Duke wins PBA Cheetah Championship for 33rd career title
08/14/09
Norm Duke (pictured left) added another milestone to his Professional Bowlers Association Hall of Fame career by capturing the PBA Cheetah Championship at Thunderbowl Lanes for his 33rd career title.
Duke, who now ranks fifth on the list of PBA all-time title winners behind Walter Ray Williams Jr. (46), Earl Anthony (43) and Mark Roth and Pete Weber (34 each), ended an incredible run by challenger Ryan Ciminelli (right) of Buffalo, N.Y., to win their best-of-seven-game championship match, 4-1.
The 23-year-old Ciminelli, a non-exempt player who is seeking his first Lumber Liquidators PBA Tour title, led the Cheetah Championship Tour Qualifying Round to get into the 72-man tournament field.
He then led both rounds of qualifying and won best-of-seven-game matches against Hall of Famer Brian Voss, four-time Tour champion Ryan Shafer and PBA Tour rookie Derek Sapp (left) to advance to the title match.
Against the 45-year-old Duke, Ciminelli won the first game, 226-212, but the Clermont, Fla., veteran then took control, winning the next four matches, 236-228, 257-213, 236-193, and 258-205.
"If Ryan would have gotten a 2-0 edge on me, I don't know if I could have come back," Duke said. "The lanes were changing and you really had to keep up with it. Being down by 42 (pins) at one point in that second game, I didn't know if I could have turned it around if I had lost."
After a first-round bye on his side of the single-elimination match play bracket, Duke defeated Walter Ray Williams Jr., Chris Barnes and Stevie Weber (right) to earn his berth in the championship match.
"For me it's like tennis. You have to attack every opponent differently," Duke said. "With Ryan being left-handed I had a fresh condition on the right side of the lane which was an advantage for me."
Ciminelli, who had little trouble carrying corner pins on pocket hits throughout the tournament, ran into a pair where he had trouble kicking out the 7 pin.
"I had trouble carrying on this pair of lanes in a side tournament before this tournament started," Ciminelli said "but I thought it might have been just a unique situation.
"I was pretty calm going into the championship match and started out making good shots, but after a while I couldn't carry," he added. "I tried everything I could to get rid of the 7 pin, but nothing worked."
The Cheetah Championship was conducted on PBA's Cheetah lane conditioning pattern. As the first so-called "animal pattern" winner of the season, Duke also earned a berth in the end-of-season PBA Experience Showdown presented by BOWL.COM which will be held at the new USBC International Training and Research Center in Arlington, Texas, in April.
Duke (pictured left) earned $25,000 for his victory. Ciminelli earned $13,000 and his best Tour finish since finishing seventh in last season's CLR Carmen Salvino Scorpion Championship in Vernon Hills, Ill.
The Cheetah Championship was a landmark event for several reasons. It was the first Lumber Liquidators PBA Tour event ever to incorporate a best-of-seven-game title match; it was the Tour's first highlight-style telecast, and it was the first PBA Tour event held in Thunderbowl's historic Arena Bay in more than a decade.
Thunderbowl Lanes in Allen Park, Mich. (Aug. 8-13, 2009)
Championship Round:
1. Norm Duke, Clermont, Fla., $25,000
2. Ryan Ciminelli, Buffalo, N.Y., $13,000
3. Stevie Weber, Chalmette, La., and Derek Sapp, Keokuk, Iowa, $7,000 each
Playoff Results:
Semifinal Match #1:
Duke def. Weber, 4-1 (247-234, 269-223, 226-236, 217-204, 237-215)
Semifinal Match #2:
Ciminelli def. Sapp, 4-1 (269-263, 258-238, 213-287, 255-190, 209-206)
Championship Match:
Duke def. Ciminelli, 4-1 (212-226, 236-228, 257-213, 236-193, 258-20).
