LAS VEGAS - The leaderboards at the 2017 United States Bowling Congress Open Championships have a new look after a barrage of scores Friday, including a tie for the top spot in Regular Singles.

Steve De Kerf Jr. of Sheboygan Falls, Wisconsin, fired seven consecutive strikes to finish his singles set at the South Point Bowling Plaza, and his 802 series ties him for the lead in Regular Singles with Matt Gasn of Clarksville, Tennessee.

Two games earlier, Todd Lathrop of Colchester, Connecticut, became the first competitor of the 2017 USBC Open Championships to roll a perfect game, and his overall effort for the week helped him into the top 12 of every event in the Regular Division.

Competing a pair away from Lathrop, first-time Open Championships participant Stephanie Sanders of Bakersfield, California, used the momentum of a strong performance in her team event to roll into the Standard All-Events lead with a 1,826 total. Mike Thielen of Eagle Grove, Iowa, previously held the lead with 1,801.

De Kerf, a 32-year-old right-hander, started singles Friday with 10 consecutive strikes, before leaving a 10 pin on his 11th shot. He joked with his teammates after the shot about the chances of him picking up the spare, but he just got enough of the single pin to complete the 289 start.

"I just wanted to make good shots," said De Kerf, who made his 17th Open Championships appearance. "My teammates did a great job in breaking them down, and I was able to bump in with my hand and heavy roll. I grabbed my most aggressive ball and had room to swing it right. The 10 pin was a good shot, but it was a little in and probably a little fast, since I was nervous. I was really surprised I picked up the 10 pin."

De Kerf added 234 in Game 2 and started the finale with four strikes. He left and converted a single pin in the fifth frame, which left no room for error, if he was going to reach Gasn's total. Although De Kerf would have been happy notching his first 700 series on the championship lanes, he knew the potential was there for more.

"I've had a lot of good series here, but nothing great," said De Kerf, whose previous high series at the Open Championships was a 675 singles set at the 2010 event in Reno, Nevada. "I've never been able to put together three good games, but I knew I had a look and the potential for more."

Getting to the 10th frame, De Kerf knew exactly what was at stake.

"I knew the number, and I knew if I ran the sheet, I would get to 802," De Kerf said. "But it really wasn't a thought, and the nerves didn't kick in until after the 11th shot. I started to think about getting eight for 800. On that final shot, it was definitely left and hard, because I didn't want to go soft and go four or something like that."

De Kerf's performance tied in with his daughter Kalia's first birthday, and he now gets to join Gasn to see if their number will be enough. Regardless of the outcome, he's excited to be a part of the tournament's storied history.

"My daughter turned 1 on March 28, and today is my niece's birthday, so it definitely makes it extra special," said De Kerf, who added sets of 621 in team and 580 in doubles for a 2,003 all-events total, also a career high. "This is unreal. Even the thought of shooting 800 at Nationals is pretty ridiculous. If it doesn't hold, I'll always have 802 at Nationals."

Lathrop's perfect game came one day after he helped HoF Silver Lanes 1 of New Hartford, Connecticut, into the Regular Team lead with a 3,239 total.

"I had expectations that hopefully the momentum would carry through to today," said Lathrop, who teamed with Jon Wilbur of North Clarendon, Vermont, to win Open Doubles at the 2015 Bowlers Journal Championships presented by USBC. "I had a slow start in doubles but was able to fall into a good rhythm and keep it going."

The 53-year-old right-hander finished his doubles set with a 258 game to get to 659, pushing him and Wilbur into 12th place with a 1,280 total.

After starting singles with 12 consecutive strikes, Lathrop added 257 and put himself in position to make a run at the lead in Regular Singles and Regular All-Events, but he finished with 213 to get to 770.

The set moved him into third place in singles, while a 676 team total helped him into second place in all-events with 2,105. Jacob Boresch of Kenosha, Wisconsin, leads with 2,122.

"I noticed the ball started to read a little early in the midlane the final game," said Lathrop, who made his 26th tournament appearance. "I tried to move a little left, and there seemed to be a spot, I just couldn't get around quick enough, so I left a couple of late 9 pins. It's nice to come out and really put together a solid performance like this. I've rolled a lot of 300s in different places, but none of them were like this, so it's pretty special."

Sanders, a 38-year-old left-hander, rolled a 659 series to kick off her first Open Championships, and she added 590 in doubles and 577 in singles to find her way to the top of the leaderboard.

Needing a solid finish to get to the leading total, Sanders delivered a clean 219 game to secure the top spot.

"I wasn't thinking about the lead," Sanders said. "I was just trying to have a good set overall and finish as well as I started. It's awesome to leave with the lead, especially being my first time at the Open. I'm thrilled, and I know everybody back home will be excited, too."

Teams in the Regular Division have combined entering averages of 1,046 and above, while Regular Doubles includes combined averages of 420 and more. Regular Singles and Regular All-Events consists of competitors with averages of 210 and above.

Bowlers in the Standard Division have entering averages of 181-209.

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