Womens Open: Halfway Update
August 05, 2009
LAS VEGAS - There are five different lane conditions being used at the 2009 U.S. Women's Open, a United States Bowling Congress event, this week, and there aren't many women with more experience on those patterns than Missy Bellinder of Fullerton, Calif.
Bellinder, who became the first woman to join the Professional Bowlers Association, has been bowling on the five PBA Experience patterns since 2004 and is demonstrating a great command of the challenging conditions as the overall leader at Strike Zone Bowling Center inside the Sunset Station Hotel and Casino in Henderson, Nev.
The 27-year-old right-hander is averaging more than 224 through two rounds and leads the 170-player field with a 3,598 total for 16 games. Australia's Anne Maree Putney posted the highest block of the morning squad Wednesday (1,796) and is second with 3,574. Cha Mi-Jung of Korea is third with 3,433.
"I feel really good, and I'm throwing the ball well," said Bellinder, who is the only woman to win two PBA regional titles. "I have a lot of experience on these patterns, and I've bowled in a lot of regionals this summer to stay sharp."
Tuesday's opening round was contested on the Shark pattern, while Wednesday featured the Chameleon. Bellinder, who was second after the first round, considers those her weakest patterns and is glad to have found early success.
"The Chameleon is the one I struggle on the most, and the Shark is next," Bellinder said. "Those are out of the way, and I bowled well on them, so I'm happy about that. I'm taking each day one at a time and trying not to look at the big picture yet. If I can bowl well each day, that would have to put me near the top overall."
Tuesday's leader Tammy Boomershine of North Ogden, Utah, is on the lanes now. She averaged 243.5 to take the opening-round lead with 1,948.
This year, the U.S. Women's Open features a new format with the top 12 players advancing to the five-part ESPN series. The overall prize fund for this year's event is $150,000 with $25,000 going to the winner.
All U.S. Women's Open participants will bowl three eight-game qualifying blocks over three days (Tuesday-Thursday) before the field is cut to the top 48, who will bowl an additional 16 games on Friday. The top 12 players then advance to the televised, single-game, match-play portion with the top four players receiving a first-round bye directly into the quarterfinals.
Any competitor who rolls a 300 game on one of the first four TV shows will receive a $25,000 bonus, while a perfect game in the semifinals or championship match (the fifth show), will earn $100,000.
Kim Terrell-Kearney is the defending champion at the U.S. Women's Open and will be looking to claim the coveted title for the third time. She also won the event in 2001.
The 2009 U.S. Women's Open also marks the return of the Professional Bowlers Association Women's Tour Trials, a simultaneous event that gives the bowlers a chance to qualify for 2009-10 PBA Women's Series.
Bellinder is one of the 43 players who have paid the additional entry fee for the Women's Tour Trials.
The top 12 bowlers from the Tour Trials will join the six champions from last season (Carolyn Dorin-Ballard, Michelle Feldman, Liz Johnson, Wendy Macpherson, Stefanie Nation and Jodi Woessner) as exempt players for the upcoming Women's Series.
The Women's Series will feature five standard events, the open-field PBA Women's World Championship, the Don and Paula Carter Mixed Doubles Championship and the season-ending PBA Women's Series Showdown. Each standard event will have a 20-player field, up from the 16-player field used this season. The final two players in the field will come from the weekly Tour Qualifying Rounds, similar to the PBA Tour.
Competitors in the Women's Series will be competing for nearly $500,000 in prize money with $10,000 going to the winner of each event.
Bellinder, who became the first woman to join the Professional Bowlers Association, has been bowling on the five PBA Experience patterns since 2004 and is demonstrating a great command of the challenging conditions as the overall leader at Strike Zone Bowling Center inside the Sunset Station Hotel and Casino in Henderson, Nev.
The 27-year-old right-hander is averaging more than 224 through two rounds and leads the 170-player field with a 3,598 total for 16 games. Australia's Anne Maree Putney posted the highest block of the morning squad Wednesday (1,796) and is second with 3,574. Cha Mi-Jung of Korea is third with 3,433.
"I feel really good, and I'm throwing the ball well," said Bellinder, who is the only woman to win two PBA regional titles. "I have a lot of experience on these patterns, and I've bowled in a lot of regionals this summer to stay sharp."
Tuesday's opening round was contested on the Shark pattern, while Wednesday featured the Chameleon. Bellinder, who was second after the first round, considers those her weakest patterns and is glad to have found early success.
"The Chameleon is the one I struggle on the most, and the Shark is next," Bellinder said. "Those are out of the way, and I bowled well on them, so I'm happy about that. I'm taking each day one at a time and trying not to look at the big picture yet. If I can bowl well each day, that would have to put me near the top overall."
Tuesday's leader Tammy Boomershine of North Ogden, Utah, is on the lanes now. She averaged 243.5 to take the opening-round lead with 1,948.
This year, the U.S. Women's Open features a new format with the top 12 players advancing to the five-part ESPN series. The overall prize fund for this year's event is $150,000 with $25,000 going to the winner.
All U.S. Women's Open participants will bowl three eight-game qualifying blocks over three days (Tuesday-Thursday) before the field is cut to the top 48, who will bowl an additional 16 games on Friday. The top 12 players then advance to the televised, single-game, match-play portion with the top four players receiving a first-round bye directly into the quarterfinals.
Any competitor who rolls a 300 game on one of the first four TV shows will receive a $25,000 bonus, while a perfect game in the semifinals or championship match (the fifth show), will earn $100,000.
Kim Terrell-Kearney is the defending champion at the U.S. Women's Open and will be looking to claim the coveted title for the third time. She also won the event in 2001.
The 2009 U.S. Women's Open also marks the return of the Professional Bowlers Association Women's Tour Trials, a simultaneous event that gives the bowlers a chance to qualify for 2009-10 PBA Women's Series.
Bellinder is one of the 43 players who have paid the additional entry fee for the Women's Tour Trials.
The top 12 bowlers from the Tour Trials will join the six champions from last season (Carolyn Dorin-Ballard, Michelle Feldman, Liz Johnson, Wendy Macpherson, Stefanie Nation and Jodi Woessner) as exempt players for the upcoming Women's Series.
The Women's Series will feature five standard events, the open-field PBA Women's World Championship, the Don and Paula Carter Mixed Doubles Championship and the season-ending PBA Women's Series Showdown. Each standard event will have a 20-player field, up from the 16-player field used this season. The final two players in the field will come from the weekly Tour Qualifying Rounds, similar to the PBA Tour.
Competitors in the Women's Series will be competing for nearly $500,000 in prize money with $10,000 going to the winner of each event.