USBC Masters challenged pros
Low scores the norm as players struggled under tough lane conditions
Let’s take a look at some of the qualifying scores from last week’s USBC Masters: 648, 635, 527.
Those aren’t triples. They are five-game scores. We’re not trying to belittle the three amateurs who rolled those series (averages of 129.6, 127.0 and 105.4, respectively) at the National Bowling Stadium at Reno, Nev. The 527 bowler rolled games of 83 and 80. Makes you think that a straight ball might be the answer.
It also shows that even the best bowlers in the world can be challenged by difficult lane conditions, and it made for a compelling tournament.
We usually get to see only the final four games rolled in the nationally televised stepladder finals. There were about 4,000 games, if my calculations are correct, bowled to get to that point, and watching a lot of the qualifying and matches (available on bowltv.com and flobowling.com) was fascinating.
A 196.6 average was enough to make the cut to 64 bowlers for match play, from a starting field of 216. Admittedly, it probably was the toughest-scoring Masters in two decades, but it was compelling to watch. It reminds me of the common U.S. Golf Association refrain about the U.S. Open courses: “We’re not trying to embarrass the best golfers, we’re trying to identify them.”
The scores got better through match play because the better bowlers advanced and the three-game, total-pin contests were on the same pair of lanes. With a 15-minute practice and not having to move, players could try to open up the lanes more.
Once the top five advanced to Sunday’s TV show, there were plenty of strikes, but also a lot of errant shots. The lane conditions didn’t leave any margin for error. The average for the eight televised games was 197.9.
That may not seem like much to those who compete on a house shot in their home center, but to borrow another phrase from golf, these guys are good. It wouldn’t be good TV to see the pros struggle every week, but it brings to the forefront just how well these players can make adjustments.
Look for more of the same this week, in a different format, at the U.S. Open, also at the National Bowling Stadium.
Local scene
Matt Fazzone of Rotterdam continued his hot bowling, qualifying second at the Valley Scratch Challenge XXIII in Waverly before losing his quarterfinal match. … Don Herrington of Ballston Lake finished 10th in the PBA50 Central Region in Galion, Ohio, earning $600.
Team Hogg, consisting of Mark Ross Jr., George Bristol, David Gould, Steve Rock and Justin Barcomb, rolled a 7,174 six-game block (239.1 average per man) to win the Slate Valley Lanes Scratch Shootout in Granville . ... The Capital District Challenge League at East Greenbush has canceled this week’s session after two members tested positive for COVID-19.
National news
Matt Fazzone of Rotterdam qualified second and made it to the quarterfinals of the Valley Scratch Challenge XXIII in Waverly.
The final PBA major of the season, the U.S. Open from Reno, is relegated to FS1, surprising in that “big” Fox has no schedule commitments next Sunday. Local affiliate WXXA (Fox-23) has paid programming. The FS1 telecast begins at 2 p.m. Sunday . ... “SEC Storied” examines Vanderbilt’s path to the 2007 NCAA women’s championship in “Vandy Rolls,” a half-hour documentary premiering at 9 p.m. Monday (April 12) on the SEC Network.
The USBC sent news that a bowler from Troy, Mo., Anthony Recsnik, set a record for a nine-game series with a 2,483 (275.9 average) at the Missouri USBC Open Championships. We mention this because the nine-game scoring record for a woman remains the 2,388 (265.3) rolled by Mechanicville’s Jessica Aiezza, who rolled the big series in the 2015 New York State Women’s Championships at AMF Strike ‘n Spare Lanes in Syracuse.
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