Things were so good for Scott Santos on Monday, even when he got stuck at the foul line and nearly fell, he still struck.

Santos defeated David Traber, 237-160, to win the 2007 PBA Lake County Indiana Regional Players Championship at Stardust Bowl II, his fourth career PBA Regional Tour title and first Major.

"I guess when it's your day..." Santos said after the strike in the ninth frame which clinched the win. Indeed, everything seemed to go Santos' way all day, including a key ball change in the Round of 8.

Santos admittedly did not bowl well in his Round of 64 and Round of 32 wins in which he averaged just 200.28 but went 7-0. He dropped the first game of his best-of-three-games Round of 16 match before coming back to win the next two games and advance to the Round of 8. At that point, Santos decided he needed to make a ball change, which resulted in four consecutive games of 235 or better to take home the title.

"I did not bowl well at all those first couple rounds. I don't know if it was that the high end of the house was tighter, but the ball wasn't coming off my hand clean," Santos (Ledyard, Conn.) said. "I made my spares and stayed out of trouble those first couple matches and shot in the low 200s and it was just enough.

"For the Round of 8 I made the ball change and it opened the lane up and that really relaxed me. I was able to just let the ball off my hand. I made the right guess and that's what this game is all about."

After getting past Michael Norris in the best-of-three Round of 8 with wins of 236-169 and 235-156, Santos defeated Jason Lundquist 253-215 in the single-game semifinal match. He then took on the four-time Denny's PBA Tour titlist Traber in the title match, who was never able to get on track.

Traber never struck on the right line in the finals, while Santos struck with his first five shots. After Traber missed a single-pin conversion in the fifth frame, the match was Santos' to lose. Following back-to-back nine-spares in the sixth and seventh frames, he closed out the win with three consecutive strikes.

With the title, the 43-year-old Santos takes home $10,000 and a berth in the 2007-08 PBA Tournament of Champions, one of four Majors on the Denny's PBA Tour.

For the second consecutive week, a two-time Denny's PBA Tour titlist captured his first career PBA Senior Tour title. And for the second consecutive week, that bowler's name was Sam.

A week after Sam Zurich won his first career PBA Senior Tour title in just his second event, Sam Maccarone won his first title in his fourth career event, defeating Rohn Morton, 268-167, to win the 2007 PBA Senior Dayton Classic Tuesday at Capri Bowling Lanes.

In what is quickly becoming the year of the rookie, Maccarone went 7-0 in match play Tuesday and capped the day with a dominating performance in the championship round, which saw him run away from No. 2 seed Dale Eagle, 238-180, in the semifinal and the No. 8 seed Morton, striking eight consecutive times in the title match.

"I told my wife before I left since Sam won last week that meant I would win this week," Maccarone (Glassboro, N.J.) said. "I just had that feeling when I left the house last week and all week I just told myself not to look ahead."

The title match was only close for two frames, as Morton started with an open and a strike while Maccarone started with back-to-back nine-spares. That was as close as Morton would get as he failed to strike again until the 9th frame when the match was already wrapped up. Maccarone struck eight times in a row between frames 3-10, adding his name to the long list of rookies who are having great success this season.

"I particularly like this pattern, but I've never seen it play this far right. The first two days I was never right of 15 and then today I just had air out there so I had to find something outside for the finals," Maccarone, who bowled just two PBA Senior Tour events last season, said. "You really just had to read what the lanes were giving you. When you win, it's because you do all the right things. It's an exciting, unbelievable feeling."

In addition to Zurich and Maccarone, another rookie, PBA Hall of Famer Steve Cook, has made two championship round appearances in the first four events. Cook did not bowl this week after finishing 27th, third and fourth in his three events this season.

Morton, who was looking for his second career PBA Senior Tour title, advanced to the title match with a 232-227 win over PBA Hall of Famer David Ozio, who was looking for his second title of the season. Ozio had a chance to strike out to win the match, but a spare and strike gave Morton a chance to double for the win, and he struck out to advance to his first title match of the season.

Maccarone took home $8,000 for the victory, while Morton earned $4,500 for second. Eagle and Ozio took home $3,000 each for third and fourth.

The PBA announced today season-ending awards for the 2006-07 Denny's PBA Tour campaign. Doug Kent has been named the Chris Schenkel PBA Player of the Year, Billy Oatman earned the Harry Golden PBA Rookie of the Year award and Richard Wolfe was voted the Steve Nagy Sportsmanship Award winner.

