PBA fans around the world are invited to purchase a low-cost “ticket” to watch all of the qualifying and match play action on Xtra Frame, the PBA’s exclusive online bowling channel (or track free live scoring free on pba.com). “Day Pass,” monthly and annual Xtra Frame subscriptions are available by visiting pba.com and clicking on the Xtra Frame link.
In addition to following the action as it happens, PBA fans are invited to participate in a new “U Pick the Finalists” contests which offers prizes for picking the ESPN finalists in each event. For more information about the contest, click here: http://www.pba.com/Resources/Contest
The World Series, which got its start in suburban Detroit in 2009, is a multi-event competition on a variety of challenging lane conditions, leading up to a full weekend of ESPN television finals Nov. 2-3. At stake will be five PBA Tour titles, including the final major championship of the 2012-13 season – the 2013 PBA World Championship.
Over the first four World Series, Belmonte and Rash have earned their roles as World Series headliners based upon their past performances in the event. Belmonte – a two-handed power player from Australia – is the earnings leader with a composite total of $191,190 in WSOB earnings, leads in ESPN television appearances (13) and is tied with Bill O’Neill of Langhorne, PA, with most WSOB titles won (three).
Rash, also regarded as one of the PBA Tour’s top power players, is right behind Belmonte in ESPN appearances (12), but has not yet won a WSOB title. He is the all-time WSOB average leader, scoring at a 223.19 pace for 475 games bowled, and in total pinfall (106,013 pins for 475 World Series games bowled). But he ranks “only” fourth in WSOB earnings ($135,140) due, in part, to the absence of any first-place prize money.
Despite their overall dominance, neither Belmonte nor Rash leads in any of the traditional animal pattern championships which are hallmarks of the World Series. The animal pattern competitions are bowled on unique lane conditions named after animals – and the combined qualifying scores for those animal pattern events has been used as the qualifier for players to advance into the PBA World Championship match play final rounds. Rash is the World Championship’s top qualifier over the past four years, averaging 232.21 for 192 games – just over four pins higher than Belmonte (228.01) for the same number of games.
In animal pattern events, several other players have had significant success, including O’Neill, who ranks third in TV appearances (8) and shares the titles lead with Belmonte (3). Finland’s two-handed star, Osku Palermaa; 37-time time PBA Tour champion Norm Duke of Clarmont, FL, and Scott Norton of Mission Viejo, CA, have each won two WSOB titles. Palermaa, Mike Fagan of Fort Worth, Texas, and Wes Malott of Pflugerville, Texas, have made six TV finals.
There is also “international vs. United States” drama during the World Series. In 2011, international players won all seven singles titles contest; last year, U.S. players swept all five individual titles.
In animal pattern championships, the top two players in qualifying averages for each event, based upon a minimum of 40 games, are:
● Chameleon: Scott Norton 230.49; Jason Belmonte 225.38.
● Cheetah: Norm Duke 243.58, Eugene McCune 241.52.
● Scorpion: Dom Barrett 228.70, Jason Belmonte 222.87.
● Viper: Brad Angelo 222.60, Bill O’Neill 222.39.
The Cheetah Championship will lead off the WSOB V schedule on Saturday, Oct. 26, with seven qualifying games and an additional seven-game semifinal round for the top 24 qualifiers. The same format will apply for the Viper Championship on Oct. 27, the Chameleon Championship on Oct. 28 and the Scorpion Championship on Oct. 29. The top 24 players based upon 28 combined animal pattern qualifying games will advance to the PBA World Championship round robin match play on Oct. 30-31.
For each animal pattern event, the top four after 14 games advance to ESPN finals on Nov. 2 and for the World Championship, the top five after 52 qualifying and match play games advance to the ESPN finals on Nov. 3 – all in South Point’s Exhibition Hall B.
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