PBA Plastic Ball Qaulifier

Finishing ninth in the PBA GEICO Plastic Ball Championship Pro Tour Qualifying Round (TQR) Wednesday with a 1,507 seven-game total, two-handed bowling sensation Jason Belmonte of Australia is among the nine players who will advance to the event’s Round of 64.

The international star has received much media attention as a result of his 10th place finish in the season-opening PBA World Championship on the 2008-09 Lumber Liquidators PBA Tour. Recently, Belmonte enjoyed a 15th place performance in the Denny’s Dick Weber Open in Fountain Valley, Calif. He was featured in prominent stories in the Wall Street Journal, Los Angeles Times and Good Morning America.

David Williams Jr. of Omaha, Neb., rolled a 1,680 seven-game total Wednesday to top the 79-player non-exempt TQR field competing for the nine berths at Brunswick Zone Wheat Ridge.

In addition to Belmonte and Williams the top finishers in the Tour Qualifying Round advancing to the Round of 64 are: Troy Wollenbecker, Miami, Fla., 1,645; Mike Keily, Lakewood, Colo., 1,603; George Lambert IV, Canada, 1,595; amateur Kris Koeltzow, Wheat Ridge, Colo., 1,589; John Slavich, Schaumburg, Ill., 1,527; Tom Hess, Urbandale, Iowa, 1,520, and Chris Wimpey, Aurora, Colo., 1,509.

The 64-player field, which begins Round of 64 competition on Thursday, will now be required to use identical plastic balls throughout the rest of the event.

The concept of having the players use identical equipment is similar to that of the former International Race of Champions auto racing series where all competitors drove identically-prepared cars.

Competition continues through Friday to determine the four finalists who will compete in the ESPN-televised finals Sunday beginning at 1 p.m. Eastern (11 a.m. Mountain).

The GEICO Plastic Ball Championship is the 15th stop on the 2008-09 Lumber Liquidators PBA Tour.

GEICO Plastic Ball Championship
Wheat Ridge, Colo.
PBA Tour Qualifying Round (TQR) Standings
1, David Williams Jr., Omaha, Neb., 1,680
2, Troy Wollenbecker, Miami, Fla., 1,645
3, Mike Keily, Lakewood, Colo., 1,603
4, George Lambert IV, Canada, 1,595
5, Kris Koeltzow, Wheatridge, Colo., 1,589
6, John Slavich IV, Schaumburg, Ill., 1,527
7, Tom Hess, Urbandale, Iowa, 1,520
8, Chris Wimpey, Aurora, Colo., 1,509
9, Jason Belmonte, Australia, 1,507
10, P.J. Haggerty, Clovis, Calif., 1,502, $1,000
11, Ryan Abel, Bel Aire, Kan., 1,501, $633
11, Frank Guccione, Castle Rock, Colo., 1,501, $633
11, Brett Cooper, Aurora, Colo., 1,501, $633
14, Lonnie Waliczek, Wichita, Kan., 1,497, $390
14, Tom Crites, Loveland, Colo., 1,497, $390
16, Marc Scherlis, Littleton, Colo., 1,494, $360
17, Tyler Jensen, Keller, Texas, 1,490, $340
18, Jim Pratt, Glendale, Ariz., 1,488, $320
19, Scott Newell, Deland, Fla., 1,487, $300
20, Don Patterson, Loveland, Colo., 1,476
21, Dru Hylen, Longmont, Colo., 1,463
22, Ryan Ciminelli, Cheektowaga, N.Y., 1,452
23, Humberto Vazquez, San Pedro, Mexico, 1,446
24, Jesse Buss, Wichita, Kan., 1,437
25, George Brooks, Aurora, Colo., 1,432
26, Daryl Stone, Westminster, Colo., 1,423
27, Scott Myers, Thornton, Colo., 1,421
28, Mike Lewellen, Scotts Bluff, Neb., 1,417
29, Tom Sorce, Blasdell, N.Y., 1,413
29, Dennis Samsel, Colorado Springs, Colo., 1,413
31, Keith Odette, Waipahu, Hawaii, 1,408
32, Ricky Schissler, Henderson, Colo., 1,406
33, Jason Poole, Aurora, Colo., 1,403
34, John Cicero, Colorado Springs, Colo., 1,402
35, Robert Carlson, Littleton, Colo., 1,401
36, Rudy Kasimakis, Baldwyn, Miss., 1,396
37, James Johnson, Arvada, Colo., 1,389
38, Matt Freiberg, Somerset, N.J., 1,377
39, M. Shane McCrary, Silt, Colo., 1,373
40, Donald Barry Jr, Omaha, Neb., 1,370
41, Kevin Pickett, Mechanicsville, Va., 1,368
42, Scott Durham, Springfield, Ill., 1,356
43, Jim Tomek Jr., Camp Hill, Pa., 1,346
44, Amy Stolz, Castle Rock, Colo., 1,342
45, Wayne Stellick, Aurora, Colo., 1,325
46, Robert Henle, Bailey, Colo., 1,321
47, Paul Kreins, Edmonds, Wash., 1,319
48, Chad Lusche, Arvada, Colo., 1,315
49, Michael Honeyman, Westminster, Colo., 1,306
50, Lawrence Marquez, Lakewood, Colo., 1,299
51, Paul Stolz, Castle Rock, Colo., 1,295
52, Dennis Sandoval, Thornton, Colo., 1,2945
3, Tish Johnson, Colorado Springs, Colo., 1,292
54, George Eason, Fort Collins, Colo., 1,290
55, Ben Kreins, Lakewood, Colo., 1,287
56, Zachary Lewis, Thornton, Colo., 1,278
57, Marco Popovich, Greenwood Village, Colo., 1,276
58, Shawn Lee, Centennial, Colo., 1,265
59, Brian Hayes, Lakewood, Colo., 1,264
60, Walter Schaub II, Schaumburg, Ill., 1,262
61, Ron Hosler, Denver, 1,258
62, Ed Hurley, Aurora, Colo., 1,232
63, Everett Lontine Jr, Basalt, Colo., 1,216
64, Mark Payne Sr, Amarillo, Texas, 1,213
65, Michael Reichstein, Agoura Hills, Calif., 1,196
66, Eric Failer, Littleton, Colo., 1,190
67, Michael Smith, Aurora, Colo., 1,185
68, Michael Vasquez, Longmont, Colo., 1,184
69, Jacob Cooper Jr., Aurora, Colo., 1,170
70, Ed Hawkins, Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, 1,166
71, Nick Miller, Elgin, Ill., 1,159
72, Larry Snodgrass, Lubbock, Texas, 1,145
73, Darrin Cisar, Grand Jct., Colo., 1,142
74, Adam Miller, Littleton, Colo., 1,140
75, Henry Moralez, Denver, Colo., 1,129
76, Frank Kebis, Denver, 1,105
77, Ron Pendergraft, Wheat Ridge, Colo., 1,083
78, Bobby Dunsworth, Augusta, Kan., 1,081
79, Craig Carpenter, Westminster, Colo., 1,039