Scratch Champion, Don Hicks
April 11, 2010
East Meadow, NY: The LIGBT, sponsored by Columbia 300, returned to AMF East Meadow and 134 bowlers jammed the center on a beautiful day. Don Hicks, of W. Babylon, NY, won his first LIGBT Scratch Title and its $1,000 top prize. Winning his first Handicap LIGBT trophy was David Reed of Shoreham, NY who earned $500.
The scoring environment at AMF East Meadow was very tough as the PBA Chameleon Pattern was used. Accuracy was at a premium and spare making key all day. It only took a 196 average to make the finals in the 49 & under division and a 189 average in the senior division. Although challenging, it was refreshing to see lower scores with 220 games winning most game pots!
It was just a matter of time before Don Hicks won an LIGBT title. He has made the finals many times but at East Meadow he finally broke through and took home the trophy and the big money. But Don’s victory didn’t come easy as the final shootout ended in a 204 tie with high qualifier Jim Wallace, Hicksville, NY (926). It took two 9/10th frame rolloffs to break the tie but a nasty 7-10 blowout split ended Jim’s bid for his first LIGBT title. Jim earned $550 for second and Chun Bae of Cedarhurst, NY finished third (198) and won $300.
The 210 and under handicap event had another great turnout of 82 bowlers with the top 20 advancing to the finals. It took a 626 series, including handicap and bonus pins to advance. All finalists were guaranteed a minimum of $100, $40 more than the $60 entry fee.
David Reed’s road to the finals started with a 650 qualifying series which put him in 7th place. In the finals David almost got eliminated in Round 2 as he rolled a 199 handicap game which was the cut. He also was the cut score in Round 3 with a 218 handicap game.
But in the Shootout David took control early and shot a 220 (198 scratch) to defeated his nearest competitor by 23 pins. Finishing second was Jose Torres of Brooklyn who doesn’t put fingers in the ball. Jose shot a 197 and earned $300. Finishing third was Alex Ware of Brooklyn who bowled well all day and earned $250.
The LIGBT’s next event will be on Sunday, April 25
th at AMF Commack (1pm start). For more information on the LIGBT, and complete results of the AMF East Meadow event, please visit our website at
www.ligbtour.com or call the tournament office at 1.877.900.6464.