Teammates excel at 2015 USBC Open Championships
April 11, 2015
EL PASO, Texas - Chad Maas of Waukesha, Wisconsin, and Jeff Nimke of Oshkosh, Wisconsin, complement each other well as teammates, and while they've had a few close calls on the lanes at the United States Bowling Congress Open Championships, they haven't been able to find the winner's circle together.
The two entered the 2015 event at the El Paso Convention Center fresh off back-to-back top-five team finishes, and after making their way back into the top 10 live on BowlTV on Friday, they returned to the championship lanes Saturday to find individual success.
Nimke, a two-time titlist at the USBC Open Championships, struck first, rolling the second perfect game of this year's event in his final game of doubles. He added 194 and 228 for a 722 series and teamed with Rich Abboud of Omaha, Nebraska, for a 1,352 doubles total, which is fourth in Regular Doubles. Jeremy Sonnenfeld and Tom Woodworth of Sioux Falls, South Dakota, lead with 1,372.
Maas got better with each event this year, closing with a 746 singles set to cruise into the lead in Regular All-Events with a 2,152 total. Former Team USA member Erik Vermilyea of Las Vegas previously topped the standings with 2,083.
Maas' singles performance was enough to move him into fifth place in Regular Singles, while his teammate, Dave Beres of Greenfield, Wisconsin, settled into third place with 754. Chad Oachs of Mankato, Minnesota, who rolled the tournament's first 300, leads with 772.
"We got presented with our watches for our second place team finish last year, and that was exciting," said Maas, who had 727 in doubles and 679 in team, which helped Motion Plus Lanes of Greenfield, Wisconsin, into fifth place this year with a 3,169 total. "Now, leaving in the lead, is going to set in in a little bit. It hasn't right now, but later tonight, I'm sure I will go out and have a good time and just enjoy this, because it doesn't happen very often."
For a short time in 2014, Maas, Nimke, Beres and their Motion Plus Lanes teammates held the top spot in the team standings and owned the highest score in tournament history, a 3,561 effort that gave them a runner-up finish after Artistic Expressions 1 of Oklahoma City posted a 3,720 set. Motion Plus Lanes also made a run at the lead in 2013 and went on to finish fifth with a 3,499 total.
The recent run of close calls includes a sixth-place Team All-Events finish in 2011 and ninth place in 2013, and the trend continued Saturday as the team again came up short in Team All-Events, moving into second place with a 9,669 total. The Vermilyea-led Junior Team USA Support 1, the 2013 Team All-Events champion, leads this year with 10,064.
Nimke contributed a 1,976 total for Motion Plus Lanes at the El Paso Convention Center and was followed by Beres (1,971), former Junior Team USA member Chris Pierson (1,835) and Chad Kloss, who rolled a 300 game in team in 2013 (1,735).
But, even though much of the focus is on success as a team, the opportunity for Maas to potentially break through for his first win means a lot to Nimke, the veteran of the group with 34 Open Championships appearances.
"I would love nothing more than to be on a team with these guys and win a championship," said Nimke, who won Regular All-Events in 1993 with a then-record 2,254 total and picked up a Regular Team title in 1998. "We've been close, knocking on the door many times over the last three or four years, and hopefully, one of these years, we can bust through. For now, it would be great for Chad to win his first eagle. It would make me nothing but happy."
Rolling a perfect game at Open Championships was a longtime goal for Nimke and the perfect gift a day before his 53rd birthday. The 2015 tournament as a whole allowed him some redemption, now that he's fully recovered from a back injury that slowed him down at the National Bowling Stadium in 2014.
"After last year's tournament, I couldn't wait to get back this year," Nimke said. "I felt like, well, I know I wasn't 100 percent, and I did everything I could to make sure I was completely healthy this year to help my team and hopefully have a good showing."
With the 2015 Open Championships barely a month into its 128-day run, Maas knows there are many talented bowlers still scheduled to visit El Paso. And, like most competitors, the 36-year-old right-hander feels like he left a few too many pins out there. Ultimately, being on the cusp is rewarding, but getting to the next level will take a little more work.