Ryan Ciminelli defeats Brian Voss in PBA Cheetah Championship Round of 8 Match Play
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Tops non-exempt challenger Ciminelli to claim fifth place on all-time titles list
Norm Duke (pictured left) added another milestone to his Professional Bowlers Association Hall of Fame career by capturing the PBA Cheetah Championship at Thunderbowl Lanes for his 33rd career title.Duke, who now ranks fifth on the list of PBA all-time title winners behind Walter Ray Williams Jr. (46), Earl Anthony (43) and Mark Roth and Pete Weber (34 each), ended an incredible run by challenger Ryan Ciminelli (right) of Buffalo, N.Y., to win their best-of-seven-game championship match, 4-1.
The 23-year-old Ciminelli, a non-exempt player who is seeking his first Lumber Liquidators PBA Tour title, led the Cheetah Championship Tour Qualifying Round to get into the 72-man tournament field.
He then led both rounds of qualifying and won best-of-seven-game matches against Hall of Famer Brian Voss, four-time Tour champion Ryan Shafer and PBA Tour rookie Derek Sapp (left) to advance to the title match.Against the 45-year-old Duke, Ciminelli won the first game, 226-212, but the Clermont, Fla., veteran then took control, winning the next four matches, 236-228, 257-213, 236-193, and 258-205.
"If Ryan would have gotten a 2-0 edge on me, I don't know if I could have come back," Duke said. "The lanes were changing and you really had to keep up with it. Being down by 42 (pins) at one point in that second game, I didn't know if I could have turned it around if I had lost."
After a first-round bye on his side of the single-elimination match play bracket, Duke defeated Walter Ray Williams Jr., Chris Barnes and Stevie Weber (right) to earn his berth in the championship match."For me it's like tennis. You have to attack every opponent differently," Duke said. "With Ryan being left-handed I had a fresh condition on the right side of the lane which was an advantage for me."
Ciminelli, who had little trouble carrying corner pins on pocket hits throughout the tournament, ran into a pair where he had trouble kicking out the 7 pin.
"I had trouble carrying on this pair of lanes in a side tournament before this tournament started," Ciminelli said "but I thought it might have been just a unique situation.
"I was pretty calm going into the championship match and started out making good shots, but after a while I couldn't carry," he added. "I tried everything I could to get rid of the 7 pin, but nothing worked."
The Cheetah Championship was conducted on PBA's Cheetah lane conditioning pattern. As the first so-called "animal pattern" winner of the season, Duke also earned a berth in the end-of-season PBA Experience Showdown presented by BOWL.COM which will be held at the new USBC International Training and Research Center in Arlington, Texas, in April.Duke (pictured left) earned $25,000 for his victory. Ciminelli earned $13,000 and his best Tour finish since finishing seventh in last season's CLR Carmen Salvino Scorpion Championship in Vernon Hills, Ill.
The Cheetah Championship was a landmark event for several reasons. It was the first Lumber Liquidators PBA Tour event ever to incorporate a best-of-seven-game title match; it was the Tour's first highlight-style telecast, and it was the first PBA Tour event held in Thunderbowl's historic Arena Bay in more than a decade.
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Lumber Liquidators PBA Tour Cheetah Cheetah Championship
Thunderbowl Lanes in Allen Park, Mich. (Aug. 8-13, 2009)
Championship Round:1. Norm Duke, Clermont, Fla., $25,000
2. Ryan Ciminelli, Buffalo, N.Y., $13,000
3. Stevie Weber, Chalmette, La., and Derek Sapp, Keokuk, Iowa, $7,000 each
Playoff Results:
Semifinal Match #1:
Duke def. Weber, 4-1 (247-234, 269-223, 226-236, 217-204, 237-215)
Semifinal Match #2:
Ciminelli def. Sapp, 4-1 (269-263, 258-238, 213-287, 255-190, 209-206)
Championship Match:
Duke def. Ciminelli, 4-1 (212-226, 236-228, 257-213, 236-193, 258-20).
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