Strong field at Senior Masters final

Clarkston kegler is weekend's top seed
BY MATT FIORITO
FREE PRESS BOWLING WRITER
John Bennett of Clarkston, who won the title in 2004, leads a strong field of former champions into this weekend's match-play finals of the Metro Detroit USBC Association's Senior Masters.
Bennett, 59, recorded an eight-game total of 1,990 in qualifying last weekend at Airway Lanes in Waterford Township with four-game blocks of 992 and 998, and finished 84 pins ahead of George Lee of Dearborn Heights. Bennett, who averaged 248.75, was remarkably consistent. His high game was 279, and his low was 227. "Unfortunately, we start from scratch next weekend," said Bennett, who won the regular Masters in 1977. In the opening round of the two-game, double-elimination match play at 10 a.m. Saturday at Airway, Bennett will face George Lane of Chesterfield Township, who qualified 32nd. Other Senior Masters titlists among the qualifiers include defending champion Roy Biggs of Canton, 2005 champion Ed Austreng of Waterford and 1996 and 2002 champion Harley Trumbull of New Boston. Also in the field are two other regular Masters winners: three-time champ Dick Beattie of Dearborn (1974-75-81) and 1987 champion Ken Lang of Eastpointe. A big and pleasant surprise was the reappearance of Lee Snow of Wixom, who was sidelined for 15 months because of surgery on his left foot. Snow shot the only 300 in qualifying and finished in a tie for 10th. "That was my return to competitive bowling," Snow said. "It's been a tough two years. I've been practicing for about a month." The perfect game was a bonus. "That was way beyond my expectations," Snow said. "I didn't know if I'd ever be able to do it again. It was a pretty special moment, and both my kids were there to see it."