Osku Palermaa proves "speed thrills"
04/17/15
Whether Finland's Osku Palermaa can throw a bowling ball faster than anyone in history is up for debate – and probably something no one could ever prove – but the reality is, when the high-rev two-handed player reverts to using only his right hand to shoot at single pin spares, it has become a thrill to watch.
During the recent Mark Roth/Marshall Holman PBA Doubles Championship at Woodland Bowl in Indianapolis, where Palermaa left his fair share of 10 pins, fans began to add a "nnneeeooowww…" sound effect every time the powerful Finn unleashed a spare attempt, imitating the sound of the high-speed ball buzzing down the lane.
During the PBA Xtra Frame Maine Shootout in Portland, Bayside Bowl left the speed recording feature on its automatic scoring system during the best-of-three-game elimination matches.
During Palermaa's match with eventual champion Josh Blanchard, Palermaa's two-handed strike shots were measuring in the 20-21 miles per hour (32-34 km/h) range.
But on four consecutive 10 pin spare attempts, his ball speed was measured at 28.51, 28.01, 28.42 and 28.97 miles per hour (46.62 km/h) – all astonishing ball speeds to throw a 15-pound bowling ball.
While speed has no bearing on spare-shooting accuracy, it seems to help when trying to convert "impossible" splits by bouncing pins out of the pit area. After successfully converting a 7-10 split during the PBA World Series of Bowling V in 2014 by bouncing the 10 pin out of the pit, into the 7 pin, Palermaa said it wasn't an uncommon feat for him. "I've converted the 7-10 more times than I've bowled 300 games," he said.
Watching the six-foot, 200-pound 31-year-old throw a bowling ball at those remarkable speeds makes one wonder if Palermaa has ever been clocked throwing a baseball.
"I've never played baseball; it isn't a sport we play in Finland," Palermaa said, "but I did try it one time at an ESPN sports bar. I threw the ball three times."
His baseball pitching speeds, he said, were recorded 92, 93 and 96 miles per hour. "But I don't know if those were accurate speeds or not."
The Billiard and Bowling Industry Association presented PBA Hall of Famer Johnny Petraglia with its Industry Service Award Tuesday night at the organization's annual meeting in Hilton Head, S.C.
Petraglia, the only player ever to win PBA national titles in six different decades, is currently competing on the PBA50 Tour – 50 years after making his debut in 1965. The 67-year-old lefthander from Jackson, N.J., has won 14 PBA Tour and eight PBA50 Tour titles.
He is one of six PBA Triple Crown winners; ranks 31st on the all-time PBA earnings list with $1,249,250, and his a member of the PBA (1982) and USBC (2003) Halls of Fame. He also was the recipient of the 2010 BPAA Dick Weber Bowling Ambassador Award.
In addition to his sterling record as a competitor, Petraglia has been active for decades off the lanes in BVL and other charitable programs in support of United States military veterans. Petraglia served a tour of duty with the U.S. armed forces during the Vietnam War.
Sean Lavery-Spahr (pictured left) of Pasadena, Texas, defeated defending champion Dino Castillo of Carrollton, Texas, 195-188, to win the PBA FireLake Grand Casino Resort Southwest Open presented by Hammer at FireLake Bowling Center in Shawnee, Okla., Sunday.
After qualifying for match play in ninth place, Lavery-Spahr won his best two-of-three-game Round of 16 match over PBA50 titlist Mike Edwards from Tulsa, Okla., 2-0; followed with a 2-0 victory over Oklahoma City's Eric Wigger in the Round of 8; posted a 2-1 win over qualifying leader Nathan Bohr of Austin, Texas, in the quarterfinal round, and edged amateur Clint Dacy of Fort Worth, Texas, 200-195, in the semifinal round.
Castillo, who qualified seventh, edged Colombia's Clara Guerrero in the Round of 12, 2-1; eliminated Roger Petrin of Wichita, Kan., in the Round of 8, 2-1; and disposed of former Southwest Region Player of the Year Joe Findling of Greenville, Texas, 279-237, in the semifinal round.
The pro-am portion of the event on Friday included a fundraiser for the Shawnee area Big Brother/Big Sister chapter. FireLake General Manager Chris Skillings announced more than $30,000 was raised for that cause.
Amateur Wesley Low Jr. (pictured right) of Palmdale, Calif., posted a 9-3 match play record and a 20-game total of 5,028 pins Sunday to win the PBA Earl Anthony West/Northwest Memorial at Earl Anthony's Dublin Bowl Sunday while Marty Deh of San Jose, Calif., won the PBA50 portion of the doubleheader weekend.
Junior Team USA member Low, who turns 18 on April 27 (coincidentally the late Earl Anthony's birthday), won his second PBA West Region event, but as an amateur, he does not receive credit for a title and his $2,500 first prize goes to his SMART scholarship account.