Kent (Newark, N.Y.) was named the PBA Player of the Year for the first time in his 18-year career. He had a career-year, capturing two titles in a season for the first time and leading the Tour with a career-best $200,530 in season earnings. More importantly, both of Kent's wins in 2006-07 were Majors, making him just the sixth bowler in PBA history to win two Majors in the same season.

The nine-time titlist captured the first Major of the season, winning three matches en route to the title in the 2006 United States Bowling Congress (USBC) Masters at the Wisconsin Exposition Center in Milwaukee, Wis. Kent, who became the first No. 3 seed ever to win the Masters, defeated 2005-06 PBA Player of the Year Tommy Jones in the first match of the stepladder finals and amateur George Lambert IV in the semifinals before knocking off top-seeded Jack Jurek in the title match, 277-230.

Later in the season, Kent captured his second career PBA World Championship, defeating Chris Barnes, 237-216, for the title in the 2007 Denny's World Championship at DeVos Place in Grand Rapids, Mich. The win made Kent the first player since Walter Ray Williams Jr. in 2002-03 - and just the sixth in Tour history - to win two Major championships in one season.

In addition to his two titles, Kent also posted one runner-up finish, falling to Pete Weber in the title match of the 2006 Etonic Championship. Kent's three championship round appearances were his most since the 2001-02 season, and he went 6-1 in those three TV appearances with a 234.57 average. He finished fourth in the PBA World Point Rankings and ranked 10th on Tour with a 222.43 average.

Though it did not count toward official PBA titles or earnings, Kent also captured the season-ending Motel 6 Roll to Riches special event, taking home the winner-take-all $150,000 top prize. He defeated Norm Duke, six-strikes-to-three, in a special Race to Six Strikes title match.

"This is what I set out to do 18 years ago. Winning Player of the Year is the one goal you always have and you always think 'wouldn't it be amazing to just win it once,'" Kent said. "After I won the Masters it just helped me relax the rest of the year and I didn't have to worry about anything. The year itself was already a success because of the money, and I was just able to bowl and didn't have to think about any of the outside things."

With his Denny's World Championship win, Kent also earned a four-season exemption through the 2010-11 season, which has forced him to adjust his career plans.

"Going into last season, it was definitely going to be my last season. I was done," Kent said. "I thought I'd still bowl some of the Majors I was eligible for, but I had seriously contemplated it being my last year. Now I just renegotiated a two-year contract with my ball company so after the two years we'll see where it stands."

Duke (Clermont, Fla.) was second in the PBA Player of the Year voting, winning a Tour-high three titles despite withdrawing from eight events during the season. Pete Weber (St. Ann, Mo.), who won two titles including his fourth career U.S. Open crown - which was his record-tying eighth career Major title - finished third. PBA World Point Rankings leader Wes Malott (Argyle, Texas) finished fourth.

The 41-year-old Oatman (Chicago) became the first African-American and the oldest bowler in PBA history to earn PBA Rookie of the Year honors, surpassing C.K. Moore who was 39 years old when he won the award in 1996. Oatman led all rookies in points - finishing 37th in the 2006-07 PBA World Point Rankings to regain his exemption for 2007-08 - as well as earnings ($46,145) and match play appearances (7). He finished second among rookies with a 216.14 average.

Oatman, who also became the first left-handed bowler since Moore to win the award, nearly won a title in his first career television appearance, finishing second to Jason Couch in the 2007 Motel 6 Classic in January.

"It's an honor. I feel really good to be able to put a smile on my mom's face and my fiance's face, and to be able to celebrate with all my friends who rooted for me and supported me through everything," Oatman said. "To be in the same breath as George Branham III, Curtis Odom and Rod Pasteur, and to be an inspiration to the African-American youth is what I really wanted to do by coming out on Tour. They were great bowlers and great people, and right now because of the window of opportunity I have, I want to take the ball and run with it."

Oatman was lucky to be on Tour at all in 2006-07. He finished 11th in the 2006 Denny's PBA Tour Trials, one spot shy of an exemption, but Ritchie Allen deferred his exemption later in the summer due to an injury, and Oatman was next in line. The switch made him the first African-American to earn an exemption since the Tour switched to an all-exempt format in 2004.

"I feel like the Ferris Bueller of the PBA Tour. You only get one life so you have to live it with everything you've got," Oatman said. "Once I got the exemption that wasn't the end. That was just the beginning and I understood how important it was for me to not just be there but to succeed. I worked really hard on my game and worked even harder on my mental game so I could succeed against the competition. I wasn't satisfied with just being there."

