Xtra Frame Video of Ron Mohr-Hugh Miller Title Match

I blogged the other day about how Ron Mohr seems to be almost unbeatable on the PBA Senior Tour after winning his second consecutive tournament over the likes of Walter Ray Williams Jr., Mark Williams, Wayne Webb, and Hugh Miller.

Well, below is a video clip from PBA Xtra Frame of the last frame of the nailbiting title match between Mohr and Hugh Miller in this week's PBA Senior Northern California Senior Classic in Brentwood, CA. The clip is lower resolution, for some reason, than the actual video streaming that Xtra Frame provides its subscribers, but it still gives you a good look at Mohr's game and tremendous ability to perform under pressure, and at the quality of Xtra Frame's coverage.

Ron Mohr Seems Unbeatable in PBA Senior Competition

"The dream continues I guess—it’s absurd. What can you say but that I’ve been extremely fortunate this year. It’s all been so unexpected coming into this season after not having bowled competitively for seven months."

--Ron Mohr

It seems as though the only thing that will definitely stop Ron Mohr (watch a video clip of his shooting 300 in last week's Senior U.S. Open here) from winning the next PBA Senior Tour tournament is a wedding. That's right, Mohr won't be competing in the USBC Senior Masters in Columbus, Ohio in August because he'll be attending his stepson Justin's wedding instead. If not for that, you'd have to make him the solid favorite, judging by his amazing accomplishments this season.

Of the six PBA Senior Tour tournaments that have been held so far this season, Ron has placed second, third, fourth, and won three titles, including last week's PBA Senior U.S. Open in Las Vegas, and this week's PBA Senior Northern California Classic in Brentwood, CA.

He achieved the latter yesterday by defeating PBA Hall-of-Famer Mark Williams 3 games to 2 in the Round of 16, two-time regular tour titlist Kent Wagner 2 games to 1 in the Round of 8, PBA and USBC Hall-of-Famer and last year's PBA Senior Player of the Year Wayne Webb 223-195 in the Semifinal Round, and 7-time regular tour titlist Hugh Miller 223-215 in the title match.

Miller, who has been called one of the most underrated PBA bowlers ever, scorched the lanes the day before by averaging a near record 264 for the second round 8-game block on games of 238, 237, 300, 268, 279, 248, 300, and 247 and led second place Walter Ray Williams Jr. by nearly 200 pins in qualifying while Ron Mohr was sixth in qualifying. But Mohr continued to show his indomitable spirit and skills in match play all the way to yet another title and a huge, if not overwhelming, lead in the Senior Player of the Year race.

I really wonder what this guy might be able to do on the regular tour.

You can read Jerry Schneider's official PBA.com recap of Mohr's victory here.

Walter Ray Leads First Round of PBA Senior Northern California Classic

"I can’t complain because I’ve been bowling great overall. My mindset is always to move on to the next tournament and try to win that one."

--Walter Ray Williams Jr, speaking of his opening performance in the PBA Senior Northern California Classic after losing the title match last week to Ron Mohr in the Senior U.S. Open.

As the TV sitcom character Gomer Pyle used to say, "Surprise...surprise...surprise," Walter Ray Williams Jr. is leading after the first 8-game round of the PBA Senior Northern California Classic in Brentwood, CA. His very first game was a 300, and he followed it with games of 205, 249, 258, 225, 215, 259, and 277 for a 248 average.

Not far behind him is Sacramento's Noel Vazquez in second, Harry "The Legend" Sullins in eighth, Hugh Miller in ninth, the venerable 71-year-old Dave Soutar in thirteenth, Mark Williams in fifteenth, and last week's Senior U.S. Open winner and leader in the Senior Player of the Year race Ron Mohr in sixteenth place. You just know he's going to be in the thick of it at the end.

The players will bowl another 8-game round today, and the field of 100 will then be winnowed down to 32 for match play on Wednesday, with the Round of 8 followed by the championship match beginning around 5 PM Pacific. PBA Xtra Frame will be covering the action today and tomorrow, so be sure to tune in.

Click here for the full story and standings.

The Secret to Ron Mohr's Success?

There are many reasons to subscribe to the PBA's outstanding video streaming service Xtra Frame. One of them is, of course, the opportunity to see what is arguably the most important part of a PBA tournament--the match play (and sometimes even qualifying action) that leads up to what you see on TV on Sunday morning or afternoon.

