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duke and malott team up for doubles championship
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sunday, 3.1.2015 |
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wes malott (l) and norm duke (r) accept the trophies from tournament namesakes marshall holman (2nd from left) and mark roth (2nd from right) (photo courtesy pba llc)
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indianapolis 锟?professional bowlers association hall of famer norm duke of clermont, fla., with the help of partner wes malott of pflugerville, texas, successfully defended their mark roth/marshall holman pba doubles championship at woodland bowl, giving duke his 38th career title and sole possession of third place on the all-time pba titles list.
duke, who stands 5-foot-6 and weighs 128 pounds, teamed up with malott, at 6-foot-4, 250 pounds, to defeat international stars dom barrett of england and osku palermaa of finland, 228-203, for a victory that also gave malott 10 career titles and eligibility for future pba hall of fame consideration.
the 2011 roth-holman doubles champions entered the finals as top qualifiers, and they bowled a game that was four single-pin spares away from perfection despite their contrasting physiques and bowling styles. duke played a relatively straight line up the outside of the right lane, leaving and converting three of the four single-pin spares, but never missing the pocket. malott played an inside angle on the left lane with his power game, striking on six of his seven shots.
锟給n day one in milwaukee (where qualifying rounds for the doubles event took place two weeks earlier), there was so much traffic i had to play straight,锟?duke said. 锟絠 couldn锟絫 go around (the big-hook players), but the shot i found looked great and i told myself to remember that, because i figured that锟絪 what we would face in the tv finals if we got that far, and that锟絪 exactly what happened.锟?
malott followed duke锟絪 lead.
锟絯e discussed the situation and decided i锟絛 finish the game on the left lane, where i could stand far to the left on the approach and wouldn锟絫 have to deal with the ball return,锟?malott said. 锟絯e had to let the conditions develop, but norm was okay on the right lane, and i was okay on the left. norm told me some past history about leaving single pins on the right lane and i wanted to make sure he remembered what he told me.锟?
as predicted, duke left back-to-back single pins in his first two frames of the baker-format contest. he said he was contemplating a ball change in hopes of striking, but malott talked him out of it.
锟絯es told me to just live with it,锟?duke said. 锟絟e told me, stick with the plan. we got a couple more nine-counts, but he just sat on that left lane and pounded the pocket. that锟絪 the reason we worked together so well. he believed in me and i believed in him, and it worked.锟?
while breaking his tie with pete weber for third place on the pba career titles list (behind walter ray williams jr. with 47 and earl anthony with 43) was memorable, duke was subdued about the accomplishment.
锟絠 don锟絫 think anyone believes pete is done winning titles,锟?the 50-year-old duke said. 锟絠 don锟絫 like to think that i锟絤 done, either. this is part of a process in building a career. i锟絤 glad to be part of helping wes build with his career, and i锟絤 certainly glad he锟絪 helping with mine, because without him, i锟絤 probably still chasing pete. but to be ahead of pete for even one day is a remarkable achievement, and something i truly value.锟?
malott, 38, felt the same about winning his 10th title, which will earn him a spot on the pba hall of fame ballot in seven years, when he competes in his 20th year of membership.
锟絯inning the doubles title in 2011 after struggling for a couple of years after i won player of the year for the 2008-09 season kind of kick-started me again,锟?malott said. 锟絯inning my 10th title and being eligible for the hall of fame someday is a huge honor, but i really don锟絫 think it锟絣l set in until that day that it锟絪 announced i锟絤 going to be put into the hall of fame. i锟絤 very proud and humbled by what i锟絭e been able to accomplish, but right now it锟絪 mind-boggling to me.锟?
barrett and palermaa 锟?the 2013 and 2010 pba world championship winners respectively 锟?defeated dj archer of friendswood, texas, and two-hander shawn maldonado of houston, texas, 237-179, in the opening stepladder match, spoiling maldonado锟絪 television debut and bid for his first title. in the second match, the finnish two-handed player and his english partner took advantage of back-to-back splits by australian two-handed star jason belmonte and partner bill o锟絥eill of langhorne, pa., to win 178-168.
barrett and palermaa started the semifinal match with six consecutive strikes and took advantage of back-to-back open frames by tom daugherty of tampa, fla., and partner dino castillo of carrollton, texas, to post a 220-201 victory and a berth in the title match.
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final standings: 1, norm duke, clermont, fla./wes malott, pflugerville, texas, $22,000. 2, dom barrett, england/osku palermaa, finland, $12,000. 3, tom daugherty, tampa, fla./dino castillo, carrollton, texas, $10,000. 4, jason belmonte, australia/bill o锟絥eill, langhorne, pa., $9,000. 5, dj archer, friendswood, texas/shawn maldonado, houston, texas, $8,000.
stepladder results: match one 锟?barrett/palermaa def. archer/maldonado, 237-179. match two 锟?barrett/palermaa def. belmonte/o锟絥eill, 178-168. semifinal match 锟?barrett/palermaa def. daugherty/castillo, 220-201. championship 锟?duke/malott def. barrett, palermaa, 228-203.
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