Chris Barnes Earns Top Berth at PBA Wolf Open

After averaging 256.5 for his first six qualifying games, Chris Barnes of Double Oak, Texas, started Monday night’s final qualifying round in the Professional Bowlers Association’s Wolf Open at FireLake Bowling Center with a 279 game and never looked back in earning the top berth for Saturday’s stepladder finals.

 

Barnes, a 17-time PBA Tour title-winner, completed the 12-game qualifying portion of the Wolf Open with an overall 249 average and 2,989 pins to win the top spot in the finals by 136 pins over Mike Fagan of Fort Worth, Texas. In 12 games, Barnes had only one open frame – a split he failed to convert in the ninth frame of his final game.

 

Also advancing to the stepladder finals will be Sweden’s Martin Larsen in third place with 2,838 pins, Sean Rash of Montgomery, IL, in fourth with a 2,835 total and defending Wolf Open winner Chris Loschetter of Avon, Ohio. Loschetter rallied to make it into the 18-player second-round field by five pins and then finished the second round with back-to-back 257-258 games to win the fifth seed in the finals by four pins over Tommy Jones of Simpsonville, SC.

 

The Wolf Open is the first of five events that comprise Oklahoma’s Grand Casino Resort PBA Summer Swing. All five events (Wolf, Bear, Badger and Oklahoma Opens plus the Grand Casino Resort King of the Swing) will be televised by CBS Sports Network on consecutive Tuesday nights at 7 p.m. ET, beginning with the Wolf Open finals on June 3.

 

“I had a strong enough ball to control the gutter shot, and I took some of the patchy spots out of play,” Barnes said. “I didn’t have nearly as much difference in ball reaction from pair to pair as the other guys had.

 

“Last year (in Milwaukee) I made some mistakes and I didn’t use my equipment to my advantage,” he added. “This year I came into the Wolf Open more determined to stay in control of the pocket rather than worry about my pin carry, and it worked out.”

 

Barnes finished 17th in last year’s Wolf Open, the worst of his five 2013 Summer Swing events, and he won the Milwaukee Open – last year’s version of this year’s Oklahoma Open – with a 246-237 decision over Norm Duke in the title match.

 

Former major league pitching star John Burkett of Southlake, Texas, finished 91st in his first PBA Tour appearance since 2007. Burkett, 49, is preparing for his debut in PBA50 Tour competition in 2015.

 

Oklahoma’s Grand Casino Resort PBA Summer Swing continues Tuesday with the PBA Bear Open on a demanding U.S. Open-type flat 40-foot lane condition.

 

PBA WOLF OPEN

FireLake Bowling Center, Shawnee, Okla., May 19

 

Final Qualifying Standings (after 12 games; top five advance to stepladder finals Saturday at 11 a.m. CT at the Grand Event Center in Shawnee)

1, Chris Barnes, Double Oak, Texas, 2,989.
2, Mike Fagan, Ft. Worth, Texas, 2,853.
3, Martin Larsen, Sweden, 2,838.
4, Sean Rash, Montgomery, Ill., 2,835.
5, Chris Loschetter, Avon, Ohio, 2,756.
6, Tommy Jones, Simpsonville, S.C., 2,752, $2,000.
7, Thomas Larsen, Denmark, 2,751, $1,800.
8, Bill O'Neill, Langhorne, Pa., 2,732, $1,600.
9, E.J. Tackett, Huntington, Ind., 2,726, $1,400.
10, Mika Koivuniemi, Hartland, Mich., 2,703, $1,300.
11, Sean Lavery-Spahr, Pasadena, Texas, 2,659, $1,150.
11, Ryan Shafer, Horseheads, N.Y., 2,659, $1,150.
13, Anthony Lavery-Spahr, Pasadena, Texas, 2,638, $1,000.
14, Dom Barrett, England, 2,618, $900.
15, Ildemaro Ruiz, Venezuela, 2,615, $800.
16, Roger Petrin, BelAire, Kan., 2,593, $700.
17, Shannon O'Keefe, Arlington, Texas, 2,565, $600.
18, Lee Vanderhoef, Greenville, S.C., 2,557, $500.

