By BILL SNIER
FAIRLAWN — EJ Tackett in the only one of Sunday’s five finalists to have a PBA Tournament of Champions title on his résume.
But the 31 year-old Bluffton, Ind., right-hander admits a win in 2017 in Owasso, Okla., would be eclipsed by a victory Sunday at historic AMF Riviera Lanes.
“It would be just unbelievable,” said Tackett, the No. 2 seed for the 1 p.m. finals which will air live on FOX. “It’s really unbelievable that they still have the same wood approaches in here even though the lanes are different.
“These are literally the lanes Don Johnson, Don Carter, Carmen (Salvino) walked on. Then you go to (Mark) Roth, (Marshall) Holman, Walter Ray (Williams), Norm (Duke), Pete (Weber) and Belmo (Jason Belmonte) … they walked on these exact lanes.
“It’s just so cool to be here with all the history.”
Las Vegas two-handed righty Anthony Simonsen will be the No. 1 seed for Sunday’s finals along with No. 3 Matt Ogle, a 39-year-old Louisville, Ky., right-hander; No. 4 Doug Kent, a 31-year-old Clarkston, Mich., right-hander; and Jason Sterner, a 40-year-old Rochester, N.Y., right-hander. All four are seeking their first TOC title while the latter three are looking for their first major title.
The sign that has hung over the main entrance since the Tournament of Champions made its debut under Firestone Tire and Rubber Co. sponsorship in the 1960s remains, albeit restored from the original:
“Through these doors pass the world’s finest bowlers.”
“Everyone in this field has to be a PBA champion … own a PBA title,” said Simonsen, who owns three USBC Masters among his five major titles. “It’s just a special feeling when you walk through those doors and see that sign above them.”
Tackett, a known history buff on the PBA Tour, likens Riviera to Woodland Bowl in Indianapolis, a historic site for the U.S. Open.
“If I win Sunday it will be one of my coolest wins ever just because of these four walls,” Tackett said. “It’s just like Woodland Bowl. They have all those banners there and I have one of them. I have a TOC title, but it’s not the same as winning at Riviera.”
The former banners that in earlier years hung on light posts around Fairlawn, with the names of past champions on red, white and blue shields similar to designs used by the All-American Soap Box Derby, still hang inside the center for the TOC.
“I hope I can have one of those come Sunday,” Tackett said.
Ogle, along with Simonsen, Tackett and Sterner, is making his second straight appearance in the TOC stepladder finals at Riviera.
“I don’t know why I match up here. I like my ball roll and I like bowling here,” Ogle said. “I know I can bowl with these guys even though I’m 15 years older than some of them. I don’t know how long I’m going to be here so I’m just trying to do the best that I can.”
Kent still was trying to determine what a TOC win would mean to him Thursday night.
“I really can’t put it into words right now,” Ogle said. “I’m just worried about getting through my first match. My ball reaction on the fresh has not been very good. I’ll just have to figure it out when I get there.
“Luckily, I’m able to draw on my experience in this building and be patient enough to keep an open mind.”
Sterner, whose wife, Heather, is due to deliver their first child July 2, said a major is one thing he doesn’t have on his résume.
“Dude, it’s one thing I would love to have, and in this house would be special,” Sterner said. “All the hard work to hold it together one time … even if I don’t have another win, this would be the one. Every year, I’m getting a little closer.”
It is a different center now than the past.
“The two ends are different, the typography of the lanes is wonky in some places and the pattern, with all the extra urethane going down the lanes, make it much harder,” Sterner said. “The best case scenario is pocket control and trying to squeeze out a few doubles each game.”
Tackett, who has made eight finals in 13 events this season with two titles — including last week’s PBA World Championship — agrees.
“There’s times when 230 might be a good game, but there are times when 230 is losing every match. I’m not sure what we’re going to get Sunday,” Tackett said. “You either have to strike or manage the pocket.
“That’s what Belmo did when he won last year. He managed the pocket real well and made his opponents beat him, which they weren’t able to do.”
With four players seeking TOC wins and Tackett, who lost to Belmonte 246 to 179 as the latter claimed his record fourth TOC title, continuing his march toward his second consecutive Player of the Year honors, more history will be made Sunday at Riviera.