Bowling Forums, Bowling Discussion and Bowling Talk

Bowling sign without Alley

pbateson — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 06:07:31 GMT

Have you seen the bowling sign w/o the alley?

I seen Leilani Lanes sign still there and alley were gone.

Lefty or righty?

themrfreeze — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 04:08:27 GMT

It just occurred to me that we never really did a survey to see how many forum lurkers are lefties or righties. Given that 9-10% of the population are left-handers (including yours truly), I think it'll be interesting to see what the survey says.

Forum: General bowling discussion

CHAMELEON CHAMPIONSHIP ON ESPN - NEW START TIME!

mrbowling300 — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 18:28:36 GMT

Please make a note that the broadcast time was moved from 1pm to 2:30pm for this sunday's show!

LUMBER LIQUIDATORS PBA TOUR

Sunday, November 22, 2:30 p.m. Eastern

PBA CHAMELEON CHAMPIONSHIP

Semifinal Match One: Sean Rash, Wichita, Kan. vs. Ronnie Russell, Camby, Ind.

Semifinal Match Two: Bill O'Neill, Southampton, Pa. vs. Amleto Monacelli, Venezuela.

PBA WOMEN'S SERIES CHAMELEON CHAMPIONSHIP PRESENTED BY BOWL.COM

Championship: Shannon Pluhowsky, Phoenix, Ariz. vs. Carolyn Dorin-Ballard, Keller, Texas.

Forum: General bowling discussion

Nevada, New Jersey bowlers roll 900 series three days apart

Bowlymania — Thur, 19 Nov 2009 19:07:04 GMT

ARLINGTON, Texas - Chris Aker of Winnemucca, Nev., and Andrew Teall of Medford, N.J., recently became just the 14th and 15th bowlers, respectively, to roll United States Bowling Congress-approved 900 series.

The feats were accomplished within three days of each other and were the first since Rich Jerome Jr. of Baltimore had a 900 series on Dec. 22, 2008. The first approved 900 did not occur until Feb. 2, 1997 when Jeremy Sonnenfeld rolled three consecutive perfect games in Lincoln, Neb.

Aker, a 47-year-old left-hander, had 36 consecutive strikes Oct. 30 in the Friday Night Mixers League at Spare Time Bowling Center. Teall, a 24-year-old right-hander, matched that Nov. 2 in the Monday Invitational League at Medford Lanes.

"It was pretty cool, and doing it with my wife bowling on the team was pretty special," Aker said. "She usually gets nervous and can't watch, so she's only seen one or two of my previous 300 games. This time she watched pretty much every frame, which is nice."

Aker had seven 300 games and an 825 high series before his 900 series. Teall had five earlier perfect games and beat his previous best series of 813.

"I really wasn't thinking of a 900; all I was really focused on was getting a 200 to get 800," Teall said. "I'm still on Cloud 9. I didn't know what to do. People behind me were going pretty crazy but I didn't know how to act, whether I should jump up and down or fall to my knees."

Aker and Teall are the 13th and 14th bowlers to roll approved 900s, all on regular league lane conditions. There has never been a 900 on Sport Bowling lane conditions.

USBC Approved 900 Series
Jeremy Sonnenfeld, Lincoln, Neb., Feb. 2, 1997
Tony Roventini, Milwaukee, Nov. 9, 1998
Vince Wood, Moreno Valley, Calif., Sept. 29, 1999
Robby Portalatin, Jackson, Mich., Dec. 28, 2000
James Hylton, Salem, Ore., May 2, 2001
Jeff Campbell II, New Castle, Pa., June 12, 2004
Darin Pomije, New Prague, Minn., Dec. 9, 2004
Robert Mushtare, Fort Drum, N.Y., Dec. 5, 2005 and Feb. 19, 2006
Lonnie Billiter Jr., Fairfield, Ohio, Feb. 13, 2006
Mark Wukoman, Greenfield, Wis., April 22, 2006
P.J. Giesfeldt, Milwaukee, Dec. 23, 2007
Rich Jerome Jr., Baltimore, Dec. 22, 2008
Chris Aker, Winnemucca, Nev., Oct. 30, 2009
Andrew Teall, Medford, N.J., Nov. 2, 2009

------

Pretty sad imho.

