He Needed Seven Pins to Win, but Winds Up a Loser in Gutter
Del Ballard Jr., needing only seven pins, rolled a gutter ball on his final shot Saturday to lose the Fair Lanes Open to Pete Weber in one of the most bizarre finishes in Professional Bowlers Assn. history.
“I could have thrown it down the middle and hoped for seven,” Ballard said. “I wanted to be aggressive on the shot and just rushed it.”
Weber won the match, 213-207, to collect $30,000 from a $150,000 purse for his 16th tour title. Ballard won $15,600.
Weber held a six-pin lead through five frames, then failed to mark in the sixth, giving Ballard a 15-pin lead after seven. Weber then struck out, forcing Ballard to get the first two strikes and seven pins in the 10th frame.
Ballard got the strikes before the errant shot on his final ball.
“I thought it was over when Del got the first two,” Weber said. “I felt like I reached out and stole it from him.”
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