Local bowling team takes early lead at USBC Open

RENO, Nev. - The members of Durk Wholesale Lumber Co. of Hayden identified preparation as one of the keys to success at the United States Bowling Congress Open Championships, and their hard work paid dividends at the National Bowling Stadium on Saturday night.

Two months of practicing together helped the group to games of 1,055, 985 and 1,164 and into the Regular Team lead with a 3,204 total. Two other teams on the same squad were fighting for the top spot and settled into second and third place overall. Sport Bowl Pro Shop of Middleton, Wis., previously held the lead with 3,006.

Cole Lawson (733) and Tom Davenport (700) led the charge for Durk Wholesale Lumber Co., and they were joined by Michael Durk (641), Jack Smetana (614) and John Smetana (516).

"This feels awesome," said Durk, who is the team captain and made his 10th USBC Open Championships appearance. "This is a goal that our whole group has been working towards for a couple of years. We have been working really hard over a period of time, and it's a great feeling to be in the lead right now."

The tournament began last Friday, and runs through July 3.

Durk Wholesale Lumber Co., and its companion team, Coeur d'Alene Crush, have been practicing together on a Sport oil pattern at Sunset Lanes, and together, they focused on breaking the lanes down as a group.

Coeur d'Alene Crush also scored well Saturday night, posting a 3,004 team total, and currently is fifth in the Regular Team standings. The group was led by Ron Jacobson with 656, followed by Jimmie Boyce (646), Tim Fristoe (581), John Prescott (569) and Jody Jennison (552).

The two teams also attributed some of their success to USBC Silver coach Mike Jasnau at Lane 81, the training lane inside the pro shop area at the Stadium. They have worked with him several times over the course of their Open Championships careers, and six of the 10 group members have been working with him since 1998.

"We decided to practice as a group with our companion team after reading some things from other teams that have had success at the Open Championships," said Durk, who is a Coeur d'Alene city champion. "I have bowled two 300s and won city and state tournaments, but nothing will ever compare to what just happened. For the rest of our lives, we will be able to talk about this because we did it as a group. This just made a lot of dreams come true."