Forum: General bowling discussion

bowling rule question...what do you think?

mrbowling300 — Wed, 18 Nov 2009 03:52:36 GMT

This rule question has to do with tardy bowlers. Here is the situation and circumstances:

Two weeks ago, we were bowling a team where they were telling us it was possible one of their guys would be late. No one knew what the rule was. We asked the league secretary for a ruling. He said that there was a 15 minute rule that if you were not there by 6:30pm, then the tardy player had to sit out that game. It used to be 3 completed frames, but the 15 minute rule was voted in as teams were intentionally stalling. As it turned out, the guy showed up in time, and all was well.

The very next week, a bowler from the other team was late. He showed up at 6:37. It was position week. We were in first place, tied with second place. We were in the 4th frame when the guy showed up. Their captain asked me (our captain) if the guy could catch up. I asked the other members of our team, and everybody agreed that the rule is the rule, and he could not bowl. A few of their guys were pissed, and their game seemed to fall apart. We destroyed them by 148 pins that game, on our way to sweeping them.

I get to bowling today, to find out there is a captains meeting. I was speaking with the league president who said the 15 minute rule was old and expired. The current rules do not address the topic, and therefore, you turn to the USBC rules that address the tardy bowler. For the record, he is allowed to bowl. If he started in the 8th frame, he would get 1/10th his average for each frame missed. For example, if your average is 210, then that's 21 per frame, so after 7, he gets 147, and then he completes the game.

What happened is we told him he couldn't bowl because of what we thought was this 15 minute rule. They did not approach the league prez/sec. for a ruling at the time. Now, they might file a protest, which they have 15 days to do so. They feel the guy should have bowled once he got there, and was denied bowling under a falsely interpreted rule, as there was no league rule, and as mentioned it goes to the USBC rule. They complain that had he bowled the 5 or 6 frames in game 1, that would have been his practice, and he would have been ready to go in game 2, which he bowled lousy.

The USBC rule book is unclear (I have to take a closer look) as to how a protest works. Does he get to rebowl game 1 and have it inserted into their scores with the rest of the scores? Does each team have to rebowl the game 1 match?

We don't know, and the president of our league doesn't know what to do in the event of a protest. I may call Mark Martin, the association manager of the Detroit USBC to find out what our options are to stay ahead of the game in the event this becomes a greater issue.

just curious as to what you think...thanks!

Forum: General bowling discussion

American Williams downplays his hot favourite tag

mrbowling300 — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 13:20:44 GMT

MALACCA: American pro bowler Walter Ray Williams Jr wears the favourite tag in the World Cup, which begins here today.

But the bowler who has a record 45 PBA titles, has been inducted into both the USBC and PBA Hall of Fame, and has been crowned the PBA Bowler of the Year for six times (1986, 1993, 1996,1997, 1998, 2002) will keep his feet firmly on the ground.

There are many good bowlers in the tournament and anyone can win it, said Williams, who insisted that being a pro does not make him the favourite to claim the title.

I still have to do my best, deliver quality shots and minimise on my mistakes.

He added that most of the amateurs in the tournament had the ability to perform just as well as the pros.

Many of the amateurs here are full-time bowlers and they are amateurs only in name because they do not play on pro circuits. So, there is really not much difference between the pros and amateurs here, he said.

The 50-year-old is making his debut in the World Cup this year since the World Tenpin Bowling Association (WTBA) opened their competitions to professionals for the first time last year in the world championships in Thailand.

Nicknamed Deadeye, Williams bagged three gold medals at the world championships.

On the lane conditions of the World Cup in Malacca, he said: The conditions here are easy and everyone will be scoring high.

It will boil down to accuracy and consistency.

Forum: General bowling discussion

JASON'S TV RECAP UNCENSORED - Viper Championship

mrbowling300 — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 13:18:42 GMT

This Sundays ESPN telecast of the Viper Championship reminded me of, to borrow a phrase used by the illustrious Randy Pedersen during the telecast, a hair in a biscuit.

