Mike Fagan (pictured left with the trophy) of Dallas, seeded second, took revenge for the loss of the winners bracket finals defeating top seeded Chris Barnes of Double Oak, Texas, 246-213, to win the 2012 United States Bowling Congress Masters and the $50,000 top prize. It was the third career PBA title for Fagan and his first major. With the victory in the TV finals at Sunset Station's Strike Zone bowling Center in Las Vegas, Fagan denied Barnes' bid to become the third Grand Slam winner in PBA history.
Dan MacLelland (l) has done the imaginary role-playing during practice, dreaming about the day when he'll become the first Canadian citizen to win a PBA Tour title. The 26-year-old Windsor, Ontario, native took the first step toward converting his dream into reality by taking the first round lead in the 69th U.S. Open at Brunswick Zone-Carolier on Tuesday, averaging 238.17 for six games for a six-pin lead over journeyman Brian Kretzer (r.) of Dayton, Ohio, 1,429-1,423.
Despite rolling a gutter ball on his first shot of the opening stepladder match, Scott Newell (l.) of Deland, Fla., quickly regained his composure to win three consecutive matches for the PBA Ricart Ford Open presented by Columbia 300 title Sunday at Sequoia Pro Bowl. The 28-year-old Newell won his first PBA Tour title by defeating tournament leader and one-time Tour winner Ryan Ciminelli (r.) of Cheektowaga, N.Y., 247-245, in a title match that went down to the 10th frame.
In his American television debut, England’s Dom Barrett (pictured) defeated Sean Rash of Montgomery, Ill., 247-204, to win the PBA Scorpion Open. The finals of the PBA's third tournament of the 2011-12 season was also the third of four PBA "animal pattern" championships and has been contested November 19, 2011 on a pair of lanes specially installed in an exhibit hall at South Point Hotel and Casino in suburban Las Vegas. The tape-delay telecast of the championship round aired Sunday on ESPN.
England's Dominic Barrett (pictured), fully recovered from a broken collar bone sustained nine months earlier in a near-tragic all-terrain vehicle accident in Saudi Arabia, will lead the field of four finalists into the battle for the PBA Scorpion Open title when the tape-delay telecast airs Sunday, Feb. 19 at 3 p.m. ET on ESPN. Also on Sunday, PBA fans will be able to watch the final rounds of the Xtra Frame Ricart Ford Open presented by Columbia 300 live on the Internet from Sequoia Pro Bowl in Columbus, Ohio.
Australia's Jason Belmonte (l.) ended his nearly three-year quest for his second PBA title, stringing eight strikes to run away from Sean Rash (r.) of Montgomery, Ill., 268-191, in the championship match of the Chameleon Open. Belmonte, who came into the Chameleon elimination-format finals as the leading qualifier, barely survived the first two games before finding his groove in the title match.
Jason Belmonte (pictured left) and Osku Palermaa (right9 aren't the only two-handed bowlers to make waves in bowling, but the fact that they have risen to the top of the game at virtually the same age, but half a world apart, is too ironic to ignore. And while their stories are similar in many aspects, they remain worlds apart as competitors and bowling stylists.
The 69th U.S. Open, one of professional bowling's most demanding tournaments, will return to Brunswick Zone-Carolier in North Brunswick, N.J., in 2012 for a record seventh time. Defending champion Norm Duke (pictured right) of Clermont, Fla., will be on hand to try to win his eighth career major title, his third U.S. Open crown and the $60,000 first prize. 
Sean Rash (pictured) of Montgomery, Ill., was the lone U.S. professional in the finals of the Chameleon Open, which will air Sunday, Feb. 12 at 3 p.m. ET on ESPN. The Chameleaon Open was the second of four PBA "animal pattern" championships conducted during the PBA World Series of Bowling Nov. 6-19, 2011 at South Point Casino and Hotel in Las Vegas. Rash meets two-handed rivals Jason Belmonte of Australia and Osku Palermaa of Finland and Venezuelan Ildemaro Ruiz.
