McEwan wins singles gold medal at 2019 World Bowling Women's Championships
August 29, 2019
Results
LAS VEGAS - Danielle McEwan found her way to the top of the medal podium at the World Bowling World Championships for the fifth time in her career, this time defeating Shannon O'Keefe in an all-Team USA singles final.
McEwan opened the championship match Thursday with five consecutive strikes and cruised to a 259-193 victory at the South Point Bowling Plaza. The singles semifinals and final were broadcast live on CBS Sports Network.
The gold medal was McEwan's first in the singles event and third at South Point, which hosted the combined (men and women) World Championships in 2017. That year, McEwan won trios with O'Keefe and United States Bowling Congress Hall of Famer Kelly Kulick and topped the talented field to earn the all-events gold medal.
McEwan also was a doubles and team champion at the 2015 World Women's Championships in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, her debut at the event.
"This is an absolutely amazing feeling," said McEwan, an eight-time Team USA member. "Coming into today, our initial goal was for both of us to win our first matches, so we would see each other in the final, guarantee one of us would be at the top of the podium and guarantee that we'd hear our national anthem. After we both won in the semifinals, we looked at each other and said 'we did it.' It was win-win after that."
In two matches Thursday on the 39-foot World Bowling Seoul oil pattern being used this week, McEwan struck 18 times. She started her semifinal match against top-seeded Lee Nayoung with seven consecutive strikes, before a 9 pin ended her run at perfection, and set up her meeting with O'Keefe with a 256-173 victory.
In the first singles semifinal, a pair of splits in the second and eighth frames proved to be the undoing for Sweden's Sandra Andersson, who recently won her first Professional Women's Bowling Association Tour title. O'Keefe, the reigning PWBA Player of the Year, rolled a clean game, and two doubles along the way lifted her to a 213-183 win.
Lee and Andersson each earned bronze medals.
While it's never fun having to bowl against your own teammate, O'Keefe reiterated McEwan's sentiment that the minute they put on their Team USA jerseys, it's no longer about individuals or personal success.
"An all-USA final is what we envisioned, and we came in and took care of business in our opening matches," said O'Keefe, a 15-time Team USA member and seven-time gold medalist at the World Championships. "After we did that, it was a win-win for us."
For another few days, the teammates will focus on their collective success, which includes an appearance in Friday's team medal round. They'll be back under the CBS Sports Network television lights Friday at 3 p.m. Eastern, looking to share in the team title for the second time. O'Keefe also was part of the team that won in 2015.
Once the 2019 World Women's Championships is over, however, O'Keefe and McEwan will return to their exciting race for this year's PWBA Player of the Year Award. O'Keefe holds the advantage with two events left on the 2019 PWBA Tour schedule.
"Before the final today, we even talked about the winner pulling the other up to the top of the medal stand, but once she won and they gave us the medals, I just said 'Danielle, give me your hand, because this is your moment.'" O'Keefe said. "I'm so stinking proud of her, and I love that she's my teammate. We have to beat up on each other all year on Tour, and it's nice to be able to put my shoes on with her. No matter what, we got to hear our national anthem, and winning silver at the World Championships is nothing to hang my head over."
If McEwan, who will celebrate her 28th birthday Sunday, also can claim the Masters title Friday afternoon, she'll have won a gold medal in each discipline during her short time on the team.
Her success with Team USA has been fast and plentiful, and that's something she never could've expected when she looked around the room at her first Team USA training camp.
In the time since, she's had the chance to learn from and travel and excel with many players she admired and looked up to as a youth and collegiate bowler. She's also now becoming that role model for the next generation of Team USA and PWBA standouts.
"It's so crazy to think back to when I was the rookie on this team and looking up to players like Kelly (Kulick) and Liz (Johnson) and Shannon (O'Keefe) and Stefanie (Johnson) and wondering how I'd ever make it on that team because they're just so good," McEwan said. "I knew I'd have to work so hard to even be a consideration. To now, on the flip side, seeing how much I've accomplished and knowing how hard I had to work for it, really is an amazing feeling."
