8
- March 2017
OPEN CHAMPIONSHIPS WEEKLY GLANCE
By Matt Cannizzaro (March 8 - March 14, 2017)
Doubles leaders emerge in all three divisions at
USBC Open Championships
There was an exciting race for the Regular Doubles lead March 12 at the
South Point Bowling Plaza in Las Vegas as two sets of teammates battled
for the top spot at the 2017 United States
Bowling Congress Open Championships.
Both pairs got off to a hot start and lost
some momentum down the stretch, but
reigning Professional Bowlers Association
Southwest Region Bowler of the Year Chris
Hibbitts II of Keller, Texas, used an 10-strike
final game to cruise into the lead with Clint
Dacy, also from Keller.
Hibbitts, a 45-year-old right-hander, opened the final game with five con-
secutive strikes and closed with five more to cap off a 252 game and 695
series. Dacy failed to double in the finale but contributed a 625 set to the
leading 1,320 effort. Lennie Boresch Jr. and his son, Jacob, of Kenosha,
Wisconsin, previously held the lead with 1,289.
"We've never made it to the lead before, and it's one of those things you
always think would be pretty cool," said Dacy, a 42-year-old right-hander
who made his 18th USBC Open Championships appearance. "We usually
bowl in June, and making the web page (BOWL.com) at that point usually
means a really good score with a chance to win. In March, it may not last
through the weekend, but it was a lot of fun."
The other Regular Doubles contenders were USBC Hall of Famer Carolyn
Dorin-Ballard, also from Keller, and former Team USA member Steve Smith
of San Diego. Dorin-Ballard started the day with a 290 game and finished
with a 704 set, while Smith added 569 for a 1,273 total and fourth place
overall.
On the next squad, Duane Kruger and Jeff Kusnerick of Streator, Illinois,
took command of Standard Doubles with a 1,174 total.
Kusnerick set the pace with a 596 series, and Kruger added 578, as the two
passed brothers Stephen and John Schipper of Botkins, Ohio, who previ-
ously held the lead with 1,131.
The Classified Doubles lead went to the Montana father-son duo of John
and Charles Lindeman, who haven't competed in the Open Championships
in more than a decade and had a memorable return to the lanes in 2017.
They posted a 1,058 total March 14 to slip past Mike Ignacio of Seaside,
California, and Anthony Souza of Watsonville, California, who previously
held the lead with 1,034. John Lindeman contributed a 552 series to the per-
formance, and Charles Lindeman added 506.
Illinois bowler celebrates 50 years of Open Championships
participation
Ron Ramza of Streator, Illinois, became the first bowler to hit a participation
milestone at the 2017 USBC Open Championships as he made his 50th con-
secutive appearance at the event.
The 71-year-old right-hander began his tournament career at the 1968 tour-
nament in Cincinnati, and he was welcomed into the 50-Year Club on March
11 with family and friends cheering him on at the South Point Bowling Plaza.
He received a plaque, chevron and diamond lapel pin to commemorate the
achievement.
In his 50th appearance, Ramza rolled sets of 471 in team, 459 in doubles
and 401 in singles for a 1,331 all-events total. In his career, he's knocked
over 80,950 pins for a lifetime average of 182.3.
In total, 23 bowlers are scheduled to celebrate their 50th tournament ap-
pearances in 2017.
