Sunday, August 13, 2017 – STARLANES HAKATA BOWLING CENTER, Fukuoka, Japan
Guam was represented by Jae Sang Lee and Nikko Gutierrez during the 3rd U22 Fukuoka Summer Cup at the Starlanes Hakata Bowling Center, Japan. The event was held on August 11-13, 2017 and consisted of competitors born 1995 and after. Over 300 athletes competed in this annual bowling event that will be expanding in the coming year.
Each competitor bowls two sets of four games. The top 56 bowlers advance to the second round. Thereafter, another four games will be bowled from scratch to determine the bowlers who will proceed to the top 16 elimination rounds with the winners of each round advancing onwards until a champion is declared. The champion receives a round trip ticket to Storm USA where they will receive a package inclusive of training and ball representation.
Both bowlers needed the first four game set to acclimate to the conditions. Lee opened par with an even 800 series then bowled games of 226, 273 before crossing sides to end with an 884 set. His 1684 series placed him in 103rd place with a 210 average. Gutierrez had a difficult time coming out of the gates but managed to reel back the set covering the loss pins in the third and fourth games for a 801 set. Thereafter, he managed to pull in a 856 set for a 1657 total, averaging 207 pins to end the event in 125th place.
“I was a bit nervous during the opening game, but I was able to relax as the games progressed. This tournament has taught me a lot about myself and my game. I was able to increase my average by 15 points from last year’s event.” said Gutierrez.
Lee was somewhat disappointed by his performance as he was able to get into the cut after his 273 game. Unfortunately, the turn on the third game wreaked havoc on his chances to make the cut at 1742.
U22 announced an expansion of the event in 2018. Shanghai, China has been included in the schedule for July 13-15 while Fukuoka will hold their 4th outing August 3-5, 2018.
Official site: U22 Fukuoka Summer Cup
Guam Bowling 