DOHA, Qatar – Bahrain’s Yousif Falah averaged 229.59 over 16 games of qualifying to lead the field of 32 players who advanced to final rounds of the H.H. Emir Cup at Qatar Bowling Centre Wednesday.
Falah along with Team USA member Danielle McEwan of Stony Point, N.Y.; Mika Koivuniemi of Finland; Cherie Tan of Singapore; Sean Rash of Montgomery, Ill., and Martin Larsen of Sweden were the top six qualifiers, earning automatic berths in the Step 2 Finals Friday.
The other 26 players, including two Qatar youth bowlers, two Qatar adults who finished outside the top 24, and four players who advanced out of the one-game last-chance “desperado” squad, will drop all qualifying pins and bowl a six-game Step 1 Finals round Thursday. The top 10 from Step 1 will join the top six qualifiers for a six-game Step 2 Finals round Friday morning. The top four will then advance to a two-game total pinfall Step 2 (semifinal) round, with the two winners then meeting in a two-game Step 4 (championship round) title match.
The H.H. Emir Cup is a PBA International-World Bowling Tour event. First prize is US$25,000. The winner – if he is a PBA member – will earn a PBA Tour title. None of the six women who advanced to the Step Finals are eligible for PBA title consideration because they receive eight handicap pins per game under tournament rules. In 2014, Singapore’s New Hui Fen finished second to Emir Cup winner Chris Barnes, who was unable to defend his title due to weather conditions in the Dallas area that forced him to cancel his travel plans.
H.H. EMIR CUP
Qatar Bowling Centre, Doha, Qatar, Wednesday, Feb. 25
Final Qualifying Standings (after 12 games; top 6 advance to Step 2 Round)
1, Yousif Falah, Bahrain, 2,755.
2, f- Danielle McEwan, Stony Point, N.Y., 2,704.
3, Mika Koivuniemi, Finland, 2,651.
4, f- Cherie Tan, Singapore, 2,627.
5, Sean Rash, Montgomery, Ill., 2,610.
6, Martin Larsen, Sweden, 2,600.
Positions top 7-24 (advance to Step 1 Round)
7, f- New Hui Fen, Singapore, 2,598.
8, Osku Palermaa, Finland, 2,585.
9, Brad Angelo, Lockport, N.Y., 2,577.
10, Bill O'Neill, Langhorne, Pa., 2.566.
11, Naif Oqab, UAE, 2,563.
12, f- Missy Parkin, Laguna Hills, Calif. 2,556.
13, f- Kelly Kulick, Union, N.J. 2,553.
14, Salem Al Hajras, Kuwait, 2,549.
15, Jason Belmonte, Australia, 2,545.
16, Wes Malott, Pflugerville, Texas, 2,537.
17, Manuel Otalora, Colombia, 2,531.
18, Andres Gomez, Colombia, 2,531.
19, f- Tannya Roumimper, Indonesia, 2,524.
20, Ghanim Aboujassoum, Qatar, 2,519.
21, Hazeem Al-Muraikhi, Qatar, 2,517.
22, Mansour Al-Hajri, Qatar, 2,511.
23, Ryan Ciminelli, Cheektowaga, N.Y., 2,511.
24, Tom Hess, Urbandale, Iowa, 2,504.
Positions 25-26: Top 2 Qatari Youth bowlers advance to Step 1 Finals
25, Bader Al-Deyab, Qatar, 2,392.
26, Mohammed Al-Merekhi, Qatar, 2,273.
Positions 27-28: Top 2 Qataris outside top 24 advance to Step 1 Finals
27, Yousef Al-Jaber, Qatar, M, A, 1207, 181, 235, 235, 202, 188, 247, , 1288, 2495, 207.92, ,
28, Khaled Al-Dossari , Qatar, M, A, 1263, 247, 221, 172, 202, 181, 165, , 1188, 2451, 204.25, ,
Positions 29-32: Desperado Squad (1 game, top 4 advance to Step 1 Finals)
29, Yaqoub Al Shatti, Kuwait, 289.
30, Marshall Kent, Yakima, Wash., 245.
31, Tom Sorce, Charlottesville, Va., 242.
32, Tim Mack, Indianapolis, 237.
f-denotes female competitors who receive 8 handicap pins per game in addition to actual pinfall totals.
THURSDAY’S SCHEDULE
Step 1 Finals: Qualifiers 7-32, 6 games (no carryover pins); top 10 advance to Step 2 Finals
FRIDAY’S SCHEDULE
Step 2 Finals: Qualifiers 1-6 plus top 10 from Step 1, 6 games (no carryover pins); top 4 advance to Step 3 Finals
Step 3 Finals (Semifinal Round): No. 1 Qualifier vs. No. 4 Qualifier, No. 2 Qualifier vs. No. 3 Qualifier; two games, total pinfall.
Step 4 Finals (Championship): Two Step 3 Finals winners, two games, total pinfall.