kakcpa
PBA Forum Member
Member # 23072
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The date was March 29, 1980
at the $100,000 PBA National Championship held at Sunnybrook Lanes
in Sterling Heights, Michigan. Johnny Petraglia already won titles
at the Firestone (1971), and the US Open (1977). He needed the
National in his pocket to complete bowling triple crown, only
achieved at the time by Billy Hardwick. After 3 unsuccessful
tries, this was his best chance, qualifiying first in the '80
edition. His opponent was Gary Dickinson, who qualified 5th, and
won 3 matches to meet Petraglia in the finals. The match became
close, after Dickinson threw stikes in the 5th, 6th, and 7th to
take the lead. My clip starts with action in the 8th frame with
Dickinson up. As a side note, Pete Weber, and Mike Aulby have
completed bowlings triple crown. Hi hope you enjoy the clip:
http://media.putfile.com/1980-PBA-National-
$100,000 PBA NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP
Sunnybrook Lanes, Sterling Heights, Mich., Mar 24-29, 1980
Sterling Performance By Petraglia
Johnny Petraglia decided not to waste an opportunity to control
his own destiny and fired four tension packed strikes to defeat
Gary Dickinson, 235-223, for the PBA National Championship to
reach yet another milestone in his remarkable pro career.
The winner of the Firestone Tournament of Champions in 1971 and
the BPAA U.S. Open in 1977, Petraglia claimed the mythical Triple
Crown of pro bowling with the victory, the only player other than
Billy Hardwick to achieve such.
The Nationals, shifted to the Winter Tour for the first time in
its 21-year history, was led in the early going by 1961 champion
Carmen Salvino who set a 16-game national tour record when he
totaled 4,015--a 251 average--through the first two rounds.
When Salvino slipped out of the lead in match play, Petraglia was
there to take over, averaging 231 over 56 games while Jay
Robinson, John Denton, Sam Zurich and Dickinson occupied positions
two through five.
Petraglia waited to bowl the championship match aware that more
than one of his most sought after performance goals was on the
line. The 33-year-old lefthander wanted to win title No. 14,
wanted to win a tournament in the 1980s and most of all wanted to
complete the circuit of major championships.
It all came down to 10 frames of action that dramatized all the
skill, talent and experience that put the top-seeded Staten
Island, N.Y., pro in position to once again nail down one of the
most prestigious titles the sport offers.
Dickinson, looking for his second title of the year, slipped past
Zurich in the first match, 186-185, and then handled fellow-Texan
Denton, 220-216. Denton had set a PBA record of his own during the
event, rolling 56 straight games of better than 200 after opening
the tournament with a score of 191.
Dickinson proceeded to trounce Robinson, 242-214 in the semi-final
match. After opening in the first frame of the title game the
lanky right-hander gave chase right to the end when the gritty
Petraglia closed him out with four finishing strikes.
The victory was worth $15,000 to Petraglia at Sunnybrook Lanes in
Sterling Heights, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit, where the Motor
City throngs turned out in overflow numbers to watch, cheer and
appreciate the greatest bowlers in the world.
TELEVISED FINALS
Pos. Name, City/State Total Amount
1 Johnny Petraglia, Staten Island, N.Y. 235 (1 game) $15,000
2 Gary Dickinson, Ft. Worth. Tex. 871 (4 games) 8,000
3 Jay Robinson, Van Nuys, Calif. 214 (1 game) 6,000
4 John Denton, Midland, Tex. 216 (1 game) 5,000
5 Sam Zurich, Centerport, N.Y. 185 (1 game) 4,000
PLAYOFF RESULTS--Dickinson defeated Zurich, 186-185; Dickinson
defeated Denton, 220-216; Dickinson defeated Robinson, 242-214,
and in the championship game, Petraglia defeated Dickinson,
235-223.
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