Eugene McCune successfully defends PBA Cheetah Open title
01/23/12
Throwing his traditional rocket to the pocket, Eugene McCune (pictured left) of Munster, Ind., successfully defended his Professional Bowlers Association Cheetah Open presented by Ebonite title Sunday at Fountain Bowl.
McCune, who was the top qualifier for the stepladder finals on the high-scoring PBA Cheetah lane conditioning pattern, defeated PBA Hall of Famer and 35-time Tour titlist Pete Weber (right) of St. Ann, Mo., 245-229, in the championship match for his third career win.
"Anytime I can play outside on the lane and throw it hard it plays in my favor," said McCune who estimated he was throwing the ball at a little over 20 miles per hour. "It's old school and that's where I feel most comfortable."
McCune won his second career title last season when, as tournament leader, he defeated Norm Duke, 238-237, to win the Cheetah Championship. It was during the match play round of that event that McCune broke the PBA nine-game scoring record with a 2,468 pinfall (274.22 average). In this year's Cheetah Open, conducted on PBA's Cheetah lane conditioning pattern, he averaged 253 for the tournament.
"When I bowl on this condition there's a little pressure because I know I need to take advantage of it," he added. "I was a little worried after the first two frames of the tournament when I had open frames but I went to a different ball and made a couple of other adjustments and got back on track."
McCune was the first player to successfully defend a Tour title since Chris Barnes won back-to-back events in Columbus, Ohio, in the 2007-08 and 2008-09 seasons.
The landmark Cheetah Open was the first PBA Tour event streamed live exclusively on PBA's Xtra Frame online bowling channel. Three more Xtra Frame events are scheduled during the remainder of the season.
"It was going to be a good match because he's one of the best on this pattern and I match up real well in this house," said Weber, who was trying for his 36th Tour title. "It was a good match for a while until I had a couple bad shots."
In the semifinal match Weber flew past former Wichita State University star Josh Blanchard (left) of Gilbert, Ariz., 248-165. Blanchard was rebounding after his fall on the approach during the PBA World Championship Mike Aubly Division final seen on ESPN two weeks ago. Blanchard went on to finish 16th in the World Championship.
In the opening stepladder match, Weber defeated fellow Hall of Famer Norm Duke (right), 237-226, to advance to the semifinal.
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Fountain Bowl in Fountain Valley, Calif., United States (Jan. 20-22, 2012)
Championship Round:
1, Eugene McCune, Munster, Ind., 245 (1 game), $10,000
2, Pete Weber, St. Ann, Mo., 714 (3 games), $5,000
3, Josh Blanchard, Gilbert, Ariz., 165 (1 game), $3,000
4, Norm Duke, Clermont, Fla., 226 (1 game), $2,500
L-R Ebonite District sales manager Shawn Morris and Eugene McCune.
Playoff Results:
First Match: No. 4 Weber def. No. 3 Duke, 237-226
Semifinal Match: Weber def. No. 2 Blanchard, 248-165
Standings after 22 games, including match play records and bonus pins. The top four advance to stepladder finals a denotes amateur
1, Eugene McCune, Munster, Ind., 8-5, 5,814
2, Josh Blanchard, Gilbert, Ariz., 10-3, 5,809
3, Norm Duke, Clermont, Fla., 7-6, 5,806
4, Pete Weber, St. Ann, Mo., 7-6, 5,692
Missed Cut:
5, Martin Larsen, Sweden, 9-4, 5,684, $2,300
6, Michael Haugen Jr., Carefree, Ariz., 6-7, 5,651, $2,100
7, Bill O'Neill, Southampton, Pa., 6-7, 5,641, $2,100
8, Chris Loschetter, Avon, Ohio, 7-6, 5,620, $1,800
9, Patrick Allen, Wesley Chapel, Fla., 6-7, 5,606, $1,750
10, Sean Rash, Montgomery, Ill., 8-5, 5,602, $1,800
11, Stuart Williams, England, 8-5, 5,596, $1,650
12, Danny Wiseman, Baltimore, 8-5, 5,592, $1,800
13, PJ Haggerty, Roseville, Calif., 5-8, 5,554, $1,550
14, Jesse Buss, Wichita, Kan., 3-10, 5,535, $1,700
15, a-Shigeo Saitoh, Japan, 8-5, 5,515, $1,450
16, Dino Castillo, Carrollton, Texas, 5-8, 5,475, $1,600
17, John Szczerbinski, North Tonawanda, N.Y., 6-7, 5,424, $1,550
18, Wes Malott, Pflugerville, Texas, 8-5, 5,417, $1,300
19, Chris Barnes, Double Oak, Texas, 4-9, 5,364, $1,275
20, Mitch Beasley, Clarksville, Tenn., 5-8, 5,338, $1,238
20, a-Lowell Huber, Westminster, CA, 7-6, 5,338, $1,238
22, Nathan Bohr, Wichita, Kan., 6-7, 5,313, $1,300
23, Ryan Ciminelli, Cheektowaga, N.Y., 6-7, 5,259, $1,175
24, a-Takashi Kudoh, Japan, 3-10, 5,147, $1,150
300 games (9) - Danny Wiseman (2), Bill O'Neill (2), Jesse Buss (2), Norm Duke, Michael Haugen Jr., Martin Larsen.
