2023 PBA World Championship Stepladder Finals | WSOB XIV

The stepladder finals of the 2023 PBA World Championship feature EJ Tackett, Anthony Simonsen, Jakob Butturff, Santtu Tahvanainen and Jason Belmonte.
Originally aired live on FOX April 23, 2023 from Bowlero Wauwatosa in Wauwatosa, Wisconsin.
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[@CurdBros]

EJ is my favorite bowler on earth, but you gotta give Belmo some credit for running the latter and also at the end telling EJ "that was epic". Class Act

[@andrewphillips2179]

There were fantastic and amazing finishes in the 2nd, Semi Final, and Title Matches.

[@RIVALContentJammerz]

Thanks.

[@JMRSplatt]

It's so wild Belmonte continues to perform at the highest level. I wonder how many years he will continue to do so?

[@nishanthadda8824]

His decline started last year.Only 1 title won in 2023

[@JMRSplatt]

@@nishanthadda8824 Haha... It's all over!!

[@Ironfangzu]

@@nishanthadda8824 Part of it is his decline, but you also have to take into account that young studs are coming up all the time to challenge the old guard. 2-handers like Simo, Tahvannian, and even Packy Hanrahan were not there 8 or 9 years ago, when Belmo was killing all the 1-handers. Give it another 3-4 years, and there will be even more guys who are throwing the ball at 20+ mph and 540 rev rate.

[@odellus]

@@nishanthadda8824 his decline started in 2016, he didn't win any titles. oh, wait...

[@davidwilliams5350]

I can't believe Tackett finally beat Belmonte !😮 Of the two my favorite is Tackett but I think Belmonte is the best since Don Carter in the 60's !

[@Ironfangzu]

The final natch was exactly how it should have gone, with EJ against Belmo, very arguably the two best bowlers in the world. No one choked, no one flinched. Belmo had to strike out to force EJ to double, and that's exactly what he did. EJ stepped up, and he knew he needed 2 strikes to win. The first ball was very slightly light, but with his ball speed and rev rate he should carry it, and he did. The second ball was dead flush. These guys are so good. Both deserved to win. Happy for EJ. You saw the elation on his face and you realize how much these wins mean to even the guys at the very top.

[@BornIn1500]

1:27:16 EJ's dad going "BOOM! BOOM!" was hilarious.

[@StrangeChickandPuppo]

[@nategoeslive]

Two class acts! I love watching Belmo win, but it was great to see EJ take this one.

[@herkermerhomolka3603]

Belmo a class act?? Loooooool

[@chinanumberone7723]

@@herkermerhomolka3603 someone’s upset because he bowls with 2 hands. Grow up.

[@CocaineElvis]

@@chinanumberone7723 Haha! You little minded boys always say that nonsense.

[@nishanthadda8824]

Belmo finished.EJ the GOAT

[@rogerrosen2323]

do pins have a chance on light belmo hits of not going down

[@DanielLopez-sr5pv]

“It’s my fucking time!” Yes sir

[@everettgloverlll9052]

He dropped the f bomb

[@willwebber6496]

That's a fine he'll gladly pay to Tom Clark. I'd probably let an F-bomb slip too in a moment that epic.

[@user-xd7xp5nb6x]

彼、本当に強くなったな～人柄も好感が持てるし

[@toomanymodz]

I think this has to be my favorite match of all time. Taking down Belmo was no easy task. GO E.J.!!!

[@the_claydog02]

Incredible to see in person 😮

[@MidknightManz]

I only been bowling for a little over a year now and coming across your page and watching your videos has been motivating me to get better and better so thank you Forest for making content like this and I’m rooting for you 🎉

[@ryantobolski868]

Wow what an incredible final match between Tackett and Belmonte! That was so exciting to watch at the end! Tackett was more accurate though than Belmonte that is why he won the pba world championship this year wow what great bowling between the two of them as well as Anthony Simonsen!

[@Devinpostullo]

yeah

[@antlivejj]

EJ is that guy! Much respect +

[@scottythompson940]

Cool tech bowling

[@davidwilliams5350]

Butturff is a hell of a good sport . Belmonte is a terrific bowler !

[@SVJROADSTER770]

Congrats! Nice to see a one handed bowler win!! EJ has the eye of the tiger!! It was just a matter of time.

[@BornIn1500]

One handers still dominating. EJ was clutch.

[@Preqqs]

How many majors did Belmonte have again lmao

[@ambientstone7074]

the mics near the lanes make it sound so bumpy

[@andrewphillips2179]

The World Championship was one of the best Stepladder Finals in the 2023 Season on the Pba Tour.

