HOMETOWN FAVORITE MOTOWN MUSCLE TEAM WINS PBA LEAGUE MARK ROTH ROUND

ALLEN PARK, Mich. – Motown Muscle anchor bowler Mike Fagan’s nine-count spare and strike in the 10th frame was just enough to salvage a 195-193 victory for hometown favorite Jerome Bettis’ team in the Professional Bowlers Association League’s Mark Roth round at Thunderbowl Lanes, preventing the New York City WTT KingPins from winning back to back titles.

The PBA League Mark Roth round, and the Mark Roth Classic title match, aired Sunday on ESPN.

In the PBA League final match, the KingPins’ Tommy Jones, Pete Weber and anchor bowler Scott Norton put together a string of three strikes to help their team take a one-pin lead after seven frames. After trading open-frame splits in the eighth frame and strikes in the ninth, the match came down to Fagan vs. Norton in the 10th frame.

Fagan’s inability to strike on his first shot gave Norton an opening. Needing a strike on his first shot for the win, Norton left a 3 pin, handing Motown 12 points in the PBA League Elias Cup race. The KingPins earned nine Elias Cup points as runners-up.

“It was good TV,” Fagan grinned of his team’s close call. “I was hoping for a little better performance, but I got what I needed when it counted. I figured I’d take the responsibility (of bowling anchor). I feel good on these lanes. I’ve got a good ball reaction, but maybe I was a little over-aggressive.

“Getting 12 (Elias Cup) points is big. We lost our first match in the Salvino round, but we’re getting a little more comfortable with the TV set and the atmosphere, so we think we can make a run for the Cup.”

After a sluggish start in the semifinal match, the KingPins’ Jones, Weber and Norton also combined for a string of three strikes to clinch a 211-162 victory over Kevin Hart’s Philadelphia Hitmen. The KingPins got help from three Hitmen open frames and they advanced to their second straight title match.

In the opening match, consecutive strikes by Philadelphia’s Mike DeVaney, Bill O’Neill and Mika Koivuniemi, combined with back-to-back opens in the ninth and 10th frames by Jesse Williams’ BROOKLYN STyLES were keys to the Hitmen’s 214-176 victory. DeVaney got the Hitmen into the stepladder finals by surviving the Clash eliminator round.

Next Sunday, ESPN will air the two-hour live finals of the United States Bowling Congress Masters from Brunswick Zone Carolier in North Brunswick, N.J., starting at 3 p.m. ET.

PBA League coverage continues on Sunday, March 3 at 3 p.m. ET with the title match of the Don Carter Classic between top qualifier Wes Malott of Pflugerville, Texas, and challenger Jason Sterner of McDonough, Ga., and the PBA League Carter round featuring the BROOKLYN STyLES, the New York City WTT KingPins, Chris Hardwick’s Silver Lake Atom Splitters and the team that advances from the Clash eliminator round.

PBA LEAGUE MARK ROTH ROUND
Thunderbowl Lanes, Allen Park, Mich.

Final Match (five-player Baker team format)
Motown Muscle (Ronnie Russell, Jesse Buss, Tom Smallwood, Mike Scroggins, Mike Fagan) def. New York City WTT KingPins (John Szczerbinski, Jack Jurek, Tommy Jones, Pete Weber, Scott Norton), 195-193.

Semifinal Match (Baker team)
New York City WTT KingPins def. Philadelphia Hitmen (Chris Loschetter, Dick Allen, Mike DeVaney, Bill O’Neill, Mika Koivuniemi), 211-162.

Match One (Baker team)
Philadelphia Hitmen def. BROOKLYN STyLES (Walter Ray Williams Jr., Jason Sterner, Ryan Shafer, Ryan Ciminelli, Sean Rash), 214-176.

