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SBA heads back to Citrus County

By DEREK LARIVIERE
Published March 23, 2007

The Senior Bowlers of America are returning to Citrus County again on March 31. Neffer's Bowl in Homosassa will host the tour as it does multiple times annually.

The last SBA tournament to grace the lanes at Neffer's featured George White's first SBA victory last October.

Expected to be on hand for this upcoming installment is all-time SBA wins leader Lenny Biondi. Biondi has 14 tournament titles on tour. It is unknown if the second-most successful bowler in tour history will be on hand, but Pete Couture (13 titles) did win this month on March 10 at AMF Longwood Lanes.

The tournament at Neffer's will start at 1 p.m. with sign-ups until 12:30 a.m. The event is formatted for scratch bowling and a six-game qualifying opening round.

Depending on the number of entries, the design of the finals will be different. If the number of total entries is less than 29, eight bowlers will advance and vie for the title. For a field of 30-plus bowlers, 10 will advance and compete for the crown.

General manager Steve McCullough expressed his pleasure in the center's ability to host yet another tournament from the SBA.

"What we've tried to do (at Neffer's) is make it the best possible experience for any bowler to come in here and enjoy themselves, whether it's our regular house bowlers or outside, top-level bowlers that come for tournaments," said McCullough. "These tournaments give us the opportunity to get experience beyond what we see in normal league play."

The most recent SBA appearance on the North Suncoast came last month in Pasco County at Hudson Bowl. Coincidentally, former Neffer's owner Steve Neff walked away with that crown, his first SBA title. Neff has competed on the circuit for a few years but had yet to win until last month.

HOVER'S BIG WEEK: Although his best series was only a 684 in the Winter Rollers League at Neffer's, Dick Hover was able to put up two big-time scratch games over the course of last week's action.

Hover, a highly respected regular at the center, tossed a 278 on Tuesday during the Winter Rollers and followed that the next night during the Wednesday Night Men's League with a 279 high game. The two efforts were third and fourth on the county's leaderboard for the week.

Scores

High Scratch Series (Male)

Joey Monday, 709, Wednesday Night Men, Neffer's Bowl

David Mann, 704, Monday Night Turnovers, Manatee Lanes

Bobby Kempton, 697, Wednesday Night Men, Neffer's Bowl

Mark Wallen, 693, Wednesday Night Men, Neffer's Bowl

Rich Soletto, 690, Late Starters, Parkview Lanes

High Scratch Series (Female)

Fran Barlow, 654, Ladies Classic, Parkview Lanes

Sandy LePree, 607, Ladies Classic, Parkview Lanes

Dorine Fugere, 603, Monday Special, Parkview Lanes

Renee Smith, 594, Monday Special, Parkview Lanes

Kim Mullis, 588, Suncoast Mixed, Neffer's Bowl

High Scratch Game (Male)

David Mann, 289, Monday Night Turnovers, Manatee Lanes

Steve McCullough, 286, Suncoast Mixed, Neffer's Bowl

Dick Hover, 279, Wednesday Night Men, Neffer's Bowl

Dick Hover, 278, Winter Rollers, Neffer's Bowl

Bobby Kempton, 269, Wednesday Night Men, Neffer's Bowl

High Scratch Game (Female)

Renee Smith, 233, Monday Special, Parkview Lanes

Fran Barlow, 226, Ladies Classic, Parkview Lanes

Lisa Morgan, 224, Ladies Classic, Parkview Lanes

Jackie Stolp, 223, Crystal Manatee, Manatee Lanes

Kim Mullis, 222, Suncoast Mixed, Neffer's Bowl

[Last modified March 22, 2007, 22:43:40]