Actually, it didnt at all but I wanted to work that in there because it was seriously one of the most unusual things Ive heard since my granddaddy used to say, hes dancin in tall cotton. WTHDTM? (What the h-e-double-hockey-stick does that mean?)

Non-sequiturs aside, the Viper show was a solid follow-up to last weeks Cheetah Championship documentary, mostly because it extended the rags-to-riches storyline of 23-year-old lefty Ryan Ciminelli.

Ciminelli qualified for the Viper telecast immediately off of his runner-up finish in the prior event, and because of all the buzz and hoopla created by that unique Kenny-Mayne-helmed affair (watch it on Xtra Frame in case you missed it), it brought even more shine than Rhino Pages freshly shaved scalp to this weeks show.

The combatants included the two aforementioned lefties (who hatched a Dr. Evil-pinkie-to-the-corner-of-the-mouth-style plan to face one another in the final), Steve Jaros and Michael Haugen Jr. Between the mens semis and finals, we were also treated to the seasons first official Womens Series final between Lynda Barnes and Liz Johnson.

In the shows opening match, Rhino Page took on the underrated one, Steve Jaros. I say underrated because not since Mike Scroggins has anyone gone as far under the radar with 7 Tour wins, a major, $1.6 million in career earnings and 41 career regional titles as Jaros. Unfortunately for Steve, who also owns the distinction of bowling the lowest AND highest games in TV history (a 129 and one of the PBAs TV perfectos), his ball reaction resembled the buck-30 a lot more than the 3-bill reaction. After a ball change in frame three, Jaros, like the vet he is, hung in with some quality shots, but was undone in the ninth with a blower 7-10 split on a double. That gave Page, who was in or around the pocket all game, more or less a free pass into the finals as he coasted to a 221-180 win.

In Match numero dos, Ryan The Italian Stallion Ciminelli faced Michael Im Baaaa-aaack Haugen Jr. Haugen is returning to the Tour after missing most of last season with a partially torn ACL (ou-ooch!), and appears to be making the most of his comeback with an early-season TV appearance. And, in case you were sipping tea in a cave with Osama Bin Laden last week and happened to miss the totally awesome Cheetah Championship telecast (did I mention it was available on Xtra Frame? Oh, yes I did, sorry!), Ryan Ciminelli is seriously starting to resemble Rocky Balboa trying to get another title shot after going the distance last week with Apollo Creed, er, I mean Norm Duke.

For a second, this match looked like it might be very similar to the first one, with Haugen going big-four, 3-6-10 to start the match after Ciminelli looked pretty well lined up with his big black urethane ball. But the 7-pin that plagued RC last week started cropping up again (in the 3^rd, the 5^th and the 7^th all between strikes, of course) and Haugen started stringing strikes in frames 3 through 6. In the 7^th, Haugen left a 4-pin on a pretty decent shot, then threw a turkey to give himself a chance to shut out the young lefty with one more strike. After gutting the rack with a high hard one on the previous shot, Mike went to the well once again but gave the shot a hair too much room and left a shaker 8-pin as the ball barely made it back to the pocket. This gave Ciminelli a chance to win with a double and 8 pins, and the emerging star calmly stepped up and threw two clutch strikes (and a nine-count) to slip by 238-236, setting up a dream match-up between the two lefties.

At this point in the show, we were treated to a Rob Stone Around the World Series feature, where he paid a visit to the player services truck and had a ball custom-drilled. Unfortunately, all the truck could spare was a 6-pound Lumber Liquidators spare ball (hey, times are tough, just ask Medford), so Rob was a bit disappointed. But these features are great and Rob is great at doing them, as his work on ESPNs College Football broadcasts prove. And in case youre not familiar with just how funny Rob can be, check out this chili pepper eating segment he did a while back.