Chris Barnes of Double Oak, Texas, is now one victory away from claiming the title in the 2012 Alka Seltzer Plus Liquid Gels United States Bowling Congress Masters. The finals will be broadcast live on ESPN at 12:30 p.m. Eastern (6.30 p.m. CET) Sunday at Sunset Station's Strike Zone Bowling Center in suburban Las Vegas.Rounding out the telecast is No. 2 seed Mike Fagan of Dallas, No. 3 seed Dan MacLelland of Canada and No. 4 seed Bryon Smith of Roseburg, Ore.
Chris Barnes (l.) of Double Oak, Texas, rolled an 806 series including a 300 game en route to earn the No. 1 seed for the stepladder finals of the 2012 USBC Masters live on ESPN Sunday, Jan. 29 at 12:30 p.m. Eastern. Barnes defeated Mike Fagan of Dallas in the finals of the winners bracket, 806-743. Fagan earned the No. 2 seed. In the opening match of the TV finals, Canadian Dan MacLelland and 2003 Masters champion Bryon Smithof Roseburg, Ore., will square off.
The lone woman remaining in the field - Missy Parkin (left) of Lake Forest, Calif. - was among 16 undefeated players after the opening rounds of double-elimination match play Thursday at the 2012 Alka Seltzer Plus Liquid Gels USBC Masters. Parkin went 2-0 in matches at Sunset Station's Strike Zone Bowling Center and with one more victory Friday would break the record for the high finish by a woman at the Masters. Dana Miller-Mackie (2000) and Liz Johnson (2006) hold the record by finishing in a tie for 17th position.
Rick Steelsmith (pictured) of Wichita, Kan., earned high-qualifier honors Thursday after 15 games at the 2012 Alka Seltzer Plus Liquid Gels United States Bowling Congress Masters. The 1987 Masters champion finished qualifying with 3,505, an average of 233.6, and will face defending champion and No. 64 seed Tom Hess of Urbandale, Iowa, in the opening round of the double-elimination match-play bracket at Sunset Station's Strike Zone Bowling Center.
Venezuela's Amleto Monacelli (pictured) took the lead after the first round of qualifying Tuesday at the 2012 United States Bowling Congress Masters by averaging 247.8 over the opening five games. Monacelli, a 19-time PBA champion and PBA Hall of Famer, fired 1,239 in the opening round to lead a field of 305 players vying for a piece of the $235,000 prize fund at Sunset Station's Strike Zone Bowling Center. The finals of the event will be broadcast live on ESPN on Jan. 29 at 12:30 p.m. Eastern.
Throwing his traditional rocket to the pocket, Eugene McCune (l.) of Munster, Ind., successfully defended his PBA Cheetah Open presented by Ebonite title Sunday at Fountain Bowl. McCune, who was the top qualifier for the stepladder finals on the high-scoring PBA Cheetah lane conditioning pattern, defeated PBA Hall of Famer and 35-time Tour titlist Pete Weber (r.) of St. Ann, Mo., 245-229, in the championship match for his third career win.
Dino Castillo (pictured left) of Carrollton, Texas, bowled two 300 games and averaged 257.33 Saturday to lead qualifying in the Professional Bowlers Association Cheetah Open presented by Ebonite at Fountain Bowl. Castillo had games of 300, 258, 256, 279, 238, 235, 192, 300 and 258 for a 2,316 nine-game pinfall total on the high-scoring PBA Cheetah lane conditioning pattern to top 24 players who advanced to Sunday morning's match play round. In all, thirteen 300 games were bowled in Saturday's qualifying.
After an emotional victory at the 2011 USBC Masters, Tom Hess (pictured) of Urbandale, Iowa, thinks the key to his chances of successfully defending his title is keeping those emotions in check. The Masters, which is one of four majors on the PBA Tour, also is a part of the 2012 World Bowling Tour organized by the WTBA. When the 2012 Masters begins Tuesday at Sunset Station's Strike Zone Bowling Center in suburban Las Vegas, Hess will have around 300 bowlers looking to dethrone him.