[@fracturedraptor7846]

Love my Venom Shock. It's been my go to ball for the past two years. Just bought a Black Venom and it's looking to be pretty nice too. Hopefully I can push myself past a 187 average to get better and maybe start doing some tournaments.

[@davidwilliams5350]

What Belmonte lacks in performance is well compensated for in just plane luck !

[@TheGlassbro]

EJ the rookie back at it!

[@garla5851]

Belmonte shouldn’t have even been in the Final match , he gets 5 Lucky strikes, E J was Perfect !

[@bobby_c7671]

Haha! All bowlers get breaks. Luck has nothing to do with Belmo's game.

[@garla5851]

@@bobby_c7671 🙄

[@matthewfenley5821]

Belmos Rev rate is such a advantage normally but against ej they're even.. I do agree though he had so many lucky hits if it wasn't got those it would've been a run away

[@brentdale5730]

Awe, your poor feelings. Soft bro,soft.

[@jazzcazzbazznazz4778]

It is what it is man, my friend and I have a saying, “you know what’s better than skill? Luck”

[@czarnian2010]

The best part about this besides the obvious was EJ's Dad looking at Belmo in the eye and saying BOOM BOOM. That must have felt so good giving it back to Belmo. 💯💪👍👏🔥

[@bobjanicki9045]

What pattern where they bowling on

[@edyoung2621]

TACKETTS TIME LETS GOOOOO

[@blank_stare_productions]

It's so quiet that you can hear a "pin drop" 😂😂 #sorrynotsorry #punintended #dadjoke

[@bosshealer42]

7:30 was kinda clean ngl

[@noahbrock6389]

can we just mention how on his last shot he left a 5 8 9 10

[@DanielLopez-sr5pv]

Lmao was funny, I saw it for a frame or two and was like 😮

[@louieatienza8762]

He could have threw it in the moat... It was out by then.

[@Sir-816]

EJ takes #5

[@marshallhilfman4149]

Belmo will be back in the finals for the Players but I think Simo will win it all

[@beeemm2578]

1:03:18 im sure Simonsons smug ass loved that BOOM. Lmao. Belmo right in his bitchy face. I love it. Look at him eyeballing Belmo....lol.

[@bowieskeeter2126]

call me old fashion but i cant get used to these 2 handed bowlers

[@zednos]

Tackett's fam look like they are at a funeral 90% of the time lmao

[@StrangeChickandPuppo]

If I ever get high up enough into the ranks to be on a televised game, I will be sure to make a lot of silly face reactions for the camera closeups

[@bowlingdj300]

Well , not gonna lie these guys are fun to watch but it would be great if some events, even on the national tour could have players with styles like Mike Aulby , Norm Duke etc making the show, it appears to totally favor the chuckers more often than not. What would Earl think...lol

[@louieatienza8762]

Tackett was incredibly accurate, location, speed, and revs, as well as Belmonte. I wouldn't exactly call them all chuckers. It's a power game now. You wouldn't see someone like Jimmy Connors beating Rafael Nadal or Novak Djokovic? Or Cory Pavin beating Scott Scheffler? Also, Norm and Mike grew up on rubber and plastic, and started on tour with plastic and urethane. Weren't many successful high rev guys then except maybe for Bob Handley. But if Norm and Mike grew up in the 1990s-2000s, I'm sure they'd be power players too. And Norm could hook it back in the day.

[@bowlingdj300]

@@louieatienza8762 id agree with that and perhaps my word choice was off, i'd just like to see a variety of styles more often

[@CocaineElvis]

Yeah, the no thumb players. The “2 hands” coined phrase has Belmo making bank. Just a cover up for not using his thumb. I don’t care how these bowlers walk it up there, put the thumb in the ball. It’s not equal and a huge advantage for the no thumb players.

[@louieatienza8762]

@@bowlingdj300 Well the thing is, bowlers today are "taught" to bowl the way you see it on TV for the most part - for two handers the stutter step, for one handers the bending and unbending of the elbow and wrist. I think EJ is unique in that he has an inside to out backswing, and tucks it in for an inside to out downswing. Though it was an old school thing to teach a looped swing. I think EJ does it naturally, and his father had the foresight to not change it. But you do see it more in folks that have a lankier build. Plenty of styles out there, from Jakob Butturff, to the Lavery-Spahr brothers, Brandon Novak... Difference is Butturff has an uncanny ability to repeat shots.

