July 18, 2021 Regional Director

GASTONIA, N.C. – Darryl Bower of Middletown, Pa. defeated Marty Berke of Allentown, Pa., 210-145, in the final match to take the first prize in the PBA50 Jeff Schrum Memorial RPI South Open at Liberty Lanes Sunday. Both Bower and Berke earned sports into the PBA RPI Invitational, which will take place in Las Vegas in January 2022.

Bower easily won his 18th official career PBA Regional title with a string of five strikes from the fifth to the seventh frame. Berke, who faced trouble on the right lane, had three consecutive opens. Bower won $3,500 for first place and Berke pocketed $2,000 as the runner-up.

In the semifinal round, Berke defeated Gary Faulkner of The Villages, Fla., 199-172, while Bowers disposed of Dave Han of Alabaster, Ala., 212-189.

The PBA50 Jeff Schrum Memorial RPI South Open is named after Jeff Schrum, who was a South Region PBA member with seven PBA Regional titles, who lost his battle with cancer last June. Schrum bowled regularly on the PBA Regional and PBA50 National Tour.

The tournament drew ninety 50-and-older players. The PBA South Region’s next tournament will be the PBA Clean Air Solutions/ Century Lanes Hampton Open August 16 in Hampton, Va.

PBA50 JEFF SCHRUM MEMORIAL RPI OPEN
Liberty Lanes, Gastonia, N.C., Sunday

Championship:
Darryl Bower, Middletown, Pa. ($3,500) def. Marty Berke, Allentown, Pa. ($2,000), 210-145.

Semifinal Round (losers earned $1,500):
Berke def. Gary Faulkner, The Villages, FL., 199-172.
Bower def. Dave Han, Alabaster, Ala., 212-189.

Round of 8 (best of three games, losers eliminated and earned $1,000 each):
Han def. Michael Painter, Moore, S.C., 623-574.
Berke def. Craig Auerbach, Ft. Walton Beach, Fl., 596-592.
Faulkner def. Greg McMahan, Dandridge, Tenn., 572-569.
Bower def. James Lord, Charlotte, N.C., 599-558.

Round of 12 (total pinfall three games, losers eliminated and earned $750 each):
Bower def. Mal Williams Jr., Greensboro, N.C., 605-602.
Han def. Chuck Richey Jr., Concord, N.C., 539-503.
Berke def. Lee Brosius, Ashburn, Va., 650-600.
McMahan def. Terry Wiley, Vienna, Va., 640-594.

Round of 16 (total pinfall three games, losers eliminated and earned $650 each):
Berke def. Gary Shultis, Levittown, N.Y., 580-570.
Bower def. Andrew Farrow Jr., Anderson, S.C., 591-565.
Han def. Jay Samelak, Greensboro, N.C., 642-522.
McMahan def. Roy Davis, Lumberton, N.C., 610-538.