Yes, the televised finals determine the top places and payouts, but what you miss without Xtra Frame is all the competition, adjustments, ups and downs, and drama that got the finalists on TV in the first place and kept the others off the show. And you miss the incredibly incisive commentary from the most knowledgeable people and, often times, most celebrated performers in the game. If you really love bowling and want to learn as much as you can by those best able to teach it to you, an Xtra Frame subscription is priceless.

One thing I learned about not long ago on Xtra Frame was PBA senior superstar Ron Mohr's exercise regimen. I don't remember the name of the Xtra Frame guest who said this, but a PBA senior bowler and friend of Mohr's was with Mohr in his motel room on a senior tour stop not long ago when Mohr announced to him that he had to do his workout routine before heading to the bowling center for competition. And what was the 50+ year-old Mohr's routine? He got down on the floor and reeled off 400 pushups in perfect form without a break and then followed that with 700 consecutive situps. He then showered, got dressed, headed to the bowling center, and bowled his squad, presumably performing better than everybody or almost everybody else.

Now I don't know about you, but the mere THOUGHT of doing 400 nonstop pushups followed by 700 nonstop situps exhausts me. To think that Ron Mohr actually performs this Herculean feat that would do the late, great Jack LaLane proud and then go out and kick bowling butt in PBA senior competition boggles my mind!

I'm not a PBA bowler and never will be. But maybe I ought to start doing my pushups and situps. When I worked my way up to Mohr's level of superhuman fitness, it would be interesting to see if it improved MY bowling game.

Care to try it yourself and report back to this blog with YOUR results?

Ron Mohr Triumphs at 2011 PBA Senior U.S. Open

"Walter’s the best out here and everyone kind of expects him to be the guy. It’s nice to become the top senior player in the world by winning the toughest tournament we bowl but right now I’m just going to enjoy the moment."

--Ron Mohr

Ron Mohr didn't get off to the best of starts in this year's PBA Senior U.S. Open in Las Vegas. He was in 67th place after the first round of qualifying, and only 56 players in the field of over 200 would make the first cut. "I was concerned at that point but not overly worried. At that point there was a lot of bowling left...so I just made the adjustments and took it a day at a time, which you have to do in a marathon tournament like this," said Mohr.

He made those adjustments, made the cut, and sat in 7th place entering match play at the end of 27 games of qualifying. 24 games of round-robin match play later, he had edged out Bo Goergen to secure the fourth and final spot in Friday's stepladder finals.

His first opponent was the reigning Senior Player of the Year Wayne Webb. Webb bowled tremendously well this week after coming back from knee surgery a few months ago and limited practice since then to nail down the third seed, and when he started the first stepladder match with his first six strikes, it looked as though he might give Ron Mohr more than he could handle. But Mohr began with a five-bagger of his own before leaving a 4-10 split that looked, given Wayne's hot start, like it might spell his doom. He then masterfully converted the split, Wayne left a light pocket 7 pin on his next ball, and before you knew it, Mohr had emerged victorious with a 265 game to Webb's 258.

In Mohr's next match with Harry Sullins, the scores weren't as high, but the competition was no less thrilling, ending with Mohr's narrow 220 to 211 victory over Sullins in a back-and-forth affair.

This left only one person standing in Mohr's way to his first senior major title. But that person happened to be Walter Ray Williams Jr., who dominated the later rounds of qualifying and much of match play before struggling a little in the final round. Walter Ray Williams Jr. and Ron Mohr. The two best players on the senior tour this season by far. One could not have asked for a better match up in the final game of arguably the biggest and most challenging senior tournament of the entire season.

But, as things turned out, it wasn't much of a match. Walter Ray never really got lined up, and Mohr cruised to an impressive 246-189 victory. "She was my guardian angel and she was with me today," Mohr said afterward, referring to his wife, Linda, who passed away in January after complications following surgery months earlier. Mohr, who was the 2009 Senior Player of the Year, had taken off much of the 2010 season to care for his ailing wife and, after she died, had been despondent and reluctant to return to the senior tour. Yet, he decided to give it a try and see how he did in the first few tournaments. His second, third, and fourth place finishes in addition to two titles this season have certainly vindicated his decision and placed him solidly in the lead for Senior Player of the Year as the senior tour heads into the second half of its season.

"Both the support back home and out here on tour has been unbelievable, and that has been very important to my success this year," said Mohr.

The senior tour now moves to Brentwood, CA for the Senior Northern California Classic at Harvest Park Bowl, June 19-22.

You can read Jerry Schneider's entire wrap up of the Senior U.S. Open for pba.com here and catch all the round-robin match play rounds and the stepladder finals on PBA Xtra Frame.

