7th March, Manama, Bahrain: Top seed, Jesper Svensson of Sweden defeated Jason Belmonte of Australia, 258-244 in the battle of two-handed players final match of the PBA-WBT #9 13th Kingdom of Bahrain Open to win his first PBA International title.

Svensson, who won the two rounds of finals yesterday and one round earlier, dominated Round 5 finals averaging 243.17 for six-game total 1459 to advance to the stepladder finals as top seed.

Reigning PBA Player of the Year, Jason Belmonte of Australia, who barely made the Round 5 finals in sixth position in the earlier Round 4, finished a distant second, 82 pins behind the Swede.

Mika Koivuniemi of Finland, who tied third position Ildemaro Ruiz Jr. of Venezuela on 1351, made the cut for the stepladder finals in third after the Finn beat the Venezuelan, 216-183 in the one-game tie-breaker.

Belmonte edged Koivuniemi, 214-206 in the first stepladder match to set up the battle of two-handed players championship match.

Svensson started off with three strikes-in-a-row matched by Belmonte with three of his own. The right-handed Aussie continued with a four additional strikes while the left-handed Swede only spared his fourth frame.

Belmonte added another three strikes thereafter and Svensson was able to match his opponent with three strikes too. With both sparing their eighth frames, the match was swinging towards the Aussie.

But Svensson responded by striking out from frame 9 to end the match with 258 forcing his opponent needing a double in the 10th and 11th frames to go for a second decider. A stubborn pin 10 from the Aussie decided the tie in favour of the Swede.

"Ever since I started to bowl, I've always admired and dreamed of a chance of meeting Jason (Belmonte) in a stepladder match," said the 2014 World Youth Masters gold medalist, Svensson, who turned 20 last month.

"And to beat him here for my first PBA title is a dream come true. I knew the match was going to be very tight and to beat him I need to just do what I've been doing the past two days - putting in good shots.

"Although I was trailing before the ninth frame, I knew that if I strike home, I could put some pressure onto my opponent. It's been an amazing week here for me and I couldn't have asked for a better birthday present for myself."

The champion, who joined PBA in August last year, had won the PBA-WBT 2014 Brunswick Ballmasters Open but was not awarded a PBA title. This time round the champion not only picked up his first but also took home the top prize of US$25,000.

Belmonte settled for US$12,500 while Koivuniemi earned US$8,000. Iledmaro won US$6,000 for fourth, Wes Mallot of Pflugerville, TX, US$5,000 for fifth and Mike Fagan of Forthworth, Texas US$3,500 for sixth from the earlier Round 5 finals.

Top qualifier, Tannya Roumimper of Indonesia finished seventh, Marshall Kent of Yakima, WA., eighth, Khaled Al Dubyyan of Kuwait ninth, Yousif Falah of Bahrain 10th, Martin Larsen of Sweden 11th and Tim Mack of USA 12th.

H.E. Sheikh Ali Al-Khalifa, President of Arab and Bahrain Volleyball Association together with Mr Abdulla Al-Doseri, President of Bahrain Bowling Association presented the prizes to the winners.

Photos by Terence Yaw in Bahrain.

7th March, Sitra, Bahrain: Round 2 and 3 winner, Jesper Svensson of Sweden put himself in a strong position to take the title after winning Round 4 finals of the PBA-WBT #9 13th Kingdom of Bahrain Open on Saturday morning.

American PBA pro, Mike Fagan of Fortworth, Texas got off the mark with a brilliant 257 to lead his compatriot, Danielle McEwan in second by 13 pins with Jazreel Tan of Singapore and Svensson in close company.

Svensson got the better of Fagan in the second game to move into the lead as the American trailed the two-handed Swede by just 6 pins while Mika Koivuniemi of Finland was third, 12 pins adrift.

Fagan fought back with a stunning 267 to regain the lead as Svensson managed only 218 to fall behind by 43 pins. Svensson bounced back with 255 in the fourth but continued to trail Fagan, albeit just 8 pins separating the duo while Koivuniemi remained in third.

There was simply no stopping the Swede as he streaked away with 235 and 270 in his last two games to end the round with another victory on a total of 1467. Fagan settled for second with 1383.

A second PBA pro, Wes Mallot of Pflugerville, TX ended strongly to snatch third spot with 1339 as Koivuniemi stumbled to a 181 final game to take fourth spot with 1333.