The two-handed, left-handed player defeated Josh Blanchard of Phoenix, Ariz., by 166 pins for the win. Blanchard had an 8-4 match play record and 4,862 pins including match play bonus pins.
Deh went 10-2 and knocked down 4,768 total pins for his 20 games to top Chris Warren of Grants Pass, Ore., for his fifth West PBA50 Regional title and $1,500. Warren had 4,686 pins.
Patrick Allen (center, with proprietor Richard Mark and GM Dori Tingoli) of Wesley Chapel, Fla. defeated Noel Vega of Kew Gardens, N.Y., 236-147, to win his 25th PBA Regional title and a $2,500 first prize in the PBA Rockaway Eastern Open presented by Storm at Rockaway Lanes in Rockaway, N.J., Sunday.
Allen qualified second for match play and posted an 8-4 match play record to retain second place for the stepladder finals. Vega qualified third and moved into the lead by rolling a 300 game in game five on Sunday.
He posted a 11-1 match play record to earn the top position for the stepladder finals, and matched his best career finish, achieved three years ago, by finishing second. He earned $1,300.
Kyle Troup (right) of Taylorsville, N.C., defeated three-time PBA Tour titlist Dick Allen of Columbia, S.C., 259-207, 234-226, in a best-of-three-game championship match to win the inaugural PBA Bluffton South Open title at Station 300 Lanes in Bluffton, S.C., Sunday.
In the semifinal round, Troup defeated Lee Vanderhoef of Raleigh, N.C., 238-215, 275-269, while Allen rallied from a 1-0 deficit to defeat B.J. Moore of Apex, N.C., 202-205, 258-211, 279-229, in the semifinal round.
Jesse Buss (left) of Belvidere, Ill., defeated Dave Wodka of Beaver Creek, Ohio, 225-222, to win the PBA Fun Time Centers Central/Midwest Classic at Heritage Lanes in Kokomo, Ind., on April 12. Along with his fourth regional title, Buss earned $2,000.
Buss topped amateur Andrew Anderson of Holly, Mich. 2-0, and Wodka blanked Anthony LaCaze of Melrose Park, Ill., 2-0, in the best-of-three-game semifinal round to set up the championship match.
On the April 15-17 PBA Regional calendar is the PBA50 Sarasota South Open at Sarasota Lanes in Sarasota, Fla. The April 17-19 weekend includes the Bowlers Discount Eastern Open presented by Hammer at Brunswick Zone Normandy in Elliott City, Md.; back-to-back one-day reduced entry fee Country Club Lanes Central/Midwest Opens in Elkhart, Ind., and the Tacoma Speedometer Member/Non-Member Doubles, a reduced entry fee event presented by Pawnbrokers Northwest, at Bowlero Lanes in Lakewood, Wash.
Another mid-week PBA50 event is the PBA50 Tarheel Lanes South Open April 23-25 in Hendersonville, N.C. Players will then head to Hawaii for the annual tripleheader beginning April 26-27 with the Kona West/Northwest Open at KBXtreme Lanes in Kailua-Kona followed by the Hawaii West/Northwest Open presented by Storm at Scofield Air Base on April 29, and the Hickam AFB West/Northwest Open May 1-3.
Also leading off the month of May over the May 1-3 weekend will be the Junction City (Kan.) Bowl Southwest/Midwest Open presented by Radical, and the Pro Bowl West Tri-Region Member/Non-Member Doubles presented by the Proprietor's Cup in Ft. Wayne, Ind.
For complete Regional tournament schedules and entry information, click here.
Don't forget: During the April MOTIV sweepstakes is awarding another new ball to a new Xtra Frame subscriber. To enter, all you have to do is sign up for a new Xtra Frame subscription, either three-day ($3.99), monthly ($7.99) or 12-month XF Season Ticket ($64.99). The ball-a-month promotion will continue every month through 2015.
Reminder: Every month, HotelPlanner.com, the official travel partner of the PBA, is awarding a $200 lodging gift certificate to a lucky person who books a hotel room through HotelPlanner.com. Use the "Book Hotel" link on pba.com before the last day of the month, and you will be automatically entered. The $200 gift certificate will be valid for hotel room and tax only.
Last call: You can still earn a discount on an Xtra Frame Season Ticket subscription with the purchase of a new bowling ball through a special limited-time arrangement with Bowling Infinity Group. Visit http://offthetrailer.com/ for details on how to earn a $25 discount and free shipping on the bowling ball-Xtra Frame Season Ticket package now through April 30.
