Joe Ciccone (pictured left) of Buffalo, N.Y., defeated Jim Tomek Jr. (right) of Camp Hill, Pa., 184-161, to win the Professional Bowlers Association Regional Players Championship and its $9,000 first prize at Thunderbowl Lanes Monday.

Ciccone, who recently failed to earn enough points to maintain his Lumber Liquidators PBA Tour exemption after six years as a touring player, also earned an expenses-paid trip to bowl in the 2010 PBA Regional Players Invitational where the top seven players will win exemption to bowl on the national tour for the 2010-11 season. He also won his first trip to bowl in the PBA Tournament of Champions, an event for the PBA's elite champions.

"I'm very happy," the 34-year-old former Erie Community College and Arizona State University collegiate star said. "And the Tournament of Champions is a very nice bonus, the icing on the cake."

In the semifinals, Ciccone defeated Stuart Williams (left), England, 245-179 and Tomek eliminated Mitch Beasley (right), Puyallup, Wash., 225-180. Tomek earned $5,000 for second place while Williams and Beasley pocketed $2,800 each.

Ciccone is hoping he won't need to cash in on the Regional Players Invitational package, however. If he can regain his exemption in the Lumber Liquidators PBA Tour Trials later this week, he won't be eligible for that regional players-only event.

"I'm here, so I might as well bowl (the Tour Trials)," he said. "(Losing my exemption) wasn't the result I was hoping for last season, but a lot of other guys were impacted the same way. There's nothing specific about the way I bowled that I can put my finger on, but it would be nice to have the opportunity to do better next season than I did last. I'll bowl the Tour Trials and if I don't make it, it's nice to have the RPI to fall back on."

The PBA Regional Players Championship drew a field of 207 competitors. Most of the players will now focus their attention on the five-day, 45-game Lumber Liquidators PBA Tour Trials which runs Wednesday through Sunday at Thunderbowl Lanes. The top eight Tour Trials finishers will earn exemptions to bowl full-time on the Lumber Liquidators PBA Tour next season.

 

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PBA Regional Players Championship

Thunderbowl Lanes in Allen Park, Mich. (May 22-25, 2009)

Championship
Joe Ciccone, Buffalo, N.Y. ($9,000), def. Jim Tomek Jr., Camp Hill, Pa. ($5,000), 184-161.

Semifinal Round (losers earned $2,800 each)
Ciccone def. Stuart Williams, England, 245-179
Tomek def. Mitch Beasley, Puyallup, Wash., 225-180

Round of 8 (best of three games, losers eliminated, each earned $1,700)
Williams def. Michael Marsico, Huntingtown, Md., 2-0
Beasley def. Joe Paluszek, Bensalem, Pa., 2-0
Ciccone def. Richard Kidd, El Paso, Ill., 2-0
Tomek def. Chad Maas, Brookfield, Wis., 2-0

Round of 16 (best of three games, losers eliminated, each earned $1,100)
Paluszek def. David Traber, Hebron, Ill., 2-0
Kidd def. Ed Carter, Akron, Ohio, 2-0
Williams def. Thomas Smallwood, Saginaw, Mich., 2-0
Marsico def. Tim Mack, Indianapolis, 2-0
Beasley def. D.J. Archer, Garland, Texas, 2-0
Maas def. Lennie Boresch Jr., Kenosha, Wis., 2-1
Ciccone def. Bo Goergen, Midland, Mich., 2-1
Tomek def. Brian Kjergaard, Fulton, Ill., 2-1

Round of 32 (best of five games, losers eliminated, each earned $800)
Smallwood def. Brett Cooper, N. Richland Hills, Texas, 3-0
Goergen def. Joe Bailey, Pittsburgh, Pa., 3-2
Paluszek def. Bobby Hall II, Landover, Md., 3-1
Kidd def. Harry Sullins, Chesterfield Twp., Mich., 3-2
Traber def. David Anthony, Austin, Texas, 3-1
Archer def. Sean Swanson, Springfield, Mo., 3-2
Williams def. Jodi Woessner, Oregon, Ohio, 3-1
Boresch def. Tom Sorce, Blasdell, N.Y., 3-2
Mack def. Chad Kloss, Greenfield, Wis., 3-0
Kjergaard def. George Lambert IV, Wichita, Kan., 3-2
Marsico def. Brian Valenta, Lockport, Ill., 3-0
Beasley def. Dave D'Entremont, Middleburg Heights, Ohio, 3-1
Maas def. Lindsay Baker, Waterford, Mich., 3-2
Ciccone def. Terry Wiley, Vienna, Va., 3-1
Carter def. Eddie Graham, Centerville, Ohio, 3-0
Tomek def. Matt Freiberg, Somerset, N.J., 3-1

Round of 64 (best of five games, losers eliminated, each earned $650)
Smallwood def. John Conroy, Mahopac, N.Y., 3-1
Goergen def. Jason Wojnar, Chicago, 3-0
D'Entremont def. Tony Campagna Jr., Hendersonville, Tenn., 3-2
Paluszek def. Larry Verble, Mason, Mich., 3-1
Kidd def. Brian Thompson, Flat Rock, Mich., 3-1
Valenta def. Robert Lawrence, Del Valle, Texas, 3-2
Lambert def. Joe Green, Maplewood, Ohio, 3-2
Traber def. John Slavich IV, Schaumburg, Ill., 3-2
Archer def. Patrick Dombrowski, Parma, Ohio, 3-0
Wiley def. Jeff Zaffino, Warren, Pa., 3-1
Williams def. Chris Hansen, Chicago, 3-1
Sorce def. Duane Benn, Lynnwood, Wash., 3-0 Boresch def. Bill Spigner, Vernon Hills, Ill., 3-1
Woessner def. Kenneth Jessee, Huber Heights, Ohio, 3-1
Graham def. Kurt Pilon, Warren, Mich., 3-0
Mack def. Walter L. Schaub II, Schaumburg, Ill., 3-1
Kjergaard def. Kevin Taber, Toledo, Ohio, 3-2
Marsico def. Randy Weiss, Columbia, S.C., 3-1
Sullins def. Jason Hurd, St. Petersburg, Fla., 3-0
Bobby def. Steve Rogers, Bourbonnais, Ill., 3-1
Beasley def. Chris Kliczinski, Pinckney, Mich., 3-0
Bailey def. Michael Clark Jr., Lakewood, Ohio, 3-0
Maas def. Brian Himmler, Cincinnati, 3-1
Cooper def. Mason Brantley, Detroit, 3-1
Freiberg def. Ken Abner, Cincinnati, 3-1
Anthony def. Ray Edwards, Middle Island, N.Y., 3-2
Swanson def. Dan Patterson, Buffalo, N.Y., 3-2
Ciccone def. Tom Hess, Urbandale, Iowa, 3-1
Carter def. Christopher Sand, 3-2
Kloss def. Jeff Roche, Dearborn, Mich., 3-1
Tomek def. Tim Behrendt, St Louis, 3-1
Baker def. Chris Collins, Savannah, Ga., 3-1

Other Cashers (after 16 games, $500 each)
65, Gregg Zicha, Glen Ellyn, Ill., 3,223
66, Michelle Feldman, Auburn, N.Y., 3,222
67, Tommy Gollick, Oberlin, Pa., 3,218
68, Dan Higgins Jr., Westerville, Ohio, 3,215
69, Stevie Weber, Chalmette, La., 3,212