 

Failed to advance (after six games):

19, Mike Wolfe, New Albany, Ind., 1,342.
20 (tie), Tom Daugherty, Wesley Chapel, Fla., and Tom Smallwood, Saginaw, Mich., 1,329.
22, Wes Malott, Pflugerville, Texas, 1,328.
23, Dave Wodka, Henderson, Nev., 1,325.
24, Marshall Kent, Yakima, Wash., 1,321.
25, Jason Belmonte, Australia, 1,314.
26, Stephen Pavlinko Jr., Sewell, N.J., 1,312.
27 (tie), Walter Ray Williams Jr., Ocala, Fla.; Bryant Ezell, Fayetteville, Ark., and Dino Castillo, Carrollton, Texas, 1,310.
30, Brad Miller, St. Charles, Mo., 1,309.
31, Jason Sterner, Covington, Ga., 1,307.
32 (tie), Osku Palermaa, Finland, and Norm Duke, Clermont, Fla., 1,302.
34 (tie), Shawn Maldonado, Houston, and Sean Swanson, Springfield, Mo., 1,300.
36, Joe Paluszek, Bensalem, Pa., 1,298.
37, Pete Weber, St. Ann, Mo., 1,296.
38 (tie), Andrew Graff, Las Vegas, and Brian Robinson, Morgantown, W.Va., 1,294.
40, Dan MacLelland, Canada, 1,293.
41, Jeff Campbell II, Amarillo, Texas, 1,292.
42, Eugene McCune, Munster, Ind., 1,290.
43 (tie), Ronnie Russell, Marion, Ind., and Clara Guerrero, Colombia, 1,286.
45, Aaron Lorincz, Saginaw, Mich., 1,283.
46 (tie), Brett Cooper, Denver; Dick Allen, Columbia, SC, and Scott Newell, Deland, Fla., 1,282.
49, Mike DeVaney, Winchester, Calif., 1,281.
50, Jesse Buss, Belvidere, Ill., 1,278.
51 (tie), D.J. Archer, Friendswood, Texas, and Giorgio Clinaz Jr., Venezuela, 1,272.
53, Brad Angelo, Lockport, N.Y., 1,267.
54 (tie), James Cantere, Honolulu, Hawaii, and Scott Norton, Mission Viejo, Calif., 1,265.
56, Kelly Kulick, Union, N.J., 1,264.
57 (tie), Tim Mack, Indianapolis, and Connor Pickford, Charlotte, N.C., 1,259.
59, David Haynes, Las Vegas, 1,250.
60, Stuart Williams, England, 1,248.
61, Adam Monks, Conway, S.C., 1,246.
62, Humberto Vazquez, Mexico, 1,241.
63, Barry McKee, Maxwell, Texas, 1,239.
64, Billy Rogers, Mesquite, Texas, 1,237.
65, John Ferraro, Kingston, N.Y., 1,235.
66, Ryan Ciminelli, Cheektowaga, N.Y., 1,233.
67, Brian Valenta, Lockport, Ill., 1,230.
68 (tie), Rhino Page, Dade City, Fla.; Tyler Jensen, Ft. Worth, Texas, and Michael Austin, Magnolia, Texas, 1,229.
71, Joe Findling, Mesquite, Texas, 1,223.
72, Anthony Simonsen, Mesquite, Texas, 1,220.
73, Jake Peters, Henderson, Nev., 1,219.
74, Parker Bohn III, Jackson, N.J., 1,216.
75 (tie), Brian Kretzer, Dayton, Ohio; Miguel Lopez, Wichita, Kan., and Julio Cesar Blancas, Mexico, 1,213.
78, John Szczerbinski, North Tonawanda, N.Y., 1,208.
79, Kyle Biggs, Sapulpa, Okla., 1,201.
80, Chris Skillings, Shawnee, Okla., 1,199.
81 (tie), Nathan Bohr, Wichita, Kan., and Josh Blanchard, Mesa, Ariz., 1,198.
83, Anthony LaCaze, Melrose Park, Ill., 1,194.
84, Craig Nidiffer, Trenton, Mich., 1,193.
85, Thomas Patterson, Owasso, Okla., 1,192.
86, Missy Parkin, Laguna Hills, Calif., 1,188.
87, Andres Gomez, Colombia, 1,186.
88, Eric Odette, Killeen, Texas, 1,182.
89, Manuel Otalora, Colombia, 1,180.
90, Johnathan Bower, Middletown, Pa., 1,176.
91, John Burkett, Southlake, Texas, 1,174.
92, Mike Edwards, Tulsa, Okla., 1,167.
93, Dale Renken, St. Jacob, Ill., 1,166.
94, Jason Poli, West Des Moines, Iowa, 1,161.
95, Jason Romeiser, Quanah, Texas, 1,159.
96, Kenneth Bland Jr., Lorton, Va., 1,157.
97, Brian Nicodemus, Akron, Ind., 1,156.
98 (tie), Greg Ostrander, Freehold, N.J., and Michael Haugen Jr., Phoenix, 1,151.
100, Andy Patterson, Tyler, Texas, 1,149.
101, Clint Land, Richmond, Texas, 1,142.
102 (tie), Jeff Hatt, Oklahoma City, and Mark Morgan, Killeen, Texas, 1,141.
104 (tie), Paul Brewbaker, Midwest City, Okla., and Dylan Macon, Ennis, Texas, 1,132.
106, Chad Lusche, Arvada, Colo., 1,131.
107, John Furey, Freehold, N.J., 1,121.
108, Gary Faulkner Jr., Memphis, Tenn., 1,118.
109, Tim Dooley, Van Buren, Ark., 1,098.
110, Tom Hess, Urbandale, Iowa, 1,097.
111, Hernan Ramirez, Venezuela, 1,095.
112, Justin Morris, McLoud, Okla., 1,048.
113, Armando Santacruz, Ecuador, 1,038.
114, Will Hoge, Sand Springs, Okla., 954.
115, Jayden Warner, Muskogee, Okla., 850.

