The three-day qualifying round of the Kegel/USBC World Ranking Masters ended with an almost complete triumph for the European Zone male representatives. Seven out of eight players including Jason Belmonte, Australia, who qualified for the WRM on the European Bowling Tour, made the cut to the finals.

The European players outaveraged their opponents from America and Asia on all three conditions, short oil (34 feet), long oil (44 feet) and on dual condition (long/short).

The host pick, David O'Sullivan, the sole American Zone rep, could become the second consecutive wild card winner after Khalid Al Dubyan, Kuwait, who won the title last year.

All players from the Asian Zone were eliminated. Their best, two-time World Champion and 3-time Asian Games Champion Remy Ong, slipped from sixth place all the way out of the finals after a disappointing 170 in the last game.