Martin Larsen (pictured left) of Sweden defeated tournament leader Yousif Falah (right) of Bahrain twice to win the 6th Kingdom International Open Bowling Championship and the $25,000 top prize Friday at Universal Bowling Center in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Larsen, seeded second, won the first game by eight pins, 200-192, to force a deciding second game as the No. 1 seed must be defeated twice to win the title. The three-time world champion wrapped up the title with a 200-159 win. Falah had to settle for second place worth 13,000.

In the opening shootout match, 2012 European Bowling Tour point leader Dominic Barrett (left) of England, seeded third, posted a huge 279 game to eliminate No. 4 seed, Tommy Jones (right, 239), United States, and No. 4 seed, Andrew Frawley (189), Australia.

Barrett fell to Larsen in the second match, 233-212, and received $8,000 for third place. Jones and Frawley took home $5,000 and $4,500 for fourth and fifth place, respectively.

The sixth Kingdom International Open Bowling Championship, which was held from 16-21, 2012 at Universal Bowling Center in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, drew 50 players from 15 countries.

After 16 games of qualifying, the top 28 qualifiers plus the next four Saudis advanced to the finals. The top three qualifiers plus the best Saudi earned one bye. The other 28 players bowled eight games scratch to cut to the top 11 plus the next Saudi who joined the four qualifying leaders in the Round of 16.

After another eight-game round, the top five players advanced to the stepladder finals. Players seeded 3-5 met in the opening match, the winner took on the No. 2 seed and the winner of that match bowled the No. 1 seed for the title and the $25,000 top prize. According to the tournament rules in Riyadh, the No. 1 seed must be defeated twice to win the title.

 

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6th Kingdom International Open Bowling Championship

Universal Bowling Center in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia (Dec. 16-21, 2012)

Championship Round:
1. Martin Larsen, Sweden, 633 (3 games), $25,000
2. Yousif Falah, Bahrain, 351 (2 games), $13,000
3. Dominic Barrett, England, 491 (2 games), $8,000
4. Tommy Jones, United States, 239 (1 game), $5,000
5. Andrew Frawley, Australia, 189 (1 game), $4,500

Playoff Results:
First Match: No. 3 Barrett def. No. 4 Jones and No. 5 Frawley, 279-239-189
Second Match: No. 2 Larsen def Barrett, 233-212
Championship: Larsen def. No. 1 Falah, 200-192
and in the deciding match: Larsen def. Falah, 200-159.
Note: The tournament leader must be defeated twice to win the title.

 

Final Standings - Places 6-32 (cashers)

6. Ryan Lalisang, Indonesia, $3,500
7. Mika Koivuniemi, Finland, $3,400
8. Basel Al-Anzi, Kuwait, $3,300
9. Bill O'Neill, United States, $3,200
10. Michael Tsang, Hong Kong, $3,100
11. Bader Al-Shaikh, Saudi Arabia, $3,000
12. Mohammed H Alnajrani, Saudi Arabia, $2,900
13. Ahmad Al-Hadyan, Saudi Arabia, $2,800
14. Abdul Hakim Al Saud, Saudi Arabia, $2,700
15. Rickle Kam, Hong Kong, $2,600
16. Moeedh Saad Qahtani, Saudi Arabia, $2,500
17. Jassem Darwish, Kuwait, $1,700
18. Mohammed Al-Saud, Saudi Arabia, $1,600
19. Hassan Ibrahim, Qatar, $1,500
20. Aseel Al-Roomi, Kuwait, $1,400
21. Josh Blanchard, United States, $1,350
22. Joshua Chow, Hong Kong, $1,200
23. Masoud Saberi, Bahrain, $1,150
24. Shaker Al-Hassan, UAE, $1,100
25. Yasser A Abdulreesh, Saudi Arabia, $1,050
26. Mohammed Janahi, Bahrain, $1,050
27. Adel Al-Bargi, Saudi Arabia, $1,000
28. Mohammed Sultan, Bahrain, $1,000
29. Salman M Alshahri, Saudi Arabia, $1,000
30. Ahmed Al-Awadhi, Bahrain, $1,000
31. Amro A Al-Amari, Saudi Arabia, $1,000
32. Talal Al-Towereb, Saudi Arabia, $1,000