Leisureplex Stillorgan in Dublin, Ireland (Jan. 24-27, 2008)
Ghislaine van der Tol (left), Netherlands and Dominic Barrett (right), England, cruised to the titles in the 20th Irish Open Championships at Leisureplex Stillorgan in Dublin, Ireland. The Dutch lefty stopped Christel Carlsson's (SWE) run in the title match, 197-164. Barrett defeated his compatriot and defending champion Nick Froggatt, 219-217 in the men#s final. Barrett received the 5.000 Euro top prize, while Van der Tol pocketed 1.800 Euro.
Plaza Bowling in Saint Maximin, France (March 7-16, 2008)
As reported earlier the Brunswick Euro Challenge, Europe's 'richest' tournament in the year 2007, will move from Greece to France. Brunswick has announced that the fifth edition is scheduled for March 7-16, 2008, and will be held at Plaza Bowling in Saint Maximin, France. The 2008 Brunswick Euro Challenge sponsored by Brunswick Bowling will be organized by Brunswick distributor Valcke Bowling.
Cosmic Bowling Valencia in Valencia, Spain (Jan. 15-20, 2008)
Melvin Ocando (pictured) posted two big games to win the Scratch Division title in the 9th Trofeo Ciudad de Valencia at Cosmic Bowling Valencia in Valencia, Spain. The Spaniard, seeded second in the three-player stepladder finals, flew past compatriot Marcial Ovide in the opening match, 268-201, then topped No. 1 seed, Serge Frouvelle, France, in a close match, 235-233, to pocket the 3.500 Euro top prize. In the Handicap Division, No. 6 Alvaro Jose Cardona defeated No. 5 Juan Puerta, 197-175, to earn the title and 1.600 Euro.
The first Brunswick Team England tournament of 2008 was held at Bowlplex Blackburn, Jan. 19-20, and was a lesson in never giving up on a seemingly lost cause. Rob Kendall, was 35th after qualifying and advanced just because of two no-shows, averaged 261 in round 2 and 227 in round robin to to blow away the field and claim victory by 113 pins. On the women's side, Fiona Banks beat out Jo Allsebrook by six pins to earn the title, 3404 to 3398.
Interview with Ballmaster Open champion Jouni Helminen, who recently resigned as Finnish Bowling Federation president
When former European champion and PBA touring pro Jouni Helminen was elected President of the Finnish Bowling Federation in December 2006, the then 36-year-old thought he would serve for a two-year term until December 31, 2008. Surprisingly, just one year after his election Helminen has announced that he has resigned from the post "due to personal attacks" by Heiki Sarso, the former WTBA president and Helminen's predecessor as FBF president. Bowlingdigital's editor Herbert Bickel talked with Jouni Helminen short after his victory in the 2008 Brunswick Ballmaster Open,
Tali Bowling in Helsinki, Finland (Jan. 5-13, 2008)
Jouni Helminen (l.), Finland, started the 2008 European Bowling Tour season with victory in the Brunswick Ballmaster Open at Tali Bowling in Helsinki, Finland. In the title match, Helminen defeated American Tim Mack, 223-189, to win the title and the 10.000 Euro top prize. Mack (r.) pocketed 5.000 and went on to win the battle for the 300 game bonus - a Suzuki Hayabusa worth 17.490 Euro.
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. Pöllänen beat out Jenni 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.
Ville Holmström (pictured left) won the qualifying in the Brunswick Ballmaster Open at Tali Bowling in Helsinki, Finland due to the higher last game. Holmström and Timo Alho (right) were deadlocked with 1441 six-game total but Holmström earned the bragging rights as he finished his block with a huge 288 game while Alho had 'only' 248. The top 44 from the qualifying plus the top 4 from the Desperado Squad advanced to the finals on Sunday.
Tali Bowling Stadium in Helsinki, Finland (Jan. 5-13, 2008)
Ville Holmström (l.) closed out his six-game qualifying series Friday night at Tali Bowling in Helsinki with games of 263 and 288 to overtake the lead in the qualifying of the Brunswick Ballmaster Open. Holmström tied previous leader Timo Alho at 1441 or an average of 240.17, but moved to the top due the higher last game. Jouni Helminen, all from Finland, is third with 1437. Paul Moor, England, and Tomas Leandersson, Sweden, led the 7th and 8th qualifying squad. Leandersson is fourth with 1435 and Moor is fifth with 1402.
