This past weekend was the Chris Paul Celebrity Invitational.  As always I would like to recap some of the event, and give the viewers out there something to take away from the televised event to improve their game.   The celebrities involved in the event were Chris Paul, Blake Griffin, Reggie Bush, Ciara, Kevin Hart, Jerry Ferrara, Jesse Williams and Michael Strahan.  The Professional bowlers that attended this event were Jason Belmonte, Ryan Schafer, Pete Weber, and Wes Mallot.

The first event of the telecast was an Individual Super Shootout.  The Individual Super Shootout is a special event where all of the celebrities get once chance to knock down as many pins as possible.  The lowest pin fall of the round gets eliminated from the Shootout, and a new round begins.   This elimination format continues until everyone is eliminated and there is one champion left standing.   The final three of the shootout came down to the Los Angeles Clippers stars CP3 and Blake Griffin, and actor Jesse Williams.  Blake Griffin missed the head pin for the first time of the shootout and was eliminated from the event with a low score of 6 pins.  In the final Jesse Williams and Chris Paul went head to head to see who could bowl the best shot and become the Super Shootout Champion.  Chris Paul stepped up and delivered a great shot into the pocket and earned a strike.  Jesse stepped up to the challenge and followed CP3’s pocket strike with a great Brooklyn of his own.  CP3 was in disbelief and knew he had to deliver a great shot.  CP3 stepped up and threw a decent shot that was a little light into the pocket that left two pins standing.  Jesse then stepped up and threw yet again another Brooklyn and stole the Super Shootout from the favored CP3 in his own event.

After the Individual Shootout there was a 3 person Team Competition in which the bowlers bowled in a baker style type format.  The first match of the Team Competition was Team Belmonte which consisted of Jason Belmonte, Kevin Hart, and Chris Paul vs. Team Schafer which consisted of Ryan Schafer, Ciara, and Michael Strahan.  Team Belmonte walked away with an easy win of 178 – 90.  The second match was Team Malott which consisted of Wes Mallot, Jesse Williams, and Reggie Bush vs. Team Pete Weber which consisted of Pete Weber, Jerry Ferrara, and Blake Griffin.  This was a hard fought match in which team Weber edged our Team Mallot 154-131. The finals was actually a good match in which Team Weber came up big with strikes by Jerry Ferrara(8th), Blake Griffin(9th), and Pete Weber on his first ball in the tenth to secure the victory with a score 186 – 180.  To watch highlights of this event please click HIGHLIGHTS.

Now I know you may be thinking what could I possibly learn from a bunch of celebrities that bowl once a year for a good cause?  The lesson learned is simply that the more you get involved in the sport and give back the better you will be.  It is great to bowl in league, and try to reach your next goals, whether it be to shoot a 300, break a new high series, or even better establish your best average of all time.  But it is also very important to remember that it is just a game, and sometimes it’s ok to go out and have fun without the pressures of competition.   A good balance of practice, fun, competition, and karma from giving back is what will take your bowling game to the next level.  A great way to give back to the sport is to get involved in a local 9 pin tap tournaments.  Almost all 9 pin tap tournaments, help some type of charity, and are great way to have fun and boost your confidence.  Another great way to give back to the sport is get involved by coaching youth bowlers or volunteer in youth tournaments.  The more you get involved in the sport the more you will succeed.

Above180.com wants to make sure that you are taking your game to the next level, so we are giving away another Jet Bowling ball.  In order to become eligible for the bowling ball make sure you “like” taking your bowling game to the next level on facebook by clicking here.  Also, do not forget to follow the Crew on Twitter as you never know what cool things we will be giving away.  The crew on Twitter is as follows:

Above180.com – @above180

Mike Bonk –  The Messenger – @mikebonk84

Dustin Markowitz – What Happened to Bowling? – @DustinMarkowitz

Matt Kennedy –  The Journey – @mkhawk21

John Baker – Positive Access Point – @positveaccesspt

Until next time, Shred that Rack!

Sincerely,

The Messenger