Two familiar names on the local bowling scene put their stamp on the 13th annual Genesee Region USBC Association Tournament that concluded last Sunday at Oak Orchard Bowl in Albion (Team event) and Medina Lanes (Doubles & Singles events).
Rich Wagner of Batavia placed first in Open Singles with a 741 total while Curtis Foss of Medina placed first in Open All-Events with a 2,209 nine-game total and teamed with Robbie Hanks of Albion to win the Open Doubles event with a 1,484 score.
Both Wagner and Foss sported league averages north of 240 this season, with Wagner setting a GRUSBC-record of 246 in the Toyota of Batavia Thursday League at Mancuso Bowling Center.
In the Open Team event, Team Johnson of Batavia took top honors with 2,668 (2,620 scratch) as captain Mike Johnson rolled 694, Matt Balduf 678, Gregg Wolff 642 and Mike Lambert 606.
Game On, also a Batavia-based team, placed second with 2,652 while Oak Orchard Bowl finished in third place with 2,647.
In the Women’s Division, only three teams competed with PinNaction, out of Albion, placing first with 2,379. Team members are Rebecca Hughson, Kay Ecker, Estelle Webb and Laurie Cole,
Roxanne Clar and Dawn Johnson of Geneseo won the Women’s Doubles with 1,268; Terri Loessl of Albion won the Women’s Singles with 752 and Rachel Van Duser of Perry won the Women’s All-Events with 1,845.
Nathan Cordes of Batavia had the tournament's high game of 299, while Foss shot 288 and six bowlers -- Foss, Steve Krna, Wagner, Reid Cole, Randy Hanks and Scott Allis -- each posted a 279 game.
Thirty-five teams competed in the two divisions (Open and Women), the same number as last year, but Doubles went up from 39 to 58 and Singles increased from 85 to 115.
Complete unofficial results can be found on the Genesee Region USBC website – www.bowlgr.com.
CANADIAN ROCKER TO SPEAK AT GRUSBC BANQUET
Legendary Canadian rock musician Carl Dixon will share the inspirational story of his miraculous recovery from a horrific car accident as the keynote speaker at the Genesee Region USBC's Annual Banquet on May 11 at Batavia Downs Gaming on Park Road. The event will begin at 6 p.m. sharp.
Tickets for the banquet are $30 and can be obtained by calling 585-343-3736 or sending an email to mikep@bowlgr.com.
For more information about tickets for the event go to the Genesee Region USBC website.
Four new members to the Genesee Region USBC Hall of Fame will be enshrined at the May 11 banquet.
They are James Foss of Medina in the Achievement Regular category, Robert Hodgson of Medina and Al Vlietstra of Geneseo in the Achievement Veteran category, and Eunice Englert of Nunda in the Meritorious Service category.
Watch for more about the inductees in a future Pin Points column.
Dixon, a Sault Sainte Marie, Northern Ontario native, was signed to his first international record deal at just 22-years old with his break through band, Coney Hatch
He toured North America -- opening for Iron Maiden for 40 shows and Judas Priest for 27 shows, and went on to tour with some of the biggest names in North American music. He became lead singer of The Guess Who after Burton Cummings left the iconic Canadian band. Carl held that position for eight years until his head-on car accident in Australia.
According to his press release:
It was 2008 when Carl took leave from The Guess Who to sort out family issues in Australia but the stress took its toll. Distracted and worried while driving at night Carl was involved in a horrific head on car collision in rural Victoria. He sustained 52 injuries including traumatic brain injury, crushed legs and crushed internal organs. Trapped in the mangled car for one hour and forty-five minutes there seemed little hope.
Remarkably, ten years on, Carl Dixon is walking tall. His rescue by dedicated volunteers and emergency surgeons and staff in Australia is the stuff of legends. His unlikely survival was followed by family and business difficulty. When the dust settled his business was in tatters and he was left with a mountain of debt.
Doggedly Carl returned to doing what he loves: music. His injuries caused him to rethink his approach and Carl became an author and inspirational speaker sharing his survival story.
Ten years on from his accident Carl sings better than ever, he's re-branded his business to six figure success; he’s a published author, had a triumphant return to The Guess Who as a special guest and returned to touring with Coney Hatch.
JAKOB BUTTURFF WINS 2019 USBC MASTERS
Jakob Butturff of Tempe, Ariz., has finally made it to the winner’s circle of a PBA major championship.
The double-jointed lefty captured his first career major championship by winning the 2019 United States Bowling Congress Masters on Monday in Las Vegas.
He beat fellow southpaw Mykel Holliman of Collierville, Tennessee, 228-196, for his sixth PBA title and the $30,000 first prize. Holliman earned $25,000.
Butturff had finished second in his three previous appearances on television in major championships – losing as the top seed at both the 2017 and 2018 U.S. Open and to Australia’s Jason Belmonte, 236-227, in the title match of the 2019 PBA World Championship in March.
Belmonte’s victory was his record 11th PBA major title, breaking a tie with PBA Hall of Famers Earl Anthony and Pete Weber for most major titles. He now has 21 PBA tour titles.
Fox Sports (FS1) will be airing the PBA Playoffs from Portland, Maine, beginning this Monday (April 8) with a live telecast, and then on a tape-delayed basis on Monday nights through the end of May.
The semifinal and final rounds will be televised live on FOX on June 1-2. The winner will earn $100,000.
