6th December, Abu Dhabi: Wu Siu Hong claimed a podium spot for Hong Kong for a second time in
the PBA-World Bowling Tour after finishing second runner-up at the Abu Dhabi World Bowling Tour at
Khalifa Bowling Centre on Friday.
Both Larsen and Koivuniemi started off well exchanging strikes and were locked at the halfway mark in the first game of the title match. But it was the Finn who struck out to take the first game, 280-239.
In the deciding game, the Dane made no mistake when he rolled three consecutive strikes from frame 2 forcing Koivuniemi into an error with a split in the third frame.
Larsen struck thrice again as Koivuniemi struggled to repeat the form he displayed in the first game eventually going down to Larsen, 204-247.
Wu Siu Hong clinching his first World Tour podium
"Atfer I had qualified well, I was slightly confident that I'll do well in the finals," said the 23-year-old Larsen from Assens, Denmark. "Mika has been bowling well too and I knew it was not going to be an easy match.
"I did well too in the first game, but Mika had better carry. In the second match, he made a few bad shots and that gave me the chance to win if I can focus on my game.
"I'm completely thrilled to have won my first World Tour title. In fact this is my first major title apart from one EBT title I won this year."
Koivuniemi had earlier ended Hong Kong's Wu Siu Hong's fine run with a victory in the fourth match, 258-165 to face the top seed. Wu edged third seed, Dominic Barrett of England, 248-235 in the third match.
In the second match, Wu ousted fourth-seed, Osku Palermaa of Finland and sixth-seed, Joline Planefors of Sweden, 248-215-236 and sailed past seventh-seed, Mohammed Janahi of Bahrain and Shaker Al Hassan of UAE, 237-223-225 in the opening TV final match.
Larsen picked up a whopping AED 110,000 (approx. US$30,000) for the win while Koivuniemi settled for AED 70,000. Wu went home with AED 40,000 as Barrett, Palermaa and Planefors earned 20,000, 15,000 and 12,000.
Shaker and Mohamed Janahi won AED 10,000 and AED 8,000 each. The next 2014 PBA World Bowling Tour moves to second stop in Doha with the 13th Qatar Bowling Open and then the third stop in Riyadh with the 7th Kingdom of Saudi Open the following week.
Top 3 winners, Koivuniemi, Larsen and Wu Siu Hong
The World Tenpin Bowling Association, which is made up of more than 100 bowling federations, governs the sport throughout the world. For more information on WTBA and the World Bowling Tour, visit www.worldtenpinbowling.com.
Photos by Terence Yaw in Anu Dhabi, UAE.
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