by Bill Vint

A field of 30 PBA players, including 16 points qualifiers, four sponsor selections and 10 who plan to bowl in the “pre-tournament qualifier,” are heading to Tokyo to participate in the 28th Round1 Japan Cup at Minami Suna Round1 Bowling Center Nov. 10-15.

The 16 players who have accepted invitations based upon PBA Tour competition points earned between the 2013 PBA World Series of Bowling V and the end of the 2014 PBA Summer Swing are: Jason Belmonte, Dom Barrett, E.J. Tackett, Sean Rash, Wes Malott, Tom Smallwood, Pete Weber, Bill O’Neill, Ryan Ciminelli, Tommy Jones, Mike Fagan, Ronnie Russell, Mika Koivuniemi, Chris Loschetter, Dan MacLelland and Stuart Williams.

The four players who have been invited by Round1 are: Walter Ray Williams Jr., Brian Voss, Osku Palermaa and Parker Bohn III.

The 10 players who have confirmed plans to participate in the PTQ to try to make it into the Japan Cup field are: Josh Blanchard, Thomas Larsen, Jake Peters, Jason Sterner, Scott Norton, Norm Duke, Craig Nidiffer, Johnathan Bower, Marshall Kent and Brad Miller.

The PTQ will be conducted on Wednesday, Nov. 12. Qualifying rounds for A and B squads will take place on Nov. 13. Ten PBA players will be assigned to each squad; the top 32 from each squad will advance to the best-of-five-game match play elimination rounds on Friday, Nov. 14, narrowing the field of eight for Saturday’s televised finals. The eight finalists will be paired for one-game matches leading to the championship match on Saturday, Nov. 15.

Japan’s Yuya Katoh is the defending champion; he is the third Japanese player ever to win the Cup and the first to do so since 1988.

PBA Hall of Famer George Pappas of Charlotte, N.C.; Gary Morgan of Atlanta, and Steve Jones of Berlin, Md., were winners in a PBA South Region “tripleheader” over the extended Labor Day weekend.

Pappas got the series underway when he rallied to defeat Tim Kauble of Marion, Ohio, 192-244, 214-202, 289-210, in the best-of-three-game title match to win $2,000 and his 28th PBA Regional title in the PBA60 Wilson & Sons Termite and Pest Control Southern Open for players 60 and older at Victory Lanes in Mooresville, N.C., on Sunday, Aug. 31.

Morgan captured the PBA50 Budweiser Mooresville South Open, also at Victory Lanes, on Monday, defeating Andrew Farrow of Anderson, S.C., 235-212, 278-227, in their best-of-three-game title match for $2,000 and his 15th career PBA Regional title.

On Thursday, Jones won nine of his 12 matches and posted a 20-game total of 4,812 pins, including match play bonus pins, to win the PBA60 Kingsport Southern Open at Warpath Lanes in Kingsport, Tenn., by 32 pins over Greg McMahan of Dandridge, Tenn. Jones won $2,000 in the tournament for players ages 60 and older.

● Eddie Van Daniker of Chatsworth, Calif. and amateur partner Zeke Bayt of Westerville, Ohio posted a 9-2-1 match play record and a combined 20-game total of 8,925 pins Sunday to win the PBA Tony Reyes Memorial Member/Non-Member Doubles presented by Brunswick at 4th Street Bowl in San Jose, California by 309 pins over Curtis Woods of Santa Rosa, Calif. and Josh Blanchard of Gilbert, Ariz. The winners split a $4,000 first prize.

● Amateur Chris Pierson of Waukesha, Wis. defeated Amanda Greene of Romney, W.Va., 246-197, to win the PBA BOWLSTRONG Midwest/Central Challenge at King Pin Lanes in Springfield, Ill., on Sunday. Pierson won his first PBA Regional event and earned $2,200 but he does not get credit for a PBA title because he is not a member. Greene is a competitor in the new PBA Women’s Regional program. She earned $1,100 as runner-up.

The BOWLSTRONG weekend also included a Tournament of Champions special event for PBA title winners. John Slavich VI of Schaumburg, Ill., won the special six-game competition with a 1,375 pinfall total, 16 pins better than PBA Hall of Famer Pete Weber of St. Ann, Mo. Slavich won $1,500 and Weber earned $900. Eugene McCune of Munster, Ind., finished third for $700 and Tom Hess of Urbandale, Iowa, was fourth for $500.

● Mike Healy of Yonkers, New York defeated Chris Fedden of Albany, New York, 207-158, to win the PBA50 Hammer Black Widow Legend Open at Strike Zone Alleys in Pottsville, Pa., on Sunday. Along with his first PBA Regional title – which made him eligible to enter the 50th anniversary PBA Tournament of Champions in February in Indianapolis – Healy earned a $1,500 first prize.

● The Sept. 5-7 weekend schedule for PBA Regional players includes the Moon City Central Classic presented by Roto Grip at Astro Lanes in Wapakoneta, Ohio; the Grand Hotel, Casino & Resort Southwest Invitational at Firelake Bowling Center in Shawnee, Okla. (featuring live Xtra Frame coverage); the PBA50 Howell Lanes East Open in Howell, N.J.; the Rufus West Open presented by Columbia 300 at FlipSide Lanes in Gilbert, Ariz., and a pair of one-day PBA50 events presented by Ebonite at Illinois Valley Super Bowl in Peru, Ill.

The Sept. 12-14 schedule includes the PBA McAlester Southwest Open at Great Balls of Fire Entertainment Center in McAlester, Okla.; the PBA50 Lakeview Lanes East Open in Fulton, N.Y.; the PBA Budweiser Midwest Open presented by Dexter at Diamond Jo Casino’s Cherry Lanes in Dubuque, Iowa (a PBA Women’s Regional points event which will be covered live by Xtra Frame), and a return to action in the PBA Japan Region with the Viper Open at Sagami First Lane in Kanagawa on Monday, Sept. 15.

On the Sept. 19-21 PBA Regional calendar are the PBA Rex & Griffin Bigelow Memorial Central Open at Troy Bowl in Troy, Ohio; the PBA/PBA50 Ken & Kathy Fowler Auto Centers West/Northwest Doubles at Yokayo Bowling Center in Ukiah, Calif., and the PBA Odessa Southwest Open at Astro Bowl in Odessa, Texas.

Closing out the month over the Sept. 26-28 weekend will be the PBA Tomball Southwest Open at Tomball Bowl in Tomball, Texas (the Southwest Region’s third-and-final PBA Women’s qualifying event); the PBA and PBA50 Fog City West Open presented by Rotor Grip at Classic Bowling Center in Daly City, Calif.; the PBA Break Point Alley Member/Non-Member Doubles (a reduced entry fee event) in Tavares, Fla.; the PBA50 Mel Westrich Memorial Central/Midwest Open presented by Storm at Delphos Recreation Center in Delphos, Ohio; the PBA Midcontinent Communications Midwest Open at Empire Bowl in Sioux Falls, S.D., and the PBA Pavlinko Pro Shops Eastern Open (a one-day re-entry event on Sunday) at Brunswick Zone in Turnersville, N.J.

For complete PBA Regional schedules, rules and entry information, visit pba.com, open the “schedules” tab and click on Regional Tours to find the event(s) in your area.