After disappointing finishes in the first two PBA50 Tour tournaments of the 2017 season, Brian Kretzer of Dayton, Ohio, got some badly needed encouragement after taking top qualifier honors in the PBA50 Race City Open presented by Columbia 300 Tuesday at George Pappas’ Victory Lanes in Mooresville, N.C.

Kretzer (pictured above), a one-time PBA Tour and PBA50 Tour titlist, finished qualifying with a 3,799 16-game pinfall total (237.4 average) bowling games of 226, 226, 237, 257, 255, 226, 205 and 269 in Tuesday’s second round. He was second after the first round with a 1,898 pinfall.

“Everything just came together,” said Kretzer, who finished 82nd in last week’s UnitedHealthcare Sun Bowl In The Villages and 98th in the season-opening Pasco County Florida Open.

“I was able to use one ball and just make the adjustments with my speed and hand position. Since I was playing further inside on the lane than anyone else, I was kind of bowling on a fresh condition where I didn’t have to make a lot drastic changes.

“I’ve always preferred to make adjustments with my ball speed and hand position instead of going to a different ball,” added Kretzer (right), who had two third-place finishes in 2016. “Today the lane condition came to me rather than me having to chase the condition.”

The top 24 players advanced directly into Wednesday’s match play rounds. Players qualifying 25th-45th plus eight PBA60 players advanced to a cashers round that will determine eight additional match play spots. After match play concludes the top five will be determined for the stepladder finals scheduled for 7 p.m. ET.

PBA Hall of Famer and tournament defending champion Pete Weber (left) of St. Ann, Mo., got off to a slow start to the PBA50 Tour season with a 21st-place finish in last week’s Sun Bowl In The Villages but will improve on that after finishing qualifying in second 40-pins behind Kretzer with 3,759.

Weber, the 2016 and 2015 PBA50 Player of the Year, won the Mooresville Open last year for the second of a record four consecutive PBA50 Tour wins.

Five-time PBA Tour winner Michael Haugen Jr. (right) of Phoenix, who is bowling in his rookie season on the PBA50 Tour, finished qualifying in third with a 3,751 pinfall. Rounding out the top five were Hall of Famers Walter Ray Williams Jr. of Oxford, Fla., with 3,677, and Norm Duke of Clermont, Fla., with 3,672.

Weber, a 37-time PBA Tour winner, is trying for his 100th career title in PBA competition, which includes PBA Tour, PBA50 Tour, PBA regional and PBA50 regional titles. He is two behind Williams (left), the PBA Tour’s all-time titles leader with 47 wins, who reached the century mark by winning a regional in December 2016 and a PBA50 regional in March for his 101st title. Both Weber and Williams own 10 PBA50 Tour titles.

First round leader Brian Voss of Centennial, Colo., finished qualifying in ninth with a 3,593 pinfall.

The Race City Open is being covered live by PBA’s online bowling channel Xtra Frame. For subscription and schedule information click here.

Related Articles

Brian Voss takes first round lead in PBA50 Race City Open
2017 PBA50 Tour Schedule & Champions

PBA50 Race City Open – Second Round Results

Players with position, hometown and 16-game total; top 24 advance to match play; 25th-45th plus eight PBA60 players (ss-; places 46-53) advance to cashers round which determines eight additional match play finalists; n- denotes non-member

