News

Levittown, NY:  Rob Longiaru, a 27 year old biologist from Seaford, NY, earned his first LIGBT title at a record breaking LIGBT event at South Levittown Lanes. Rob defeated 134 other competitors to earn the $1,000 top prize and his first LIGBT trophy. To win the title Rob defeated 5-time LIGBT champion Dexter Sapp, Valley Stream, NY 239-232 in a great final shootout. Dexter earned $600 for second place while Devon Johnson, Brooklyn, NY earned $350 for his third place finish with a 191.

The shootout winner was not determined until the final frame. Rob took the early lead by striking in his first 4 out of 5 frames. Dexter had a shot at the title by throwing a 4 timer in the last 2 frames. Dexter’s big finished forced Rob to mark in the tenth and he converted a 1 pin spare to secure his first title.

The S. Levittown Lanes tournament drew a record fall crowd of 135 entries, advanced 24 bowlers to the finals, and paid out $4,850. All finalists earned at least $100! The PBA Chameleon pattern was used and scoring was moderate; the cut was 687 in the 1pm squad and 691 in the 3pm squad. High series of the tournament was shot by third place finisher Devon Johnson with an 844 series in the 3pm squad.

LIGBT’s next tournament is a 2-day major event over Thanksgiving Weekend (Nov. 28 & 30) with all entries only $49!  Top prizes are guaranteed to pay $2,000 & $1,000. One in 6 each squad advances to the finals and will cash for a minimum of $50. For complete results of the S. Levittown tournament please visit www.ligbtour.com. The LIGBT is sponsored by Brunswick, Randi Siegel Law Offices, Kegel, and CLS Custom Upholsterers.

Flushing, NY:  Curtis Hetmeyer, a 46 year old left hander from Valley Stream, NY, won LIGBT’s top prize of $1,000 at JIB Lanes. Curtis defeated second place finisher Ron Hatchett, NYC, 258-248 in the final shootout. While Ron earned $500 third place went to Dexter Sapp, Valley Stream, NY with a 232 worth $250. Derek Brandi, Whitestone, NY earned $225 with his fourth place finish with a 224 and fifth went to Jason Nicholas, Wantagh, NY with a 211 worth $200. This was Curtis’ first LIGBT victory and he was bowling against 4 other LIGBT winners.

The JIB final shootout was a high scoring exciting match. While there were a lot of strikes, everyone had an open by the 6^th frame. The lead changed almost every frame with Curtis throwing a triple in the 8^th through 10^th frames giving him the victory. Ron could have won the tournament with a double in the final frame but left a 9 count on his first shot.

The JIB Lanes tournament drew an incredible fall crowd of 107 entries, advanced 19 bowlers to the finals, and paid out $3,545. All finalists earned at least $80! The JIB house shot was used and scoring was, as expected, extremely high; the cut was 782 in the 1pm squad and 776 in the 3pm squad. High series of the tournament was shot by 4th place finisher Derek Brandi with a 931 series (with 108 bonus pins) in the 3pm squad.

LIGBT’s next tournament is at South Levittown Lanes on Sunday, November 16^th. Top prizes are guaranteed to pay $1,000 & $500 and all bonus pins are frozen. One in 6 bowlers each squad will advance to the finals and cash for a minimum of $60. Preregistered cash entry fees are only $60 & $50. For complete results of the JIB Lanes tournament please visit www.ligbtour.com. The LIGBT is sponsored by Brunswick, Randi Siegel Law Offices, Kegel, and CLS Custom Upholsterers.

Farmingdale, NY:  Judi Nelson, West Islip, NY won her first LIGBT title at Farmingdale Lanes with a great performance. Judi shot a 267 handicap game to defeat second place finisher Clive Tobias, Huntington, NY, who shot a 246, in a very exciting match. Judi earned $1,000 for her victory while Clive took home $600 for second place. Rob Foerster, East Meadow, NY, was the only title holder in the final shootout and finished third with a 206 earning him $300.

Judi’s road to victory started slow with an open in the first frame but she marked in the next 9 frames including a double in the middle of the game. Since Judi was getting the most handicap the other opponents were always trying to catch up. Clive had a triple going into the final frame, and could have won the title with a strike, but threw an 8 count which cost him the title.

The Farmingdale Lanes tournament drew an incredible fall crowd of 117 entries, advanced 20 bowlers to the finals, and paid out $4,150. All finalists earned at least $100! Kegel’s 37 foot Broadway pattern was used and scoring was surprisingly moderate; the cut was 686 in the 1pm squad and 697 in the 3pm squad. High series of the tournament was shot by third place finisher Rob Foerster with an 825 series in the 3pm squad.