Clash Eliminator (in order of players eliminated based on low one-ball total per round; last surviving player’s team advanced to stepladder finals):
Round One – Chris Loschetter, Philadelphia Hitmen, six pins.
Round Two – Bill O’Neill, Philadelphia Hitmen, eight pins.
Round Three – Nathan Bohr, Silver Lake Atom Splitters, eight pins.
Round Four – Michael Machuga, Dallas Strikers; Mika Koivuniemi, Philadelphia Hitmen; Chris Barnes, Silver Lake Atom Splitters, nine pins.
Round Five – none (all strikes).
Round Six – Osku Palermaa, Pittsburgh Jack Rabbits; Parker Bohn III, L.A. X; Rhino Page, Dallas Strikers, six pins.
Round Seven – Mike DeVaney, Philadelphia Hitmen, eliminated Dom Barrett, Silver Lake Atom Splitters, 10-9.

ELIAS CUP POINTS STANDINGS (after three of five rounds)
1, New York City WTT KingPins, 32.
2, Motown Muscle, 27.
3, BROOKLYN STyLES, 25.
4, Philadelphia Hitmen, 17.
5, Dallas Strikers, 16.
6, Silver Lake Atom Splitters, 13.
7, L.A. X, 11.
8, Pittsburgh Jack Rabbits, 4.

About the PBA
The Professional Bowlers Association (PBA) is an organization of more than 3,200 of the best bowlers from 17 countries who compete in PBA Tour, PBA International Tour, PBA Regional and PBA50 Tour events. Nearly one million ESPN viewers watch PBA Tour on Sundays during the tour season and thousands around the world watch PBA activities on Xtra Frame, the PBA’s exclusive online bowling channel. PBA sponsors include Brunswick, Ebonite International, GEICO, Jack Link’s, MOTIV, Storm Products and the United States Bowling Congress, among others. For more information, log on to http://www.pba.com.

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MICHAEL HAUGEN JR. WINS THIRD CAREER TITLE IN PBA MARK ROTH CLASSIC

ALLEN PARK, Mich. (Feb. 15, 2013) – Michael Haugen Jr. of Carefree, Ariz., was a man on a mission, and survived a battle that wasn’t resolved until the final frame in defeating Scott Norton of Mission Viejo, Calif., 215-194, to win his third Professional Bowlers Association Tour title in the Mark Roth Classic at Thunderbowl Lanes.

The Mark Roth Classic title match, and the PBA League Mark Roth round finals, aired Sunday on ESPN.

Haugen, 46, won both of his previous PBA titles in 2008, but came into the 2012-13 season without the support of a bowling ball company sponsor and felt snubbed because he wasn’t one of the 48 players selected to participate in the new PBA League. He vowed it would take 10 quality shots by Norton to beat him for the Roth title, and Norton fell short, leaving back-to-back 4-6-7-10 splits in the ninth and 10th frames which turned a tight battle into an easy win for Haugen.

“Being able to stay in the moment and make the shot you need to make is very rewarding, and I was able to do that today,” Haugen said. “Scott and I both felt there wasn’t going to be a 250 game on those conditions, so it was a matter of staying clean. I was just very fortunate today that Scott got a couple of bad breaks. You never expect a guy that talented to make shots like that.”

Being overlooked in the inaugural PBA League draft also provided incentive for Haugen.

“I’ve been at this (PBA competition) for 14 years. I’ve made a TV show every year, and done ok in stats, but I didn’t get picked,” he said. “I don’t know why, but that was motivation for me, too. It feels really good.”

Next Sunday, ESPN will air the two-hour live finals of the United States Bowling Congress Masters from Brunswick Zone Carolier in North Brunswick, N.J., starting at 3 p.m. ET.

PBA League coverage continues on Sunday, March 3 at 3 p.m. ET with the title match of the Don Carter Classic between top qualifier Wes Malott of Pflugerville, Texas, and challenger Jason Sterner of McDonough, Ga., and the PBA League Carter round featuring the BROOKLYN STyLES, the New York City WTT KingPins, Chris Hardwick’s Silver Lake Atom Splitters and the team that advances from the Clash eliminator round.

PBA MARK ROTH CLASSIC
Thunderbowl Lanes, Allen Park, Mich.

Championship
Michael Haugen Jr., Carefree, Ariz. ($15,000) def. Scott Norton, Mission Viejo, Calif. ($7,500), 215-194.

