Son of USBC/PWBA Hall of Famer Virginia Norton targets first PBA Tour title
Rookie Scott Norton (pictured left) of Costa Mesa, Calif., advanced from 13th place to earn the No. 1 berth in Friday's Chameleon Championship stepladder finals at South Point Bowling Center Tuesday. Norton, 28, the son of United States Bowling Congress and Professional Women's Bowling Association Hall of Famer Virginia Norton, won seven of his nine matches Tuesday, including a 257-195 victory over Finland's Osku Palermaa in his final match to qualify for his first Lumber Liquidators PBA Tour television appearance.
Two international bowlers reach the stepladder finals on Friday Nov. 5
Colombia's Andres Gomez (l.) will try for his first Lumber Liquidators PBA Tour title as top qualifier when the Pepsi Viper Championship stepladder finals are held Friday at South Point Bowling Center. Gomez, who entered Monday's nine-game match play round as the No. 4 qualifier, lost his first match, but won six of the next eight including a 224-194 victory over Tommy Jones (r.) of Simpsonville, S.C., in the position round, to finish two better than Jones.
24-year PBA Tour veteran averages 274.22 to break the PBA nine-game record
Eugene McCune of Munster, Ind., a 24-year Lumber Liquidators PBA Tour veteran, shattered the PBA Tour nine-game scoring record Monday to advance from 14th place to first for Friday's Brunswick Pro Bowling Cheetah Championship finals at South Point Bowling Center. McCune fired games of 300, 253, 275, 279, 279, 279, 236, 300 and 267 for a record total of 2,468 pins, an average of 274.22, to break the PBA nine-game record of 2,367 pins set by Walter Ray Williams Jr. in Tucson, Ariz., in 2004 by 101 pins.
Bill O'Neill of Southampton, Pa., almost pulled off a seemingly impossible feat during Week One of the PBA World Series of Bowling on his way to earning the No. 1 qualifying position for the PBA World Championship finals. Heading into Friday's fifth and final stage of the World Series marathon O'Neill had qualified for next week's match play finals by finishing in the top 16 in a field of 252 players in the Brunswick Pro Bowler Cheetah Championship; Pepsi Viper Championship, Chameleon Championship and Scorpion Championship.
Two-handers dominate qualifying in GEICO Shark Championship
Finland's Osku Palermaa (pictured) became the third international player behind Kimmo Lehtonen, Finland (Viper) and Jason Belmonte, Australia (Scorpion) to win one of the five "animal pattern" stages as the two-hander topped the qualifying of the GEICO Shark Championship Friday at South Point Bowling Center in Las Vegas. Advancing to the finals of the PBA World Championship were Bill O'Neill, Sean Rash, Palermaa, Chris Barnes, Mika Koivuniemi, Michael Haugen Jr., Wes Malott and Belmonte.
Finland's Osku Palermaa sits in second place after 6 of 12 games
Joe Ciccone (l.) of Buffalo, N.Y. had a six-game total of 1,467 pins to take the lead in the GEICO Shark Championship qualifying round after 236 players have completed the first of two six-game blocks. Ciccone averaged 244.50 for the block including games of 255, 226, 258, 246, 246 and 236. Finland's Osku Palermaa (r.) was 37 pins behind Ciccone in second place with 1,430. Another three international bowlers finished the first block among the top 16.
The 12-game qualifying rounds of the PBA animal patterns will serve as qualifying for the PBA World Championship. After the fourth day of qualifying on the Scorpion pattern Bill O'Neill (l.) of Southampton, Pa. continued to lead the field of 252 players. O'Neill, who has made the cut to the top 16 in all four championships so far, totaled 10,969 pins (228.52 avg.) to hold a 30-pin lead over Sean Rash (r.), Wichita, Kan., who remained in second place with 10,939.
Seven international bowlers make the cut; O'Neill leads World Championship after 48 games
Jason Belmonte (l.), Australia averaged 237.58 to win the Scorpion Championship qualifying round Thursday and to lead the top 16 players including seven international bowlers into the match play round on Tuesday Nov. 2. Bill O'Neill of Southampton, Pa., is the only player who has qualified for next week's top 16 match play rounds in all four stages. O'Neill leads the PBA World Championship with a 48-game total of 10,969 pins.
