ABC and PBA Hall of Famer Don Johnson says the PBA Tour has changed dramatically since he won his first tournament in 1964. He claims making faster adjustments on synthetic lanes with resin balls is the biggest difference between then and now.

"I've never seen lanes in all my bowling years which are this different and which change so quickly," said Johnson, who notes that while the lane dressers claim they do lanes exactly the same, today's resin bowling balls make lane play very difficult in general. He now believes that being out on tour for 30 years has actually hurt him because today's lane moves are the absolute opposite of when he was in his prime.

"I'm still learning how to adjust to these lane conditions," he added.

Today's equipment revolution has forced many to learn the sport of bowling all over again, asserts Johnson. A bowler can no longer hope to pull out a victory in the late frames; if he doesn't adjust immediately to a new pair of lanes, he will be lost.

The high-tech bowling balls also have had a dramatic effect on scoring.

"It's ego that's important in any sport," Johnson said. "People enjoy shooting higher scores more than lower scores. The bowling balls themselves and not the bowlers actually improve the scores now. Back when I first came up in the 1950s, if you averaged 201 per year, that was special and usually the best. Now, it's typical."

Johnson believes the PBA Senior Tour is not nearly as cutthroat as the regular tour. Many bowlers are on vacations, while only a few are actually trying to make a living.

"The camaraderie is what I like the best," he said.

According to Johnson, one reason why professional golf, even on the senior level, has a much higher prize fund than bowling is a matter of numbers. Golf courses can accommodate many more people than bowling centers, but the 14 stops on Prime Sports Network in 1997 hopefully will gain the Senior Tour additional sponsors to generate larger prize funds.

However, scheduling remains a problem on Prime, and Johnson believes that the only way to build a television audience is to broadcast a program on the same time each week.

"People are habitual," he said.

There is hope that big names such as Earl Anthony returning to bowling and succeeding on the PBA Senior Tour will provide the same boost—TV ratings and otherwise—as the PGA Senior Tour has received from its legendary performers.

"Earl is our Jack Nicklaus," Johnson said.

Johnson disputes sports fans who don't think the senior bowlers are competitive. He points out that there are at least 30 outstanding players on the senior circuit, including Gene Stus and John Hricsina, who never bowled on the regular PBA Tour, and Ted Fraley, a relative unknown who captured last year's U.S. Senior Open.

"I won 26 times on the PBA Tour [tying him for third place all-time behind Anthony and Mark Roth]," said Johnson, "and I honestly feel that I'm not good enough to win on the Senior Tour. That's how good this competition is."