Tomas Käyhkö has a real chance to win the bowling US Open as the first Finn in two decades. The TV finals are already looming.
Tomas Käyhkö is close to great success in bowling’s most prestigious tournament, the US Open, among the absolute best players in the sport. Stock photo. BOWLING ASSOCIATION
The world’s most prestigious bowling competition, the US Open, is culminating at the Woodland Bowl center in Indianapolis.
Finnish professional bowler Tomas Käyhkö has played a top-level tournament week against the stars of the PBA tour, making it to the top 24 for lengthy head-to-head matches.
Käyhkö is in third place at the US Open, with eight series left of the top 24 matches. The player from Varkaus Mainarien has gone through the competition week with an average of 211.28 points and has won 12 out of 16 matches in the current stage. The winning percentage is better than any competitor.
– The feeling is good, and we will continue with the same plan. I got a lot of opportunities to win the matches and I made the shots that were needed, Käyhkö briefly evaluated his sponsor in an Instagram interview.
The American is currently bowling at the top of the tournament EJ Tackett, who has a lead of about 150 points over Kyähkö. In second place is Tackett’s compatriot, the reigning US Open winner Anthony Simonsen.
Excruciating conditions
After the remaining eight series, the best nine will make it to the televised ladder matches, says the Finnish Bowling Association in its press release. The best five will make it to the actual broadcast of the two-part TV final on Sunday. Kyähkö has the opportunity to win the US Open as the first Finnish bowler since the 2001–2002 season, when Mika Koivuniemi celebrate the coveted prize. After his victory, Koivuniemi finished second in the 2007–2008 and 2010–2011 seasons.
This year’s winner will receive $100,000.
The value of Kyähkö’s ranking so far is increased by the format and conditions of the tournament. The ranking is now based on 40 series played, and the course profiles of the tournament have made the game “brutal”, “terrible” and “impossible” according to the descriptions of the professionals. A thin film of oil is always applied to the bowling alleys, and at the US Open, the amount and length of the oil is regulated so that the end result forgives the players a minimal amount of error. The conditions at the US Open are considered downright notorious.
The last part of the eight series before the TV games is scheduled to be played from 16:00 Finnish time.