Five international bowlers among Top 16 after six of twelve games
Defending champion Mike DeVaney (l.) of Murrieta, Calif., averaged 247.83 for his first six of 12 games to take the early lead in the Scorpion Championship qualifying round at South Point Bowling Center in Las Vegas Thursday. DeVaney, who won his second Lumber Liquidators PBA Tour title in the 2009 Scorpion Championship in Allen Park, Mich., had 1,487 pins for a 3-pin lead over Squad A leader Jason Belmonte (r.), Australia, who was second with 1,484.
Three players move into the top 8 on Chameleon pattern
The first five days of the PBA World Series of Bowling will serve as qualifying for the PBA World Championship, the first major tournament of the 2010-11 PBA Tour season. After the third day of qualifying on the Chameleon pattern, reigning U.S. Open champion and defending Chameleon champion Bill O'Neill of Southampton, Pa. sits in the driver's seat. O'Neill averaged 226.17 on Wednesday to moved from sixth to first place in the World Championship standings with 8,283 pinfall total and an average of 230.08.
Bill O’Neill moves to the top of the PBA World Championship standings
Wes Malott (l.) of Pflugerville, Texas, won the Chameleon Championship qualifying round Wednesday to make his first match play final as the PBA World Series of Bowling completed its third day at South Point Bowling Center. Malott rolled games of 224, 246, 289, 202, 204 and 237 in his second six-game block Wednesday for a 2,809 12-game total to top Finland’s two-handed star, Osku Palermaa (r.), by 52 pins.
Sean Rash moves into the PBA World Championship qualifying lead
Brian Kretzer (l.) of Dayton, Ohio, averaged 244 for his first six of 12 games in the Chameleon Championship qualifying round during the PBA World Series of Bowling at South Point Bowling Center Wednesday to take the lead away from Squad A leader Tyler Jensen (r.) of Fort Worth, Texas. Kretzer rolled games of 254, 259, 279, 238, 233 and 202 for a 1,465 pinfall total and a 13-pin lead over Jensen heading into the final six games later Wednesday.
The top 8 after 60 games will advance to the live TV finals to bowl for a $50,000 top prize
The 14-day PBA World Series of Bowling began with "PBA World Championship Week," a five-day, 60-game test of skill and endurance that will serve as the foundation for the first major championship of the 2010-11 season. After 24 out of 60 games, Cheetah Championship qualifying leader Ritchie Allen (l.), leads the PBA World Championship qualifying with a total of 5,715 pins, 91 better than Lonnie Waliczek (r.), who is second with 5,645.
Four international bowlers make the cut to the top 16 for match play
Finland's Kimmo Lehtonen (l.) and eight-time PBA champion Mika Koivuniemi (r.), held the lead after 12 games in the Viper Championship qualifying round as the 252-player field was cut to the top 16 for round robin match play on Monday, Nov. 1. Among the top 16 were another two international bowlers with Colombia's Andres Gomez in fourth and PBA Hall of Famer and 19-time PBA champion Amleto Monacelli, Venezuela, in 10th place.
Sean Rash (l.) of Wichita, Kan., averaged 236.17 for his first six games in the Viper Championship qualifying round during the second day of competition at the PBAWorld Series of Bowling at South Point Bowling Center Tuesday. Rash finished his morning session with a total of 1,417 pins for a 14-pin lead over fellow Wichita resident Lonnie Waliczek (r.), who jumped into the early lead in the PBA World Championship race.
Two international bowlers make the cut to the match play round on Nov. 1
Ritchie Allen's (l.), Columbia, S.C., averaged 252 for 12 games to top the field of 16 qualifiers who will advance to the Brunswick Pro Bowling Cheetah Championship match play round next Monday. Allen finished with 3,020 total pins for a 41-pin edge over Lonnie Waliczek (r.) of Wichita, Kan. Two players from the large international contingent, Canada's Mark Buffa and Europe's No. 1, Dominic Barrett, England, made the cut to the top 16.
