Reigning PBA Player of the Year Mika Koivuniemi (pictured left) rolled the second 300 game of The International Mini Wednesday at Sunset Station's Strike Zone Bowling Center in Las Vegas en route to advance to the finals of the Gold Division on Super Bowl Sunday, Feb. 5 starting at 8 a.m. Pacific (11 a.m. Eastern / 5 p.m. Central European Time).

The native Finn, who lives in Howell, Mich., had games of 208, 258, 300 and 247 for 1013 to lead a group of 21 players in the Gold Division with an average of 253.25. Also advancing from to the Gold Division finals were 13-time PBA champion Tommy Jones (right) of Simpsonville, S.C., who was second of the day with 976 and PBA Regional champion PJ Haggerty of Roseville, Calif. in third with 942.

The Silver Division had total twelve players on Wednesday with daily Cassandra Leuthold (left) of Black Hawk, S.C. advancing to the final with 925 including six pins women's handicap each game. Darwin Wimer of Mesquite, Nev. (882) and Guy Caminsky (right), South Africa (854) each got a free reentry.

Chase Adams of Las Vegas topped the 17 players in the Handicap Division with 891 and was followed by Darrin Remiticado of Stockton, Calif., with 885. Both players advanced to the finals of the Bronze Division.

Qualifying for The International Mini continues on Thursday, Feb. 2, with another three squads at 10 a.m., 12.30 and 3 p.m. (all times Pacific).

 

The International Mini 2012 - All Qualifiers after Wednesday, Feb. 1

Gold Division - Scratch Qualifying
Scroggins, Mike - Amarillo, TX 1058
Page, Rhino - Clovis, CA 1015
Mika Koivuniemi, Howell, MI, 1013
Couch, Jason - Clermont, FL 1011
Legnani, Lucas - Martinez, Argentina 1011
Larsen, Martin - Gothenburg, Sweden 985
Jones, Tommy - Simpsonville, SC 976
Norton, Scott - Costa Mesa, CA 963
300 Games (1) - Mike Koivuniemi

Silver Division - Scratch Qualifying
Wells, Willie - Herriman, UT 1063
Leuthold, Cassandra - Black Hawk 935
Rogers, Bryson - Durham, NC 903
Staley, Lindsy - San Diego, CA 884
Vazquez, Humberto - San Pedro, Mexico 883
300 Games (1) - Willie Wells

Bronze Division - Handicap Qualifying (90% of 210)
Quitangon, Donato - Walnut, CA 967
Rash, Sara - Montgomery, IL 955
Gerencser, Joe - Henderson, NV 941
Bland Jr, Kenneth J. - APO, AE 933
Adams, Chase, - Las Vegas, Nev. 891
Darrin Remiticado, Stockton, CA, 885

Wednesday, Feb. 1 Results

Players with position, hometown and 4-game total

Gold Division - Scratch Qualifying
1, Koivuniemi, Mika - Howell, MI 1013 Advance to Finals
2, Jones, Tommy - Simpsonville, SC 976 Advance to Finals
3, Haggerty, P. J. - Roseville, CA 942 Advance to Finals
4, O'Neill, Bill - Levittown, PA 923
5, Wolfe, Mike - New Albany, IN 922
6, Weber, Pete - St Ann, MO 922
7, Jones, Tommy - Simpsonville, SC 901
8, Wolfe, Mike - New Albany, IN 889
9, Haggerty, P. J. - Roseville, CA 883
10, Wojnar, Jason - Chicago, IL 878
11, Zuniga, J. C. - Tulsa, OK 874
12, Gohagan, George III - Roswell, GA 863
13, O'Neill, Bill - Levittown, PA 858
14, Ruiz Jr, Ildemaro - Miami, FL 858
15, McCune, Eugene - Munster, IN 850
16, Blanchard, Josh - Rancho Cucamonga, CA 827
17, Williams Jr, Walter Ray - Ocala, FL 822 Free Reentry
18, Bock, Dan - Albert Lea, MN 817
19, Wojnar, Jason - Chicago, IL 779
20, Wodka, Dave - Henderson, NV 773
21, Thompson, Anthony - Redding, CA 712

Silver Division - Scratch Qualifying
1, Leuthold, Cassandra - Black Hawk, SC 935 Advance to Finals
2, Wimer, Darwin - Mesquite, NV 882 Free Reentry
3, Nelson, Chad - Owatonna, MN 862
4, Caminsky, Guy - Durban, South Africa 854 Free Reentry
5, Klein, Ross - Glen Cove, NY 852
6, Arena, Ron - East Meadow, NY 847
7, Nephew, Jay - Dallas, TX 826
8, Vazquez, Humberto - San Pedro, Mexico 821
9, Caminsky, Guy - Durban, South Africa 777
10, Ippolito, Andrew - Forest Hills, NY 728
11, Hickland Jr., Ronald - Clarksville, TN 668
12, Reyna, Alejandro 463

