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I am Jason “Belmo” Belmonte.
For all intents and purposes, I was born into bowling. When I was just a few weeks old, my parents built and took ownership of a bowling center in Australia. My earliest memories include that bowling center. Even as a one-year-old, I wanted to bowl. Since the lightest bowling balls at the center were too heavy for me to swing, I’d pick up the ball, waddle up to the approach and roll it with both hands. As I grew, I never found myself comfortable with the traditional style of putting your fingers into the bowling ball and rolling it with one hand, so I maintained a two-handed style.
Yup, you may know me as the two-handed professional bowler.
Thankfully, bowling was a business more than a passion for my parents. They never tried to change my two-handed approach. As long as I was having fun and got out of their hair, they allowed me to do my thing. Seriously, thanks Mum and Dad, for having no knowledge of bowling whatsoever — if you did, I may have never been on the Professional Bowlers Association tour.
Others around me told me from day one that I was bowling the wrong way, that I’d never be successful, and that I was insane. When I was rolling high scores at age 12, the coaches in Australia still tried to convert me to the standard one-handed bowling style. Even as I was making strides towards the Pro Bowling tour, I encountered more haters who doubted me and bashed my “awkward” style.
I was told I couldn’t do it — every step of the way. As a child, it hurt my feelings. As an adult, it morphed into motivation. Thanks to all of the naysayers, my attitude became, “Tell me one more time that I can’t do it – and let’s see what record I break this time.”
Two Moments That Made Me
At 16 years old, I took a trip to Malaysia that changed my life: On that trip, I bowled a perfect 300 game and brought home $16,000. That experience gave me the confidence that I could truly make a living as a professional bowler – and better yet, that living could pay me well. In fact, it was that experience that made me want to work even harder to win more. Although the money was great, it was also led to the end of my parents’ days of supporting me. I got home and they said, “It’s time to start investing wisely and planning for your future.”
Then there was winning my first PBA tournament. It was the 2008-09 tour, and I was brought in to make my debut because the PBA wanted to expose my style. Some viewed me as a circus act that could bring eyeballs to television screens for a short period of time, fail and then be on my way back home.
But I proved them wrong. I won the event – just my eighth pro tournament, the Bowling Foundation Long Island Open – and the joy, relief and exaltation were immense. I was interviewed on ESPN and I seriously wanted to look at the camera and give a nice little wink at all my haters. I’ll never forget it.
Advice For The Next Generation
I am a self-taught bowler. Every aspect of what I do — my mechanics, my curve, how I use my legs, etc. — is my own. It makes me proud to see younger bowlers mimic my style. In fact, there are now tens of thousands of two-handed bowlers — and I wouldn’t want it any other way. I’m excited to see the next generation. In my early 30s, I have plenty of bowling left to do, but I know there will be a day when the next generation of two-handed bowlers wipes the floor with me.
My advice to young people is to just be who you are. If you want something, make it happen. Living in Australia, I took a gamble to seek out a career as a professional bowler. I had to make a lot of sacrifices when I was 16 years old – saving a lot of money, leaving my own country – but I always stayed true to myself and my goals.
If I was scared or allowed negativity to affect me, I don’t know where I’d be today. I hope others can learn from that, and it’s a story I’m happy to share.
Family, Friends And Fans
There isn’t anything I wouldn’t do for my family: My wife Kimberly, and my kids Aria, Hugo and Sylvie. When my career is over, I’ll still have my family and friends, and those individuals mean the most to me. I have to leave them on a regular basis (it could be more than a total of six months out of a year) to achieve my dreams, and I cannot thank all of them enough for making this possible.
As for my career, let me put it this way: I’m one of the lucky ones who gets to do what I love. If I wasn’t a professional bowler, it would be emotionally heartbreaking. That’s how passionate I am about the sport. I wouldn’t want to do anything else. Bowling, for me, was love at first sight.
And what can I say to my fans? I’ll start with “thank you.” I love what I do, but your support takes that love to new heights. Don’t be afraid to be interactive with me. I utilize social media to connect with bowling fans. I reply to messages and questions, I’m open to opinions, and I love to share photos of my life on and off the road. I want you all to experience this rollercoaster life of mine.
It may be a digital friendship, but it’s a friendship nonetheless.
My Role Model
I’ve always idolized athletes that were brilliant, but also had a particular identity. When they were on the playing surface, you knew instinctively it was them. For me, the athlete who fits that description is Roger Federer. I love the way he plays and the way he competes. I also love how good of a family man he is. To me, he is an icon.
Workouts And Nutrition
Flexibility is crucial in the bowling world; not just your legs and torso, but also smaller body parts like your shoulders, wrists and fingers. Flexibility helps your performance on the lanes, and it can also extend your career by preventing injury. Believe it or not, too much muscle can be a problem in bowling. You want your body to be toned and elastic; thus, flexibility reigns supreme.
My diet is more of a common-sense approach. I try to stay between 1800-2200 calories a day. I just can’t have any 4,000-calorie blowouts when I’m on the road, or I’d never be successful on tour.
How The PBA Tour Affects Me
On the long and often grueling PBA Tour, the mental and emotional side of the game is just as important as the physical part. Until I’ve finished a tournament, I give my all. I credit that to my upbringing; Australians, by nature, are underdogs, never-give-up people. It’s part of our culture. Regardless, the non-physical part of competing is exhausting on the body.
Think about it this way: There aren’t many individual sports where you must have your brain turned on for almost the entire week (start to finish of a tournament). For example, when I finish a U.S. Open (one of the longest playing formats we have on the tour), I am completely drained. I’m speechless, grumpy, tired – I’m not a joy to be around. After a day or two, I’m okay and relish spending time with my family and enjoying my hobbies: golf, soccer, tennis, cricket, watching my daughter dance with her class, and learning about dinosaurs from my sons.
That’s the behind-the-scenes stuff you don’t see.
My Fashion Passion And #TwoHands
When I partnered with Athlete Originals on an apparel line, utilizing the hashtag #2Hands was a no-brainer. I’ve always promoted my two-handed style, and I always maintain an element of humor. Promoting #TwoHands and having the silhouette of me bowling over the words “Revolution” is not boasting – it’s more of my gentle, playful little dig to all the haters I mentioned previously.
My hope is that I serve as a strong ambassador for the sport of bowling, two hands or not, and that my career and my Athlete Originals apparel line serve as inspirations to aspiring two-handed bowlers out there, or anyone fighting doubters.
As for my logo, it was inspired in a way by Michael Jordan. Years ago, I never imagined I would be asked to partner on an apparel line or have my own logo. But my first thought was not about having “Jason Belmonte” over all of my clothing, but about the sports marketing masters of my younger days: What Nike and Michael Jordan did with the iconic Air Jordan brand.
Now, I promise I’m not comparing myself to Michael Jordan, but what I loved about that logo – the silhouette of him flying through the air – was that it was instantly synonymous with Jordan. I set out to do the same with my logo, so having two hands on a bowling ball was an obvious choice. When I see fans wearing it, it truly makes me feel great and I hope it does the same for you.
My Goals
A few of my goals moving forward are to win the PBA’s Grand Slam., and maintain a presence in the sport when my career is over.
I always want my name to carry on.
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