February 6, 2025 Nolan Hughes

From the beaming smile of Santtu Tahvanainen, to the tears of joy of Illinois native Sean Rash, to the ferocious howl of Tim Foy Jr., emotions ran high during the final round of elimination match play in the PBA Owen’s Illinois Classic.

Tahvanainen, Chris Via, Rash and Foy won their Round of 8 matches to qualify for the championship round, while Matt Ogle punched his ticket as the highest-seeded loser of the round.

The stepladder finals will air live on FS1 at 7 p.m. Central (8 p.m. Eastern) on Saturday, Feb. 8.

Tahvanainen, who earned 2022 PBA Rookie of the Year honors, missed last season with a knee injury. 

His grand return began not-so-grand. Coming into this week’s event, Tahvanainen ranked 92nd of 94 qualifying players in points. He finished 64th in the PBA Delaware Classic and did not qualify for the U.S. Open.

This week, Tahvanainen averaged more than 232 to qualify third for match play, then defeated Boog Krol and Hayden Stippich to earn the No. 1 seed.

The 28-year-old will look to capture his first career title and become the third Finnish player to win on the PBA Tour.

After finishing third in last week’s U.S. Open, Chris Via qualified ninth for match play, missing out on a one-round bye by just five pins. The 32-year-old then defeated a trio of southpaws — Jakob Butturff, Nate Stubler and Eric Jones — to reach his second consecutive championship round.

Sean Rash lives about an hour southwest of Vernon Hills in Montgomery. His homecoming week began with Tom Clark, the PBA Tour Commissioner, announcing that Rash will be inducted into the PBA Hall of Fame this spring.

Building off that momentum, Rash averaged more than 227 to qualify 12th for match play, then took down Matt Sanders, Kris Prather and Matt Ogle to make the show. After beating Ogle, his Roth/Holman Doubles Championship teammate, Rash hugged his wife, mother and father.

Ogle, who earned the No. 5 seed for the stepladder finals as the highest-seeded loser in the Round of 8, will have a chance at redemption if he can win his opening match.

That victory won’t come easy against Tim Foy Jr., who slayed two giants in successive fashion. Foy, who qualified 18th and defeated Bailey Mavrick on Wednesday, defeated Graham Fach and Jason Belmonte in Thursday’s match play rounds.

Foy won four PBA East Regional titles last season and earned exempt status at August’s PBA Tour Trials.

While the championship round of the PBA Owen’s Illinois Classic isn’t until Saturday night, the action at Bowlero Vernon Hills continues on Friday. Sixteen games of round robin match play in the PBA Roth/Holman Doubles Championship are on tap.

All singles finalists except Tahvanainen will be competing in the doubles match play rounds. Belmonte and Bill O’Neill hold a 108-pin lead, while two father-son teams — Wes and Jordan Malott and Chris and Ryan Barnes — look to climb into the top five and qualify for the stepladder finals.

Competition begins at 11 a.m. CT (noon ET) on Friday, livestreaming on BowlTV.

Round of 8 Results

No. 3 Santtu Tahvanainen def. No. 22 Hayden Stippich, 4-1

No. 9 Chris Via def. No. 17 Eric Jones, 4-2

No. 12 Sean Rash def. No. 4 Matt Ogle, 4-2

No. 18 Tim Foy Jr. def. No. 10 Jason Belmonte, 4-2

Round of 16 Results

No. 3 Santtu Tahvanainen def. No. 14 Boog Krol, 4-0
No. 22 Hayden Stippich def. No. 6 Ryan Barnes, 4-1

No. 9 Chris Via def. No. 8 Nate Stubler, 4-3
No. 17 Eric Jones def. No. 1 Bill O’Neill, 4-2

No. 12 Sean Rash def. No. 5 Kris Prather, 4-3
No. 4 Matt Ogle def. No. 20 Tommy Jones, 4-3

No. 18 Tim Foy Jr. def. No. 2 Graham Fach, 4-2
No. 10 Jason Belmonte def. No. 7 Shawn Maldonado, 4-0

Match scores are available here.

Tournament Schedule

Bowlero Vernon Hills | Vernon Hills, IL

Saturday, Feb. 8 | FS1
7 p.m. CT (8 p.m ET) — Championship Round