Minnesota duo leads doubles at 2010 OC
May 08, 2010
RENO, Nev. - Three years ago, John Kreyer Jr. of Fridley, Minn., made headlines with the first perfect game of the 2007 USBC Open Championships, and this weekend, he's back in the spotlight at the National Bowling Stadium.
The 29-year-old left-hander threw 30 strikes on the way to games of 258, 279 and 279 for an 816 series and teamed up with fellow southpaw Steve Bohn of Norwood, Minn., to take the Regular Doubles lead with a 1,514 total Saturday. Jeffrey Mersch of Orlando, Fla., and Erik Vermilyea of Mansfield, Texas, previously held the lead with 1,507.
"Steve is our numbers guy, so he had it all added up," said Kreyer, who bowls league at Mermaid Lanes in Mounds View, Minn., and made his ninth Open Championships appearance. "But when we get close to something, he likes to keep it a secret from me. I knew we had a chance, and we needed to stay strong."
Kreyer started his second and third games of doubles with nine consecutive strikes, so the pressure was pretty constant Saturday, but when he stepped up for his final frame, it was magnified because along with another chance at perfection, he needed at least a mark for the doubles lead.
"We got up in the 10th, and I was kind of hoping he would punch out to take some pressure off of me," said Kreyer, who owns the Minnesota State Tournament scratch all-events record with 2,431. "He stepped up and made some great shots, but couldn't get them all to fall in the 11th. I had some work to do, but now, I feel great. We've been close in a couple of tournaments this year where one of us was hot and the other one had an off day, so it was nice today that we clicked together."
A 9 pin in the second game, and an 8 pin in the third, ended Kreyer's chances of becoming just the third bowler in tournament history with two perfect games at the Stadium, which opened in 1995 and has hosted the USBC Open Championships every third year since. He did add his name to a different elite list as one of 25 bowlers who own both a 300 game and 800 series on the championship lanes. In 107 years of competition, only 20 bowlers have thrown multiple 300s.
"It's a great feeling," Kreyer said. "I feel as though I'm a pretty sharp bowler back at home, and I've been practicing pretty hard on my game. The 300 here was magical, and the 800 today just felt like the icing on the cake. Last time was more for my family, and this one for the doubles lead meant a lot, too. With two months to go, we'll be watching the tournament closely. Leads are made to be broken, though, and if it gets broken, they deserve it. It's a big number to top, and if they do it, my hat's off to them."
Kreyer's 300 in 2007 came while he was bowling with his family, but he switched gears this year and hit the lanes with a more competitive group that was working together before they even marched down Center Aisle for their team event Friday night.
"We had three guys go over to the BTM 1-2-3 tournament to shoot some games, get loose and sharpen up," Kreyer said. "We got fortunate, and Mike Skinner and I are leading the doubles event there. I used a lot of that knowledge here today and got lucky that the way I threw the ball there yesterday and here today were exactly the same. I just had to be a little crisper with the shot today, but I had some high expectations."
Bohn had high expectations as well and knew it was only a matter of time before things fell into place for them. He contributed games of 248, 204 and 246 for a 698 series.
"The last two years, we shot 1,301 back-to-back, and our goal was to beat that, which we did after two games and five frames," said Bohn, who made his eighth tournament appearance. "We made some good moves, and I stayed left of him, which is not normal since he has so much hand. I really just tried to keep him calm, which is hard to do."
Kreyer added 693 in singles and 675 in team for a career-best 2,184 all-events total, which is third in Regular All-Events. Matt McNiel of Chanhassen, Minn., leads with a record 2,326. Bohn had 597 in team and 565 in singles for 1,860.
Kreyer's 800 series was the fifth of the year, and the second-highest behind Terrence Syring of Bay City, Mich., who leads Regular Singles with 833.
