Best Match in the Round of 8
 

Highest avg.
in the round of 8
 

Highest avg. loser
in the round of 8
 

Lowest scoring match in the Round of 8
 

Sweeps
 

Matches with Brunswick balls being used
in the round of 8
 

lower seed victories
 

Hand vs Hand
 

7 Game Matches

Header

Round of 8 TV Staff Balls Used   Balls Used Staff TV Round of 8 16 vs 25 16 Non Staff Bruns/Ebonite     Track 26 2 vs 26 match link               match link                   21 vs 20 21 MoRich Brunswick   MoRich/Ebonit Non Staff 19 11 vs 19 match link               match link

match 1

One of the most emotional matches I have seen in quite some time. Both of these two players are very emotional and animated. They are friends and have great passion for what they do. Dino was trying for his first PBA telecast while Del was trying to make is first since 1997. This match seemed to go beyond the strategies and execution. The emotions were flowing from the first shot.

There was no secrets to how the bowlers were going to attack the lanes. Dino was going to fire at the pocket looking to create hold by controlling the amount of hit he used. He was seeing shim that other bowlers could not use. Del was going to break the lane  down parallel and follow it left when the track got wide enough. Del would use angle to create hold and his game to create room right.

Dino would be able to use the friction in the track to help keep the ball on line and by adjusting the amount of hit he was able to keep his angles parallel to the track.

The match seemed to come down to who could repeat shots while feeling the highest level of emotions and pressure they had felt all week. Once a bowler gets to this situation a few times the emotional feelings are easier to control but there is nothing like the energy you can feel in the building when the emotions are flowing. Sure there were bad shots and missed spares but that is part of the excitement of this format. When every player is feeling the type of challenges Del and Dino were, bowling is a spectator sport. The pressure is real and every shot counts.

The format and environment that can get the players to this level of intensity is what the sport needs to provide the entertainment value to compete against other spectator sports.

Great show Dino and Del no matter who would have won.

When I think about this match I think about what this match would have looked liked a couple years ago. These two would have been playing left of 20 in game one and the whole focus would have been to stay left of their opponent. Both of these players have developed beyond that point and are progressing to the point of stardom. Both Mikes have the ability to create. There are bowlers who are fun to watch because of their personalities, There are bowlers who are fun to watch because of their strategies, there are bowlers who are fun to watch because of there form and style, then there is Mike and Mike. It is fun to watch these two bowlers just watching their balls go down the lane and the reaction of the pins. The amount of energy transferred from the ball to the pins is amazing.

My plan for the evening was to leave once the matches got started because I needed to get away from the bowling center. I needed a break. The days are long and I have so many other things that need to get done. If they aren't going to let me talk to the bowlers when they bowl I might as well be more productive with my time. If there win we have another day to prepare for the show, If they loose there they move on to the next week. So watching the round of 8 just isn't as necessary as the other rounds. I left the center after game one. But by the middle of game three I was calling to see how the matches were going. By the end of game five I was back in the center. I really struggled not being there to watch my guys. I walked in the building to see Michael had lost. Even though there was nothing I could have done different I felt guilty for not being there. When I looked at the scores and saw how close they were it was obvious how tough the loss was on Michael.

Ryan was fortunate that Brad Angelo chose to start further right in the round of 16 allowing Ryan to have the hook spot in the track all to himself. Ritchie has attacked the conditions of the last three weeks from the same part of the lane. He is proving to be very effective and gaining confidence going into the show on Sunday

This match can be summed up in what took place in the 10th frame of game 7. It was one of the most exciting round of 8's I have seen. Just as Del Ballard was making his first show with a mark in the 10th of his game 7. Brian Kretzer was just needing a mark and count to make the show just a couple pairs away. As Del converted his spare he and the crowd go wild. Just then Brian makes his shot and leaves the 4-7-10 split. The crowd reacts with another roar. Robert is just as shocked as everybody in the building. I see him throwing his hands in the air and running a couple pairs down in shock. BK shows no emotion. Everybody in the building is stunned with the excitement of the two matches. BK has to finish the game. He throws his shot at the 4-7. Hits the 4-7 square and sends the 4 towards the middle of the curtain. Nothing unusual it is a difficult spare to convert. You are suppose to just clip the 4 and send it towards the 10. You have to just catch the edge so it can slide sideways across the lane. I have seen it converted several times but most of the time the 4 is sent into the curtain and falls hopelessly into the pit. Never before have I seen what I saw in this crucial moment. The 4 pin bounced off the curtain and straight into the 10 pin. I didn't see the pin hit the ball a pin or anything else. It appeared to hit the curtain only and unbelievably directly into the 10 pin.

The BK stilled showed no emotion but the crowd and Robert are further stunned. The crowd erupts and Robert can not believe what he just saw. BK still has to get 8 pins and just as calmly as he converted the 4-7-10 in the most unusual way I have ever seen it converted he flushes the next shot to advance to the show. Now nobody in the building is as excited as Brian as he screams with emotion.

You should have seen it Del is still walking back from the other end of the house after living the most emotional bowling moment of his last decade. The crowd is wild with excitement and Brian is now a part of the show as he screams "I am not done"

It all happened in such a short period of time but seemed to last forever. You could see everybody in the center was stunned and excited as they filed out. It will go down as one of the most memorable round of 8's we have ever witnessed.

If the show can only show this type of excitement.