AKRON — On two occasions during Sunday’s Spins Bowl Akron singles sweeper, Joe Bailey had every reason to think he was going home early.
In his opening match against No. 3 seed Scott McIntire, the 40-year-old Doylestown right-hander left a pair of splits en route to a 196. McIntire, with a chance to win in the 10th frame on a double, left a solid 7-pin on his second ball for 192 to fall short.
Then, in the semifinals against No. 2 seed Jason Waters, Bailey’s poor shot in the 10th frame that resulted in an open gave his opponent a chance. But Waters, again on a double, went high on his second ball in the 10th and fell 244-233.
But Bailey made a ball change and found his groove in the title match, defeating Frank Testa 245-225 to claim the win at Spins Bowl Akron.
“Apparently, I can get all the breaks in the world when I’m bowling for $300, but in the bigger tournaments, it seems to go the other way,” said Bailey, a stay-at-home dad for his 2-year-old son, reacting to his recent run of bad luck in bigger events,
“I mean, I feel like I was very fortunate because I don’t feel like I bowled very well. But I haven’t been bowling a lot so I really wasn’t expecting a lot.”
In his opening match, Bailey left 2-4-10 and 2-10 splits in the third and seventh frames, respectively against McIntire, a 40-year-old Parma right-hander. But the latter failed to convert a 1-2-8 spare in the eighth and then left the 7-pin in the 10th to come up short.
In the semifinals of the four-man stepladder finals, Bailey struck on eight of his first nine shots, but failed to convert a 1-2-4 spare in the 10th frame.
“I knew I needed to change balls toward the end of that game even though I was striking,” said Bailey, who won $370. “I just couldn’t do it, forced the shot in the 10th, went around it and went right through it.
“I thought I was done, but you never know in this game.”
Waters, a 38-year-old Macedonia right-hander, missed a 10-pin spare in the first frame, but then struck on seven of his next nine shots. But needing a double in the 10th frame to advance, he came up high and left a 6-9 spare to also fall short.
That brought on Testa, a 40-year-old Massillon right-hander and operator of Ten Back Pro Shop at Park Centre Lanes, who was the No. 1 seed.
After a strike in the first, Testa left a 6-7-10 split in the second frame while Bailey, who made a ball change to the Motiv Sky Raptor, struck on his first three shots before leaving a 9-pin in the fourth to take the lead.
Testa, using an Ebonite One Remix along with the Columbia Cuda during the event, also left a 2-4 spare in the fifth frame and a 7-pin in the eighth.
“The split in the second frame was baffling to say the least,” said Testa of the pocket hit. “It hit the pocket flush. That kind of throws you for bit of a loop. I felt overall I made one error on the light hit in fifth, but every other shot was dead flush.
“The left lane bit me with that weird hit in the second and in the eighth. I felt like I bowled the better game, but in this sport it’s not about who bowls the better game, but who scores the most.”
Bailey struck on five of his last seven shots, including four in a row into the 10th frame, to claim the win.
With taking care of his son and battling COVID-19 earlier this year, Bailey admits bowling has taken a back seat.
“There’s been a couple of other things,” Bailey said. “But hopefully, getting some breaks tonight will roll over moving forward. That would be a nice change.”
NOTEBOOK: The sweeper drew 25 bowlers. … The cut for the top four was at 1,141 (228.2 average) total pinfall for five games. Rob Sample missed the cut by just nine pins after shooting 204 his final game to earn one of the two remaining cash spots. The other went to Vincent Ludwig, who finished with 1,127. … Waters shot the event’s lone 300 in Game 2 on the house oil pattern. … Testa led the event with 1,238 (247.6 average). … The next sweeper event will be doubles in October with a date to be announced.
SPINS BOWL AKRON SINGLES SWEEPER
Championship finals
Match 1: Joe Bailey d. Scott McIntire 196-192. McIntire wins $90.
Match 2: Bailey d. Jason Waters 244-233. Waters wins $140.
Championship: Bailey d. Frank Testa 245-225. Bailey wins $370; Testa wins $180.
Other cashers
(With five-game totals)
5, Rob Sample 1,132, $70 earnings; 6, Vincent Ludwig 1,127, $60.