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Babylon, NY: “Gwen” Ganus, Brooklyn, NY won her second LIGBT title in one of the closest shootouts in LIGBT history. Gwen struck out in the final frame to defeat second place finisher George Williams, Jamaica, NY 244-236. Gwen’s second LIGBT title was worth $2,000 while George earned $1,000 for his runner-up position. Finishing third and earning $700 was Justin Kampf, Levittown, NY with a 224 and fourth place went to Gary Paulsen, Massapequa, NY with a 215 worth $400.

Gwen’s victory was the result of an amazing comeback. While all three of her competitors doubled in the first five frames she had 3 opens and was trailing by 33 pins halfway through the match. But Gwen’s last 5 frames included a double, 2 spares, and a triple in the tenth to finish her comeback. Amazingly, all 4 competitors were separated by only 11 pins going into the final frame.

The AMF Babylon tournament drew a 2-day crowd of 174 entries, advanced 34 bowlers to the finals, and paid out $7,810 plus 8 Brunswick balls. Kegel’s 39 foot Middle Road pattern was used and cut scores ranged from 704 to 730. The high series of the tournament was shot by Joe Freeman, Ridgewood, NY with a 787 series in the Sunday 1pm squad.

LIGBT’s next tournament is a one day handicap event at AMF Wantagh on Sunday, July 27^th. Top prizes are guaranteed to pay $1,000 & $500. One in 6 each squad advances to the finals and cash for a minimum of $60. Entry fees for the Wantagh event are $60-1^st entry and $50 for a re-entry. For complete results of the AMF Babylon tournament please visit www.ligbtour.com. The LIGBT is sponsored by Brunswick, Kegel, and CLS Custom Upholsterers.

E. Meadow, NY: Joe Freeman, a 37 year old left-hander from Ridgewood, NY, earned his second LIGBT title at AMF East Meadow with a thrilling one pin victory. Joe defeated Chris Bonomo, a 21 year old right-hander from East Meadow, 231-230. Joe earned $1,000 while Chris took home $500 for second. Finishing third, with a 219, was Jonathan Corda, Williston Park, NY, earning $300.

The early frames of the shootout saw some great bowling as all 3 competitors were clean heading into the 5^th frame. By the 7^th frame Chris held a 21 pin lead over Joe as he had a couple of opens. But when Chris left a 7 count on his fill ball in the tenth frame Joe knew he needed to fill 29 pins to secure the victory. Two perfect tenth frame strikes plus a 9 count gave Joe the title.

The AMF East Meadow tournament drew a great crowd of 125 entries, advanced 22 bowlers to the finals, and paid out $4,450. Kegel’s 42 foot Autobahn pattern was used and scoring was on the moderate side (718 cut at 1pm & 715 at 3pm). High series of the day was shot by Bobby Wunsch, East Meadow, NY in the 1pm squad with a 799.

LIGBT’s next tournament is the July 4^th weekend major at AMF Babylon. The July 5-6 tournament will pay prizes of $2,000 & $1,000. One in 6 each squad advances to the finals and will cash for a minimum of $80. All entries for the 2-day major are $65 per squad. For complete results of the AMF East Meadow tournament please visit www.ligbtour.com. The LIGBT is sponsored by Brunswick, Kegel, Randi Siegel Law Offices, Knockout Ball Cleaner and CLS Custom Upholsterers.

Garden City, NY: Darryl Freeman has been waiting five long years to place an LIGBT trophy on his mantel. His $1,000 dream came true at AMF Garden City as he defeated two other LIGBT champions with a great performance. Darryl, who resides in Forest Hills, NY, shot a 223 to defeat second place finisher, and 3-time champion, Dexter Sapp, Valley Stream, NY by 8 pins. Dexter shot a 215 to earn $500 while third place finisher Dave Martorella, Meriden, CT earned $300 with a 201.

The shootout was well bowled by all three competitors with only one open each through the first seven frames. It looked like Dexter was going to get his 4^th title as he had a 24 pin lead through 7 frames. But when Dexter opened his last 3 frames and Darryl doubled in the 8^th and 9^th frames the 10th became a formality as Darryl claimed the $1,000 victory.

The AMF Garden City tournament drew a great crowd of 117 entries, advanced 20 bowlers to the finals, and paid out $3,930. Kegel’s 39 foot Winding Road pattern was used and scoring was on the moderate side (680 cut at 1pm & 698 at 3pm). The high series of the tournament was shot by Robert Smith, Flushing, NY with a 760 series in the 3pm squad.

LIGBT’s next tournament is a 2-squad (1pm & 3pm) handicap event at AMF East Meadow on Sunday, June 22nd. 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. Entry fees for the East Meadow event are $60-1^st entry and $50 for a re-entry. For complete results of the AMF Garden City tournament please visit www.ligbtour.com. The LIGBT is sponsored by Brunswick, Kegel, Randi Siegel Law Offices, Knockout Ball Cleaner and CLS Custom Upholsterers.

