The great Carmen Salvino, center, with Wes Malott and Michelle Feldman

Wes Malott and Michelle Feldman Crowned
CLR Carmen Salvino Scorpion Champions

Wes Malott and Michelle Feldman captured the CLR Carmen Salvino Scorpion Championship last Sunday afternoon at Brunswick Zone Hawthorn, the sixth stop on the Lumber Liquidators PBA Tour.

In a tight championship match, top seed Wes Malott watched as No. 2 seed Ken Simard had the chance to win the match with two strikes in the 10th. However, Simard threw the first strike but left a solid 10-pin in his second attempt giving Malott the victory, 216-211.

“It’s not the way you want to win, I have four titles now and none have come from striking out … I was either sitting on the bench or the game was over in the eighth (frame),” Malott said. “I just have to keep plugging away, be patient. My goal is to keep winning a title each year, maybe multiple titles. Hopefully this is just the beginning.”

It was Malott’s third TV finals appearance in six weeks and his fourth career victory; he has now won one title in each of his four seasons on the Tour. Malott was also victorious in Vernon Hills two years ago at the 2006-07 Discover Card Windy City Classic which also featured the Scorpion pattern.

The Scorpion pattern, one of six different oil patters on the Lumber Liquidators PBA Tour, can yield a wide variety of strategies depending on the type and condition of the lane surface; however, Scorpion incorporates a larger volume of oil placed further down the lane, which often demands a more direct line.

In the second match, Simard of Greenville, S.C. was just shy of a perfect game, leaving the 8-pin in the 11th frame, to handily defeat No. 3 seed Brad Angelo of Lockport, N.Y., 289-199. Simard did have two perfect games in the tournament earlier in the week. In the first match, Angelo defeated No. 4 seed Jason Couch of Clermont, Fla., 225-212.

In the PBA Women’s Series, sponsored by the United States Bowling Congress (USBC), Michelle Feldman of Auburn, N.Y. defeated Missy Bellinder of Fullerton, Calif., 200-147 in the championship match. It was Feldman’s third consecutive TV finals appearance and her second consecutive title.

“I have no idea how I’m doing this,” Feldman joked. “I just feel fortunate that I’m bowling well. Hopefully I can keep this up and do it again next week.”

The CLR Carmen Salvino Scorpion Championship is the third event in the PBA’s six event “Versatility Swing,” in which players can earn separate points based on their performance in each of the six events. These events include the five events on the named “animal” patterns (Viper, Chameleon, Scorpion, Cheetah and Shark) as well as the Earl Anthony pattern that will be used in Medford, Ore. Much like tennis has a “Clay Court Championship” or a “Hard Court Championship,” the PBA features these events on different oil patterns. Today’s event marks the only time all season the Scorpion pattern will be used as the sole pattern for an event.

Both Feldman and Bellinder qualified for the Women’s Series Showdown, in which the winners (and runner-ups if there is a multiple winner) will participate in a season-ending dedicated broadcast on ESPN, sponsored by the United Stated Bowling Congress (USBC).

The PBA will travel next to Cheektowaga, N.Y. for the Cheetah Championship with the finals airing live on ESPN on Sunday, Dec. 7.


CLR Carmen Salvino Scorpion Championship Format:

The field of 64 players bowled two, 7-game qualifying rounds for a total of 14 games on Thursday, Nov. 27 in which the top 32 players advanced to match play. Bowlers making the cut returned on Friday morning, Nov. 28 for the first nine games of an 18 game round robin match play schedule. The field was cut to the top 16 players who returned on Friday evening for the second round of match play competition. At the conclusion of match play, the top four finalists advanced to stepladder competition, i.e. No. 4 vs. No. 3, winner vs. No. 2, winner vs. No. 1 in the championship match aired live on ESPN on Sunday, Nov. 30.

PBA Women’s Series Format

The field of 16 players bowled two, 7-game qualifying rounds for a total of 14 games on Thursday, Nov. 27 in which the top 10 players advanced to match play. Bowlers making the cut returned on Friday evening, Nov. 28 for nine games of round robin match play competition. At the conclusion of match play, the top two finalists competed in the championship match on Sunday, Nov. 30, aired live on ESPN.
Stepladder Game 1
Brad Angelo of Lockport, N.Y. defeated Jason Couch of Clermont, Fla. ($5,500), 225-212.

Stepladder Game 2
Ken Simard of Greenville, S.C. defeated Brad Angelo ($6,500), 289-199.

Finals
Wes Malott of Argyle, Texas ($25,000) defeated Ken Simard ($13,000), 216-211.

Women’s Series Championship Match
Michelle Feldman of Auburn, N.Y. ($10,000) defeated Missy Bellinder of Fullerton, Calif. ($6,000), 200-147.

About the PBA
The Professional Bowlers Association (PBA) features the best bowlers in the world competing in National, Regional and Senior Tour events. The organization has more than 4,000 members spanning 13 countries, and nearly one million viewers tune-in to watch the Lumber Liquidators PBA Tour every Sunday on ESPN throughout the season. PBA sponsors include Bayer, Brunswick, CLR, Denny's, Etonic, Flomax, GEICO, Go RVing, H&R Block, Lumber Liquidators, Motel 6, Pepsi-Cola and the USBC, among others.