After laboring on tour for 13 years without a national title, Shafer finally broke through on January 21, 2000 with a victory over PBA Hall of Famer Mike Aulby in The Orleans Casino Open.
In addition to his two wins, Shafer made match play 11 times in 19 events and had five more championship round appearances during the season, including a runner-up finish at the Tournament of Champions major.
On November 23, 2003, he defeated Chris Barnes in the final match to collect his fourth title at the PBA Empire State Open.
In 2022, he won the PBA Tony Reyes Community Service Award for his fundraising tournaments that benefit mental health causes, particularly suicide prevention and awareness.
Shafer’s first wife, Michelle, died in early 2014, just five days before he was scheduled to accept his second PBA Steve Nagy Sportsmanship Award.
[10] In honor of his late wife, Ryan started the Michelle Shafer Fund for Suicide Prevention and Awareness and began running fundraising tournaments for this cause.