1, Brian Kretzer, Dayton, Ohio, 3,799
2, Pete Weber, St. Ann, Mo., 3,759
3, Michael Haugen Jr., Phoenix, 3,751
4, Walter Ray Williams Jr., Oxford, Fla., 3,677
5, Norm Duke, Clermont, Fla., 3,672
6, Sammy Ventura, Syracuse, N.Y., 3,606
7, Greg McMahan, Dandridge, Tenn., 3,605
8, Lennie Boresch Jr., Kenosha, Wis., 3,596
9, Brian Voss, Centennial, Colo., 3,593
10, Craig Auerbach, Sunrise, Fla., 3,585
11, Brian LeClair, Delmar, N.Y., 3,581
12, Kenny Parks, Hammond, Ind., 3,580
13, Jack Jurek, Lackawanna, N.Y., 3,574
14, James Hansen, Anchorage, Alaska, 3,563
15, Amleto Monacelli, Venezuela, 3,535
16, Stoney Baker, Canton, Ga., 3,520
17, Eddie Graham, Centerville, Ohio, 3,505
18, Gary Faulkner, Norfolk, Va., 3,488
19, Don Breeden, Clive, Iowa, 3,483
20, Warren Nelson, Hemet, Calif., 3,475
21, Nick Morgan, Sacramento, Calif., 3,459
22, Tommy Martin, Olive Branch, Miss., 3,450
23, Bob Learn Jr., Erie, Pa., 3,432
24, Doug O’Bryant, Ball Ground, Ga., 3,429

25, Ernie Segura Jr., Taylor, Mich., 3,428
26, Ralph Brunt Jr., Jensen Beach, Fla., 3,427
27, Tom Baker, King, N.C., 3,426
28, Dave Han, Birmingham, Ala., 3,416
29, Don Blatchford, Santa Monica, Calif., 3,415
30, Harry Sullins, Chesterfield Twp., Mich., 3,414
31, Brian Cooper, Henderson, Nev., 3,408
32, Bryan Goebel, Shawnee, Kan., 3,407
33, Curt Guinn, Greenwood, S.C., 3,401
34, Tom Howison, Chillicothe, Ohio, 3,399
35, Todd Kjell, Roscoe, Ill., 3,398
36, Ron Mohr, Las Vegas, 3,388
37, Gary Alstott, Washington, Ill., 3,381
38, (tie) Ken Gibson, Greenville, S.C., and
Lee Brosius, Ashburn, Va., 3,374
40, Dale Eagle, Twin Falls, Idaho, 3,373
41, Bobby Johnson, Chillicothe, Ohio, 3,372
42, Dave Sill, Titusville, Fla., 3,371
43, Mike Hastings, Millsboro, Del., 3,365
44, Jeff Bellinger, Columbia, S.C., 3,362
45, Ryan Shafer, Horseheads, N.Y., 3,360

46, ss-Mark Scime, Winter Garden, Fla., 3,353
47, ss-Gary Shultis, Levittown, N.Y., 3,342
48, ss-Bill McCorkle, Westerville, Ohio, 3,326
49, ss-Thomas Ream, Tampa, Fla., 3,307
50, ss-Ron Profitt, Brookville, Ohio, 3,299
51, ss-Ted Staikoff, Black Hawk, S.D., 3,296
52, ss-Brian Miller, Springfield, Ohio, 3,283
53, ss-David Kneas, Annapolis, Md., 3,280