Walter Ray Williams Jr. Cruises to Title in PBA Senior Mark Roth Allentown Open

"I think the hard work I've put in the past couple of months has really paid off. I'm feeling very comfortable being able to make the adjustments I need to make and just bowling very well in general. I'm very encouraged and confident going forward from here."

--Walter Ray Williams Jr.

As I wrote yesterday, Ron Mohr appeared to be well on his way to another senior title and to strengthening his domination of the PBA Senior Tour. But Walter Ray Williams Jr. had other ideas. After finishing second behind Mohr in qualifying, Walter Ray sliced through his match play opponents Mark Williams, John Chapman, and Harry Sullins yesterday like a proverbial knife through warm butter until he met Mohr in the final, one game match of the PBA Senior Mark Roth Allentown Open and demolished him 268-168, prompting PBA Xtra Frame's "Bowling Doctor" Jeff Mark to say, "He has bowled tremendous today...Watch out in November, because somebody's going to have their hands full with this guy!"

Mohr bowled very well too, finding ways to come from behind and defeat his prior opponents on challenging lane conditions that favored a straighter line to the pocket than he typically plays. But when he struggled to strike in the title match and Walter started off with a flawless eight-bagger before going a little high in the ninth, the final match was never in doubt.

Walter Ray has his game and confidence back, Ron Mohr is still bowling great, and last year's Senior Player of the Year, Wayne Webb, is slated to make his comeback following knee surgery. The rest of the senior season looks like it's shaping up to be a great one. And you can catch it on PBA Xtra Frame.

Click here for yesterday's match play results, and here for the PBA press release on Walter Ray's victory.

Ron Mohr Leads Qualifying of Mark Roth Senior Allentown Open

Ron Mohr is at it again. I blogged recently about how well he was doing on the PBA Senior Tour before taking time off in the middle of last season to care for his wife Linda who eventually died of cancer early this year, and how he rebounded from the devastating loss to take fourth, second, and first place respectively in the first three senior tournaments of this season.

Well, Mohr led all qualifiers going in to today's match play and championship rounds in the Mark Roth Senior Allentown Open in Allentown, PA and, as seemingly always these days, is a serious threat to win another title. Of course, Walter Ray Williams Jr., Harry Sullins, and Tom Baker who qualified second, third, and fifth respectively, along with a host of other outstanding players still left in the field, may have something to say about that. But the way Mohr is bowling now, he's going to be hard to beat.

If you get PBA Xtra Frame or think it might be high time to sign up, there's no better time than the present. Two rounds of match play have already been completed this morning, but you can watch those in the archives and catch the concluding match play and championship rounds live. "Bowling Doctor" Jeff Mark is calling the action and in the booth with him commentating are Johnny Petraglia Jr. and none other than the great Mark Roth.

You can click here for the qualifying results and here for the Round of 32 and Round of 24 match play results, and below is a short video of Mohr throwing one ball.

Ron Mohr Battles Back From Heartbreak to Lead PBA Senior Tour

"It doesn't get any better. I consider myself extremely blessed. I just miss Linda. I wish I had someone to share it with."

--Ron Mohr

Ron Mohr was a top amateur bowler in the 90's and has excelled on the PBA Senior Tour. He was the Senior Tour's Player of the Year in 2009 and was riding high until his beloved wife Linda had elective knee surgery last June, took acetaminophen to dull her post-surgical pain, and developed irreversible liver damage from which she eventually died in January of this year.

Mohr, 55, left the tour in 2010 and largely stopped bowling altogether until he decided to try his luck on the Senior Tour again this spring. He told himself that he'd see how he did in the first three tournaments of the season, and if he performed poorly, he'd quit the Tour and just bowl league at his home house in Anchorage, Alaska.

However, his fourth place finish in the first tournament, third place finish in the second, and first place finish last week convinced him to remain out on tour, and he'll compete at the next senior stop later this month in Pennsylvania. Once again, he is the #1 ranked player on the Senior Tour, despite the imposing presence of Walter Ray Williams Jr., and he's looking forward to the rest of the season.

You can read more about Ron Mohr's touching and inspiring story here.

Watch PBA Xtra Frame and Get More Senior and Other PBA Action

Even though Walter Ray Williams Jr. was unable to successfully defend his PBA Senior Miller High Life Classic crown this year, losing to the Steve Licklitter in the Round of 16 and paving the way for Ron Mohr to win the championship, I would have liked to see him try on the PBA's live and archived webcast service Xtra Frame. Unfortunately, they didn't cover the tournament.

