AURORA, Ill. – With his family around him competing in an event he helped organize, Sean Rash couldn’t help but get emotional Tuesday after winning the 2019 FloBowling PBA Wolf Open.

Rash was dominant down the stretch in the title match as he blew past defending champion Anthony Simonsen, 257-193, to win his 14^th career PBA Tour title.

The victory was especially sweet for Rash, who has spent countless hours organizing the 2019 FloBowling PBA Summer Swing at Parkside Lanes this week.

“It’s always emotional when you’re in front of family and friends,” Rash said. “It’s really special… moments like this, you never forget.”

Watch: PBA Wolf Open Stepladder Finals

Rash held a 10-pin lead after six frames in the title bout when he turned it up a notch and tossed strikes in the seventh, eighth, ninth and 10^th frames to pull away for the victory.

Simonsen struck on five of his first six shots, but a gutter ball on a double in the third frame lost him significant count. Then, an awkward 4-10 split for an open in the seventh frame put him way behind.

Rash said he’s been able to focus on his bowling so far this week with the help of PBA Deputy Commissioner Kirk von Krueger, who is on site to help run the event.

“My job was the golf outing, the pro-am, the free youth clinic, and I took a lot of time off after Coldwater because my body was aching,” Rash said. “I want to give back to our sport that deserves it. Our players deserve top-notch from bowling to fan base to whatever it is.”

Rash, who finished second in two of the past three events entering the Wolf Open, was able to survive three matches as the third seed to take the title.

In the semifinal, he took down PBA Hall of Famer and 40-time champion Norm Duke, 257-227. Duke held tough for eight frames but a 10 pin in the ninth frame sealed his fate.

Rash made his way past Kyle Troup in the second match of the stepladder with a 217-180 victory. Troup got off to a slow start using urethane and made the switch to reactive but it turned out to be too little too late.

In the opening match of the finals, Troup defeated PBA Tour rookie Greg Young Jr., 264-206, in a match where Troup never trailed. Troup started with the front seven as he rolled to the victory.

The PBA Summer Swing continues Wednesday with the first round of qualifying in the PBA Bear Open starting at 4:30 p.m. Eastern live on FloBowling. That event will conclude with the stepladder finals Thursday night before competition begins in the final event of the swing, the PBA Illinois Open.