Mike Edwards (pictured left) of Tulsa, Okla., has replaced Ron Mohr (right) of Las Vegas in the field of eight players who will compete for the PBA50 Tour's berth in the made-for-TV PBA Challenge telecast during the GEICO PBA World Series of Bowling VI.

The eight-player, eight-game match play qualifying events for PBA50 Tour, PBA Regional and PBA Women's Regional players will take place Friday at 2:30 p.m. PT (5:30 p.m. ET) at South Point Bowling Center in Las Vegas.

All three events will be covered live on Xtra Frame. The top two players in each event will advance to the PBA Challenge which will be contested on Sunday, Nov. 2, in the new South Point Bowling Plaza for telecast on ESPN on Sunday, Jan. 18, at 3 p.m. ET.

The PBA50 Tour field will include Walter Ray Williams Jr. of Oxford, Fla.; Pete Weber of St. Ann, Mo.; Tom Baker of King, N.C.; 2014 PBA50 Player and Rookie of the Year Norm Duke of Clermont, Fla.; Parker Bohn III of Jackson, N.J.; Amleto Monacelli of Venezuela; Harry Sullins of Chesterfield Twp., Mich., and Edwards, who steps in for the injured Mohr. Edwards also will have an opportunity to bowl in the entire GEICO WSOB VI.

The PBA Regional field will include: Ryan Shafer, Horseheads, N.Y. (East Region); Connor Pickford, Charlotte, N.C. (South); EJ Tackett, Huntington, Ind. (Central); Tom Hess, Urbandale, Iowa (Midwest); Shawn Maldonado, Houston, Texas (Southwest); David Haynes, Las Vegas (West); Josh Blanchard, Gilbert, Ariz. (Northwest), and Pat Nolan (Japan).

The PBA Women's Regional field will include: Kristina Wendell, Poughkeepsie, N.Y. (East); Christina Hardee, Mt. Dora, Fla. (South); Liz Johnson, Cheektowaga, N.Y. (Central); Amanda Greene, Romney, W.Va. (Midwest); Clara Guerrero, Pflugerville, Texas/Colombia (Southwest); Missy Parkin, Laguna Hills, Calif. (West); Lindsay Boomershine, Brigham City, Utah (Northwest), and Yuka Tsuchiya (Japan).

 

PBA Regional Summary: Venezuela's Richard Leon wins twice in Reno

Richard Leon of Venezuela, who is on the waiting list hoping for a chance to bowl in the sold-out GEICO PBA World Series of Bowling VI when it gets underway Friday in Las Vegas, won his first two PBA Regional titles over the weekend at the National Bowling Stadium in Reno, Nev.

Bowling in Friday's Sands Regency West/Northwest Challenge, a tournament for players who have not previously won PBA titles, Leon defeated Clarence White III of Tracy, Calif., 223-197, to win his first PBA Regional title. In addition to a $1,200 first prize, Leon also became eligible to enter the 50th anniversary Barbasol PBA Tournament of Champions, which will take place in February in Indianapolis.

Leon got his second victory Sunday when he barely escaped the first elimination round, but advanced to the title match where he defeated Andrew Cain of Phoenix by 17 pins to win the PBA Sands Regency West/Northwest Re-entry Open at the Stadium.

In Sunday's "elimination format" championship match, Leon rolled a 204 game to top Cain's 187. In the semifinal round, Cain led the four-player field of survivors with a 203, Leon was second with a 201, Michael Haugen Jr. of Phoenix was third with a 194 and England's Stuart Williams, who currently resides in Phoenix, was fourth with a 187. Leon earned $1,600 for Sunday's win.

With a live Xtra Frame audience watching, Chris Loschetter (pictured with proprietor Dave Small, right) of Avon, Ohio defeated Eugene McCune of Munster, Ind., 238-226, to win the PBA Kokomo Central Shootout presented by Security Federal Savings Bank at Heritage Lanes in Kokomo, Ind., Sunday. The title was Loschetter's second PBA Regional title of the year and his 12th career title. He also earned $2,500.

Wes Malott (right) of Pflugerville, Texas, outlasted Brandon Bivens of East Ridge, Tenn., and Shawn Maldonado of Houston, Texas, to win his 18th PBA Regional title Sunday in the 11th annual PBA Young & Pratt Austin Southwest Open at Dart Bowl in Austin, Texas.

Only nine pins separated the top three players with four matches left in the eight-game round robin match play finals. Malott won his last five games, including a 216-170 final game position round victory over Nathan Bohr of Austin, to pull ahead and claim the $2,500 champion's check. Malott finished with a 21-game total of 5,100 pins, 48 ahead of Bivens.

Bivens out-struck Maldonado in their final game match, 268-250, to move into second place while Bohr fell to fourth, with Maldonado advancing to third position.

Kyle Troup (left) of Taylorsville, N.C., defeated Matt Taylor of Youngsville, N.C., 223-216, to win his eighth PBA Regional title in the PBA Franklin Southern Open at Franklin Bowling Center in Franklin, Va., Sunday. Troup earned $2,300 while Taylor pocketed $1,300 as the runner-up.

October's schedule concludes with the traditional South Point All Regions Open and the South Point Member/Non-Member Doubles at South Point Bowling Center in Las Vegas, Oct. 31-Nov. 2.

For complete Regional tournament schedules and entry information, click here.

 

Quick Notes

Bayside Bowl in Portland, Maine, host center for the PBA League playoffs and Elias Cup Finals in late March, will introduce Maine bowling fans to the PBA League when it hosts a special PBA League Draft party on Friday, Oct. 31. The PBA League Draft will be conducted at South Point Bowling Center in Las Vegas, with eight team managers selecting five players each for the weekend of PBA League competition in Portland.

PBA Tour titlist Stuart Williams (left) was one of four players inducted into the United Kingdom Tenpin Hall of Fame on Oct. 12 during the Weber Cup tournament at the Metrodome, Barnsley, England. Inducted along with Williams were Gemma (Burden) Harding, Zara (Glover) Giles, Ron Oldfield and meritorious service honoree Tom Clarke.

A new line of PBA-logoed merchandise is now available through the PBA Store on pba.com, and at PBA Tour tournament sites.

PBA Tour titlist Rhino Page (right) once again joined his young friend Tyler Cacioppo, who he befriended in 2009, to continue raising money and awareness for Crohn's and Colitis. Page helped establish the "Rhino Page & Friends Lace Up to Strike Out Crohn's & Colitis Fundraiser" bowling fundraiser, and recently expanded his activity into running a half marathon with Cacioppo in Jamestown, R.I. Working together with Tyler and his family, Page has helped raise more than $30,000 to combat intestinal tract diseases.

Need a Super Sub? When last season's Hankel Classic high-average bowler Mike Fogarty was unable to bowl league on opening night at Howell Lanes in Howell, N.J., he brought in a sub: PBA Hall of Famer Johnny Petraglia. The veteran PBA Tour and PBA50 Tour star did a fine job, starting the evening with a 300 game en route to a 782 series.

 

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