Michael Cousins Bowling Blog, PBA Tour
Pete Weber Withdrawals From US Open and His Candid Response
Pete Weber Withdrawals And Lets Everyone Know His Displeasure
In case you missed it, over the weekend, qualifying for the USBC US Open came and went. The conditions were challenging, the scores were low, and the tensions were high . . . especially with Pete Weber.
After having to withdraw with a hip injury, Weber was interviewed live on FloBowling, where he was, shall we say, candid.
Weber didn’t bite his tongue — on anything — and told it exactly how it was. How he felt it was, anyways. I don’t necessarily agree with everything he said or how he said it, but I also don’t necessarily disagree with it.
At the very least, he kept it real, and gave his honest opinion, whether you, me, or the USBC agreed with it. And, for that, you have to appreciate his honesty.
What Weber said, though the printed word cannot do his tone and/or emotion justice, essentially, was that the USBC is ruining professional bowling, which, of course, are strong, strong words. But this article isn’t to debate whether or not they actually are.
Again, I am not agreeing with everything that was said by Weber, but there was little-to-no doubt that he believed it. He was frustrated with his injury, the conditions, and the USBC. And he let those frustrations be heard.
This, of course, isn’t the first time that we have heard bowlers complain about USBC’s handling of things, but it is probably the biggest name we’ve heard.
Weber’s gripe was that his physical limitations and injury make it impossible to play on the conditions that were out. He said, at the end of the day, he’s 56 years old, and he cannot throw it hard anymore, and the things that are asked of his body on such a demanding condition, take too big a toll on his body at this point in his career.
And I understand that. No doubt. But it needs to be said that both Walter Ray Williams Jr. and Amleto Monacelli, Weber’s senior contemporaries, both made the cut — though neither bowler, to my knowledge, were battling an injury like Weber.
Weber was so frustrated that he even hinted at retirement from the standard tour, as he doesn’t believe his body will allow him to compete with the younger players on today’s conditions. However, Weber did go on to say that he’ll still compete full time on the Senior Tour.
Whether or not Pete truly retires remains to be seen. This could all just be his injury and frustration talking, and only time will tell, but, one thing is for sure, Pete Weber is done with the USBC, and their handling of competitive and professional bowling.
