30th August, Bangkok: Team and Singles gold medalist, Walter Ray Williams Jr. of Team USA was crowned the masters world champion at the concluding World Men's Championship 2008 after defeating Denmark's Jesper Argerbo in the title match on Saturday afternoon.

The Masters best-of-five game elimination round started with disappointment for the Amercian 'dream team' as only Walter Ray Williams Jr. was the only survival in the opening round.

Williams knocked out team-mate, Rhino Page, 3-1, in a four-game thriller while Partick Allen and Tommy Jones suffered at the hands of Choi Bok-Eum of Korea (1-3) and Osku Palermaa of Finland (2-3).

But the American cruised to a 3-1 victory over the sole Korean by a similar margin, 3-1 to meet the unique two-handed, Palermaa. Jesper Agerbo of Denmark went the full distance against UAE's Naif Oqab and then went the same route against Mexico's Alejandro Cruz to face England's Dominic Barrett in the semi.

Jesper booked his place in the final with a surprising win over Barrett, rolling 731 on what have previously been very difficult lane patterns.

Palermaa showed tremendous talent when he was up against the American star, Williams taking the match the full distance. But Williams scraped through to take on Dane Jesper Agerbo in the final.

"I had a poor start in the first round but I'm glad I settled down and bowled well," said Dominic Barrett. "The same thing happened in the next round, but I had a massive game to settle me in. I bowled well today but just didn't have the luck against Jesper."

"The game against Tommy Jones was a tough one but I'm glad I was able to beat him," said the 24-year-old talented two-handed Finn, Osku Palermaa. "I didn't start well in the second round but the third and fourth game helped. I was bowling well against Walter but I think he had better luck than me."

The multi-champion PBA bowler set off on the golden trail and to the top of the podium with a 256-203 win over the Dane in the first game. The champion made sure of just a three-gamer with another 256-201 second game triumph.

Williams sealed the victory with a final score of 228 over Agerbo's 224 to claim his third gold and second individual medal. Williams had won the singles just a day earlier.

"I was very nervous in the beginning of the final and I just could not make good shots," said 27-year-old Jesper Agerbo, who won two bronze medals at the European Championships last year.

"It's not too bad losing to one of the best bowlers in America. I had a chance in the third game but just didn't get a connection. Overall, I'm happy to win a silver medal for my country."

"I was probably the weakest of the American team at the beginning, but to turn it around and win three gold medals is an amazing and pleasing feat," said Walter Ray Williams Jr., after his convincing victory in the Masters.

"I struggled on the short oil pattern, which was my strongest, but surprised myself to be able to do well on the long to win the Singles. But today I finally found how to bowl on the short, which paid off."

Dominic Barrett and Osku Palermaa took home a bronze medal each as losing semi-finalists. USA emerged the overall champion with a haul seven medals on 4-1-2. Korea finished second with 2-1-0. Sweden, Japan, Germany and Denmark shared third spot with one silver each.

Photos and story courtesy of Thai Tenpin Bowling Association.

29th August, Bangkok: Walter Ray Williams Jr. won his second and USA's third gold medal of the World Men's Championship when he defeated topseed, Kai Gunther of Germany, 213-198 in the title match on Friday evening.

Both were locked together in the battle for the gold at the halfway point of the title match and Williams looked the stronger when Guther failed to spare after leaving four pins in the the sixth frame.

But the German recovered with a turkey thereafter while the American had four spares to put the match almost level with five pins separating both the bowlers in favour of the German.

The final frame proved costly for Guther when he failed to make the spare as Williams sealed the match with a double strike on the tenth frame to emerge the champion.

"I haven't been bowling well the whole week and understandably, I was left out during the team finals but the guys were awesome," said Walter Ray Williams Jr. after claiming the gold medal.

"I knew if I had made the finals, I would stand a good chance of winning. This victory has made amends for my earlier poor performance. But I now look forward to winning another in the Masters tomorrow."

In very difficult long oil conditions, Gunther's score of 1317 withstood the challengers from the remaining four squads with the American pro bowlers and so many top bowlers failing to better that score.

Multi-champion, Choi Bok-Eum looked a good bet to maintain his 219 average through the final six games and come home with a mid-1300 total but he too fell by the wayside. But the Korean did go home with his second gold after topping the All Events with 5285.

Two gold medalist, Rhino Page took home another silver medal for finishing behind the Korean with 5218. Page lost to the Koreans in the Trios title match for his first silver medal.

Norway's Tore Torgersen won his third bronze medal with a third-place finish in the All Events with 5212. The Norwegian won the two bronze medals in the doubles and team event.

The top 16 advanced into the exciting best-of-five Masters with some interesting matches in Saturday's opening round. One American pro will definitely be eliminated as Williams takes on Page. Patrick Allen faces Choi Bok-Eum, a battle of lefties.

Two talented two handers, Osku Palermaa from Finland and Aussie Jason Belmonte are among the elite 16. Palermaa takes on Tommy Jones and England's Dominic Barrett comes up against Belmonte.

Photos and story courtesy of Thai Tenpin Bowling Association.