LIGBT’s next tournament is a special “house shot-no membership fee” event at JIB Lanes on Sunday, November 2nd. Top prizes are guaranteed to pay $1,000 & $500. One in 6 each squad advances to the finals and will cash for a minimum of $60. Preregistered cash entry fees are only $60 & $50. For complete results of the Farmingdale Lanes tournament please visit www.ligbtour.com. The LIGBT is sponsored by Brunswick, Randi Siegel Law Offices, Kegel, and CLS Custom Upholsterers.

New Hyde Park, NY:  Abel David, a 57 year old IT Director from Franklin Square, NY won his first LIGBT title at Herrill Lanes. Abel shot a 227 giving him a 5 pin victory and the $1,000 top prize. Finishing second was Dan Goldberg, Douglaston, NY with a 222 worth $500. Rounding out the top 5 was third place finisher Dave Martorella, Meriden, CT with a 221 worth $300, David Chu, New York, NY took fourth place with a 209 worth $250, and fifth went to Joe Evers, Islip Terrace, NY with a 207 earning him $200.

Abel’s consistency throughout the shootout gave him the victory. Except for an open in the fourth frame Abel marked in every frame while all of the other shootout competitors had multiple opens. In fact Abel never doubled in the match and still won! Abel’s victory was still not determined until the last frame as both Dan Goldberg and Dave Martorella could have won the title with a strike in the tenth.

The Herrill Lanes tournament drew a great fall crowd of 101 entries, advanced 18 bowlers to the finals, and paid out $3,640. Kegel’s 39 foot Middle Road pattern was used and scoring was moderate; the cut was 686 in the 1pm squad and 706 in the 3pm squad. High series of the tournament was shot by Gary Paulsen, Massapequa, NY with a 751 series in the 3pm squad.

LIGBT’s next tournament is at Farmingdale Lanes on Sunday, October 19th. Top prizes are guaranteed to pay $1,000 & $500. One in 6 each squad advances to the finals and will cash for a minimum of $60. Preregistered cash entry fees are only $60 & $50. For complete results of the Herrill Lanes tournament please visit www.ligbtour.com. The LIGBT is sponsored by Brunswick, Kegel, and CLS Custom Upholsterers.

Wantagh, NY:  Who says history can’t repeat itself? Dexter Sapp, Valley Stream, NY, won the first event of LIGBT Season 6 and he repeated that feat by winning the first event of Season 7! Dexter earned his 5^th LIGBT title with a 217 handicap game worth $1,000 at AMF Wantagh.

The shootout was a low scoring match containing 5 finalists. All 5 shootout bowlers had at least 2 opens in the first 5 frames. Dexter took control of the match with a 4 timer in frames 6 through 9. At the end the real battle was for second place and that was secured by Joe Freeman, Ridgewood, NY with a 204 worth $500. Finishing third with a 202 was John Robertson Brooklyn, NY worth $300. Fourth place, with a 200 worth $250, went to Dave Perrone, W. Babylon, NY and the 5^th spot, worth $200, was Jack Edvabsky, Levittown, NY with a 185

The AMF Wantagh tournament drew a good fall crowd of 93 entries, advanced 16 bowlers to the finals, and paid out $3,300. Kegel’s 40 foot Highway to Hell pattern was used and scoring was extremely low; 660 in the 1pm squad and 679 in the 3pm squad. High series of the tournament was shot by George Williams, Jamaica, NY with an 752 series in the 3pm squad.

LIGBT’s next tournament is at Herrill Lanes on Sunday, October 12th. Top prizes are guaranteed to pay $1,000 & $500. One in 6 each squad advances to the finals and will cash for a minimum of $60. Preregistered cash entry fees are only $60 & $50. For complete results of the AMF Wantagh tournament please visit www.ligbtour.com. The LIGBT is sponsored by Brunswick, Kegel, and  CLS Custom Upholsterers.

Syosset, NY: The Long Island Generation Bowling Tour (LIGBT) is pleased to announce its Fall Schedule. The LIGBT will be running 9 events in 8 different bowling centers. All events will feature guaranteed top prizes, 3-games per squad handicap qualifying, challenging lane patterns, and amateur only eligibility.

The LIGBT kicks off its fall season with a 2-squad handicap event at AMF Wantagh on Sunday, September 21^st. In October the LIGBT visits Herrill and Farmingdale Lanes. There will be 3 events in November; 2 regular events at JIB and Levittown Lanes and a 2-day major at AMF Babylon on Thanksgiving weekend. Two events will be held in December at AMF Garden City and AMF Plainview. The final event will be a 5-game handicap marathon on New Year’s Day at AMF Babylon which is open to non-members.

