Honor scores reign at the 2011 USBC Open
June 06, 2011
RENO, Nev. - When it rains, it pours, and the same seems to go for honor scores at the USBC Open Championships.
With a steady rain falling on the Reno-Sparks area for two straight days, the floodgates opened inside the National Bowling Stadium with three perfect games and an 800 series Sunday.
Todd Whitesides of Lake Wylie, S.C., started the surge with a 300 game on the way to an 811 series in his team event Sunday afternoon, while Samantha Jimenez of Rowland Heights, Calif., became the first woman since 2009 to roll a perfect game at the Open Championships during the evening team squad. Ronald Bear Jr. of Christmas, Fla., followed suit in his second game of singles.
Whitesides' 300 was the 36th of this year's tournament, and he added games of 254 and 257 to help S & S Investments of Matthews, N.C., to a 3,236 team total. His 800 series was the 12th of the year and made him just the 29th bowler in Open Championships history to have both a 300 and an 800 at the tournament. He is one of nine bowlers to accomplish both at the Stadium.
"It feels good just to put three games together," said Whitesides, who owns T.W. Drywall in Charlotte, N.C., and made his 14th Open Championships appearance. "The lanes can be very challenging, and if you don't work together as a team to create something, you're going to struggle. We have 10 guys who want to work together, and without my teammates, this wouldn't have happened. I have to give all the credit to them. This is one for the team."
After starting the day with 300, the 45-year-old right-hander still had to stay focused and battle the transition created by 10 bowlers competing at once.
"In the fifth frame, I struck," said Whitesides, who bowls league at Textile Lanes in Belmont, N.C., and was the Open Singles champion at the 2005 Storm Bowlers Journal Championships presented by USBC. "I knew I could shoot 257, which meant I had to have them all through the 11th shot. Plus, I had to get nine and spare to shoot an even 800 series at that point. I did think about it, but once I made that ball change on the right lane in the sixth frame, I felt very comfortable. I carried very well, got a couple lucky breaks and it worked out well for me today."
Whitesides added 666 in singles and 649 in doubles for a 2,126 all-events total.
Jimenez entered the record books as the seventh woman in tournament history to roll a perfect game on the championship lanes when she registered the 37th of this year's event.
She added games of 247 and 183 for a 730 series and helped lead Hanging Chads 1 of Rowland Heights, Calif., to a 3,305 total. Turbo 2-N-1 Grips 1 of Madison, Wis., leads Regular Team with 3,473.
The 22-year-old right-hander is the first female since 2009 Regular Doubles champion Brenda Edwards (also in 2009) to achieve perfection on bowling's biggest stage.
"First of all, shooting it at Nationals is just crazy," said Jimenez, who bowls league at Carter Bowl in Fullerton, Calif. "You think about it, but you don't think it's actually going to happen. And being the seventh woman that's ever done is just an honor. It's pretty cool, and seven is a lucky number."
Kristine Kropf of Antioch, Calif., was the first to reach the milestone when she did so at the Stadium in 2001.
"I was definitely nervous," said Jimenez, who works at Best Buy when she's not on the lanes. "I had noodle legs going into the seventh frame. There are a lot of people watching when you're in that situation. It's very nerve-wracking, and that's when you don't want to mess up."
Jimenez recently left a very successful junior bowling career behind, but always will be thankful for the time she spent competing in various tournaments, such as the Junior Amateurs Tour and the Junior Scratch Tour.
"Those were very important for me," said Jimenez, an Open Championships first-timer who added 681 in doubles and 539 in singles for a 1,950 all-events total. "They were major. We had league Saturday and other things to bowl Sunday. It wasn't an option. It was more like, you had to be there. I bowled on various patterns during a JST league, and that definitely got me ready to be in this type of situation."
Later on Sunday night, Bear provided a little more excitement by rolling the day's third perfect game and 38th overall.
The 44-year-old right-hander tossed 12 consecutive strikes between games of 170 and 227 for a 697 singles series. Matt Weggen of Muscatine, Iowa, leads Regular Singles with 826.
"It's awesome," said Bear, who bowls league at Colonial Lanes and made his seventh tournament appearance. "It's hard, but it's awesome. I didn't really pay attention to anything else. I just went with it one frame at a time. After you throw a few, your nerves kind of go away. You just focus on hitting your target and hope it carries."
Bear suffered a broken wrist in a motorcycle accident about seven years ago, which required a metal plate to be inserted into his wrist. It took him another two years just to be able to throw a bowling ball again. Shooting 300 has been a goal of his for quite some time, and he is happy to be able to accomplish it.
"This has been a goal," Bear said. "It's very tough, and not a lot of people do it. I've never had real big sets here, but I've had a few good games. It was very unexpected, but it happened. There are a lot of people I know who are really good bowlers, and they haven't achieved that. Now, I am able to stand up there with them, and that's a good feeling."