29th August, Bangkok: Peter Ljung of Sweden, who topped the sinlges squad 4 with 1295 at the World Men's Championship 2008 on Friday morning was only good for fourth place in the overall combined table.

The early stages of this squad was a battle between Dominic Barrett of England, doubles dolf medalist at the recent World Youth Championship and Malta's Brian Farrugia. Going into the last game, Furrugia held a 10 pin buffer over Barrett with Sweden's Peter Ljung in third.

All three needed high games for positions in the top four but the two leading scorers, Kai Gunther (1317) and Walter Ray Williams Jr. (1316) retained their positions when the squad ended.

Furrugia's efforts came to naught as a 213 in his final game was just not enough. It was Peter Ljung's 237 that allowed him to take top spot with 1295 putting him fourth overall, subject to the scores from the final squad.

"I tried not to bowl sub-200 games but on this long oil condition it's difficult," said Peter Ljung. "I've not won any medals in World Championships so I'm hopeful that I can make the cut."

So Ljung's 1295 and those above him will be the targets for those on the final squad. With the scoring level this morning in a squad that featured many of the world's best, the top four are looking safe indeed and the favourite has to be Walter Ray Williams, Jr. for the gold.

Photos and story courtesy of Thai Tenpin Bowling Association.

28th August, Bangkok: Francois Sacco of France led a bevy of Europeans at the top of Squad 3 singles event of the World Men's Championship on Thursday evening coming home with 1310 to take up third in the overall table.

Second place went to Sweden's Robert Andersson on 1269 with Jesper Agerbo of Denmark third with 1251. Only Chinese Taipei's Yang Nien-Hua stopped the flood of Europeans as fifth and sixth position also went to that zone.

Francois Sacco moved to the front of the pack after Darren Cundy of England had set the pace with 245. The French's consistent 230, 231, 233 and 235 was an outstanding achievement given such difficult conditions.

"I bowled a poor game of 178 on a pair of very difficult lanes, so I knew I needed 220 or more in the final game to take over the lead," said the 38-year-old Francois Sacco, who won a bronze medal in the team event at the World Championships in Reno in 1995.

"This long oil pattern is very difficult and if I had finished first or second after three squads, the chance of making the top four would be very good."

The Americans Bill Hoffman and Rhino Page were well off the pace in 12th and 14th on this squad and 36th and 40th in the overall table. The quartet now holding the top four places are Kai Gunther (1317), Walter Ray Williams Jr. (1316), Sacco (1310) and Shu Liang-Chen (1283) from squad 2.

Photos and story courtesy of Thai Tenpin Bowling Association.

28th August, Bangkok: The lead set by German's Kai Gunther stayed intact as Bahrain's Mohamed Yusuf Sultan finished fourth despite topping the second singles squad of the World Men's Championship 2008.

The long oil pattern certainly took its toll as many top bowlers struggled in the difficult and changing conditions. Mika Koivuniemi, the Finhish PBA bowler, commenced proceedings with a 269 and that looked to be the highest on this squad.

After taking the lead, the lanky Finn gradually dropped down to eighth place on a total of 1213, well short of the target score of 1262 to get to the top four for tomorrow's play-offs.

Mohamed Yusuf Sultan was the only player on this squad to score four consecutive 200-plus games but his last two went under. By his fifth, he was still top, holding a 57 pin lead over second placed Biboy Rivera of the Philippines.

His final 162 gave the Bahrain championship debutant a 1276 total to take fourth place overall with two squads combined with Rivera finishing second on 1263 and fifth overall.

"I was unlucky in my final game with two splits and did not have the carry to cover the open frames," said the 24-year-old debutant, Mohamed Yusuf Sultan.

PPhotos and story courtesy of Thai Tenpin Bowling Association.

28th August, Bangkok: Germany's Kai Gunther set the target of 1317 on the first of five Singles squads at the World Men's Championship to lead American pro, Walter Ray Williams Jr. by 1 pin on Thursday morning.

American, Williams Jr, three-time world horseshoe pitching champion, found all but two pairs of lanes to his liking on the long oil pattern and led the field until he slumped to a 190 in the final game to finish second only by one pin behind Gunther.

"This is the first time that I've ever finished in such a high position in the World Championship," said Kai Gunther, 33, of Germany. "I hope I can stay in the top four when all the squads are complete."

"I need all the luck I can get with a second place finish and 116 pins over," said Walter Ray Williams Jr. "This long oil pattern is not easy, but I'm glad I did reasonably well."

Shu Ling-Chen of Chinese Taipei took third place with 1283 and Qatar's Fahad Al Emadi, who hit a 299 in his second game, finished fourth on 1262 and Malaysia's Daniel Lim rounded up the top 5 with 1259.

This first of five squads, featuring three today and two tomorrow, had 67 of the 330 competitors, so around ten nations had a couple of contenders.

Photos and story courtesy of Thai Tenpin Bowling Association.

27th August, Bangkok: USA and Korea took the team title match of the World Men's Championship to the wire which saw a hard fought finale ending victorious for the Americans and Korea settling for the silver.