[@Ironfangzu]

Earl is commonly recognized as maybe the GOAT of bowling. But honestly, he probably throws the ball 16 mph and with maybe 350 rev rate. He wouldn't be able to compete today, and neither would the likes of Mike Aulby or Johnny P. A good comparison is Parker Bohn III, who even at his age is throwing the ball with better power than the numbers I quoted, but you no longer see Parker, or Norm, winning at the regular national tour, even with their incredible accuracy and touch, as well as mental toughness. The Young guns today are throwing the ball at 20 mph and 530 RPM, AND they also have accuracy and touch. Just look at EJ's match here. The "chuckers" are not really just chuckers. They throw the ball with the accuracy and pinpoint touch of the old guys, but with ball speeds and rev rate that give them 5 times the pocket carry. How often did Earl get a messenger? Maybe 1 out of 20 balls. How often does Jasper Svenson get a messenger? Almost every damn ball.

[@GamingTohru698]

I'm a Belmo fan but I gotta give it to EJ for winning. It was a really close game and both Belmo & EJ fought hard for the title.

[@KGHoffy]

STOP SPOILING THE VIDEO. Ofcourse this is comment that showed without even clicking on the comments smh

[@Camsigliere]

Yeah, ruined it for me too, showing it right as I started the video.

[@KGHoffy]

@@Camsigliere so annoying

[@suciolife]

@@KGHoffy exactly. i don’t want to watch the video anymore.

[@KGHoffy]

@@suciolife right. I wish there was a way to hide comments. It wouldnt be a big deal if the comments didnt show without clicking on the comments. Ofcouse the comment that shows is spoiling the video smfh.

[@mhans7470]

Bro should bowl against Belmo😂

[@88goatfish]

My Wife said to pronounce Santtu's last name like this, quickly " To have an onion".

[@300tommy]

ワンハンドの最高峰vsツーハンドの最高峰

[@foxwolf316]

i was expecting EJ to mess up at the end, even when he needed 2 strikes to win, when he got the first strike, i thought he was gonna lose just like what happen to walter ray vs patrick allen in 2009, witch thank god that didn't happen, this show was the best, and i love it all, 10/10

[@BornIn1500]

He needed the first 2 strikes in the 10th to win for at least 2 other titles this year. He has been clutch in 2023.

[@renanz253]

WHATAGAME

[@MrIncrysis]

Love when two handers lose!

[@kotogray8335]

I use Motiv balls so I'm always happy to see EJ do well. Barely squeaked it out this time, and that's a big deal since he tends to choke when it's this close. Don't understand why he dropped the f bomb there at the end though...

[@RIVALContentJammerz]

1:02:05 Didn't recover like you thought it would either, right Randy? Urethane hater.

[@BornIn1500]

Having legitimate criticisms of something doesn't make someone a "hater", child. You should learn that not everyone has to agree with you. Time to grow up.... hater.

[@louieatienza8762]

That's not what happened. The urethane balls don't absorb oil like resin, so they pick it up in the front and deposit it on the back. Simonsen I'm sure knew they built up the urethane shim back there, he just sent it out too wide, that's all.

[@RIVALContentJammerz]

@@louieatienza8762 So, he was expecting something different when he sent sent it out too wide? What the hell are you talking about? The last two games Randy's talking shit about urethane ad nauseum. Belmo missed one of nine strikes to finish, and this psycho blamed it on the urethane ball as if nine in row was a guarantee with resin.

[@louieatienza8762]

@@RIVALContentJammerz Tackett was getting it out there and it was coming back. In fact you hear EJ say specifically he was going to use it to his advantage. Simonsen simply threw a bad shot. I didn't really get that urethane hate vibe from Randy. Is Randy a Psycho? 100%. He started his career with urethane. What he didn't envision then were bowlers using urethane to yank-fest the ball up the shim with almost zero penalty of over-hooking - until the heads fry.

[@tannerhowe755]

They played "white & nerdy" 😂😂😂😂

[@jenniferboone-sz1lo]

Fantastic tournament !!! /thanked

[@taylorruebush3336]

First

[@herkermerhomolka3603]

Probably got fined 50% of his winnings lol

[@jvan5990]

Why???

[@DanielLopez-sr5pv]

He said: “It’s my fucking time!”

[@nishanthadda8824]

Belmonte is finished.EJ is the greatest of all time

[@rogerrosen2323]

well now bbut walter had 49 titles in back years

[@BowlerScott]

@nishanthadda8824 I imagine someone saying this right before honking their nose and riding away on a unicycle

[@mikeyvance3230]

Yeah because Belmo losing one match to EJ means he’s washed. What about the Tournament Of Champions 🤣

[@chrisporter6750]

Yikes

[@iwasadeum]

LMFAO. Imagine calling the second place Tournament of Champions bowler "done" because he lost in a very close 10th frame game. What a clown.

[@user-rl2wx6jw4n]

EJ 👍👍👍^.^ ^.^

[@sarge420]

Everyone has seen the video of Skuzz Twitty and "Keep Your Hands of My PBR." Hilarious

[@Monk-Amani.]

Lock in on it. 🎳