Bronze Division - Handicap Qualifying (90% of 210)
1, Adams, Chase - Las Vegas, NV 891 Advance to Finals
2, Remiticado, Darrin - Stockton, CA 885 Advance to Finals
3, Cericos, Sol - Arcadia, CA 873
4, Weaver-Purdy, Elaine - Las Vegas, NV 836 Free Reentry
5, Adams, Chase - Las Vegas, NV 832
6, Lund, Randy - Salt Lake City, UT 818
7, Silva, Jayme - New Bedford, MA 803
8, Sharp, Thomas - Ft. Worth, TX 803
9, Marsicano, Salvatore - Myrtle Beach, SC 790
10, Macaluso, Joe - Hudson, FL 786
11, Cericos, Sol - Arcadia, CA 783
12, Lund, Randy - Salt Lake City, UT 773
13, Weaver-Purdy, Elaine - Las Vegas, NV 764
14, Hameed, Shaik Abdul - New Delhi, India 110 760
15, Kulow, Mitch - Shawnee, OK 760
16, Lund, Randy - Salt Lake City, UT 759
17, Macaluso, Joe - Hudson, FL 689

Scroll down this page to view all previous qualifying results.

 

The International Mini megabuck event, immediately following the USBC Masters and running concurrently with the WTBA International Open, is a scratch and handicap competition that runs from January 28 through February 5. All three events take place at Sunset Station's Strike Zone Bowling Center in suburban Las Vegas.

Guaranteed top prize is $30,000 for the winner. The International Mini will be contested on the WTBA Athens lane conditioning pattern, which is 40 feet in length.

The International Mini is a four-game qualifying tournament. There are 23 squads and 1 in 8 bowlers each day, per division, will advance to the finals and cash for a minimum of $750. There are three divisions: Gold, Silver and Bronze.

In the scratch scoring Gold and Silver divisions women, super seniors (age 60 & over) and amateur seniors (age 50 to 59) will receive 6 bonus pins per game throughout all qualifying squads and finals. The bronze division is a handicap division based on 90% of 210 average. Minimum average for handicapping purposes is 150 (maximum of 54 pins per game).

Bowlers can skip the early rounds of the finals by earning byes. The finals of The International Mini will be held on Sunday, Feb. 5 starting at 8am. The finals use a single game beat half-the-field by division. All finalists are guaranteed to win a minimum of $750.

The last remaining bowler left in each division will be crowned the division champion and will advance to the final shootout. All three division champions will earn a minimum of $10,000.

The final shootout will be a 1 game match between the three division champions. The guaranteed top prizes in the final shootout will pay $30,000 for first place, $15,000 for second place and $10,000 for third place.

Click here to read our summary of the Tournament Format or visit the Mini Eliminator website for all details.

Bowlingdigital will cover The International Mini and the WTBA International Open live from Sunset Station's Strike Zone Bowling Center in Las Vegas all the way through to the finals on Feb. 5, 2012.

 

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WTBA International Open one of three major events in two-week span
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Tournament Format

 

Tuesday, Jan. 31 Results

Players with position, hometown and 4-game total

Gold Division - Scratch Qualifying
1, Legnani, Lucas - Martinez, Argentina 1011 Advance to Finals
2, Larsen, Martin - Gothenburg, Sweden 985 Advance to Finals
3, MacLelland, Dan - Saginaw, MI 984
4, Barta, Adam - Girard, OH 956 Free Reentry
5, Koivuniemi, Mika - Howell, MI 950
6, Mizo, Jarret - Honolulu, HI 935
7, Shafer, Ryan - Horseheads, NY 935
8, Fagan, Mike - Grapevine, TX 931
9, Wojnar, Jason - Chicago, IL 895
10, Guerrero, Joseph L. - Henderson, NV 889
11, Belmont, Bob - Clearwater, FL 798
12, Bohn III, Parker - Jackson, NJ 796
13, Ciminelli, Ryan - Cheektowaga, NY 696

Silver Division - Scratch Qualifying
1, Wells, Willie - Herriman, UT 1063 Advance to Finals
2, Caminsky, Guy - Durban, South Africa 998
3, Leuthold, Cassandra - Black Hawk, SC 953
4, Clark, Mark - Naperville, IL 938 Free Reentry
5, Wimer, Darwin - Mesquite, NV 877
6, Ippolito, Andrew - Forest Hills, NY 811
7, Chew, David - Brentwood, CA 778
300 game - Willie Wells

Bronze Division - Handicap Qualifying (90% of 210)
1, Rash, Sara - Montgomery, IL 955 Advance to Finals
2, Lund, Randy - Salt Lake City, UT 918 Free Reentry
3, Weaver-Purdy, Elaine - Las Vegas, NV 886 Free Reentry
4, Lund, Randy - Salt Lake City, UT 815
5, Clark, Artavius - Oxon Hill, MD 812
6, Wright, Don - Palm Desert, CA 772
7, Weaver-Purdy, Elaine - Las Vegas, NV 769
8, Silva, Jayme - New Bedford, MA 741