Doubles gold medalist, Rhino Page gunning for his second and anchoring for Team USA had a double strike and a 9-pin count to give the Americans a 1084 scoreline. His effort forced his counterpart, Kim Tae-Young needing to strikeout to take the victory.

But a stubborn pin 10 force the match to go into the tie-breaker when both teams were locked at 1084. Page took the task of rolling the tie-breaker for USA while Korea's hopes were on Kim's shoulders.

Kim started on with a strike as Page had a 9-pin and a spare. The American anchorman then reeled off two consecutive strikes and 9 pins to total 49. Kim needed another strike in his next frame which would have sealed the victory. Again, Kim failed to bring home a strike to give USA the victory.

"It's just simply fantastic to win the team gold for the second time," said Rhino Page who was anchoring the team and had to bowl the 9th and 10th frame to break the tie.

"I just kept a clear mind going into the tie-breaker and do my best. Actually, I was indeed surprised that I was chosen to anchor the team for which I have to thank my coach for having confidence in me. My teammates were simply awesome and all of them totally deserve this victory."

"I thought we had won the game when I threw my last shot as it was a good one but pin 10 just did not want to fall," said Korea's anchorman, Kim Tae-Young and gold medalist in the doubles.

"Of course there was pressure to roll the 9th and 10th frame but I did not want to think about it too much. I tried to do my best and not let my teammates down."

USA finished second overall in the second block and defeated third-seed Norway, 1039-984 in the semi-finals to reach the title match with the Koreans. Topseed, Korea ousted fourth-seed Finland, 1136-1035 in the other semi.

Korea will, however be hoping to erase the disappointment with a gold medal in the All Events with Choi Bok-Eum leading the current standings with 4038 after a superb 1407 in the team event. Rhino Page is second with 4033, just 5 pins adrift while two bronze medalist, Tore Torgersen of Norway is third with 3996.

Photos and story courtesy of Thai Tenpin Bowling Association.

27th August, Bangkok: It was Germany's turn to steal the limelight when the German quintet finished as squad leader of the five-men team at the World Men's Championship which resumed with the second block on Wednesday morning.

Malaysia broke the 1185 record for one game they set themselves with a resounding 1212 opening game as the squads are back on the higher scoring short oil pattern lanes. But it was downhill after that with 1125 and 928 for an overall total of 6128.

It was unusual to see the Malaysian team with three games under 1000 as they hold the World and Asian Championship team gold medals and were among the favourites for the title here in Bangkok.

The single game record was broken yet again in the second game when Mexico shot 1240 with Marco Martinez scoring 279. Strangely enough, the Mexican team had not put together a game over 1000 previously and they did not do it in their final game either to finish sixth.

With consitent lines of 1062, 1047 and 1051, the Germans topped squad 2 with Jens Nickel as the top scorer on 1299. Colombia finished second to Germany with 6135, just 10 pins adrift while Malaysia slumped into third.

Squad 1 will now return to the lanes and if things run to the current form, we will see more records. Current leader Norway need 2948 for top position, Finland 3100, England 3129 and USA 3147 vying for the vital top four positions for tonight's championship round.

Photos and story courtesy of Thai Tenpin Bowling Association.

26th August, Bangkok: Japan topped Squad 2 first block Team of 5 event in the World Men's Championship but trailed Squad 1 and overall leader, USA and Sweden in second on Monday evening at Homplus Asiad Bowling Centre.

The Venezuelans got off to a good start shooting 1060 to take the early lead but the Filipinos took over soon after the second game despite a 987 after their better first game of 1019. Venezuela slumped to sixth after a poor 871 in the second.

With 2006, the Filipinos still needed nearly 1200 to catch up with the Norwegians, who set 3198 as the target after the first squad, and 1046 to be amongst the runners-up Finland.

They fell way short of that target despite leading the squad with 2995, ten pins ahead of Germany and Colombia trailing in third on 2979.

"As usual, we're not strong on the long oil pattern, so it's good that we can finish sixth overall and be only just five pins under," said Filipino Chester King. "Although we're about 200 pins behind the Norwegians, our target is to finish in the top four and for that we're only 40 pins behind."

"Our strength is in the short oil and we've practiced a lot before coming here," said the team captain of Team Philippines, Biboy Rivera. "We know our targets so we'll build on that."

Philippines slotted into sixth place overall as play finishes for the first block. Squad 2 return for the final three games on the short oil pattern on Wednesday morning while Squad 1 in the afternoon.

The top four at the end of the second block will advance to the championship round to determine the champion of the five-men team event.

Photos and story courtesy of Thai Tenpin Bowling Association.

26th August, Bangkok: Norwegians took a comfortable lead in the opening squad of the Team of 5 event at the World Men's Championship 2008 in the first block of 3 games over long oil pattern when competition resumed on Tuesday morning.

England opened accounts with a superb 1097 but a disasterous 888 in the second game saw them dropping to third. Norway's Per Kristian Eide, Glenn Morten Pedersen, Tore Torgersen, Mads Sandbakken and Petter Hansen up their pace with a scintilating 1175 from a 994 first game to take over the lead.