 

300 Games: Mike Austin, Ryan Shafer, Bill O’Neill, Sean Lavery-Spahr.

Tommy Jones Top Qualifier at PBA Bear Open

One day after missing the stepladder finals of the PBA Wolf Open by four pins, 15-time Professional Bowlers Association Tour champion Tommy Jones of Simpsonville, SC, raced away with the top qualifying berth for the finals of the PBA Bear Open at Fire Lake Bowling Center Tuesday.

Jones, who hasn’t won a PBA Tour title on American soil since the 2008 GEICO Championship in West Babylon, NY, averaged 220.5 for 12 games on the most difficult of the Oklahoma’s Grand Casino Resort PBA Summer Swing lane conditioning patterns, a flat 40-foot condition that is almost identical to the U.S. Open lane oiling pattern. Jones finished with a 2,646 pinfall total to top No. 2 qualifier Bill O’Neill of Langhorne, PA, by 24 pins.

Also advancing to the Bear Open stepladder finals Saturday will be No. 3 Ronnie Russell of Marion, IN, with 2,620 pins; Rhino Page of Dad City, FL, with 2,608 pins and No. 5 Dick Allen of Columbia, SC, with a 2,606 total. The Bear Open finals will be contested at 2:30 p.m. CT on the special lane installation at the Grand Event Center. The finals will air on CBS Sports Network on Tuesday, June 10, at 7 p.m. ET.

Pacing the Bear field was a bit of redemption for Jones after Monday’s disappointment.

“It wasn’t the finish that bothered me as much as I threw a couple of shots into the gutter and missed the TV show by four pins,” he said. “Leaving those pins out there is what leaves a bitter taste in my mouth.”

Jones also is aware it’s been six years since he has won a title in the U.S. He has won three PBA International Tour events since then, but overcoming hip and neck injuries over the past five-or-so years has been frustrating.

“To win in the U.S. is definitely a goal, and to go in feeling healthy is a good thing,” he added. “Some of my problems have been bad bowling and some of it has been being overly cautious about my health issues. But so far this week, everything’s been good.”

The Bear Open is the second of five events that compose Oklahoma’s Grand Casino Resort PBA Summer Swing. All five events will be televised on CBS Sports Network on Tuesdays at 7 p.m. ET, beginning with the Wolf Open on June 3.

The Bear Open also was the second of three qualifying legs in determining the field of 18 who will advance to the round-robin match play segment of the Oklahoma Open. After 12 of 18 qualifying games, the top five were Dom Barrett, England, 2,744; Jones, 2,741; Mike Fagan, Ft. Worth, Texas, 2,737; Bill O'Neill, Langhorne, PA, 2,722, and Chris Barnes, Double Oak, Texas, 2,721. The first six games in Wednesday’s Badger Open will determine the Oklahoma Open match play finalists.

