John Janawicz Leads PBA50 Akron Classic
Fairlawn, Ohio – Two months away and John Janawicz hasn’t missed a beat. After fighting through a finger injury to win the PBA50 Ballard Championship on May 9 during the PBA50 World Series of Bowling IV, Janawicz returned home to Florida to seek another opinion. An MRI showed no damage, yet there was fluid between two joints in one of his fingers on his right hand. A hand specialist recommended six to eight weeks to let it heal on its own.
After six weeks, he started practicing. He worked on different pitches and spans to find a solution to relieve some of the pressure he was putting specifically on his finger. He ultimately decided on making a pitch change for both fingers on about 50 of his bowling balls.
He traveled to Reno earlier this month for the USBC Open Championship as another testing ground to see how his hand would hold up. Still with no pain, he was ready to return to full-time tournament competition starting Sunday in the Akron Classic. He had games of 200, 230, 256, 277, 270, 236 and 231 for a total pinfall of 1,700 to begin the event in first place.
“It felt great to be back. I definitely missed being out here and being competitive,” Janawicz said. “Trying to keep learning, keep things sharp and keep trying to solve the puzzles that are out here week after week. It is tough doing that when you are sitting at home and all you can do is go to the gym and watch people bowl. It was nice to actually be able to participate now.”
Nineteen pins behind Janawicz is Robert Newman who averaged 240 for his seven games. His block ended with a 283 game to move into second place. Leading B-squad was Mike Machuga. He posted games of 268, 146, 245, 227, 268, 258 and 257 for 1,669. He is tied with Eddie Byrd for third place. There is also a tie for fifth between Bill Watson and Amleto Monacelli at 1,666.
The 112-player field will return to AMF Riviera Lanes on Monday for seven final games of qualifying. The B-squad will start at 9 a.m. Eastern followed by the A-squad at 3:30 p.m. After qualifying, the top 37 will move into the Advancers Round on Tuesday with all pins carrying forward.
As of Sunday, Tom Carter was the cut line with 1,533 (+133). Aaron McCormick had the only perfect game on the day. You can follow along with the remainder of this tournament on BowlTV.
Top 10 2026 PBA50 Akron Classic standings:
- John Janawicz, 1,700 total pins (+300)
- Robert Newman, 1,681 (+281)
- Mike Machuga, 1,669 (+269)
- Eddie Byrd, 1,669 (+269)
- Bill Watson, 1,666 (+266)
- Amleto Monacelli, 1,666 (+266)
- Michael Clark Jr., 1,663 (+263)
- Chris Barnes, 1,663 (+263)
- Randy Weiss, 1,662 (+262)
- Ryan Shafer, 1,645 (+245)
