No changes atop the men's leaderboard at 38th European Champions Cup

    10/24/15

    2015 ECC

    Top 8 remain unchanged; Finn Joonas Jähi leads the top 8 into Sunday's four-game round before the cut to the top 4 for best-of-three games finals; Leo Grundschober (AUT) achieves perfection

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    2015ECCJoonasJahi.jpg2015ECCLeoGrundschober3.jpgThere were no changes in the top 8 at the 38th European Champions Cup after the conclusion of the third eight-game block Saturday afternoon at Rose'n Bowl (aerial view, center) in Serravalle, San Marino.

    Joonas Jähi (pictured left) of Finland continued to lead the field after 24 games with 5548 total and an average of 231.17.

    The reigning European champion in five-player teams fell behind Leo Grundschober (right) of Austria early in the round of 16 but regained the lead in the 23rd game en route to finish with 5548 total and an overall average of 231.17. Jähi leads the top 8 players into the next round.

    2015ECCMagnusJohnson2.jpg2015ECCTomvanderVliet.jpgGrundschober, who led the 38 men after the first qualifying round, rolled the second perfecto of the Championships (Joline Persson Planefors of Sweden had the first) and the first by a man in game two on his way to make the second cut in second place with 5525 (230.21).

    Young Magnus Johnson (left), son of the legendary Swedish coach Magnus Johnson, retained third place with 5450 (227.08). The Swedish youth international secured third place by closing out his series with 258, 257, 246 and 227.

    2015ECCJesperAgerbo.jpg2015ECCValentynKucherenko.jpgDefending ECC champion Tom van der Vliet (above right), Netherlands, started the set with a high game of 269 and added seven games between 205 and 227 to maintain fourth place with 5437 and an average of 226.54.

    Former European champion in Masters, Jesper Agerbo of Denmark, who started the round 92 pins off the pace for the top 4, rolled the field-best 1894 series, an average of 236.75, to narrow the gap to nine pins. Agerbo, who started with 279 and had a near-perfect 299 in game 4, remained in fifth place with 5428 (226.17).

    2015ECCMichaelMaccoll.jpg2015ECCMarekTalpa.jpgValentyn Kucherenko (above right) of Ukraine and Michael Maccoll of Scotland leaped one spot each during the Round of 16 into sixth and seventh place with distant 5339 and 5229, respectively.

    Marek Talpa of Czech Republic slipped two spots to eighth place but easily booked his spot in the next round with 5216 (217.33), 77 pins ahead of Kenneth Haukås (below right) of Norway, who was the first man out in ninth place with 5139.

    The top 8 men and women will return on Sunday morning at 9 a.m. CET to bowl further four games before the cut to the top 4 for single-elimination match play in best-of-three games format.

    2015ECCKennethHaukas.jpgThe semi-finals will be held simultaneously starting at 11.30 a.m. The winners bowl for the title while the losers share the bronze medal. The women's final is set for 1 p.m. with the men to follow at 2.30 p.m.

    2015ECCLogo.jpg The 38th European Champions Cup will take place from October 18-25 at 18-lane Rose'n Bowl in Serravalle, San Marino featuring the men's and women's national champions or point ranking leaders of the European Tenpin Bowling Federation member federations as well as the defending ECC champions.

    All 38 men and 38 women from 37 countries, including defending champions Birgit Pöppler of Germany and Tom van der Vliet, Netherlands, will roll two eight-game blocks of qualifying Wednesday through Friday on a 40 foot oil pattern. For more information Rose'n Bowl read the Lane Map Guide.

    The top 16 men and 16 women will carry over their qualifying pins into Round 1. After another eight games the top 8 will advance to Round 2. Pinfall will continue to carry over. Those 8 will bowl four more games to cut to the top 4 who will determine the champion in best-of-three games matches. In the semi-finals, No. 1 will meet No. 4 and No. 2 will take on No. 3.

    Full European Champions Cup rules can be found in the ETBF Constitution (Chapter 7; pages 48 and 49). For more details on the 38th ECC 2015 read Bulletin No. 1.

    Photos Max Bulanov.

     


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    2015 ECC Men's Division - Round of 16 Results


    Top 8 advance to Round 2.

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