Walter Ray Williams Jr. will try to extend his Professional Bowlers Association (PBA) record for winning at least one title in a season to 18 years during Sunday’s ESPN telecast of the Go RVing Regional Championship round of the inaugural Dick Weber PBA Playoffs at Woodland Bowl, in Indianapolis, IN.
The ESPN telecast, featuring nine players competing for three berths in the PBA Playoffs Conference Championships on April 10, will air Sunday at 2:30 p.m. Eastern.
Williams, who came into the final event of the 2010-11 Lumber Liquidators PBA Tour season without a title, qualified second in the three-player Central Region field behind Dick Allen and ahead of Mika Koivuniemi. The 47-time PBA Tour champion from Ocala, FL, must beat Allen and Koivuniemi in their one-game match to keep his titles streak alive. Allen is trying for his first PBA Tour title since winning the Motel 6 Classic in January 2006. Koivuniemi, who won the $250,000 first prize in the $1 million PBA Tournament of Champions in January, is trying for his second title of the season.
Sunday’s Go RVing Regional Championships round also will include the East and South Region finals. The East Region final will include PBA Rookie of the Year candidate Scott Norton; seven-time PBA Tour champion Steve Jaros and 2009 PBA World Champion Tom Smallwood. Norton, a practicing attorney, won his first title in the PBA Chameleon Championship in Las Vegas earlier in the season. Jaros is making a television appearance for the 20th consecutive season. Smallwood is making his fourth TV appearance of the season.
The South Region championship will be decided among 13-time PBA Tour winner Tommy Jones, four-time PBA Tour titlist Ryan Shafer and regional qualifier Randy Weiss. Jones is making his fourth TV appearance of the season. Shafer is trying for his first title in seven years. Weiss, a 10-time PBA Regional title-winner and former PBA Tour exempt player, will make his national television debut in his bid for his first PBA Tour title.
A preview of Sunday’s Go RVing Regional Championships round can be seen on pba.com’s Xtra Frame. To subscribe to the PBA’s exclusive online video streaming service, visit pba.com and click on the Xtra Frame logo.
The Lucas Oil Regional Championship round which airs at 1 p.m. on Sunday, April 3, will feature the Midwest, Southwest and West/Northwest Region Championship matches. The Midwest Region finalists are Bill O’Neill, Jack Jurek and Wes Malott. Advancing to the Southwest Region finale are Dino Castillo, Jason Belmonte and Brad Angelo. West/Northwest finalists are Lennie Boresch Jr., Chris Barnes and Lonnie Waliczek.
In the Conference Championship airing on Sunday, April 10, at 1 p.m. Eastern, the East Region winner will bowl one game against the South Region winner, the Central Region winner will bowl against the Midwest winner, and the Southwest winner will meet the West/Northwest winner. The three Conference Championship winners will return to Indianapolis on Sunday, April 17, for the final live telecast of the 2010-11 Lumber Liquidators PBA Tour season.
DICK WEBER PBA PLAYOFFS Go RVing Regional Championships
Woodland Bowl, Indianapolis (ESPN, Sunday, 2:30 p.m. Eastern)
East Region Finalists (highest score from one-game match advances to Conference Championships to meet South Region winner in a one-game match on ESPN on Sunday, April 10, at 1 p.m. Eastern): Scott Norton, Costa Mesa, CA; Steve Jaros, Yorkville, IL, and Tom Smallwood, Saginaw, MI.
South Region Finalists (highest score from one-game match advances to Conference Championships to meet East Region winner in a one-game match on ESPN on Sunday, April 10, at 1 p.m. Eastern): Tommy Jones, Greenville, SC; Ryan Shafer, Horseheads, NY, and Randy Weiss, Columbia, SC.
Central Region Finalists (highest score from one-game match advances to Conference Championships to meet Midwest Region winner in a one-game match on ESPN on Sunday, April 10, at 1 p.m. Eastern): Dick Allen, Columbia, SC; Walter Ray Williams Jr., Ocala, FL, and Mika Koivuniemi, Hartland, MI.
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