Hammer Bowling is a company involved in the manufacture and sale of bowling balls and bowling-related products and accessories.
History
Faball Era Hammer begins as a ball line from Faball Enterprises and early 80's urethane ball called the Hammer, not as a company originally named the Hammer Bowling Company. Faball Enterprises was founded in 1978 by Johnny Wonders and Earl Widman. In 81 they developed a ball called the Hammer because of its strong striking power. This ball sparked the launch of the Hammer identity.
The original Hammer bowling ball arrived during a major period of technical advancement in bowling. The recently created Urethane coverstock allowed bowlers a newer and stronger reaction down the lane compared to older materials. It could create more friction and stronger pin action thanks to the greater control it gave.
The first Hammer logo was also significant as a piece of recognizable branding. Faball included the highly visible claw Hammer logo on the side of the ball. Sources credit Hammer as the first brand to have a visible logo on the ball's side. This made the Hammer more recognizable on PBA television appearances and a more memorable brand.
Technical Legacy Hammer's early reputation was built on Urethane technology. Sources often credit Hammer as the first two-piece urethane bowling ball, a development that established Hammer as more than just a novelty brand.
Released in 1997, the 3D Offset was the first asymmetric core bowling ball on the market. This allowed for more ball flare and a more dynamic lane shape than balls released before. This asymmetric idea continued through Hammer's history, even to today.
From Faball to Ebonite In 1996, Faball Enterprises licensed the Hammer name to Faball USA. Faball USA managed the brand until February 8, 2002, when Ebonite International Acquired Hammer.
Under Ebonite International, Hammer became on of several major bowling equipment brands. Its products were manufactured at Ebonite's facility in Hopkinsville, Kentucky, as the brand offered bowling balls across multiple market segments, from entry level to high performance balls.
This ownership period allowed Hammer to move beyond its Urethane identity. The company continues to benefit from its urethane sales, but now produces reactive and hybrid balls meant for modern-day conditions and competitive players.
The Introduction of the Black Widow In June of 2006, Hammer blew up the market with the release of its newest bowling ball, the Black Widow. The original Black Widow used a newly created asymmetrical core called the "Gas Mask" core. It became the company's signature high performance ball line.
The Black Widow line featured a red and black spider logo. Hammer also promoted the balls for their hook potential and pin action.
By 2024, 22 Black Widow balls were released in the United States, along with additional overseas-exclusive releases.
The Purple Hammer and Return of Urethane Despite newfound success in reactive balls, Hammer never gave up on creating Urethane bowling balls. The most important modern urethane product from Hammer is often considered the Purple Hammer, which allowed for a smoother, more controlled reaction on challenging lane conditions.
The Purple Hammer also became the subject of a major USBC equipment controversy in 2022. The USBC investigated a set of Purple Hammer balls made at the Hopkinsville plant from 2016-2017. These balls appeared to have been produces below the minimum hardness of 72D.
The tests came out inconclusive, but despite this, the USBC decided to place a ban on all Purple Hammer bowling balls manufactured between 2016 and 2017 in all USBC national tournaments, mainly identified by the serial number on the ball beginning with a 6 or a 7.
This rule did not mean that all Purple Hammers were banned. The USBC specified that individual competitions could chose to adopt the national rule or not.
From Ebonite to Brunswick On November 15, 2019, Brunswick Bowling Products acquired Ebonite International's assets. This included Hammer, Ebonite, Colombia 300, and Track bowling brands along with the rest of Ebonite's trademarks and technologies.
Brunswick announced it would continue to market the products under the acquired brands and honor the warranties on existing Ebonite balls.
Hammer Today Hammer remains one of the most popular Brunswick Bowling brands. Its official product catalogue currently includes several product tiers:
High-Performance balls: Spawn, Full Effect, Zero Mercy Solid/Pearl, Maximum Effect, the 3-D Offset Assault, and the Hammer Effect Tour. Upper-Mid Performance balls: Black widow 3.0 and 3.0 Dynasty, Black Widow Tour v1, the Black Widow Mania, and the Black Widow 2.0. Mid-Performance: Purple Pearl Urethane 78D, Black Pearl Urethane, Purple Pearl Urethane, and the Nu Blue Hammer. Lower-Mid Performance: All RAW hammer balls. Spare balls: All Hammer AXE balls. Bags, Shoes, Accessories, and a variety of apparel.
Timeline +YearMilestone1978Founding of Faball Enterprises by Jonny Wonders and Earl Widman.1981Development of the first Hammer bowling ball.Early 80'sThe claw-Hammer logo appears on a televised game spiking the ball's popularity.1996Faball Licenses Hammer to Faball USA2002Ebonite International Acquires Hammer2006Hammer releases the first Black Widow using the new Gas Mask core.20019Brunswick acquires Ebonite and allows Hammer to continue its legacy.2020's-PresentHammer continues with production of its bowling balls and bowling related products.
Hammer Sponsored "Staffer" Players
National +Current Men's StaffNameJoin yearChristian AzconzaUnknownAdam Barta2000Deo BernardUnknownDino CastilloUnknownTom Daugherty2016Gary HainesUnknownEric Jones2024Tyrell IngallsUnknownRudy Kasmakis2024Tomas KäyhköUnknownMarshall Kent2023Alec KeplingerUnknownDan Knowlton2021David "Boog" KrolUnknownAnthony Lavery-SaphrUnknownTroy LintUnknownShawn Maldonado2019Anthony Neuer2021Bill O'Neill2009Ronnie Russell2019Ryan ShaferUnknownRobert Smith2024Hayden Stgippich2026Nate Stubler2026Richie Teece2026Zach Weidman2020Zach Wilkins2025Mike Wolfe2016 +Current Women's StaffNameJoin YearCorreen AcuffUnknownMarissa AllisonUnknownSydney BrummettUnknownSandra GóngoraUnknownChelsey KlinglerUnknownShannon Pluhowsky2016Rocío Restrepo2026Alexis RunkUnknownLauren RussoUnknownKerry Smith2019Kelly WhippleUnknownStephanie Zavala2026
International +Current International StaffNameGenderCountryJoin Year Bernice LimFemaleSingaporeUnknownDarren OngMaleSingaporeUnknownMike Ong Jing LoongMaleSingaporeUnknown
References
External links Company homepage