Martin Larsen of Sweden finished seventh position with 1305 while PBA Tournament oc Champions winner, Jason Belmonte hung on to eighth position to make the cut with 1288 despite ending with 158.

Tom Daugherty of Tampa, FL., was unlucky to miss the cut by 3 pins although he ended with a strong 257 in his last game. All four women in the round crashed out leaving only top qualifier, Tannya Roumimper of Indonesia in the next round.

Cherie Tan, Jazreel Tan, McEwan and Bernice Lim finished eighth, ninth, tenth and 12th position with Tommy Jones in 11th position.

The top 6 finishers will join the top 6 seeded qualifiers for another 6 games in Round 5 finals later today. The top 3 at the end of the round will proceed to the TV Shootout finals.

Photos by Terence Yaw in Bahrain.

6th March, Sitra, Bahrain: Round 2 leader, Jesper Svensson of Sweden ended Round 3 finals of the PBA-WBT #9 13th Kingdom of Bahrain Open with another comfortable victory to advance to the next round.

Rakan Al Ameeri of Kuwait, who was second to Svensson in Round 2 earlier, got off the mark with a superb 244 to lead Michael Mak of Hong Kong by 18 pins. Jazreel Tan of Singapore, who had a poor start with 187, recovered with a sizzling 279 to take over the running.

Svensson, who also had a slow start with 202, stepped up a gear with a stunning 266 but had to trail Jazreel by 12 pins in second with a second Singapore women, Cherie Tan in close company.

Cherie moved into the lead at the halfway mark ahead of her team-mate, Jazreel in second but Svensson moved 15 pins ahead of Jazreel after the fourth game.

A third Singapore women, Bernice Lim got the better of her compatriots to snatch third spot with 1287 and Jazreel settling for fourth position with 1242.

American PBA pro, Wes Mallot of Pflugerville, TX survived to take up fifth position with 1274 while Cherie slipped down to claim the sixth and final spot for the next round with 1266.

A second American PBA pro in the finals, Brad Angelo of Lockport, NY., was less fortunate this time round, missing the cut by 37 pins in seventh position. Mak also crashed out in eighth and Rakan, Andres Gomez of Colombia and Muhammad Jaris Goh all failed to progress.

The top 6 will join qualifiers positioned 7 to 12 for another 6 games in Round 4 finals tomorrow morning at 9.00 am local time. The top 6 finishers togther with the top 6 seeded qualifiers will contest Round 5 finals at 3.00 pm.

The top 3 will then proceed to the stepladder shootout finals to determine this year's champion and win the top prize of US$25,000 and a trophy. The first runner-up will take home US$12,500 and the second runner-up, US$8,000.

Photos by Terence Yaw in Bahrain.

5th March, Sitra, Bahrain: 2014 World Youth Masters gold medalist, Jesper Svensson of Sweden won Round 2 finals of the PBA-WBT #9 13th Kingdom of Bahrain Open on Friday to progress into the next round.

The two-handed lefty totaled 1439 to lead Rakan Al Ameeri of Kuwait by 70 pins while American PBA pro, Brad Angelo of Lockport, NY, who was the cut in 27th position in the qualifying standings, finished third with 1335.

Early pace-setter, Andres Gomez of Colombia and Michael Mak of Hong Kong took fourth and fifth positions with 1315 and 1309 respectively.

Danielle McEwan of USA clinched the sixth and last spot for next round with a big game of 237 in the final game to edge New Hui Fen of Singapore by 11 pins with 1272.

Hui Fen, who had a 76 pin advantage over the McEwan, needed only to mark in her final frame but chocked leaving a 1-2-6-7 split which she failed to convert ending with 1261.

Missy Parkin of USA ended in eighth position with 1210 ahead of two Bahraini finalists, Mohammed Janahi and Abdulla A. Karim in ninth and tenth. Jason Sterner of Covington, GA, USA, and Christopher Sloan of Ireland finished 11th and 12th positions.

The top 6 advanced into Round 3 finals joined by qualifiers positioned 13 to 18 for another 6 games with no pins carried forward. The top 6 finishers in Round 3 will advance to tomorrow's Round 4 finals.

Photos by Terence Yaw in Bahrain.