Presenting sponsors for the 2010 USBC Open Championships are Circus Circus, Eldorado Hotel Casino and Silver Legacy Resort Casino in Reno, Nevada. Other sponsors include Sands Regency Casino Hotel, official brackets sponsor, Kegel, official lane maintenance provider, 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.
The 29-year-old left-hander threw 30 strikes on the way to games of 258, 279 and 279 for an 816 series and teamed up with fellow southpaw Steve Bohn of Norwood, Minn., to take the Regular Doubles lead with a 1,514 total Saturday. Jeffrey Mersch of Orlando, Fla., and Erik Vermilyea of Mansfield, Texas, previously held the lead with 1,507.
"Steve is our numbers guy, so he had it all added up," said Kreyer, who bowls league at Mermaid Lanes in Mounds View, Minn., and made his ninth Open Championships appearance. "But when we get close to something, he likes to keep it a secret from me. I knew we had a chance, and we needed to stay strong."
Kreyer started his second and third games of doubles with nine consecutive strikes, so the pressure was pretty constant Saturday, but when he stepped up for his final frame, it was magnified because along with another chance at perfection, he needed at least a mark for the doubles lead.
"We got up in the 10th, and I was kind of hoping he would punch out to take some pressure off of me," said Kreyer, who owns the Minnesota State Tournament scratch all-events record with 2,431. "He stepped up and made some great shots, but couldn't get them all to fall in the 11th. I had some work to do, but now, I feel great. We've been close in a couple of tournaments this year where one of us was hot and the other one had an off day, so it was nice today that we clicked together."
A 9 pin in the second game, and an 8 pin in the third, ended Kreyer's chances of becoming just the third bowler in tournament history with two perfect games at the Stadium, which opened in 1995 and has hosted the USBC Open Championships every third year since. He did add his name to a different elite list as one of 25 bowlers who own both a 300 game and 800 series on the championship lanes. In 107 years of competition, only 20 bowlers have thrown multiple 300s.
"It's a great feeling," Kreyer said. "I feel as though I'm a pretty sharp bowler back at home, and I've been practicing pretty hard on my game. The 300 here was magical, and the 800 today just felt like the icing on the cake. Last time was more for my family, and this one for the doubles lead meant a lot, too. With two months to go, we'll be watching the tournament closely. Leads are made to be broken, though, and if it gets broken, they deserve it. It's a big number to top, and if they do it, my hat's off to them."
Kreyer's 300 in 2007 came while he was bowling with his family, but he switched gears this year and hit the lanes with a more competitive group that was working together before they even marched down Center Aisle for their team event Friday night.
"We had three guys go over to the BTM 1-2-3 tournament to shoot some games, get loose and sharpen up," Kreyer said. "We got fortunate, and Mike Skinner and I are leading the doubles event there. I used a lot of that knowledge here today and got lucky that the way I threw the ball there yesterday and here today were exactly the same. I just had to be a little crisper with the shot today, but I had some high expectations."
Bohn had high expectations as well and knew it was only a matter of time before things fell into place for them. He contributed games of 248, 204 and 246 for a 698 series.
"The last two years, we shot 1,301 back-to-back, and our goal was to beat that, which we did after two games and five frames," said Bohn, who made his eighth tournament appearance. "We made some good moves, and I stayed left of him, which is not normal since he has so much hand. I really just tried to keep him calm, which is hard to do."
Kreyer added 693 in singles and 675 in team for a career-best 2,184 all-events total, which is third in Regular All-Events. Matt McNiel of Chanhassen, Minn., leads with a record 2,326. Bohn had 597 in team and 565 in singles for 1,860.
Kreyer's 800 series was the fifth of the year, and the second-highest behind Terrence Syring of Bay City, Mich., who leads Regular Singles with 833.
Presenting sponsors for the 2010 USBC Open Championships are Circus Circus, Eldorado Hotel Casino and Silver Legacy Resort Casino in Reno, Nevada. Other sponsors include Sands Regency Casino Hotel, official brackets sponsor, Kegel, official lane maintenance provider, 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.