The final standard title event of the PBA World Series of Bowling (WSOB) XVI, the PBA Shark Championship, is in full swing at the National Bowling Stadium in Reno, Nevada.
Packy Hanrahan emerged as the early leader in the 199-player field, posting a total pinfall of 1,427 over six games on the 47-foot Shark oil pattern.
Following closely behind him in the top five are Ahmad Muaz, defending champion EJ Tackett, Cam Crowe, and Justin Knowles.
Hanrahan’s performance marks a major turnaround after placing between 92nd and 105th in the first three WSOB events.
The final round of qualifying for the PBA Shark and PBA World Championship will take place Tuesday, with A-squad starting at 9 a.m. PT and B-squad following at 2:30 p.m. PT (5:30 p.m. ET).
Currently, Canada’s Jordan Jung (1,353) holds the 24th position in the PBA Shark Championship standings. After the second six-game qualifying round on Tuesday, the top 24 bowlers will advance to elimination match play, starting with the Round of 24 at 7 p.m. PT (10 p.m. ET).
The competition continues Wednesday, March 19, with the Rounds of 16 and 8, leading up to the championship match at 4 p.m. PT (7 p.m. ET) on FS1.
Tackett Seizes the PBA World Championship Lead
After 42 games of qualifying, EJ Tackett has taken the top spot in the PBA World Championship standings.
Jason Belmonte, Boog Krol, Tim Foy Jr., and BJ Moore round out the top five contenders in this major championship. Full standings of the PBA World Championship can be found here.
Once all 48 qualifying games are completed, the top 50 bowlers will advance to a 16-game advancer round. From there, the top 16 will proceed to round-robin match play to determine the finalists.
All rounds of WSOB XVI qualifying and match play will be streamed live on BowlTV.
Round 1 Leaders | PBA Shark Championship
Packy Hanrahan, 1,427
Ahmad Muaz, 1,424
EJ Tackett, 1,417
Cam Crowe, 1,412
Justin Knowles, 1,411
Nu'Man Syahmi Yusri, 1,410
Nate Stubler, 1,408
Lanndyn Carnate, 1,403
Tom Daugherty, 1,397
Jean Perez, 1,392
Full standings are available here.
Full PBA World Series of Bowling XVI Schedule:
Tuesday, March 11
9 a.m. – PBA Shark Championship - A-Squad Qualifying Round 2 (six games)
2:30 p.m. – PBA Shark Championship - B-Squad Qualifying Round 2 (six games)
7 p.m. – PBA Shark Championship - Match Play Round of 24 (best-of-five games)
Wednesday, March 12
12 p.m. – PBA World Championship - Practice
Thursday, March 13
10 a.m. – PBA World Championship - Advancer Round 1 (eight games)
Friday, March 14
10 a.m. – PBA World Championship - Advancer Round 2 (eight games)
6 p.m. – PBA Jr. National Championships - Match Play
Saturday, March 15
9 a.m. – PBA Jr. National Championships - Match Play
12:30 p.m. – PBA Jr. National Championships - Stepladder Finals (Mixed, U18 Boys and U18 Girls)
3 p.m. on FS1 – PBA Mike Aulby Nevada Classic - Finals
7 p.m. – PBA Jr. National Championship - Finals taping
Sunday, March 16
9 a.m. – PBA Scorpion Championship - Match Play Round of 16 (best-of-five games)
11:30 a.m. – PBA Scorpion Championship - Match Play Round of 8 (best-of-five games)
5 p.m. on FS1 – PBA Scorpion Championship - Finals
Monday, March 17
9 a.m. – PBA Viper Championship - Match Play Round of 16 (best-of-five games)
11:30 a.m. – PBA Viper Championship - Match Play Round of 8 (best-of-five games)
4 p.m. on FS1 – PBA Viper Championship - Finals
Tuesday, March 18
9 a.m. – PBA Chameleon Championship - Match Play Round of 16 (best-of-five games)
11:30 a.m. – PBA Chameleon Championship - Match Play Round of 8 (best-of-five games)
4 p.m. on FS1 – PBA Chameleon Championship - Finals
Wednesday, March 19
9 a.m. – PBA Shark Championship - Match Play Round of 16 (best-of-five games)
11:30 a.m. – PBA Shark Championship - Match Play Round of 8 (best-of-five games)
4 p.m. on FS1 – PBA Shark Championship - Finals
Thursday, March 20
10 a.m. – PBA World Championship - Round-Robin Match Play Round 1 (eight games)
5 p.m. – PBA World Championship - Round-Robin Match Play Round 2 (eight games)
Saturday, March 22
12 p.m. on FOX – PBA World Championship Finals