5th March, Sitra, Bahrain: 2012 champion, Osku Palermaa of Finland needed the last squad to qualify for the PBA-WBT #9 13th Kingdom of Bahrain Open after topping it to earn one bye in 13th position in the overall standings.

The two-handed Finn posted a strong 1365 for a 12-game total of 2653 to earn his place. Overnight squad leader, Bernice Lim of Singapore, who was in the top bracket by average before the second block managed only 2636 to trail Palermaa in second slipped to 16th position.

2015 Asian Championships Masters gold medalist, New Hui Fen of Singapore finished third in the squad with 2606 and made the cut in 21st position.

American PBA pro, Brad Angelo of Lockport, NY took the 27th and last spot of the qualifying table 2549 from an almost perfect game in the 11th game of 299.

Three-time Bahrain Open champion, Tim Mack of USA found his old spark to top Squad E earlier with 2709 and moved into the top bracket in third. Tannya Roumimper of Indonesia held top spot with 2826 followed by PBA Rookie of the Year, Marshall Kent of USA in second with 2764.

Yousif Falah claimed the 6th position in the top bracket as top Bahraini finisher while compatriots, Mohammed Janahi and Abdulla A. Karim earned the 28 and 29 spots reserved for Bahrainis.

Missy Parkin of USA was the top women qualifier outside the top 27 with 2546 and was awarded position 30 while Daphne Tan of Singapore missed the cut in 32nd position by 4 pins.

Positions 19 to 30 (12 qualifiers) will contest 6 games Round 2 finals at 10.00am local time tomorrow. The top 6 finishers will join qualifiers positioned 12 to 18 for another 6 games from scratch in Round 3 finals at 4.00pm.

The top 6 finishers from Round 3 will advance to Round 4 joined by qualifiers positioned 7 to 12 for another 6 games on March 7. The top 6 finishers from this round will progress to Round 4 finals joined by the top 6 seeded qualifiers for the final 6 games in Round 5.

The top 3 will make the cut for the stepladder finals. The second and third seed will square off in the semi-final over one match. The winner will challenge the top seed in the final on a beat-twice format for the title.

Photos Terence Yaw in Bahrain.

4th March, Sitra, Bahrain: American PBA pro, Tom Daugherty of Tampa, FL., ruled Squad D of the PBA-WBT #9 13th Kingdom of Bahrain Open with 1386 to move into second position in the overall qualifying standings.

The 40-year-old Daugherty, who finished third in the PBA Players Championships this year, average 231 to trail leader and newly-crowned H.H. Emir Cup champion, Tannya Roumimper of Indonesia.

Ryan Ciminelli of Cheektowaga, N.Y., who finished second to Daugherty with 1378, joined the top bracket in fifth behind perfect gamer, Marshall Kent of Yakima, WA in fourth position with 230.33 average.

Bernice Lim of Singapore topped Squad F with 1385 in her second squad to moved ahead of Kent in third overall on an average of 230.83. Her compatriot and 2015 Asian Championships Masters gold medalist, New Hui Fen, who finished second to Lim, headed the second bracket with 228.50 average.

2013 Bahrain Open champion, Mika Koivuniemi of Finland, who topped Squad E to take up fifth of the top bracket, slipped down to eighth. Mike Fagan of FortWorth, Texas held the cut in 12th position with 223.17 average.

Squad C leader, Ildemaro Ruiz of Venezuela dropped off the top bracket into ninth position so did early leader, Khaled Al Dubyyan of Kuwait and Wicky Yeung of Hong Kong made the second bracket in 10th and 11th positions.

Yousif Falah of Bahrain, who was third in Squad F with 1333, headed the third bracket with an average of 222.17 while Daphne Tan of Singapore held the cut in 18th position.

Joel Tan of Singapore slipped down to 19th to head the third and final bracket with 217.83 as the cut goes up to 215 average occupied by Rakan Al Ameeri of Kuwait.

2012 Bahrain Open champion, Osku Palermaa of Finland is off the cut in 31st position with an average of 214.67. Squads D, E and F will complete their second block of 6 games and the final qualifying standings will be finalised.

Photos Terence Yaw in Bahrain.

3rd March, Sitra, Bahrain: Newly-crowned H.H. Emir Cup 2015 champion, Tannya Roumimper has gone from strength to strength by taking over the lead of the qualifying standings at the PBA-WBT #9 13th Kingdom of Bahrain Open.

