Ghislaine van der Tol overtakes qualifying lead in 9th Catalonia Open

    03/19/11

    2011 European Bowling Tour #5

    Van der Tol, Persson Planefors, Ovide, Ruiz win Squads 5-8

    2010EBT10GhislainevanderTol.jpg2011EBT04JesperAgerbo.jpgGhislaine van der Tol (pictured left), Netherlands, overtook the lead in the qualifying of the 9th Catalonia Open - Trofeu Galasa Friday at Bowling Pedralbes in Barcelona, Spain.

    The three-time European Bowling Tour titlist (San Marino 2007; Istanbul 2009; Munich 2010) started her six-game series in Squad 5 with 180 followed by 244, 248, 215, 230 and 240 for 1357 scratch, an average of 226.17, and added 48 pins handicap for 1405 pinfall total.

    Van der Tol and all other qualifying squad leaders earn automatic berths into the finals on Sunday, March 20.

    Previous leader Jesper Agerbo (above right), Denmark, slipped to second place with 1403 and was followed by PBA Hall of Famer Brian Voss, United States, who is the best non-squad leader in the field of 107 players from 25 countries/territories in third place with 1387.

    2011EBT04JolinePerssonPlanefors2.jpg2011EBT04IldemaroRuiz2.jpgJoline Persson Planefors (left), Sweden, used a 1336 six-game series to lead Squad 6 with 1384 total en route to move into fourth place in the overall qualifying standings. Venezuelan national team member Ildemaro Ruiz (right) led Squad 8 with 1366 to leap into fifth place.

    Lisanne Breeschoten, Netherlands (1364), Gery Verbruggen, Belgium (1361) and Panu Nurmilo, Finland (1360) moved into sixth through eighth place.

    Ninth place belonged to Squad 3 leader Or Aviram, Israel with 1357. Rounding out the top 10 was Yoan Alix, France, with 1339.

    2010EBT12MarcialOvide.jpg2011EBT04KenBland.jpgMarcial Ovide (left), Catalonia, became the best local bowler in the field when he led 1320, a 220 average, to finish the penultimate qualifying day in 12th place.

    American Ken Bland (right), who was second to Ruiz in Squad 8 with 1316, is sandwiched between Squad 1 leader Joonas Jehkinen, Finland (1320) and Squad 2 leader Vincent Cayez, France (1313) in 14th place.

    Sixteenth place belonged to Clara Juliana Guerrero (1312) of Colombia, who has won her first EBT title in the Brunswick Euro Challenge last Sunday.

    12 of the 33 women in the field were among the top 38 heading into the last qualifying day. The top six of the women, who will miss the qualified cut, will receive wild cards for the finals.

    Qualifying ends on Saturday, March 19 with Squads 9-12 scheduled for 9 a.m., 1, 5 and 9 p.m. CET.

    The 9th Catalonia Open - Trofeu Galasa is the fifth tournament on the 2011 European Bowling Tour schedule and the second of total seven "Silver" events this season.

    The Catalonia Open, which will be held from March 15-20, 2011 at 14-laner Bowling Pedralbes in Barcelona, Spain, offers total prize money of 44.700 Euro (approx. US $62,345) with 6.000 Euro going to the winner, 3.000 to the runner-up and 2.000 to the third place finisher.

    2010EBT15ThomasLarsen_small.jpg2011EBT04LuzAdrianaLeal_small.jpg Thomas Larsen, Denmark (left) is the defending champion, while Luz Adriana Leal (right), Colombia, who finished third, has won the women's rankings.

    Since the Viborg International in Viborg, Denmark originally scheduled for July 30-Aug. 7, 2011 has been cancelled, the 2011 European Bowling Tour consists of 21 tour stops in 17 countries including two Platinum, six Gold, seven Silver and six Satellite tournaments.

    The top 50 men and the top 50 women in each event receive ranking points. The winner of a Platinum tournament receives 250 ranking points, the winner of a Gold tournament gets 150, the winner of a Silver tournament such as the Catalonia Open earns 100, and the winner of a Satellite tournament gets 50 ranking points.

    The top 16 men and the top 16 women at the end of the 2011 season qualify for the 5th EBT Masters to be held at Dream-Bowl Palace in Unterföhring near Munich, Germany on April 30 and May 1, 2012. The event will become the first EBT Masters to be contested on single lane condition.

    Qualifying runs from Tuesday March 15 and runs through Saturday, March. 19 with the final Squad 12 slated for 9 p.m. CET. Women will receive 8 pins handicap each game throughout the entire event, a standard for women on the European Bowling Tour.

    A total of 48 players, the top 42 qualifiers including all squad leaders plus the next six women will advance to the finals and carry forward 50 per cent of their respective qualifying total into Final Round One.

    Those 48 players will bowl four games to cut to the top 24 with the pinfall total being carried forward into Final Round Two. Those 24 will determine the top three players for the stepladder finals in another four-game block.

    In the semifinal, the No. 3 seed takes on No. 2 for the right to bowl the top seeded player for the title and the 6.000 Euro top prize.

     


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    Jesper Agerbo, Or Aviram add their names to the leaderboard in Catalonia Open
    Vincent Cayez earns berth into finals in Squad 2 at 9th Catalonia Open - Trofeu Galasa
    Joonas Jehkinen leads Squad 1 in the 9th Catalonia Open - Trofeu Galasa

     


    Qualifying Standings after Squad 8/12


    Squad leaders (boldface) are automatically qualified for the finals on Sunday, March 20