Fehr, McEwan continue to lead at Team USA Trials
January 05, 2016
STANDINGS
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LAS VEGAS - Jeff Fehr of Cincinnati and Danielle McEwan of Stony Point, New York, continued strong at Gold Coast Hotel and Casino on Tuesday to retain their spots atop the standings at the 2016 United States Bowling Congress Team USA Trials.
Fehr holds the men's overall lead with a three-round total of 17 ranking points, following a 12th-place finish in Tuesday's third round, while McEwan used a third-place effort to increase her lead over the women's field with 12 points.
Defending Team USA Trials champion Kamron Doyle of Brentwood, Tennessee, is second on the men's side with 24 ranking points, and Zach Hattori of Henderson, Nevada, and Marshall Kent of Yakima, Washington, are tied for third with 32.
McEwan leads Jordan Richard of Tipton, Michigan, by eight points, while 11-time Team USA member Stefanie Johnson of Grand Prairie, Texas, is third with 28.
"It was definitely a tougher road today, but I only missed one spare again, so that was big," said Fehr, who closed with games of 257 and 235 Tuesday for a 1,362 total. "I felt like I had to go to the bag of tricks today, since I don't have the speed and rev rate like some of the younger guys. I was able to manipulate my ball roll to what it needed to do to match up. Hopefully, I can come out tomorrow and have a good day. I wanted to come out here and make the team, and my goals are in sight."
Hattori averaged more than 244 on the 44-foot Tokyo pattern to lead Tuesday's third round with a 1,469 total, holding off a late charge from Kent, who was second with 1,453. Chris Via of Springfield, Ohio, was third with 1,423.
Johnson led wire-to-wire during the women's third round, firing a 279 to start, and she never looked back on her way to a 1,428 total. Kelly Kulick of Union, New Jersey, finished second with 1,382.
McEwan finished Tuesday's round with a 257 game to jump into third place for the day with a 1,366 total. The four-time Team USA member credits her versatility in helping her find continued success at the event.
"Over the years, I've really tried to make my game well-rounded so I'm not just good on one pattern," said McEwan, the 2012 and 2013 Team USA Trials champion. "I'm always working on my weaknesses, and I think that's why I'm able to come here and be consistent on each pattern. The cool and different thing about this tournament is that you're never really in good shape - you can't win it in one day, but you can lose it. I'm in a good position now, but I need to come out and bowl well the next two days."
The players this week earn points based on their finishing position in each of the qualifying rounds - the top bowler of the block earns one ranking point, second place in the block earns two points, etc. - with the lowest total of ranking points after five six-game blocks determining the overall leaders.
The United States National Amateur Bowling Championships returns as part of the 2016 Team USA Trials. The top three amateur men and top three amateur women will advance to a stepladder final after the final round of qualifying, which will determine the U.S. Amateur champions. The winners also will earn a spot on Team USA.
For the second consecutive day, the top three amateurs on the men's side mimic the overall standings, with Fehr, Doyle and Hattori now holding the top spots. The top amateurs in the women's field are Richard, Taylor Bulthuis of Coral Springs, Florida, and Ashley Dunn of Palmdale, California. Bulthuis and Dunn are tied for fifth overall with 38 points.
Competition continues Wednesday at 11 a.m. Eastern with the fourth round of women's qualifying. BOWL.com's BowlTV will provide wire-to-wire coverage of the event.
A minimum of 12 men and 12 women will join Team USA for 2016. The top four men and top four women at the 2016 Team USA Trials, based on ranking points, automatically will earn spots, while two additional men and two additional women will be selected by the National Selection Committee from the field of players that competed this week.
The National Selection Committee also will select a maximum of five men and five women for the team based on resumes submitted by Team USA or Junior Team USA members from the last 10 years or the top 25 on the points list of the 2015 Professional Bowlers Association Tour and 2015 Professional Womens Bowling Association Tour.
On the youth side, Junior Team USA 2016 will consist of 12 boys and 12 girls. The top four boys and top four girls at the 2016 Team USA Trials, based on ranking points, automatically will earn spots, while two additional boys and two additional girls will be selected by the National Selection Committee from either the 2016 Team USA Trials or 2015 Junior Gold Championships.
They will join the six boys and six girls who already earned their spots on Junior Team USA 2016 by qualifying at the 2015 Junior Gold Championships in Chicago.
To be eligible for the U.S. Amateur portion of the event, a bowler must not hold or have held a professional membership (PBA or PWBA) anytime in 2015. Also, anyone who has won a professional title (regional, national or senior) as a professional is not eligible to compete as an amateur.
