Hello everyone.

For those of you who don't know me, my name is Emil Williams Jr. This is my first year in any capacity (working or bowling) at the USBC Open Championships, and it has been an awesome experience thus far.

I am working as a Media Relations assistant and a Tournament Services representative in the Information area. I have had the pleasure of learning from Matt Cannizzaro, who has been a great help and has made me feel right at home. I also want to give a shout out to my esteemed colleague, Aaron Smith, who also has been a great help to my Open Championships experience. If you need a laugh, don't hesitate to stop by the media office. There is always something funny going on in here. I would also like to thank Dana Pauline, who has allowed me to eat all of her food at her house during a few random staff get togethers.

Now, let me give you a bit of background information about me and how I arrived to this point.

I was born and raised in Chicago, and on the playground is where I spent most of my days. I am a Chicago White Sox fan, and I have a lot of battles with my various friends who are die hard Chicago Cubs fans. No matter what people may tell you: YOU CAN'T LIKE BOTH TEAMS.   

I attended Lindenwood University, where I bowled for four years and had the privilege of being a member of the winning team at the 2005 Intercollegiate Team Championships in Rockford, Ill. I love my school, and I am pretty confident that I would not be writing this blog had I not attended LU.

In December of 2009, I was watching the live stream of the USBC Team USA Trials and thought that would be something I would love to help out with. I have a lot of broadcasting experience, radio play-by-play to be specific. I was just looking to help in some form or fashion, possibly at the Hoosier Classic, which was where the next closest live streaming event was taking place.

At that time, I was working for a rental car company where I washed and parked cars. This was far from the broadcasting job I had hoped for after college, but the economy was bad, and it's a tough business to get into, so I had to take what I could get. Every experience is a learning experience, and I met some cool people while I was there. I was prepared to endure all until I landed that first big job.

Anyway, I sent a short email to Lucas Wiseman, who was handling the live streaming duties at the Team USA Trials. I gave him a short bio and told him about my ambitions, my academic background and my bowling background. He replied to my email with a response that read: "Thanks for the email. I will forward it along for future consideration by the folks who make those sorts of decisions."

At that point, I will admit, I didn't expect to hear anything back, and if I did, it would be months down the line. I had heard that story before, so needless to say, I didn't get my hopes up.

However, the next person to e-mail me was the Director of Public Relations, Jason Overstreet. Jason asked for my resume and current location. A few weeks later, Jason sent me another e-mail and asked if I would be interested in coming to Reno to assist in the Media Relations department. After a phone conversation with Jason and Matt, they were reassured that it would be a good fit. I was ready for the challenge of writing, which I didn't have a lot of experience in.

After a three-day, 26-hour drive from Chicago, I finally made it to the National Bowling Stadium. It was my first time inside the Stadium, and the only thing that I could say to myself was, WOW. It also helped that I arrived the day of the USBC Masters finals, so I got to watch that live.

Since my arrival, the staff has been awesome, and everyone has been great to work with. I have learned a lot in Media and Tournament Services. A special thanks to Erin, Nani, Gary and James for showing me the ropes and getting me caught up on everything that goes on in Information.

From a media standpoint, I had to get a quick refresher in AP style. It had been a little while since I had to use that. Matt has been awesome and has showed me the ropes. I thank him for all he has done.

I have also met some of the nicest people and some awesome bowlers. I talked with Shannon Pluhowsky after she took the all-events lead. I watched a record-breaking all-events performance by Matt McNiel.

I talked with Don Ellis and Nelson Silverstrim after they received their 60-year plaques. I talked with Les Zikes, who joined the 100,000-Pin Club this year.

I talked with the Regular Team leaders, Bowlers Edge Pro Shop. I met Bo Goergen, who is a great bowler and an even better person. I have witnessed almost every 50-year ceremony, and I have watched defending champions attempt to repeat their glory from 2009. I talked with several bowlers who rolled 300 games at the tournament.

Listening to every story and getting it out to the world is what it's all about. I have even received a couple of thank you gestures from bowlers I have written about it, and that was definitely gratifying.

I have seen countless bowlers I know roll through the tournament, and I have seen bowlers who I have crossed paths with during my youth and collegiate careers come try their luck at the Stadium.

We are into the second half of the tournament, and there are still thousands of bowlers yet to compete. While I am not sure how they will bowl, I will say that we will be ready to bring you the news as quickly as we get it.

Until next time, peace.