JUNE 2015 -
7
SERVING THE BOWLING INDUSTRY SINCE 1967
Weber Defeats Forkel To
Win First Suncoast
PBA Senior U.S. Open Title
Weber beats Forkel 224-212 in title match to join
Norm Duke as only players to win U.S. Open titles
on both PBA and PBA50 Tours
LAS VEGAS (June 5, 2015)
– Professional
Bowlers Association Hall of Famer Pete Weber of
St. Ann, Mo., won the Suncoast PBA Senior U.S.
Open presented by Storm Friday to join fellow Hall
of Famer Norm Duke of Clermont, Fla., as the
only players to win U.S. Open titles on both the
PBA and PBA50 Tours.
Weber, who has won a record five U.S. Open
titles on the PBA Tour, defeated local favorite and
No. 1 qualifier Eric Forkel of Henderson, Nev.,
224-212, in the title match at the Suncoast Bowl-
ing Center to join Duke in the elite club.
―A major title is a major title no matter where it
comes from,‖ said Weber, who owns 37 PBA Tour
titles including a record tying 10 majors. ―That’s
why they have them, because they’re above the
rest of the tournaments. I don’t care if it’s a senior
major or super senior major, they mean the same
to me because of what it takes to win them.‖
In the title match, Forkel, a five-time PBA Tour
titlist, held an eight-pin lead over Weber in the
seventh frame with both players throwing a double
in the eighth and ninth frames.
Forkel, who finished third in the 2013 Senior U.S.
Open, left a seven pin on the first ball of the 10th
frame which left an opening for Weber. Weber got
the first two strikes in the 10th frame that sealed
the win.
―I couldn’t really complain today because 90 per-
cent of the shots I made I felt real good about,‖
said the 53-year-old Weber. ―You expect to have
a bad break somewhere but I didn’t really have
one worth mentioning. When I didn’t strike I had a
nine-count most of the time and when that’s the
worst you do you’re going to be in good shape.‖
In the semifinal match, Weber defeated Duke,
who won the 2014 Senior U.S. Open on his way
to earning PBA50 Player and Rookie of the Year
honors, 247-190, to advance to the title match.
Duke defeated Weber in last year’s title match,
214-174, to win the Senior U.S. Open.
As the No. 4 qualifier, Weber opened the steplad-
der final by defeating six-time PBA Tour winner
and No. 3 qualifier Chris Warren of Grants Pass,
Ore., 224-202, to advance to the semifinal match
against Duke.
―I just used the same philosophy for the finals I
used for the whole tournament,‖ said Weber, who
did not have an open frame in his three matches.
―Just stay patient and make the spares.‖
For Weber it was his first PBA50 Tour title of the
season and fourth of his career. He now has won
both PBA50 Tour majors having captured the
United States Bowling Congress Senior Masters
title in 2013.
Former major league all-star pitcher and PBA50
Tour rookie John Burkett of Southlake, TX, bowl-
ing in his first PBA50 Tour major, finished 15th.
The Senior U.S. Open is considered the most
demanding test for players because of its grueling
format. Like the U.S. Open on the PBA Tour, the
Senior U.S. Open demands patience, quality shot-
making and a strong mental game over 50 games
of qualifying and match play to make the finals.
SUNCOAST PBA SENIOR U.S. OPEN PRE-
SENTED BY STORM
Suncoast Bowling Center, Las Vegas, Friday
Final Standings:
1, Pete Weber, St. Ann., Mo.,
$12,000. 2, Eric Forkel, Henderson, Nev., $7,000.
3, Norm Duke, Clermont, Fla., $5,000. 4, Chris
Warren, Grants Pass, Ore., $4,000.
Playoff Results:
Match One – Weber def. War-
ren, 224-202. Semifinal – Weber def. Duke, 247-
190. Championship match – Weber def. Forkel,
224-212.
SEVENTH ROUND RESULTS
50-game pinfall totals including bonus pins, match
play record and money earned.
Top four advanced to stepladder
1, Eric Forkel, Henderson, Nev., 26-6, 11,437.
2, Norm Duke, Clermont, Fla., 22-9-1, 11,369.
3, Chris Warren, Grants Pass, Ore., 20-11-1,
11,306.
4, Pete Weber, St. Ann., Mo., 20-12, 11,276.
Did not advance:
5, Rick Steelsmith, Wichita, Kan., 19-13, $3,500.
6, Jack Jurek, Lackawanna, N.Y., 19-13, $3,000.
7, Bob Learn Jr., Erie, Pa., 21-11,
$2,800.