The Badger Open, which features a 52-foot lane conditioning pattern, gets

underway Wednesday when Squad A bowls six qualifying games at 8 a.m. followed by Squad B at 2 p.m. The top 18 after six games advance to an additional six-game qualifying round at 7:30 p.m. to determine the five Badger Open stepladder finalists.

PBA BEAR OPEN
FireLake Bowling Center, Shawnee, Okla., May 20

Final Qualifying Standings (after 12 games; top five advance to stepladder finals at 2:30 p.m. Saturday at Grand Event Center in Shawnee)
1, Tommy Jones, Simpsonville, S.C., 2,646.
2, Bill O'Neill, Langhorne, Pa., 2,622.
3, Ronnie Russell, Marion, Ind., 2,620.
4, Rhino Page, Dade City, Fla., 2,608.
5, Dick Allen, Columbia, S.C., 2,606.
6, Dom Barrett, England, 2,553, $2,000.
7, Tom Smallwood, Saginaw, Mich., 2,551, $1,800.
8, Mike DeVaney, Winchester, Calif., 2,543, $1,600.
9, Dave Wodka, Henderson, Nev., 2,529, $1,400.
10, Jason Belmonte, Australia, 2,528, $1,300.
11, Tom Daugherty, Wesley Chapel, Fla., 2,527, $1,200.
12, Chris Loschetter, Avon, Ohio, 2,525, $1,100.
13, Shawn Maldonado, Houston, 2,487, $1,000.
14, D.J. Archer, Friendswood, Texas, 2,483, $900.
15, Nathan Bohr, Wichita, Kan., 2,469, $800.
16, Jason Sterner, Covington, Ga., 2,468, $700.
17, Kelly Kulick, Union, N.J., 2,456, $600.
18, John Ferraro, Kingston, N.Y., 2,420, $500.

PBA Rookie of The Year E. J. Tackett Tops Oklahoma Open Finalists

Professional Bowlers Association 2013 Rookie of the Year E.J. Tackett of Huntington, IN, tamed the PBA’s Bear lane condition Thursday afternoon and used that momentum to capture the No. 1 position in the PBA Oklahoma Open stepladder finals Thursday night at FireLake Bowling Center.

 

Tackett, a 21-year-old in search for his first PBA Tour title, averaged 223.255 for 36 games on the PBA’s Wolf, Bear and Badger lane conditions, and as top qualifier, selected the flat, 40-foot Bear lane condition for the Oklahoma Open finals. The finals in all five Oklahoma’s Grand Casino Resort PBA Summer Swing events will be contested Saturday and Sunday at the Grand Resort Event Center for telecast on CBS Sports Network beginning June 3.

 

Tackett, who finished the Oklahoma Open with a 36-game total of 8,367 pins, including 330 bonus pins for winning 11 of his 18 matches. It’s the first time he has led a traditional PBA Tour event, although he was the leading qualifier in the United States Bowling Congress Masters – a double-elimination match play tournament – earlier in the year before losing to reigning PBA Player of the Year Jason Belmonte in the title match, 221-177.

 

Also advancing to the Oklahoma Open stepladder finals were Chris Loschetter of

Avon, Ohio, with 8,358 pins; Bill O’Neill of Langhorne, PA, with an 8,307 total; Tommy Jones of Simpsonville, SC, with 8,297 pins, and Belmonte, who rallied from seventh place in the final game to qualify fifth with 8,257 pins.

 

“I think the only lane condition I’ve bowled on that was more difficult than the Bear pattern today was in the U.S. Open,” Tackett said. “I don’t know why I bowled better than the other guys. I don’t think I threw the ball that much better than anyone. I think my bowling ball just matched up with the condition better."

 

“It feels really good to lead the field,” Tackett continued. “The only way to learn how to deal with the pressure of bowling for a title is to put yourself in position to win, so I’ll try to do what I did today – stay positive and make good shots."

