Ironically, Carl Eklund barely remembers the biggest match of his life yet. What remains clear is the first ball of the 10th frame—and the wave of relief that followed when it found the pocket.
The 20-year-old Swede had defeated Jesper Svensson 686-652 and earned a place in the Storm Lucky Larsen Masters semifinals at Olympia Bowling in Helsingborg.
Eklund will face England’s Raymond Teece in a one-game semifinal on Monday evening. Two more wins would give him his first PBA Tour title, earned in the only international event on the 2026 PBA Tour schedule.
“It means the world to me,” Eklund said. “It was a really long road to get here, and it was kind of tough, I would say.”
Best Bowling of His Life
Eklund improved his qualifying score several times during the week. His best six-game block of 1,459 earned him a direct place in Final Step 2, allowing him to skip Sunday morning’s opening round.
He then advanced from Final Step 2 as the eighth seed for match play. In the Round of 16, Eklund bowled games 248, 227 and 267 for a 742 total, defeating Norway’s Mathias Otting by 187 pins.
“Probably some of the best decisions of my life I’ve made, and some of the best bowling of my life,” Eklund said. “Everything I’ve done to get here, I think I’ve done almost everything the best way I could.”
Jesper Svensson looked almost untouchable earlier on Sunday. He led Final Step 2 and then defeated Anton Andersson 785-636 in his opening match.
He also began the quarterfinal with 258 against Eklund’s 207. Eklund answered with 224 in the second game to cut the deficit, then took control with 255 in the deciding game as Svensson closed with 194.
“I have to say, he’s the best bowler in Sweden,” Eklund said. “I honestly don’t know. I barely remember the finals. I wish I could walk you through it, but I only remember stepping up into the 10th.”
Before his final frame, Eklund watched and waited for Svensson to finish.
“I was sitting down and waiting for him to throw a shot in the 10th, and I was like, ‘I’m going to have to put one more on the board. He’s going to strike out, because it’s Jesper.’”
When the moment finally arrived, Eklund reduced the situation to one simple task.
“I was like, ‘Just relax now. Get into the pocket, just make a good shot and move on with it,’” he said. “I got the first one in the 10th. It was such a nice moment for me.”
A PBA Title Chance on Home Soil
Eklund’s reaction after the match showed how much the victory meant, but he is trying not to look beyond his semifinal against Teece. Every remaining player is still searching for a first PBA Tour title.
“It feels amazing,” Eklund said. “I don’t like to get ahead of myself, but just being here is amazing for me. I want to win, but I have to get through one guy first.”
If he does, Eklund would bowl for the title in one of his home country’s most familiar venues, with his father and coach watching from behind the lanes.
“It’s one of the best bowling alleys in Sweden as well—the best staff, such an amazing facility,” Eklund said. “I’ll have my dad and my coach watching. It would be amazing, a dream come true.”
Tomas Käyhkö and Albin Gullstrand will meet in the other semifinal.
Monday’s
show begins at 7 p.m. local time, with the two semifinal winners advancing to
the one-game championship match. The finals will be streamed live on the
Storm Lucky Larsen Masters YouTube channel.
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