Bear added a 620 series in team and 576 in doubles for a career-best, 1,893 all-events total.
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.
With a steady rain falling on the Reno-Sparks area for two straight days, the floodgates opened inside the National Bowling Stadium with three perfect games and an 800 series Sunday.
Todd Whitesides of Lake Wylie, S.C., started the surge with a 300 game on the way to an 811 series in his team event Sunday afternoon, while Samantha Jimenez of Rowland Heights, Calif., became the first woman since 2009 to roll a perfect game at the Open Championships during the evening team squad. Ronald Bear Jr. of Christmas, Fla., followed suit in his second game of singles.Whitesides' 300 was the 36th of this year's tournament, and he added games of 254 and 257 to help S & S Investments of Matthews, N.C., to a 3,236 team total. His 800 series was the 12th of the year and made him just the 29th bowler in Open Championships history to have both a 300 and an 800 at the tournament. He is one of nine bowlers to accomplish both at the Stadium.
"It feels good just to put three games together," said Whitesides, who owns T.W. Drywall in Charlotte, N.C., and made his 14th Open Championships appearance. "The lanes can be very challenging, and if you don't work together as a team to create something, you're going to struggle. We have 10 guys who want to work together, and without my teammates, this wouldn't have happened. I have to give all the credit to them. This is one for the team."
After starting the day with 300, the 45-year-old right-hander still had to stay focused and battle the transition created by 10 bowlers competing at once.
"In the fifth frame, I struck," said Whitesides, who bowls league at Textile Lanes in Belmont, N.C., and was the Open Singles champion at the 2005 Storm Bowlers Journal Championships presented by USBC. "I knew I could shoot 257, which meant I had to have them all through the 11th shot. Plus, I had to get nine and spare to shoot an even 800 series at that point. I did think about it, but once I made that ball change on the right lane in the sixth frame, I felt very comfortable. I carried very well, got a couple lucky breaks and it worked out well for me today."
Whitesides added 666 in singles and 649 in doubles for a 2,126 all-events total.
Jimenez entered the record books as the seventh woman in tournament history to roll a perfect game on the championship lanes when she registered the 37th of this year's event.She added games of 247 and 183 for a 730 series and helped lead Hanging Chads 1 of Rowland Heights, Calif., to a 3,305 total. Turbo 2-N-1 Grips 1 of Madison, Wis., leads Regular Team with 3,473.
The 22-year-old right-hander is the first female since 2009 Regular Doubles champion Brenda Edwards (also in 2009) to achieve perfection on bowling's biggest stage.
"First of all, shooting it at Nationals is just crazy," said Jimenez, who bowls league at Carter Bowl in Fullerton, Calif. "You think about it, but you don't think it's actually going to happen. And being the seventh woman that's ever done is just an honor. It's pretty cool, and seven is a lucky number."
Kristine Kropf of Antioch, Calif., was the first to reach the milestone when she did so at the Stadium in 2001.
"I was definitely nervous," said Jimenez, who works at Best Buy when she's not on the lanes. "I had noodle legs going into the seventh frame. There are a lot of people watching when you're in that situation. It's very nerve-wracking, and that's when you don't want to mess up."
Jimenez recently left a very successful junior bowling career behind, but always will be thankful for the time she spent competing in various tournaments, such as the Junior Amateurs Tour and the Junior Scratch Tour.
"Those were very important for me," said Jimenez, an Open Championships first-timer who added 681 in doubles and 539 in singles for a 1,950 all-events total. "They were major. We had league Saturday and other things to bowl Sunday. It wasn't an option. It was more like, you had to be there. I bowled on various patterns during a JST league, and that definitely got me ready to be in this type of situation."
Later on Sunday night, Bear provided a little more excitement by rolling the day's third perfect game and 38th overall.The 44-year-old right-hander tossed 12 consecutive strikes between games of 170 and 227 for a 697 singles series. Matt Weggen of Muscatine, Iowa, leads Regular Singles with 826.
"It's awesome," said Bear, who bowls league at Colonial Lanes and made his seventh tournament appearance. "It's hard, but it's awesome. I didn't really pay attention to anything else. I just went with it one frame at a time. After you throw a few, your nerves kind of go away. You just focus on hitting your target and hope it carries."
Bear suffered a broken wrist in a motorcycle accident about seven years ago, which required a metal plate to be inserted into his wrist. It took him another two years just to be able to throw a bowling ball again. Shooting 300 has been a goal of his for quite some time, and he is happy to be able to accomplish it.
"This has been a goal," Bear said. "It's very tough, and not a lot of people do it. I've never had real big sets here, but I've had a few good games. It was very unexpected, but it happened. There are a lot of people I know who are really good bowlers, and they haven't achieved that. Now, I am able to stand up there with them, and that's a good feeling."
Bear added a 620 series in team and 576 in doubles for a career-best, 1,893 all-events total.
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.