at that event. He was elected into the Professional Bowlers Association Hall of Fame in 1981 in his first year of eligibility and the American Bowling Congress Hall of Fame in 1986. He retired in the mid 1980s, but came back on tour after only a couple of years. Upon reaching age 50, Anthony began bowling on the PBA Senior's Tour, winning seven additional titles; for a brief time in the early 1990s, he bowled on the Senior's Tour and National Tour simultaneously.

He served as color analyst on NBC's PBA coverage in the 1980s during his retirement. He moved into ESPN's broadcast booth in 1993 for events in which he did not make the telecast. He replaced popular play-by-play announcer Denny Schreiner when Schreiner was out on assignment and after he left the network (fellow PBA Hall-of-Famer Mike Durbin switched form color analysis to play-by-play).

Anthony opened a bowling center in Dublin, CA circa 1980 called Earl Anthony's Dublin Bowl, which still operates.

Earl Anthony died from head injuries suffered after falling down a flight of stairs at a friend's house at the age of 63.