Simonsen Soars To Top Seed At 2021 Kia PBA Tournament Of Champions
Simonsen Soars To Top Seed At 2021 Kia PBA Tournament Of Champions
Anthony Simonsen had a big day Friday as he not only took the lead but pulled away from the field at the 2021 Kia PBA Tournament of Champions.
JUPITER, Fla. – Anthony Simonsen had a big day Friday as he not only took the lead but pulled away from the field at the 2021 Kia PBA Tournament of Champions.
Simonsen earned the top seed for Sunday’s show with a 48-game total of 11,963, a 239.23 average, at Bowlero Jupiter.
He’ll be joined on the show by Jason Belmonte, Jesper Svensson, Sean Rash and Francois Lavoie at 1 p.m. Eastern on Sunday live on FOX (U.S.) and FloBowling (international).
Simonsen posted a 16-8 match-play record throughout Thursday and Friday, including a 9-3 record in his final 12 matches to move into the top spot. He led the field by more than 200 pins when the dust settled.
A seven-time PBA Tour champion, Simonsen is just one win away on Sunday from winning his third major title. He won the USBC Masters in 2016 and the PBA Players Championship in 2019.
Belmonte, meanwhile, will have a shot at a record fourth TOC title and will need to win two matches on the show to earn his 14th career major title.
The Australian double-hander lost his lead Friday and settled into second place with 11,755 and a 16-8 match-play record.
Svensson finished third with a 14-9-1 record and 11,720 total, while Rash took the fourth seed with a 14-8-2 record and 11,573 total.
Lavoie faced a range of emotions down the stretch Friday night as he held onto the final spot when it was all said and done. He had a 13-10-1 record and 11,489 total.
Tom Smallwood, who led many of the early rounds of the tournament, finished sixth after losing a fifth-seed rolloff to Lavoie, 218-163.
Lavoie and Smallwood finished the 48 games tied, forcing the rolloff. In the position round match, Lavoie tossed a costly gutter ball in the eighth frame against Smallwood and later failed to strike on the fill to shut him out.
The four-time PBA Tour champion was able to secure the fifth seed with the rolloff win over Smallwood, however, and is still alive at a chance to win his third career major.