Is it that easy to score 300? Perfect Games
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Always the same question: Is it that easy to score 300 points?
Over the years on the PBA professional circuit, only 36 perfect games have been recorded on televised matches as of the date of the article.
| # | Year | Player | Tournament / Event |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1967 | Jack Biondolillo | Firestone Tournament of Champions |
| 2 | 1970 | Johnny Guenther | San Jose Open |
| 3 | 1973 | Jim Stefanich | Midas Open |
| 4 | 1974 | Bill Beach | PBA Regional Champions Classic |
| 5 | 1987 | Terry Taylor | True Value Open |
| 6 | 1988 | Bob Benoit | Quaker State Open |
| 7 | 1990 | George Branham III | Trustcorp National Championship |
| 8 | 1993 | Mike Aulby | Wichita Open |
| 9 | 1994 | Johnny Courtney | Rochester Open |
| 10 | 1995 | Butch Soper | Brunswick World Tournament of Champions |
| 11 | 1996 | C.K. Moore | Austin Open |
| 12 | 1996 | Bob Learn Jr. | Erie (Flagship) Open |
| 13 | 1998 | Steve Hoskins | Lone Star Open |
| 14 | 1999 | Parker Bohn III | ABC Masters |
| 15 | 1999 | Mike Miller | National Bowling Stadium Open |
| 16 | 2001 | Steve Jaros | Chattanooga Open |
| 17 | 2002 | Jason Couch | Scottsdale Open |
| 18 | 2003 | Mika Koivuniemi | Cambridge Credit Classic |
| 19 | 2004 | Tony Reyes | Motor City Classic |
| 20 | 2009 | Ryan Shafer | GEICO Plastic Ball Championship |
| 21 | 2012 | Jason Belmonte | PBA World Championship |
| 22 | 2013 | Chris Barnes | PBA World Championship |
| 23 | 2014 | Sean Rash | PBA Chameleon Championship |
| 24 | 2014 | Ronnie Russell | PBA Chameleon Championship |
| 25 | 2015 | Ronnie Russell (2) | PBA Viper Championship |
| 26 | 2016 | François Lavoie | U.S. Open |
| 27 | 2020 | Jakob Butturff | PBA Tour Finals |
| 28 | 2021 | Chris Via | PBA U.S. Open |
| 29 | 2022 | Dick Allen | PBA World Championship |
| 30 | 2022 | Jason Belmonte (2) | PBA Tour Finals |
| 31 | 2023 | EJ Tackett | PBA Tournament of Champions |
| 32 | 2023 | Tom Smallwood | PBA World Championship |
| 33 | 2023 | Kyle Troup | PBA Tour Finals |
| 34 | 2023 | Jason Belmonte (3) | PBA Tour Finals |
| 35 | 2024 | Rashid Al-Rashidi | PBA World Series of Bowling |
| 36 | 2026 | Brandon Bonta | PBA Players Championship |
Another way to see how difficult it is to score 300 points in an official tournament is by looking at the games recorded with a perfect 300 score, whether televised or not. The top nine players in this regard are:
| Player | Certified 300 Games | Estimated Career Games | Approx. Efficiency % |
|---|---|---|---|
| Parker Bohn III | 100–110 | ~20,500 | ~0.50% |
| Walter Ray Williams Jr. | 100–110 | ~21,000 | ~0.48% |
| Pete Weber | 80–90 | ~19,000 | ~0.44% |
| Amleto Monacelli | 55–65 | ~17,500 | ~0.34% |
| Jason Belmonte | 30–35 | ~8,500 | ~0.36% |
| Norm Duke | 25–30 | ~18,000 | ~0.15% |
| Chris Barnes | 20–30 | ~11,000 | ~0.23% |
| EJ Tackett | 20–25 | ~6,200 | ~0.33% |
| Anthony Simonsen | 15–20 | ~5,500 | ~0.30% |
*The figures are estimates based on data from the USBC, the PBA, and other sources.
With this data, it is clear how difficult it is to bowl a perfect game, even for an elite professional.
For example: Parker Bohn III, who has one of the best averages, has roughly 5 out of every 1,000 games scoring a perfect 300 in an official tournament.