Week 2 Competitors

Reigning U.S. Amateur champion Diandra Asbaty of Chicago has accomplished more in her short career than most bowlers could even dream of, but her real passion is helping people and promoting the sport that has been so good to her.

As the United States Bowling Congress Youth spokesperson, the eight-time Team USA member now has regular opportunities to reach out to young and inexperienced bowlers, and a recent trip to Kansas City made it all worthwhile.

During a Friday evening meet-and-greet with local bowlers and association members, Asbaty spotted 14-year-old Dawn Hupp and her dad sitting together at an otherwise empty table and decided to find out what brought them to the event.

"I went over to Dawn and found out that she didn't even bowl in a league and had no idea about all of the great opportunities in bowling," Asbaty said. "I told her how she could earn money for college and she was amazed. I explained what I do and how I get to travel around the world to compete, and she had no clue they even had bowling in other countries."

The next day, Dawn was one of the first bowlers in line to take part in the clinic that brought Asbaty to town. Also on hand were USBC spokespeople Carolyn Dorin-Ballard and Kim Terrell and Professional Bowlers Association stars Brian Voss, Norm Duke, Mike Machuga and Bob Learn Jr., who all were hoping to coach people and get them excited about bowling.

"People don't realize how great bowling is because they don't know much about it, and I have the unique opportunity to plant that seed, which is the greatest thing because I can see it grow inside of them," said Asbaty, who recently was inducted into the World Bowling Writers Hall of Fame. "Over the weekend, Dawn learned ways to improve her game and heard about opportunities she didn't know about, and now she's hooked. When it was all over, she told me I helped shape her future. I felt tears well up in my eyes because I was able to touch a young girl's life. She will never look at bowling the same. That's what drives me."

Asbaty got her inspiration from her older sister Kassy Golden, who paved the way and taught her about hard work, practice, winning, losing and perseverance. Those are the lessons that helped make Asbaty into the bowler she is today and the same ones she hopes to pass along to the next generation of bowlers.

"Kassy was my first inspiration, and I've also had some incredible coaches in my life," Asbaty said. "I've had the opportunity to be taught by the best, and I will always want to spread the knowledge I've gained. I will always want to help people and promote the sport. Everyone has a story and I love to hear them. And even though I love to share my own story and influence people, I am inspired by their stories and enjoy getting to learn about them. I do feel like I have a lot to give, but I still have a whole lot to learn, too."

Former PWBA star returns to the lanes after three-year hiatus

As soon as her career in the Professional Women's Bowling Association ended in 2003, Cara Honeychurch returned to her home in Melbourne, Australia, cut off her trademark ponytail, got contact lenses and settled into normal family life.

Until being invited to the United States Bowling Congress Women's Challenge, the only bowling Honeychurch has done in the last three years has been recreationally with friends and co-workers.

These days, her time is spent putting her accounting background to use as a debt consultant three days each week and chasing around her 19-month-old daughter, Emma, the rest of the time.

"I haven't really thrown a ball in a long time, and now that I have a child to run after, I haven't had time to miss it," Honeychurch said. "I'm very happy with my life right now, and being a mother is amazing. But where do they get all that energy from?"

Before coming to the United States to join the PWBA, Honeychurch established herself as one of the most talented bowlers to come out of Australia, along with Carol Gianotti and Maxine Nable. Honeychurch was the Australian Junior Bowler of the Year in 1989 and '90, won the AMF World Cup in 1996 and picked up three gold medals at the 1998 Commonwealth Games. She bowled on the Australian national team from 1989 until 1999.

Honeychurch broke into the PWBA for a few events in the fall of 1999 and became only the second woman to bowl a televised 300 game. She returned in 2000 and her success continued, helping her to Rookie of the Year honors.

During her short time on tour, Honeychurch had her husband, Jim, by her side. The pair came to the United States about a week before the season began and would travel from hotel to hotel until a few days after it ended. But despite her success, she never planned on being out there for a long time. She just wanted a chance to prove that she could compete with the best in the world, and she did that, picking up eight PWBA titles.
Life after bowling has been good for Honeychurch, but she really enjoyed the opportunity to see her old friends at the Women's Challenge in Las Vegas.

