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Bowlers Journal International

Founded in November 1913 and called by its owner the longest-running monthly sports magazine in the United States. Privately owned for 107 years — the Luby family, then two long-time employees — until the United States Bowling Congress bought it in 2020.
✓ Last reviewed: September 2026
Owned byUnited States Bowling Congress (since 2020)
TypeMonthly magazine (print and digital)
Publisher / editorMike Panozzo / Gianmarc Manzione
FoundedNovember 1913 — Dave Luby
ChampionshipsBowlers Journal Championships, annual since 1946

What is Bowlers Journal International?

Bowlers Journal International (BJI) is the monthly magazine of American bowling, in print and digital editions, founded in November 1913 by Dave Luby as an eight-page weekly. Since 1 September 2020 it has belonged to the United States Bowling Congress, the sport’s national governing body, which bought the title and the Bowlers Journal Championships from Luby Publishing.[1] [2]

What does it cover?

Feature stories, championship and tour coverage, ball reviews and instruction, with a masthead of the sport’s best-known writers — publisher Mike Panozzo, editor Gianmarc Manzione, and columnists including Diandra Asbaty, Michelle Mullen, Bill Spigner and Jason Thomas. It also runs the Bowlers Journal Championships, held annually since 1946.[1] [3] [5]

What is its reach and standing?

No circulation figure is published. Standing is a matter of longevity and awards: the USBC calls it “the longest-running monthly sports magazine in the nation” and its history page “the oldest monthly sports publication in the world”, and its writers, it says, have won more national writing awards than any other bowling publication. Since 2020 it is federation-owned, which is the caveat for governance stories.[1] [2]

Since when?

November 1913. Renamed National Bowlers Journal and Billiard Review in the mid-century (the sources give 1925 and 1952), Bowlers Journal International in 1993. Ownership: Dave Luby, then Mort Luby Sr (1925) and Mort Luby Jr (1957); sold in 1994 to employees Keith Hamilton and Mike Panozzo; to the USBC on 21 August 2020.[1] [2] [4]

Why does it matter in bowling?

Because it is the sport’s magazine of record for a century of results, profiles and instruction, and because its ownership changed hands in 2020 in a way a reader should know: an interview or profile in BJI since then is published by the governing body itself.[1] [2]

References

  1. USBC — “USBC purchases Bowlers Journal International brand assets”, Aug 2020. Accessed September 2026.
  2. Bowlers Journal International — History. Accessed September 2026.
  3. Bowlers Journal International — Writers. Accessed September 2026.
  4. Luby Publishing — History of LPI. Accessed September 2026.
  5. Bowlers Journal International — home (bowl.com). Accessed September 2026.