About the PBA
The Professional Bowlers Association (PBA) is an organization of more than 3,200 of the best bowlers from 17 countries who compete in PBA Tour, PBA International Tour, PBA Regional and PBA50 Tour events. Nearly one million ESPN viewers watch PBA Tour on Sundays during the tour season and thousands around the world watch PBA activities on Xtra Frame, the PBA’s exclusive online bowling channel. PBA sponsors include Brunswick, Ebonite International, GEICO, Jack Link’s, MOTIV, Storm Products and the United States Bowling Congress, among others. For more information, log on to http://www.pba.com.

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PBA LEAGUE AND TOUR ACTION CONTINUES SUNDAY ON ESPN WITH MARK ROTH CLASSIC AND PBA LEAGUE ROUND

The PBA Tour and PBA League continues on ESPN Sunday Feb. 17 at 3 p.m. ET with the finals of the Mark Roth Classic and the Mark Roth round of PBA League competition from Thunderbowl Lanes in Allen Park, Mich.

The telecast will begin with the Clash eliminator round where 11 players will compete in a one-ball, low-man-out competition. Rounds continue until one survivor remains; his team then becomes the No. 4 team in the PBA League stepladder final.

Teams will be represented in the Clash round on a weighted basis, based upon their finishing position in the qualifying round. In the Roth round, the Philadelphia Hitmen (the No. 4 qualifier) will have four players in the Clash field, followed by the Silver Lake Atom Splitters with three, Dallas Strikers with two and L.A. X and the Pittsburgh Jack Rabbits with one each.

The winner of the Clash round will then bowl the opening Baker team match against Jesse Williams’ BROOKLYN STyLES (Sean Rash, Ryan Ciminelli, Ryan Shafer, Walter Ray Williams Jr. and Jason Sterner).

The match one winner advances to meet Billie Jean King’s New York City WTT KingPins (Pete Weber, Tommy Jones, Scott Norton, Jack Jurek and John Szczerbinski) in the semifinal.

The semifinal winner will challenge the qualifying leader Motown Muscle (Mike Fagan, Tom Smallwood, Mike Scroggins, Ronnie Russell and Jesse Buss) owned by former NFL star Jerome Bettis.

The Mark Roth Classic is named after the PBA Hall of Famer who ranks fifth all-time in career Tour wins with 34.  The four-time Player of the Year was ranked fifth greatest PBA player of all-time as part of the organization’s 50 year anniversary in 2009.

After two rounds of PBA League competition, the NYC WTT Kingpins lead the race to the Elias Cup finals with 24 points followed by BROOKLyN STyLES, 20; Motown Muscle, 15; Dallas Strikers, 13; Philadelphia Hitmen, 11; Silver Lake Atom Splitters and L.A. X tied with 9 and Pittsburgh Jack Rabbits, 3.

Two more PBA League telecasts remain (Don Carter round on March 3 and Earl Anthony round on March 24) before the top four finalists for the PBA League Elias Cup finals are determined. The Elias Cup, named in honor of PBA founder Eddie Elias, which will be contested at Woodland Bowl in Indianapolis on March 31 and telecast on Sunday, April 7 at 1 p.m. ET on ESPN.

Also Sunday, two-time Tour titlists Scott Norton of Mission Viejo, Calif., will take on Michael Haugen Jr. of Carefree, Ariz., in the Mark Roth Classic championship match.

Three easy steps to enhance your PBA telecast experience:

1) Tune into pba.com’s Xtra Frame for a free pre-game preview of the Mark Roth Classic and Mark Roth PBA League round.

2) Watch the Mark Roth Classic finals and PBA League round on ESPN Sunday at 3 p.m. ET.

3) Tune into the post-event show at Sunday 5 p.m. ET. Xtra Frame’s post-tournament show interviews the winning player and provides in-depth ball rep analysis of the winner’s equipment selection and ball preparation.

Bowling fans can get additional Tour coverage on pba.com and provide their feedback on PBA Tour telecasts through PBA’s social networking platforms on Facebook and Twitter.

