By BILL SNIER
FAIRLAWN — Going into the final two games of Monday’s PBA Tournament of Champions pre-tournament qualifier, Casey Cohagan was right on the cut line.
Did he know where he stood going into the final game, when he had moved up to sixth in the 40-player field?
“Oh, God, no. I was just tying to figure out how to get my ball to see the lanes the right way,” said the 28-year-old former Notre Dame College player and Fairport Harbor right-hander.
Cohagan went on to throw 244 that final game, including striking out in the 10th frame, to finish sixth overall and earn a spot in this Tournament of Champions at AMF Riviera Lanes.
The tournament will open at 10 a.m. Tuesday with the 64-player field rolling six qualifying games on the 2025 PBA Don Johnson 40 oil pattern.
Only PBA Tour champions are eligible for the field. The PTQ was made up of players who have won regional titles. No non-winners were allowed.
Nine players advanced out of the seven-game PTQ, with 30-year-old Inver Grove Heights, Minn., right-hander Nicholas Pate leading the way with 1,660 on the PBA 2025 Hardwick 44 oil pattern, an average of 237.14.
“All of the players in this PTQ have regional titles so this is one of the tougher ones,” said Pate, a five-time Team USA player who owns four regional titles. “I came in with the attitude that if it happens, it happens. I’ve been bowling well recently so I felt this was a year to come out and try.”
It marked the Pate’s fourth straight PTQ appearance at AMF Riviera and sixth overall in the TOC. He has made the field twice.
“This place usually has my number, except for this week,” Pate said. “The pattern was a little longer so I was able to use my hold left earlier. Then, it started to hook a bit and I was able to bring the break point in and just got to roll it.
“I also got some good breaks, but that’s what it takes to do this. You have to have good ball motion and dealing with the transitions are very difficult in this center.”
Others advancing out of the PTQ were Matt Zweig (1,601), Dallas Leong (1,590), Bailey Mavrick (1,589), Justin Knowles (1,578), Nate Purches (1,549), Nathan Bohr (1,540) and Zach Weidman (1,540), who earned the final spot by just four pins over Brian Robinson and six pins over Westerville’s Zeke Bayt.
Pate shot 746 over his final four games to maintain the top spot he took over in Game 2 after starting with 491.
“The low end hooks more, but that was expected. With me being here the last few years, you learn how the place plays,” Pate said. “I was ready for just about anything.”
Cohagan, a residential commercial painter by trade, shot 253 in Game 3 to jump into the cut, but fell one pin out after Game 4 when he shot 193. He finished shooting 687 over his final three games to earn the spot..
“The last two games transition wise I was fighting the over-under and then trying to force it toward the spot. That just made my shots worse,” said Cohagan, whose lone regional title came in November in Jackson, Mich. He also won the Youngstown Masters earlier this year in Struthers.
“The last two games, I was just trying to get the ball off my hand and see the lanes the right way.”
Cohagan had confined himself to bowling area regional events until becoming a PBA member earlier this season.
“It just feels like a big old weight has been lifted off my shoulders considering I’m just way to hard on myself,” said Cohagan, who was 19th on the PBA Central Region points list in 2024 with six appearances and the one title.
“There are only a certain amount of stops I can do this so when I miss by very little, it’s a kick in the head that you’re this close and you’re beating yourself out of it.”
Pate, who has been dealing with some tendinitis in his right arm, said he would be icing his wrist and forearm before today’s opening round.
“We all know they are going to be tough, so we’ll see,” Pate said.
As for Cohagan, he is hoping to eventually turn this fortunate event into a full-time PBA career.
“I just have to take advantage of an opportunity I wasn’t supposed to have 24 hours ago,” Cohagan said.
LOOKING TO POSTSEASON
In addition to a major title and $100,000 for the winner, players also are looking toward the postseason as the TOC ends regular-season Tour play.
The top 12 players in this season’s points and the top eight players across the last two seasons will qualify for the PBA Playoffs and PBA Tour Finals, respectively.
