For the third consecutive squad today the squad leader moved into fourth place in the overall qualifying standings of the Brunswick Euro Challenge.

4-time PBA champion Sean Rash (pictured left) followed in the foot prints of Missy Bellinder, both United States, and Pasi Uotila, Finland after leading squad #16 with 1383 six-game total and an average of 230.50.

Rash, who won the 2008 USBC Masters and is the PBA Earnings leader with $147,100, had high games of 247, 257 and 266 at Plaza Bowling in Saint Maximin, France, 40 kilometers North of Paris.

The top 3, Martin Larsen, Sweden (1448), Jason Belmonte, Australia (1398) and PBA champion Mike Fagan, United States (1390) continued to lead the field of now 342 players from 33 countries.

Former World Ranking Masters champion and 3-time European ranking champion Britt Brøndsted (pictured left), Denmark, missed the top 16 (Mika Heino, Finland with 1315) by two pins to land in 17th place with 1313 including 48 pins handicap, a standard on the European Bowling Tour.

Bellinder is the top-ranked women in 7th place with 1438.

Five more players moved into the top 52 or improved their previous six-game high: Nina Flack (right; 24th, 1294), Peter Ljung (31st, 1281), both Sweden, Kimmo Lehtonen (41st, 1261) Finland, Peter Knopp (42nd, 1259) and Ton Plummen (46th, 1258), Netherlands.

Marcus Berndt (left), Sweden, currently mans the 52nd and final qualifying post with 1245 or an average of 207.50.


To view more pictures from the 2008 Brunswick Euro Challenge
go to Bowlingdigital's Photo Album .

The Brunswick Euro Challenge is the fifth stop on the 2008 European Bowling Tour and one of the Tour's "majors". The BEC offers total prize fund of 90,000 Euros (currently approx. $136,500) and offers special prizes that will be given in categories such as youth encouragement, "B" bowlers and ladies.

The 2008 Brunswick Euro Challenge sponsored by Brunswick Bowling is organized by Brunswick distributor Valcke Bowling.

Qualifying continues Friday with two more squads scheduled for 8 p.m. and Midnight and ends on Saturday with squads #19-22 and the ultimate Desperado Squad on Saturday night, March 15.

A total of 64 players will qualify for the finals. The top 16 players will receive one bye into step 2 and will seeded 1-16.

The following 48 players will qualify for step 1:
- Players positioned 17-52 in the qualifying
- the top 6 from a separate standing for the squads conducted March 7-9, who are not among the top 52
- the top 6 from the Desperado Squad.

Those 48 will bowl six games starting from scratch to cut to the top 16 , who will meet the top 16 qualifiers in the first match play round. Match play is best-of-three games single-elimination. The field will be cut to 16, 8 and then four, who will determine the champion in a stepladder final.


Bowlingdigital will cover the event live from Paris with updates after each squad and round, respectively, and exclusive video footage commencing Thursday, March 13 all the way through to the finals on Sunday, March 16.