MICHAEL HAUGEN JR. TO FACE SCOTT NORTON FOR PBA MARK ROTH CLASSIC TITLE

ALLEN PARK, Mich. (Jan. 23, 2013) – Michael Haugen Jr. of Carefree, Ariz., who won both of his Professional Bowlers Association Tour titles in 2008, will get a chance to end his nearly five-year dry spell when he meets Scott Norton of Mission Viejo, Calif., in the Mark Roth Classic championship match.

Haugen, after qualifying for the Roth Classic match play finals in fifth place earlier Wednesday at Thunderbowl Lanes in Detroit, won seven of his nine match games, tied another, and averaged 241.94 over a span of 17 games to finish with 4,338 total pins, 114 pins ahead of Norton. Norton, who won his second career title earlier this season in the PBA Chameleon Open, overtook reigning PBA Player of the Year Sean Rash of Montgomery, Ill., by 32 pins in the final game.

“It’s been too long. There are two guys on the show and 135 guys who tried to get there, so the odds weren’t too good,” Haugen said. “I didn’t bowl well Tuesday. Today I made some changes, and I did what I needed to do. It’s been too long. You don’t forget how to win, but we’ll see what happens. If (Norton) beats me, it’s not going to be because I gave him the title. He’s going to have to earn it. 

“I came out this year as a free agent (without a bowling ball manufacturers’ contract), but to be honest, the most motivation I had was not getting drafted in the PBA League. I had the credentials; I can bowl in this building, but for whatever reason, I got overlooked, so the best way to show them was to get on the television show. That was my plan.

“It’s very difficult to be one of two guys to make it to television, but I’ve gotta tell you, it feels sweet.”

The Mark Roth Classic championship match, along with the Roth PBA League team stepladder finals, will be contested on Saturday at 3:30 p.m. ET at Thunderbowl Lanes. The finals will air on ESPN on Sunday, Feb. 17, at 3 p.m. ET.

Wednesday afternoon, Michigan native Tom Smallwood, who launched his PBA career at Thunderbowl in 2009, helped his Motown Muscle team claim the top stepladder position in the PBA League Mark Roth round finals.

Smallwood, a Saginaw resident who lost his job at General Motors during the auto industry’s economic downturn in 2009 and turned his unemployed status into a victory in the PBA World Championship later that same season, posted an eight-game total of 1,858 pins to help the Motown Muscle team – owned by Detroit native and former Pittsburgh Steelers star running back Jerome Bettis – to the No. 1 berth in the Mark Roth team qualifying round stepladder finals by 182 pins over Billie Jean King’s New York City WTT KingPins.

Actor Jesse Williams’ BROOKLYN STyLES locked up the third team stepladder berth with 8,991 pins. The other five teams will compete in a one-ball Clash Match eliminator round to determine the fourth team that will bowl in the Baker format television finals. In Baker team competition, each of the five players bowls two frames to complete a game.

The Detroit Winter Swing features a unique combination of PBA individual and team competitions. A field of 135 players is competing for individual titles while eight teams of five players are also using their qualifying scores to help their teams qualify in inaugural PBA League competition. Competition continues Thursday with qualifying and match play rounds in the Don Carter Classic and the third day of PBA League competition.

All preliminary rounds of Winter Swing competition are being covered live, exclusively on PBA’s online bowling channel, Xtra Frame. To subscribe to Xtra Frame, visit pba.com and click on the Xtra Frame link.

