Tyler Jensen's 10th frame ball gamble opens door to $50,000 Jackpot in Super Bowl Mini Eliminator at The Orleans

Tyler Jensen (pictured right) hit a $50,000 jackpot at the Orleans Hotel/Casino Sunday night but he had to do it the hard way. No, I don't mean he had to make a hard eight at the crap table…the 22-year old rolled the dice in a different way.

In a gutsy gamble, he changed strike balls before his 10th frame shot on the right lane…one that had been tougher than a blackjack dealer who continues to draw until he hits 21.

Jensen, who gave the PBA tour a shot but failed to make the exempt tour, got the first strike and sighed with relief. But he needed some Rolaids relief a few second later when he left the 2-7 split on his next ball and had to make it to achieve a tie against Hawaii's Daniel Miyamoto.

Jensen, who said he didn't bring a special spare ball from his home, had to revert to hooking a strike ball to pick up the split and earn a 204-204 tie with Miyamoto. Then Jensen made a smart decision for the ninth and 10th frame roll-off of the Brunswick Super Bowl Mini-Eliminator at The Orleans.

He decided to let Miyamoto start on the left lane so that he (Jensen) could roll his first frame on the right lane and then finish on the left lane, where he had been sharper than a casino pit boss.

Miyamoto, who had been pounding the pocket on almost every shot, buried a strike on the left lane to put the pressure on Jensen. Jensen didn't strike on the right lane but he made his spare and then moved to the left land and rolled three strikes, forcing Miyamoto to strike twice.

Unfortunately, Miyamoto left a single pin on his next shot and the Open Division semifinal match was over.

You could sense that Jensen felt confident he could beat his next four opponents - Ricky Schissler (40-49 age division winner), Del Lee (205-under average), Raul Rosales (39-under) and James Denos - in the climatic game to a tournament that drew 1,113 bowlers who was shooting for a prize fund estimated at over $1 million.

Although Jensen missed his first spare of the game, he coasted to the $50,000 victory on the strength of a 224 game. Lee rallied with a strike in the ninth and two in the 10th for a 196 game and a slim four-pin margin over Schissler and Denos.

Those four pins added up to 12,500 more dollars for the 63-year-old left-hander from Haywood, Calif. Asked what he was going to do with $25,000, Lee laughed and said "put it away so that I can bowl in more tournaments. I drive up here to Las Vegas about every other month to bowl tournaments," said the father of three who averages 196 in league.

When Lee got up to leave the press room, Jensen demonstrated what a classy young man he was by saying to his chief rival, "Good bowling sir, you're much tougher than your average indicates." Jensen currently lives with bowling champions Lynda and Chris Barnes in Flower Mound, Texas, and says he often helps baby sit their twins when he's in town.

But he's on the road quite often as the U.S. sales representative for the RotoGrip bowling ball company. Naturally, he had to select between two RotoGrip balls in that critical 10th frame. Asked how he made the baby split, he laughed and said "I just hooked the ball and prayed."

Steve Sanders, founder and president of Pinacle Events, was happy with the fifth anniversary of the Super Bowl Mini Eliminator but indicated he would be tweaking some of the components before the sixth edition.

"Our total number of entries (including re-entries) was 2,727, which was up from 2,467 last season," Sanders said.

"But I think I made a mistake by boosting our top prize from $30,000 to $50,000 this year. From listening to the bowlers I get the impression that they think $50,000 is too much and would rather see more money spread among the other cashers.

"Some told us that Las Vegas is getting so expensive that they need more money spread around so that they can at least make this an expense paid vacation if they cash."

You also can look for him to tweak his divisions - the Open Division was huge success with 501 bowlers. One thing you can depend on Steve Sanders…he never plays a pat hand. He is willing to gamble to find a winning combination.

Just like Jensen was willing to gamble to find the right ball in the 10th frame of the biggest game of his young life.

email address: Evans121@aol.