PBA Communications
Brandon Bonta, of Wichita, Kan. has been voted the 2026 Harry Golden PBA Rookie of the Year award winner.
Bonta received 58.78 percent of votes among PBA members and media.
Austin Grammer, Alex Horton and Spencer Robarge also earned nominations for the 2026 Rookie of the Year award.
Horton, who won two titles including a major in the PBA Tournament of Champions at AMF Riviera Lanes in Fairlawn, finished second in voting at 32.97 percent. Robarge won two standard titles and Grammar also won a standard title.
This is the winningest rookie class in PBA Tour history with four champions and six combined titles.
The 23-year-old Bonta won one title, making an emphatic statement during the season-opening PBA Players Championship.
As the No. 4 seed, Bonta climbed the stepladder by defeating fellow rookie and former collegiate teammate Spencer Robarge, mutli-time major champion Jesper Svensson, and two-time Player of the Year nominee Graham Fach to reach the title match.
Against the now-four-time reigning PBA Player of the Year EJ Tackett, Bonta shot the 36th televised perfect game in PBA history to claim the major title.
“Brandon Bonta beating EJ Tackett with a perfect game in his first-ever pro tournament to win the PBA Players Championship is a career-defining moment on its own,” said PBA CEO Pete Murray. “Adding the Rookie of the Year award to that, and it’s been quite a season for Brandon.”
“Just as exciting is what Brandon represents for the future of the PBA. He is part of an emerging wave of young talent coming through the college ranks and the PBA ELITE Regional Tour who are ready to compete with the best players in the world and shape the sport.”
In making a compelling case for the greatest rookie season in PBA Tour history, Bonta ranked first among rookies and third among all players with 18,023 points and $163,800 in earnings.
In a Facebook video message, Bonta reacted to the news:
“I just learned I was PBA Rookie of the Year this year. Extremely humble, thank you to everyone for their support this year,” Bonta said. “It was an extremely amazing year for me and hopefully we can keep it going next year.
He broke the single-season rookie earnings record, set one year ago by his college teammate Ryan Barnes, during the fifth title event of the season.
In his four major championship appearances, Bonta finished first, sixth, fifth and seventh. He did not advance out of the pre-tournament qualifier in the U.S. Open.
Bonta made five TV shows and earned six top-10 finishes, nine top-25 finishes, and 11 cashes in 17 title events. He averaged 223.56 in 333 total games.
The PBA Rookie of the Year Award is named after legendary PBA Tour tournament director Harry “Goose” Golden, who was inducted into the PBA Hall of Fame in 1983.
Harry Golden PBA Rookie of the Year Winners:
2026 Brandon Bonta
2025 Ryan Barnes
2024 Nate Purches
2023 Cortez Schenck
2022 Santtu Tahvanainen
2021 Matthew Russo
2020 Not awarded (COVID-19 pandemic)
2019 Mykel Holliman
2018 Kamron Doyle
2017 Matt Sanders
2016 Francois Lavoie
2015 Jesper Svensson
2014 Marshall Kent
2013 EJ Tackett
2012 Josh Blanchard
2011 Scott Norton
2010 Anthony LaCaze
2009 Jason Belmonte
2008 Rhino Page
2007 Billy Oatman
2006 Bill O’Neill
2005 Not awarded
2004 Chris Johnson
2003 Brad Angelo
2002 *Tommy Jones
2000 Joe Ciccone
1999 Paul Fleming
1998 Chris Barnes
1997 Anthony Lombardo
1996 C.K. Moore
1995 Billy Myers Jr.
1994 Tony Ament Jr.
1993 Mark Scroggins
1992 Jason Couch
1991 Ricky Ward
1990 Brad Kiszewski
1989 Steve Hoskins
1988 Rick Steelsmith
1987 Ryan Shafer
1986 Marc McDowell
1985 Tom Crites
1984 John Gant
1983 Toby Contreras
1982 Mike Steinbach
1981 Mark Fahy
1980 Pete Weber
1979 Mike Aulby
1978 Joseph Groskind
1977 Steve Martin
1976 Mike Berlin
1975 Guy Rowbury
1974 Cliff McNealy
1973 Steve Neff
1972 Tommy Hudson
1971 Tye Critchlow
1970 Denny Krick
1969 Larry Lichstein
1968 Bob McGregor
1967 Mike Durbin
1966 Bobby Cooper
1965 Jim Godman
1964 Jerry McCoy