LIVE STREAM: MEN | WOMEN
LAS VEGAS - Jeff Fehr of Cincinnati and Danielle McEwan of Stony Point, New York, continued strong at Gold Coast Hotel and Casino on Tuesday to retain their spots atop the standings at the 2016 United States Bowling Congress Team USA Trials.
Fehr holds the men's overall lead with a three-round total of 17 ranking points, following a 12th-place finish in Tuesday's third round, while McEwan used a third-place effort to increase her lead over the women's field with 12 points.
Defending Team USA Trials champion Kamron Doyle of Brentwood, Tennessee, is second on the men's side with 24 ranking points, and Zach Hattori of Henderson, Nevada, and Marshall Kent of Yakima, Washington, are tied for third with 32.
McEwan leads Jordan Richard of Tipton, Michigan, by eight points, while 11-time Team USA member Stefanie Johnson of Grand Prairie, Texas, is third with 28.
"It was definitely a tougher road today, but I only missed one spare again, so that was big," said Fehr, who closed with games of 257 and 235 Tuesday for a 1,362 total. "I felt like I had to go to the bag of tricks today, since I don't have the speed and rev rate like some of the younger guys. I was able to manipulate my ball roll to what it needed to do to match up. Hopefully, I can come out tomorrow and have a good day. I wanted to come out here and make the team, and my goals are in sight."
Hattori averaged more than 244 on the 44-foot Tokyo pattern to lead Tuesday's third round with a 1,469 total, holding off a late charge from Kent, who was second with 1,453. Chris Via of Springfield, Ohio, was third with 1,423.
Johnson led wire-to-wire during the women's third round, firing a 279 to start, and she never looked back on her way to a 1,428 total. Kelly Kulick of Union, New Jersey, finished second with 1,382.
McEwan finished Tuesday's round with a 257 game to jump into third place for the day with a 1,366 total. The four-time Team USA member credits her versatility in helping her find continued success at the event.
"Over the years, I've really tried to make my game well-rounded so I'm not just good on one pattern," said McEwan, the 2012 and 2013 Team USA Trials champion. "I'm always working on my weaknesses, and I think that's why I'm able to come here and be consistent on each pattern. The cool and different thing about this tournament is that you're never really in good shape - you can't win it in one day, but you can lose it. I'm in a good position now, but I need to come out and bowl well the next two days."
The players this week earn points based on their finishing position in each of the qualifying rounds - the top bowler of the block earns one ranking point, second place in the block earns two points, etc. - with the lowest total of ranking points after five six-game blocks determining the overall leaders.
The United States National Amateur Bowling Championships returns as part of the 2016 Team USA Trials. The top three amateur men and top three amateur women will advance to a stepladder final after the final round of qualifying, which will determine the U.S. Amateur champions. The winners also will earn a spot on Team USA.
For the second consecutive day, the top three amateurs on the men's side mimic the overall standings, with Fehr, Doyle and Hattori now holding the top spots. The top amateurs in the women's field are Richard, Taylor Bulthuis of Coral Springs, Florida, and Ashley Dunn of Palmdale, California. Bulthuis and Dunn are tied for fifth overall with 38 points.
Competition continues Wednesday at 11 a.m. Eastern with the fourth round of women's qualifying. BOWL.com's BowlTV will provide wire-to-wire coverage of the event.
A minimum of 12 men and 12 women will join Team USA for 2016. The top four men and top four women at the 2016 Team USA Trials, based on ranking points, automatically will earn spots, while two additional men and two additional women will be selected by the National Selection Committee from the field of players that competed this week.
The National Selection Committee also will select a maximum of five men and five women for the team based on resumes submitted by Team USA or Junior Team USA members from the last 10 years or the top 25 on the points list of the 2015 Professional Bowlers Association Tour and 2015 Professional Womens Bowling Association Tour.
On the youth side, Junior Team USA 2016 will consist of 12 boys and 12 girls. The top four boys and top four girls at the 2016 Team USA Trials, based on ranking points, automatically will earn spots, while two additional boys and two additional girls will be selected by the National Selection Committee from either the 2016 Team USA Trials or 2015 Junior Gold Championships.
They will join the six boys and six girls who already earned their spots on Junior Team USA 2016 by qualifying at the 2015 Junior Gold Championships in Chicago.
To be eligible for the U.S. Amateur portion of the event, a bowler must not hold or have held a professional membership (PBA or PWBA) anytime in 2015. Also, anyone who has won a professional title (regional, national or senior) as a professional is not eligible to compete as an amateur.