Hi, I'm Sammi

It's nice to meet you! I'm a full-time professional bowler, part-time coach, and a team member at Brunswick Bowling Products, one of the industry's largest manufacturers. I've been passionate about the sport of bowling since I was four years old, and sharing that passion is what drives me.

My Story

I’ve been bowling longer than I can remember. I started when I was four years old at the local bowling alley down the street from my house in Richland, Michigan. My older brother (who’s nearly a decade older than me) used to love watching bowling on TV and at some point in childhood pointed at the TV and said to my parents, “I want to do that!” So they enrolled him in the local bowling league. By the time I came along nine years later I had no choice but to spend every Saturday morning at the bowling alley. What wasn’t there to love about it as a kid? We got to eat junk food. We got to play games. We got to be competitive and joke around. The adults were coaching us, and I was naturally good at it. I was hooked.

I was five years old when I started in the bumper league, and I was too smart for my own good, quickly understanding that if I bounced the ball off the bumpers at a certain spot, I could easily get strikes. All I needed was a good dose of confidence and the right angle to the pocket to score... and I was competitive. Needless to say, I only lasted a few weeks in the bumper league before my parents said I needed to learn the hard way - without the bumpers. And so my story began.

I was the youngest in my family by far and always felt that I had something to prove and needed to show that I deserved to be where I was. Every time my siblings moved up in a division, I requested to move up in a division. “You know that means you’ll be going against the big kids right? You can’t go back if you change your mind,” the league secretary told me as I peered over the edge of the front counter. “I know!” I stated with a cheeky grin. I knew I would beat them.

I couldn’t get enough of proving that I could rise to the highest standard I could set for myself.

I didn’t know it then, but I was laying the groundwork for my future in ways that I couldn't yet see.

My Purpose

Bowling is about community.

I’ve spent nearly every weekend of my life in a bowling alley, either at league, or tournaments, or watching my friends and family bowl too. I don’t necessarily come from a family of bowlers – I didn’t grow up in a pro shop, or have unlimited access to practice at centers, or even have parents who could coach or fully understand what to do to help. My keys to success were simple: seek out the help of experts when I could, always ask questions (even if they felt silly), and make sure I'm always in the room with people who are smarter than me. I live by these principles today in both my professional and athletic careers.

Because I didn't grow up with a lot of the knowledge or opportunities that some other highly successful bowlers did, I'm more passionate than anything about making sure that coaching opportunities and bowling education are available for people of all ages and skill levels. My family and I were fortunate to find the right paths for me, but it's not always straightforward and can be very intimidating for newcomers. I've been given the privilege to not only compete as an athlete for my career, but work for a large company within the industry, and the very least I can do to say thank you for the opportunities I have been given by this community is to help foster the next generation of people who will carry on the sport for us.

Bowling has brought me college scholarships, career opportunities, lifelong friendships, countless memories, and a community that I will always consider family. It’s been an outlet for self-expression and a way to grow mentally, physically, and emotionally. I truly would not be the person I am today without this sport and I couldn’t be more thankful that I now get the opportunity to compete at the level that I do, and to chase a dream I’ve had for so long that I didn’t think I would ever have the privilege to reach.

One day I hope I can be one of those women on TV that one little girl looks up at, points to, and says, “I want to do that too!” Without those people that came before me, I wouldn't be who I am today.

WANT TO KNOW MORE?

Reach out. I'm always open to share information.