Team USA was the only team near the Norwegians trailing by 146 pins with Finland in fourth behind the English team. Norway hit a 1029 in the third game to top the field at the halfway point with 3198 and Finland recovering to a second place finish with 3046.

England maintained third position with 3027 as the Americans suffered a set back with 987 in their final game to end up in fourth on 3010. Korea and China rounded up the top 5.

Doubles bronze medalist, Tore Torgersen posted the highest series of 692 in the team and has taken over the lead in the All Events standings.

Once again the event will be played over two blocks of 3 games, on long oil pattern today and short oil pattern on Wednesday. The second squad will take to the lanes later.

Photos and story courtesy of Thai Tenpin Bowling Association.

25th August, Bangkok: The mighty Koreans bagged the Trios gold medal of the World Men's Championship 2008 with a convincing victory over their Asian counterpart, Japan 723-553 in the title match on Monday evening.

Japan's Toshihiko Takahashi, Shota Kawazoe and Tomokatsu Yamashita started off the title match better than topseed, Korea in the first two frames with the prolific left-hander, Choi Bok-Eum missing an easy pin 7 in the second frame.

But Bok-Eum recovered with five consecutive strikes as his teammate, Choi Ki-Bong was on a strikefest reeling in seven in a row from the second frame onwards. Anchorman, Kim Tae-Young also had a double to back his teammates.

The Japanese trio were missing simple spares by the buckets and by the midway through the match, the match was literally over. With no pressure, the Koreans ended their games with Bok-Eum scoring 223, Ki-Bong 255 and Tae-Young striking out for 245.

Apart from Kawazoe scoring a respectable 224, Takahashi and Yamashita were disappointing managing only 155 and 174 respectively to settle for the silver medal.

The champions had earlier disposed off USA's Walter Ray Williams, Chris Barnes and Tommy Jones, 673-603 for a spot in the finals. Second-seed, Bill Hoffman, Patrick Allen and Rhino Page were unlucky when they were edged by the Japanese by 1 single pin, 614-615 in the other semi-final.

Both the American trios took home a bronze medal each as losing semi-finalists. The final squad of the trios second block saw Japan topping the squad with 3805 to slot into third overall.

Leader Korea and USA retained first and second position while the second American three managed to hang on to fourth spot as hopefuls, UAE squandered chance with a low game of 571 when they only needed 655 to topple the Koreans.

Norway and Mexico, who were third and fourth before the final squad, were pushed down to fifth and sixth positions after Japan squeezed into the top four. Mexico's Alejandro Cruz topped the All Events standings after 12 games played with 2747.

Doubles gold medalist, Rhino Page is second with 2740 while overnight leader, Mahmood Ahmad Al-Attar dropped to third with 2734. Competition resumes on Tuesday with the first block of the Team of 5 event divided into two squads.

Photos and story courtesy of Thai Tenpin Bowling Association.

25th August, Bangkok: Korea's Choi Bok-Eum, Choi Ki-Bong and Kim Tae-Young were even stronger than the Americans on the short oil pattern in the Trios second squad to emerge as the new leader at the World Men's Championship 2008.

Thanks to the prolific left-hander, Choi Bok-Eum, who shot a scintilating 748 second block series to help the three move up from 33rd position overnight to the top of the leaderboard. Choi Kin-Bong also shot pass the 700-mark with 705 as Kim Tae-Young downed 656.

The Koreans shot 747 in their opening game followed it up with another superb 707, then rounding off with 655 for a 2109 second block and 3833 total. America's Bill Hoffman, Patrick Allen and Rhino Page, who was the leader after this morning's first squad, dropped to second with 3826.

The second American trio of Walter Ray Williams Jr, Chris Barnes and Tommy Jones took second spot in the squad to also improved to third overall after the three amassed a total of 3787.

With Norway and Sweden falling out of contention, the handful of teams likely to challenge for the top 4 spots appear to come from Squad 1 leader, UAE, Mexico, and Japan and perhaps Australia too who are bowling in the final squad.

The top 4 after from the combined scores will advance to the knockout semi-finals and final stage to determine the winner of the second gold medal.

Photos and story courtesy of Thai Tenpin Bowling Association.

25th August, Bangkok: American trio of Bill Hoffman, Patrick Allen and Rhino Page surged to the top of the leaderboard on the opening short oil squad of the World Men's Championship 2008 on Monday morning.

The three revelled in the short oil pattern, all shooting solid 200-plus games for 2021 and vying for their second gold medal by setting the target of 3826 for the following two squads.

"We've done better than the first block yesterday but it could have been better," said the Doubles gold medalist, Patrick Allen. "The lane conditions are very demanding and we've had to be sharp and extremely careful too."

"I was poor in the opening game today but I managed to get into my usual rhythm," said Rhino Page. "Fortunately, I had a high game to show and I'm glad it help the team to stay in front and hopefully in the top four."

"Maybe... that's all I've to say," said the reigning World Cup champion Bill Hoffman, jokingly. "We're hoping we can maybe make the cut."

Currently in second place are the Qataris Bandar AlShafi, Fahad Al-Emadi and Mubarak Al-Muraikhi with 3718 and Mexico third with 3703.

