Tucson Open - Archived Standings
$100,000 TUCSON OPEN
Golden Pin Lanes, Tucson, AZ, Feb 4-8, 1997
Weber Ends Drought In Tucson
Ever since Pete Weber burst onto the scene of the PBA Tour in 1980 at the age of 17, he has been considered one of the most talented players on tour. But lately, the 34-year-old from St. Ann, Mo., hadn't looked the part. After winning two tiles in 1993, Weber had gone three years without winning a title, including a year in 1995 when he didn't even make a championship round appearance. At Golden Pin Lanes in Tucson, Ariz., Weber exercised a few demons and walked away with his 22nd title by defeating Brian Himmler in the title match of the Tucson Open, 208-191, which was televised on ESPN. "This title means everything to me," said Weber, who collected $16,000 for the victory. "It tells me I'm not a loser and that I can still win and that I will win more often." Himmler, who had qualified fifth and made his second consecutive telecast and third of his career, had built a 26-pin lead through seven frames. The lead would have been more, but Weber made a clutch conversion of the 3-6-7-10 split in frame six. That conversion proved critical as a 2-4-8-10 split in the eighth frame by Himmler resulted in an open frame and gave Weber an opportunity. After Himmler converted a spare in frame nine, Weber (finishing first) promptly threw a strike in the ninth, then stepped to lane 16, where he struck only once in the entire match, and struck out in the 10th. Himmler needed a double and six pins in frame 10 to claim the win. "I wasn't nervous at all in the 10th frame," said Himmler. "I thought there was no doubt I was going to double." There was no doubt he threw a good ball on his first ball, but a stubborn 7-pin would not fall and Himmler was lett with the second-place check of $8,500. The win for Weber evened his career record as the top seed at 10-10. CHAMPIONSHIP ROUND
PLAYOFF RESULTS-Himmler defeated Hoskins, 204-201; Himmler defeated Aulby, 245-235: Himmler defeated Shafer. 227221; and in the championship game, Weber defeated Himmler, 208-191. 42-GAME TOTALS OTHER CASHERS *-Match play alternate. 18-game qualifying leader-Parker Bohn III, 4105. 24th place-Ryan Shater, 3879. 36th place-Bob Belmont, Bob Benoit and Philip Ringener, 3830. #-Kelly Coffman and Norm Duke rolled 300 games ($100 each). PRO-AM CASHERS-Wayne Webb, Mike Aulby, Butch Soper, Norm Duke, Rick Steelsmith and Bob Learn Jr. ($50 each) |