 

“I watched my performance in the Masters finals a couple of times,” he added. “I started okay, but I didn’t make moves fast enough. It comes with experience. The Masters was mine to win. Belmo got a couple of breaks, but he made shots when he had to and I didn’t. I didn’t beat myself up over losing, but we’ll see what happens this time.”

 

The Summer Swing concludes Saturday and Sunday with the stepladder finals in five events: the Wolf, Bear and Badger Opens on Saturday, and the Oklahoma Open and Oklahoma’s Grand Casino Resort King of the Swing special event on Sunday. All finals will be contested on a special lane installation in the Grand Resort Events Center.

 

PBA OKLAHOMA OPEN

FireLake Bowling Center, Shawnee, Okla., May 22

 

FINAL MATCH PLAY STANDINGS (after 36 games, including match play bonus pins; top five after 36 games advance to stepladder finals Sunday at noon at Grand Event Center)

1, E.J. Tackett, Huntington, Ind., 11-7, 8,367.
2, Chris Loschetter, Avon, Ohio, 12-6, 8,358.
3, Bill O'Neill, Langhorne, Pa., 8-9-1, 8,307.
4, Tommy Jones, Simpsonville, S.C., 10-8, 8,297.
5, Jason Belmonte, Australia, 11-7, 8,257.
6, Chris Barnes, Double Oak, Texas, 11-6-1, 8,200, $4,000.
7, Ryan Shafer, Horseheads, N.Y., 11-7, 8,185, $3,500.
8, Mika Koivuniemi, Hartland, Mich., 6-11-1, 8,178, $3,000.
9, Tom Daugherty, Wesley Chapel, Fla., 8-10, 8,160, $2,800.
10, Mike Fagan, Ft. Worth, Texas, 9-9, 8,149, $2,500.
11, Pete Weber, St. Ann, Mo., 9-9, 8,139, $2,300.
12, Sean Rash, Montgomery, Ill., 8-10, 8,107, $2,100.
13, Anthony Lavery-Spahr, Pasadena, Texas, 9-9, 8,100, $2,000.
14, Dave Wodka, Henderson, Nev., 10-8, 8,017, $1,900.
15, Dom Barrett, England, 9-9, 8,013, $1,800.
16, Thomas Larsen, Denmark, 9-9, 7,990, $1,700.
17, Tom Smallwood, Saginaw, Mich., 5-12-1, 7,921, $1,600.
18, Marshall Kent, Yakima, Wash., 4-14, 7,538, $1,500.

  
 
 

300 Games: Mika Koivuniemi, Chris Loschetter.

O'Neill Leads PBA Badger Open Field in OK

Bill O’Neill of Langhorne, PA, charged out of 11th place Wednesday night to capture the top qualifying berth for Saturday’s finals in the Professional Bowlers Association’s Badger Open at FireLake Bowling Center in a battle that saw the top five players separated by only 18 pins, and defending champion Jake Peters eliminated from the stepladder finals by another three pins.

 

O’Neill, a four-time PBA Tour champion, averaged 230.33 to finish the 12-game Badger Open qualifying rounds with 2,764 pins, winning the top spot in the stepladder finals by two pins over PBA Hall of Famer and 37-time champion Pete Weber of St. Ann, MO, PBA rookie Marshall Kent of Yakima, WA, who joined the PBA the week before Oklahoma’s Grand Casino Resort PBA Summer Swing started, qualified third with a 2.761 total – one pin behind Weber. Two-handed player Brian Valenta of Lockport, Ill., qualified for his first PBA television show in fourth place with 2,750 pins, and 13-time PBA Tour winner Mika Koivuniemi, a Finnish native now living in Hartland, MI, fired a 257 final game to nip Peters for the fifth spot in the finals.

 

“If you don’t like matches being close and games coming down to final frame, you’re in the wrong business,” O’Neill said. “That’s why we do what we do. If you lead by 100 pins, when it’s over, it’s over; it’s kind of anticlimactic. When it’s tight like this was and you lead, there’s no better feeling.”

 

O’Neill, who has admittedly been in a funk over the past couple of years, said he

discovered a flaw in his game only a couple of weeks ago, and that was the difference here.

 

“On my fourth step in my delivery, I was drifting to the right instead of going straight,” he said, “so my arm swing was going off to the right which means the ball could go either direction. When I straightened out my fourth step, the ball fell right into place. Now if I throw a bad shot, I know exaxtly what to do to fix it.”

