Bowling: Furman wins Scaccia Memorial title

PHOTOGRAPHER: Bob Weiner

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Hard and straight vs. crank and turn.

Dan Furman is at his best when he can fire his bowling ball between 19 and 20 miles per hour with just enough turn and hook to create adequate carry and stay out of trouble. His style worked to perfection in Sunday’s Huck Finn Jack Scaccia Sr. Memorial Championship at Alpha Lanes.

Furman shot back-to-back 267 games, including a 267-251 win over defending champion Matt Sherman in the title match. Furman pocketed $4,000 in the area’s most prestigious event, while Sherman, known for his wide hook and huge backswing, earned $2,000.

The tournament was named after the late Jack Scaccia Sr., who was one of the proprietors who helped return local bowling to television with the Huck Finn series.

“To win a tournament like this is very special,” said Furman, who also has one other regular weekly Huck Finn victory to his credit.

“The lanes held up pretty well

today. I could see the heads breaking down a little, so I moved a little left and projected the ball a little more out onto the lane than I normally do. You had to keep the speed up.

“Matt bowled very well against me today. He forced me to shoot a big 260 game to beat him. This is a lot of fun bowling on television like this. I knew I needed a big game, and that I needed to be at my best today. That’s the way I always bowl. I never give up.

We all had a good shot on the lanes today, and it came down to who could carry and who could avoid getting into trouble.”

Furman, a 28-year-old Amsterdam native now living in Niskayuna, has 85 perfect games and 25 800 triples to his credit. The Broadalbin-Perth High School graduate is a sales manager for the Carbone car sales group. He has two Northern Bowlers Association victories on his resume, including the 2009 Bob Guild Memorial.

In the championship game, one errant shot cost Sherman, who started with a spare and added a three-bagger before a 4-6-7-10 split in the fifth frame derailed him. He went on to fire six strikes in a row, but it wasn’t enough to overtake Furman, who after leaving a solid 8-pin and a 10-pin on his first two tosses put together eight strikes in a row.

“It’s tough to beat a guy who shoots a pair of 260 games,” said Sherman. “He deserved to win. He bowled very well today. They were kind of easy on that pair today, but you couldn’t afford not to carry.

”In the championship game, I tried to move right to get a little better carry, and it cost me. I probably should have stayed where I was.”

Sherman, 30, from Delmar, has 16 300 games and eight 800 triples to his credit. He was the Eastern Bowlers Conference Bowler of the Year while competing for Saint Peter’s, and is now an insurance adjuster for Fort Orange Claims in Clifton Park.

In the first semifinal, Furman beat Schaghticoke left-hander Alex Weglarz, 267-241. Weglarz had just one bad frame, when he chopped a 6-10 leave in the third frame. Furman started with a four-timer and finished with a five-bagger.

In the second semifinal, Sherman recorded eight strikes to beat Tippy Lanes mechanic R.J. Martinez,

244-224, but Sherman’s 7-10 split in the 10th frame gave Martinez a chance to overtake him if he struck out in the 10th frame. Instead, Martinez left a 7-pin.

NOTES

Qualifying for the Burnt Hills Drop One Scratch Challenge will be held Friday and Saturday, as well as May 18, May 19 and May 25. The finals will be May 25. Bowlers will roll five games across five pairs and drop their lowest game. Entry fee is $40. Contact Burnt Hills Lane

(399-0999) or Chris Wrubel (337-8128) for more information.

USA Bowling is providing free seminars and a free 150-page coaching manual to anyone who wants to learn how to teach the fundamentals of the game to youth bowlers. It will be held at Sportsman’s Bowl Aug. 14 from 6 to 9 p.m. PBA Tour standout Parker Bohn III is expected to run the class. Send your reservation sheet to NEBPONY, 1014 Beryl Way, Watervliet, NY 12189, or call Marv Sontz at Del Lanes or Carol Judge at Spare Time-Latham.