They had covered the previous two senior tournaments, but they didn't cover this one. Why not? Because their viewership for the previous two tournaments was too low to justify it. As someone in the know confided to me, "Only 20 subscribers watched the live content of the Senior Don Carter Open, and only about 250 watched any of it on demand. I can't sell that to a sponsor, and our Xtra Frame production budget only stretches only so far."

I'm surprised and sad to learn this. I would think that the hardcore bowling fans who subscribe to Xtra Frame would be very interested in watching the senior action, especially with guys as good as Walter Ray, Ron Mohr, Tom Baker, Harry Sullins, Hugh Miller, George Pappas, and Mark Williams competing.

So why didn't they watch? Sure, I can understand how a lot of people might not have been able to watch the morning and afternoon sessions live. But why didn't more people watch them later on demand?

Professional bowling has a serious problem. Part of it is a lack of interest even on the part of its biggest fans. This certainly doesn't bode well for the PBA's future.

Nevertheless, Xtra Frame is scheduled to cover four PBA events during the rest of May and June. Three of them are senior events, including the Senior U.S. Open, and one is a regional event. I hope all you Xtra Frame subscribers will be tuning in and that those of you who don't yet subscribe will sign up and start enjoying the action.

The season doesn't end when the regular tour goes on hiatus. There's a lot that still goes on, and the more interest you show in seeing it, the more of it will be made available to us all.

And remember that it isn't only the bowling action itself that makes Xtra Frame so valuable. It's also the comprehensive and incisive commentary that accompanies it. It's a treasure trove of detailed information about bowling balls, lane conditions, styles, techniques, and strategies delivered by bowling leaders and legends and top coaches. It's the true bowling enthusiast's dream service, and it delivers tremendous bang for the buck.

Sign up and start watching today.

Walter Ray Willams Eliminated Early, Ron Mohr Wins PBA Senior Miller High Life Classic

Last week, I posted about Walter Ray Williams Jr. seeking to defend his PBA Senior Miller High Life Classic title. He led both qualifying rounds and was seeded first going into match play. Because of his seeding, he was able to sit out the Round of 32 and the Round of 24 and was matched against the #16 seed, Steve Licklitter, in the Round of 16. Walter Ray lost three games out of four in the best-of-five match and Licklitter went on to lose in the Round of 8. Ron Mohr won the championship.

This reinforces what I wrote previously about how the bowlers on the PBA Senior Tour are a lot tougher than you might think and that even someone as good and accomplished as Walter Ray on the regular tour cannot expect to waltz in and dominate every event of the senior tour. Not only is the senior competition too good for that, but also the "softer" conditions and the match play format that follows qualifying makes it easy for the best bowlers to be eliminated by a momentary cold streak in themselves or by an opponent's hot hand or good fortune in match play.

Having said this, Ron Mohr, who won the championship, has done extremely well since coming out on the senior tour. He was the 2009 PBA Senior Player of the Year, started out strong in 2010 before losing his wife to surgical complications and sitting out the latter half of the season, and now he's come roaring back to place high in every tournament and win his fourth senior title. He is a force to be reckoned with on the senior tour and seems poised to give Walter Ray all he can handle.

Here are the match play and final results respectively.

Walter Ray Williams Jr. Faces Stiff Competition on the PBA Senior Tour

When Walter Ray Williams Jr. went out on the Senior Tour last season after leading the regular Tour in all the major statistical categories and earning his record-setting seventh PBA Tour Player of the Year award at age 50, a lot of people were predicting that he'd tear up the Senior Tour. "If guys like Tom Baker, who haven't been a presence on the regular Tour for over a decade, are doing very well on the Senior Tour and Walter Ray is still more than holding his own with the youngsters, what chance do the other seniors have against his awesome game?" was what a lot of people, including Xtra Frame's Jeff Mark, were thinking.

Well, it turns out that one thing that's stopped Walter Ray from dominating his fellow seniors as totally as people predicted is the quality of his competition on the Senior Tour. There are a lot of guys out there who can flat out bowl. And yesterday, Harry "The Legend" Sullins was one of them, defeating Walter Ray in the title match of the PBA Senior Sun Bowl in The Villages, Florida 248-239 after Walter Ray destroyed 2008-2009 Senior Bowler of the Year Ron Mohr in the semifinal match 270-199. This was the second time Sullins defeated Walter Ray in a PBA title match. The first time was 25 years ago in 1986 when Sullins beat Walter Ray for a regular Tour title. Walter Ray went on to win his first Player of the Year award that year.

