August 2015 -
11
High Roller
El Paso USBC Association Hall of Fame Member
Benjamin (Benny) Salcines cruised to the singles title
by edging out Don Quitangon by 23 pins. This 169 av-
erage bowler had games of 227 237 and 200 for 664
and with his 162 pins handicap had a 826 good enough
to take home the $2000.00 first place check. Benny
used Storm Products throughout the tournament. This
was a very emotional experience for not only Benny but
all bowlers in the 2nd Annual Law Enforcement, Fire
Fighters & First Responders Tournament at the Gold
Coast in Las Vegas.
They had a re-entry squad for singles and there were
several bowlers that didn’t bowl it due to the fact they
didn’t want to take the title away from Benny. I actually
saw tears from some of the bowlers as they announced
Benny’s name for winning the singles.
Benny and his significant other, Alta James moved
from El Paso TX to Austin TX about four years ago.
Benny currently bowls in two leagues at Westgate
Bowling Center and recently participated in his 26th
USBC Open Championships. It obvious this is some-
thing he is very proud of doing. He retired from Billy the
Kid (clothing industry) in El Paso TX.
The double winners were a father and son team. Josh
(672) and Mitch (749) Kelsey had a 1531 with 111 pins
handicap and won $1000.00. Josh is a claim adjuster in
Surprise AZ, came in with a 203 average. He used the
Columbia 300 Eruption Pro during doubles. Mitch, from
Peoria AZ is a retired Law Enforcement Officer and
came in with a 215 average. He used the Roto Grip
Hyper Cell throughout the tournament.
The winning Team was the ―2 Cops and the Infor-
mants‖ who ran away with this event with a handi-
capped total of 3011 and took home $500.00 each. My
brother, Dave Gulley and Ann McGee Team came in a
distance second with a 2880. On the winning team
were: Thomas (Tom) Candura (600) with a 188 aver-
age, Bob Godden (726) with a 200 average, Richard
Dominguez (565) with a 167 average, and finally Sean
Buras (649) with a 188 average.
Tom Candura, Richard Dominguez, and
Sean Buras (Bob Godden is missing)
Tom is a retired Police Sergeant from Newark NJ and
used a Roto Grip Hyper Cell and currently lives in Las
Vegas NV; Bob is also from Las Vegas NV; Richard
used the Blue Hammer, First Blood, and the Assassin
and is from Las Vegas NV; and finally Sean works as a
Casino Supervisor and lives in Henderson NV and he
u s e d t h e D V 8 E n d l e s s N i g h t m a r e .
Don Quitangon won the all events title with a 2279
with handicap. He had a 571, 581, 641, for a 1793
scratch total and won $300.00.
Don Quitangon and his friend
This tournament is for active & retired First Respond-
ers, Law Enforcement, Fire Fighters, men & women
from agencies that serve our communities as well as
their guests. Each four person team must include at
least 2 that are eligible and up to 2 guests. For more
information on this event please visit
-
roller.com and let’s make this tournament an even a
bigger success in 2015. This tournament was spon-
sored by Storm Products, Inc. and presented by the
High Roller.
Storm's Gary Hulsenberg, TAT Champ
Jon Rkoski and Tournament Director Jamie McWilliams
Jon Rakoski Wins 2015 TAT
Summer Classic!
July 4, 2015, Las Vegas, Nevada- Jon Rakoski from
Estero, Florida shot 257 in the final match to win
$20,000 and the TAT Summer Classic trophy! Jon
Kroll from West Seneca, New York took home
2
nd
Place & $10,000 shooting 216. Russ Oviatt and
Cliff Connors both residing in Tempe, Arizona took
home $7,500 and $6,000 for 3
rd
and 4
th
. Finishing
5
th
from Mission, Texas was Armando Martinez from
the 189 & Under Handicap Div. taking home $5,000.
It has been another great week of Megabuck bowling
at the Orleans in Las Vegas! A summer entry record of
452 created over 2,000 entries and the Summer TAT
was filled with bowlers from around the world! These
bowlers saw big squads and even more cash with a
prize fund reaching
over $250,000, including 7 prizes
of at least $5,000!
1 out of 3 made the TAT main fi-
nals and received $500 with a minimum of $250 added
each round they advanced. 25 Division Leaders also
earned an additional $250 bonus.
The TAT Snake Pattern kept the scoring pace re-
spectable throughout the week including several scores
just over 600 making the cut in the scratch divisions! It
was a tough demanding pattern that had multiple entry
angles allowing all styles to have an equal chance.
For the first time this year’s TAT Storm Challenge had
a Handicap and Scratch division with 2 bowlers from
each division getting to the Shootout!
Greg Walters
Jr
.
was the only one that could throw 3 strikes out of 5
attempts to take home the title and
$5,000 1
st
Place.
The other 3 finalists received $1,000 for their ef-
forts. The Storm staff also handed out 115 Storm
Rockets to participants in The Storm Challenge, which
seemed to be the ball of choice at this Summer’s TAT.
The Storm crew was live streaming the event which
can be found on their YouTube Channel. Thanks to
Gary & Jim for doing some fine work in the booth and
on the lanes this week! You can find streams from the
finals of all of our events including the Main TAT Finals,
Storm Challenge, Senior, & Ladies Event Finals on
Youtube. We would also like to thank The Orleans
Hotel & Bowling Alley, K&K Pro Shop, and Stability
Strikes Socks for taking such good care of our bowlers
all week long.
Stay tuned for changes on our eligibility rules for The
2016 TAT Amateur Nationals. Some ―Professional
Amateurs‖ may become ineligible for the TAT as we try
to focus more on the average league bowler.
Benny Salcines and Alta James
Josh and Mitch Kelsey
Watch for your brochure of the
2016 TAT Amateur Nationals - gearing up to be
our biggest and best event ever!
Don’t miss out on the $300,000 estimated prize
fund February 1
st
- 6
th
, 2016 at
The Orleans in Las Vegas, NV
Photos and story by Randy Gulley