Overnight leaders with 1955, England blew their chances for a place in the play-offs with a poor 1739 on what sould have been a higher scoring pattern for them. They slumped to fourth place overall with two more squads on the roster.

Sweden and Finland come into play in the next squad. This leaves a target of 1942 for the Finns and 1973 for the Swedes to better the Americans.

Photos and story courtesy of Thai Tenpin Bowling Association.

24th August, Bangkok: Finland's PBA pro bowler, Mika Koivuniemi led teammates, Pasi Uotila and Osku Palermma to the top of the third Trios squad at the World Men's Championship 2008 but failed to topple overall leader, England on Sunday evening.

The Venezuelan trio set the pace with a 669 opening game but took a nose dive into sixth position after a poor 534 in the second game. Finland's Mika Koivuniemi, Pasi Uotila and Osku Palermma posted the first 700-plus game with 714 to surge into the lead.

Puerto Rico's Luis Rodriguez, Edgardo Ruiz and Francisco Colon was second, 108 pins adrift folowed by Sweden's Robert Andersson, Tomas Leandersson and Martin Larsen third. Hoping to topple overall leader, England, the Finns shot a poor 546 to settle for second with 1885.

"The lanes are very inconsistent and it's hard to score high," said Mika Koivuniemi. "We didn't expect the lanes to be so difficult.

"Each pair of lanes varies so much that we've to changed lines so many times," said Osku Palermma. "We know we need to play uch better tomorrow in the second block to have a chance to make the top 4.

"We had to scrub the bowling balls for this long oil pattern otherwise we may not be able to get the ball to hook," said coach Sami Konsteri. "But we're quite happy with where we are.

Sweden took third spot in both the squad and overall with 1854 pushing Philippines and United Arab Emirates further down to fourth and fifth positions. Walter Ray Williams Jr, Chris Barnes and Tommy Jones were the best American trio in sixth spot.

The second block over short oil pattern will resume on Monday with squad 2 in the morning, squad 3 and 1 later in the day. The top 4 will advance into the knockout semi-finals.

PPhotos and story courtesy of Thai Tenpin Bowling Association.

24th August, Bangkok: The English trio of Dominic Barrett, Mike Quarry and Stuart Williams took over the lead of the Trios first block event of the World Men's Championship 2008 after the completion of the second squad.

Barrett, Quarry and Williams set a blistering pace with a 692 openng game but dropped back to a 578 in the second game and barely hung on to their lead by just 1 pin ahead Japan's Tomoyuki Sasaki, Yoshinao Masatoki and Masaru Ito.

The third and final game saw the English rebounded with another superb 658 to retain pole position largely due to a strong 699 three-game series from Barrett. Williams posted 630 and Quarry 626 for a total of 1955.

"We had a great start in the opening game but weren't that good in the second but fortunately, we were able to rebound strongly in the third game," said Dominic Barrett, who won 4 medals at the World Youth Championship in Orlando two weeks ago.

"It's good to do well on the long oil as the scores will definitely get better in the second block which is on the shorter oil," said Mike Quarry, who won a silver meal in the last world championship in Busan.

"I'm indeed glad to be able to come here for my first ever world championship," said the 2006 World Ranking Masters champion, Stuart Williams. "Dominic (Barrett) really had the best scores of the three of us and it's good that we're in a good position for tomorrow's second block.

Philippines' Chester King, Paulo Valdez and Biboy Rivera stormed home to edge the Japanese by 17 pins for second spot on 1852. Americans Bill Hoffman, Patrick Allen and Rhino Page struggled on the long oil pattern and finished fourth with 1805.

The combined scores after the first two squads now have England as the new leaders, Philippines second, United Arab Emirates third and Japan fourth. Third and final squad will take to the lanes later today.

Photos and story courtesy of Thai Tenpin Bowling Association.

24th August, Bangkok: Current Asian Ranked No. 1, Hussain Al-Suwaidi led his teammates, Shaker Al-Hassan and Naif Oqab of UAE to take pole position in the opening squad of the Trios first block at the World Men's Championship 2008 on Sunday.

Mexico sprang a mild surprise as Daniel Falconi, Benjamin Corona and Alejandro Cruz with a superb 671 opening game to quickly take the lead, 52 pins ahead of Iceland's Arni Geir Omarsson, Steinthor G Johannsson and Hafthor Hardarson in second.

A poor 535 by the Mexicans and 588 from Iceland saw the two trios thumbling down the field as UAE's Hussain Al-Suwaidi, Shaker Al-Hassan and Naif Oqab surged into the front with 631 in the second game followed by Japan in second, 27 pins adrift.

Despite only a moderate 612 in what appeared to be extremely long oil condition, UAE was able to end the first block in pole position with a total of 1846. Mexico recovered to finish second on 1795 with Japan third on 1792.

"We've done quite well considering that our strenghth is not on this long oil condition," said the team captain of UAE, Shaker Al-Hassan. "I'm sure other teams will have seen us bowl and may be able to work out how to tackle this lane and may push the scores higher.

