Jones leads PTQ; U.S. Open field finalized with competition set to begin Monday
January 27, 2024
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PTQ Results
INDIANAPOLIS – Eric Jones of Edmond, Oklahoma, fired off a 300 during Game 1 of the 2024 U.S. Open pre-tournament qualifier at Royal Pin Woodland in Indianapolis on Saturday, and he never looked back, leading the 108-person PTQ and earning a berth in the tournament’s main field.
The 19-year-old left-hander and 2022 Professional Bowlers Association Tour Southwest Region Rookie of the Year averaged a shade over 239 for the eight-game block and finished with a 1,913 total, which was more than 110 pins better than the 1,800 recorded by second-place competitor Brandon Flora of Mount Washington, Kentucky.
Benjamin Martinez of Westmont, Illinois (1,789); Matthew Zweig of Scottsdale, Arizona (1,786); and Ireland’s Christopher Sloan (1,778) all averaged 222 or better while rounding out Saturday’s top five.
Sixteen-year-old Braden McDonough of Coppell, Texas (1,771); Carlos Granados of Orlando, Florida (1,760); Brandon Novak of Chillicothe, Ohio (1,758); Shota Kawazoe of Japan (1,754); and Peter Fox of West Hartford, Connecticut (1,753) secured spots six through 10, respectively.
In total, 25 spots in the U.S. Open’s main field were up for grabs during Saturday’s PTQ, and there was high drama determining who would get the last one as Petey Vergos of Apopka, Florida, and Zeke Bayt of Westerville, Ohio, tied for the final spot with matching eight-game totals of 1,676, triggering a one-game roll-off to determine who would advance.
The roll-off was a back-and-forth affair that came down to the final frame. Vergos finished first, striking out during the 10th frame to post a score of 224 and force Bayt to get the first two strikes to win.
Bayt’s first shot reached the 1-3 pocket, but a light 7-pin refused to fall, ending his run and allowing Vergos to secure the final spot in the U.S. Open’s main field thanks to a hard-fought 224-223 victory.
Vergos, the 2021 Intercollegiate Singles Championships men’s champion and 2023 PBA South Region Rookie of the Year, celebrated with his friends after the match was decided and was ecstatic to know he was now officially in one of the most prestigious bowling tournaments in the world.
“It’s one thing to be able to compete week in and week out with some of the best bowlers in the world, but to be able to qualify for this is amazing; I’m just grateful for the opportunity,” Vergos said.
Jones didn’t have to grind nearly as hard to earn his spot, starting with 300 in the opener and following it up with 255 during Game 2 and 234 in Game 3 to establish an early lead with a three-game total of 789.
Nevertheless, Jones didn’t let the hot start go to his head, especially considering how the 11th shot went during his perfect game.
“I went Brooklyn on that shot, and it was a blessing in disguise really,” Jones said. “It tamed my ego a bit, so I didn’t get too high, which helped me stayed focused on throwing good shots the rest of the day.”
And he threw plenty of them, finishing his set with scores of 225, 211, 229, 233 and 226 to punch his ticket into the U.S. Open for the second year in a row.
Jones earned a spot during last year’s PTQ as well, placing 13th, but things went south from there as he had a disappointing 24 games of qualifying and ended his first U.S. Open in 99th place.
After another year of practice and competing on the PBA Tour, he feels he has learned a lot more about his game and how to attack the conditions that await him and his fellow competitors starting Monday.
“There’s not a lot of miss room out there, especially at this event, so the way I get out of the ball has been how I create the most miss room lately,” Jones said.
Any and all miss room is helpful at the U.S. Open, which is contested on four different, challenging oil patterns, three during Rounds 1-3 of qualifying and one for Round 4, match play and the stepladder finals.
Despite the propensity for low scores at the U.S. Open and PTQ, Jones wasn’t the only bowler to achieve perfection on Saturday. Kawazoe had a 300 of his own during Game 5 to help kickstart his rise up the leaderboard and eventual 9th-place finish.
With the main field now set, all 108 bowlers can now focus on the U.S. Open’s official practice session, which will take place on Sunday from 7:30 a.m. until 9 p.m. Eastern.
Tournament competition will officially begin Monday morning at 8 a.m. Eastern when the bowlers on A Squad hit the lanes for their first eight-game qualifying block. B Squad and C Squad will follow at 1 p.m. and 6 p.m. Eastern, respectively. All qualifying squads will bowl on fresh oil.
All competitors will complete 24 games of qualifying over three days on three different lane conditions before the first cut is made from 108 bowlers down to 36. Those 36 will bowl a fourth eight-game block on the tournament’s fourth oil pattern.
Pinfall totals for 32 games will determine the 24 players who earn the right to compete in three rounds of round-robin match play, and 56-game totals, including 30 bonus pins for each win during match play, will decide the final five bowlers for the stepladder finals, which will take place live on FOX on Feb. 4 at 4 p.m. Eastern.
The 2024 U.S. Open will be a collaborative effort between the United States Bowling Congress and Bowling Proprietors’ Association of America and will be considered a major on the PBA Tour. The total prize fund for the event will exceed $275,000.