Tali Bowling Stadium in Helsinki, Finland (Jan. 5-13, 2008)
Timo Alho (left) led the fourth qualifying squad in the Brunswick Ballmaster Open with 1441 six-game total and an average of 240.17 en route to overtake the qualifying lead after day two. The top six players from this squad cracked the top 10 in the overall qualifying standings. Petteri Salonen (right), a four-time European Champion (2005), who led Squad 3 with 1338 (223.00), sits in 9th place. Qualifying continues on Thursday, Jan. 10, with squad 5 and 6.
The 2008 European Bowling Tour schedule features 18 tournaments - 6 Challenger, 11 Major, 1 Premier - and will kick off with the Brunswick Ballmaster Open at Tali Bowling Stadium in Helsinki, Finland on Jan. 5, 2008. The 2007 Ballmaster drew 364 players, the most on the 2007 Tour, and was won by the organizer himself, Finnish star Kimmo Lehtonen. The 2008 season features two firsts for the EBT: a Premier event, the 100.000 Euro Ankara Open, and a tour stop outside Europe, the season-ending Qatar Open.
Stian Olsen, Ann Louise Haugen (pictured) and Aleksander Kvinnesland closed out the year 2007 with victory in the men's women's and junior division of the Drammen X-mas Tournament 2007 at Bowling 1 in Drammen, Norway. The tournament is the third of six events to determine the Norwegian representatives for the 2008 QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup. With her victory in Drammen, Haugen, overtook the lead in the women's World Cup Qualifier from Øien with 78 points. Mads Sandbækken is leading the men's division at 63 points with Svein Roger Olsen in second mere one point behind.
Odense Bowling Center in Odense, Denmark (June 6-15, 2008)
The 2008 Women's European Championships will take place at Odense Bowling Center in Odense, Denmark from June 6-15, 2008. The event will be played on dual lane condition (short and long oil pattern). Maximum six women from each of the 50 member federations of the European Tenpin Bowling Federation are allowed to participate. However, the preliminary schedule is based on 30 teams as mere 22 federations have sent a team to the inaugural WEC in Böblingen, Germany, in the year 2006. Players will compete for medals in Doubles, Trios, Team, All Events and Masters.
Zelta Boulinga Center in Riga, Latvia (Dec. 11-16, 2007)
Jaria Ratia (left) from Finland defeated Janno Kannike, 222-189, in the title match to win the 9th Christmas Open 2007 at Zelta Boulinga Center in Riga, Latvia, and the 2.100 Euro top prize. Kannike earned 1.400 Euro for second place, while Olexandr Kondratjev, Ukraine and Magnus Lonnroth, Finland, received 800 a piece for finishing third and fourth, resp. Marija TkaÄÂenko, Latvia, was the top-ranked female bowler in 11th place and pocketed a 500 Euro bonus.
Bowling Mega Place in Chania, Crete, Greece (April 15-20, 2008)
The 2008 Mediterranean Challenge Cup will be held at Bowling Mega Place in Chania, Crete, Greece, from April 15-20, 2008. At the 15th edition of this annual tournament record 15 ETBF member federations from countries located in or around the Mediterranean Sea, will bowl for medals in Singles, Doubles, Team, All Events and Masters in two divisions - men and women. Crete is the largest island in Greece and one of its most popular holiday destinations, rich of history and surrounded by myths.
Some three years ago, Eveline and Walter Zmugg were a successful entrepreneur couple with a truck spare parts business 'Truck'n'Roll' near Graz, Austria. The "Zmuggies", as their friends call them, then got in touch with bowling and Austrian top players Thomas Gross and Thomas Tybl. Today the couple runs three businesses. Besides 'Truck'n'Roll' they have a bowling center in Leoben and a pro shop in Vienna. "The Bowling Store" pro shop in Plus Bowling is the latest recruit to the family business and was officially opened on Dec. 23rd.
Tali Bowl in Helsinki, Finland (March 15-24, 2008)
The 21st European Youth Championships will be the first international event on the 2008 European Tenpin Bowling Federation calendar. As usual the annual event will be held on Easter. Maximum six girls and six boys of each ETBF member federation, who must not reach the age of 19 years until 31 August 2008, will compete for gold, silver and bronze medals in Doubles, Trios, Team, All Events and Masters at the famous Tali Bowl in Helsinki, Finland from March 15-24. All games will be played on the same lane condition.
Since Bowlingdigital was launched on January 21, 2000, we have been asked numerous times to open a discussion forum. We have worked on this project since a long time but with visitors from more than 150 countries in the world there is much more at stake than just offering a another feature. We are pleased to announce that we finally got it done.
