MESA, AZ — Mike Bolland has never called himself unable. The 61-year-old Mesa man made history as the first person with limb loss to bowl on the PBA tour, and after more than 30 years away from professional competition, he is training to do it again.
Bolland was born without his right hand. He said in the 1970s, when he was 8 years old, he raised that arm during casting for the movie, "The Trial of Billy Jack." He showed filmmakers his limb difference — and landed the role.
That was just the beginning of a life defined by breaking barriers.
Bolland is a board member for multiple disability advocacy groups, a cancer survivor now 10 years in remission, a motivational speaker, a one-time comedian, and the host of the "We're Not
Stumped" podcast, which is more than 200 episodes in and dedicated to the limb loss and disability communities.
His return to competitive bowling was sparked by volunteer work at a bowling alley with Arizona Disabled Sports. When fellow bowlers took notice of his skill, he came clean about his history.
Uplifting Arizona
Share your stories of hope and celebration! Have an uplifting story from your Arizona community?
"They were like, 'I think you've done this before,' then I came clean a little bit and said I was the first person with limb loss to bowl on the PBA tour," Bolland said.
Recently, he put out a video explaining his return to professional bowling.
He describes himself as a "practice-aholic" these days, working toward a 60-plus PBA event in Ohio early next month. He says he always wanted to compete again after beating cancer, but helping others bowl pushed him toward one more professional run.
"What I'm really looking to do is prove that it's not about age, it's not about what you start with, what you work with to start with. Continue to set goals for yourself and continue to not limit yourself. That will make me feel better," Bolland said.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