2011-12 PBA Tour #9
Defeats Pete Weber in championship match for third career PBA Tour title; averages 253 for the tournament
Throwing his traditional rocket to the pocket, Eugene McCune (pictured left) of Munster, Ind., successfully defended his Professional Bowlers Association Cheetah Open presented by Ebonite title Sunday at Fountain Bowl. McCune, who was the top qualifier for the stepladder finals on the high-scoring PBA Cheetah lane conditioning pattern, defeated PBA Hall of Famer and 35-time Tour titlist Pete Weber (right) of St. Ann, Mo., 245-229, in the championship match for his third career win.
"Anytime I can play outside on the lane and throw it hard it plays in my favor," said McCune who estimated he was throwing the ball at a little over 20 miles per hour. "It's old school and that's where I feel most comfortable."
McCune won his second career title last season when, as tournament leader, he defeated Norm Duke, 238-237, to win the Cheetah Championship. It was during the match play round of that event that McCune broke the PBA nine-game scoring record with a 2,468 pinfall (274.22 average). In this year's Cheetah Open, conducted on PBA's Cheetah lane conditioning pattern, he averaged 253 for the tournament.
"When I bowl on this condition there's a little pressure because I know I need to take advantage of it," he added. "I was a little worried after the first two frames of the tournament when I had open frames but I went to a different ball and made a couple of other adjustments and got back on track."
McCune was the first player to successfully defend a Tour title since Chris Barnes won back-to-back events in Columbus, Ohio, in the 2007-08 and 2008-09 seasons. The landmark Cheetah Open was the first PBA Tour event streamed live exclusively on PBA's Xtra Frame online bowling channel. Three more Xtra Frame events are scheduled during the remainder of the season.
"It was going to be a good match because he's one of the best on this pattern and I match up real well in this house," said Weber, who was trying for his 36th Tour title. "It was a good match for a while until I had a couple bad shots."
In the semifinal match Weber flew past former Wichita State University star Josh Blanchard (left) of Gilbert, Ariz., 248-165. Blanchard was rebounding after his fall on the approach during the PBA World Championship Mike Aubly Division final seen on ESPN two weeks ago. Blanchard went on to finish 16th in the World Championship.
In the opening stepladder match, Weber defeated fellow Hall of Famer Norm Duke (right), 237-226, to advance to the semifinal.
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PBA Cheetah Open presented by Ebonite
Fountain Bowl in Fountain Valley, Calif., United States (Jan. 20-22, 2012)
Championship Round:1, Eugene McCune, Munster, Ind., 245 (1 game), $10,000
2, Pete Weber, St. Ann, Mo., 714 (3 games), $5,000
3, Josh Blanchard, Gilbert, Ariz., 165 (1 game), $3,000
4, Norm Duke, Clermont, Fla., 226 (1 game), $2,500
L-R Ebonite District sales manager Shawn Morris and Eugene McCune.
Playoff Results:
First Match: No. 4 Weber def. No. 3 Duke, 237-226
Semifinal Match: Weber def. No. 2 Blanchard, 248-165
Championship Match: No. 1 McCune def. Weber, 245-229
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Match Play Results
Standings after 22 games, including match play records and bonus pins. The top four advance to stepladder finals a denotes amateur
1, Eugene McCune, Munster, Ind., 8-5, 5,814
2, Josh Blanchard, Gilbert, Ariz., 10-3, 5,809
3, Norm Duke, Clermont, Fla., 7-6, 5,806
4, Pete Weber, St. Ann, Mo., 7-6, 5,692
Missed Cut:
5, Martin Larsen, Sweden, 9-4, 5,684, $2,300
6, Michael Haugen Jr., Carefree, Ariz., 6-7, 5,651, $2,100
7, Bill O'Neill, Southampton, Pa., 6-7, 5,641, $2,100
8, Chris Loschetter, Avon, Ohio, 7-6, 5,620, $1,800
9, Patrick Allen, Wesley Chapel, Fla., 6-7, 5,606, $1,750
10, Sean Rash, Montgomery, Ill., 8-5, 5,602, $1,800
11, Stuart Williams, England, 8-5, 5,596, $1,650
12, Danny Wiseman, Baltimore, 8-5, 5,592, $1,800
13, PJ Haggerty, Roseville, Calif., 5-8, 5,554, $1,550
14, Jesse Buss, Wichita, Kan., 3-10, 5,535, $1,700
15, a-Shigeo Saitoh, Japan, 8-5, 5,515, $1,450
16, Dino Castillo, Carrollton, Texas, 5-8, 5,475, $1,600
17, John Szczerbinski, North Tonawanda, N.Y., 6-7, 5,424, $1,550
18, Wes Malott, Pflugerville, Texas, 8-5, 5,417, $1,300
19, Chris Barnes, Double Oak, Texas, 4-9, 5,364, $1,275
20, Mitch Beasley, Clarksville, Tenn., 5-8, 5,338, $1,238
20, a-Lowell Huber, Westminster, CA, 7-6, 5,338, $1,238
22, Nathan Bohr, Wichita, Kan., 6-7, 5,313, $1,300
23, Ryan Ciminelli, Cheektowaga, N.Y., 6-7, 5,259, $1,175
24, a-Takashi Kudoh, Japan, 3-10, 5,147, $1,150
300 games (9) - Danny Wiseman (2), Bill O'Neill (2), Jesse Buss (2), Norm Duke, Michael Haugen Jr., Martin Larsen.