"We're quite sure we can improve in the second block on the short oil and hope to make the cut for the semi-finals," said the current Asian Ranked No. 1, Hussain Al-Suwaidi, who won a silver medal in the recent Asian Championship in Hong Kong.

Australia stormed home to take up fourth position with 1783 ahead of Iceland in the top 5 with 1779. Squad 2 and 3 will take to the lanes later today while the second block will be competed on Monday.

Photos and story courtesy of Thai Tenpin Bowling Association.

23rd August, Bangkok: Topseed, Patrick Allen and Rhino Page narrowly defeated challenger, Sweden, 457-452 to win America's first gold medal in the Doubles finals of the World Men's Championship 2008 at S.F. Strike Bowl.

The American pair of Patrick Allen and Rhino Page cruised through to the finals after they ousted forth-seed, Mads Sandbakken and Tore Torgersen of Norway, 453-399 in the first semi-final. Allen downed 238 with Page scoring 215 for the easy victory.

Third-seed, Tomas Leandersson and Martin Larsen of Sweden had narrowly defeated second-seed, Petteri Salonen and Pasi Uotila of Finland, 467-463 to set up an interesting final with the Americans.

The Swedes went into the final match with maintaining a slender margin midway through the closely fought encounter forcing the American duo needing both the bowlers to strike out. But Allen and Page prevailed both finishing with a turkey in their final frames to take victory by just 5 pins.

It was a well deserved victory for the American pros, Page earning his second World Championship gold medal, the first won in the World Men's Championships in Korea in 2006.

"I'm very fortunate as I was riding on Patrick's form most of the way," said Rhino Page, who won the team gold and 2 silver medals at the last championship.

"We knew both of us had to strike out in order to win and I had to settle myself longer than needed before the final frame," said Patrick Allen. The Finns and Norwegians settled for one bronze medal each as losing semi-finalists.

In the earlier fifth and final squad, Leandersson and Larsen brought home one of the most brilliant final game to seal a spot in the knockout finals and topping the squad with 2739.

Sandbakken and Torgersen finished second to disloged the Mexicans and first squad leader, Korea to take up the final semi-final slot.

Competition returns Sunday for the first block of three games in the Trios event divided into three squads. The second block will be completed on Monday with the top 4 teams advancing to the knockout rounds.

Photos and story courtesy of Thai Tenpin Bowling Association.

23rd August, Bangkok: It's status quo after Squad 4 completed their doubles at the World Men's Championship 2008 Saturday morning as leader Bill Hoffman and Tommy Jones of USA failed to finish amongst the top 4 in the combined standings.

Denmark's Thomas Larsen and Frederik Ohrgaard set the early pace with 447 and 440 in their first two games to lead USA's Bill Hoffman and Tommy Jones by just 2 pins. The last American pair continued their drive to take the lead at the halfway mark with 152 pins over.

Hoffman and Jones lost the lead after the fifth game to UAE's Hussain Al-Suwaidi and Naif Oqab when they only manage to knock down 392 and 412 as the opponent reeled off 473 and 464.

But the American pair prevailed ending the fourth squad with 492 to pip UAE by just a single pin on a total of 2648. Hussain and Naif settled for second with 2647 followed by early pace-setter, Denmark taking third place with 2626.

"We just didn't get off the mark well enough," said the reigning World Cup champion, Bill Hoffman. "We also didn't make the necessary adjustments needed to have better carry.

However, the third American pair ended up only in ninth position, 209 pins off their teammates when the four squads' scores were combined. Rhino Page and Patrick Allen maintain their pole position with 2857.

Finland's Petteri Solonen and Pasi Uotila (2817), Mexico's Enrique Calvo and Alejandro (2718) and Korea's Choi Ki-Bong and Kim Tae-Young (2715) remained second to fourth. The top 4 after the fifth and final squad has completed their block will advance to the knock out finals.

Photos and story courtesy of Thai Tenpin Bowling Association.

22nd August, Bangkok: Finland's Petteri Salonen and Pasi Uotila topped the third squad of the Doubles event at the World Men's Championship 2008 and trailed current leader, Rhino Page and Patrick Allen of USA late Friday evening.

When the third and final squad of the day took to the lanes with half-an-hour delay, the Sweden's Robert Andersson and Tobais Karlsson set a cracking pace to lead the first two opening games with 466 and 436.

Finland's Petteri Salonen and Pasi Uotila, who kept close range to the leaders, shot a superb 524 in their third game to haul themselves to front of the pack at the halfway point wand a comfortable margin of 79 pins from Qatar as the Swedes dropped off their pace.

The Finns reeled off 469 and 499 in the next two games which moved them ahead of squad 2 leader, USA and 23 pins ahead. Despite finishing on a strong 436, Salonen and Uotila fell short by 40 pins to overhaul the Americans.

"We had practised alot on the short before coming to Thailand and it helped us very much," said Salonen. "Pasi (Uotila) bowled really well and it inspired me to do better.

"They are not so used to the short oil in Europe and we were afraid to struggle in this condition," said coach Sami Konsteri. "We're glad they put in a lot of practice before coming here.