Missed Cut:
54, (tie) Marty Berke, Allentown, Pa., and
Don Herrington, Ballston Lake, N.Y., 3,348
56, Scott Thomsen, Sumter, S.C., 3,332
57, Mal Williams, Jr, Greensboro, N.C., 3,312
58, Ken Shealy, Myrtle Beach, S.C., 3,311
59, (tie) Terry Metzner, Kentwood, Mich., 3,307
60, Patrick Shipley, Spring Valley, Calif., 3,299
61, n-John Thompson, Sarasota, Fla., 3,294
62, Christopher Keane, Cape Coral, Fla., 3,284
63, Michael Byers, Charleston, S.C., 3,282
64, Chuck Walker, Blaine, Tenn., 3,280
65, n-Paul Kreins, Mooresville, NC, 3,272
66, (tie) Dave Bernhardt, Romeo, Mich., and
James Storts, Westfield, Ind., 3,269
68, Joe Scarborough, Charlotte, N.C., 3,265
69, George Pappas, Charlotte, N.C., 3,262
70, Keith Lesko, Chicago, Ill., 3,261
71, Jeff Schrum, Cherryville, N.C., 3,248
72, Paul Mielens, Menomonie, Wis., 3,241
73, John Conroy, Mahopac, N.Y., 3,235
74, Tommy Brodowski, New Hyde Park, N.Y., 3,233
75, Roy Buckley, Westerville, Ohio, 3,226
76, Mike Dias, Lafayette, Colo., 3,219
77, Jimmy Jean, Kathleen, Ga., 3,214
78, James Knoblauch, Waukesha, Wis., 3,213
79, Charlie Tomey, Spartanburg, S.C., 3,200
80, Charlie Toney, Oak Hill, W.Va., 3,198
81, Steven Grotowski, Ft Lauderdale, Fla, 3,194
82, Kevin Croucher, Grants Pass, Ore., 3,192
83, Charles Gadd, Lake Worth, Fla., 3,189
84, Darryl Traber, Waterford, Wis., 3,184
85, Darryl Bower, Middletown, Pa., 3,180
86, (tie) Mac Sanders, Taylors, S.C., and
Dannie Hettinger, Circleville, Ohio, 3,172
88, William Keenan Jr., Orlando, Fla., 3,168
89, Tom Carter, Columbus, Ohio, 3,166
90, Todd Haney, Boiling Springs, S.C., 3,164
91, Brendan Bierch, Grafton, Mass., 3,158
92, John Dudak, Orland Park, Ill., 3,157
93, Pete Arruda, Gilbert, S.C., 3,153
94, n-David Cushion, Dewitt, Mich., 3,152
95, Warren Burr, Wilmington, Del., 3,143
96, Chuck Best, Buda, Texas, 3,140
97, Todd Wilson, Summerfield, N.C., 3,139
98, Kevin Foley, Reno, Nev., 3,130
99, Nile Konicek, Gilbert, Ariz., 3,128
100, Peter Knopp, Germany, 3,123
101, Tim Shirlock, Las Vegas, 3,119
102, Robert Leonard, Lockwood, N.Y., 3,117
103, Richard Wilburn, Jr., Adamstown, Md., 3,106
104, Wayne Bolin, Lumberton, N.C., 3,095
105, Steve Easterday, Strasburg, Ohio, 3,092
106, David Sanders, Blythewood, S.C., 3,089
107, Chris Fedden, Albany, N.Y., 3,088
108, Jon DeLaney, McKinney, Texas, 3,085
109, William Banks, Laurel Hill, N.C., 3,084
110, David Goldenberg, Holtsville, N.Y., 3,069
111, Doug Becker, Clermont, Fla., 3,048
112, David Taylor, Largo, Fla., 3,033
113, Scott Greiner, Platte City, Mo., 3,031
114, Jesse Phillips, Charlotte, N.C., 2,993
115, Dennis Lane, Kingsport, Tenn., 2,975
116, Greg Wilhelm, Laurel Hill, N.C., 2,974
117, Steve Petroff, Concord, N.C., 2,950
118, Steven Jansson, Barnes, Wis., 2,949
119, Larry Graybeal, Elizabethton, Tenn., 2,947
120, Gary Simon, Bridgeport, W.Va., 2,935
121, James Lord, Fort Mill, S.C., 2,905
122, Joe Beck, Montgomery, Ala., 2,896
123, Charlie Earnst, York, Pa., 2,879
124, Lonnie Dyer, Charlotte, NC, 2,875
125, James Blackstone, Kennesaw, Ga., 2,858
126, Ken Waters, Kingsport, Tenn., 2,849
127, Timothy Regan, East Northport, N.Y., 2,844
128, n-Sherwin Bates, Cullman, Ala., 2,841
129, n-Charles Allen Jr., Pell City, Ala., 2,811
130, Chuck Anton, Chesterfield, Va., 2,783
131, n-Andrew Bizub, Huber Heights, Ohio, 2,755
132, Mike Moore, Marietta, Ohio, 2,754
133, James Souder, Greeneville, Tenn., 2,713
134, n-Brian Wallace, Lexington, Ky., 2,917
135, Johnny Petraglia, Jackson, N.J., 1,503
136, James Cayton, Canton, N.C., 1,451