SUNCOAST

champs JR Monteith & Sarah Ansteth

In one of our highest scoring events ever, JR Monteith and Sarah Ansteth captured JBT titles in exciting Mojave Conference action at Suncoast.

The scratch division used our unique Mulligan format, where all bowlers got 3 do-overs to use as they wish.  Mark French didn't need any do-overs, however, as he struck continuously all day, including a 300 and a 296, en route to a +279 qualifying total, one of the highest ever.

The finals opened with a battle of Arizona stars, as Christian Jensen got by Kris George 207-172.  The next match was a thriller.  Kyle King suffered through a 7-10 and a 4-9 in the game against Christian, but still struck enough to make Jensen double for the win.  Jensen got the hits, but then threw a 5-copunt on his fill ball to somehow tie at 191.  Jensen then recovered to win the rolloff 10-9 to advance.  However, JR Monteith stopped Jensen's attempt at winning two titles on the weekend with a 237-193 win in the semifinals.  Christian still pocketed over $500 in scholarships on the weekend!

That brought us to another thriller with JR against top seed French.  Monteith found a good look and started striking at will, forcing French to use his stored up Mulligans.  In the end, JR was one strike better, and he claimed a 278-269 win over the dejected French for the title.  The victory was huge for Monteith, the Mojave points leader, as the title solidifies his Bowler of the Year stats.  It also marks the second time he has won in the Mulligan format.

The handicap finals also had its share of excitement, beginning with a 231-207 win by Melissa Huether over Blaine Hellman, the second straight week she's pulled off that feat.  Zach Hattori, one of many Bowler of the Year candidiates, then squeaked by Huether 214-209, before falling to Ansteth in another nailbiter, 219-214, advancing Sarah to the title match.

Top qualifier Kyle Akers, last week's winner at Sam's Town, stayed on a major league roll en route to the top seed. In a well bowled match by both players, Ansteth came through for the 219-210 win and her first career JBT title.

73 bowlers competed in the event, so we hope everyone who attended had a great time, and will spread the word about the great benefits of bowling JBT.   Everyone who finished in the top 5 qualifies for the 2007 JBT Mojave Invitational Tournament, the regular season's year end event, featuring a guaranteed minimum $1,000 first place scholarship in each division.  Top season-long point scorers also qualify for the 2007 JBT Touring Players' Championship, featuring a guaranteed minimum $2,000 first place scholarship per division! 

Big thanks to everyone at Suncoast for hosting our event.  Over $1,555 in scholarships were awarded.  Want in on the fun?  Come on out to the next JBT event, it's as simple as that!