1st NYS Senior Masters Championships -- RESULTS
Jamestown Area Bowler
Captures $1,400 Top Prize
Textor Edges Ventura in Finals;
Inaugural Event Draws 94 Entries
NOVEMBER 5, 2017 – Ray Textor of Kennedy (Jamestown Area USBC) held off Sam Ventura of Norwich (Norwich USBC), 406-398, Saturday night to take first place in the 1st NYS Senior Masters Championship at Lakeview Lanes in Fulton.
Textor rolled 188 and 218 in the two-game match while Ventura, a regular on the PBA50 Tour, posted 172-226, in a battle of 59-year-old right-handers with 229 and 230 league averages, respectively.
Both bowlers were coming off excellent performances in the NYS Open Senior Championships last month at Flamingo Bowl in Liverpool, with Ventura placing first with 1,534 and Textor fourth with 1,440 in the 55-59 age group Six-Game Combine.
The victory was worth $1,400 for Textor, while Ventura pocketed $800 for placing second.
Entering the second game with a 16-pin lead, Textor put together a string of five strikes to take a seemingly comfortable lead before Ventura roared back with five strikes starting in frame six. He left two pins on his second ball in the 10th, however, which meant that Textor needed a mark to prevail. He left the 10-pin and picked it up for the title.
In the semifinals, Textor squeezed past Larry Bailey of Vestal, 404-399, while -- in a match of heavyweights -- Ventura downed PBA Hall of Famer Doug Kent of Newark, 474-456, riding a 258 second game to victory.
Bailey and Kent each earned $475 for reaching the semis.
Other qualifiers were high qualifier Pat Brick of Buffalo, Ray Edwards of Middle Island, Chuck Pitts of Cortland and Ken Hoalcraft of Elbridge ($300 apiece); Joe Trigilio of Attica, Dave Demperio of Syracuse, Gary Reynolds of Groton and John Masiello of Kenmore ($225 apiece); Don Herrington of Ballston Lake, Robert Putman of Beaver Dams, Barry Clare of Bayside and Gary Kinyon of Lockport ($175 apiece).
Three additional cashers were Patric Donaghue of Honeoye Falls, Jim Pursel of Batavia and Bill Hasiotis of Rochester, $100 each. Donaghue lost a rolloff to Herrington after they tied for the 16th spot.
The tournament, open to NYS USBC members age 50 and over, attracted 94 entrants -- 30 on the first squad and 64 on the second squad -- a remarkable number for its initial year. Next year, the event is scheduled for Cort Lanes in Cortland.
Thanks to sponsors Bethmann Russell Financial Services of Syracuse, Brunswick, MOTIV, Storm and Columbia 300, the 19 bowlers that cashed shared a total prize list of $6,250 -- a bit more than the amount generated by entry fees.
The format featured two four-game qualifying rounds (with re-entry allowed), followed by the top 16 competing in a single-elimination, two-game match play finals. The top four qualifiers received a two-round bye and the next four received a one-round bye.
The tournament oil pattern was a special 41-foot "Challenge" condition created by Doug Dukes of Kegel Bowling.
Winners of the 60-and-over special prize list were Masiello ($75) , Demperio ($40) and Trigilio of ($20). Kinyon was the other 60-plus bowler to reach match play.
