Sam Carter leads Senior Masters after Round 1

LAS VEGAS - Sam Carter of Ben Lomond, Calif., took the lead after the first round of qualifying Monday at the 2013 United States Bowling Congress Senior Masters.

Carter put together a five-game block of 1,142 (228.4 average) to lead the field of 268 of the top senior bowlers age 50 and over in the world at South Point Bowling Center.

"I was all over the place, trying every angle to the pocket so I could carry," Carter said. "When you lost that angle into the pocket, it was very easy to get nine pins. But I managed to strike on the pairs I could strike on."

Carter, who had games of 232, 279, 193, 245 and 193, bowled on the "burn" condition in the opening round but will face fresh oil in the next two rounds.

"You never know what you are going to get on the burn squad until you get out there," Carter said. "I think I should be OK on the fresh the next couple of days, though."

Mike Dias of Lafayette, Colo., had a chance to take the lead in the final game of the day but left a 7 pin on his second shot in the 10th frame to sit in second place with 1,133 (226.6 average).

Marc Lineberry of Camanche, Iowa, shot 287 in his final game to secure the third position in the standings with 1,124, while PBA Hall of Famer Randy Pedersen of Clermont, Fla., is fourth with 1,123.

All participants will bowl 15 games of qualifying before the cut is made to the double-elimination match-play bracket. The top 63 players plus defending champion Mike Edwards of Tulsa, Okla., will take part in bracket play beginning Thursday morning.

All rounds of the Senior Masters are being broadcast live on BOWL.com's BowlTV. For more information on the event, visit BOWL.com/SeniorMasters.