As was predicted, Daffodil lived up to its reputation for yielding lots & lots of 9-taps.  If we have this right, TWO bowlers had shots at the 'Middle 7' and $500.00 each and it just so happens that those TWO are really just ONE since it was the same person, Gary Van Ness who in one game strung six straight taps only to narrowly miss on his first $500.00 shot...THEN, in the very next game, Gary repeated the run of taps but this time he nailed it, winning the $500.00! (see video, below, left) 

Also with a chance to throw one-ball for $500.00 (for front 6) was Shane Thompson, when he got a real strike on #6 that also cost him a 'Golden Shot' for the BIG Jackpot.  With Gary taking $500.00 this week, the Jackpot was slightly wounded but survived the full-on assault, remaining healthy at $6,501.00 for next week at HiLine Lanes. 

Evidently, it wasn't good enough for the 79 year old, Van Ness to take a $500.00 chunk out of the Jackpot as he had "Quite the day" as someone so eloquently put it.  The two long strings of taps put on the board by Gary went a long way in boosting his Personal Best series by 39 pins as well as bettering (by 44 pins) BOTH of the winning scores from his first two Titles.  Yes, you read that correctly, this was Gary's THIRD Title!  Gary joined the Tour back in March of 2010 but it wasn't until May of 2014 before he won for the first time.  Now, he has won THREE times over the last 17 months which shows that his perseverance is now being rewarded very nicely!  Despite his HUGE score, it was posted early on (2nd Squad) and clearly was NOT out of reach.  In the end, it did hang on for the Win by just 4 pins... His biggest payday ($2,272.00) pushes his Career Earnings close to joining the '$10,000.00 CLUB' not including the $500.00 for his 7-Middle Taps.  Gary used his Brunswick 'Avalanche' ball and says that, because he plans on joining the Tour in Las Vegas next month, "This will help pay for the trip!"  

Samson Ibale continued one of the hottest streaks in Tour history.  After his first two games, he needed to finish with two 300 games in order to overtake Van Ness by 8 pins.  When asked if he knew what he needed after game #2, he said, "Yes, I knew exactly what I needed in advance".  Samson would have Won if he had thrown 23 straight strikes...instead, he had 22 straight then an 8-count to come up FOUR PIN SHORT!.  Impressive, for sure!  Samson's recent streak has also helped him move into the lead in a close B.O.Y. race with only a few weeks to go.  A healthy $1,009.00 for 2nd, pushed his Tour leading earnings to $53,675.00. 

Quietly, sneaking up on everyone VERY late in the day was Osmond Green!  The "Oz" was chasing his 4th Title and just a shot or two in either of his middle games would have been enough to boost him to his 5th!  Finishing in 3rd, "Oz" adds $504.00 to his impressive career earnings, pushing that total to $22,309.00. 

Interestingly, ALL THREE of the Top 3 finishers collected extra Cash from either the Jackpot or the Scratch Pot.  Way to Go, Gary, Samson & Osmond!