PBA announces 2005-06 Regional Tour Awards

The Professional Bowlers Association (PBA) has announced the 2005-06 PBA Regional Tour year-end awards for Player of the Year, Rookie of the Year and Pat Patterson Award. The awards are based upon performances from the 2005-06 PBA Regional Tour season, which ended March 31, 2006.

The awards for Player of the Year and Rookie of the Year are voted on by the six regional managers and John Weber, Director of the Senior and Regional Tours. The Pat Patterson award was selected by the respective Regional Managers.

Each of the seven regions voted on the three awards. In addition, four of the seven regions (Central, East, Midwest and South) have a Senior Player of the Year award winner. The Senior Player of the Year award is only given if that region hosts a minimum of six senior events.

The Pat Patterson Award is given annually to one member in each of the seven regions for contributions to the PBA Regional programs. The award has been given out since 1972 and carries the name of the late Pat Patterson, who was responsible for numerous advancements which benefited the PBA in its early stages.

In the PBA Central Region, Riga Kalfas (Florence, Ky.) was named Player of the Year after winning two titles and earning an exemption for the 2006-07 Denny's PBA Tour season by leading the region's points list. The Dan Ottman Rookie of the Year award went to Louis Franzetti (Indianapolis) who cashed in seven of 11 events and made match play four times. The Senior Player of the Year was given to Bill Henson (Westerville, Ohio). Henson led the seniors in earnings and average and finished second in points. Bill Wammes was named the Pat Patterson award winner.

The PBA East Region awarded Brian LeClair (Athens, N.Y.) the Player of the Year award after he captured two titles en route to leading the region's points list and earning an exemption for the 2006-07 Denny's PBA Tour season. Liz Johnson (Cheektowaga, N.Y.) took home Rookie of the Year honors, finishing sixth in points and becoming the first woman ever to win a PBA Regional Tour title. Sam Maccarone (Glassboro, N.J.) won the Senior Player of the Year award, capturing one title and leading the region in points, while Bob Leonard Sr. (Elmira, N.Y.) was named the Pat Patterson award recipient.

The PBA Midwest Region Player of the Year went to Jeff Carter (Springfield, Ill.) while the Rookie of the Year award went to Chad Kloss (Greenfield, Wis.). Carter earned an exemption for the 2006-07 Denny's PBA Tour season by winning four events, including the final event of the season, to edge out David Beres for the points lead. Kloss captured one title and cashed in 12 of 22 events. The Senior Player of the Year award was given to Tim Kauble (Marion, Ohio), who won three titles in just eight events. The Pat Patterson award winner for the Midwest region was Gene Vincent (Decatur, Ill.) for the second consecutive season.

In the PBA Northwest Region, Chris Warren (University Place, Wash.) was named Player of the Year after winning four titles and leading the region in points and earnings to earn an exemption for the 2006-07 Denny's PBA Tour season. The Rookie of the Year award was given to Chet Rogers (Milwaukie, Ore.), who cashed in six of eight events and had a fifth-place finish to his name. The Pat Patterson award was given to Russ Hunt (Walla Walla, Wash.).

The PBA South Region awarded Pete Dohan (Tampa, Fla.) the Player of the Year after he won two titles and finished first in earnings and second in points to John May, who earned an exemption for 2006-07. Darren Franks (Canton, Ga.) took home Rookie of the Year honors by winning one title and cashing in 16 of 21 events. The Senior Player of the Year was given to Guppy Troup (Taylorsville, N.C.) for the second consecutive season. Troup led the region with two titles. Michael Kastner (Powder Springs, Ga.) took home the Pat Patterson Award for the fourth year in a row.

Mitch Beasley (Arlington, Texas) and Sean Rash (Wichita, Kan.) were named the PBA Southwest Region Player and Rookie of the Year, respectively. Beasley won two titles and led the region in points to earn an exemption for the 2006-07 Denny's PBA Tour season which he will defer until 2007-08 due to Air Force obligations. Beasley finished second in earnings, third in average and cashed in 21 of 22 events. Rash won his first career Regional Tour title to go along with the Denny's PBA Tour title he won in February. The Pat Patterson award was given to Cary Mogard.

In the PBA West Region, Dave Arnold (Reno, Nev.) took home Player of the Year honors after winning two titles and finishing first in earnings and second in points. Rookie of the Year was given to Vayle Floria (Long Beach, Calif.), who captured one title and cashed in eight of 12 events. Darron Peters (Murrieta, Calif.) was honored as the Pat Patterson recipient.