Day 1 Results

ARLINGTON, Texas - Eighteen members of Team USA hit the lanes Tuesday at the International Training and Research Center for the first round of a four-day test of versatility on a variety of World Bowling lane conditions.

This week marks the initial portion of the qualifying process for the 2019 Pan American Games, and team members started the event on the 41-foot Rome oil pattern.

They'll bowl six games on a different oil pattern each day, earning points for their daily finishes and points for how they perform across 24 games.

The 2019 Pan American Games will take place in Lima, Peru, from July 26-Aug. 11 and will bring together approximately 6,700 athletes and feature 39 sports and 62 disciplines.

Jakob Butturff of Tempe, Arizona, and Missy Parkin of Laguna Hills, California, both overcame slow starts and catapulted to the top of their respective standings Tuesday with big finishes.

The players moved across the six pairs that were in play Tuesday at the ITRC, with the men following the men and the women following the women. That meant hitting each pair twice during the six games, and Butturff found success by attacking the lanes differently the second time through.

He closed the opening round with games of 279, 257 and 300 for an 836 set. His 1,468 six-game total, a 244.67 average, paced the nine-player men's field. He was followed by Nick Pate of Inver Grove Heights, Minnesota (1,312), and EJ Tackett of Huntington, Indiana (1,275).

"I was able to move right and slow down my ball speed," said Butturff, who started the day with games of 224, 202 and 206. "Speed consistency has always been a big thing with me, so it was nice to be able to repeat shots on a tough pattern and finish strong today."

Butturff earned one point as the daily leader, Pate earned two points, Tackett earned three points and the points for the rest of the field corresponded to how the players finished in the standings.

The format is similar to what competitors experience at the United States Bowling Congress Team USA Trials, the event that helps determine Team USA each year.

Butturff won the USBC Team USA Trials in 2017 and will rely on that experience to keep himself focused on the daily grind.

"I always look at Team Trials as an event where you want to be versatile and consistent, and that's how you have to look at this week, too," Butturff said. "It's very easy to be the leader one day and have a terrible day the next, all but taking yourself out of the big picture. The year I won the USBC Team Trials, my best daily finish was third, and my lowest was 18th. It's about taking it one day at a time."

Parkin admitted she didn't initially attack the lanes the right way but had time to regroup and find her way into the lead. She closed with games of 257 and 236 for a 1,257 total, four pins ahead of Stefanie Johnson of McKinney, Texas (1,253). Josie Barnes of Nashville, Tennessee, is close behind with 1,249. The women's field also includes nine players.

"I did not play the lanes correctly to start and found myself a little too far in with a lot of over-under reaction," Parkin said. "At the end of the second game, I decided to move right and keep my angles closed, just trying to keep the ball in the pocket. I wanted to stay right as long as possible, which ended up being different than a lot of people. When I started to see friction, I was able to change the roll through the front part of the lane and keep my carry."

Competition at the ITRC will resume Wednesday at noon Eastern, and the players will face the 36-foot Stockholm oil pattern.

This week's Pan Am Trials will account for 60 percent of the points toward determining the two men and two women who will represent Team USA in Peru. The USBC Masters for the men and USBC Queens for the women will make up the other 40 percent of the points.

Of the 18 players competing this week, only longtime Team USA members Kelly Kulick of Union, New Jersey, and Shannon Pluhowsky of Dayton, Ohio, have experienced the Pan American Games, but all of the bowlers know how significant it is. Pluhowsky, the lone left-hander on the women's team, is the defending singles champion at the Pan Am Games.

"It would mean a lot to be able to qualify for the Pan Am Games," Parkin said. "I know how prestigious it is, not only for bowling, but for all sports. It's the closest thing we have to the Olympics, and something I'd love to be a part of. It has been a focus of mine going into this year. I've been focused on the start of the (Professional Women's Bowling Association Tour) season, but I also was looking ahead to this week. It's a really important event, and I'm happy with my start today."

The Pan Am Games are the second largest multi-sport event, gathering the 41 National Olympic Committees that make up PanamSports.

The Pan Am Games are held every fourth year and last were contested in Toronto in July 2015. Bowling made its debut at the event as a demonstration sport in 1983.

The first edition of the Pan Am Games was held in Buenos Aires in 1951 and welcomed 22 countries competing in 18 sports.

Visit BOWL.com/TeamUSA for more information about the athlete selection process for the Pan Am Games and to learn more about the Team USA program.