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Astoria, NY:  Dennis McMillan, a 54 year old therapist, won the $1,000 top prize at LIGBT’s house shot event at Astoria Bowl. Dennis’ first LIGBT title came fairly easy as he defeated Joe Scianna, Ronkonkoma, NY 300-257 in the final shootout. While Joe earned $500 for second, Tom Montilli, Bronx, NY finished third with a 249 worth $300 and fourth went to David Raiford, Long Island City, NY with a 214 earning him $250.

The final shootout featured a lot of strikes with Dennis almost throwing a perfect game except for a 10 pin in his second frame. Dennis finished with 280 scratch which was 23 pins higher than Joe’s 257 scratch game (Joe gets 0 handicap.) By the end of the match the contest was for second place between Joe and Tom. When Tom threw a strike in the 10^th it forced Joe to double which he did with ease. The shootout was well bowled as 3 of the 4 competitors threw clean games.

Joe and Tom also matched up in the scratch final shootout. Joe defeated Tom 254-235 to win the $375 top prize. Tom earned $250 for second. Also cashing in the scratch side event was Dainon Ward, Brooklyn, NY with a 707 earning him $75.

The Astoria house shot event drew a crowd of 67 entries, advanced 13 bowlers to the finals and paid out $3,425. The cut scores on the house shot were; 745 & 731 for the 49 & under age group and 719 & 731 for the seniors. High series of the tournament was shot by Archie Nabas, Queens Village, NY with an 853 in the 3pm squad. One bowler, James Marino, Lindenhurst, NY earned a $75 cashing spot due to the “no division” insurance.   

LIGBT’s next tournament is a 2-squad sport shot event, October 21^st at AMF Babylon. Top prizes are guaranteed to pay; $1,000-$500-$300-$250 with 1 in 6 advancing to the finals. To view the final results of the Astoria Bowl event please visit www.ligbtour.com. The LIGBT is sponsored by Kegel, Knockout Ball Cleaner, Torch Bowling, Billvee Electric, & Vietri Associates.

Wantagh, NY:  Darcy Monroe, a 56 year old coordinator for Home Goods, won the $1,000 top prize at LIGBT’s sport shot event hosted by AMF Wantagh. This was Darcy’s first LIGBT title in 191 events! Darcy’s long awaited victory became reality when he defeated Tony Jimenez, Babylon, NY 250-237 in the final shootout. While Tony earned $500 for second, finishing third was Mike Simeone, Lindenhurst, NY with a 214 worth $300. Rounding out the top 4 was Sal Florindo, Forest Hills, NY, with a 189 worth $250.

Darcy’s championship run started when he led the 3pm squad with a 730 giving him a bye. In the final shootout Darcy, who owned the highest average in the shootout, was giving the other competitors handicap so he had to bowl the highest scratch game. He accomplished this by rolling the only “clean” game in the shootout.

The final shootout was a good one and came down to the final frame between Darcy and Tony. Tony went up first trailing by just a few pins. Tony struck on his first ball but needed another strike to force Darcy to double. Tony got an 8 spare to finish his game which forced Darcy to throw the first strike in the 10^th. Darcy threw a perfect shot and a few moments later was holding his first LIGBT trophy.

The AMF Wantagh event drew a decent fall crowd of 74 entries, advanced 15 bowlers to the finals (better than 1 in 5) and paid out $3,350. The cut scores on the “Dead Man’s Curve” pattern were on the low side; 693 & 695. High series of the tournament was shot by 3^rd place finisher Mike Simeone with a 786 in the 1pm squad. Dianna Slaughter, Hempstead, NY was the high women and was added to the finals with a 678 series. Two wildcard winners were also added to the finals; Pak Wong, New York, NY (1359) and 4^th place finisher Sal Florindo (1357.)   

LIGBT’s next tournament is a 2-squad house shot event at Astoria Bowl; Sunday, October 14^th (1pm & 3pm.) Top prizes are guaranteed to pay $1,000-1^st and $500-2^nd.  To view the final results of the AMF Wantagh event please visit www.ligbtour.com. The LIGBT is sponsored by Kegel, Knockout Ball Cleaner, Torch Bowling, Billvee Electric, & Vietri Associates.

