Washington State bowler takes Classified Singles lead at USBC Open Championships

5/9/11

By Matt Cannizzaro and Emil Williams Jr.
USBC Communications

RENO, Nev. - Glen Brown of Renton, Wash., got off to a hot start in singles and maintained that momentum all the way to the Classified Singles lead at the USBC Open Championships on Sunday.

The 40-year-old right-hander opened with a 10-strike 268 game and added 178 and 244 for a 690 series at the National Bowling Stadium. Robert Petersen of Crystal Lake, Ill., and Scott Blaisdell of Malad, Idaho, previously shared the lead with 680.

"It feels good," said Brown, who made his 19th consecutive Open Championships appearance. "I am extremely happy, but I was pretty nervous. My nervousness started about the seventh frame of the last game after I had five in a row. The ball stuck on my thumb because I gripped it. I got two more strikes and then the ball stuck again. Then, I finished up with a spare and a strike."

Brown always has wanted to finish in the top 10 or 15 at the Open Championships and now has the opportunity to win a title.

"I've always wanted to place in the top 10 or 15," said Brown, who bowls league at Sun Villa Lanes. "I didn't think I would ever bowl well enough to take a lead. My higher-priority goal was to shoot 300 here. But, this might top it if I win."

Brown made his Open Championships debut at the 1993 event in Tulsa, Okla., after he was invited by a team captain who needed a bowler. He has been to every tournament since and has no plans of stopping. He is focused on additional spots in the record books as a member of the tournament's 50 and 60-Year Clubs.

This year's tournament was extra special for Brown because he has been dealing with the loss of both of his parents in the last three years. He dedicated his success on the tournament lanes to them.

"This tournament is for them," Brown said. "I had both of my parents pass away within three years, with my dad passing away in January. I actually haven't done much bowling this year. It's very emotional for me, and this tournament is for them."

Brown finished his 2011 Open Championships campaign with 563 in team and 537 in doubles for a 1,790 all-events total, which is good for sixth place in Classified All-Events. Mark Bylander of Vergas, Minn., leads with 1,842.

The Classified Division is for bowlers with entering averages of 180 and below.

Click here to watch video highlights from the 2011 Open Championships.
Presenting sponsors for the 2011 USBC Open Championships are Circus Circus, Eldorado Hotel Casino Reno and Silver Legacy Resort Casino Reno. Other sponsors include Sands Regency Casino Hotel, official brackets sponsor, Kegel, official lane maintenance provider, Humana, official registration sponsor, US Steltronic, official scoring system, and supporting sponsors Storm Bowling Products, UPS, Nationwide Insurance, Atlantis Casino Resort and Spa, Harrah's Reno Casino and Hotel and Peppermill Hotel Casino.

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USA takes bronze, Sweden gold in doubles at World Men's Championships

8/16/10

By Lucas Wiseman
USBC Communications

WATCH: Semifinals | Final | Medal ceremony

MUNICH, Germany - The Team USA pairing of Patrick Allen and Rhino Page earned an unexpected bronze medal Monday night at the 2010 World Tenpin Bowling Association World Men's Championships.

After competing on the opening of five qualifying squads, Allen and Page didn't think their qualifying score would be high enough to advance to the semifinals as one of the top four teams. Instead, they slide into the semifinals as the fourth seed.

In the semifinals, the Americans fell to the eventual gold medalists, Sweden, 449-373. The Swedes went on to win the title with a 398-379 victory over Malaysia.

"We feel fortunate that we made it into the semifinals, but as a team we don't feel like we bowled as well as we should have on this pattern," Allen said. "The bottom line is that we aren't here to win bronze medals. Great bowlers are able to take advantage of situations like this, and we didn't get it done today."

Team USA fell behind early in the semifinal against Sweden and was unable to recover as Allen shot 209 and Page had 164. Mathias Arup had 253 for Sweden, while Martin Paulsson shot 196 in the winning effort.

In the championship match, the Swedes edged past the Malaysians after Nur Aiman left a 4-6-7-10 split in the final frame. That setup Arup to mark in the final frame for the title, and he delivered a perfect strike to lock it up.

Paulsson led the Swedes in the gold-medal match with 221, while Arup shot 177. Aiman shot 192 for Malaysia, and Alex Liew had 187.

Malaysia advanced to the championship match with a 429-325 victory over Germany's Bodo Konieczny and Jens Nickel. The Germans and Americans shared the bronze medal with the semifinals losses.

The Team USA pairing of Bill O'Neill and Chris Barnes finished just outside of medal contention, taking fifth place, 11 pins out of the semifinals. Wes Malott and Tommy Jones took 17th place, missing the semifinals by 68 pins.

Attention now shifts to the trios event, which begins with two days of three-game qualifying blocks on Tuesday. Team USA's Page, Allen and Malott will team up, while O'Neill, Barnes and Jones will join forces.

BowlingDigital.com will provide live streaming of the semifinals and finals of each event and coverage can also be viewed live on BOWL.com. The trios semifinals and final are scheduled to begin on Wednesday at 2 p.m. Eastern.

The 2010 WTBA World Men's Championships features 356 competitors from 65 countries competing for medals in six events - five-player team, trios, doubles, singles, all-events and Masters match play.