After the feature, the women stepped in to contest their Viper Championship final. This match was a battle of the slow-hook special (Lynda Barnes) versus the high-hard-one (Liz Johnson). Lynda got nine on six of her first nine pocket hits and bowled a clean 196 as she never quite got lined up for carry, while Liz carried a turkey and a double for a 211 (despite an open in the first frame) to win her first PBA Womens Series singles title (she took last years mixed doubles with Norm Duke in Reno). Even though I was a little sad to see Lynda lose (especially because she would later announce her retirement from big-time competitive bowling later in the summer), I was very happy to see Liz win, especially after her heartbreaking loss to Kelly Kulick in the Shark Championship semifinals a few days before this show was taped. She definitely deserved it after bowling so well for the entire World Series (and she has another show coming up in two weeks for the Scorpion Championship).

Now, the mens final. This one was hard to pick a favorite. I mean, do we root for the young, non-exempt, seemingly out-of-nowhere challanger Ryan Ciminelli to pick up his first title? Or do we root for the young, head-shaved-in-support-of-cancer-stricken-friend, two-time champion Rhino Page? Luckily, they both bowled fantastic, with both guys tossing 7 of 8 strikes heading into the 9^th frame.

Page had a potential 280 after missing just once (in the 2^nd) while Ciminelli had a possible 279 with his miss coming in the 4^th. Rhino added another X in the 9^th, forcing Ryan to put the pressure on with a strong finish. Two stubborn 7-pins in the 9^th and 10^th thwarted Ciminellis chances, however, as he finished with a strong 246, leaving Rhino in need of only a mark to win. Rhino struck, and closed out the game with a fantastic 268, earning his third career title and an automatic slot on Tour next season.

For Ciminelli, the runner-up finish has to be a bit of a disappointment, especially after coming so close the prior week. But, his fast start will certainly give him a great chance of earning his exemption through the point list (that is, if he doesnt win later in the season, of course) and he was just named Bowler of the Week by a local news station in Buffalo, so at least he has that going for him. After spending a little time with both players during the World Series, I can honestly say that they are both great guys (have you seen all the humanitarian stuff Rhinos been up to lately, I mean, the guys a bowling version of Nelson Mandela) and I would expect to see a lot more of both of them in the future (Rhino for sure since hes qualified for the PBA World Championship final live on ESPN December 13).

Here are a few more items of note from this weeks show:

Randy had a couple of doozies this week with Hair in a biscuit (sounds like the name of a punk band) and the lyin shot. Randy rolled out the second bit of jargon after Haugen missed in the first frame and blamed Jaros for burning up his path to the pocketthe term implies that Mikes comment was covering up for a poorly thrown shot.
Chris Barnes looked genuinely nervous during Lyndas match. Might have been interesting to have a mic on him during the match?
I wonder why the righties werent playing as close to the gutter as the lefties? Although it did look like Haugen had a pretty decent reaction where he was.
To my knowledge, the last time a player won on Tour using a urethane ball was Brett Wolfe bombing em with a Blue Hammer at the Masters in 2002. Like Rhino, he also tossed 260+ in that final.
Check out the trick drilling Rhino used in the final match! You can see it during the Post-Game show in Storm Rep Chris Schlemers interview.

Ill be back later this week with a blog on my experience working on CSI, as that bowling-themed episode will air on CBS at 9pm Thursday, November 19, then again next week for the recap of the Chameleon Championship. See you then!

Forum: General bowling discussion

todays bowling show

BigJo — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 20:23:09 GMT

what did you guys think ? im a guy that loves to see the lefties in the finals too bad cimanelli (sp?) couldnt take his first title , and i thought randy's "tip" was pretty pointless anybody knows that about the house pattern i think they have even talked about it before during this season

Forum: General bowling discussion

On the Subject of Venue....

JamesSalisbury — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 02:18:15 GMT

With the cancellation of the Medford, Or. PBA stop, I'd like to post a short article I wrote a few months ago concerning this very subject. I invite comments from the reader.

Much has been discussed on the problems of credibility, equipment, lane conditions, tiers, format and their place not only in the PBA but in general throughout competitive bowling. Even though many different ideas and suggestions have been brought forth, it seems that the status quo still reigns. Unless we all recognize the urgency of the situation- that the future of competitive bowling and yes, the future of the bowling industry itself hangs in the balance- we will continue to lose participants and more insidiously, venue.