Scratch Winners: Tom Grunwald & Quan Jacob

Coram, NY:  Archie Nabas, a 47 year old construction manager from Queens Village, NY won the $1,000 top prize at LIGBT’s house shot event at Coram Country Lanes. Archie earned his third LIGBT title as he defeated Tommy Grunwald, Astoria, NY 277-257 in the final shootout. While Tom earned $500 for second, finishing in third with a 242 was Dave Soren, Long Beach, NY earning $300. Fourth went to Ferrill McNeil with a 239 worth $250. Rounding out the top 6 was fifth place finisher Tony Jimenez, W. Babylon, NY with a 238 worth $200 while 6^th place was taken by Juan Ayala, Medford, NY with a 221 worth $150.  

Winning a 6 bowler shootout is a very challenging task. Archie, the only lefty in the final shootout, started with 6 strikes in the first 7 frames and never looked back. Tommy threw every shot in the pocket but 3 stubborn 10 pins cost him the title. Ferrill bowled well but he never recovered from a missed spare in the second frame. Tony threw a clean game but couldn’t get the string of strikes he needed to win. Juan bowled well but 2 opens hurt his title chances.

The Coram Country Lanes house shot event drew a crowd of 65 entries (54 handicap/11 scratch), advanced 11 bowlers to the finals (plus 2 scratch finalists) and paid out $3,300. The cut scores on the house shot were; 753 & 772 for the 49 & under age group and 693 & 766 for the seniors. High series of the tournament was shot by Tony Jimenez with an 813 in the 3pm squad. One additional bowler was added to the finals via the “no division” insurance; Kameron Smith with a 753 in the 1pm squad. Tommy Grunwald and Quan Jacob, Bronx, NY won the scratch event and split the $525 in prize money.   

LIGBT’s next tournament is a 2-squad sport shot event, October 7^th at AMF Wantagh. Top prizes are guaranteed to pay; $1,000-$500-$300-$250 with 1 in 6 advancing to the finals. To view the final results of the Coram house shot event please visit www.ligbtour.com. The LIGBT is sponsored by Kegel, Knockout Ball Cleaner, Torch Bowling, and Billvee Electric.

Garden City, NY:  Joe Scianna, a senior bowler from Ronkonkoma, NY, swept both the scratch and handicap marathon titles at AMF Garden City which hosted LIGBT’s 5-game marathon. In the handicap event Joe defeated top seed Antonino Dilluvio, Flushing, NY 247-207 to claim the $1,000 top prize. Antonino collected $500 for second place. In the scratch event Joe earned an additional $400 with a 1232 series which was the top 5-game scratch total.

In the semi-final match of the handicap event Joe shot an incredible 285 game to advance to the final shootout. Finishing in 3^rd place was senior bowler Shiu Lee, Forest Hills, NY with a 239 worth $300. In 4^th place was 7-time LIGBT champion Dexter Sapp, Valley Stream, NY with a 218 worth $250.

The final match brought together the highest average in the LIGBT, Joe Scianna with a 205 (5 pins in handicap) and Antonino Dilluvio with a 135 average (67 pins in handicap.) Joe didn’t worry about the huge handicap advantage as he started the match with 7 strikes in a row and never looked back. This was Joe’s second LIGBT title.

The bonus scratch marathon paid out 3 spots; Joe Scianna won the event with a 1232 series earning $400. Second place went to Carl Worley, Staten Island, NY, with an 1192 worth $200 and third place was taken by Andrew Mienkiewicz, Massapequa, NY with an 1148 worth $130.

The AMF Garden City event drew a total of 62 entries (48 handicap/14 scratch) and paid out $3,625. A total of 16 bowlers earned money (better than a 1 in 4 ratio) with minimum prize paying $85. Three bowlers took advantage of the “no division insurance” and earned their entry fee back; Archie Nabas (1196), Scott Kampf (1195), and Andrew Mienkiewicz (1193.) High handicap series was shot by Antonino Dilluvio with a 1343 and Joe Scianna had the high scratch series with a 1232.    