The Indonesian posted the second highest 6-games series of 1464 for a 12-game total of 2826 to go top with an average of 235.5. Overnight leader, Khaled Al Dubyyan of Kuwait slipped behind Roumimper with 2704 and ended up in fifth overall.

Squad A leader, Marshall Kent of USA rolled the tournament's first perfect game to take over second spot overall with 2764. The American also won US$1,000 for being the first 300 scorer.

Ildemaro Ruiz of Venezuela topped Squad C with 2707 to occupy third position overall. Mike Fagan of USA, who finished second to the Venezuelean, also made the top bracket in fifth position with 2704.

The top 5 together with position 6 reserved for the top Bahraini qualifier outside the top 5 for three byes into Round 5 finals.

A second women, Jazreel Tan of Singapore, who shot 1315 in her second block for a 12-game total of 2642 to finish third in Squad B, was knocked off the top bracket to head the second bracket in seventh position.

Danielle McEwan of USA held 12th and final spot of the second bracket to join Cherie Tan of Singapore, Christopher Sloan of Ireland, Andres Gomez of Colombia and Muhammad Jaris Goh of Singapore for two byes into Round 4 finals.

Missy Parkin of USA headed the third bracket with 2546 in 13th position as Darren Ong of Singapore finished 18th position with 2503 for one bye into Round 3 finals.

Daphne Tan of Singapore headed the fourth bracket in 19th position with 2496 while the cut in 27th position went to Joel Tan of Singapore with 2433. Positions 28 and 29 are reserved for top 2 Bahraini qualifiers and 30th position for the top women qualifier outside the top 27.

Three more squads, D, E and F will be contested for the next two days which could rise to as much as 2560.

Photos Terence Yaw in Bahrain.

2nd March, Sitra, Bahrain: 2015 ABF Tour Qatar first runner-up and Squad B leader, Khaled Al Dubyyan of Kuwait topped the overall qualifying standings of the PBA-WBT #9 13th Kingdom of Bahrain International Open with an average of 235.17 after the first block.

The Kuwaiti downed lines of 211, 234, 259, 200, 269 and 238 for a 6-game total of 1411 for the lead. Newly-crowned H.H. Emir Cup 2015 champion, Tannya Roumimper of Indonesia, bowling with a handicap of 7 pins, continued her fine form to finish second with 227 average.

Ildemaro Ruiz of Venezuela, who topped Squad C, finished third overall with 224 average followed by Missy Parkin of USA in fourth with 222.50 average.

Jazreel Tan of Singapore made up the top 5 with an average of 221.17. The top 5 finishers together with the sixth position reserved for the top Bahraini will earn three byes and automatically advance to Round 5 finals.

2014 Incheon Asian Games Team gold medalist, Cherie Tan missed the top bracket but headed the second bracket with an average of 218.33. Mike Fagan of USA is the cut at 12th position with 211.17 average earning two byes for Round 4 finals.

2014 Milo Junior All-Stars champion, Joel Tan of Singapore headed the third bracket with 210 average while his compatriot and 2015 Asian Championships Masters gold medalist, New Hui Fen is the cut at 18th position earning one bye for Round 3 finals.

Qualifiers positioned 19 to 27 together the top 2 Bahrainis outside the top 27 and the top women qualifier outside the top 27 will contest Round 2 finals over 6 games.

The top 6 finishers will advance to Round 3 joined by qualifiers positioned 13 to 18 for another 6 games pins dropped. Again the top 6 finishers will advance to Round 4 finals joined by qualifiers positioned 7 to 12 for another 6 games pins dropped.

And finally the top 6 finishers will be joined by the top 6 seeded qualifiers for a final 6-games Round 5 finals. The top 3 will proceed to the stepladder shootout finals. The top prize for the champion is US$25,000 and if he is a PBA member, he will be awarded an international PBA title.

The 13th Kingdom of Bahrain Internationa Open is the ninth stop of the 2015 PBA-World Bowling Tour and bowlers will earn tour ranking points toward qualification to the Grand Finals. The top 16 Asian men will also qualify for the second leg of the 2015 ABF Tour - Bahrain which will be held on March 8.

Photos Terence Yaw in Bahrain.