Doug Kent set to defend USBC Masters title

Doug Kent set to defend USBC Masters title
U.S. Women’s Open champ Liz Johnson entered

Last year, Doug Kent of Newark entered the United States Bowling Congress Masters unsure if the time he had invested in changing his game would pay off.

Not only did his hard work in the off-season pay off with his second USBC Masters title, it also propelled him to a career season on the Denny's Professional Bowlers Association Tour. After the Masters, Kent went on to win the Denny's World Championship and earn the 2006-07 Chris Schenkel PBA Player of the Year award.

"I had been struggling physically and mentally earlier in the year," said Kent of the buildup to the 2006 Masters. "I was making a big change in my game, trying to pick up my pace and increase my hand speed, increase my rev rate for more power. It wasn't easy because I felt like I was starting all over again. This game is tough and it gets tougher the longer you play. With all the (bowling) technology changing and the speed and power of the younger generation, I couldn't keep doing what I was doing."

Kent spent his time leading up to last year's Masters making adjustments and reinventing his game. Finally, when the 2006 Masters came up on the schedule, he was ready. Now he's hoping that momentum carries forward when he looks to defend his Masters title this week at AMF Bowlero in suburban Milwaukee.

"It all came together two to three weeks before the Masters started last year," said Kent, who won his first Masters title in 1991 when he was 24. "I felt better than I'd felt for the past three years. Suddenly I was feeling good and not second-guessing my mechanics - everything just clicked."

In the championship match last year, Kent threw nine consecutive strikes en route to a, 277-230, victory over another WNYer, Jack Jurek of Lackawanna, to win the $100,000 top prize. Jurek earned a nice paycheck as well, collecting $50,000.

If Kent can find a way to survive the demanding double-elimination match play bracket again this year, he will become just the third person to win back-to-back Masters titles, joining USBC Hall of Famers Dick Hoover (1956 and '57) and Billy Welu (1964 and '65). He would also join Mike Aulby as just the second three-time winner of the event.

Standing in Kent's way will be nearly 500 of the world's top amateur and professional bowlers, including 10 past Masters champions. The field also features 17 women, among them Liz Johnson of Cheektowaga, who won the 2007 U.S. Women's Open this past week.

This past week, Johnson enjoyed a whirlwind celebration that included a trip to the Women's Sports Foundation's Annual Salute to Girls and Women in Sports Awards Gala and Auction in New York.

"To win and then hop on the plane to be in the company of the best female athletes in the country was an amazing experience because you watch all of them on TV, and to be sitting there next to them is a great feeling of accomplishment," said Johnson, who also won the U.S. Women's Open in 1996. "A few of them even said they saw me on TV. They were excited to see a women's event live on television, and that made me feel really proud."

The celebration was short-lived, however, as the 33-year-old right-hander refocuses her attention on this week’s USBC Masters, which also will lead into the four-event PBA Women's Series.

The 2-time U.S. Amateur champion and 11-time Professional Women's Bowling Association titlist, is no stranger to success on bowling's biggest stages and hasn't missed a step since the PWBA ceased operations in 2003.

In the years since, Johnson has proven herself against the men in the PBA. In 2005, she made history by becoming the first woman to win a PBA regional and later became the first woman to appear in a Denny's PBA Tour championship round on the way to a second-place finish at the 2005 Banquet Open. Last season, Johnson found regular success in the weekly Tour Qualifying Rounds and earned a wealth of experience while competing alongside the men.

"I'm still riding the high from winning last weekend, and I don't think it has completely sunk in yet, but it really has given me a lot of confidence and momentum heading into the Masters," said Johnson. "I've improved at the Masters each year I've bowled, so I'm really looking forward to it."

Johnson placed in the top 24 in last year’s USBC Masters.

All participants will bowl two five-game blocks of qualifying on October 23 & 24 before the first cut is made to the top 25 percent. After another five games the morning of October 25, the top 63 bowlers will join Kent in match play, which continues until the top four bowlers are determined October 26 for the TV finals.

The finals of the Masters will be held on October 28 at 1:00pm EST at Miller Park, the home of baseball's Milwaukee Brewers, and televised live on ESPN.

A major on the Denny's PBA Tour, bowlers will again be competing for a top prize of $100,000 and an overall prize fund of $350,000.

For complete coverage of the Masters, including stories, photos and results once the event begins, visit bowl.com.