Dan Knowlton Wins Second Career Title at 2024 PBA50 Morgantown Classic
Morgantown, W. Va. – As Dan Knowlton watched urethane equipment go down the lanes in the first two matches in the stepladder finals at the 2024 PBA50 Morgantown Classic, he felt his game plan was solid. All week he followed the same progress using just two balls, one urethane and the other reactive. He waited for the lanes to tell him when it was time and once that moment came, he was ready to make the change and capitalize.
Yet, when it came to his semifinal match, Knowlton had a little bit of self-doubt in the back of his mind.
“I thought about using something different. I have gotten stuck too many times using the ball that I used all week and losing in the stepladder, and I didn’t want to do that,” he admitted. “But this one just looked too good.”
With the urethane hold evident, Knowlton was able to throw reactive resin and almost hook the entire lane against No. 5 seed John Janawicz. Knowlton was relaxed and confident as he rolled five straight strikes to gain a 23-pin lead. He followed that up with four straight spares. Janawicz started with three strikes, but after three straight spares he made a ball change in the seventh, responding with three strikes in a row. Knowlton, who was the higher seed and decided to finish first, doubled and watched his final shot go Brooklyn for another strike and a score of 245. With ball in hand Janawicz stepped up and rocketed a stone 9-pin followed by a strike to come up just short with 235.
In the championship match, Knowlton maintained his loose arm swing and rode his confidence level quickly to the finish line against No. 1 seed Jason Couch. Knowlton had the front-11 before he took a rerack. With a bonus check for a perfect game on the line, Knowlton pulled his shot left leaving the 6-pin standing for 299.
Couch struggled from the start opening the match with three straight spares before a strike and two more spares. He struck on five of his final six shots for 234.
The win marks Knowlton’s second career PBA50 title.
“I feel like now I belong. Getting that first win (2023 PBA50 Ballard Championship) really validated whether I was any good and felt like I could belong out here,” he said. “So, I thought let’s go for broke this year. Come in here, bowl a little bit more confidently, and let’s see what happens. I feel like I have bowled really well this year.”
His confidence level is also high because he was recently selected for Senior Team USA, and he will be competing next month in Reno at the 2024 PANAM Bowling Senior Men’s Championships. “I have always looked at anything Team USA and felt that has to be an incredible experience. To be such a select few that get the honor to do that and wear our country’s colors gives me goosebumps. If I can somehow manage to get a medal and put that in the trophy case, that would probably be cherished above these titles.”
This summer, Knowlton worked a lot on adding versatility to his game, which was on display in the championship match. He wanted to be able to increase his axis rotation, so he could play further in creating a bit more angle up front. He admits that was something that really wasn’t in his game before.
“I knew that was my weakness when I was getting on the longer, high-volume patterns. I really couldn’t move in and throw the ball away from me,” he said. “I was really moving in and keeping it still somewhat in front of me and that just really wasn’t working for me.”
He started practicing as much as he could and specifically sought out tournaments with that oil pattern to work on it. That extra work and dedication to wanting to get better is paying off.
In the opening match, Janawicz faced No. 4 seed John Burkett. Both players started off with doubles. Burkett missed a 10-pin and spared before rolling another double. Janawicz converted a 6-pin and rolled three straight strikes before getting another spare. Burkett made three more single-pin spares and struck out for 214, while Janawicz struck three out of his final five shots for 237.
In the next match, Janawicz took on Mark Sullivan, who was making his first-ever PBA50 stepladder finals appearance. Sullivan had three spares and two strikes across his first five frames, while Janawicz rolled three strikes and two spares holding a 10-pin lead. After the midway point, Janawicz rolled his second double followed by three straight single-pin spares and a strike for 216. Sullivan managed to only strike one more time and a 4-6-7 split in the ninth frame ended his run. He finished with a 184.
2024 PBA50 MORGANTOWN CLASSIC FINAL STANDINGS:
1. Dan Knowlton, $7,500
2. Jason Couch, $4,000
3. John Janawicz, $2,600
4. Mark Sullivan, $2,200
5. John Burkett, $1,900
MATCH SCORES
Match 1: Janawicz def. Burkett, 237-214
Match 2: Janawicz def. Sullivan, 216-184
Semifinal match: Knowlton def. Janawicz, 245-235
Championship match: Knowlton def. Couch, 299-234