No changes atop the leaderboard in Brunswick Euro Challenge after Monday's qualifying

    03/20/12

    2012 European Bowling Tour #4

    The top 8 players of Squads 1-8 are automatically qualified for the finals; cut for 52nd place is 1198

    2012EBT04JimmyRavez.jpg2012EBT04AmandineJacques.jpgJimmy Ravez (pictured left) of Belgium remained unchallenged in the eighth qualifying squad of the Brunswick Euro Challenge Monday evening at Plaza Saint Maximin in Saint Maximin, France, and continued to lead the field of 135 players from ten countries with 1396 pinfall and an average of 232.67.

    Ravez and the next seven players in the standings after the first eight squads are automatically qualified for Sunday's finals if they don't finish in the top 52. If any of the eight players will finish above the cut line, the next player from the Squad 1-8 standings will take advantage.

    Amandine Jacques (right) is the best of 22 women in the field in second place with 1386 including 48 pins handicap, a standard for women on the European Bowling Tour. Day one leader Gery Verbruggen, Belgium, was this with 1375 and was followed by French Jonathan Lefevre and Yoan Alix in fourth and fifth place with 1350 and 1336, respectively.

    Rounding out the top 8 were Michael Holzapfel, Germany (1329), Mathias Sarmadi, France (1324) and Xavier Lotthe, France (1324).

    2012EBT04PauloVial.jpg2012EBT04WalterRayWilliams.jpgPaulo Vial (left), France, led Squad 8 with 1318 six-game total and an average of 219.75. Vial had games of 191, 213, 255, 224, 212 and 223, The only other players, who made the top 52 on Monday were Alexander Medveditskov, Russia, and PBA super star Walter Ray Williams Jr. (right), United States.

    Medveditskov had a 1243 series including a 257 high game to move into 31st place. Seven-time PBA Player of the Year Williams, who will compete in Wednesday's stepladder finals of the WTBA International Open, is using the opportunity to bowl in his first tournament in Europe.

    Williams, who is also a three-time WTBA World Champion (2008 Thailand - Team, Singles and Masters), chalked up 1232 including a 256 high game, good for 36th place at the moment. With another 17 qualifying squads to go, Maxim Okorokov, Russia, holds the 52nd and last place to advance to finals with 1198 and an average of 199.67.

    Qualifying continues on Tuesday, March 20, with Squads 9 scheduled for 8.30 p.m. CET.

    2011EBT17ClaraGuerrero2_small.jpg The Brunswick Euro Challenge is the fourth tournament on the 2012 European Bowling Tour schedule and one of only two "Platinum" events, the EBT's highest category. The BEC is also the seventh event of the 2012 World Bowling Tour and the second of three WBT events in Europe this season. Colombia's Clara Juliana Guerrero (left) is the defending champion.

    The tournament will be held from March 16-25 at 28-laner Le Plaza Bowling in Saint Maximin near Paris, France and offers total prize money of 106.000 Euro, approximately US $140,000 with 15.000 Euro going to the winner, 7.500 Euro to the runner-up and 5.000 Euro to the third place finisher.

    ValckeBowling.jpg BowlingdigitalBanner.gif The 2012 Brunswick Euro Challenge is organized and conducted by Brunswick distributor Valcke Bowling. Bowlingdigital.com will cover the event live from Le Plaza Bowling with stories and results after each round including live streaming, high definition videos and high quality photos.

    Live streaming starts with the stepladder finals of the WTBA International Open Wednesday, March 21st from 3.30 to 4.30 p.m. Central European Time (10.30 a.m. EST; 10.30 p.m. Hong Kong time). Live streaming of the 2012 Brunswick Euro Challenge stepladder finals will start on Sunday, March 25th at 6.30 p.m. Central European Time (12.30 p.m. EST; 12.30 a.m. on the 26th Hong Kong time). The award ceremonies are scheduled for 7.30 p.m. CET.

    2012BECLogo_small.jpg BEC qualifying runs through Saturday, March. 24 with the final Squad 25 slated for 8 p.m. Qualifying concludes with the ultimate one-game Desperado Squad at 11.30 p.m. Women will receive 8 pins handicap each game throughout the entire event, a standard for women on the European Bowling Tour.

    A total of 64 players will qualify for the finals on Sunday, March 25, the top 52 in the overall qualifying standings, the top 8 of a separate leaderboard of the squads conducted March 16-19 plus the top 4 of the Desperado Squad. The top 12 qualifiers will receive one bye.

    The remaining 52 finalists will bowl six games scratch to cut to the top 16 who will join the top 12 qualifiers in Round Two. Those 28 will bowl another six games scratch after which the field will be trimmed to the top 8 players who will carry their pinfall total forward into the match play round.

    After seven games round robin match play (30 for each win; 15 for each tie) the top 3 players will determine the champion in a stepladder final. The No. 3 seed bowls the No. 2 seed and the winner of the semifinal match takes on the No. 1 seed for the title, and the 15.00 Euro top prize.

    2012EBTLogo_small.jpg The 2012 European Bowling Tour is made up of 21 events in 16 countries including two Platinum, four Gold, eight Silver and seven Satellite tournaments.

    The top 50 men and the top 50 women in each event earn ranking points based on how they finish in the event. The winner of a Platinum tournament such as the Brunswick Euro Challenge receives 250 ranking points, the winner of a Gold tournament gets 150, the winner of a Silver tournament earns 100, and the winner of a Satellite tournament gets 50 ranking points.

    Those points will be tabulated throughout the season to determine the top 16 men and top 16 women who will compete in the sixth EBT Masters in Bratislava, Slovakia in Sept. 2013.

    2012 European Bowling Tour Rankings
    EBT Women's Ranking
    EBT Men's Ranking

    WBTLogo_small.jpgThe ninth edition of the Brunswick Euro Challenge is also the seventh event of the 2012 World Bowling Tour organized by the World Tenpin Bowling Association. After the Bahamas Classic has been postponed the 2012 WBT consists of 13 tournaments in America, Asia, Europe and Australia - five in the United States and one each in Australia, Austria, Finland, France, Japan, Korea, Kuwait and Thailand.

    Players earn ranking points based on how they finish in each event. The current points system is based on a continuous two-year cycle, so points earned in 2011 are added to points earned in 2012 to determine the points list.

    The top three men and top three women will be invited to compete in the World Bowling Tour Finals presented by the Professional Bowlers Association at the end of 2012 featuring total prize fund of $70,000.

    World Bowling Tour Rankings
    WBT Women's Ranking
    WBT Men's Ranking

    The World Tenpin Bowling Association, which is made up of 115 bowling federations, governs the sport throughout the world. For more information on WTBA and the World Bowling Tour, visit WorldTenpinBowling.com.

     


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    2012 World Bowling Tour Schedule

     


    Qualifying Standings after Squad 8/25

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