PBA MARK ROTH CLASSIC
Thunderbowl Lanes, Allen Park, Mich., Jan. 23

Final Match Play Standings (after 17 games, including match play bonus pins; top two advance to championship match)
1, Michael Haugen Jr., Carefree, Ariz., 7-1-1, 4,338.
2, Scott Norton, Mission Viejo, Calif., 7-2, 4,224.
Other Match Play Cashers:
3, Sean Rash, Montgomery, Ill., 4-5, 4,192, $6,000.
4, Mike Scroggins, Amarillo, Texas, 5-4, 4,125, $4,500.
5, Mika Koivuniemi, Finland, 4-4-1, 4,065, $4,000.
6, Tom Smallwood, Saginaw, Mich., 4-4-1, 4,056, $3,500.
7, Ryan Ciminelli, Cheektowaga, N.Y., 6-3, 4,017, $3,000.
8, Pete Weber, St. Ann, Mo., 4-4-1, 4,012, $2,500.
9, Norm Duke, Clermont, Fla., 3-5-1, 3,984, $2,200.
10, Ildemaro Ruiz, Venezuela, 2-6-1, 3,972, $2,000.
11, Dom Barrett, England, 4-3-2, 3,971, $1,900.
12, Brett Spangler, Niles, Ohio, 5-4, 3,968, $1,800.
13, Jesse Buss, Belvidere, Ill., 3-6, 3,951, $1,800.
14, Ronnie Sparks JR, Ecorse, Mich., 4-5, 3,944, $1,600.
15, Chris Loschetter, Avon, Ohio, 2-7, 3,927, $1,650.
16, Tom Baker, King, N.C., 4-5, 3,788, $1,500.

Other Cashers (after 8 games):
17, Nathan Bohr, Wichita, Kan., 1,832, $1,000.
18, Kelly Kulick, Union, N.J., 1,829, $950.
19, Ronnie Russell, Marion, Ind., 1,827, $900.
20 (tie), Bill O’Neill, Langhorne, Pa., and Brian Valenta, Lockport, Ill., 1,826, $835.
22, Jack Jurek, Lackawanna, N.Y., 1,823, $800.
23, Lonnie Waliczek, Wichita, Kan., 1,821, $790.
24, Anthony LaCaze, Melrose Park, Ill., 1,816, $780.
25, Wes Malott, Pflugerville, Texas, 1,814, $770.
26, B.J. Moore II, Apex, N.C., 1,813, $760.
27, Brian Kretzer, Dayton, Ohio, 1,809, $750.
28, Mark Milasinovich, Macomb, Mich., 1,804, $740.
29, Eugene McCune, Munster, Ind., 1,802, $730.
30, E.J. Tackett, Huntington, Ind., 1,801, $720.
31, Harry Sullins, Chesterfield Twp., Mich., 1,799, $710.
32, David Haynes, Las Vegas, 1,798, $700.
300 Game: Rick Zakrajsek, Jesse Buss.

EARL ANTHONY PBA PLAYERS CHAMPIONSHIP QUALIFYING LEADERS
(top 32 players after 16 of 32 games; top 16 after 32 games advance to round robin match play Friday night)
1, Sean Rash, Montgomery, Ill., 3,915.
2, Scott Norton, Mission Viejo, Calif., 3,853.
3, Tom Smallwood, Saginaw, Mich., 3,811.
4, Bill O’Neill, Langhorne, Pa., 3,741.
5, Mika Koivuniemi, Hartland, Mich., 3,738.
6, D.J. Archer, Friendswood, Texas, 3,726.
7 (tie), Brett Spangler, Niles, Ohio, and Pete Weber, St. Ann, Mo., 3,717.
9, Chris Loschetter, Avon, Ohio, 3,694.
10, Ronnie Russell, Marion, Ind., 3,686.
11, Michael Machuga, Erie, Pa., 3,684.
12, Patrick Allen, Wesley Chapel, Fla., 3,650.
13, Dom Barrett, England, 3,646.
14, Frankie Calca, Elmont, N.Y., 3,636.
15, Tom Daugherty, Wesley Chapel, Fla., 3,620.
16, Ildemaro Ruiz, Venezuela, 3,619.
17, Michael Haugen Jr., Carefree, Ariz., 3,615.
18, Mike Scroggins, Amarillo, Texas, 3,614.
19, Brian Valenta, Lockport, Ill., 3,610.
20, Nathan Bohr, Wichita, Kan., 3,595.
21, Ronnie Sparks Jr., Ecorse, Mich., 3,590.
22, Craig Nidiffer, Trenton, Mich., 3,570.
23, Eugene McCune, Munster, Ind., 3,566.
24, Dave Wodka, Henderson, Nev., 3,562.
25, B.J. Moore II, Apex, N.C., 3,559.
26, Mark Milasinovich, Macomb, Mich., 3,554.
27, Amleto Monacelli, Venezuela, 3,545.
28, Jesse Buss, Belvidere, Ill., 3,544.
29, Mike DeVaney, Hemet, Calif., 3,540.
30, David Haynes, Las Vegas, 3,538.
31, Mike Fagan, Dallas, 3,534.
32, Harry Sullins, Chesterfield Twp., Mich., 3,533.