Monday, Jan. 30 Results

Players with position, hometown and 4-game total

Gold Division - Scratch Qualifying
1, Page, Rhino - Clovis, CA 1015 Advance to Finals
2, Couch, Jason - Clermont, FL 1011 Advance to Finals
3, Couch, Jason - Clermont, FL 888 Free Reentry
4, Koivuniemi, Mika - Howell, MI 883
5, Bohn, Parker - Jackson, NJ 880
6, Smith, Steven J - San Diego, CA 871
7, Pepe, Anthony - Queens, NY 853
8, Barta, Adam - Girard, OH 834
9, Blanchard, Josh - Rancho Cucamonga, CA 833
10, Gohagan, George III - Roswell, GA 830
11, Barta, Adam - Girard, OH 827
12, Ruiz Jr, Ildemaro - Miami, FL 812
13, Ciminelli, Ryan - Cheektowaga, NY 429

Silver Division - Scratch Qualifying
1, Staley, Lindsy - San Diego, CA 884 Advance to Finals
2, Paluszek, Joe - Bensalem, PA 870 Free Reentry
3, Paluszek, Joe - Bensalem, PA 858
4, Wells, Willie - Herriman, UT 842
5, Ippolito, Andrew - Forest Hills, NY 839
6, Wells, Willie - Herriman, UT 820
7, Reyna, Alejandro 817
8, Wilber, Hal - Las Vegas, NV 808
9, Robertson, Brandon - Clinton, CT 775
10, Chew, David - Brentwood, CA 733 Free Reentry

Bronze Division - Handicap Qualifying (90% of 210)
1, Gerencser, Joe - Henderson, NV 941 Advance to Finals
2, Rash, Sara - Montgomery, IL 906 Free Reentry
3, Badovinac, Steven - Parker, CO 890
4, Macaluso, Joe - Hudson, FL 868
5, Cericos, Sol - Arcadia, CA 834
6, Rash, Sara - Montgomery, IL 815 Free Reetry
7, Clark, Artavius - Oxon Hill, MD 772
8, Macaluso, Joe - Hudson, FL 727

 

Sunday, Jan. 29 Results

Players with position, hometown and 4-game total

Gold Division - Scratch Qualifying
1, Norton, Scott - Costa Mesa, CA 963 Advance to Finals
2, Gohagan, George III - Roswell, GA 915 Free Reentry
3, Legnani, Lucas - Martinez, Argentina 867
4, Hamilton, Michael - Miami, FL 835
5, Daugherty, Tom - West Chapel, FL 770

Silver Division - Scratch Qualifying
1, Vazquez, Humberto - San Pedro, Mexico 883 Advance to Finals
2, Wilber, Hal - Las Vegas, NV 787
3, Chew, David - Brentwood, CA 768
4, Robertson, Brandon - Clinton, CT 748 Free Reentry
5, Robertson, Brandon - Clinton, CT 724

Bronze Division - Handicap Qualifying (90% of 210)
1, Bland Jr, Kenneth J. - APO, AE 933 Advance to Finals
2, Gerencser, Joe - Henderson, NV 883 Free Reentry
3, Clark, Artavius - Oxon Hill, MD 766
4, Sharp, Thomas - Ft. Worth, TX 763
5, Macaluso, Joe - Hudson, FL 762
6, Clark, Artavius - Oxon Hill, MD 737
7, Hill, Harold Jr. - Lakeside, CA 712
8, Bland Jr, Ken - Germany 711

 

Saturday, Jan. 28 Results

Players with position, hometown and 4-game total

Gold Division - Scratch Qualifying
1, Scroggins, Mike - Amarillo, TX 1058 Advance to Finals
2, Pepe, Anthony - Queens, NY 943 Free Reentry
3, McNiel, Matt - Prior Lake, MN 938
4, Legnani, Lucas - Martinez, Argentina 927
5, Rash, Sean - Montgomery, IL 911
6, Hess, Tom - Urbandale, IA 905
7, Pojas, Chad - Wajoaw, HI 885
8, Thompson, Anthony - Redding, CA 814
9, Vermilyea, Erik - Mansfield, TX 795

Silver Division - Scratch Qualifying
1, Rogers, Bryson - Durham, NC 903 Advance to Finals
2, Chew, David - Brentwood, CA 864 Free Reentry
3, Wilber, Hal - Las Vegas, NV 809 Free Reentry
4, Vazquez, Humberto - San Pedro, Mexico 783
5, Ippolito, Andrew - Forest Hills, NY 748

Bronze Division - Handicap Qualifying (90% of 210)
1, Quitangon, Donato - Walnut, CA 967 Advance to Finals
2, Bland Jr, Ken - Germany 804
3, Bland Jr, Ken - Germany 796 Free Reentry
4, Rash, Sara - Montgomery, IL 785
5, Hill, Harold Jr. - Lakeside, CA 771 Free Reentry
6, Reyes, Celestino 739