For results, standings and information about the 2024 U.S. Open, CLICK HERE
INDIANAPOLIS – Eric Jones of Edmond, Oklahoma, fired off a 300 during Game 1 of the 2024 U.S. Open pre-tournament qualifier at Royal Pin Woodland in Indianapolis on Saturday, and he never looked back, leading the 108-person PTQ and earning a berth in the tournament’s main field.
The 19-year-old left-hander and 2022 Professional Bowlers Association Tour Southwest Region Rookie of the Year averaged a shade over 239 for the eight-game block and finished with a 1,913 total, which was more than 110 pins better than the 1,800 recorded by second-place competitor Brandon Flora of Mount Washington, Kentucky.
Benjamin Martinez of Westmont, Illinois (1,789); Matthew Zweig of Scottsdale, Arizona (1,786); and Ireland’s Christopher Sloan (1,778) all averaged 222 or better while rounding out Saturday’s top five.
Sixteen-year-old Braden McDonough of Coppell, Texas (1,771); Carlos Granados of Orlando, Florida (1,760); Brandon Novak of Chillicothe, Ohio (1,758); Shota Kawazoe of Japan (1,754); and Peter Fox of West Hartford, Connecticut (1,753) secured spots six through 10, respectively.
In total, 25 spots in the U.S. Open’s main field were up for grabs during Saturday’s PTQ, and there was high drama determining who would get the last one as Petey Vergos of Apopka, Florida, and Zeke Bayt of Westerville, Ohio, tied for the final spot with matching eight-game totals of 1,676, triggering a one-game roll-off to determine who would advance.
The roll-off was a back-and-forth affair that came down to the final frame. Vergos finished first, striking out during the 10th frame to post a score of 224 and force Bayt to get the first two strikes to win.
Bayt’s first shot reached the 1-3 pocket, but a light 7-pin refused to fall, ending his run and allowing Vergos to secure the final spot in the U.S. Open’s main field thanks to a hard-fought 224-223 victory.
Vergos, the 2021 Intercollegiate Singles Championships men’s champion and 2023 PBA South Region Rookie of the Year, celebrated with his friends after the match was decided and was ecstatic to know he was now officially in one of the most prestigious bowling tournaments in the world.
“It’s one thing to be able to compete week in and week out with some of the best bowlers in the world, but to be able to qualify for this is amazing; I’m just grateful for the opportunity,” Vergos said.
Jones didn’t have to grind nearly as hard to earn his spot, starting with 300 in the opener and following it up with 255 during Game 2 and 234 in Game 3 to establish an early lead with a three-game total of 789.
Nevertheless, Jones didn’t let the hot start go to his head, especially considering how the 11th shot went during his perfect game.
“I went Brooklyn on that shot, and it was a blessing in disguise really,” Jones said. “It tamed my ego a bit, so I didn’t get too high, which helped me stayed focused on throwing good shots the rest of the day.”
And he threw plenty of them, finishing his set with scores of 225, 211, 229, 233 and 226 to punch his ticket into the U.S. Open for the second year in a row.
Jones earned a spot during last year’s PTQ as well, placing 13th, but things went south from there as he had a disappointing 24 games of qualifying and ended his first U.S. Open in 99th place.
After another year of practice and competing on the PBA Tour, he feels he has learned a lot more about his game and how to attack the conditions that await him and his fellow competitors starting Monday.
“There’s not a lot of miss room out there, especially at this event, so the way I get out of the ball has been how I create the most miss room lately,” Jones said.
Any and all miss room is helpful at the U.S. Open, which is contested on four different, challenging oil patterns, three during Rounds 1-3 of qualifying and one for Round 4, match play and the stepladder finals.
Despite the propensity for low scores at the U.S. Open and PTQ, Jones wasn’t the only bowler to achieve perfection on Saturday. Kawazoe had a 300 of his own during Game 5 to help kickstart his rise up the leaderboard and eventual 9th-place finish.
With the main field now set, all 108 bowlers can now focus on the U.S. Open’s official practice session, which will take place on Sunday from 7:30 a.m. until 9 p.m. Eastern.
Tournament competition will officially begin Monday morning at 8 a.m. Eastern when the bowlers on A Squad hit the lanes for their first eight-game qualifying block. B Squad and C Squad will follow at 1 p.m. and 6 p.m. Eastern, respectively. All qualifying squads will bowl on fresh oil.
All competitors will complete 24 games of qualifying over three days on three different lane conditions before the first cut is made from 108 bowlers down to 36. Those 36 will bowl a fourth eight-game block on the tournament’s fourth oil pattern.
Pinfall totals for 32 games will determine the 24 players who earn the right to compete in three rounds of round-robin match play, and 56-game totals, including 30 bonus pins for each win during match play, will decide the final five bowlers for the stepladder finals, which will take place live on FOX on Feb. 4 at 4 p.m. Eastern.
The 2024 U.S. Open will be a collaborative effort between the United States Bowling Congress and Bowling Proprietors’ Association of America and will be considered a major on the PBA Tour. The total prize fund for the event will exceed $275,000.
For results, standings and information about the 2024 U.S. Open, CLICK HERE