The LIGBT is the largest bowling club on the east coast with 2,000 members and more than $1.5 million paid out its first six seasons. What makes the LIGBT so successful is its balanced competition and professionally run tournaments. No one dominates as everyone’s average is carefully monitored. Out of 34 events last season there were only 5 repeat champions. Only 3 bowlers in the club averaged over 190 and the median average for all members is 168.

Entry fees for LIGBT tournaments are very affordable; only $60 for your first entry and $50 for re-entries. Most tournaments are run on Sunday’s with two squads; 1pm & 3pm. For additional information on the LIGBT please visit ligbtour.com or call the tournament office at 1.877.900.6464.

Syosset, NY: The Long Island Generations Bowling Tour (LIGBT) recently completed its sixth season which consisted of 34 handicap events across Nassau and Suffolk counties. Over $300,000 in prize money was distributed to 226 different cashers. A total of 4,418 entries were recorded which means a typical LIGBT event attracts 130 entries.

There were many members that had outstanding performances in Season 6. Dexter Sapp, Valley Stream, NY, was the only bowler to win 3 events (he also finished second once.) There were 3 bowlers that won twice: Daniel Goldberg, Douglaston, NY, Gwendolyn Ganus, Brooklyn, NY and Cary Fishman, New York, NY. A total of 55 different bowlers finished either first or second in one of the 34 events.

The leading money winner for Season 6 was Daniel Goldberg who earned $4,605 in 28 events. The second leading money winner was Dexter Sapp earning $4,495 in 30 events. 226 different bowlers (64% of the membership) cashed in at least one tournament. For the first time in LIGBT history 10 bowlers earned more than $3,000 and 91 bowlers earned in excess of $500.

Being a consistent casher is everyone’s goal. There were 6 bowlers that cashed in 14 events; Daniel Goldberg, Maniram Basdeo (Bronx, NY), Steven Williams (Bellrose, NY), David Soren (Long Beach, NY), Alex Padmore (Jamaica, NY), and Ed Eng (Flushing, NY.) The highest cashing ratio, which was 56%, was attained by Maniram Basdeo and Steven Williams.

The LIGBT’s popularity is in part is due to the challenge patterns at each event. While scoring is out of control in leagues the LIGBT has successfully kept scoring moderate. The highest average in the club is held by Bobby Wunsch, E. Meadow, NY with a 191.49. There were only two other members that averaged above 190; Julio Arnold, Woodside, NY (190.65) and Jason Nicholas, Wantagh, NY (190.58). The median average for the entire club was 168.33.

The LIGBT will be announcing its Season 7 schedule that will include 26 events and several new bowling centers including one in Queens. Entry fees will remain the same ($60 & $50) and there will be no increase in dues. For additional information about the LIGBT please visit www.ligbtour.com.

Babylon, NY:  Joe Hatchett, a 60 year old right hander from New York City, won his first LIGBT title worth $3,000 at AMF Babylon. In a low scoring title match Joe finished strong to shoot a 207 to defeat second place finisher John Mienkiewicz, Plainview, NY who shot a 192 worth $1,500. Finishing third, and earning $750, was Julian Valdaro, a 20 year old left hand bowler from Bayshore, NY with a 190.

The shootout at AMF Babylon was a lesson in futility. All 3 bowlers had at least 2 opens by the 5^th frame. Despite the fact Joe did not hit the head pin for 5 consecutive frames on his first ball he adjusted his line and finished the match with 7 consecutive marks. Going into the 10^th frame all 3 bowlers were within 7 pins. Joe was the only competitor to mark in the tenth which gave him his first title.

The Labor Day Major shootout produced some of the lowest scores in LIGBT’s 6 year history. The tough scoring conditions can be attributed to the fact all 3 bowlers were looking for their first LIGBT title, Kegel’s 41 foot Turnpike pattern was used, and there was over $5,000 in prize money up for grabs. The best part of a low scoring match is the winner wasn’t decided until the final frame.

The AMF Babylon Labor Day Major drew a great summer crowd of 232 entries, advanced 45 bowlers to the finals (better than 1 in 3), and paid out $11,110. Scoring on Kegel’s Turnpike pattern was low as the cut scores ranged from 669 to 690. High series of the tournament was shot by Rich Patson, Lindenhurst NY with a 757 series in the Sunday 1pm squad.

LIGBT will begin Season 7 on Sunday, September 21 at AMF Wantagh. The fall schedule will be released shortly. For complete results of the AMF Babylon Major please visit www.ligbtour.com. The LIGBT is sponsored by Brunswick, Kegel, and CLS Custom Upholsterers.