LIGBT’s next tournament is a 2-squad house shot event at Coram Country Lanes; Sunday, September 30^th (1pm & 3pm.) Top prizes are guaranteed to pay $1,000-1^st and $500-2^nd.  To view the final results of the AMF Garden City event please visit www.ligbtour.com. The LIGBT is sponsored by Kegel, Knockout Ball Cleaner, Torch Bowling, Billvee Electric, and Vietri Associates.

LIGBT Season 10 was one of the most successful seasons in our history. A total of 5,255 entries competed for $254,115 in prize money over 40 events. When you include the side action more than $535,000 was paid out throughout the year.

There were only 2 repeat champions in Season 10; James Hellen won 4 events and Gary Paulsen won 2 events. Ten different bowlers finished first or second more than once. An amazing 329 different bowlers cashed which is 46% of all of the different entrants that competed.

The more than $250,000 in prize money was spread out. The leading money winner was James Hellen with $6,605 earned in 36 events. Scott Kampf and Hector Diaz Jr. were next up with $5,820 and $5,680 respectively. Thirteen different bowlers earned more than $3,000, thirty-three different bowlers earned more than $2,000, and an incredible 78 bowlers earned at least $1,000.

When you include all of the side action the leading money winner was still James Hellen with $12,810. Maniram Basedo was not far behind in second place with $11,246. Rounding out the top 3 was Gary Paulsen with $8,134 in earnings. For the record, all 3 of these bowlers have had their average re-rated for future events.

With 40 events run in Season 10 the member that cashed the most time was Darcy Monroe who made the finals in 17 out of 36 events for a 47% cashing ratio. The highest percentage casher, with 16 cashes out of 32 events was Sal Florindo with a 50% ratio. Eddie Eng had the 3^rd most final appearances with 15 which he accomplished in 34 events for a 44% cashing ratio. Fourteen different bowlers made the finals in 10 or more events—not an easy task to achieve.

Although the LIGBT is a handicap competition, it is fun to see who has the highest average in our tournaments. Joe Scianna is the only bowler averaging more than 200 as he has a club average of 216.54 over 55 games (he bowls with no handicap.) Scott Kampf has the second high average with a 194.27 over 95 games. Andrew Mienkiewicz (191.09) and Yon Gyo Phark (190.83) are the only other bowlers averaging 190 and above. The average for the entire club, from the 711 different bowlers that competed this year is 161.43.

Levittown, NY:  Kameron Smith, a 27 year old graphic artist, won the $1,500 top prize at LIGBT’s Labor Day Match Play Championships at Levittown Lanes. Kameron, who has been trying to win an LIGBT title since 2015, broke through to the winner’s circle by defeating Shiu Lee, Forest Hills, NY 247-232 in the final shootout. While Shiu earned $800 for second, Dwayne Adams, Jr. NYC, finished third with a 222 worth $600 and fourth went to James Hellen, Lindenhurst, NY with a 208 earning him $500.

The final shootout was a great one with 3 bowlers having a chance to win the title in the final frame. Despite the easy house shot pattern the match started slow with 3 of the 4 having an open by the third frame. Kameron threw the first double of the shootout in the 5^th & 6^th frames but when he missed a one pin spare in the 8^th frame the title was up for grabs. Both Dwayne and Shiu could have forced Kameron to double to win if they had struck in the 10^th. Shiu got the first one and Dwayne spared. Kameron, like a champion, threw 3 perfect strikes to capture his first title.

The Levittown house shot event drew a great crowd of 159 entries, advanced 28 bowlers to the finals and paid out $7,500. The cut scores on the house shot were; 747 to 751. The high series of the tournament was shot by Ron Hatchett, NYC, with an 864 in the 1pm squad. The 9 game wildcard winner was Joe Hatchett with a 2202 total.  

