Whether you were bowling or not, it was a warm, humid day for The Tour at Bowlero Lanes...However, as the day heated up, amazingly, so did the scores as a shootout took place late in the day!  The 'Cut-Line' was at an ideal 920 and the Top scores were right on Target as there were 129 total Entries and 26 Bowlers on the very diverse (in terms of averages & Handicaps) Cash List. 

There were two near misses for the Jackpot's 'Middle 7' as Earl Kleist and 'Bowler of the Year' front runner Huyen Thai both came close to the$500.00 prize.  Thai's run was a little less obvious as he tapped in frames 2 thru 4, got a real one, then tapped three more times in frames 6 thru 8.  Kleist tapped six in a row, then on the money shot threw a real one and the disappointment was obvious as he knew that he had missed out on an even bigger pay day! (see video below) 

The 9-Tap Jackpot Consolation was shared between Will Cotton & James Pippin as they both hit the Front 4 taps for $50.00 each.  The Jackpot jumped nicely to $4,443.00 for next week at Roxbury Bowl.  Also, don't forget to bring your appettite as Roxbury's Restaurant is one of the Tour favorites! 

First, it was David York, who held the lead for a couple of hours with a nice1011 series, followed in the next Squad by Ashley Kochel, who assumed the 'Target' position with her own monster series of 1027 going into the Final Squad.  In the End, it came down to 4 or 5 HOT bowlers, all having their chances at Titles going into the last few frames...Patrick Dennis & Raymon Sedeno came up a little short firing 1006 & 996, respectively finishing in 6th & 7th.  James Black, along with Pearl Sedeno and Dennis posted 300 games within mere seconds of one another earlier in the Final Squad, was well on his way to back to back perfect games when he was interrupted by a very untimely pocket 7-10 split which ultimately derailed his chance at the Title.  Black wound up tied for 3rd with Kochel, both earning $340.00.  2013 'Bowler of the Year' Black, who has been on fire recently,  now sits at $23,315 in Career earnings.  Kochel, was very close to her First Win and said that she entered this week with confidence, having bowled well the previous week. 

If you're looking to see who is having a pretty awesome year, look no further than Pearl Sedeno!  Pearl, the well-seasoned Tour Veteran herself, made up for a slow start with two HUGE finishing games (including the 300 mentioned before) to nearly pull out a victory as she missed by just 13 pins!  Pearl's $662.00 2nd Place check puts her at $17,918.00 for her Tour Career.  Nice shootin' Pearl, and you beat your hubby too! 

Earl, Saturday after 9th Title~~~~~~~~~~Earl in 2003 after 1st Title 

What else can we say about Tour Veteran, Earl Kleist???  With win #9, yes NINE, first winning back in 2003, Earl FINALLY broke out of a 'Dry Spell' taking his first Singles Title in years.  Don't feel too badly for him though as during that "Slump" he earned a Doubles Title, hit the Jackpot for $7,730.00, had 20 Top 10 finishes, including two 2nd's this year, also had two 2nd's on the short-lived 'Elite-Tour'.  In 2011, Kleist was voted into the Tour's 'Hall of Fame' AND he won 'Bowler of the Year'!  Prior toSaturday's 1st Squad, we talked to Earl about his 'Dry Spell' and how he needed to avoid that ONE GAME which had been derailing his potential trips to the "Winner's Circle".  He hit that recipe on the button, shooting 4 solid games for a 1028 SCRATCH, which also earned him $140.00 from the Scratch Pot.  The 1068 winning set, earned Earl $1,807.00 putting his Career Earnings at $44,575.00, which does NOT include his Jackpot, Bracket or other side pot earnings.  Earl used his Storm 'Crux' ball, drilled by Robert Kelly at Peter Somoff's Pro Shop at Secoma Lanes and said that he wanted to thank the Tour and its Members for their support over the years.  Way to go, Earl!  

Finally, if you've been paying attention to the 'Bowler of the Year'standings which can be found on our website, you'll see that Huyen Thai's lead has narrowed a bit and because he is leaving town for vacation to Vietnam, there is a huge opportunity for that to narrow even more over the next few weeks!  Have fun, Huyen, send pictures, don't worry about those people who are closing in on you!