None of this is to say that Walter Ray hasn't prospered on the Senior Tour. He won the very first tournament he entered, was last season's Rookie of the Year, made the semifinals of the first Senior Tour tournament of this season last week before losing the final match yesterday, is leading in average after two tournaments this season by a whopping margin, and seems to be a virtual cinch to make match play and cash high in every tournament he enters. And, if the truth be told, he probably outbowled Sullins in the title match yesterday but just couldn't carry as well as his opponent.

Still, he's won, by my count, only one of the several senior tournaments he's entered over two seasons, and he's likely to face stiff competition from the likes of Ron Mohr, Tom Baker, last year's Player of the Year Wayne Webb (when he recovers from knee surgery), Johnny Petraglia, Mark Williams, Harry Sullins, and Steve Ferraro in every tournament he enters.

The PBA Senior Tour may be for "old" guys, but those "old" guys can still bowl. And for those of you who miss the action of the regular Tour while it's on hiatus, you can subscribe to PBA Xtra Frame and watch the Senior Tour action live along with listening to expert commentary from the likes of "Bowling Doctor" Jeff Mark and a panoply of bowling greats.

You can read more about yesterday's action in the PBA Senior Sun Bowl here. Below is video of a 1991 regular Tour match between Walter Ray Williams Jr. and Harry Sullins.

Bowling Bytes--6/2/10

~ Mohr Clings to Lead as PBA Senior Northern California Classic Field Heads Into Match Play Finals -- "Reigning PBA Senior Tour Player of the Year Ron Mohr of Eagle River, Alaska, still in search of his first title of the 2010 season, held onto a two-pin lead at the end of qualifying Tuesday in the PBA Senior Northern California Classic at Harvest Park Bowl.Mohr finished the 16 games of qualifying with a 3,624 total, two pins ahead of four-time PBA Senior Tour Player of the Year Tom Baker of King, N.C., as the top 32 players headed into Wednesday’s single-elimination match play finals..."

~ Wayne Webb Goes for Third Straight PBA Senior U.S. Open Title June 6-11 in Las Vegas -- "PBA Hall of Famer and two-time defending champion Wayne Webb will attempt to become the first three-time winner of the PBA Senior U.S. Open presented by Suncoast when the 2010 edition is conducted June 6-11 at the Suncoast Bowling Center in Las Vegas. Webb will be among approximately 250 bowlers ages 50 and over who will compete in the first major of the 2010 PBA Senior Tour season...In 2009 Webb successfully defended his Senior U.S. Open title by defeating Brian Voss, 214-188, in the championship match. In 2008 he defeated top qualifier Johnny Petraglia, 204-172, for his first PBA Senior Tour title...The 52-year-old Webb, who recently moved to Columbus, Ohio, from Sacramento, Calif., to open Wayne Webb’s Columbus Bowl, won the Senior Columbus Open in April for his third Senior Tour win and despite having to deal with the demands of being a new proprietor, is confident heading into this year’s Senior U.S. Open..."

~ Rob Stone: more than just hambones and yahtzees -- "He inspires critics to yearn for days when bowlers kept score by abacus, the lanes were lit by gas lamp, and any display of passion more boisterous than a golf clap warranted permanent expulsion from the bowling center. He has turned a ham hock into the most bitterly polarizing symbol the sport has ever known. He is . . . well, maybe not quite the most interesting man in the world, but if you listen to his hissing chorus of detractors, you just might think so. All he needs now is a bottle of Dos Equis and a gruff Latin accent. He is Rob Stone, Lord of the Hambone, jester in the royal court of future hall of famer Randy Pedersen, and the face glued to dart boards in the homes of bowling purists from coast to coast..."

~ Robert Andersson wins men's division at 3rd European Bowling Tour Masters -- "Robert Andersson (pictured left), Sweden, and Kamilla Kjeldsen (right), Denmark are the men's and women's champions of the 3rd European Bowling Tour Masters 2010, the season-ending event of the 2009 European Bowling Tour. The winners each received 4.000 Euro..."

~ Surasak Manuwong averages over 265 to lead 43rd Singapore International Open qualifying -- "Surasak Manuwong (pictured left), Thailand, posted a huge 1061 4-game series at Orchid Bowl at Orchid Country Club in Singapore to lead the men's Open Masters qualifying in the 43rd Singapore International Open. Manuwong's 265.25 average propelled him atop the Overseas Pool, 91 pins ahead of second-placed Aaron Kong, Malaysia, with 970. Howard Saw, overtook Justin Lim (right), both Singapore, by six pins to take the lead in the Local Pool with 956 or an average of 239,00...On the women's side, local bowler Kristel Oh chalked up a 963 series to jump to the top of the Local Pool and to overtake previous leader Cherie Tan by 26 pins. Zandra Aziela (pictured left), Malaysia, held on to the lead in the Overseas Pool with 931 and an average of 232.75 for four games. Li Hsiao Ping, Chinese Taipei, is 21 pins behind in second place with Ivana Hie, Indonesia, in third with 883...A total of 42 men (39 qualifiers plus the top 3 from the desperado squad) and 30 women including defending champions Shaker Al-Hassan, UAE, and Sharon Koh, Malaysia, will advance to the Masters Finals..."