LIGBT will be releasing its Season 11 schedule on September 5^th. Our next event is a Friday night 5-game handicap and scratch marathon, September 14^th at AMF Garden City (8pm start). To view the final results of the Labor Day Match Play Championships from Levittown Lanes event please visit www.ligbtour.com. The LIGBT is sponsored by Kegel, Knockout Ball Cleaner, Torch Bowling, and CLS Custom Upholsterers.

Wantagh, NY:  Adam DeRossi, an IT Director for Massapequa Schools, won the $1,000 top prize at LIGBT’s sport shot event hosted by AMF Wantagh. Adam, who is from Massapequa Park, NY, won his 2nd LIGBT title by defeating Darcy Monroe, E. Meadow, NY 253-234 in the final shootout. While Darcy earned $550 for second, finishing third was Stella Yoo, New York, NY with a 225 earning $350. Rounding out the top 4 was 7-time champion Dexter Sapp, Valley Stream, NY, with a 208 worth $300.

The final shootout featured 4 bowlers who were fairly close in handicap. The match started slowly as everyone had an open by frame #6. Darcy, after 2 opens, had the first triple of the match but needed another double to pressure Adam. Adam, who missed a 1 pin spare in frame #2, stayed clean the rest of the way and doubled twice including the 10^th frame to secure the victory. Stella, who was making her first “TV” appearance, bowled great but missed two 10 pins and had to settle for third place. Dexter, the only lefty in the shootout, could not strike and finished in 4^th place.

The AMF Wantagh event drew a nice summer crowd of 100 entries, advanced 18 bowlers to the finals and paid out $4,260. The cut scores on the “2010 USBC Championships” pattern were on the low side. The lower average division cut was 691 & 693 and the higher average division cut was 683 & 651. High series of the tournament was shot by Rob Foerster, E. Meadow, NY with a 741 in the 3pm squad. Two extra bowlers were added to the finals due to the “no division” insurance.  

LIGBT’s next tournament is a 3-squad house shot event at Levittown Lanes; Labor Day Sunday, September 2nd (1pm-3pm-5pm.) Top prizes are guaranteed to pay $1,500-1^st & $750-2^nd.  To view the final results of the AMF Wantagh event please visit www.ligbtour.com. The LIGBT is sponsored by Kegel, Torch Bowling, Billvee Electric, Vietri Associates, and CLS Custom Upholsterers.

Babylon, NY: Gary Paulsen, a semi-retired senior bowler, won the $1,000 top prize at LIGBT’s sport shot event hosted at AMF Babylon. Gary, who is from Massapequa, NY, won his 4th LIGBT title by defeating Deon Taitte, Amityville, NY 270-249 in the final shootout. While Deon earned $600 for second, finishing third was John Sandano, Brooklyn, NY with a 220 earning $400. Rounding out the top 4 was Scott Kampf, Levittown, NY, with a 190 worth $300.

The 4 bowlers in the shootout had a wide difference in handicap. Scott was giving everyone pins with a handicap of 18. On the other hand, Gary had the most handicap with a ridiculous 71 pins. Gary started with a double and held the lead throughout the match. When Gary opened in frames 6 & 7 the match got tighter. Deon, who also opened in the 6^th frame, struck out the rest of the way to force Gary to mark in the final frame to win. Gary struck which gave him his 4^th title. John filled all frames except one but just couldn’t strike. Scott hit the pocket a lot but never carried the left lane.

The AMF Babylon event drew a great summer crowd of 110 entries, advanced 20 bowlers to the finals and paid out $4,500. The cut scores on the “Athens” pattern were moderate as the lower average division cut was 700 & 708 and the higher average division cut was 686 & 700. High series of the tournament was shot by Deon Taitte with a 759 in the 3pm squad. A total of 4 extra bowlers were added to the finals due to the “no division” insurance.  

LIGBT’s next tournament is a 2-squad sport shot event at AMF Wantagh; Sunday, August 19^th (1pm & 3pm.) Top prizes are guaranteed to pay $1,000-1^st and $500-2^nd.  To view the final results of the AMF Babylon event please visit www.ligbtour.com. The LIGBT is sponsored by Kegel, Torch Bowling, Billvee Electric, Vietri Associates, and CLS Custom Upholsterers.