May 11, 2025 Nolan Hughes

Four competitors remain in the hunt for the 2025 PBA Playoffs title — and a first-time champion of the event is guaranteed to be crowned.

Jesper Svensson and Chris Via joined EJ Tackett and Graham Fach in the semifinal field on Mother's Day night in Strobl Arena at Thunderbowl Lanes in Allen Park, Mich.

Svensson eliminated Michigan native Andrew Anderson in a roll-off, then Via dispatched Jason Belmonte in consecutive games.

In next Sunday's semifinals, which will air May 18 at 12 p.m. Eastern time, Tackett will take on Fach before Svensson faces Via. The winners will advance to the live championship round on May 24 back in Strobl Arena.

Svensson managed to win the first game of the Race-to-Two match despite converting five single-pin spares.

Anderson, with the backing of a hometown crowd, forced a roll-off with a win in Game 2. Svensson made five more single-pin spares, including four of his final five frames, in the second game.

In the roll-off, Svensson left another single-pin on the right lane, which featured the 44-foot Hardwick oil pattern, before throwing two strikes and getting eight pins in the second frame on the left lane’s 37-foot Bat pattern.

Anderson stuck his first shot on the left lane, but left the 3-6-10 on the right lane to end the second seed's PBA Playoffs run.

“I did what I had to do and it worked out in my favor this time. I put enough pressure on him and that's probably a shot that he’d want back," Svensson said. “I think both of us would have liked to have a little higher scoring (pace). I felt like we each had one lane that was pretty good for us and then the other lane was not very nice. I was a little surprised when he allowed me to finish on the left lane. But his good lane was the right lane, so I'm pretty sure he thought that he could at least get a spare on the left lane and then punch out."

After Belmonte converted spares in the eighth and ninth frames, Via threw three strikes to clinch the Game 1 victory.

Belmonte started Game 2 with two strikes, then failed to strike on his next seven shots. Meanwhile Via tallied two triples to put the game and match away.

“I felt like I executed really well tonight,” Via said. “Once I saw the ball doing the right thing on both lanes, then I fell into a little bit of a rhythm there and was making some really good shots, that was ultimately my goal. Besides the first five frames against Ryan (Barnes in Round 1), I feel like I’ve got the right ball with the right surface and I'm feeling the ball coming off my hand with the ball speed that I need on both lanes.”

Via will face Svensson in the second semifinal match next week.

“Jesper has a knack, when he needs something, he ends up getting it done. It may look like he doesn't have a whole lot, and then if he needs one in the 10th, or whatever it may be, he seems to buckle down and make a good one,” Via said. “I'm just going to keep doing my thing. I'm trying to feel as comfortable as I can out there and just keep stacking good shots. And then at the end of the game, we'll see who has more points, and hopefully it's me."

The PBA Playoffs feature the top 12 players in competition points this season.

Tackett led the tour with 34,690 points — more than second place  Anderson (18,120) and third place Belmonte (15,365) combined. Fach qualified fourth with 15,181 points, earning the coveted fourth seed.

Tackett, Anderson, Belmonte and Fach each earned a bye to the quarterfinals.

The semifinals will air May 18 at 12 p.m. ET before the finalists will return for the live championship match, featuring a Race-to-Three format, on May 24.

The full TV schedule is available here.

PBA Playoffs TV Schedule and Results

Quarterfinals - Recap
No. 1 EJ Tackett def. No. 9 Anthony Simonsen, 2-1 (211-236, 258-201, 48-38)
No. 4 Graham Fach def. No. 12 Kyle Troup (210-226, 206-205, 40-28)

Quarterfinals
No. 7 Jesper Svensson def. No. 2 Andrew Anderson (205-196, 192-213, 48-40)
No. 6 Chris Via def. No. 3 Jason Belmonte (217-199, 226-175)

Semifinals - airing May 18 at 12pm ET | FS1
No. 1 EJ Tackett vs. No. 4 Graham Fach
No. 6 Chris Via vs. No. 7 Jesper Svensson

Championship - airing May 24 at 2:30pm ET | FOX (live)