 

Earlier Wednesday, with a big first round in the Badger Open, Tom Daugherty of Wesley Chapel, FL, led the field of 18 players who qualified for the Oklahoma Open based on combined six-game rounds in the Wolf, Bear and Badger Opens. Three rounds of match play in the Oklahoma Open will be contested Thursday at 10 a.m., 2 and 6:30 p.m. at FireLake with the top five advancing to the stepladder finals Sunday at noon at the Grand Events Center.

 

After a total of 36 games, the 18 Oklahoma Open match play finalists will be reduced to the top five for the Oklahoma Open finals Sunday at noon at the Grand Event Center. In leading the Oklahoma Open field, Daugherty averaged 227.33 across the three “animal” lane conditions for a 4,092 total. O'Neill, who also qualified third for the Bear Open finals, is second with 4,088 pins followed by Mike Fagan, Ft. Worth, Texas, at 4,069; Bear Open qualifying leader Tommy Jones, Simpsonville, S.C., at 4,054, and Koivuniemi with 4,031 pins.Thursday’s Oklahoma Open match play rounds will be covered live on PBA’s  online bowling channel, Xtra Frame. To subscribe to Xtra Frame, visit pba.com and click on the Xtra Frame link. Live scoring of all preliminary rounds also will be available at no cost on pba.com.

 

PBA BADGER OPEN

FireLake Bowling Center, Shawnee, Okla., May 21

 

Final Qualifying Standings (after 12 games; top five advancee to stepladder finals Saturday at Grand Event Center)

1, Bill O'Neill, Langhorne, Pa., 2,764.
2, Pete Weber, St. Ann, Mo., 2,762.
3, Marshall Kent, Yakima, Wash., 2,761.
4, Brian Valenta, Lockport, Ill., 2,750.
5, Mika Koivuniemi, Hartland, Mich., 2,746.
6, Jake Peters, Henderson, Nev., 2,743, $2,000.
7, Stuart Williams, England, 2,730, $1,800.
8, Chris Loschetter, Avon, Ohio, 2,705, $1,600.
9, Anthony Lavery-Spahr, Pasadena, Texas, 2,703, $1,400.
10, Sean Rash, Montgomery, Ill., 2,666, $1,300.
11, Jason Belmonte, Australia, 2,647, $1,200.
12, Thomas Larsen, Denmark, 2,638, $1,100.
13, Mike Fagan, Ft. Worth, Texas, 2,623, $1,000.
14, Nathan Bohr, Wichita, Kan., 2,602, $900.
15, Lee Vanderhoef, Greenville, S.C., 2,601, $800.
16, Tom Daugherty, Wesley Chapel, Fla., 2,600, $700.
17, Dino Castillo, Carrollton, Texas, 2,555, $600.
18, Dave Wodka, Henderson, Nev., 2,521, $500.

 

PBA OKLAHOMA OPEN

(Top 18 after 18 games advance to round-robin match play Thursday at 10 a.m., 2 and 6:30 p.m.; top five after 36 games advance to stepladder finals Sunday at Grand Event Center)

1, Tom Daugherty, Wesley Chapel, Fla., 4,092.
2, Bill O'Neill, Langhorne, Pa., 4,088.
3, Mike Fagan, Ft. Worth, Texas, 4,069.
4, Tommy Jones, Simpsonville, S.C., 4,054.
5, Mika Koivuniemi, Hartland, Mich., 4,031.
6, Chris Loschetter, Avon, Ohio, 4,019.
7, Sean Rash, Montgomery, Ill., 4,013.
8, Jason Belmonte, Australia, 3,992.
9, Dave Wodka, Henderson, Nev., 3,987.
10 (tie), E.J. Tackett, Huntington, Ind., and Marshall Kent, Yakima, Wash., 3,977.
12 (tie), Anthony Lavery-Spahr, Pasadena, Texas, and Dom Barrett, England, 3,967.
14, Chris Barnes, Double Oak, Texas, 3,960.
15, Tom Smallwood, Saginaw, Mich., 3,959.
16, Ryan Shafer, Horseheads, N.Y., 3,941, $100.
17, Pete Weber, St. Ann, Mo., 3,938.
18, Thomas Larsen, Denmark, 3,931.