Up until now if you wanted to see professionals bowling in teams virtually your only opportunity came from watching Chris Paul's celebrity bowling tournament. Now things are going to change in regards to the professionals teaming up to bowl like you do a couple of times a week.

The Professional Bowlers Association will introduce an eight-team pro bowling league for the 2012-13 season, featuring PBA stars as Franchise Players, a draft of PBA members to fill out the five-player team rosters and a television series resulting in six ESPN telecasts, PBA Commissioner Tom Clark announced today.

The historic PBA League will make its debut during the Detroit PBA Winter Swing Jan. 19-27 at Thunderbowl Lanes in Allen Park, Mich., feature a live ESPN show on Sunday, Jan. 27 of PBA League Round 1 action and conclude with the PBA League Elias Cup Finals, honoring PBA founder Eddie Elias, at Woodland Bowl in Indianapolis on Sunday, March 31 (airing Sunday, April 7 on ESPN).

“Bowling has deep roots in team competition,” Clark said. “As a part of its 2012-13 season, the PBA is going to return five-player team bowling competition to the spotlight, but in a way it has never before been seen.”

Details on significant aspects of the league such as team names, owners and sponsors will be released soon.

Here’s how the PBA League will work:

● The PBA League will consist of eight five-player teams, each representing a city to be named later. Each team will be headed by a Franchise Player – a PBA star who will draft players to fill his team. The Franchise Players will be the top eight players from the 2011-12 PBA Tour competition points list: Sean Rash of Montgomery, Ill.; Jason Belmonte of Australia; Mike Fagan of Dallas; Pete Weber of St. Ann, Mo.; Osku Palermaa of Finland; Norm Duke of Clermont, Fla.; Bill O’Neill of Langhorne, Pa., and Chris Barnes of Double Oak, Texas.

● There will be a draft involving all PBA members who make themselves eligible.

The new format should bring a new excitement to the PBA. Because of the competitive nature of the players and the depth of the PBA this sounds like a great plan that could reap huge benefits for the not only the PBA, but it's viewers. We will be anxiously waiting the first team competitions to begin here at bowling.com.