Chris Barnes Wins PBA50 FireLake Classic
Shawnee, Okl. – Chris Barnes showed off his power on the way to winning the 2026 PBA50 FireLake Classic on Sunday.
"I always want to be aggressive on shows - whether it is with my hand or my arm," Barnes said. "I got to do a little bit of both."
After watching the right lane get tighter down lane in the semifinal match, top seeded Barnes established a quick game plan. Throw it hard on that lane and make his opponent, Brad Angelo, finish on it. His plan played out nearly to perfection – except for two 10 pins.
"It was getting down there pretty fast. I checked at one point to see if they had the speed on," he said. "My guess would have been probably off my hand just short of 21 (mph). That is about as firm as I ever throw it. It just felt like keeping my angles closed made a pair that was a little bit tricky not so tricky for me."
Barnes started with three strikes in a row then made his first 10-pin. Angelo had four straight spares before making a ball change. That change paid off for Angelo; however, it was a bit too late. From the fifth frame on, Angelo struck five out seven shots for 211.
Barnes went through the nose on the right lane in the fifth for a fortunate strike and followed that up with four more strikes. He picked up another 10-pin in the 10th frame and struck for 258.
“We had help out here this week. Rob (Gotchall, ball rep) was great. I had my other coach here the last two weeks, Lynda, was out at Sam’s Town last weekend. Found somethings that I was doing and helped me bowl a lot better there,” Barnes said. “That carried over this week. She came in and kicked me in the butt here the last couple of days and it worked out.”
Barnes bowled two perfect games over the last two days and led this tournament after day one of qualifying. On Sunday, he jumped from fifth place to first after the Advancers Round. He then defeated Mike Dias and Mark Dillard in bracket match play. This was Barnes’s ninth PBA50 title, and he feels really good about his game right now.
"I haven't been very positive about my game in several years for the most part. There were stretches when it felt not as bad. I have always been a tough grader. This is as good as I have felt in quite a while," Barnes said. "Once you start feeling good about how you are throwing it and your ability to change speeds and some things on call, now it feels like you can make a real run. This is the first time in a while I feel like I really could make a run at Player of the Year. I have a little bit of control over my own destiny versus needing a lot of different things to go my way."
In the semifinal match, Angelo started with three strikes in a row, while No. 2 Tom Hess rolled a double before opening in the third leaving a 3-4-6-7-10 on the right lane. Hess then picked up the 7-pin before rolling three strikes.
Angelo left the 2-8-10 split in the fourth for an open followed by a strike. Angelo split again on the right lane leaving the 4-6-7-9-10 in the sixth. He followed that up with three strikes in a row through the ninth frame. Hess went spare, strike, spare, strike to end up with a 210 game. Angelo stepped up big in the 10th on the tricky right lane. Needing 9 or better on the first shot, he came up clutch with a strike and added two more for 231.
In the opening match, two players were making their first-ever PBA50 stepladder finals appearance. The No. 5 seed Mark Dillard picked up the 2-10 split then opened in frame two against Bill Fabian. Fabian converted two single pins, struck, picked up another 10-pin then struck again in the fifth holding a three-pin lead.
Dillard responded with a strike and spare before rolling eight straight strikes finishing with 245. Fabian got another spare in the sixth followed by three straight strikes, a spare and strike for 218.
Dillard began match two with three single-pin spares and one strike through four frames. His opponent, Angelo, converted a 4-pin then added five straight strikes. Dillard had a split in the fifth frame then made a ball change. From there, Dillard threw four straight strikes. Angelo picked up back-to-back spares in the seventh and eighth frames, watched the 7 and 10 pins fall late for a strike in the ninth then went spare and strike for 236. Dillard finished with 210.
Next up for the PBA50 Tour is David Small’s Championship Lanes Classic beginning June 18 in Anderson, Indiana.
PBA50 FireLake Classic Final Standings:
- Chris Barnes
- Brad Angelo
- Tom Hess
- Mark Dillard
- Bill Fabian
MATCH SCORES:
Match 1: Dillard def. Fabian 245-218
Match 2: Angelo def. Dillard 236-210
Match 3: Angelo def. Hess 231-210
Championship match: Barnes def. Angelo 258-211
Final standings - 2026 PBA50 FireLake Classic