Columnist John McCarron: Barnowsky rallies, triumphs

John McCarron

Thursday, Dec. 4, 1997 | 9:35 a.m.

HALL OF FAMER Bob Barnowsky showed why he is a member of the bowling shrine by making a huge comeback to win the Bart di Bartolo's WildDOG Match Point Tournament at the Gold Coast.

Barnowsky needed to win the last two matches against David Haynes and did it, 277-268 and 245-200. Allen Fredrick, visiting from New Jersey, placed third on the strength of his 300 game. Steady Gary Trosen took the fourth spot. Young lion Jay Nakaya was the skins winner.

Senior scratch

John Greco beat former Senior PBA player of the year John Handegard by three pins to win his fourth SSBT title at Sunset Lanes. Greco's 1115 total earned him $240 while Handegard (1112) picked up $115.

Gerald Baird 1105, $95; Roger Johnson 1090, $80; Tom Wellock 1076, $60; and Norm Brown 1064, $45 rounded out the top six.

The super senior winner was Bar Tulanian 1037, $40. Women's Hall of Famer Jeanette Robinson finished in ninth spot -- only a few pins out of the cash position. Gerald Baird had the high game of 179. Tom Wellock teamed with Handegard to earn $100 for their win.

The next Senior Scratch Bowlers Tour event is Dec. 14 at the Gold Coast. Call tournament director Gary Walters at 646-8466 for information.

Kolozsi triumphs

Keith Kolozsi overpowered the field to win the Mt. View (Pahrump) 6 gamer. Kolozsi's 1496 total featured a high game of 286. Mike Foreman placed second with 1332 and had the tournament high game of 289. Billy Hillers (1323) and local pro Rick Benard (1298) took the last cashing spot at 1298.

Mahoney's shootout

Johnny DeBenedetta (The Orleans pro shop manager) used his omnipotent release to lap the field at the Mahoney's Fall Shootout, scoring a 1107 five-game total. Senior player Lou Byers' 994 took second. Orleans manager Mike Monyak (947) finished third while NTBA's first winner, Ron Edwards, caught the last cashing position with 932.

Coming up

The Showboat is hosting the National Wheelchair Championship starting tonight with an Up and Down pro-am event. For information, call the Showboat at 385-9150.

Mahoney's 6 & Skins is set for Saturday at noon. For information, call Garry Griffin at 657-2750.

The last NTBA event is the Ironman, a 16-game marathon at Sam's Town set for Dec. 7 at 1 a.m. Entry fee is $115. Call tournament director Cliff Jensen at 454-8022 for details.

Strong alliance

With the Six N Skins and Ironman tournaments Dec. 6-7, the Nevada Tournament Bowlers Alliance (NTBA) will have completed its first year of scratch competition with 60 events and a prize fund of $4,500 ready to be distributed.

The alliance was the dream of Bart di Bartolo. His idea was for bowling centers have organized scratch events and work together for the betterment of the players and bowling. He has succeeded.

When the national bowling industry looks in to see how this operation runs, they will see a very successful ending. Hopefully, other associations can learn from what Las Vegas has discovered.

The year-end NTBA Tournament is set for Dec. 13-14 with the elite of Las Vegas in competition for two weekends. For information, call NTBA founder Bart di Bartolo at 451-7474.