WELCH, Minn. – Pete Weber had a very nice birthday Wednesday, winning his second PBA50 Tour title in the Treasure Island Resort & Casino Open presented by Brunswick to lock up PBA50 Rookie of the Year honors and clinch a berth in the new PBA50 Finals which will be held as part of the PBA World Series of Bowling V in early November.
The now 51-year-old St. Ann, Mo., resident defeated Robert Harvey of Boise, Idaho, 243-227, at Island Xtreme Bowl in the PBA50 Tour’s final event of the 2013 season to claim the $7,500 first prize. But what made the victory extra special was Weber’s victory over fellow PBA Hall of Famer and nemesis Walter Ray Williams Jr. in the semifinal round.
“My birthday was complete when I beat Walter,” said Weber, who has beaten Williams only twice in 11 head-to-head matches in PBA Tour televised contests. I bowled good all day. It seemed like I shot 240s all day, but on the scoring condition we had here, 240 wasn’t always a guaranteed winner. Walter shot a lot better than his score. He just didn’t carry, and fortunately I did.
“This is the third time we’ve had a (PBA) finals on my birthday,” Weber added, “and I’ve won titles all three times, so I kind of like bowling on my birthday.”
The victory allowed Weber to lock up the PBA50 Rookie of the Year title, which is based on the competition points standings. And he earned 16 Player of the Year points, which allowed him to pass Lennie Boresch Jr. of Kenosha, Wis. (who lost in the Round of 8), for the third birth in the PBA50 Finals, a special ESPN-televised event which will be conducted during the PBA World Series at South Point Casino, Hotel and Bowling Center in early November. Williams, who clinched his second straight PBA50 Player of the Year title a week earlier in Decatur, Ill., and Venezuela’s Amleto Monacelli earned the first and second berths in the PBA50 Finals.
“I’m very happy with my rookie year,” Weber added. “I bowled in six tournaments and made the top four five times. The only way it could have been better would have been to win every one, but I’ll take it.”
Weber won his first PBA50 Tour title, and first major as a 50-and-older player, in the USBC Senior Masters in June.
Another honor was decided Wednesday when Tim Kauble of Marion, Ohio, finished in the top eight to become the PBA50 Tour’s first Super Senior Player of the Year, nipping PBA Hall of Famer Dale Eagle of Tavares, Fla. The honor for players ages 60 and older was based upon the tour’s competition points standings.
PBA50 TREASURE ISLAND RESORT & CASINO OPEN PRESENTED BY BRUNSWICK
Island Xtreme Bowl, Welch, Minn., Wednesday
Championship Match
Pete Weber, St. Ann, Mo. ($7,000) def. Robert Harvey, Boise, Idaho ($4,000), 243-227.
Semifinal Round (one-game matches, losers earn $2,500)
Harvey def. Ron Mohr, Las Vegas, 300-207.
Weber def. Walter Ray Williams Jr., Ocala, Fla., 244-203.
Round of 8 (best-of-three games, losers eliminated, earn $1,600)
Harvey def. Patrick King, Yankton, S.D., 2-0.
Mohr def. Lennie Boresch Jr., Kenosha, Wis., 2-1.
Weber def. Tim Kauble, Marion, Ohio, 2-0.
Williams def. Michael Shequin, Orange City, Fla., 2-0.
Round of 16 (best-of-five games, losers eliminated, earn $1,250)
Harvey def. Tom Baker, King, N.C., 3-0.
King def. Ted Staikoff, Black Hawk, S.D., 3-1.
Boresch def. Wayne Webb, Columbus, Ohio, 3-2.
Mohr def. Kent Wagner, Palmetto, Fla., 3-0.
Weber def. Kenny Parks, Hammond, Ind., 3-0.
Kauble def. Dale Eagle, Tavares, Fla., 3-2.
Shequin def. Dale Traber, Cedarburg, Wis., 3-1.
Williams def. Kerry Painter, Henderson, Nev., 3-1.
Round of 24 (best-of-five games, losers eliminated, earn $1,000)
Harvey def. Mike Dias, Lafayette, Colo., 3-0.
Staikoff def. Marc Lineberry, Camanche, Iowa, 3-1.
Webb def. Scott Lindsey, Omaha, Neb., 3-2.
Wagner def. Bryan Goebel, Shawnee, Kan., 3-2.
Parks def. Kevin Foley, Reno, Nev., 3-2.
Eagle def. Jim Knoblauch, Waukesha, Wis., 3-2.
Traber def. Joel Carlson, Omaha, Neb., 3-2.
Painter def. Jeff Richgels, Madison, Wis., 3-2.