Will Ron Mohr Dominate For 2012 Senior PBA Tour Season?

For reigning Professional Bowlers Association (PBA) Senior Player of the Year Ron Mohr, his domination during the 2011 season will be a tough act to follow in 2012, but he’s up to the challenge. 

Mohr, of Eagle River, Alaska, will begin defense of his 2011 Senior Player of the Year title when the 2012 Senior Tour season begins April 21-24 with the Sun Bowl In The Villages presented by Storm at Spanish Spring Lanes. 

Mohr won a record-tying four titles in the 10 PBA Senior Tour events he entered in 2011, supported by a 67-30 record in his head-to-head matches and an equally impressive qualifying record. 

In 10 tournaments, Mohr was the leading qualifier twice, No. 2 twice and he qualified lower than seventh only one time. In what was probably his worst event in 2011, after finishing in 77th place after the first eight qualifying games in the Senior Decatur (Ill.) Open, Mohr moved up 53 places over the next eight games to make the cut to match play by four pins, qualifying 24th. 

“I’m really fighting the notion that it was a career year and can’t be repeated,” Mohr said. “But on the other hand it’s unrealistic to expect to have a year like that again.” 

In addition to his four titles – including his first major championship in the Senior U.S. Open – Mohr finished out of the top four only one time. He was second twice, third twice, fourth and had a 13-place finish in Decatur. The only tournament he didn’t enter was the USBC Senior Masters which he missed in order to attend a family wedding. 

“The real expectation is that over time things even out but I’ve kept a winning attitude and feel as well prepared if not better than last year going into this season,” he said. “Last year was something I never expected and I admit I had a lot of things go my way. I just need to keep that winning attitude and let everything else take care of itself.” 

Tom Baker (2006), Bob Glass (2001), Dale Eagle (1999) and Pete Couture (1998) also had four-title seasons, but only Baker’s was in a comparable number of events (nine). 

In 2006, Baker finished second, third, fifth, seventh and 24th in his other five events. Eagle won four times in a 15-tournament schedule while Glass and Couture won their titles in 14-event seasons. No one had a perfect 11-for-11 cashing record in 2011, but of the nine players who cashed in 10 events, Mohr, Baker, Peter Knopp and Henry Gonzalez were 10-for-10 while Walter Ray Williams Jr., Harry Sullins, Mike Henry, Kenny Parks and Eagle cashed in 10 of 11 events. 

The only statistical category where Mohr fell short was in scoring average which was led by Williams with a Senior Tour record 229.56 and Mohr finished second with 225.98. Defending champion Sullins of Chesterfield, Mich., defeated Williams, 248-239, to win last year’s Sun Bowl In The Villages for his second career Senior Tour title.