Syosset, NY: The Long Island Generations Bowling Tour (LIGBT) has completed three of four swings in its sixth season. LIGBT has run 26 events this year throughout Long Island bowling centers. The LIGBT Summer Swing is now underway and will consist of 7 events including 2 majors.

The LIGBT has attracted 3,845 entries including the Desperado Shootouts. That’s an amazing 148 entries per tournament! Total payouts this season are over $250,000. In addition to the prize money Brunswick has distributed 48 of their high-end balls to LIGBT bowlers.

There have been three multiple champions this year with Dexter Sapp, Valley Stream, NY leading with 3 titles. The two other bowlers with multiple titles (2 each) are Daniel Goldberg, Douglaston, NY and Cary Fishman, New York, NY. There have been a total of 22 different champions in Season 6 which indicates just how difficult it is to repeat.

More than a quarter-million in prize money has been distributed with Daniel Goldberg leading the earnings category with $4,375. Not surprisingly, in second place is Dexter Sapp with $3,745 and Cary Fishman in third with $3,445. Thirteen different bowlers have cashed for at least $2,000 and 203 different bowlers have cashed at least once.

The most consistent casher at LIGBT events is Jason Nicholas, Wantagh, NY who cashes 77% of the time (10 out of 13). There are 4 bowlers that have cashed in 12 events this year: Gary Paulsen, Massapequa, NY, Daniel Goldberg, Maniram Basdeo, Bronx, NY, and Eddie Eng, Flushing, NY.

The LIGBT puts down tough lane conditions at most of their events. The high average leader in the club is Rob Foerster, East Meadow, NY with a 192.75. There are only 5 bowlers that are averaging above 190 and 12 that are above 185. The club average is 167.8 for all of the members.

The LIGBT will complete its sixth season this summer and finish with a total of 33 events. The LIGBT is sponsored by Brunswick, Kegel, CLS Custom Upholsterers, and Randi Siegel Law Offices. Additional information on the LIGBT is available at www.ligbtour.com. 

Babylon, NY:  David Kuperszmid, a 30 year old right-hander from Brooklyn, NY, won his first LIGBT title worth $3,000. David defeated Mike Milazzo, a 35 year old right-hander from Bellrose, NY, 264-255 in the final shootout. Mike, who was also looking for his first title, earned $1,500 for second while 4-time LIGBT champion Cary Fishman, New York, NY finished third with a 215 worth $750.  

The final shootout was a battle of the two young guns. Both bowlers had never cashed in an LIGBT event despite being members for over a year. Neither was nervous as both started the match with triples. The first open was left by Mike in the 5^th frame which gave David a 30 pin lead after 7 frames due to the fact he was getting 17 pins more in handicap. Mike doubled in the 8^th and 9^th frames to make it close but failed to strike in the tenth giving David the victory.

The AMF Babylon Memorial Day Major drew a great holiday crowd of 282 entries plus another 77 Desperado Shootout entries and paid out more than $13,000 in prizes. A total of 54 bowlers advanced to the finals (better than a 1 in 3) earning a minimum of $80. There were 8 bowlers who cashed more than once earning an additional $70 each. Brunswick gave away 12 MasterMind Genius balls during the tournament.

Kegel’s 41 foot Turnpike pattern was used for the 7 qualifying squads and scoring was low. Cut scores were consistent all weekend ranging from 676 to 702. Only one bowler shot an 800 handicap series and it was the second place finisher Mike Milazzo with an 806 series in the Friday 7pm squad.  

LIGBT’s next tournament is a special 2-squad handicap event at AMF Garden City (squad times 1pm & 3pm) Sunday, June 1st. ALL BOWLERS RECEIVE AN EMBROIDERED LIGBT POLO SHIRT WITH THEIR FIRST ENTRY! 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 $70. Entry fees for the AMF Garden City event are $65 & $55 prepaid. For complete results of the AMF Babylon Major please visit www.ligbtour.com. The LIGBT is sponsored by Brunswick, Kegel, Randi Siegel Law Offices, Knockout Ball Cleaner and CLS Custom Upholsterers.

LEVITTOWN, NY: Gwendolyn Gaynus, a 77 year old retired Brooklyn right-hander, won her first LIGBT title with a fantastic 259 game in a 5 person shootout final from South Levittown Lanes. Gwenn defeated second place finisher Brad Morris, a 30 year old gym teacher from Bayside, NY by 20 pins. Gwendolyn earned $1,000 for her victory while Brad took home $500 with his 239 game.

