1978 The Great and the Greatest (Matches 1 & 2)

Here's a real treat. It's the first-ever PBA "The Great and the Greatest Tournament," a doubles competition with each team consisting of a current PBA star and a former PBA star. At the time it was held, this tournament was thought to be a one-of-a-kind event, and was the first time we'd seen the legendary former players in action since their heyday. This event was so popular, the PBA brought it back again in 1979 (at Golden Triangle Lanes in Irving, TX), which eventually led to a Senior PBA Tour for several years. I actually traveled out to Las Vegas to bowl in the pro-am at this event and had the distinct pleasure of bowling one of my three games with Dick Weber (who closed with several strikes to edge me at the end). In this first of three-parts, we see the first two televised matches, the first one between the #5 qualifying team of Tommy Hudson and Joe Joseph against the #4 qualifying team of Mark Roth and Don Ellis. The winners advance to take on the #3 qualifying team of Pete Couture and Don Carter in Match 2. (Matches 3 and 4 can be seen in other postings.) Originally telecast in 1978 (exact date unknown, but I'm pretty sure it was in September) from Showboat Lanes in Las Vegas, NV. (This was the last nationally televised tournament to originate from Showboat Lanes before they installed the artificial surfaces, first used in the 1979 Showboat Invitational.) Jack Buck on play-by-play. Dave Davis on color.