The Storm English Open at Lakeside Superbowl in Nuneaton was not only the final European ranking event but also the final Brunswick Team England ranking event of the season reports Eric Hayton. Steve Thornton (pictured left) won the men's rankings with Jon Zadel in second and Rob Kendall in third. At the top of the ladies though, and for the first time, there was a tie for the number 1 spot between Zara Glover and Jo Allsebrook (right).
Baltiska Bowlinghallen in Malmö, Sweden (Dec. 1-9, 2007)
Swedish national team member Martin Larsen (pictured) won his first career title in the Swedish Super Six Series when he defeated 2007 European ranking champion Osku Palermaa, Finland in the title match of the sixth and final tour stop in Malmö, 217-170. Larsen pocketed 40 000 Swedish Kronor for accomplishing the feat, approx. 4.250 Euro. Palermaa received 25.000 SEK, while semi-final losers Tomas Leandersson and 3. Magnus Andersson, both Sweden, garnered 12.000 SEK each.
Ghislaine van der Tol (left), Netherlands and Dominic Barrett (right), England, cruised to the titles in the 20th Irish Open Championships at Leisureplex Stillorgan in Dublin, Ireland. The Dutch lefty stopped Christel Carlsson's (SWE) run in the title match, 197-164. Barrett defeated his compatriot and defending champion Nick Froggatt, 219-217 in the men#s final. Barrett received the 5.000 Euro top prize, while Van der Tol pocketed 1.800 Euro. 
As reported earlier the Brunswick Euro Challenge, Europe's 'richest' tournament in the year 2007, will move from Greece to France. Brunswick has announced that the fifth edition is scheduled for March 7-16, 2008, and will be held at Plaza Bowling in Saint Maximin, France.
The 2008 Brunswick Euro Challenge sponsored by Brunswick Bowling will be organized by Brunswick distributor Valcke Bowling.
Melvin Ocando (pictured) posted two big games to win the Scratch Division title in the 9th Trofeo Ciudad de Valencia at Cosmic Bowling Valencia in Valencia, Spain. The Spaniard, seeded second in the three-player stepladder finals, flew past compatriot Marcial Ovide in the opening match, 268-201, then topped No. 1 seed, Serge Frouvelle, France, in a close match, 235-233, to pocket the 3.500 Euro top prize. In the Handicap Division, No. 6 Alvaro Jose Cardona defeated No. 5 Juan Puerta, 197-175, to earn the title and 1.600 Euro. 
The first Brunswick Team England tournament of 2008 was held at Bowlplex Blackburn, Jan. 19-20, and was a lesson in never giving up on a seemingly lost cause. Rob Kendall, was 35th after qualifying and advanced just because of two no-shows, averaged 261 in round 2 and 227 in round robin to to blow away the field and claim victory by 113 pins. On the women's side, Fiona Banks beat out Jo Allsebrook by six pins to earn the title, 3404 to 3398. 
When former European champion and PBA touring pro Jouni Helminen was elected President of the Finnish Bowling Federation in December 2006, the then 36-year-old thought he would serve for a two-year term until December 31, 2008. Surprisingly, just one year after his election Helminen has announced that he has resigned from the post "due to personal attacks" by Heiki Sarso, the former WTBA president and Helminen's predecessor as FBF president. Bowlingdigital's editor Herbert Bickel talked with Jouni Helminen short after his victory in the 2008 Brunswick Ballmaster Open,
Jouni Helminen (l.), Finland, started the 2008 European Bowling Tour season with victory in the Brunswick Ballmaster Open at Tali Bowling in Helsinki, Finland. In the title match, Helminen defeated American Tim Mack, 223-189, to win the title and the 10.000 Euro top prize. Mack (r.) pocketed 5.000 and went on to win the battle for the 300 game bonus - a Suzuki Hayabusa worth 17.490 Euro. 
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. Pöllänen beat out Jenni 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. 
Ville Holmström (pictured left) won the qualifying in the Brunswick Ballmaster Open at Tali Bowling in Helsinki, Finland due to the higher last game. Holmström and Timo Alho (right) were deadlocked with 1441 six-game total but Holmström earned the bragging rights as he finished his block with a huge 288 game while Alho had 'only' 248. The top 44 from the qualifying plus the top 4 from the Desperado Squad advanced to the finals on Sunday. 
Timo Alho (left) led the fourth qualifying squad in the Brunswick Ballmaster Open with 1441 six-game total and an average of 240.17 en route to overtake the qualifying lead after day two. The top six players from this squad cracked the top 10 in the overall qualifying standings. Petteri Salonen (right), a four-time European Champion (2005), who led Squad 3 with 1338 (223.00), sits in 9th place. Qualifying continues on Thursday, Jan. 10, with squad 5 and 6. 