Both Ethan Fiore and Ryan Barnes, who finished first and second in the PBA Players Championship, elevated themselves into the PBA Playoffs picture. They rank seventh and eighth in points, respectively, entering the TOC. But Barnes was ineligible to participate this week as a non-champion.
EJ Tackett, Andrew Anderson, Tim Foy Jr., Jason Belmonte, Chris Via, Graham Fach, Fiore, Barnes, Anthony Simonsen, Kyle Troup, Matt Ogle and Bill O’Neill occupy the current playoff berths. Foy was unable to advance out of the PTQ, finishing 12th and missing the cut by 14 pins.
O’Neill holds the coveted 12th position by a mere 28 points over Boog Krol, who is followed by Jakob Butturff, Tomas Käyhkö, Kevin McCune, Jesper Svensson and Kris Prather.
With 5,000 points awarded to the TOC champion and the top 15 positions each earning more than 1,000 points, the opportunity to rise up the leaderboard is available.
Despite is struggles in 2025, defending TOC champion Marshall Kent is in a strong position to qualify for the PBA Tour Finals, an event in which he finished second to Simonsen a year ago.
Tackett, Simonsen, Belmonte, O’Neill, Troup, Anderson, Kent and Via make up the current field for the PBA Tour Finals.
Graham Fach, Krol, Svensson, Ogle, Zach Wilkins, Tom Smallwood, Foy and Matt Russo are the first eight players outside the number.
NOTEBOOK: Among area players missing the cut out of the PTQ were Dean Vargo, Ryan Liederbach, Patrick Dombrowski and Joe Bailey. Sean Lavery-Spahr withdrew due to injury after four games and Arturo Quintero also withdrew after six games. … Tackett could become the second player to win three major championships in a single season, a feat only achieved by Belmonte in 2017. A major title would be the eighth of Tackett’s career, tying him with Walter Ray Williams Jr. and Mike Aulby for fourth all-time. The 32-year-old is averaging 229.42 on the season and is on pace to break the single season average record, held by Jason Belmonte with 229.39 in 2017. He has yet to win the TOC since it returned to Fairlawn in 2018, reaching the stepladder finals three times, including the past two years. … Simonsen, Matt Ogle and Jason Sterner have reached the finals the past two years, but were unable to win a match. Belmonte (2023) and Kent climbed the ladder to win on both occasions. … There are 18 qualifying games before the field is cut to the top 24 for round-robin match play. As with the Players Championship, this event has two stepladder finals, with places five through nine bowling the first one at 5 p.m. Saturday and the winner joining the top four seeds for Sunday’s 3 p.m. finals. Go to https://vivenu.com/seller/professional-bowlers-association-eyvv for ticket information. … Another highlight will be the PBA Hall of Fame Induction Ceremonies, set for Friday, with Bill O’Neill, Sean Rash, George Branham III and Dave Schroeder being inducted. The ceremony will be free to watch on BowlTV.
Tournament schedule
Tuesday, April 15 | BowlTV
11 a.m. — Qualifying Round 1 (six games)
6 p.m. — Qualifying Round 2 (six games)
Wednesday, April 16 | BowlTV
11 a.m. — Qualifying Round 3 (six games)
Top 24 players advance to round-robin match play
6 p.m. — Match Play Round 1 (eight games)
Thursday, April 17 | BowlTV
11 a.m. — Match Play Round 2 (eight games)
6 p.m. — Match Play Round 3 (eight games)
Top nine players advance to stepladder finals
5th-9th qualifiers players advance to prelims; 1st-4th qualifiers advance to championship round
Friday, April 18 | BowlTV
5 p.m. — PBA Class of 2025 Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony
Saturday, April 19 | FS1
5 p.m. — Prelims Round (stepladder finals)
Winner advances to finals
Sunday, April 20 | FOX
3 p.m. — Championship Round (stepladder finals)