The problem of lack of venue may be felt most acutely at the regional level. The result of loss of venue is a squeeze on player development which filters up to the top levels and lasts for many decades. It has a direct negative effect on the overall level of talent. As we run out of places to play, we run out of quality players to play.

Of the approximately five thousand commercial bowling centers left in the United States, many do not have the size or proper facilities to hold PBA events. Many have completely withdrawn from hosting any kind of competitive events, preferring to cater to the recreational bowlers. Many new centers are the family entertainment variety that have no interest in holding such events. Of the remaining, more and more are finding it harder to stay viable in the marketplace, let alone fund a regional event or more importantly give up an entire weekend of revenue to do so.

In a recent interview, ownership espoused the fact that the PBA finally has made annual profit and will be in a position from now on to move forward holding these assets. This was no small achievement and should be roundly applauded by all. However if the problem of venue is not addressed, these become wasting assets as there is eventually no place to play. For the PBA itself to remain a viable concern, it must move forward and aggressively find, purchase and eventually develop sites in selected markets to be used as PBA Host Centers.

Acquisition and funding groups could be formed to seek investment capital and research playing sites. Many sites can be purchased now, during this depressed commercial market, being held until the right time to redesign and refurbish them is at hand. We design these sites to facilitate PBA events and most importantly we operate these sites with the goal that each one becomes financially self-sustaining.

If we are to move forward, the problem of venue must be addressed now. We as an industry must not only stop the center closure rate but reverse it by aggressive means.

We are running out of places to play!

Forum: General bowling discussion

Don and Paula Carter Mixed Doubles cancelled

Mike_S — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 13:22:40 GMT

Lumber Liquidators PBA Tour Stop in Medford, Oregon Cancelled
SEATTLE, Wash. - 11/13/2009

The Lumber Liquidators PBA Tours scheduled tournament in Medford, Ore., Jan. 4-10, has become a casualty of the national economic slump.

The Professional Bowlers Association regrets to announce Lava Lanes in Medford will be unable to host the Don and Paula Carter Mixed Doubles event in 2010, said PBA Commissioner and CEO Fred Schreyer. Its an unavoidable situation, and its too late in the planning process to find a host to replace Medford.

Schreyer said the Don and Paula Carter Mixed Doubles will be moved to Brunswick Zone-Wheat Ridge in Wheat Ridge, Colo., Feb. 15-21, where it will replace the previously-announced Gemini Championship.

The cancellation also will mean a minor re-scheduling of the PBA Tours 2009-10 ESPN television schedule. The tape-delayed finals of the Pepsi Red, White and Blue Open presented by the United States Bowling Congress will be moved from Jan. 3 to Medfords Jan. 10 date. Schreyer said a decision on the Jan. 3 air date will be made after discussions with ESPN.

Forum: General bowling discussion

survey about bowling scores....

mrbowling300 — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 15:40:25 GMT

We always brag and talk about shooting high scores and series, but I thought I'd turn it around and see how people chime in to this:

What is the lowest score and series you have had?

For me (and I'm only counting my career in the adult leagues), they both were in the same set. I shot 127 in a 520 series during the 1994 season. This particular night, my father (may he rest in peace) came to watch me bowl. I was averaging about 214 at the time. I think I was trying extra hard to impress him. Obviously, it didn't work, and I bowled miserable. It was the first time he watch me bowl as an adult, and the last.

Forum: General bowling discussion

Did anyone see this Mike J interview yet

djrickysmith — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 02:11:49 GMT

I ran across this the other day. It seems to me that the PBA will be giving up the TV telecast in the near future. I mean that's my interpretation of the interview.

here is the link to the page

http://www.talktenpin.net/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=4141&Itemid=108

Forum: General bowling discussion

This Sunday on ESPN: Viper Championships

mrbowling300 — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 00:43:10 GMT

SUNDAY, NOV. 15, 1 P.M. EASTERN

PBA WOMENS SERIES VIPER CHAMPIONSHIP PRESENTED BY BOWL.COM

Championship: Lynda Barnes, Double Oak, Texas vs. Liz Johnson, Cheektowaga, N.Y.

