October 16, 2026 Jill Winters

Brandon Bonta and Boog Krol both earned major wins on the PBA Tour this season. This weekend, Bonta will be seeking his second PBA ELITE Regional Tour win, while Krol aims for his first.

They highlight the standard division field, along with two-time U.S. Open champion Francois Lavoie and fellow Wichita State University alumni Mitch Hupé, that will be competing inside Sun Valley Lanes & Games at the PBA ELITE Regional Tour Midwest Regional 1.

That experienced group will be challenged by leading Midwest Region points leader Ryan Burton, a handful of current Mount Mercy University players, including Andru Blaney, Jacob Bockstie, Mateo Gordienko, Luke Switalski and Blake Walsh.

Trae Henrichsmeyer is back for more after earning his invitation to the Regional Players Invitational last weekend. He finished second at the Central Regional 2.  

The senior division features Tom Hess, who has a commanding lead in the Midwest Region points race. Jeff Johnson looks to pick up some ground on Hess, as he sits in second. Other players in contention are Tom Adcock, Bill Fabian, Paul Fleming, Rudy Kasimakis, John Marsala and Ricky Schissler.

Last week’s Southwest Regional 2 champion Tom Daugherty teased in his Bowling TV interview with Hess that he might be in the field. If so, he will join Bonta in an attempt to become the first two-time winner on the PBA ELITE Regional Tour.  

Seven games of qualifying will begin at 10 a.m. Eastern on Saturday before cutting to the top third in the field. Those bowlers will return at 9 a.m. ET on Sunday for four games in the advancers round.

The top 8 in the standard and senior division will bowl round-robin match play to determine a winner for each division beginning at 1 p.m. ET. You can watch this event on Bowling TV, a free, ad-supported channel, or watchbowling.tv. The oil pattern for the first Midwest Regional is 37 feet. More information is available here.

The top 5 non-PBA Tour priority finishers in the standard division for every PBA ELITE Regional Tour event earn an automatic berth into the PBA RPI held in December. The top two eligible seniors also earn an invitation. At that prestigious tournament, three priority status positions on the 2027 PBA Tour will be rewarded.

To follow the continuous coverage of the PBA ELITE Regional Tour, click here.