LORAIN — Charles (Butch) Ferrell was hoping his fairy-tale week would end — and begin — with happy endings.
Michael Haggitt could do nothing to ruin Ferrell’s big upcoming weekend. But he did put a damper on the start of the big week.
For the second time in less than a year, Haggitt stopped Ferrell’s hopes of earning his first Professional Bowlers Association Senior title with a 249-193 win Sunday during the final match of the PBA50 Ohio Lottery/Baldo Campana & Dave D’Entremont Memorial Central Open at Rebman Recreation.
In a September 2022 event at Triway Lanes in Wooster, Ferrell, who was the qualifying leader, fell to Haggitt 235-193 during the stepladder finals to finish fourth in just his second PBA50 tourney. Carry was a problem for the former last time; it happened again this time.
“It’s funny because Michael came up to me and asked if it was the second time I finished second,” Ferrell said. “I told him he beat me in the three-four match last time, that he lost to (Jeff) Johnson in the semifinals. He said, ‘don’t remind me.’ ”
HAGGITT’S RUN
Haggitt, a 53-year-old Springfield left-hander, fell to Johnson 231-226 at Triway in the latter’s run to the title. This time, with a different format, the industrial specialist for a defense contractor at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base went 6-0 through four total matches, sweeping two best-of-three matchups before single-game victories the final two.
It was his fifth overall title, with his first coming during this same tournament in 2021.
“The last time, it was a round-robin total pins format,” Haggitt said. “I don’t mind this format. Sometimes you get the better end of it and sometimes you don’t. The guys getting two byes at the beginning seem to be losing when they come back out after sitting the longest.
“Being the top seed doesn’t necessarily favor you in this format.”
That was proved Sunday as three of the top four seeds after Saturday’s eight-game qualifier fell in their opening matches after receiving byes into the quarterfinals. Ferrell, the No. 4 seed, was the lone survivor.
Haggitt, who was the No. 6 seed, was on the outside looking in Saturday until shooting 250 in Game 7.
“I had dropped to 14th, but was able to shoot that big game in Game 7 and then 220 in the last game to stay up there,” Haggitt said.
By being sixth, Haggitt had a bye in the first round of match play involving seeds 9 through 16 before facing tournament host Rick Zakrajsek in the next round, sweeping by the Lorain right-hander by shooting 244 and 228.
Next up was No. 3 seed Dean Billings. Again, Haggitt swept through with 226 and 257 to Billings’ 192-203.
“During qualifying I was playing closer to the second arrow. (Sunday) I wasn’t sure how it was going to be. I resurfaced a couple of balls and it opened up more on the outside,” said Haggitt, who used a combination of the Hammer Purple and Brunswick Attitude Control urethanes around the first and second boards Sunday.
“With the Hammer, I was able to use the gutter as the gutter. Speed was important to get the corners out.”
In his semifinal match against No. 7 seed John Shreve, Haggitt doubled before missing a 7-pin spare in the third frame. He then struck on six of his next eight shots, including five in a row, to stop Shreve 236-218.
Carry was the problem for Shreve, who left three 10-pins and an 8-pin before finishing with five in a row to fall short.
FERRELL’S CHARGE
Meanwhile, Ferrell, who used just his Storm IQ Nano all weekend, watched the first two rounds before finally hitting the lanes against No. 5 seed Robert Manning in the quarterfinals, shooting 235-220 to Manning’s 205-172 for the win.
The semifinal match came down to the 10th frame against No. 9 seed Chuck Lupica III, who earned a spot in the event through a pre-tournament qualifier.
Lupica started with six straight strikes, but left an 8-10 split in the ninth frame. Ferrell was able to string four strikes from the eighth into the 10th frame.
Needing a double to stay alive against Ferrell in the 10th, Lupica left a 7-pin on his first shot to fall short.
“I really thought I was in big trouble there,” Ferrell said. “Luckily, I struck out and he left a swishing 7-pin on that first ball in the 10th. He had been carrying that early in the match.”
TITLE MATCH
Then in the title match, Haggitt left 3-pin and 10-pin spares in the first and third frames, but ran off six straight strikes while Ferrell, after striking in the first, left a 4-6-7 split in the second after sticking on the approach at the line.
“I just ran into a speeding train. He just mashed everything after that first ball, so what are you going to do?” Ferrell said. “I wasn’t nervous or anything. It just didn’t go my way.
“Someday, hopefully, it will.”
After a double following the split, Ferrell left 4-, 8- and 10-pin spares — all on the right lane — and struck just two more times in the match.
“Sticking at the line didn’t bother me. I stuck in practice on that same lane and straddled the gutter,” Ferrell said. “I pretty much lost it in the second frame with that split. Technically, I could have gotten to 268 going all the way out. I just had no luck on the right lane to make him work for it. When he’s relaxed like that there’s not much I can do … he’s won five times out here.
“I just wish I had the same kind of look.”
Ferrell was hoping for his first PBA win in his sixth overall appearance just five days before marrying his fiancee, Katlyn, on May 19. The couple welcomed twin sons into the world in December. All three were there Sunday.
“I’ll take the second-place finish. You have to start somewhere,” Ferrell, a truck driver, said. “I’m bowling as many of these as I can get to. My soon-to-be-wife is supportive of this, even though she admits she gets bored sometimes.
“But she sees the bigger picture, that I’m trying to do something that I love to do. Driving a truck does take its toll on my body, but I’ve adjusted.”
As for Haggitt, it’s back home now in the mobile home he uses to travel to events (he plans on doing the entire PBA50 Tour this season) with his wife and dogs.
“I’ll be home for a couple of weeks then we’ll go by car to Reno (USBC Open Championships) and on to the Masters (Las Vegas),” said Haggitt, who earned $1,600 with the win.
Getting a victory to kick off the PBA50 Tour season doesn’t hurt.
“It feels fantastic,”Haggitt said. “You never know when you’re going to get another one, especially coming back here where it all started. That’s really nice.”
NOTEBOOK: The PBA50 version of the two-tourney weekend drew 58 entries. … Zakrajsek said that 44 players advanced to both the PBA and PBA50 fields through pre-tournament qualifiers, including nine in the regular event and five among the seniors. Four of the five cashes among the top 21 in the senior event, led by Lupica, including the final three senior cash spots. … Haggitt leads the Central Region in points and earnings and has cashed in six of his seven events after claiming the 2022 points title with eight cashes in 11 events. … Wadsworth’s Dale Csuhta, the top qualifier with 1,906 total pinfall, fell in his opening match to Lupica 2-1, as the former had 179-224-207 to Lupica’s 238-221-256. Also falling was North Olmsted No. 2 seed Mike Clark Jr. to Shreve 2-1, as the latter won Game 3 244-196. … The cut to the top 16 was 1,689, with the final cash spot being 1,664. … The oil pattern was the Monacelli 40 oil pattern. All matches Sunday were bowled on fresh oil, with the first three rounds being best-of-three matches, and the semifinals and finals being one-game elimination. .. Shreve had the high match-play game of 258 in Game 2 against Clark. … Ferrell’s fiancee also has a pair of 800 series to her credit and is employed by the Ohio State Auditor’s Office. … First-time winner Brent Boho won the regular PBA Central event Saturday. … The next PBA50 Central Region event is a one-day non-winners event June 9-10 in Jackson, Mich.
See complete final standings here: