A. J. Johnson (bowler)

Johnson bowled collegiately for McKendree University, where he earned first-team All-American and MVP honors in the 2013–14 season. In 2013, he was a member of Junior Team USA. He won the 2013 Junior Gold Championships as a youth bowler for the United States. He has been a five-time member of Team USA. At the 2019 PABCON Championships in Lima, Peru, he won gold in team and all events, and silver in singles.{{cite web |title=World Championships, A Historical Review |url=http://etbf.eu/his-wor-wch-history/ |website=European Tenpin Bowling Federation}} He previously won gold in team and bronze in all events at the 2017 World Bowling Championships.

In 2015, Johnson entered the USBC Masters as an amateur and earned the #1 seed in qualifying, but he would lose the final match to Jason Belmonte.{{Cite web |title=Collegiate Bowler A.J. Johnson Earns Top Spot for USBC Masters Finals on ESPN |url=https://bowl.com/news/collegiate-bowler-a-j-johnson-earns-top-spot-for-usbc-masters-finals-on-espn |access-date=2024-02-14 |website=bowl.com |language=en}}{{Cite web |date=May 2, 2008 |title=Jason Belmonte {{!}} PBA |url=https://www.pba.com/players/jason-belmonte |access-date=2024-02-14 |website=www.pba.com |language=en}}

Johnson was part of the rotating four-person team (with Jakob Butturff, Andrew Anderson and Kristopher Prather) that won the trios gold medal for Team USA at the 2021 International Bowling Federation (IBF) Super World Championships in Dubai. With the final match between USA and South Korea ending in a tie, Johnson was chosen by coach Bryan O'Keefe to roll the tenth frame of a ninth/tenth frame roll-off, which USA won 57–49.{{cite web |url=https://bowl.com/News/NewsDetails.aspx?id=23622336788 |title=TEAM USA SUCCESSFULLY DEFENDS TRIOS TITLE AT IBF SUPER WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS IN DUBAI |last=Cannizzaro |first=Matt |publisher=Bowl.com |date=November 15, 2021 |accessdate=November 18, 2021}}

On August 23, 2022, Johnson and partner Kris Prather won gold medals in Doubles at the PanAm Bowling Champion of Champions event held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. With an eight-game total of 1,921 pins (240.13 average), Johnson topped the men's field for the event. He and Prather were part of a USA sweep in Doubles, as Shannon O'Keefe and Bryanna Coté won Doubles gold in the women's event.{{cite web |url=https://snieronbowling.com/2022/08/24/team-usa-sweeps-doubles-gold-at-panam-champion-of-champions/ |title=Team USA sweeps doubles gold at PanAm Champion of Champions |last=Kanak |first=Gene |publisher=snieronbowling.com |date=August 24, 2022 |accessdate=August 31, 2022}} Johnson settled for bronze medals in the Singles and All Events categories, finishing third in both behind teammate Prather and Brazil's Bruno Costa.{{cite web |url=https://bowl.com/news/team-usa-wins-eight-medals-on-final-day-of-2022-panam-bowing-champion-of-champions,-qualifies-for-20 |title=TEAM USA WINS EIGHT MEDALS ON FINAL DAY OF 2022 CHAMPION OF CHAMPIONS, QUALIFIES FOR 2023 PAN AMERICAN GAMES |last=Kanak |first=Gene |publisher=bowl.com |date=August 26, 2022 |accessdate=August 31, 2022}}

Johnson is a three-time PBA Midwest Region Player of the Year (2017, 2018 and 2020)., and he won the 2019 KPBA SamHo Cup, a Korean PBA event. He has won ten PBA Regional Tour titles.{{cite web |title=PBA REGIONAL RECAP: AJ JOHNSON TOPS BUTTURFF, EARNS TITLE NO. 10 |last=Kaufman |first=Chase |url=https://www.pba.com/2022/june/pba-regional-recap-aj-johnson-tops-butturff-earns-title-no-10 |website=pba.com |date=June 2, 2022 |access-date=June 3, 2022}} Through his first seven years on the PBA Tour, he had six runner-up finishes, including finishing second while bowling as an amateur at the 2015 USBC Masters major.

In 2021, Johnson teamed with former NFL star Terrell Owens to win Chris Paul's annual CP3 PBA Celebrity Invitational pro-am event.{{cite web |title=TERRELL OWENS, AJ JOHNSON WIN CP3 PBA CELEBRITY INVITATIONAL |url=https://www.pba.com/2021/october/terrell-owens-aj-johnson-win-cp3-pba-celebrity-invitational |last=Goodger |first=Jef |website=PBA.com |date=October 17, 2021 |access-date=October 18, 2021}} Johnson qualified as the #3 seed for the 2022 U.S. Open finals, but lost his only match to Jason Belmonte.{{cite web |url=https://www.pba.com/2022/february/simonsen-wins-2022-us-open-third-major-title |title=SIMONSEN WINS 2022 U.S. OPEN FOR THIRD MAJOR TITLE |last=Cannizzaro |first=Matt |publisher=PBA.com |date=February 7, 2022 |access-date=February 7, 2022}}

Based on points earned during the first 13 events of the 2022 PBA Tour season, Johnson qualified as the #10 seed for the PBA Tour Playoffs. After defeating #7 seed Jakob Butturff in the Round of 16 and #15 seed Shawn Maldonado in the quarterfinals, Johnson was eliminated in the semifinals by sixth-seeded Tommy Jones.{{cite web |url=https://www.pba.com/2022/may/troup-and-jones-set-2022-kia-pba-playoffs-final |title=TROUP AND JONES SET FOR 2022 KIA PBA PLAYOFFS FINAL |publisher=pba.com |last=Winters |first=Jill |date=May 8, 2022 |accessdate=May 12, 2022}} Despite no titles, Johnson cashed a career-high $92,700 in 2022.{{cite web |url=https://www.pba.com/2022/september/2022-guaranteed-rate-pba-tour-season-review |title=2022 GUARANTEED RATE PBA TOUR SEASON IN REVIEW |last=Goodger |first=Jef |website=pba.com |date=September 1, 2022 |accessdate=September 6, 2022}}

On September 10, 2023, Johnson won his first PBA title at the Storm Lucky Larsen Masters in Helsingborg, Sweden. After knocking off American Anthony Simonsen in the semifinals, AJ topped Swedish standout Jesper Svensson in the finals.{{cite web |url=https://www.pba.com/2023/september/aj-johnson-captures-elusive-first-career-title-storm-lucky-larsen-masters |title=AJ JOHNSON CAPTURES ELUSIVE FIRST CAREER TITLE AT STORM LUCKY LARSEN MASTERS |last=Hughes |first=Nolan |website=pba.com |date=September 10, 2023 |accessdate=September 11, 2023}}

Johnson suffered his seventh career runner-up finish at the 2024 PBA Illinois Classic, losing to top seed Marshall Kent.{{cite web |url=https://www.pba.com/2024/february/marshall-kent-wins-pba-illinois-classic |title=MARSHALL KENT WINS PBA ILLINOIS CLASSIC |last=Hughes |first=Nolan |publisher=pba.com |date=February 10, 2024 |accessdate=February 12, 2024}} He was a member of the Las Vegas High Rollers PBA Elite League team, which won the 2024 Elias Cup championship.{{cite web|last=Hughes |first=Nolan |title=Las Vegas Breaks Through to Win First PBA Elias Cup Title |url=https://www.pba.com/2024/september/las-vegas-breaks-through-win-first-pba-elias-cup-title |website=pba.com |date=September 17, 2024 |access-date=September 18, 2024}}

{{reflist}}

• [https://www.pba.com/players/aj-johnson AJ Johnson] at the Professional Bowlers Association

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Category:1992 births

Category:Living people

Category:American ten-pin bowling players

Category:Bowlers at the 2023 Pan American Games

Category:Medalists at the 2023 Pan American Games

Category:Pan American Games gold medalists for the United States in bowling

Category:People from Oswego, Illinois

Category:Sportspeople from the Chicago metropolitan area