Pictured Above: Is Kyle King. Photo Courtesy Of USBC Communications
From The Junior's. Through College. And Now The PBA. Determination To Succeed, Has Always Motivated Kyle King In Bowling.
By Michael 'Chip' Begg - Managing Editor thetenpinexpress.com - Director Mesa Metro Association.
Glendale - - - Kyle King, 25, of Glendale, will never forget the weekend of January 20-22 at the South Point Bowling Center in Las Vegas, Nevada. And, there are two very good reasons as to why he won't.
The first reason is, he had received his PBA Card on January 20, the morning before the singles portion of the event started. And reason number two. By the end of this particular day, his young bowling career had come full circle, as he defeated Jason Tehee, of Clovis, Ca., 232-225 to win his first PBA Western Regional Title. The Qubica AMF PBA West Regional. It was the first tournament on the 2017 schedule.
"I got my PBA card the morning the tournament started, he said, of his first PBA win. "Getting the card and winning the first tournament I bowled in was pretty cool. I have a long way to go in bowling. I am working very hard every day to get better in the sport, because there are a lot of things that I would like to accomplish in the game of bowling. I had to come back down to earth pretty quickly after winning my first regional, as I had to bowl in a doubles tournament the next day."
He had a chance though, to win his first regional as a non-member at the Aquimo Open which was bowled at Mesa East Bowl last August. He was the leading qualifier after Saturday's qualifying round with a score of 1,818. He was +218 after the block which included rolling a 300 game on lanes 31 and 32. However, he would end up finishing in sixth place at the end of the tournament. He has also learned how to deal with the ups and downs that come along with the game of bowling.
"I am still trying to figure this one out," he says, of the ups and downs of bowling. "In bowling you have to ride the high's to their highest level, and figure out how to work through the low points of the game. Everything happens for a reason in the game of bowling. There is always an adjustment to be made in your game. You learn from the mistakes you have made in the game of bowling and move on."
He is planning on bowling in the western regional tournament again this year, when it returns to Mesa East Bowl on September 8-10. So, what is he hoping to do differently this time around?
"I bowled well last year," he said, of bowling at Mesa East. "This time around, I don't want to fall short in match play. I want to go a little further than I did. I just wasn't quite as prepared on Sunday as I was on Saturday."
Even though he might not have won the Aquimo Open last August 28, he accomplished something later on in the year that none of the other 77 bowlers in the field did. He won a spot on the Team USA roster.
The Team USA qualifier was held at Sunset Station Strike Zone Bowling Center. Six five-game qualifying rounds were bowled to determine who made the men's, women's, and junior squads. Bowlers earned points based on the finishing position after each round. The top qualifier in each round earned one point. The second placed bowler earned two points and etc...
"The qualifying for Team USA was very tough on me mentally," he said, of the qualifying. "It was one of those events where you were very happy it was over with. But, at the same time, wanting to get back into it and give it another shot."
Kyle had made Junior Team USA in 2010-11. This year the State of Arizona will be well represented. On the men's side, Kyle will join Jakob Butturff and Andrew Cain. While Bryanna Cote will represent the women's side. Heather Penatzer of Tucson, and Cortez Schenck of Phoenix, will represent Junior Team USA.
"There are a few people I would like to thank, who have helped me along the way. And that have helped get me to where I am today. They are: Andrew Cain, Jim Pratt, and Stu Williams," he said, of his support group. "We practice together quite often. They push me hard, but they are honest with me when they give me advice. The advice they always give me is, that you always will have to work harder than the person next to you in order to be successful in bowling."
Winning tournaments and performing well on the big stage, started to come naturally to Kyle during his junior bowling career. He had won 63 JBT events, which at the time, was the second most in JBT history. Because of his success on the JBT, he was able to finance himself through college and earn two degrees at Robert Morris University in Chicago, Il. One of which was in Business Management, and the other in Computer Science.
His collegiate accolades include: winning a ITC National Championship in Lincoln, Nebraska. Being named the Rookie of the Year, and being named a member of the First-Team All-American Team.
"I accomplished a lot bowling in the JBT. If it wasn't for Jeff Humer (Western Director of the JBT), I don't think I would be where I am at today," said Kyle, of his success in junior bowling. "The JBT has helped a lot of players become better in the game of bowling. I had won 63 JBT events, and at that time, it was the second most wins in JBT history. Because of the JBT, I was able to go to college and earn two degrees. For which I will ever be thankful for. I was fortunate to meet new people and good people along the way, who have helped keep me on the right path."
He also made another big sacrifice while in college that helped him earn his two degrees in three years instead of four.
"It was difficult giving up the game of bowling for a year," he said, of his decision not to bowl for a year in college. "That was the best choice for me at the time, in order to finish school."
At the ripe old age of 13. He knew he would eventually be good in the game of bowling someday, if he put the time and practice into the game to be able to succeed in the sport. Trouble is, he just didn't know how good he would eventually end up being.
He started to answer those questions during the 2002-03 season when he averaged 155 for 56 games in the Coach and Crew Youth League at Brunswick Zone in Glendale. This was his first experience as a junior bowler. But, it was just the incentive he needed to keep on going in the sport. The following year during the 2003-04 campaign would see him raise his average in the same league to 186 for 87 games.
"When I was 13 or 14, I averaged 200 (201 to be exact) in the Coach and Crew Youth League during the 2004-05 season. I bowled in some scratch events, and that is when I started to think I could be good in the game of bowling," the Deer Valley High School graduate said, of his beginning in the game. "I had the notion that I could also start to see some personal accomplishments being achieved in the game of bowling as well."
Those personal accomplishments during his early years would start to come during the 2005-06 season where he would roll his first 299 game on January 7, 2006. His first 300 game on February 4, 2006. And, his first 800 series on August 12, 2006. He has since rolled 17 perfect games, with his last one being bowled on June 1, 2017 at Lakeview Lanes in Sun City.
And five 800 series with his last one in league play being shot on May 1, 2013 at AMF Union Hills. His most recent 800 series, an 805, (289-269-247) came in the Bowlers Journal Championships in July at South Point as well. This achievement was good enough to earn him a second-place finish in singles.
"That was pretty huge," he said, of rolling the 805 series in the Bowlers Journal Championships. "It was also a pretty cool feeling rolling my first 300 game and 800 series as a junior bowler. It was one of those feelings that I can't begin to describe to this day."
His highest average of 232 during the 2016-17 season, was achieved in the Midweek Men's League at AMF Union Hills. The previous year his high average was 224 in the West Valley Scratch Trios League also at AMF Union Hills.
"I don't feel my average at the end of the year is as high as it should be. I have the physical talent, but my mental talent has held me back," he says, of where he wants to be in bowling. "Stu and I will work on elevating the mental aspects of my game to the next level."
So again, that leads to the next question: How confident is he when it comes to throwing the ball right now?
"It depends on where I am at the time. If I am throwing the ball bad, I will go back to basics," he said, of rolling the ball consistently. "If I am throwing the ball good, I will do different things and see how fast I could adjust to different things. The part of the game where you struggle, comes when you don't have the confidence in yourself to try new things."
He has also been dealing with an issue in his knee lately, but it should be healed by the time Team USA training camp opens in October at the USBC Training Center in Arlington, TX.
"The doctor said their was no structural damage to the knee," he said, of the MRI that was taken of the knee. "It's one of those things, where you will have to do whatever it takes for it to heal up as quick as possible."
And when it is healed up, it will be good news for Team USA. And, bad news for the International competition that will face Team USA.
State Of Arizona Bowling News August 3, 2017