Riviera Lanes continues making 'greatest memories in bowling,' this time for Marshall Kent

Marshall Kent said winning the PBA Tournament of Champions was "a lifelong dream come true."

So when that dream became reality Sunday at AMF Riviera Lanes in Fairlawn, the emotions poured out.

Kent won his first PBA major title and second PBA title in 2024, winning all four matches in the televised ladder finals, including a 205-201 win over Anthony Simonsen in the final.

"It's just a roller coaster," Kent said. "I had a lot of good things go my way today and sometimes you need that to win some matches on TV. I still can't even put it into words right now. It's been an unbelievable ride."

Kent said it was important for him to win a major in front of his mother, Susan, his family and his "support system." He called the Tournament of Champions his "favorite major."

"I would tell myself to believe it could happen," he said. "This is just the icing on the cake."

Kent's victory proved popular among his fellow bowlers.

"He did exactly what he needed to do every single match," E.J. Tackett said. "Marshall is one of my best friends. He was in my wedding. I'm really, really happy for him."

"If you watch the show today, you can clearly see which side the breaks were going," said Simonsen. "Marshall is a good friend of mine; really everyone on the show was. Like I said the other day, I would've been happy with any of the five of us winning."

PBA commissioner Tom Clark gave kudos to Kent and Akron for the tournament.

"It's too bad anyone had to lose, but Marshall Kent, what he did today will never be forgotten," Clark said. "What he was able to do was concentrate on bowling for two straight hours in incredibly difficult conditions against champions who know how to win. It was a crazy, wild show.

"This city and this building produces the greatest memories in bowling. We love coming here. Everything is just more special and you know you're adding memories each time."

Marshall Kent rides fortune to win first PBA Tournament of Champions title

Kent's path to the title saw him beat the same four men Jason Belmonte did for the 2023 title: Jason Sterner, Matthew Ogle, Tackett and Simonsen.

While noting he liked being associated with Belmonte, Kent acknowledged his road to the title was anything but smooth.

"There were some signs, looking back, that spelled it was going to be my day, but you can't worry about that at the time," Kent said. "I was very fortunate that when I made mistakes, it didn't cost me too much.

"In these situations, you need some fortune on your side, and I used a lot of the fortune I've been building up. I think my bank account of fortune is empty for few days."

Fortune smiled on Kent early when Sterner scored four straight open frames to begin their match. Though Kent also had an open frame in the eighth, he cruised to a 195-157 win.

In the second match vs. Ogle, Kent was on fire with six straight strikes before putting his first seventh-frame shot in the gutter. Showing his mettle, he rebounded with a spare in the seventh and went on to win 267-226.

"That was a combination of just a little slide issue and an 'oopsie' miss right," Kent said. "It would have been a really good 270 story to tell."

In the semifinal, Kent benefited from some rare mistakes by Tackett. The reigning PBA Player of the Year left two open frames, including one in the 10th.

Despite throwing an open frame in the ninth, Kent emerged with a 212-192 win.

"For me, it was a little rough," Tackett said. "My shoulder is a little messed up. It didn't feel very good today. Throwing strikes wasn't too bad, but it's the spare shots which hurts it."

The final with Simonsen was tight, as both bowlers left one open frame heading into the ninth.

Kent has a chance to clinch it after a strike in the ninth, but rolled 7-spare-strike in the final frame to finish at 205.

That left Simonsen with a chance to win, if he could hit two strikes and four pins in the 10th. Simonsen got a strike on his first ball, but left the 10 pin up on his second shot, giving Kent the title.

"I was trying to get one good shot a time in that moment," Simonsen said. "I made a good shot on the first one. I think I made a pretty good shot on the second one, but it was just a smidge right. I didn't get the hit."

"I think I felt more anxiety my first few shots than that entire match," Kent said. "I know I didn't throw it great in the 10th. I felt I threw enough good shots before that to get away with it."