Finns Jouni Helminen and Krista Pöllänen became the early leaders in the 2008 European Bowling Tour rankings. Helminen extended the winning streak of the Finns in the Brunswick Ballmaster Open after defeating American Tim Mack in the title match.

The last non-Finnish bowler, who could win the prestigious title was Norwegian Tore Torgersen back in 1996.

Pöllänen was one of just two women, who survived the qualifying in this year's event. The long-time national team member and compatriot Jenni Mäkelä both went out in the second round of the finals and Pöllänen beat out Mäkelä for the women's top spot.

Since the inception of the Tour in the year 2000, the EBT starts with the prestigious tournament at Tali Bowling in Helsinki, Finland. Traditionally, the Brunswick Ballmaster Open champion and the top-ranked woman, or if there is a female winner like Piritta Kantola in 2001 the top-ranked man, overtake the lead in the European Bowling Tour rankings.

The European Bowling Tour will take a brief hiatus before heading to Foetz/Mondercange in Luxembourg for the Ebonite International Luxembourg Open at Inter-Bowling S.à r.l, Wednesday through Sunday, Jan. 30 - Feb. 3, 2008.

The 2008 EBT consists of 18 tournaments in Finland, Netherlands, Spain, Turkey (two events each), Austria, Belgium, Denmark, England, France, Italy, Luxembourg, Qatar, San Marino and Slovenia (one each).

The top 8 men and top 8 women of the EBT rankings at the end of the season will qualify for the 2009 World Ranking Masters, while the top 16 in each division will qualify for the European Ranking Masters.