PBA World Series gets underway at South Point Bowling Center in Las Vegas
Mike DeVaney (pictured) of San Diego averaged 251 for the opening six games of the Brunswick Pro Bowling Cheetah Championship Monday at South Point Bowling Center to take the lead halfway through the first round in the opening event of the PBA World Series of Bowling. With another six games remaining later Monday for all players, DeVaney held a three-pin lead over Jeff Carter of Springfield, Ill. From the large international contingent three players made it among the top 16.
Fewer than 60 spots still available for season-opener at South Point in Las Vegas
With only a month to go before the start of the 2010-11 PBA Lumber Liquidators PBA Tour season, the Professional Bowlers Association is expecting a capacity field of 256 entries for the season-opening PBA World Series of Bowling at South Point Bowling Center in Las Vegas, Nev. As of Sept. 24, fewer than 60 spots remained available to PBA and international players hoping to bowl in the World Series, which gets underway on Oct. 25 and concludes on Nov. 6.
SiriusXM satellite radio show to follow staff member’s progress prior to and during Las Vegas event
Scott "The Engineer” Salem, an avid league bowler who serves as an engineer for SiriusXM satellite radio star Howard Stern (pictured), will compete in the Professional Bowlers Association World Series of Bowling this fall. The iconic talk show host plans to follow his longtime staff member’s progress for weeks leading up to, and during, the kickoff event for the 2010-11 Lumber Liquidators PBA Tour season.
PBA's WSOB has the potential to produce another unlikely hero
If his story hasn't become legendary yet, Tom Smallwood's remarkable road to winning the 2009 PBA World Championship will one day achieve that status. It's an inspiring story of a husband, father and accomplished bowler who
loses his job and decides to pursue his dream of becoming a
professional bowler, and goes on to win one of the sport's most
prestigious titles.Â
Rookie Scott Norton (pictured left) of Costa Mesa, Calif., advanced from 13th place to earn the No. 1 berth in Friday's Chameleon Championship stepladder finals at South Point Bowling Center Tuesday. Norton, 28, the son of United States Bowling Congress and Professional Women's Bowling Association Hall of Famer Virginia Norton, won seven of his nine matches Tuesday, including a 257-195 victory over Finland's Osku Palermaa in his final match to qualify for his first Lumber Liquidators PBA Tour television appearance.
Colombia's Andres Gomez (l.) will try for his first Lumber Liquidators PBA Tour title as top qualifier when the Pepsi Viper Championship stepladder finals are held Friday at South Point Bowling Center. Gomez, who entered Monday's nine-game match play round as the No. 4 qualifier, lost his first match, but won six of the next eight including a 224-194 victory over Tommy Jones (r.) of Simpsonville, S.C., in the position round, to finish two better than Jones.
Eugene McCune of Munster, Ind., a 24-year Lumber Liquidators PBA Tour veteran, shattered the PBA Tour nine-game scoring record Monday to advance from 14th place to first for Friday's Brunswick Pro Bowling Cheetah Championship finals at South Point Bowling Center. McCune fired games of 300, 253, 275, 279, 279, 279, 236, 300 and 267 for a record total of 2,468 pins, an average of 274.22, to break the PBA nine-game record of 2,367 pins set by Walter Ray Williams Jr. in Tucson, Ariz., in 2004 by 101 pins.
Bill O'Neill of Southampton, Pa., almost pulled off a seemingly impossible feat during Week One of the PBA World Series of Bowling on his way to earning the No. 1 qualifying position for the PBA World Championship finals. Heading into Friday's fifth and final stage of the World Series marathon O'Neill had qualified for next week's match play finals by finishing in the top 16 in a field of 252 players in the Brunswick Pro Bowler Cheetah Championship; Pepsi Viper Championship, Chameleon Championship and Scorpion Championship.
Finland's Osku Palermaa (pictured) became the third international player behind Kimmo Lehtonen, Finland (Viper) and Jason Belmonte, Australia (Scorpion) to win one of the five "animal pattern" stages as the two-hander topped the qualifying of the GEICO Shark Championship Friday at South Point Bowling Center in Las Vegas. Advancing to the finals of the PBA World Championship were Bill O'Neill, Sean Rash, Palermaa, Chris Barnes, Mika Koivuniemi, Michael Haugen Jr., Wes Malott and Belmonte.
The 12-game qualifying rounds of the PBA animal patterns will serve as qualifying for the PBA World Championship. After the fourth day of qualifying on the Scorpion pattern Bill O'Neill (l.) of Southampton, Pa. continued to lead the field of 252 players. O'Neill, who has made the cut to the top 16 in all four championships so far, totaled 10,969 pins (228.52 avg.) to hold a 30-pin lead over Sean Rash (r.), Wichita, Kan., who remained in second place with 10,939.
Wes Malott (l.) of Pflugerville, Texas, won the Chameleon Championship qualifying round Wednesday to make his first match play final as the PBA World Series of Bowling completed its third day at South Point Bowling Center. Malott rolled games of 224, 246, 289, 202, 204 and 237 in his second six-game block Wednesday for a 2,809 12-game total to top Finland’s two-handed star, Osku Palermaa (r.), by 52 pins.
Brian Kretzer (l.) of Dayton, Ohio, averaged 244 for his first six of 12 games in the Chameleon Championship qualifying round during the PBA World Series of Bowling at South Point Bowling Center Wednesday to take the lead away from Squad A leader Tyler Jensen (r.) of Fort Worth, Texas. Kretzer rolled games of 254, 259, 279, 238, 233 and 202 for a 1,465 pinfall total and a 13-pin lead over Jensen heading into the final six games later Wednesday.
The 14-day PBA World Series of Bowling began with "PBA World Championship Week," a five-day, 60-game test of skill and endurance that will serve as the foundation for the first major championship of the 2010-11 season. After 24 out of 60 games, Cheetah Championship qualifying leader Ritchie Allen (l.), leads the PBA World Championship qualifying with a total of 5,715 pins, 91 better than Lonnie Waliczek (r.), who is second with 5,645.
Finland's Kimmo Lehtonen (l.) and eight-time PBA champion Mika Koivuniemi (r.), held the lead after 12 games in the Viper Championship qualifying round as the 252-player field was cut to the top 16 for round robin match play on Monday, Nov. 1. Among the top 16 were another two international bowlers with Colombia's Andres Gomez in fourth and PBA Hall of Famer and 19-time PBA champion Amleto Monacelli, Venezuela, in 10th place. 
Sean Rash (l.) of Wichita, Kan., averaged 236.17 for his first six games in the Viper Championship qualifying round during the second day of competition at the PBAWorld Series of Bowling at South Point Bowling Center Tuesday. Rash finished his morning session with a total of 1,417 pins for a 14-pin lead over fellow Wichita resident Lonnie Waliczek (r.), who jumped into the early lead in the PBA World Championship race.
Ritchie Allen's (l.), Columbia, S.C., averaged 252 for 12 games to top the field of 16 qualifiers who will advance to the Brunswick Pro Bowling Cheetah Championship match play round next Monday. Allen finished with 3,020 total pins for a 41-pin edge over Lonnie Waliczek (r.) of Wichita, Kan. Two players from the large international contingent, Canada's Mark Buffa and Europe's No. 1, Dominic Barrett, England, made the cut to the top 16. 
Mike DeVaney (pictured) of San Diego averaged 251 for the opening six games of the Brunswick Pro Bowling Cheetah Championship Monday at South Point Bowling Center to take the lead halfway through the first round in the opening event of the PBA World Series of Bowling. With another six games remaining later Monday for all players, DeVaney held a three-pin lead over Jeff Carter of Springfield, Ill. From the large international contingent three players made it among the top 16. 
With only a month to go before the start of the 2010-11 PBA Lumber Liquidators PBA Tour season, the Professional Bowlers Association is expecting a capacity field of 256 entries for the season-opening PBA World Series of Bowling at South Point Bowling Center in Las Vegas, Nev. As of Sept. 24, fewer than 60 spots remained available to PBA and international players hoping to bowl in the World Series, which gets underway on Oct. 25 and concludes on Nov. 6.
Scott "The Engineer” Salem, an avid league bowler who serves as an engineer for SiriusXM satellite radio star Howard Stern (pictured), will compete in the Professional Bowlers Association World Series of Bowling this fall. The iconic talk show host plans to follow his longtime staff member’s progress for weeks leading up to, and during, the kickoff event for the 2010-11 Lumber Liquidators PBA Tour season.
