Marion Ladewig

Who was Marion Ladewig?

Marion Ladewig was an American ten-pin bowler. She was named Female Bowler of the Year by the Bowling Writers Association of America a record nine times between 1950 and 1963. A Grand Rapids, MI native, Ladewig is the only woman to win WIBC City, State, and National All-Events titles in the same year.

In 1964, Ladewig became the first Superior Performance inductee into the Women's International Bowling Congress Hall of Fame, and in 1984 became the first woman bowler inducted into the Women’s Sports Foundation Hall of Fame. She is the all-time leader in U.S. Women's Open championships with eight; no other bowler has won more than three. Ladewig retired from competitive bowling in 1964.

She appeared as a guest on What's My Line on January 12, 1964.

After retiring from active competition, Ladewig co-hosted the locally produced WOTV Bowling Classic in Grand Rapids, alongside Warren Reynolds, during the 1970s and 1980s.

Ladewig died on April 16, 2010, at the age of 95.