Mike Jakubowski, who covers bowling for ESPN, participating in his sport at the highest level

CUDAHY (WITI) -- Things are really on a roll for a local man who has risen to the top of the bowling world in one way, and now, he's willing to take a shot in another way.

If you consume bowling these days, you are probably familiar with Mike Jakubowski. Once a junior player in Milwaukee, he is now the face of the sport online and on TV.

"For someone that came through Marquette University and wanted to be on television, I've taken a long road to get there. We dreamed about it when we sat in our broadcasting class. Wow, what would it be like to be on ESPN? What would it be like to call a national telecast of a sporting event? And to be given that opportunity is an amazing thing. To find yourself with something that you love, with something that has a large legacy, with something that has a deep following, and to be able to be handed the baton to carry on that tradition is something. That's one of the joys of my life," Mike Jakubowski said.

Throwing the perfect ball is on that list too. Jakubowski is embarking on a George Plimpton-esque adventure -- going beyond covering his sport to participating in it at the highest level. The man behind the mic, the 205 average league bowler is lacing it up to take a shot at the PBA50 -- the seniors tour.

"I turned 50 and I thought 'why not refresh my equipment?' Everything you cover, if you can live it for just a moment, it might help you cover that much better, to see what athletes go through, to understand preparation," Jakubowski said.

In the Milwaukee area, there is recreational weekday bowling and there is working hard on your bowling. Jakubowski is certainly in that camp. He realizes it's a very different world he's about to visit.

"It's the difference between playing Currie Park on a weekend to a distance of 5,700 yards and going up to Blackwolf Run and playing from the tips. You can see the difference on the golf course. You can see the difference between Currie Park and Blackwolf Run. You can't see the difference with the oil barrier. That is the difficulty factor in this game of variable friction," Jakubowski said.

This game of variable friction is a more technical way to describe a sport that has been as much a past-time as anything for players over the years.

"Bowling in a sense is the first social networking. When you think of bowling in its hey day, it was an opportunity for people to get together and trade photos, stories and recipes and now what has the internet become? A global sharing network for the very same elements," Jakubowski said.

The Pasco County Florida Open began Sunday, April 12th and Jakubowski is in 112th place out of 116 bowlers. He will need to make a big improvement Monday before the field is cut to the top 38 performers. No matter how it goes, for Jakubowski, this is a winning experience.