BATON ROUGE - To say last week was a good week for PBA star Andrew Anderson might be an understatement.

On June 8, Anderson defeated EJ Tackett to win the PBA Tour Finals for his second title of the season – both against Tackett. Anderson swept Tackett in the Race-to-Two championship at Steel City Bowl & Brews in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. That was worth a check of $35,000 for the 30-year-old’s sixth PBA Tour title. 

This past Friday and Saturday at the USBC Championships at the River Center, Anderson took the lead in the top all-events division knocking out Cassidy Schaub’s 2,158 for nine games which has stood since March 14.

It was the first lead change in the event since May 9 as Anderson posted 2,184.

“I’m coming straight off a win into our last team practice,” he said in a video interview with USBC. “So the confidence was definitely up there. Riding a wave of momentum and confidence for sure the entire year. It’s been a heck of a 2025 and this is a great way to cap it off. I’m not quite sure it’s enough, but I should hope so.”

Anderson made the most noise in the team event on Friday, shooting the highest series this year on the difficult pattern with games of 258-236-269 for 763.

Maybe more impressive was that after going 258 in the opening game, Anderson made a ball change.

“Most people don’t ball change there,” Anderson said. “I decided, given the scoring pace that we had, I felt like I needed to keep the momentum going, get more score. So I made a ball change that I normally wouldn’t to shoot 230 game two (236), where if I think I stay with the other ball (I was) kind of running out of room. So I think that kind of set the pace. You know, 763 team event, the way it felt on the lanes, that was some of the best bowling I’d possibly ever done. It’s definitely my best three game set at open championships, even better than when I won the (singles) eagle in 2021.”

Saturday, Anderson posted 754 (281-257-279) in doubles and with singles remaining, the chance to put up a number that would be untouchable was in sight.

Anderson posted 224 to start singles and then had opens in the sixth and ninth frame in a 199 second game, making a good number in the third and final game imperative.

“I think that when we were preparing for the event,” Anderson said, “I heard so much about doubles. I heard about how the lane starts at the fresh and how to attack them. I did not realize the transition that we were about to go through. So unfortunately, I definitely left some pins out there in singles, especially game two of singles.

“I told myself going to game three, that we have to take it one more notch because I didn’t really have a ball change to go to. I didn’t really feel comfortable on the lanes (1 and 2) and those last five shots were some of my best.”

Anderson struck in the seventh, eighth, ninth and first ball in the 10th before a 10-pin spare to shoot 244 and 667 to claim the AE lead.

“I knew what was at stake,” he said. Unfortunately, I’m a score watcher. I knew exactly what I needed and thankfully, I pulled it off. I just hope it’s enough. I’ve bowled this open championship enough now, and I know how many good bowlers come through these doors. Somebody’s going to see them equally as good as me, and it just depends on if they out bowl me or not. I felt like I left 50-or-60 (pins) out there in singles, but you cannot win unless you lead in the leaderboard. So now we get to sweat It out.”

Anderson’s team, Holly Lanes and Frie, finished fifth in the standings at 3,226. The leaders, Phat Kids Crew, rolled 3,300 to grab the lead in early April.

So far, some 8,000 teams have passed through the 54 lanes of the Raising Canes River Center since the tournament started what seems a long time ago on March 1. But that means some 3,000-plus teams are still to bowl between now the curtain coming down on the final team shift on July 27.

By the way, the estimated prize fund for the whole event has been listed and it appears some $7.7 million will be returned to the bowlers in cash prizes from this big event. As of the moment, the Phat Kids Crew, is in line for a return of $40,000 if the 3,300 score holds up.

Lots more to come next week, until then, good luck and good bowling,

                            Kent Lowe