PBA LEAGUE ROTH QUALIFYING ROUND STANDINGS (after 8 games; top 3 teams advance to Baker format stepladder finals; teams 4-8 will bowl a one-ball Clash eliminator round to determine the fourth team in the stepladder finals)
1, Motown Muscle, 9,218 (Mike Fagan 1,770, Tom Smallwood 1,858, Mike Scroggins 1,888, Ronnie Russell 1,827, Jesse Buss 1,875).
2, New York City WTT KingPins, 9,036 (Pete Weber 1,843, Tommy Jones 1,672, Scott Norton 1,912, Jack Jurek 1,823, John Szczerbinski 1,786).
3, BROOKLYN STyLES, 8,991 (Sean Rash 2,029, Ryan Ciminelli 1,860 , Ryan Shafer 1,675, Walter Ray Williams Jr. 1,675, Jason Sterner 1,752).
4, Philadelphia Hitmen, 8,898 (Bill O’Neill 1,826, Mika Koivuniemi 1,921, Chris Loschetter 1,897, Mike DeVaney 1,695, Dick Allen 1,559). 
5, Silver Lake Atom Splitters, 8,775 (Chris Barnes 1,721, Dom Barrett 1,840, Josh Blanchard 1,792, Stuart Williams 1,590, Nathan Bohr 1,832).
6, Dallas Strikers, 8,738 (Norm Duke 1,852, Rhino Page 1,633, Amleto Monacelli 1,777, Bryon Smith 1,728, Mike Machuga 1,748).
7, L.A. X, 8,659 (Jason Belmonte 1,756, Wes Malott 1,814, Andres Gomez 1,646, Parker Bohn III 1,663,  Dave Wodka 1,780).
8, Pittsburgh Jack Rabbits, 8,592 (Osku Palermaa 1,742, Martin Larsen 1,727, Dan MacLelland 1,637, Patrick Allen 1,704, Thomas Larsen 1,782).

PBA LEAGUE THUNDERBOWL FINALS QUALIFYING STANDINGS (after 16 of 32 team games; top five teams advance to live ESPN Baker format stepladder finals Sunday at noon ET)
1, Motown Muscle, Detroit (owner Jerome Bettis), 18,189.
2, Philadelphia Hitmen, Philadelphia (owner Kevin Hart), 17,992.
3, New York City WWT KingPins, New York (owner Billie Jean King), 17,966.
4, BROOKLYN STyLES, Brooklyn, N.Y. (owner Jesse Williams), 17,747.
5, Silver Lake Atom Splitters, Silver Lake, Calif. (owner Chris Hardwick), 17,615.
6, L.A. X., Los Angeles (owner Chris Paul), 17,555.
7, Dallas Strikers, Dallas (owner Terrell Owens), 17,397.
8, Pittsburgh Jack Rabbits, Pittsburgh, Pa. (owner LaMarr Woodley), 17,341.

About the PBA
The Professional Bowlers Association (PBA) is an organization of more than 3,200 of the best bowlers from 17 countries who compete in PBA Tour, PBA International Tour, PBA Regional and PBA50 Tour events. Nearly one million ESPN viewers watch PBA Tour on Sundays during the tour season and thousands around the world watch PBA activities on Xtra Frame, the PBA’s exclusive online bowling channel. PBA sponsors include Brunswick, Ebonite International, GEICO, Jack Link’s, MOTIV, Storm Products and the United States Bowling Congress, among others. For more information, log on to http://www.pba.com.