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PBA Hall of Famer Johnny Petraglia receives BBIA Industry Service award; Sean Lavery-Spahr, Wesley Low Jr., Marty Deh, Patrick Allen, Kyle Troup and Jesse Buss winn PBA Regional events
Whether Finland's Osku Palermaa can throw a bowling ball faster than anyone in history is up for debate – and probably something no one could ever prove – but the reality is, when the high-rev two-handed player reverts to using only his right hand to shoot at single pin spares, it has become a thrill to watch.During the recent Mark Roth/Marshall Holman PBA Doubles Championship at Woodland Bowl in Indianapolis, where Palermaa left his fair share of 10 pins, fans began to add a "nnneeeooowww…" sound effect every time the powerful Finn unleashed a spare attempt, imitating the sound of the high-speed ball buzzing down the lane.
During the PBA Xtra Frame Maine Shootout in Portland, Bayside Bowl left the speed recording feature on its automatic scoring system during the best-of-three-game elimination matches.
During Palermaa's match with eventual champion Josh Blanchard, Palermaa's two-handed strike shots were measuring in the 20-21 miles per hour (32-34 km/h) range.But on four consecutive 10 pin spare attempts, his ball speed was measured at 28.51, 28.01, 28.42 and 28.97 miles per hour (46.62 km/h) – all astonishing ball speeds to throw a 15-pound bowling ball.
While speed has no bearing on spare-shooting accuracy, it seems to help when trying to convert "impossible" splits by bouncing pins out of the pit area. After successfully converting a 7-10 split during the PBA World Series of Bowling V in 2014 by bouncing the 10 pin out of the pit, into the 7 pin, Palermaa said it wasn't an uncommon feat for him. "I've converted the 7-10 more times than I've bowled 300 games," he said.
Watching the six-foot, 200-pound 31-year-old throw a bowling ball at those remarkable speeds makes one wonder if Palermaa has ever been clocked throwing a baseball.
"I've never played baseball; it isn't a sport we play in Finland," Palermaa said, "but I did try it one time at an ESPN sports bar. I threw the ball three times."
His baseball pitching speeds, he said, were recorded 92, 93 and 96 miles per hour. "But I don't know if those were accurate speeds or not."
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PBA Hall of Famer Johnny Petraglia receives BBIA Industry Service award
The Billiard and Bowling Industry Association presented PBA Hall of Famer Johnny Petraglia with its Industry Service Award Tuesday night at the organization's annual meeting in Hilton Head, S.C.Petraglia, the only player ever to win PBA national titles in six different decades, is currently competing on the PBA50 Tour – 50 years after making his debut in 1965. The 67-year-old lefthander from Jackson, N.J., has won 14 PBA Tour and eight PBA50 Tour titles.
He is one of six PBA Triple Crown winners; ranks 31st on the all-time PBA earnings list with $1,249,250, and his a member of the PBA (1982) and USBC (2003) Halls of Fame. He also was the recipient of the 2010 BPAA Dick Weber Bowling Ambassador Award.
In addition to his sterling record as a competitor, Petraglia has been active for decades off the lanes in BVL and other charitable programs in support of United States military veterans. Petraglia served a tour of duty with the U.S. armed forces during the Vietnam War.
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PBA Regional Update: Sean Lavery-Spahr wins Firelake Southwest Open
Sean Lavery-Spahr (pictured left) of Pasadena, Texas, defeated defending champion Dino Castillo of Carrollton, Texas, 195-188, to win the PBA FireLake Grand Casino Resort Southwest Open presented by Hammer at FireLake Bowling Center in Shawnee, Okla., Sunday.After qualifying for match play in ninth place, Lavery-Spahr won his best two-of-three-game Round of 16 match over PBA50 titlist Mike Edwards from Tulsa, Okla., 2-0; followed with a 2-0 victory over Oklahoma City's Eric Wigger in the Round of 8; posted a 2-1 win over qualifying leader Nathan Bohr of Austin, Texas, in the quarterfinal round, and edged amateur Clint Dacy of Fort Worth, Texas, 200-195, in the semifinal round.
Castillo, who qualified seventh, edged Colombia's Clara Guerrero in the Round of 12, 2-1; eliminated Roger Petrin of Wichita, Kan., in the Round of 8, 2-1; and disposed of former Southwest Region Player of the Year Joe Findling of Greenville, Texas, 279-237, in the semifinal round.
The pro-am portion of the event on Friday included a fundraiser for the Shawnee area Big Brother/Big Sister chapter. FireLake General Manager Chris Skillings announced more than $30,000 was raised for that cause.
Amateur Wesley Low Jr. (pictured right) of Palmdale, Calif., posted a 9-3 match play record and a 20-game total of 5,028 pins Sunday to win the PBA Earl Anthony West/Northwest Memorial at Earl Anthony's Dublin Bowl Sunday while Marty Deh of San Jose, Calif., won the PBA50 portion of the doubleheader weekend.Junior Team USA member Low, who turns 18 on April 27 (coincidentally the late Earl Anthony's birthday), won his second PBA West Region event, but as an amateur, he does not receive credit for a title and his $2,500 first prize goes to his SMART scholarship account.