Salonen shot 1361 for his effort while Uotila bowled stronger on a 6-game total of 1456 giving the Finnish pair a total of 2817. Page and Allen remained in the lead with 2857 while Mexico's Enrique Calvo and Alejandro Cruz stormed home to take up third overall with 2718.

The two remaining squads will be contested on Saturday and after the scores from the five squads are combined, the top 4 will advance to the knockout stage.

Photos and story courtesy of Thai Tenpin Bowling Association.

22nd August, Bangkok: The second pair of America, Rhino Page and Patrick Allen took over the lead set by Korea in the second squad of the Doubles event at the World Men's Championship 2008 at S.F. Strike Bowl.

An average start for USA's Rhino Page and Patrick Allen in their two opening games saw the Aemrican PBA bowlers trailing pace setter, Mahmood Almad Al-Attar and Shaker Al-Hassan of UAE leading the Venezuela in second.

But the Americans picked up their pace with a sizzling 557 from Allen's 289 and Page's 268 allowing the pair to surge into the lead at the halfway point, 24 pins ahead of UAE. They lost the lead briefly to the Mahmood and Shaker with just 419 in the fourth game but ended in a flourish with 521 and 516.

The pair's total of 2857 allowed them to overtake Squad 1 leader, Choi Ki-Bong and Kim Tae-Young of Korea, who totaled 2715. Allen amassed a 6-game score of 1446 while Page contributed with 1411.

The Emiratis pair finished for second in the squad with 2683 and fell short of moving ahead of the Koreans to end up third overall after the completion of the two squads. England's Mike Quarry and Steve Thornton, who finished third in the squad, took fourth spot overall on 2680.

The third and final squad of the day will commence their block after lane maintenance with the final two squads scheduled for Saturday. The top 4 pairs after 5 squads have completed their event will advance into the elimination knockout finals.

Photos and story courtesy of Thai Tenpin Bowling Association.

22nd August, Bangkok: Asian Championship singles gold medalist, Choi Ki-Bong led his partner, Kim Tae-Young to give Korea a head start in the World Men's Championship 2008 by leading the Americans in the Doubles opening squad.

The 22-year-old Choi set a cracking pace with 264 in his opening game of Squad 1 as his older compatriot, Kim paced him with 224 giving the duo a 30-pin lead over hot favourites, Walter Ray Williams Jnr and top PBA bowler, Chris Barnes of the USA in second

The Koreans continued to set the pace but with Kim hitting a slight change in the lane condition in the third game with 168, the American pros were able to catch the pair and took over the lead at the halfway point but only by a slim margin of 2 pins.

While Choi and Kim recovered in the fourth game, it was Williams who ran into trouble with a 168 and 180 in the next two games to hand the

lead back to the Koreans. With Kim ending on a high with 266 and Choi 204, the duo ended the 6-game squad with a comfortable margin of 164 on a total of 2715.

"The lane condition for the third game was a lot different from the first two games and I struggled to find the line," said the 34-year-old Kim. "But I'm glad to finish off with 266 to cover my bad game.

"Winning the gold in the Asian Championship last month has given me a lot more confidence coming to this championship," said Choi, who is competing in the world championship for the first time. "I come here to do my best and I hope our scores here can win us a medal.

Choi amassed 1432 and Kim contributed with 1283 setting the benchmark for the other four squads. Wlilliams and Barnes settled for second with 2551 while Japan's Tomoyuki Sasaki and Yoshinao Masatoki finished third with 2538.

"I was in all sorts of problems in the fourth game and although my teammate, Chris (Barnes) bowled well, it wasn't enough to retain the lead," said Walter Ray Williams Jnr. "But it's great to be able to come here and bowl in the world championship as a professional.

"As a professional, it is difficult to be a work show and there are a lot of high expectations," said the PBA Bowler of the Year, Chris Barnes. "We didn't have the best of start but we'll go back and work on it and we're going to come back stronger in the next event.

The second squad will commence shortly with the third later today. The final two squads will be played on Saturday during which the top 4 pairs will advance into the elimination knockout finals.

Photos and story courtesy of Thai Tenpin Bowling Association.

21st August, Bangkok: Host nation, Thailand put up a mesmerizing opening show at S.F. Strike Bowl during the official opening ceremony at the World Men's Championship 2008 on Thursday evening.

The assembly of contingents started as soon as the last squad of official practice ended at 5.30pm as the distinquished guests started to arrive from 6.30pm. Two emcees kicked off the opening ceremony with a welcome message and invited the organizing chairman, to pay his respects to the King with a message 'Bowling With All Hearts To Love The King' on behalf of all present.

Flower girls from Prachanvet School paraded with the playing of the song 'Horm Rong' as 10 Armed Force Academy students paraded out. The Chairman then opened the cone to give his respect and lighting up the candles. The emcee then introduced the organizing committee headed by Thai Tenpin Bowling Association secretary general, Mrs Suwalai Satrulee.

The Police Cadet band then played the marching song as the Arm Force Academy students paraded each flag of the 57 participating countries. The ceremony followed with the march past of each of the country starting from Australia right up to a rousing applause of host, Thailand.