Andrew Cain (Scottsdale, Ariz.), who became a PBA member in January, finished second in the voting. Cain nearly made history by becoming the second bowler in Denny's PBA Tour history to win a title in his first career event when he finished fourth in the 2007 Dick Weber Open. Edward VanDaniker Jr. (Essex, Md.) finished third.

Wolfe (Vienna, Va.) was awarded his first career PBA Steve Nagy Sportsmanship Award. The 40-year-old has bowled on Tour for 17 years, with last season marking his second as an exempt bowler. He earned his exemption for 2006-07 by finishing ninth in the 2006 Denny's PBA Tour Trials.

"It was a pleasant surprise to hear from Mr. (Fred) Schreyer. That was very cool," Wolfe said about hearing the news from the PBA Commissioner and CEO. "I've been on the ballot a few times and never won, so it was a nice surprise. I guess you get older and get a little calmer. I have always looked up to Mike Aulby, who won the award a couple times, and I've always admired his attitude."

Though Wolfe finished just 51st in the PBA World Point Rankings to miss out on an exemption for 2007-08, his experience helped him keep a positive attitude all season.

"You just go about it quietly and try to do your business. I tried to be professional throughout it all," Wolfe said. "It's a long haul and I just tried to keep my cool and tell myself things can turn around in one tournament. Obviously you hate to not make the Tour, but there is a silver lining and the fact that your peers vote for this award makes it pretty cool."

Riga Kalfas finished second while Parker Bohn III, Mike Edwards, Jack Jurek, Kelly Kulick and Marv Sargent also received votes.

Steve Nagy, a member of the USBC and PBA Halls of Fame, is the namesake of the PBA's Sportsmanship Award. The award is given annually to the PBA professional who demonstrates the highest degree of sportsmanship on Tour.

The PBA Player of the Year Award is named after long-time television play-by-play announcer Chris Schenkel. The late Schenkel provided commentary for the PBA on ABC for 36 years and was elected to the PBA Hall of Fame in 1976. The Harry Golden PBA Rookie of the Year Award is named after PBA Hall of Famer Harry Golden, who served as the PBA Tour's Tournament Director for 29 years before retiring in 1990.

The PBA Player of the Year and Rookie of the Year awards are voted on by PBA members and the media after the completion of the 2006-07 season. The Steve Nagy Sportsmanship Award is voted on by PBA members who competed in at least half of the events during the 2006-07 Denny's PBA Tour season.

Sam Zurich was so surprised with his performance this week, he could hardly find the words.

The PBA Senior Tour rookie won a title in just his second career event, defeating Michael Henry, 205-200, Wednesday to win the 2007 PBA Senior Northern Illinois Classic at Sunset Bowl.

Zurich, who just turned 50 in December, led the tournament from start to finish. He was the top seed for match play to earn one of eight byes into the Round of 16, where he was pitted against Pete Couture, who had knocked Zurich out of the Round of 16 in his first career event two weeks ago in Manassas, Va.

After dropping the first game to Couture, Zurich came back to win the next three games and take the best-of-five match, 3-1. He then defeated eighth-seeded Norb Wetzel in the Round of 8 and fellow PBA Senior Tour rookie and PBA Hall of Famer Steve Cook in the semifinal.

In the title match, Zurich trailed early on before Henry left a 6-7-10 split and opened in the 6th frame. Zurich responded with three strikes in the next four frames, forcing Henry to double in the 10th. Henry struck with his first ball in the 10th and threw a solid shot with his second ball, but left a 7-pin to give Zurich the narrow victory.

"I'm elated. I can't tell you how much this means to me to have the success I've had in a relatively short period of time," Zurich said. "It's the greatest feeling. I just kept believing and had positive thoughts and things just worked out."

Zurich was the recipient of a lucky break in his semifinal match against Cook. Leading the one-game match, Zurich opened in the 8th frame, giving Cook a chance to double which would have forced Zurich to double. Cook, however, left a 2-10 split and opened, meaning Zurich only needed nine pins to win. He then left a split of his own - a 4-6-10 - but picked up the 6- and 10-pins to squeak by with a 214-213 win.

"Mike bowled great all week and I knew I had my hands full," Zurich (Grant, Fla.) said. "I didn't want to end up in a position where I had to finish the last match after what happened against Cook so I let him finish and it worked out where he needed to double."

Zurich, who owns two Denny's PBA Tour titles, took home $8,000 for the win. Henry (Brunswick, Ohio), who defeated Vince Mazzanti Jr., 269-245, in the semifinals, earned $4,500. Cook (Granite Bay, Calif.) and Mazzanti (Levittown, Pa.) each took home $3,000.

