The Hammer brand has signed on as the title sponsor of The National Bowling Association (TNBA). Founded in Detroit in 1939 as The National Negro Bowling Association in response to a "Caucasians Only" clause in the constitutions of the ABC and WIBC, TNBA was instrumental in opening the doors to competitive bowling for black bowlers.

Because of the overwhelming amount of Asian, Hispanic and other non-black members, the organization changed its name in 1944 to The National Bowling Association, and in 1950, the clauses were removed from ABC and WIBC. TNBA's competitive ranks continued to grow as they added members of all ages, background and skill levels to the point where it is more than 70,000 members strong today.

"It's an honor to support [TNBA's] regional and national events and to call ourselves a sponsor of this history-making group," said Jeff Ussery, Hammer Brand Manager.

In that same vein, we couldn't help but see some irony in the sponsor the PBA has aligned with its upcoming Plastic Ball Championship. Since some believe that the tournament is taking the PBA back to the Stone Age, what better company to lend its name to the event than GEICO... which features cavemen in many of its commercials?