The president of Thai Tenpin Bowling Association, Mr Sompan Chalumilinda greeted the participants and officials and welcomed them to the championship. Mr Kevin Dornberger, president of the World Tenpin Bowling Association also gave encouraging messages to the participants and thanked TTBA as host for this year's event in his speech that followed.

Thai national bowler, Phoempun Yakasem and winner of two gold medals at last year's South East Asian Games took the athlete oath before the guest of honour, his honorable Weerasak Kohsurat, Minister of Tourism declared the championship officially open.

With the lights off and spotlights on, the guests, officials and participants were mesmerized with a superb opening show ever witnessed in the history of the world championships. Forty people from the Patravadee Theatre played the 'Klong Yao Sanun Lar' drums followed by the Traditional Thai Puppet show.

The opening ceremony ended with the cheer leaders and dancers from the Rungsit University to wishing all participants 'Good Luck For All Of You'. Guests and participants were invited to the welcome reception that followed after the ceremonies.

The championship will kickoff with the first of five squads of the Doubles event over two days. Three squads will be played on Friday

and two on Saturday. The top 4 will meet in the one-game elimination round to determine the winners. The losing semi-finalists will win one bronze medal each.

Photos and story courtesy of Thai Tenpin Bowling Association.

20th August, Bangkok: The professionals will take on the world's best amateurs as 333 participants and 66 officials gathered at S.F. Strike Bowl for the World Men's Championship 2008 which will kick off this Friday.

It has been on everyone's lips since the World Tenpin Bowling Congress approved professional bowlers to compete in WTBA sanctioned official championships beginning with the World Men's Championships from August 21 - 31 at S.F. Strike Bowl in Ngamwongwan.

The likes of Chris Barnes, Patrick Allen, Tommy Jones, Rhino Page and Walter Ray Williams Jr. will undoubtedly raise the game to a brand new level this year's championship.

They may be great and fantastic in the PBA winning countless titles amongst themselves but we have not seen them bowl in the Asian circuits. Can they adapt to the different environment and the occasionally, unpredictable lane conditions that exist in this part of the world?

Asia's mighty teams like Korea and Malaysia show great strength in team events because collectively, every bowler is strong across the board. That is probably why, for years, they have been dominant in the team event.

As far as equipment is concerned, the pros are never faced with shortage of bowling balls when competing in the PBA tours. Major equipment sponsors like Storm, Brunswick, Ebonite, Columbia, Track etc have truck loads of un-drilled bowling balls on standby just outside the centers for the pros to drill a ball that will fit the lane conditions.

In the WTBA sanctioned world championships, each player is only allowed to register three balls each. Most teams will bring along more than three balls for each player but they will have to decide which of the three they will use for the competition after official practices.

Lane conditions on the day will invariably change due to many factors such as weather conditions affecting air-conditioning at the center, crowd capacity and the pace of the game. Will the pros be able to adapt?

Meanwhile, the players were confirmed at the Team Managers' meeting held at Chaophya Park Hotel which lasted more than 3 hours. Mr Christer Jonsson, secretary general of the World Tenpin Bowling Association was present to welcome the team managers and coaches who attended the meeting.

Dr Danny Santos, the newly-elected Vice President of Asian Bowling Federation and WTBA appointed Chairman of Tournaments, chaired the meeting as the Tournament Manager. Also present was Mr Neil Stremmel, the Techical Delegate appointed by WTBA for the championship.

Apart from going through the tournament schedule, lane draws and bus schedules, the most critical topic raised were the different oiling patterns to be adopted for the Singles, Doubles, Trios, Team and the Masters finals.

Several countries raised objections to the differing formats used for the recent World Youth Championships in Orlando especially during the Masters finals. But the managers and coaches present requested assuarances from the tournament committee that once the championship commenced, the rules should be strictly adhered to rather than changing them to suit TV requirements.

Sweden put forward a proposal that the second block of the Trios and the Team events should consist of the top half of the field in the running for medals to bowl together. This would allow the teams to know exactly their position during the last game.

The rules as set out in the WTBA Presidium cannot be changed but the tournament committee will put forward this proposal to the presidium before allowing this majority request.

USA also suggested that instead of a 7-minute practice on a pair of lanes, 14 minutes should be provided and that after each 14-minute block, the teams would move four lanes across to the right. This was unanimously adopted.

France proposed that instead of oiling the odd lanes short oil and the even lanes long oil, it would be better to have it reversed as the right-handed bowlers would have more space on the odd lane approach without the ball return blocking them.

This was also unanmously adopted. Dr Santos and Mr Stremmel then confirmed that this oiling will apply for the Masters finals during the best-of-5 elimination round where the higher-seeded bowler would select the condition they wish to start with and that the bowler would bowl on a single lane.

Whatever the outcome, this year's championship promises to be a thriller and if the lane conditions are favorable, we might see records tumble and scores rocket through the roof of S.F. Strike Bowl.

Bowling fans will certainly look forward to this auspicious event with the likes of the pros gracing the lanes in Thailand. But be warned, it won't be a walkover...

Photos and story courtesy of Thai Tenpin Bowling Association.