~ The 11th Frame: Robert Smith latest star to retire from PBA Tour -- "Robert Smith is the latest star to announce his retirement from what's left of the PBA Tour...There is good and bad in the new Tour, and there has been passionate debate on all the changes on the pba.com message boards. What isn't debatable is that it's very different. What also isn't debatable is that bowlers should be thankful that any PBA still exists -- too many just don't get the economic climate for sports seeking sponsors and other commercial ties. Virtually every other sport is suffering -- the main differences are in where the sports started from...But the PBA's struggles aren't the only reason Smith is retiring, according to the following statement he posted on the PBA message board..."

~ Quitting While You're Ahead -- "Is it possible to get too good at bowling? For some, I think the answer is yes. There are a few freaks of nature who seem to dominate the game from age 2 throughout their entire lives. But for most people, becoming a good bowler takes practice. So, the question again: is it possible to get too good?..."

~ Arlington's Bob Learn Jr. finds new niche as bowling center marketing coordinator -- "Like too many Americans, Bob Learn Jr. faced a dilemma when his job at the United States Bowling Congress was eliminated in February. "At first, I said 'OK, we just moved here,' " said Learn, an Erie, Pa., native. " 'We just sold our home. What do we do.' Four days later, I was fortunate to be working here." A former Professional Bowlers Association touring player who was well-connected in the industry, Learn almost immediately received offers from around the country. But after getting away from Erie's brutal winters, he and wife decided they preferred to stay in North Texas. So when Bill Blackerby, general manager at Fort Worth's Cityview Lanes, contacting him, he was more than happy to take the job. Today, he's marketing coordinator for both Cityview and USA Bowl in Dallas..."

~ Dick Weber for King Louie (1953)

~ Questions on armswing, urethane bowling balls and approach -- "Q: Two coaches advised me to incorporate a free armswing, and I’ve been working on it. My problem is that my ball speed is still slow because the shoulder muscles get really tight going into and at the top of my swing. I have a five-step approach and push the ball into the swing slightly after my second step. Once it reaches the top, I can’t relax my muscles. What should I do?...Q: I am a senior bowler well into my 60s and am very frustrated. I had been using an old urethane bowling ball for decades and decided to upgrade to a new weapon. So I had a 16-lb. ball drilled and, frankly, I can’t handle it. It moves rather dramatically on the back end no matter where I move my target or my feet. Then I obtained another ball, a 14-pounder, and had it drilled for minimum action. Same result: too much back-end. I can flatten the release and try to kill the hook, but that doesn’t always work. Is there any ball that could give good pin action but not be as reactive on house patterns?...Q: I have had both knees replaced, and ever since I’ve had problems bowling. Do you think a one-step approach might help, or should I stay with four steps and practice more? I’ve gone from a 180 average down to 135 — very embarrassing. Any ideas?..."

Bowling Bytes--6/1/10

~ Long journey ends with success at USBC Open Championships -- "Not even an erupting volcano could keep the United Kingdom's Ken Iredale from the 2010 USBC Open Championships. Although his trip to the National Bowling Stadium was delayed by a month, he wasted no time finding his way to the top of the Classified All-Events standings with a 1,810 total Wednesday. Harry Arnold of Falls City, Neb., previously held the lead with 1,796..."

~ USBC Hall of Fame adds new category -- "To recognize top performers in United States Bowling Congress competitions, USBC will have a new Hall of Fame category starting in 2011. The Outstanding USBC Performance category will recognize efforts by bowlers in USBC national events. This will cover performances of bowlers in tournaments such as the Open Championships, Women's Championships, Queens and Senior Queens, and Masters and Senior Masters..."

~ Junior team USA members impressed with the ITRC -- "Members of 2010 Junior Team USA had the chance to train at the International Training and Research Center during a camp held this week at the International Bowling Campus in Arlington, Texas. The training camp for the 20-member Junior Team USA started May 23 and team members were impressed with the new facilities..."

