March 17, 2025 Nolan Hughes

Edvall becomes third Swedish player to win PBA Tour title

Sweden’s Rasmus Edvall joined the illustrious ranks of PBA Tour champions Sunday night in the first title event of the PBA World Series of Bowling XVI.

Edvall climbed the stepladder finals of the PBA Scorpion Championship, defeating Ryan Barnes, Germany’s Tobias Börding, EJ Tackett and Malaysia’s Rafiq Ismail to secure his first career PBA Tour title and the $20,000 top prize.

Edvall defeated Malaysia’s Rafiq Ismail, 224-171, in the title match at the National Bowling Stadium in Reno, Nev.

His fiancée, Emma Halttunen, and sister, Ronja Edvall, watched Edvall hoist the trophy from Sweden after 3 a.m.

“It’s an exclusive club to be in,” Edvall said. “Not many Swedes have done it, and I can't really put words into it. It’s surreal.”

Edvall’s victory came to the surprise of, well, himself.

“When I woke up this morning, I couldn't see myself winning, that's for sure,” Edvall. “I wanted to win the first match. After that, I didn’t know. I didn't have the best day at the beginning. I just had some luck, and I kept rolling with it.”

He said he did not start to realize he could actually win the title until the championship, which came following a semifinal match win over the two-time reigning PBA Player of the Year, EJ Tackett.

“Before that, not even a chance. I couldn’t even think about it,” Edvall said. “I feel like EJ is such a good bowler, when he had that last frame (leaving a 2-4-10 and an open frame), I couldn't believe it. This is not happening. It felt so unreal.”

Edvall has not bowled much since January 2024 as he has battled injuries to both knees. He said he was unsure if he would even be able to compete in the WSOB at the level he desired.

“I was a little bit insecure about how I was able to perform,” Edvall said. “I'm still not 100% — that's the thing. I can't keep bowling like this, so I need to rehabilitate and come back even stronger. This is what I love. I want to keep doing this.”

 

 

Edvall secured his berth in the championship round as the highest-seeded qualifier who lost in the Round of 8 in the elimination bracket.

He defeated Ryan Barnes in the opening match, 196-133. Barnes suffered déjà vu from his PBA Pete Weber Missouri Classic finals appearance, where he mustered only 141 in his first match.

Edvall then took down another first-time European finalist in Börding, 204-189. The German kept the match more competitive, but back-to-back open frames in the fifth and sixth cost him.

Edvall prevailed over Tackett in the semifinal, 217-205. Tackett started with five of six strikes, but left consecutive splits and open frames on the left lane to close the match. Meanwhile, Edvall managed a clean game to advance.

Edvall earned some revenge over Ismail, who defeated Edvall in the Round of 8, in the title match with a 224-172 victory. Edvall again bowled a clean game, while Ismail left two open frames and failed to strike on the right lane until the 10th frame.

The WSOB continues with the PBA Viper Championship on Monday at the National Bowling Stadium.

The Round of 16 will begin at 9 a.m. Pacific/local (12 p.m. Eastern) time, followed by the Round of 8 at 11:30 a.m. PT (2:30 p.m. ET) on BowlTV. The four winners of each bracket and the highest-seeded loser in the Round of 8 will advance to the championship round.

The PBA Viper Championship stepladder finals will air live on FS1 and the FOX Sports app at 4 p.m. PT (7 p.m. ET).

The championship rounds of the PBA World Series of Bowling XVI will air Sunday through Wednesday, leading up to the PBA World Championship finals next Saturday, March 22. 

The full upcoming PBA television schedule is available here.

Round of 16 Results

No. 16 Boog Krol def. No. 1 Tim Foy Jr., 3-1
No. 8 EJ Tackett def. No. 24 Arnar Jonsson, 3-1

No. 18 Tobias Börding def. No. 2 BJ Moore, 3-1
No. 23 Marshall Kent def. No. 7 Matt Ogle, 3-1

No. 19 Patrick Dombrowski def. No. 3 Jason Belmonte, 3-1
No. 22 Ryan Barnes def. No. 6 Trevor Roberts, 3-1

No. 4 Rafiq Ismail def. No. 13 Shawn Maldonado, 3-2
No. 12 Rasmus Edvall def. No. 5 Cam Crowe, 3-2

Round of 8 Results

No. 8 EJ Tackett def. No. 16 Boog Krol, 3-1
No. 18 Tobias Börding def. No. 23 Marshall Kent, 3-1
No. 22 Ryan Barnes def. No. 19 Patrick Dombrowski, 3-2
No. 4 Rafiq Ismail def. No. 12 Rasmus Edvall, 3-0

Championship Round Scores

Match 1: No. 5 Rasmus Edvall def. No. 4 Ryan Barnes, 196-133
Match 2: No. 5 Rasmus Edvall def. No. 3 Tobias Börding, 204-189
Match 3: No. 5 Rasmus Edvall def. No. 2 EJ Tackett, 217-205
Championship: No. 5 Rasmus Edvall def. No. 1 Rafiq Ismail, 224-172

Full standings and match results are available here.

Final Standings
  1. Rasmus Edvall, $20,000
  2. Rafiq Ismail, $13,500
  3. EJ Tackett, $10,000
  4. Tobias Börding, $7,500
  5. Ryan Barnes, $6,000

More information on the PBA Scorpion Championship is available here.

Tournament Schedule

National Bowling Stadium | Reno, NV

All times Pacific/local

Monday, March 17
9 a.m. — PBA Viper Championship - Match Play Round of 16 (best-of-five games)
11:30 a.m. — PBA Viper Championship - Match Play Round of 8 (best-of-five games)

Four winners and highest-seeded loser in Round of 8 advance to PBA Viper Championship Finals

4 p.m. on FS1 — PBA Viper Championship - Finals
Free Tickets

Tuesday, March 18
9 a.m. — PBA Chameleon Championship - Match Play Round of 16 (best-of-five games)
11:30 a.m. — PBA Chameleon Championship - Match Play Round of 8 (best-of-five games)

Four winners and highest-seeded loser in Round of 8 advance to PBA Chameleon Championship stepladder finals

4 p.m. on FS1 — PBA Chameleon Championship - Finals
Free Tickets

Wednesday, March 19
9 a.m. — PBA Shark Championship - Match Play Round of 16 (best-of-five games)
11:30 a.m. — PBA Shark Championship - Match Play Round of 8 (best-of-five games)

Four winners and highest-seeded loser in Round of 8 advance to PBA Shark Championship stepladder finals

4 p.m. on FS1 — PBA Shark Championship - Finals
Free Tickets

Thursday, March 20
10 a.m. — PBA World Championship - Round-Robin Match Play Round 1 (eight games)
5 p.m. — PBA World Championship - Round-Robin Match Play Round 2 (eight games)

Top five players advance to PBA World Championship stepladder finals

Saturday, March 22
12 p.m. on FOX — PBA World Championship Finals
Free Tickets

More information on the PBA World Series of Bowling XVI is available here.