8, Amleto Monacelli, Venezuela, 17-15, $2,600
9, Ron Mohr, Las Vegas, 16-16, $2,500.
10, Walter Ray Williams Jr., FL., 16-14-2, $2,400.
11, Noel Vazquez, Sacramento, CA., 15-16-1, $2,300.
12, a-Bo Goergen, Sanford, Mich., 16-15-1, , $2,200.
13, a-Skip Wolfe, Dixon, Ill., 16-15-1, 10,709, $2,100.
14, Harry Sullins, Chesterfield, Mich., 15-17, $2,050.
15, John Burkett, Southlake, Texas, 16-15-1, $2,000.
16, Lennie Boresch Jr., Kenosha, WI., 16-16, $1,950.
17, Warren Nelson, Middleburg, Fla., 17-15, $1,900.
18, Thomas Ream, Tampa, Fla., 16-15-1, $1,850.
19, Hugh Miller, Mercer Island, Fla., 13-19, $1,800.
20, Paul McCordic, Sugar Land, TX, 13-18-1, $1,750.
21, *Roger Kossert, Lithia, Fla., 13-11, $1,602
22, Mike Scroggins, Amarillo, Texas, 16-16, $1,700.
23, Robert Spaulding, MicKinney, TX, 16-16, $1,675.
24, Robert Lawrence, Austin, Texas, 13-18-1, $1,650.
25, * Mike Edwards, Tulsa, Okla., $1,562.
*Roger Kossert replaced Mike Edwards, who withdrew
due to injury. Edwards credited with 25th and earned
$1,562.
a-denotes amateur
Romeo Makes History At 2015
USBC Senior Queens
By Matt
Cannizzaro
GREEN BAY, Wis. -
United States Bowling Congress Hall of
Famer Robin Romeo of Newhall, California, became the first
woman in history to win back-to-back USBC Senior Queens titles
as she defeated fellow hall of famer Tish Johnson of Colorado
Springs, Colorado, for the second consecutive year.
Romeo shut out Johnson with clutch strikes in the ninth and 10th
frames. She tripped a 4-9 split on the challenging right lane and
then delivered the winning shot , prevailing 212-191.
The 57-year-old right-hander earned $3,000 and the coveted
Senior Queens tiara for the win Tuesday at The Ashwaubenon
Bowling Alley, while Johnson took home $1,500 for the second-
place effort.
Johnson has been the runner-up each year since 2013 to go
along with a fourth-place finish in 2012.
The 2015 event featured a prize fund of more than $20,000, and
the stepladder finals were broadcast live on BowlTV.
"I was just focused on making the best two shots of my life," said
Romeo, who defeated Johnson, 241-188, in last year's Senior
Queens title tilt. "I got the break on the 4-9 and wanted to take
advantage of that."
Romeo also is the fourth bowler to win the event multiple times,
joining USBC Hall of Famers Sandy Postma (three), Shirley
Levens (two) and Lucy Sandelin (two).
"Coming in as the defending champion, you don't want to think
about that too much, but I felt good all week," Romeo said. "I fig-
ured this would be Tish's day, and she would come out and bowl
a big game, so I'd need a big score to beat her. When I left the
split in the seventh frame, I knew she was going to come back, so
I had to stay focused."
Romeo dominated for most of the week in Green Bay, leading
qualifying by more than 80 pins and cruising to four wins in the
double-elimination match-play bracket before running into John-
son in the match that determined who would be the top seed for
the stepladder.
Johnson won that match, 622-569, to guarantee herself a third
consecutive shot at her first Senior Queens title, but going in as
the No. 2 qualifier might have worked to Romeo's advantage.
"I wanted to be the top seed, but I knew the match against Tish
was going to be tough," said Romeo, the 2012 Bowling's U.S.
Senior Women's Open winner. "Sometimes, it's good to get a
match under your belt, and I think that definitely helped me today."
On the way to the final, Romeo again determined her own fate
and shut out Lisa Wasson of Murphy, TX, with three consecutive
strikes starting in the eighth frame. Romeo prevailed, 214-196, to
earn her shot at the record books.
Wasson entered Tuesday's stepladder as the fifth seed and
started the day with a 202-181 win against 2010 Senior Queens
champion Char Hammel of Las Vegas.
That momentum carried into her second match against Mandy
Wilson of Dayton, Ohio, and four strikes in the first five frames
catapulted her into the semifinal against Romeo by a 225-163
margin.
Wasson earned $1,250 for her third-place finish, Wilson took
home $1,000 for fourth place and Hammel pocketed $750 for fifth.
The Senior Queens is open to all female USBC members age 50
and older.
