Joonas Jähi, Pasi Uotila lead Saturday's qualifying to crack the top 10 in Helsinki

    01/05/14

    2014 European Bowling Tour #1

    Timo Alho continues to lead the 44th Brunswick Ballmaster Open with 1373; with 4 of 17 squads completed, the cut for 44th place is 1192 (198.67 average)

    2012EBT04JoonasJahi.jpg2013WCPasiUotila.jpg Finnish internationals Joonas Jähi and Pasi Uotila led the third and fourth squad Saturday at Tali Bowling Center in Helsinki, Finland, to crack the top 10 in the qualifying standings of the 44th Brunswick Ballmaster Open.

    Uotila (pictured left), a three-time Ballmaster Open champion (2000, '04 & '09), put together a 1327 series in Squad 4 to leap into fourth place. Jähi (right), who led Squad 3 with 1308, was second to Uotila in Squad 4 with 1317, good for seventh place overall.

    2013EBT15TimoAlho.jpg 2012EBT04PatriciaLuoto.jpgSquad 2 leader Timo Alho (left) of Finland, held on to the lead with 1373 and an average of 228.83. The field of 200 players consists of 196 players from Finland, three from Estonia and German international Patricia Luoto (right), who is the best of 16 women in second place with 1364 including 48 pins handicap.

    Two-time Ballmaster champion Kimmo Lehtonen (2002 & '07) remained in third place with 1362. World and European champion Joonas Jehkinen, who led the opening squad with 1325, rounds out the top 5.

    Jouni Huusko, Finland, currently holds the 44th and last place to advance with 1192 and an average of 198.67.

    Qualifying continues on Sunday, January 5, with Squads 5 & 6 scheduled to start at 11.00 a.m. and 3 p.m. local time (CET +1).

    2014BallmasterLogo_small.jpg The 44th Brunswick Ballmaster Open is the opening event of the 2014 European Bowling Tour and the first of six "EBT Gold" events this season, the second-highest of the four EBT categories. The tournament will be held from Friday, Jan. 3, through Sunday, Jan. 12, 2014 at 36-lane Tali Bowling Center in Finland's capital city Helsinki.

    Players will compete for total prize money of 90.300 Euro with 12.000 Euro going to the winner, 8.000 to the runner-up and 4.000 and 3.000 to the third and fourth place finishers, respectively. Low to cash is 48th place, worth 1.100 Euro.

    According to an agreement between the World Tenpin Bowling Association (WTBA) and the Professional Bowlers Association (PBA), the Ballmaster will award a PBA international title, if won by a PBA member or a PBA international member.

    Qualifying (six games, unlimited re-entries) of the Brunswick Ballmaster Open runs through Saturday, Jan. 11, and ends with Squad 17 followed by the ultimate one-game Desperado Squad slated for 11.30 p.m. local time (CET +1).

    Women will receive 8 pins handicap each game (up to 292 - maximum score is 300), a standard for women on the European Bowling Tour.

    A total of 48 players - the top 44 from the overall qualifying standings plus the top 4 from the Desperado Squad - qualify for the finals on Sunday, Jan. 13. The qualifying winner receives a 2.000 Euro bonus. The first and second runner-up get 1.000 and 500 Euro, respectively.

    All 48 finalists bowl eight games scratch with the top 16 advancing to the match play portion. Those 16 bowl further 15 games of round robin match play (no position round) with the Round 1 total carried over.

    Players earn 30 bonus pins for each match won and 15 for a tie. The top 4 players after 23 games including bonus pins determine the champion in a traditional stepladder final.

    The No. 4 seed meets the No. 3 in the opening match. The winner takes on the No. 2 seed for the right to bowl the top seed for the title, the 12.000 Euro top prize and 150 EBT and 50 WBT ranking points.

     


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