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HIGH SCORES CONTINUE AT USBC OPEN CHAMPIONSHIPS
Clint Roth of Orange City, Fla., Lou Gorcos of Crown Point, Ind., and Frank Barefoot Jr. of Hesperia, Calif., rolled the 20th, 21st and 22nd 300s of the year and made it five consecutive days with a perfect game on the tournament lanes, while one-time Professional Bowlers Association titlist Dave Wodka of Chatsworth, Calif., cracked the top 10 in Regular Singles and Regular All-Events.
Roth made his second USBC Open Championships appearance and tossed 12 consecutive strikes in his second game of doubles at the National Bowling Stadium on Monday night. The effort came between games of 245 and 235 for a 780 series, and he teamed up with Patrick Tiller of
Roth, 24, and Tiller, 25, first bowled together in youth leagues when they were 9 years old, and they have been close friends ever since.
"It's very exciting," said Tiller, who also made his second Open Championships appearance and added games of 278, 199 and 242 to the doubles effort for a 719 series. "This is something we have never done, and we didn't expect to do anything like this. We bowled together in 2007 also, but we definitely didn't shoot 1,499. Tonight was really fun."
The two right-handers both were quick out of the gates, but weren't convinced that an opportunity for something special was achievable. Their tune quickly changed with Roth's 300.
"During the entire set, I was focused on staying down and hitting my target," said Roth, who bowls at AMF Longwood in
The partners made simultaneous tournament debuts at the Stadium in 2007, but their success that year was individual as Roth tossed a 770 singles series on the way to a 2,042 all-events effort, and Tiller struggled early, but finished with a 685 singles set.
This year, Roth added 679 in singles and 594 in team for a 2,053 all-events total. Tiller had 598 in singles and 569 in team for 1,886. Matt McNiel of
Gorcos, a 46-year-old left-hander, likes to study the history of bowling and is excited about his spot in the 107-year history of the Open Championships.
He grew up watching and bowling against many of the great bowlers who have graced the tournament lanes, and now, his name will be among them after he rolled a 300 in his final game of doubles Tuesday morning. Gorcos also has his name in the
"I come here every year and have always wanted to see my name up on the wall with all of the other guys," said Gorcos, who made his 11th tournament appearance. "That wall documents the history of this event, and I'm a history buff. Any bowler who does something that significant at the national tournament should feel very accomplished."
Gorcos got off to a slow start in each event, but as he got going, his scores improved. He shot 173 and 177 in team before finishing with 243 and a 593 series. He opened doubles with 190 and 227 and closed with 300 for a 717 set.
Things went the same for Gorcos in singles as he started with 174 and 199 before shooting 278 for 651 and career-best 1,961 all-events total. His previous high was 1,841 at the 2006 event in
Barefoot, a 35-year-old right-hander, had been close to perfection at the Open Championships before (2007), but his nerves got the best of him after eight consecutive strikes.
This time, he finished things out despite being nervous, and achieved two personal milestones on the championship lanes. His 300 came in singles after games of 235 and 204 for a 739 series Tuesday.
"This is the national tournament, and even though there have been quite a few 300s over the years, it's still a great feat," said Barefoot, who bowls at Del Rosa Lanes in
Barefoot's goal for the year was to break 2,000 in all-events for the first time, and he did that, adding 718 in doubles and 617 in team for a 2,074 all-events effort.
Wodka, who won the 1999 Greater Detroit Open, can thank his fianc‚ Nicole Ellison for his success at the Stadium this week.
After he started team with a 195 game, she suggested that he switch balls and move to a different part of the lane, and that was all he needed.
The 39-year-old right-hander finished team with 223 and 234 for a 652 series and averaged 259.8 for the next six games to move into fourth place in Regular All-Events with 2,211.
Wodka's 795 singles set, which ended with a 290 game, is good for sixth place in Regular Singles, and his 718 in doubles helped him and Scott Kraye into the top 20 in Regular Doubles with 1,418.
"I can understand why doubles is so hard to win, since you only get four balls of practice, but for the first time, I knew I had a good look, even after just a few shots," said Wodka, who made his 19th trip to the Open Championships. "I saw what the balls were doing and was confident that if I made quality shots, I'd have a good showing. I've never shot 2,200 here before, and I knew what I needed heading into the last game. I'm glad I got there, and I'm satisfied overall. To me, any top 10 here is fantastic. One of my last goals in bowling is to win an eagle one day."
Presenting sponsors for the 2010 USBC Open Championships are Circus Circus, Eldorado Hotel Casino and Silver Legacy Resort Casino in
For more information on the USBC Open Championships, visit USBCopen.com.
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2010 USBC OPEN CHAMPIONSHIPS
At National Bowling Stadium,
(Top 10 division leaders with hometowns and pinfalls)
REGULAR DIVISION
Team
1, Bowlers Edge Pro Shop (Brad Kuhr, Timothy Rice, Dan Paul, Kenny Kempf, Jason Wendt),
Doubles
1, Steve Bohn, Norwood, Minn./John Kreyer Jr., Fridley, Minn., 1,514. 2, Jeffrey Mersch, Orlando, Fla./Erik Vermilyea, Mansfield, Texas, 1,507. 3, Patrick Tiller,
Singles
1, Terrence Syring,
All-Events
1, Matt McNiel,
Team All-Events
1, Northern Lanes Pro Shop (Bo Goergen, Derwin Pitre, Dale Hofmeister, JR Raymond, Dan MacLelland),
CLASSIFIED DIVISION
Team
1, Southeast Paint (Mark Montoya, Frank Marrelli, Joe Juliano, Gary Nelson, Ed Howa), Price,
Doubles
1, Robert Blum, Huntington Beach, Calif./Frank DeFrancesco, Poway, Calif., 1,200. 2, Gary Nelson/Ed Howa, Helper,
Singles
1, David Garcez,
All-Events
1, Harry Arnold,