2010 WTBA WORLD MEN'S CHAMPIONSHIPS
At Dream Bowl Palace, Munich, Germany
Monday's Results

CHAMPIONSHIP
(Winner earns gold, loser gets silver)

(1) Martin Paulsson/Mathias Arup, Sweden def. (2) Alex Liew/Nor Aiman, Malaysia, 398-379

SEMIFINALS
(Winners advance, losers tie for bronze)

(1) Martin Paulsson/Mathias Arup, Sweden def. (4) Patrick Allen/Rhino Page, United States, 449-373
(2) Alex Liew/Nor Aiman, Malaysia def. (3) Bobo Konieczny/Jens Nickel, Germany, 429-325

QUALIFYING
(Top 10, six games)

1, Martin Paulsson/Mathias Arup, Sweden, 2,621. 2, Alex Liew/Nur Aiman, Malaysia, 2,568. 3, Bodo Konieczny/Jens Nickel, Germany, 2,514. 4, Patrick Allen/Rhino Page, United States, 2,513. 5, Bill O'Neill/Chris Barnes, United States, 2,505. 6, Choi Yong-Kyu/Kim Tae-Young, Korea, 2,498. 7, Anders Lousdal/Frederick Ohrgaard, Denmark, 2,497. 8, Syafiq Ridhwa/Aaron Kong, Malaysia, 2,497. 9, Cho Young-Seon/Jang Dong-Chul, Korea, 2,493. 10, Cheuk Yin Mak/Wu Siu Hong, Hong Kong, 2,484.

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USA takes bronze, Sweden gold in doubles at World Men's Championships

8/16/10

By Lucas Wiseman
USBC Communications

WATCH: Semifinals | Final | Medal ceremony

MUNICH, Germany - The Team USA pairing of Patrick Allen and Rhino Page earned an unexpected bronze medal Monday night at the 2010 World Tenpin Bowling Association World Men's Championships.

After competing on the opening of five qualifying squads, Allen and Page didn't think their qualifying score would be high enough to advance to the semifinals as one of the top four teams. Instead, they slide into the semifinals as the fourth seed.

In the semifinals, the Americans fell to the eventual gold medalists, Sweden, 449-373. The Swedes went on to win the title with a 398-379 victory over Malaysia.

"We feel fortunate that we made it into the semifinals, but as a team we don't feel like we bowled as well as we should have on this pattern," Allen said. "The bottom line is that we aren't here to win bronze medals. Great bowlers are able to take advantage of situations like this, and we didn't get it done today."

Team USA fell behind early in the semifinal against Sweden and was unable to recover as Allen shot 209 and Page had 164. Mathias Arup had 253 for Sweden, while Martin Paulsson shot 196 in the winning effort.

In the championship match, the Swedes edged past the Malaysians after Nur Aiman left a 4-6-7-10 split in the final frame. That setup Arup to mark in the final frame for the title, and he delivered a perfect strike to lock it up.

Paulsson led the Swedes in the gold-medal match with 221, while Arup shot 177. Aiman shot 192 for Malaysia, and Alex Liew had 187.

Malaysia advanced to the championship match with a 429-325 victory over Germany's Bodo Konieczny and Jens Nickel. The Germans and Americans shared the bronze medal with the semifinals losses.

The Team USA pairing of Bill O'Neill and Chris Barnes finished just outside of medal contention, taking fifth place, 11 pins out of the semifinals. Wes Malott and Tommy Jones took 17th place, missing the semifinals by 68 pins.

Attention now shifts to the trios event, which begins with two days of three-game qualifying blocks on Tuesday. Team USA's Page, Allen and Malott will team up, while O'Neill, Barnes and Jones will join forces.

BowlingDigital.com will provide live streaming of the semifinals and finals of each event and coverage can also be viewed live on BOWL.com. The trios semifinals and final are scheduled to begin on Wednesday at 2 p.m. Eastern.

The 2010 WTBA World Men's Championships features 356 competitors from 65 countries competing for medals in six events - five-player team, trios, doubles, singles, all-events and Masters match play.

2010 WTBA WORLD MEN'S CHAMPIONSHIPS
At Dream Bowl Palace, Munich, Germany
Monday's Results

CHAMPIONSHIP
(Winner earns gold, loser gets silver)

(1) Martin Paulsson/Mathias Arup, Sweden def. (2) Alex Liew/Nor Aiman, Malaysia, 398-379

SEMIFINALS
(Winners advance, losers tie for bronze)

(1) Martin Paulsson/Mathias Arup, Sweden def. (4) Patrick Allen/Rhino Page, United States, 449-373
(2) Alex Liew/Nor Aiman, Malaysia def. (3) Bobo Konieczny/Jens Nickel, Germany, 429-325

QUALIFYING
(Top 10, six games)

1, Martin Paulsson/Mathias Arup, Sweden, 2,621. 2, Alex Liew/Nur Aiman, Malaysia, 2,568. 3, Bodo Konieczny/Jens Nickel, Germany, 2,514. 4, Patrick Allen/Rhino Page, United States, 2,513. 5, Bill O'Neill/Chris Barnes, United States, 2,505. 6, Choi Yong-Kyu/Kim Tae-Young, Korea, 2,498. 7, Anders Lousdal/Frederick Ohrgaard, Denmark, 2,497. 8, Syafiq Ridhwa/Aaron Kong, Malaysia, 2,497. 9, Cho Young-Seon/Jang Dong-Chul, Korea, 2,493. 10, Cheuk Yin Mak/Wu Siu Hong, Hong Kong, 2,484.

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