~ Mohr Takes PBA Senior Northern California Classic First Round Lead -- "Reigning PBA Senior Tour Player of the Year Ron Mohr of Eagle River, Alaska, averaged 234 to take the first round lead in the PBA Senior Northern California Classic at Harvest Park Bowl Monday. Mohr, who is trying for his fourth career title and first of 2010, rolled games of 215, 274, 233, 241, 249, 257, 216 and 190 for an eight-game total of 1,875 pins and a nine-pin lead over Harry Sullins of Chesterfield Township, Mich. Darryl Traber of Waterford, Wis., was third with 1,864 pins followed by Ken Croucher of Grants Pass, Ore., at 1,832; Ted Staikoff of Black Hawk, S.D., at 1,801, and Senior Tour rookie Walter Ray Williams Jr. of Ocala, Fla., at 1,776..."

~ Kalfas Revives Game in Time to Win PBA Regional Players Championship -- "Riga Kalfas of Florence, Ky., revived his game just in time to win the Professional Bowlers Association Regional Players Championship at Thunderbowl Lanes Monday. Kalfas, a 42-year-old truck driver by day and bowling pro shop operator by night, defeated Chris Collins of Savannah, Ga., 236-216, to complete a near-perfect day and claim the $7,500 first prize along with a guaranteed berth in the 2011 PBA Tournament of Champions, a record $1 million event with a $250,000 first prize..."

~ 2010 PBA Regional Players Championship--Match Play Rounds

~ PBA West Region Senior Leaders Through June 1, 2010

~ Mai Genge Jensen, Robert Andersson Lead top 8 into Round Robin Match Play finals -- "Day one leader Mai Ginge Jensen (pictured left), Denmark, and Swede Robert Andersson (right) finished the 18-game preliminaries in the 3rd European Bowling Tour Masters 2010 Tuesday morning at Lovvang Bowling Center in Aalborg, Denmark, atop the women's and men's leaderboard and lead the top 8 players into the Round Robin Match Play finals. Jensen won her second 400 Euro bonus on the combined oil pattern averaging 219.33 for the block and finished with 3906 pinfall total or an average of 217.00 for 18 games. Her compatriot, two-time defending EBT Masters champion, Kamilla Kjeldsen, was 58 pins behind in second place with 3848..."

~ Justin Lim, Cherie Tan set the early pace in 43rd Singapore International Open -- "The 43rd Singapore International Open Tenpin Bowling Championships is underway at Orchid Bowl at Orchid Country Club in Singapore. The tournament, which will be held from May 25 through June 5, 2010, offers 25,000 Singapore Dollars to the men's winner of the men's Open Masters Division and 5,000 for the women's champion. Local bowlers Justin Lim (pictured left) and Cherie Tan (right) set the pace in the qualifying as of Sunday, May 30, with 950 and 937 4-game total, respectively...PBA pro Tim Mack and his mother Joan Mack, United States (pictured left), tested the lanes at Orchid Bowl on Sunday. The former world champion and international standout posted (226,00 ave.) to move into second place in the Overseas Pool. Mack is currently sandwiched between Dilbir Singh (930) and Dhruv Sarad (868), both India..."

~ Missouri bowler joins 50-Year Club at USBC Open Championships -- "John Wonders Sr. of Florissant, Mo., added his name to the record books at the USBC Open Championships when he became the 129th bowler in history to compete in 50 tournaments. The 75-year-old right-hander has competed in 33 cities in 20 states and made his ceremonial march down Center Aisle surrounded by family and friends at the National Bowling Stadium on Saturday afternoon. Overall, his five decades on the championship lanes have been memorable...Wonders has been a major player in the bowling industry for much of his life, and he was a co-founder of the Hammer bowling ball brand, which still is a recognizable name on the lanes..."

Bowling Bytes--4/27/10

~ Hulsenberg rolls 803 to stay undefeated at USBC Queens -- "USBC Hall of Famer Leanne Hulsenberg of Roseville, Calif., put herself in good position to make a run at her second Queens title as she tied for the second-highest series in match-play history on her way to an undefeated record at the El Paso Convention and Performing Arts Center on Monday. After qualifying fourth, the 1999 Queens champion defeated Stacey Fehr of Cincinnati, Ohio, 661-573, before beating defending champion Liz Johnson of Cheektowaga, N.Y., 803-698. Hulsenberg's 803 ties her with Shannon O'Keefe of Arlington, Texas, who rolled 803 at the 2009 Queens in Reno, Nev. Johnson holds the record for the highest match-play set with 806, also shot in the 2009 event..."