Prize Money: 1. $10,000; 2. $6,000

# Barnes and Johnson are trying for their first Womens Series titles

# Second Womens Series event of 2009-10 season

# Winner earns berth in PBA Womens Showdown presented by BOWL.COM

# Event conducted on PBA Viper lane condition

Tournament recap:

First round leader (after 7 games); Carolyn Dorin-Ballard, 1,650

Second round leader (after 14 games); Dorin-Ballard, 3,157

Best-of-seven-game match play summary: Barnes def. Kelly Kulick, 4-1, and Shalin Zulkifli, 4-0.

Johnson def. Diandra Asbaty, 4-1 and Shannon OKeefe, 4-1.

PBA VIPER CHAMPIONSHIP

Semifinal Match One: Steve Jaros, Yorkville, Ill. vs. Rhino Page, Wesley Chapel, Fla.

Semifinal Match Two: Ryan Ciminelli, Buffalo, N.Y. vs. Mike Haugen Jr., Carefree, Ariz.

Championship Match: Winners of Match one and Match two

Prize Money: 1, $25,000; 2, $13,000; 3-4. $7,000

# Jaros is trying for his eighth PBA Tour title, Haugen his third, Page his third and Ciminelli his first

# Ciminellis second championship round appearance after advancing through Tournament Qualifying Round

# Third event of 2009-10 Lumber Liquidators PBA Tour season

# Winner earns berth in PBA Experience Showdown

# Event was conducted on PBAs Viper lane conditioning pattern

Tournament Recap:

First round leader (after 7 games): Patrick Dombrowski, 1,654

Second round leader (after 14 games): Steve Jaros, 3,214

Round of 28

Jaros and Haugen earned byes in this round by virtue of qualifying in the top four

Ciminelli def. Martin Larsen, 4-2

Page def. Ryan Shafer, 4-1

Round of 16

Ciminelli def. Wes Malott, 4-3

Haugen def. Chris Barnes, 4-1

Jaros def. George Lambert IV, 4-0

Page def. Dombrowski, 4-1

Round of 8

Haugen def. Jack Jurek, 4-2

Ciminelli def. Thomas Smallwood, 4-1

Jaros def. Stevie Weber, 4-3

Page def. Jason Belmonte, 4-1

Forum: General bowling discussion

Found my next ball purchase.

RichG — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 19:27:47 GMT

I see great potential for this ball. I can only imagine how many perfect games I could get with this ball.

Let me know what you think

http://www.wimp.com/bowlingball/

Forum: General bowling discussion

Regional with Pete Weber & Pro-AM

snowspike1 — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 17:40:49 GMT

Midwest Region Tournament Details

Event

PBA Midwest Region Plamor Lanes Open

Dates

11/13/2009 - 11/15/2009

Center

Plamor Lanes

City/State

Muscatine, IA

Location

Plamor Lanes
1411 Grandview Ave
Muscatine, IA 52761
(563)263-0770

Lane Condition

Cheetah

Schedule of Events

Friday, November 13
Practice Session: 3-5 p.m.
Saturday, November 14
Roll call is 30 minutes prior to all squads
A squad: 8 a.m.
B squad: 1 p.m.
Pro-Am: 6:30 p.m.
Sunday, November 15
Semi-Finals: 9 a.m.
Match play begins at 11:30 a.m. with the round of 16
Entry Fee
Members: $220
Non-Members: $285 (money order of cashiers check only)
PRIZE FUND:
1st place projected: $2,300
Ratio: 1 in 3
Hotel Info:Holiday Inn 563-264-5550 $60 1 or 2 people

Pro Am costs $35 for adults and if you want to bowl with PDW it costs and additional $25.00.

Maybe my shoulder can wait..... Chance to bowl with Pete Weber...hummmmmm it would really get my sisters goat...

Forum: General bowling discussion