California bowler perfect at 2015 Open Championships
May 17, 2015
EL PASO, Texas - Marv Sargent of Temecula, California, has been one of the best doubles partners in recent history at the United States Bowling Congress Open Championships, but he also was able to find individual success this week as he rolled the sixth perfect game of the 2015 event.
The 56-year-old right-hander connected on 12 consecutive strikes between games of 189 and 196 for a 685 singles series Sunday at the El Paso Convention Center. Ronnie Sparks Jr. of Redford, Michigan, leads Regular Singles with 793.
Sargent started his day with a 687 set, helping him and Marc Scherlis of San Diego into 13th place in Regular Doubles with a 1,336 total. Anthony Simonson of Princeton, Texas, and Mark Sleeper Jr. of Kaufman, Texas, lead with 1,409.
Since 2011, Sargent and Scherlis have been a mainstay near the top of the doubles standings, recording three top-15 finishes, with a best showing of fifth in 2011. Including their performance in 2015, Sargent has averaged more than 237 in doubles since 2011, while Scherlis has come in just under 225.
"For whatever reason, we gel as a doubles team," said Sargent, who made his 13th USBC Open Championships appearance. "Whether the scores are high or low, we just seem to manage to get to somewhere around the top 20."
The singles event for Sargent, however, has not translated to similar success lately, even though competitors now stay on the same pair of lanes for doubles and singles.
"The last two years at the (National Bowling) Stadium, I've ended up shooting a small 700 in doubles, get to stay on the same pair, and then barely make 600 in singles," Sargent said. "The lanes do change, and you have to adjust, but it just seemed I went from having the world to having to split boards to knock all 10 down. I really thought it was happening again this year after starting with 189, but I switched balls on the fill ball. It was an ugly shot, but I told myself to commit to it and make the move left."
As the second game progressed and the strikes started adding up, Sargent was able to catch some breaks as the 39-foot USBC Sport Bowling-certified lane condition began to transition. After starting the 10th frame with a crossover strike, he made the correct move and left little doubt on his final two deliveries.
"In the eighth frame, I threw it where I wanted and tripped the 6 pin," Sargent said. "I threw a decent shot in the ninth, and tripped the 4-9, so there's two lucky breaks. I told Marc I might as well move farther left in the 10th, and I tripped the 6 again. My target went from having some oil to being bone dry. On the 11th shot, I moved three more left with my feet and just tried to throw it right. I had three lucky shots in a row, so it couldn't get any worse. I ended up finding the sweet spot and went flush both shots."
Sargent missed out on competing at the Open Championships, while trying his luck on the Professional Bowlers Association Tour. He earned an exemption during the 2006-07 season after leading the PBA West Region in points the year before. He owns 12 PBA regional titles.
Although Sargent still would like to make his way into the winner's circle at the Open Championships, having his name in the tournament's record book is a milestone, too.
"I bowled on Tour for a while and was exempt in 2006-07, so I only have a handful of appearances at this event," Sargent said. "It's fun to do. I really like bowling as a team. You see all of these guys with eagles, and you want to get there, too. This isn't an eagle, but it'll be nice to show up and have my name announced."
Visit us on Facebook at the official USBC Open/Women's Championships page.
The 56-year-old right-hander connected on 12 consecutive strikes between games of 189 and 196 for a 685 singles series Sunday at the El Paso Convention Center. Ronnie Sparks Jr. of Redford, Michigan, leads Regular Singles with 793.
Sargent started his day with a 687 set, helping him and Marc Scherlis of San Diego into 13th place in Regular Doubles with a 1,336 total. Anthony Simonson of Princeton, Texas, and Mark Sleeper Jr. of Kaufman, Texas, lead with 1,409.
Since 2011, Sargent and Scherlis have been a mainstay near the top of the doubles standings, recording three top-15 finishes, with a best showing of fifth in 2011. Including their performance in 2015, Sargent has averaged more than 237 in doubles since 2011, while Scherlis has come in just under 225.
"For whatever reason, we gel as a doubles team," said Sargent, who made his 13th USBC Open Championships appearance. "Whether the scores are high or low, we just seem to manage to get to somewhere around the top 20."
The singles event for Sargent, however, has not translated to similar success lately, even though competitors now stay on the same pair of lanes for doubles and singles.
"The last two years at the (National Bowling) Stadium, I've ended up shooting a small 700 in doubles, get to stay on the same pair, and then barely make 600 in singles," Sargent said. "The lanes do change, and you have to adjust, but it just seemed I went from having the world to having to split boards to knock all 10 down. I really thought it was happening again this year after starting with 189, but I switched balls on the fill ball. It was an ugly shot, but I told myself to commit to it and make the move left."
As the second game progressed and the strikes started adding up, Sargent was able to catch some breaks as the 39-foot USBC Sport Bowling-certified lane condition began to transition. After starting the 10th frame with a crossover strike, he made the correct move and left little doubt on his final two deliveries.
"In the eighth frame, I threw it where I wanted and tripped the 6 pin," Sargent said. "I threw a decent shot in the ninth, and tripped the 4-9, so there's two lucky breaks. I told Marc I might as well move farther left in the 10th, and I tripped the 6 again. My target went from having some oil to being bone dry. On the 11th shot, I moved three more left with my feet and just tried to throw it right. I had three lucky shots in a row, so it couldn't get any worse. I ended up finding the sweet spot and went flush both shots."
Sargent missed out on competing at the Open Championships, while trying his luck on the Professional Bowlers Association Tour. He earned an exemption during the 2006-07 season after leading the PBA West Region in points the year before. He owns 12 PBA regional titles.
Although Sargent still would like to make his way into the winner's circle at the Open Championships, having his name in the tournament's record book is a milestone, too.
"I bowled on Tour for a while and was exempt in 2006-07, so I only have a handful of appearances at this event," Sargent said. "It's fun to do. I really like bowling as a team. You see all of these guys with eagles, and you want to get there, too. This isn't an eagle, but it'll be nice to show up and have my name announced."
Visit us on Facebook at the official USBC Open/Women's Championships page.