In November 2023 the United States Bowling Congress ruled there was no statistically significant difference in scoring between a certified string pinsetter and a traditional free-fall machine — and the moment it did, two companies that had already built their entire string-pinsetter product lines got the verdict their products needed to be worth anything in sanctioned play. This is the forensic story of who owned those two companies, and what they did next. Every step is on the public record, in sequence. No allegation required.
The first is QubicaAMF, maker of the Edge String pinsetter. In December 2019 the bowling trade press reported that Stephens Capital Partners — described in its own words as the principal investing arm of the Warren A. Stephens family and Stephens Incorporated, a privately-owned investment bank in Little Rock, Arkansas — had bought a minority stake of undisclosed size in QubicaAMF. In November 2024 the Professional Bowlers Association approved the QubicaAMF Edge String for professional competition — the only string machine it had cleared at that point. Five months later, QubicaAMF became the presenting sponsor of the 2025 PBA All-Star Weekend. By June 2025 its brand was welded onto an entire nine-event PBA Regional Edge String Series. Approved, sponsor, branded series — in roughly seven months.