The 2008 European Bowling Tour schedule features 18 tournaments - 6 Challenger, 11 Major, 1 Premier - and will kick off with the Brunswick Ballmaster Open at Tali Bowling Stadium in Helsinki, Finland on Jan. 5, 2008. The 2007 Ballmaster drew 364 players, the most on the 2007 Tour, and was won by the organizer himself, Finnish star Kimmo Lehtonen. The 2008 season features two firsts for the EBT: a Premier event, the 100.000 Euro Ankara Open, and a tour stop outside Europe, the season-ending Qatar Open. 
Stian Olsen, Ann Louise Haugen (pictured) and Aleksander Kvinnesland closed out the year 2007 with victory in the men's women's and junior division of the Drammen X-mas Tournament 2007 at Bowling 1 in Drammen, Norway. The tournament is the third of six events to determine the Norwegian representatives for the 2008 QubicaAMF Bowling World Cup. With her victory in Drammen, Haugen, overtook the lead in the women's World Cup Qualifier from Øien with 78 points. Mads Sandbækken is leading the men's division at 63 points with Svein Roger Olsen in second mere one point behind. 
The 2008 Women's European Championships will take place at Odense Bowling Center in Odense, Denmark from June 6-15, 2008. The event will be played on dual lane condition (short and long oil pattern). Maximum six women from each of the 50 member federations of the European Tenpin Bowling Federation are allowed to participate. However, the preliminary schedule is based on 30 teams as mere 22 federations have sent a team to the inaugural WEC in Böblingen, Germany, in the year 2006. Players will compete for medals in Doubles, Trios, Team, All Events and Masters. 
Jaria Ratia (left) from Finland defeated Janno Kannike, 222-189, in the title match to win the 9th Christmas Open 2007 at Zelta Boulinga Center in Riga, Latvia, and the 2.100 Euro top prize. Kannike earned 1.400 Euro for second place, while Olexandr Kondratjev, Ukraine and Magnus Lonnroth, Finland, received 800 a piece for finishing third and fourth, resp. Marija TkaÄÂenko, Latvia, was the top-ranked female bowler in 11th place and pocketed a 500 Euro bonus. 
The 2008 Mediterranean Challenge Cup will be held at Bowling Mega Place in Chania, Crete, Greece, from April 15-20, 2008. At the 15th edition of this annual tournament record 15 ETBF member federations from countries located in or around the Mediterranean Sea, will bowl for medals in Singles, Doubles, Team, All Events and Masters in two divisions - men and women. Crete is the largest island in Greece and one of its most popular holiday destinations, rich of history and surrounded by myths. 
Some three years ago, Eveline and Walter Zmugg were a successful entrepreneur couple with a truck spare parts business 'Truck'n'Roll' near Graz, Austria. The "Zmuggies", as their friends call them, then got in touch with bowling and Austrian top players Thomas Gross and Thomas Tybl. Today the couple runs three businesses. Besides 'Truck'n'Roll' they have a bowling center in Leoben and a pro shop in Vienna. "The Bowling Store" pro shop in Plus Bowling is the latest recruit to the family business and was officially opened on Dec. 23rd. 
The 21st European Youth Championships will be the first international event on the 2008 European Tenpin Bowling Federation calendar. As usual the annual event will be held on Easter. Maximum six girls and six boys of each ETBF member federation, who must not reach the age of 19 years until 31 August 2008, will compete for gold, silver and bronze medals in Doubles, Trios, Team, All Events and Masters at the famous Tali Bowl in Helsinki, Finland from March 15-24. All games will be played on the same lane condition. 
The Storm English Open at Lakeside Superbowl in Nuneaton was not only the final European ranking event but also the final Brunswick Team England ranking event of the season reports Eric Hayton. Steve Thornton (pictured left) won the men's rankings with Jon Zadel in second and Rob Kendall in third. At the top of the ladies though, and for the first time, there was a tie for the number 1 spot between Zara Glover and Jo Allsebrook (right).
Swedish national team member Martin Larsen (pictured) won his first career title in the Swedish Super Six Series when he defeated 2007 European ranking champion Osku Palermaa, Finland in the title match of the sixth and final tour stop in Malmö, 217-170. Larsen pocketed 40 000 Swedish Kronor for accomplishing the feat, approx. 4.250 Euro. Palermaa received 25.000 SEK, while semi-final losers Tomas Leandersson and 3. Magnus Andersson, both Sweden, garnered 12.000 SEK each. 