The 5 person shootout started with some great bowling as almost every doubled in the first 2 frames. Rich Frost, E. Islip, NY, took the early lead despite getting the least handicap. Gwenn, who has been a member of the LIGBT for 5 years, bowled steady throughout the match and only had one open frame. Her double in the 7^th & 8^th frames gave her the lead which she never gave back as she marked the rest of the game. Finishing third was Rich with a 226 worth $300. Fourth place went to Robert Vecchione, Massapequa, NY with a 211 earning him $250 and fifth place went to Taisha Joliffe, Brooklyn, NY with a 208 worth $200.

The South Levittown tournament drew a nice crowd of 97 entries, advanced 17 bowlers to the finals, and paid out $3,380. Kegel’s 40 foot Highway to Hell pattern was used and scoring was on the low to moderate side (702 cut at 1pm & 678 at 3pm). High series of the tournament was shot by Brad Morris, who was the previous champion the last time the LIGBT visited South Levittown, with a 763 in the 3pm squad.

LIGBT’s next tournament is a 3-day major event at AMF Babylon on Memorial Day Weekend (May 23-25). Top prizes are guaranteed to pay $3,000 & $1,500. One in 6 each squad advances to the finals and will cash for a minimum of $80. Prepaid entry fees for the Babylon Major are $65 per squad. For complete results of the S. Levittown tournament please visit www.ligbtour.com. The LIGBT is sponsored by Brunswick, Kegel, Randi Siegel Law Offices, Knockout Ball Cleaner and CLS Custom Upholsterers.

E. Meadow, NY: Cary Fishman, who owns his own cab and resides in New York City, struck out in the last 2 frames to shock second place finisher Justin Cohen, an 18 year old student from Melville, NY. Even third place finisher Julio Arnold, a security personnel director from Woodside, NY, thought he had a shot at the title before Cary stole the victory. Final scores in the shootout were Cary 228 ($1,000), Justin 227 ($500 scholarship), and Julio 218 ($250.)

The shootout had many lead changes with Cary trailing in third place most of the match. Cary’s luck changed when he converted the 5-10 split in the 8^th frame and then threw 3 consecutive cross-over strikes. Justin needed only a mark in the 10^th frame but he missed the 3-9 double wood spare which allowed Cary to throw one more strike for the victory. Cary’s final shot was perfect which gave him the $1,000 1 pin victory.

The AMF Wantagh tournament drew a nice crowd of 97 entries, advanced 17 bowlers to the finals, and paid out $3,260. Kegel’s 39 foot Winding Road pattern was used and scoring was on the moderate to high side (709 cut at 1pm & 718 at 3pm). Steve Williams shot the only 800 series of the tournament with an 801 in the 1pm squad.

LIGBT’s next tournament is a 2-squad (1pm & 3pm) handicap event at S. Levittown Lanes on Sunday, May 18th. 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. Entry fees for the S. Levittown event are $60-1^st entry and $50 for a re-entry. For complete results of the AMF E. Meadow tournament please visit www.ligbtour.com. The LIGBT is sponsored by Brunswick, Kegel, Randi Siegel Law Offices, Knockout Ball Cleaner and CLS Custom Upholsterers.

                                                                                      Donald Eubanks with his son.

Wantagh, NY: Donald Eubanks, a 56 year old limo company owner from Elmsford, NY, won his first LIGBT title by defeating second place finisher, Eric Vecchi, a 48 year old retired police officer from Islip Terrace, NY 235-228 at LIGBT’s April 27^th event at AMF Wantagh. Donald, who has been trying to win an LIGBT trophy for 5 years, earned $1,000 while Eric earned $500. Finishing third with a 208 was Eddie Cintron, a 56 year old Senior Project Manager for Windham Hotels, earning him $300.

In the final shootout there was only a 4 pin handicap difference between the three competitors so the match was basically bowled scratch. All 3 bowlers were looking for their first LIGBT title so the tense pressure and the tough lane pattern made for a low scoring match. Donald had a 5 pin lead going into the 9^th frame and when he doubled it gave him his first LIGBT victory.

The AMF Wantagh tournament drew a great crowd of 133 entries, advanced 23 bowlers to the finals, and paid out $4,775. The payout in the first two rounds was increased by more than 30% due to the large entry count. Kegel’s 40 foot Abbey Road pattern was put down, and scoring was on the moderate side (698 cut at 1pm & 700 at 3pm). There were two 800 series both shot in the 3pm squad: David Cincotta, N. Babylon, NY rolled an 826 and Brendan Delaney, Levittown, NY shot an 821.

LIGBT’s next tournament is a 2-squad (1pm & 3pm) handicap event at AMF East Meadow on Sunday, May 4th. Top prizes are guaranteed to pay $1,000 & $500. One in 6 each squad advances to a match play finals and will cash for a minimum of $60. Entry fees for the AMF E. Meadow event are $60-1^st entry and $50 for a re-entry. For complete results of the AMF Wantagh tournament please visit www.ligbtour.com. The LIGBT is sponsored by Brunswick, Kegel, Randi Siegel Law Offices, Knockout Ball Cleaner and CLS Custom Upholsterers.