The two-handed, left-handed player defeated Josh Blanchard of Phoenix, Ariz., by 166 pins for the win. Blanchard had an 8-4 match play record and 4,862 pins including match play bonus pins.
Deh went 10-2 and knocked down 4,768 total pins for his 20 games to top Chris Warren of Grants Pass, Ore., for his fifth West PBA50 Regional title and $1,500. Warren had 4,686 pins.
Patrick Allen (center, with proprietor Richard Mark and GM Dori Tingoli) of Wesley Chapel, Fla. defeated Noel Vega of Kew Gardens, N.Y., 236-147, to win his 25th PBA Regional title and a $2,500 first prize in the PBA Rockaway Eastern Open presented by Storm at Rockaway Lanes in Rockaway, N.J., Sunday.Allen qualified second for match play and posted an 8-4 match play record to retain second place for the stepladder finals. Vega qualified third and moved into the lead by rolling a 300 game in game five on Sunday.
He posted a 11-1 match play record to earn the top position for the stepladder finals, and matched his best career finish, achieved three years ago, by finishing second. He earned $1,300.
Kyle Troup (right) of Taylorsville, N.C., defeated three-time PBA Tour titlist Dick Allen of Columbia, S.C., 259-207, 234-226, in a best-of-three-game championship match to win the inaugural PBA Bluffton South Open title at Station 300 Lanes in Bluffton, S.C., Sunday.In the semifinal round, Troup defeated Lee Vanderhoef of Raleigh, N.C., 238-215, 275-269, while Allen rallied from a 1-0 deficit to defeat B.J. Moore of Apex, N.C., 202-205, 258-211, 279-229, in the semifinal round.
Jesse Buss (left) of Belvidere, Ill., defeated Dave Wodka of Beaver Creek, Ohio, 225-222, to win the PBA Fun Time Centers Central/Midwest Classic at Heritage Lanes in Kokomo, Ind., on April 12. Along with his fourth regional title, Buss earned $2,000.Buss topped amateur Andrew Anderson of Holly, Mich. 2-0, and Wodka blanked Anthony LaCaze of Melrose Park, Ill., 2-0, in the best-of-three-game semifinal round to set up the championship match.
On the April 15-17 PBA Regional calendar is the PBA50 Sarasota South Open at Sarasota Lanes in Sarasota, Fla. The April 17-19 weekend includes the Bowlers Discount Eastern Open presented by Hammer at Brunswick Zone Normandy in Elliott City, Md.; back-to-back one-day reduced entry fee Country Club Lanes Central/Midwest Opens in Elkhart, Ind., and the Tacoma Speedometer Member/Non-Member Doubles, a reduced entry fee event presented by Pawnbrokers Northwest, at Bowlero Lanes in Lakewood, Wash.
Another mid-week PBA50 event is the PBA50 Tarheel Lanes South Open April 23-25 in Hendersonville, N.C. Players will then head to Hawaii for the annual tripleheader beginning April 26-27 with the Kona West/Northwest Open at KBXtreme Lanes in Kailua-Kona followed by the Hawaii West/Northwest Open presented by Storm at Scofield Air Base on April 29, and the Hickam AFB West/Northwest Open May 1-3.
Also leading off the month of May over the May 1-3 weekend will be the Junction City (Kan.) Bowl Southwest/Midwest Open presented by Radical, and the Pro Bowl West Tri-Region Member/Non-Member Doubles presented by the Proprietor's Cup in Ft. Wayne, Ind.
For complete Regional tournament schedules and entry information, click here.
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Quick Notes
Don't forget: During the April MOTIV sweepstakes is awarding another new ball to a new Xtra Frame subscriber. To enter, all you have to do is sign up for a new Xtra Frame subscription, either three-day ($3.99), monthly ($7.99) or 12-month XF Season Ticket ($64.99). The ball-a-month promotion will continue every month through 2015.
Reminder: Every month, HotelPlanner.com, the official travel partner of the PBA, is awarding a $200 lodging gift certificate to a lucky person who books a hotel room through HotelPlanner.com. Use the "Book Hotel" link on pba.com before the last day of the month, and you will be automatically entered. The $200 gift certificate will be valid for hotel room and tax only.
Last call: You can still earn a discount on an Xtra Frame Season Ticket subscription with the purchase of a new bowling ball through a special limited-time arrangement with Bowling Infinity Group. Visit http://offthetrailer.com/ for details on how to earn a $25 discount and free shipping on the bowling ball-Xtra Frame Season Ticket package now through April 30.
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