Location:
We had another great turn out at Brunswick Desert Sky lanes. The event drew 73 total entries, which consisted of 49 qualifying entries and 24 economy parlay entries. We had a total of 18 cashers which was a 1 in 4 cash ratio and the event paid out nearly $4,000.00 with only 3 squads of bowling. The best part that the increased number of qualifying entries combined with the fact that there were no exempt players added to the quarter finals allowed for a dramatically increased payout from the advertised amounts. The low to cash amounts were increased by $15 and the top 3 spots were increased by $100 each, which left the overall prize fund increased by over $400.
The participants bowled on the 46ft Mark Roth oil pattern that proved to be very difficult. Again it seemed that players of variety of styles were able to have some success. That was fairly evident in our finalist as we had one of the straightest players on the SFT and one of the players that curves it the most. While it was a very long pattern, the lower amount of volume allowed players to get a little more hook than expected.
We are also pleased to welcome Ben Towner and Arnie Goldman to the SFT AHT family! They are two new bowlers that came out to this weekend’s event, and we look forward to seeing them at their next event! We also want to congratulate Jeremy Walker, Jim Ashmore and James Brewer on advancing to their first quarter finals today! Also congrats to Mavis Fernandez and Jeremy Walker on being this weekend’s parlay power players, turning $25 into to quarter final checks and even more for Mavis!
The quarter finals cut scores were very low which allowed a lot of moving around the last game. Ironically, as the quarter finals finished up, I was met by Charlie Price in the tournament office looking for a handshake as he was sure he missed the cut and was planning on leaving. He bowled 655 with handicap, and apparently he felt like the conditions required a higher score then that. Well he was wrong, he ended up sneaking in as the #2 seed in the A division to bowl against Ben Spencer. The B division had #1 seed Bill Bracket taking on Charlie Light, and the C division had #1 seed James Brewer bowling against Mavis Fernandez. While the #1 seeds all go to pick the pairs they bowled on, they all ended up losing their matches.
This meant that are finalist were Charlie Price out of the A division, who was on fire in every way imaginable ability and luck. The B division champion, Charlie Light, was a season veteran with tons of experience under his belt, 3 SFT titles, 2 majors, and was bowling in his home house. Lastly, the C division champion Mavis Fernandez, who was bowling in her first title match ever. However, she was also representing the ladies and the pregnant ladies, which made her a huge crowd favorite. Her and husband Jeff are expecting a beautiful baby girl! That didn’t slow her down from showing him and everyone else how to still get it done!
The final match was a pretty close one for the most part. Charlie Light got some huge breaks early on with some brooklyns to get a three bagger. The ironic part about this is that it was only but a month ago that Charlie won his title at Brunswick Zone Mesa that was arguable due to a few timely brooklyns and/or good breaks of his own. However, Charlie Price threw a very clutch 5 bagger to close out the final match, but Charlie was still alive. Charlie needed to double to win, but he missed on the first shot giving Charlie his second SFT AHT title. Most importantly, if anyone doubted the incredibly polite and respectful Charlie Price because of his fortune in his first title match, they couldn’t argue his 100% gutsy and talented performance in this one. Great bowling to the finalist and great bowling to a long time SFT legend! We look forward to seeing everyone at AMF Deer Valley for our 2nd standard event of the 2015 season!
Final Match: