onefrombills
08-16-2009, 06:54 PM
By PERRY A. FARRELL
FREE PRESS SPORTS WRITER
Norm Duke showed metro Detroit why he is a Hall of Famer.
Down, 1-0, in the best-of-seven Cheetah Championship at Thunderbowl on Thursday, Duke trailed lefty Ryan Ciminelli by 42 pins in the second game.
“How many pins?” Duke asked after the announcer blared his deficit. “That’s a lot.”
But Duke recovered and threw the next six strikes to win, 236-228. He then steamrolled Ciminelli, 257-213, 236-193 and 258-205, to claim the title, $25,000 and a one-year exemption on the PBA Tour. Duke, 45, is fifth on the all-time career list with 33 titles.
“The lanes are changing every shot we throw, so you try to keep up with it,” Duke said. “Sometimes you’re too slow; sometimes you’re too quick. You just can’t sit there on the same board throwing the same shot. I was a little slow at that point keeping up with the breakdown. I elected to keep my speed down a bit and stay behind the ball a little more.
“Honestly, when he announced that I was 42 down, I was embarrassed. I don’t care who it is, and I kind of got a charge out of that. Could you tell? That’s a momentum-changer right there, because if he goes up, 2-0, he’s the winner of this tournament more than likely.”
Ciminelli, 23, collected $13,000 for second place. He was dominant during the week and hadn’t lost at Thunderbowl, but was plagued by seven pins on Lane 9. He also was hampered by an untimely split to start the third game and one in the fourth.
“It was the same pair that I bowled the Friday night sweeper on, and in the semifinals, I caught that pair,” Ciminelli said.
“I tried to do everything I could to get rid of them (seven pins). When I broke off the four-bagger to start the second game, I knew he was going to strike out.”
Contact PERRY A. FARRELL: 313-222-2555 or pafarrell@freepress.com.
RECAP WHAT HAPPENED: Hall of Famer Norm Duke gained a one-year exemption and pocketed $25,000 by wining the best-of-seven match, 4-1, against 23-year-old Ryan Ciminelli of Buffalo, N.Y.
CLASSIC NORM: Duke was asked last week about spending a month in Michigan: “It will seem like Groundhog Day. We will wake up every day in the same place doing the same thing.”
HOW THEY GOT TO THE FINAL: Duke defeated Stevie Weber in the semifinals, 4-1 (247-234, 269-223, 226-236, 217-204 and 237-215). Ciminelli advanced by beating Derek Sapp, 4-1 (269-263, 258-238, 213-287, 255-190 and 209-206).
TWO CENTS WORTH: The Motor City Open will be taped at Thunderbowl on Sept. 5. Chris Barnes, who finished second in qualifying at Taylor Lanes, has an automatic spot in the semifinals, but at a different house.
“As far as having the advantage of being the top qualifier. … Some of that has gone,” Barnes said. “You will want to be 1 against 2 when you’re bowling the best players.” Walter Ray Williams Jr. qualified first for the Motor City Open, beating Barnes in the last position round.
FREE PRESS SPORTS WRITER
Norm Duke showed metro Detroit why he is a Hall of Famer.
Down, 1-0, in the best-of-seven Cheetah Championship at Thunderbowl on Thursday, Duke trailed lefty Ryan Ciminelli by 42 pins in the second game.
“How many pins?” Duke asked after the announcer blared his deficit. “That’s a lot.”
But Duke recovered and threw the next six strikes to win, 236-228. He then steamrolled Ciminelli, 257-213, 236-193 and 258-205, to claim the title, $25,000 and a one-year exemption on the PBA Tour. Duke, 45, is fifth on the all-time career list with 33 titles.
“The lanes are changing every shot we throw, so you try to keep up with it,” Duke said. “Sometimes you’re too slow; sometimes you’re too quick. You just can’t sit there on the same board throwing the same shot. I was a little slow at that point keeping up with the breakdown. I elected to keep my speed down a bit and stay behind the ball a little more.
“Honestly, when he announced that I was 42 down, I was embarrassed. I don’t care who it is, and I kind of got a charge out of that. Could you tell? That’s a momentum-changer right there, because if he goes up, 2-0, he’s the winner of this tournament more than likely.”
Ciminelli, 23, collected $13,000 for second place. He was dominant during the week and hadn’t lost at Thunderbowl, but was plagued by seven pins on Lane 9. He also was hampered by an untimely split to start the third game and one in the fourth.
“It was the same pair that I bowled the Friday night sweeper on, and in the semifinals, I caught that pair,” Ciminelli said.
“I tried to do everything I could to get rid of them (seven pins). When I broke off the four-bagger to start the second game, I knew he was going to strike out.”
Contact PERRY A. FARRELL: 313-222-2555 or pafarrell@freepress.com.
RECAP WHAT HAPPENED: Hall of Famer Norm Duke gained a one-year exemption and pocketed $25,000 by wining the best-of-seven match, 4-1, against 23-year-old Ryan Ciminelli of Buffalo, N.Y.
CLASSIC NORM: Duke was asked last week about spending a month in Michigan: “It will seem like Groundhog Day. We will wake up every day in the same place doing the same thing.”
HOW THEY GOT TO THE FINAL: Duke defeated Stevie Weber in the semifinals, 4-1 (247-234, 269-223, 226-236, 217-204 and 237-215). Ciminelli advanced by beating Derek Sapp, 4-1 (269-263, 258-238, 213-287, 255-190 and 209-206).
TWO CENTS WORTH: The Motor City Open will be taped at Thunderbowl on Sept. 5. Chris Barnes, who finished second in qualifying at Taylor Lanes, has an automatic spot in the semifinals, but at a different house.
“As far as having the advantage of being the top qualifier. … Some of that has gone,” Barnes said. “You will want to be 1 against 2 when you’re bowling the best players.” Walter Ray Williams Jr. qualified first for the Motor City Open, beating Barnes in the last position round.