Ernest W. Spriggs, a native Washingtonian and mortgage professional for over 20 years, began his love for the sport of bowling in the early 1970s. The Spriggs bowled as a family at Parkland Bowl, when the center consisted of duckpins and tenpins. With the positive reinforcement by his Mom, Dorothy Spriggs, an avid bowler herself, bowling became Ernest’s passion.
He began his bowling career in the junior program at Parkland and became a full-time adult association member in 1983 after graduating from college. He also has been a member of TNBA (The National Bowling Association) for over 20 years.
Some of his bowling achievements include:
- 32 - 300 games (first perfect game rolled in October 1985 in Cincinnati Mixed at Parkland)
- 15 - 800 series (high of 844 ... first 800, an 802, scored November 1993 in Potomac Masters at Bolling AFB)
- Highest season average of 237, with a 228 composite for 441 games in 2012-2013
- 6 “Top 10” finishes on NCAUSBCA Official Men’s Average Ranking
- A two-time 600-700 Scratch Mixed Doubles Champion, Ernest is an active participant and casher in NCAUSBCA Open and ABC/USBC Open Championships events.
- Other championships include Living Legends Challenge, Over/Under 50 Doubles Scratch Tournament with partner Marcus Bell, three-time Money Bags (both Open and Senior divisions), VMSBT (Virginia Maryland Scratch Bowlers Tour), Nation’s Capital / Baltimore Area Masters, and Tournament Concepts.
- Several “Top 5” finishes at TNBA’s Reed Hawthorne and Eastern Bill Rhodman Singles Scratch Classic tournaments
- Member (with Anthony Chapman, Graylon Clagett, Norman Smith, and Ernest Sevous) of the first all African-American team in the Brunswick World Team Challenge to make TV finals in 1995
- Bowled the 2007 64th U.S. Open in Brunswick, N.J. (averaged 189 for 18 games on an extremely tough pattern)
- Appeared in BOWL Magazine’s “The Best Bowling Tip I’ve Ever Received” in November 2005
Ernest has competed in the sport at a very high level for many years and has averaged in the 220s for the past 15 years. He is well respected in the bowling community andalways exemplifies a professional attitude and demeanor.
Ernest Spriggs’s commitment to and on-lane excellence in the sport of bowling, along with his longtime support of association events, make him a well-deserved addition to the NCAUSBCA Hall of Fame.