Pyry Puharinen surged to the top of the leaderboard at the 55th Brunswick Ballmaster Open after an impressive performance in Squad 3.
Puharinen started the squad with a sensational streak, delivering 11 consecutive strikes, coming close to a perfect game. Unfortunately, his final shot left a stubborn 8-pin standing, denying him the perfect game. Despite this, Puharinen finished with an impressive 1469 total – the highest score so far in the tournament's qualification rounds. However, the right-handed two-hander admitted that the missed shot lingered in his thoughts throughout the squad.
"I felt the stone 8. It is not that often you get to throw one shot and you miss for 2000 euros," Puharinen shared in an interview. "It was somewhere back in my mind."
If nothing extraordinary happens, Puharinen’s score of 1,469 should secure him a spot in the next round, at least as an Early Bird qualifier. Nevertheless, he plans to bowl again, but with different goals.
"I will probably play one or two squads next week, when the weather goes from minus 10 to plus 2-3. It will probably have some affection on the lanes," he noted.
Puharinen also expressed relief at being able to compete early in the qualification rounds, where there was less urethane ball usage to contend with. However, the current BBO leader anticipates a tougher urethane challenge as more international players join the competition.
"When the Swedes and other Europeans are coming, there probably will be more Purple Hammers and urethanes on the lanes. I think it is going to be way harder to score next weekend."
The competition continues at Tali Bowling Hall, with another squad currently underway. Tomorrow, two more squads are scheduled, starting at 11 AM. Fans can catch all the action via live streams and stay updated through regular posts on BowlingLife, the tournament's official media partner, across their website and social media platforms.
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