~ Videos from the 2010 USBC Queens

~ Dorin-Ballard leads USBC Queens field into match play -- "The field for match play is set at the 2010 United States Bowling Congress Queens as USBC Hall of Famer Carolyn Dorin-Ballard of Keller, Texas, continued her torrid pace by breaking the 15-game qualifying record on her way to leading the field. The 2001 Queens champion posted an 1,118 score in her final five-game block to finish at 3,636 overall, surpassing Kelly Kulick's 3,472 set in the 2009 event. Dorin-Ballard now owns the highest five, 10 and 15-game totals in tournament history..."

~ Wheelchair bowlers compete at USBC Open Championships -- "One of the best attributes regarding the sport of bowling is that it can be played by people of all ages, skill levels and abilities, and John Budd of Batesville, Ind., and Kevin Schaefer of Fountain Valley, Calif., found out that the USBC Open Championships encourages those same sentiments. Budd and Schaefer are wheelchair bowlers and members of the American Wheelchair Bowling Association. Joined by four other AWBA members, they made the trip the National Bowling Stadium to compete at the 2010 Open Championships last week. Schaefer made his third appearance at the tournament, while Budd made his first..."

~ On the lanes with Fero Williams -- "In the coming months, we'll talk with some of best-known bowlers at the USBC Open Championships and get their thoughts on their time at the tournament and what it takes to succeed on the championship lanes. This week, we heard from former Team USA member Fero Williams, who owns USBC records for 300 games and 800 series in a single season (2006-07) with 22 and 27, respectively. His record-setting year included six leagues and five tournaments at seven bowling centers in five states. The talented right-hander has rolled more than 100 perfect games and nearly as many 800s in his career. He was a member of Team USA in 2006 and 2007 after a runner-up finish at the 2006 USBC Team USA Trials. He claimed six medals at the 2006 Lee Evans Tournament of the Americas..."

~ Ron Mohr Sets Record Pace to Lead PBA Senior Columbus Open Second Round -- "Reigning PBA Senior Player of the Year Ron Mohr of Eagle River, Alaska, set three PBA Senior Tour records Monday on his way to the second-round lead in the PBA Senior Columbus Open at HP Lanes. Mohr had a record 16-game overall pinfall of 4,243 after Monday’s second qualifying round for a 265.1 average, breaking his own mark of 4,036 set in 2008. His second eight-game qualifying round pinfall of 2,160 (270 average) broke the previous record of 2,119 set by Hall of Famer Wayne Webb of Columbus in Sunday’s first round. Webb dropped to fourth after Monday’s second round..."

~ Mohamed Kamel, Zandra Aziela win qualifying in 12th Sinai International Open -- "Mohamed Kamel of Kuwait and Zandra Aziela, Malaysia, lead 36 men and 16 women into the finals of the 12th Sinai International Open Bowling Tournament at International Bowling Center in Cairo, Egypt. Kamel lead the field of 121 men with his three highest 4-game series of 1010, 1005 and 901 and a 2916 pinfall total (243.00 average). Kamel was the only player who had two series over 1000...Zandra Aziela combined her highest 4-game series of 1013, 951 and 865 to lead the 38-player women's field for 2829 pinfall total. She was the sole woman, who cracked the 1000-bar in qualifying..."

~ Janine Primrose remains undefeated in USBC Senior Queens title defense -- "Janine Primrose (pictured left) of Gardnerville, Nev., developed a knack for finding herself behind in matches during her run to the 2009 USBC Senior Queens title, and she has continued to fight her way back to victories at the 2010 event at the El Paso Convention and Performing Arts Center. Finding herself down going into the final game of her first and second round matches on Monday, she rallied with games of 245 and 247 to defeat USBC Hall of Famer Nancy Fehr of Cincinnati, 613-567, and Melody Felton of Colfax, Iowa, 653-635, respectively..."

~ Tommy Jones: The Interview, Pt 1 -- "Anyone who watched either of the two telecasts on which Tommy Jones appeared last season - the USBC Masters and the 2009 Earl Anthony Medford Classic - might have wondered what happened to the Tommy Jones whom the PBA named the 30th greatest player in history just as he also prepared to turn only 30 years old, the Tommy Jones who won his first ten titles more quickly than anyone in the history of the Professional Bowlers Association..."

~ If You're Looking for 'Magic' to Revive Your Game, It Might Just Be a Stone's Throw Away (Par Bowling: Tom Kouros--Bowlers Journal International, April 2010, pg.52) -- "...Trust me, no matter how talented you are, you can't compete using old, antiquated equipment in today's environment..."