It took 11 years, but Liz Johnson finally repeated as the PBA Ladies and Legends champion.

Johnson, who teamed up with Mike Kench to win the last Ladies and Legends event in 1996, this time teamed up with Roger Kossert to take home the 2007 PBA Hammer Ladies and Legends presented by the Illinois State Bowling Proprietors Association at The Cherry Bowl Thursday with a 247-235 win over top-seeded Johnny Petraglia and Olivia Sandham.

Johnson came through in the clutch in the 10th frame of the title match to seal the win, which was Kossert's second career PBA Senior Tour title. After Petraglia struck twice in the 10th, Johnson needed a strike with her first ball in 10th and a nine-spare to win the match. She struck twice to add to her already impressive bowling resume.

"It's hard to believe I was the defending champion, it's been so long," Johnson (Cheektowaga, N.Y.), an 11-time winner on the now-defunct Professional Women's Bowling Association (PWBA) Tour, said. "It feels good to be back in the winners' circle. I've had a lot of seconds the last couple years."

One of Johnson's second-place finishes recently came in the 2005 Banquet Open where she became the first woman to advance to the championship round of a Denny's PBA Tour event. Johnson fell to Tommy Jones that day, but made more history later that summer when she became the first woman to win a PBA singles title, taking home the 2005 PBA East Region King Pin Lanes Open.

Petraglia (Manalapan, N.J.) and Sandham (Wichita, Kan.) led throughout round robin match play Thursday to earn a berth in the stepladder title match. After both teams struck in the first four frames and nine-spared in the 5th frame, things turned in the 6th when Petraglia flagged a 7-pin. After Johnson struck in the 6th, Kossert repeated Petraglia's mistake when he, too, missed a 7-pin.

Sandham and Petraglia responded with strikes in the 7th and 8th, but a nine-spare in the 9th gave Johnson and Kossert some breathing room. Petraglia's two strikes in the 10th put the pressure on Johnson, but she responded, allowing her team to take home the $15,000 top prize.

"We talked in the morning today about a plan and it worked," Kossert (Lithia, Fla.) said. "Liz bowled on the left lane all day and I bowled on the right. It worked well because we were very comfortable and it was very consistent across the house. The first time we switched lanes was for the title match. Her look wasn't as good as she anticipated. It was really breaking down hard and we decided we'd switch and both get a fresher look. It worked out well."

Johnson and Kossert advanced to the title match with a 208-182 win over Kelly Kulick and PBA Hall of Famer Steve Cook. The fourth-seeded Kulick and Cook had worked their way up the ladder after wins over Kari Schwager and Bob Chamberlain, 241-236, and Shannon Pluhowsky and John Shreve Sr., 223-202.

Kelly Kulick describes the past year as the most grueling of her life. All of her frustration, hard work and patience paid off Wednesday as she won the 2007 United States Bowling Congress (USBC) Queens.

Kulick of Union, N.J., who a year ago made history by becoming the first woman to earn a full-time exemption on the Denny's PBA Tour, defeated Diandra Asbaty of Chicago 192-143 at AMF Carolina Lanes to win the biggest and most prestigious title in women's bowling.

"I've worked very hard at my game for a long time," Kulick said. "I've had a full year of practice and that was a big time advantage. After the year that I've had, this is the icing on the cake. This is the big blowout of the candle."

Kulick vaulted into the lead in the championship match after Asbaty left a 3-4-6-7-10 split in the eighth frame. Asbaty then left another split in the ninth frame, allowing Kulick to step up and seal the victory with two strikes.

"I didn't even look at the scoreboard, but after she left those splits I knew I just needed to step up and nail a couple shots," Kulick said. "That strike on the left lane in the eighth frame really put it away."

Asbaty, a two-time U.S. Amateur champion and nine-time Team USA member, said she never got comfortable in the championship match.

"I just didn't line up right and I didn't make good decisions," Asbaty said. "I just didn't get comfortable and with only one game for a title it's very important to get comfortable."

On the way to the title, Kulick defeated three-time Queens champion Wendy Macpherson of Henderson, Nev., and then knocked off Kristal Scott of Lawrence, Kan., in the semifinal. In the opening match, Macpherson advanced by defeating Team USA's Shannon O'Keefe of Rochester, N.Y.

Kulick took home $30,000 for first place in addition to the Queens tiara, pendant and crystal trophy. Asbaty earned $18,000 for second.

The USBC Queens, which is presented by Eldorado, Silver Legacy and Circus Circus, featured a field of 344 of the top female bowlers in the world competing for a total prize fund of $200,000.