"It was an honor to be invited to this event, and the chance to see everyone again was the best part," Honeychurch said. "I really missed them, so I'm going to plan a trip to come back soon. For a holiday, though, not to bowl."

USBC Team USA member Shannon O'Keefe not afraid to follow her heart

Shannon O'Keefe of Rochester, N.Y., didn't start bowling until she was 16 years old, but it quickly became her passion.

After playing softball as a freshman at Portland State University, she decided on a new path and signed a letter of intent to transfer and bowl for the University of Nebraska. But before she ever shoed up for the Cornhuskers, the Professional Women's Bowling Association came calling and O'Keefe chose to give the Tour life a try.

"My body was getting beat up too much on the softball field, so I decided it was time for something new," said the former Shannon Rondeau, a member of USBC Team USA. "I spent almost three years on tour, but it's hard living out of your suitcase and going to a different hotel each week. Then I met my husband, Bryan, and couldn't take being away from him."

O'Keefe, 27, followed her heart again and moved to Rochester to be closer to Bryan. She now has a full-time job as branch sales associate at a local bank and figures that bowling on the weekends can yield as much income as her time on tour.

Since Bryan runs a pro shop at a local bowling center, and Shannon is as competitive as ever, much of her time is still spent on the lanes. She bowls league or practices five or six times a week and bowls tournaments whenever she can. She is part of a 22-player tour that runs weekend tournaments in the Rochester area, and when they're not bowling, she's usually off to another nearby event.

In March, O'Keefe helped the Rochester All-Stars to the national record for a five-player, three-game series, as the group shot 3,610 at the Rochester Women's Bowling Championships. She also is having a satisfying run with Team USA, earning a silver medal in team at the Women's World Championships last year and five gold and a silver medal at the Tournament of the Americas this summer.

"Bryan is awesome at what he does and he's definitely the reason I am the bowler I am today," O'Keefe said. "I was a raw talent when I met him, but he has really helped me refine my skills. And the funny thing is that now that I have a real full-time job, I'm in the bowling center more than ever and more than anyone I know. This year has been crazy, and I hope it carries over to next year."

Kassy Golden of Colorado Springs, Colo., had a successful career at Wichita State University and was a member of USBC Team USA in 1999 and 2000. Despite her success, though, she took a step back from the sport to concentrate on starting a family.

In 2001, she married Scott Golden and a year later their daughter, Blaize, was born. Bowling quickly took a back seat as Kassy decided to stay home and raise their new addition.

"A lot of my decision to stop bowling had to do with wanting to start a family, and once I found out I was pregnant, it seemed like a good time for a break," said the former Kassy Hyman, whose younger sister Diandra (Asbaty) is the reigning U.S. Amateur champion. "I was also a little burned out, so it gave me some time to reflect and refresh my game. Choosing to step away was one of the best decisions I ever made, and I've come back as a more solid bowler."

Now four years later, Golden, 29, is back on the lanes regularly, and it's something she can share with her daughter, who is becoming an avid bowler, too. Family and work always will come first, but Golden still plans to get in as much bowling as possible.

Growing up, Golden practiced from 9 p.m. until midnight every night and became an inspiration to her sister. The two missed parties, dances and some important events during high school, but understood that in order to achieve greatness, sacrifices would need to be made. Now there are new priorities and different sacrifices, but Golden's dedication hasn't changed.

In her first big event back, she finished 11th at the 2006 USBC Team USA Championships, but even with her quick success, she still wants to ease back into the sport. In fact, she likely will skip the 2007 Team USA Championships because her upcoming time off from work has been reserved to take Blaize to Disney World for her fifth birthday.

"All of a sudden I got the urge to bowl again, and I didn't want all of the years of hard work and late nights of practice to go to waste," Golden said. "There are a lot of different priorities in my life right now, but I'm trying to fit bowling in where I can. It also helps that Blaize is old enough to understand the game a little and can share some of the experiences with me."