Chris Barnes Earns 19th PBA Tour Title in Lubbock Sports Open

LUBBOCK, Texas (June 10, 2018) – Professional Bowlers Association Hall of Famer Chris Barnes of Double Oak, Texas, struck out in the 10th frame to defeat top qualifier Jakob Butturff of Tempe, Ariz., 207-206, to win the PBA Xtra Frame Lubbock Sports Open Sunday at South Plains Lanes.

With his first title since the 2016 DHC PBA Japan Invitational, Barnes improved his overall PBA Tour titles total to 19, moving into sole possession of 15th place on the all-time titles list.

“They don’t get any more fun than that,” the 48-year-old Barnes said. “For a lot of reasons, (winning in Lubbock) is really special. As an experienced player, I know I’m not going to have a lot more moments like this, so it’s pretty special to stand up here. This one went the right way.

“Fortunately, or maybe unfortunately, I’ve had a lot of failures to learn from in situations like that,” Barnes added. “You learn how to breathe, how to enjoy the moment. When Jakob got that bad break, you ask yourself, how cool would it be to pull this off?”

Neither player could get a sustained string of strikes going, and both made a key mistake early in the match, but Butturff, the 2016 Lubbock Sports Open winner, failed to lock up the title when he struck and then left a 10 pin on his second ball in the 10th frame. That gave Barnes a chance to win with three strikes in his 10th frame.

“I’d like to get to 22 titles. That’s Marshall (Holman’s) number and he’s an idol of mine, but for now, to be one title ahead of Tommy Jones is fine with me,” said Barnes, who was inducted into the PBA Hall of Fame earlier in the year. He and Jones are long-time rivals, but also close friends and frequent doubles partners who are in a good-natured, on-going contest to see who can win the most PBA Tour titles.

In the first stepladder match, Barnes won the battle between former PBA Players of the Year, defeating Wes Malott of Pflugerville, Texas, 258-223. One pin separated the two until the 10th frame when Malott left and failed to convert the 3-4 split.

Barnes then advanced to the championship match by throwing strikes on nine of his first 10 shots to race past PBA rookie Nick Pate of Inver Grove Heights, Minn., 269-214. Pate, the 2017 Male Collegiate Bowler of the Year with Midland University, couldn’t match Barnes’ strike pace.

The Lubbock Sports Open was the fourth of eight PBA Xtra Frame events that are part of the 2018 Go Bowling! PBA Tour schedule. The next Xtra Frame event will be the PBA Xtra Frame Parkside Lanes Open June 30-July 1 at Parkside Lanes in Aurora, Ill., launching PBA’s new relationship with FloBowling.com. Monthly and annual Xtra Frame subscription packages are available for $7.99 and $64.99, respectively, through June 29. Three-day passes for $3.99 are available through June 25. Visit xtraframe.tv to enroll. After June 29, FloSports subscription rates will apply.

PBA XTRA FRAME LUBBOCK SPORTS OPEN presented by Ebonite

South Plains Lanes, Lubbock, Texas, June 10

Final Standings:

1, Chris Barnes, Double Oak, Texas, $13,000.

2, Jakob Butturff, Tempe, Ariz., $7,000.

3, Nick Pate, Inver Grove Heights, Minn., $4,000.

4, Wes Malott, Pflugerville, Texas, $2,200.

Stepladder Results:

Match One: Barnes def. Malott, 258-223.

Semifinal Match: Barnes def. Pate, 269-214.

Championship: Barnes def. Butturff, 207-206.

Final Match Play Standings (after 22 games, including match play bonus pins):

1, Butturff, 6-2, 5,425.
2, Pate, 7-1, 5,346.
3, Malott, 5-3, 5,325.
4, Barnes, 5-3, 5,310.
5, Ahmad Muaz, Malaysia, 5-3, 5,269, $1,800.
6, n-Wesley Low Jr., Palmdale, Calif., 5-3, 5,204, $1,600.
7, EJ Tackett, Huntington, Ind., 4-4, 5,193, $1,550.
8, Sean Rash, Montgomery, Ill., 4-4, 5,180, $1,500.
9, Shawn Maldonado, Houston, 4-4, 5,172, $1,450.
10, n-Deo Benard, Rio Rancho, N.M., 3-5, 5,156, $1,400.
11, Jason Sterner, Rockledge, Fla., 3-5, 5,104, $1,350.
12, Sean Lavery-Spahr, Pasadena, Texas, 3-5, 5,073, $1,300.
13, Anthony Lavery-Spahr, Pasadena, Texas, 4-4, 5,050, $1,250.
14, Rafiq Ismail, Malaysia, 3-5, 5,026, $1,200.
15, Roger Petrin, Arlington, Texas, 1-7, 4,929, $1,150.
16, Mike Bailey, Irving, Texas, 2-6, 4,870, $1,100.

Other Cashers (after 14 games):

17, AJ Johnson, Oswego, Ill., 3,145, $750.
18, Cristian Azcona, Puerto Rico, 3,130, $745.
19, Tun Ameerul Al-Hakim, Malaysia, 3,126, $740.
20, Michael Tang, San Francisco, 3,122, $735.
21 (tie), Vaughn Cruz, Helotes, Texas, and Andrew Anderson, Holly, Mich., 3,105, $730.
23, David (Boog) Krol, Nixa, Mo., 3,071, $725.
24, Brandon Curtis, Manson, N.C., 3,065, $725.
25, Alex Liew Liang, Malaysia, 3,064, $725.
26, Francois Lavoie, Canada, 3,056, $720.
27, Trey Ford III, Bartlesville, Okla., 3,041, $720.
28, s-Martin Bedford, Gasport, New York, 3,033, $720.
29, Bobby Hall II, Landover, Md., 3,031, $715.
30, Marshal Morrison, Wills Point, Texas, 3,019, $715.
31, Dick Allen, Columbia, S.C., 2,995, $715.
32, Mitch Hupé, Canada, 2,993, $710.
33, Tyler Albracht, Amarillo, Texas, 2,933, $710.
34, Dino Castillo, Highland Village, Texas, 2,932, $710.
35, Russ Oviatt, Chandler, Ariz., 2,929, $705.
36, Trey Sledge, Amarillo, Texas, 2,902, $705.
37, n-Levi Fintel, Lubbock, Texas, 2,900, $705.
38, n-Zach Wojciechowski, Lubbock, Texas, 2,898, $700.
39, Michael Smith, Centenniel, Colo., 2,870, $700.
40, n-Zachary Harvey, Albuqueque, N.M., 2,842, $700.

300 Games: Sean Lavery-Spahr.

n-denotes non-member