She is the most decorated female bowler in history but just as importantly, Lisa Wagner was the standard-bearer as women’s bowling entered its modern era.

In her 22 years as a professional Wagner has captured virtually every honor her sport has to offer. She has won a record 32 tournaments including the BPAA U.S. Open and the WIBC Queens. In 1988 she won six times on the PWBA tour, establishing a record that lasted until 2001.

Along the way, the 40-year old Wagner has been named Player of the Year three times by the PWBA and Bowler of the Year four times by the Bowling Writers Association of America. She has also been named a WIBC All-American nine times and has won three WIBC Championship Tournament titles.

But Wagner did more than just win titles. She increased public awareness of her sport, helping it make an impact with the casual sports fan.

As she was beginning her professional career ESPN was going on the air and giving much of America its first sustained exposure to women’s professional bowling. When they looked, they saw Wagner who first reached the winner’s circle in 1983 and over the next six seasons won 21 times. Talented, charismatic and photogenic the Rocket did for women’s bowling in the 1980s what Nancy Lopez did for women’s golf in the late 1970s. It was the culmination of a journey that began when she was five years old.

A native of Hillsboro, Ill. Wagner grew up in Florida. where her parents were not only avid league bowlers but junior bowling coaches at Cortez Lanes in Bradenton. At five Lisa was pushing an eight-pound ball between her legs and down the lane and by the age of six she had started bowling in a league, two years ahead of the usual minimum age. Before long her parents realized that their daughter had an affinity for the sport.

"After their league they would go in the snack shop and sit and chat," Wagner said, "and I would go out and bowl. They tell people that they did that for a couple years and one day they came out of the snack bar and they had a little bowler on their hands. They had no idea I was getting the hang of this sport."

Wagner turned professional at 18 but bowling for a living was no bed of roses. "It was tough, she said. "You were looking at $2500-$3000 for first place and there was no incentive money. When you came out you would bring your six or eight balls and lived with it.

"If you wanted to get a ball drilled you would have to go to the pro shop and hopefully it would come out okay."

Gradually, with the help of television exposure, purses got bigger and life on tour generally got more comfortable. But even today’s purses fall short of the amounts earned by athletes in other women’s sports, most notably golf and tennis.

Wagner thinks that bowling in general and her tour in particular can be more effective in their marketing efforts, She thinks a good first step would be bringing the sport’s myriad of sanctioning bodies under one umbrella.

"We have to have one governing body," she said. "We cannot have all these different factions out there. I really think we need a United States Bowling Association or whatever. One sanctioning body, one set of rules so you don’t have one sanctioning body going to sponsors and saying ‘Can we have this?" and another group saying ‘We have these people.’ I think when that happens that will be one huge step toward being able to reach the masses."

Wagner is closer to the end of her professional career than she is to the beginning but she still has some gas left in her tank. In 1999 she won twice after having gone winless since capturing the WIBC Queens title in 1996. In 2000 she was named an All-American for the ninth time after a seven-year gap since her last appearance.

"I love to bowl," Wagner said. "I really really do love to bowl and that’s what keeps me bowling competitively."

Though justifiably proud of her accomplishments Wagner is also appreciative of those who have gone before her. In a recent poll to determine the greatest woman bowler of the 20th century Wagner finished second behind Marion Ladewig.

"I saw tapes of her," Wagner said. "From what i saw of her she looked the same every time. She never threw a bad shot."

Wagner’s father actually had the opportunity to see Ladewig bowl frequently. An ardent supporter of his daughter, needless to see, he was not blinded by family loyalty when it came to ability.

"My Dad said ‘She’s right where she should be.’" Wagner said. "That’s good enough for me."