"It's a couple of hits here and there, a couple of better shots when you need them and maybe just better ball choices or trying to see the transition a little bit sooner than what happened," said Maas, whose career-best all-events total helped raise his 15-year average to more than 218. "We definitely got hung up in team, where we kind of missed the transition."
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The two entered the 2015 event at the El Paso Convention Center fresh off back-to-back top-five team finishes, and after making their way back into the top 10 live on BowlTV on Friday, they returned to the championship lanes Saturday to find individual success.
Nimke, a two-time titlist at the USBC Open Championships, struck first, rolling the second perfect game of this year's event in his final game of doubles. He added 194 and 228 for a 722 series and teamed with Rich Abboud of Omaha, Nebraska, for a 1,352 doubles total, which is fourth in Regular Doubles. Jeremy Sonnenfeld and Tom Woodworth of Sioux Falls, South Dakota, lead with 1,372.Maas got better with each event this year, closing with a 746 singles set to cruise into the lead in Regular All-Events with a 2,152 total. Former Team USA member Erik Vermilyea of Las Vegas previously topped the standings with 2,083.
Maas' singles performance was enough to move him into fifth place in Regular Singles, while his teammate, Dave Beres of Greenfield, Wisconsin, settled into third place with 754. Chad Oachs of Mankato, Minnesota, who rolled the tournament's first 300, leads with 772.
"We got presented with our watches for our second place team finish last year, and that was exciting," said Maas, who had 727 in doubles and 679 in team, which helped Motion Plus Lanes of Greenfield, Wisconsin, into fifth place this year with a 3,169 total. "Now, leaving in the lead, is going to set in in a little bit. It hasn't right now, but later tonight, I'm sure I will go out and have a good time and just enjoy this, because it doesn't happen very often."
For a short time in 2014, Maas, Nimke, Beres and their Motion Plus Lanes teammates held the top spot in the team standings and owned the highest score in tournament history, a 3,561 effort that gave them a runner-up finish after Artistic Expressions 1 of Oklahoma City posted a 3,720 set. Motion Plus Lanes also made a run at the lead in 2013 and went on to finish fifth with a 3,499 total.
The recent run of close calls includes a sixth-place Team All-Events finish in 2011 and ninth place in 2013, and the trend continued Saturday as the team again came up short in Team All-Events, moving into second place with a 9,669 total. The Vermilyea-led Junior Team USA Support 1, the 2013 Team All-Events champion, leads this year with 10,064.
Nimke contributed a 1,976 total for Motion Plus Lanes at the El Paso Convention Center and was followed by Beres (1,971), former Junior Team USA member Chris Pierson (1,835) and Chad Kloss, who rolled a 300 game in team in 2013 (1,735).
But, even though much of the focus is on success as a team, the opportunity for Maas to potentially break through for his first win means a lot to Nimke, the veteran of the group with 34 Open Championships appearances.
"I would love nothing more than to be on a team with these guys and win a championship," said Nimke, who won Regular All-Events in 1993 with a then-record 2,254 total and picked up a Regular Team title in 1998. "We've been close, knocking on the door many times over the last three or four years, and hopefully, one of these years, we can bust through. For now, it would be great for Chad to win his first eagle. It would make me nothing but happy."
Rolling a perfect game at Open Championships was a longtime goal for Nimke and the perfect gift a day before his 53rd birthday. The 2015 tournament as a whole allowed him some redemption, now that he's fully recovered from a back injury that slowed him down at the National Bowling Stadium in 2014.
"After last year's tournament, I couldn't wait to get back this year," Nimke said. "I felt like, well, I know I wasn't 100 percent, and I did everything I could to make sure I was completely healthy this year to help my team and hopefully have a good showing."
With the 2015 Open Championships barely a month into its 128-day run, Maas knows there are many talented bowlers still scheduled to visit El Paso. And, like most competitors, the 36-year-old right-hander feels like he left a few too many pins out there. Ultimately, being on the cusp is rewarding, but getting to the next level will take a little more work.
"It's a couple of hits here and there, a couple of better shots when you need them and maybe just better ball choices or trying to see the transition a little bit sooner than what happened," said Maas, whose career-best all-events total helped raise his 15-year average to more than 218. "We definitely got hung up in team, where we kind of missed the transition."
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