Bowlers Journal International - April 2008 - (Page 26)

TOURNAMENTS NOTES & QUOTES FROM THE USBC OPEN "WE'VE BEEN ON TOP OF THE leader board before. But we've never been able to stay there until the end. In fact, we were in the lead last time we competed here in Albuquerque, but it didn't hold up." Those were the words of Bryan O'Keefe after his Cambridge 1 team of Feeding Hills, Mass., took over the Regular Team lead at the 2008 USBC Open Championships at the Albuquerque Convention Center. With O'Keefe shooting 687, Bill Webb 669, Ron Nelson Jr. 636, Brian Boghosian 612 and Chris Viale 597, Cambridge got credit for games of 1087, 1079 and 1035 — a 3172 total. "We bowled at the [USBC/Storm] Bowlers Journal [Championships] to figure out the best equipment and approach to take here at the Open Championships," O'Keefe said. Plus, as an employee of USBC, there was some added pressure for me to bowl well. Everyone at work was joking around with me before I left." If the O'Keefe name sounds familiar, perhaps it's because Bryan's wife, Shannon, finished second in the U.S. Women's Open last year, and won the 2008 Team USA Trials. As Bryan put it, "My wife is the bowler of the family now." A member of the companion Cambridge 2 team, Michael Colby, shot a 300 game in that "practice session" at "The BJ." The next day, Colby and Boghosian returned to Holiday Bowl and took over first place in the Bowlers Journal Open Doubles with 1945. Colby set the pace with a four-game total of 1036, while Boghosian contributed 909. USBC OPEN DOUBLES: Doug Blood of Montevideo, Minn., was seeing red after finishing his Team event set with a 118 game. "I spent a lot of time thinking about how I bowled in Team, and I promised I wasn't going to embarrass myself like that again [in Doubles and Singles]," Blood said. "I never felt comfortable at all [in Team], but [in Doubles and Singles] my rhythm, timing and release all felt natural, and it showed in my scores." Those Doubles scores: 233, 278 and 212 for a 723 series. Along with partner Todd Koehler's 267246-208/721, the duo took over the Doubles lead with 1444. "We've bowled Doubles together for years," said Koehler, "but we've never hit anything big like this. We were both making consistent shots and got good carry." USBC OPEN SINGLES: "My faith keeps me steady whether I do good or bad, and it's the key to my success," said Wilbert Moorer of Dover, Del. "Steady" would be a good word to describe Moorer's bowling in the Singles event, as the concrete contractor and pastor took over the lead with games of 259, 246 and 279 for a 784 total. The strong performance came after Moorer had talked on the phone to his wife, who offered some words of encouragement upon learning of Moorer's subpar 547 in Team event. "She told me I had six more games and something could happen — and it did." Wilbert and Gwen Moorer have been married for 33 years. They met in a bowling center. USBC OPEN ALL-EVENTS: Ed Gallagher, a man who knows a thing or two about bowling balls as the Brand Manager for Ebonite, left Albuquerque atop the All-Events standings. Gallagher's best set came in the Team event, as he struck his way to a 771 total. He added 701 in Singles and 669 in Doubles for a nine-game total of 2141. (For more on Gallagher, turn to the "Intelligencer" section.) MILESTONE: Hall of Famer Jimmy Schroeder competed in his 60th consecutive ABC/USBC Open tournament, becoming only the 10th member of the "60-Year Club." (For details, go to bowlersjournal.com and click on "More Tournaments.") Hotel Bowling Center. And Kulick fared well, placing third after dropping a close 207-204 decision to Tannya Roumimper of Indonesia. In the title match, Japan Bowling Congress representative Nao Ohishi outscored Roumimper, 208-188, but could not accept the ¥3 million first prize because she is an amateur. Roumimper received ¥1.5 million for second place, while Kulick collected ¥800,000 for third. The tournament featured pro and amateur players from South Korea, Mexico, the Philippines, Malaysia, Singapore and Sweden, in addition to the U.S., Japan and Indonesia. ■ In 2006, Eric Copping of Websterville, N.Y., was named New England Bowlers Association Rookie of the Year. In 2008, Copping captured his first NEBA title, winning the tournament at AMF Silver Lanes in East Hartford, Conn. In the championship match, he defeated R.J. Broege, 237170, to earn the $1,800 first prize. ■ NEBA crowned its 360th champion when Dan Gauthier won the NonChampions Tournament at Wonder Bowl in New Bedford, Mass. And he did it in style, defeating Jonathon Corda in the title match, 246-159, good for a $1,600 payday. ■ Don Smith and O.J. Olchaskey are the latest champions on Buddy Tierno's Senior Tour. Smith won the Tierno tourney at Boulevard Lanes in Allentown, Pa., with a 243-235 victory over Ken Brewbaker. Olchaskey nabbed the title at Colonial Lanes in Trenton, N.J., with a 192-181 triumph over Tom Smith. First place in each event paid $600. ■ In an all-Sweden battle, Christer Danielson outscored Dan Ahlqvist by 61 pins over the final eight games to win the first stop of 2008 on the EBPA Senior Tour, held at Alpa Bowl in Buxtehude, Germany. ■ A new team event has been added to the Teen Masters, thanks to the sponsorship of Kegel. The competition has been dubbed the Kegel Kup, and details may be found online at teenmastersbowling.com. Additional results and an international tournament calendar may be found on bowlersjournal.com. IN THE PADDOCK 26 bowlers journal international APRIL 2008 http://teenmastersbowling.com http://bowlersjournal.com http://bowlersjournal.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Bowlers Journal International - April 2008

Bowlers Journal International - April 2008 Contents Leading Off Letters Bowlitically Incorrect Calendar Par Bowling The Coach Frame of Mind Inside Line The Truth Be Bowled Tournaments Pro Bowling PBA Bayer Classic PBA Pepsi Championship PBA Don Johnson Classic Regional Roundup Cover Story Up Close Senior Tour The USBC Move USBC Convention Pattern Play Anniversary Flashback Time Capsule Media Beat No Holes Barred Shop Talk Spotlight Marketplace Hall Marks Profit Prophet Advertisers' Index Classified Advertising Intelligencer Business Calendar Business People Strikes Me

Bowlers Journal International - April 2008

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