Australian ten-pin bowler Jason Belmonte has been named the 2013 US Professional Bowlers Association Chris Schenkel Player of the Year.
In earning his first Player of the Year honour, Belmonte won two titles, including his first major crown in the USBC Masters.
He was runner-up in three other major championships: the 2012 PBA World Championship, US Open and 2013 PBA Tournament of Champions.
He won the George Young High Average Award, scoring at a 228.81 pace over 422 games, the Harry Smith Point Leader Award with 238,903 points and had season earnings of $US186,465 ($A213,140).
Belmonte, known for his unique two-handed delivery, joined Venezuela's Amleto Monacelli and Finland's Koivuniemi as the only foreign-born players to win the PBA's highest annual competition honour.
He was also the first two-handed player to win the award.
"This award has a lot of meaning for me because it represents the fact that you can do it your way and be successful," Belmonte said.
"This is an honour every player wants to win but something you can never plan for. I've taken a lot of criticism but I'm a firm believer in pinning your ears back and going for your dreams."
Belmonte is the leader after the second qualifying round of the current PBA Tournament of Champions at Thunderbowl Lanes.
He finished the day with a 2,536 10-game pinfall total after games of 280, 247, 227, 297 and 257 to take a six-pin lead over first round leader Chris Loschetter of Ohio.
After three more qualifying rounds, the field will be cut to the top 24 players for the match play rounds leading to the final on January 26.
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