The 2019 World Women's Championships started with 176 competitors from 34 countries, who competed for medals in singles, doubles, trios, team, all-events and Masters competition.
The 34 countries that participated this year were: Australia, Bahamas, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, China, Colombia, Denmark, England, Finland, France, Germany, Guam, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Israel, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Mexico, Mongolia, New Zealand, Philippines, Poland, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Chinese Taipei, Thailand, United States, Ukraine and Venezuela.
Las Vegas and South Point also hosted the World Championships in 2017. That was a combined event featuring men and women - something that happens every four years.
For more information on the 2019 World Women's Championships, visit WorldBowling.org.
LAS VEGAS - Danielle McEwan found her way to the top of the medal podium at the World Bowling World Championships for the fifth time in her career, this time defeating Shannon O'Keefe in an all-Team USA singles final.
McEwan opened the championship match Thursday with five consecutive strikes and cruised to a 259-193 victory at the South Point Bowling Plaza. The singles semifinals and final were broadcast live on CBS Sports Network.
The gold medal was McEwan's first in the singles event and third at South Point, which hosted the combined (men and women) World Championships in 2017. That year, McEwan won trios with O'Keefe and United States Bowling Congress Hall of Famer Kelly Kulick and topped the talented field to earn the all-events gold medal.
McEwan also was a doubles and team champion at the 2015 World Women's Championships in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, her debut at the event.
"This is an absolutely amazing feeling," said McEwan, an eight-time Team USA member. "Coming into today, our initial goal was for both of us to win our first matches, so we would see each other in the final, guarantee one of us would be at the top of the podium and guarantee that we'd hear our national anthem. After we both won in the semifinals, we looked at each other and said 'we did it.' It was win-win after that."
In two matches Thursday on the 39-foot World Bowling Seoul oil pattern being used this week, McEwan struck 18 times. She started her semifinal match against top-seeded Lee Nayoung with seven consecutive strikes, before a 9 pin ended her run at perfection, and set up her meeting with O'Keefe with a 256-173 victory.
In the first singles semifinal, a pair of splits in the second and eighth frames proved to be the undoing for Sweden's Sandra Andersson, who recently won her first Professional Women's Bowling Association Tour title. O'Keefe, the reigning PWBA Player of the Year, rolled a clean game, and two doubles along the way lifted her to a 213-183 win.
Lee and Andersson each earned bronze medals.
While it's never fun having to bowl against your own teammate, O'Keefe reiterated McEwan's sentiment that the minute they put on their Team USA jerseys, it's no longer about individuals or personal success.
"An all-USA final is what we envisioned, and we came in and took care of business in our opening matches," said O'Keefe, a 15-time Team USA member and seven-time gold medalist at the World Championships. "After we did that, it was a win-win for us."
For another few days, the teammates will focus on their collective success, which includes an appearance in Friday's team medal round. They'll be back under the CBS Sports Network television lights Friday at 3 p.m. Eastern, looking to share in the team title for the second time. O'Keefe also was part of the team that won in 2015.
Once the 2019 World Women's Championships is over, however, O'Keefe and McEwan will return to their exciting race for this year's PWBA Player of the Year Award. O'Keefe holds the advantage with two events left on the 2019 PWBA Tour schedule.
"Before the final today, we even talked about the winner pulling the other up to the top of the medal stand, but once she won and they gave us the medals, I just said 'Danielle, give me your hand, because this is your moment.'" O'Keefe said. "I'm so stinking proud of her, and I love that she's my teammate. We have to beat up on each other all year on Tour, and it's nice to be able to put my shoes on with her. No matter what, we got to hear our national anthem, and winning silver at the World Championships is nothing to hang my head over."If McEwan, who will celebrate her 28th birthday Sunday, also can claim the Masters title Friday afternoon, she'll have won a gold medal in each discipline during her short time on the team.
Her success with Team USA has been fast and plentiful, and that's something she never could've expected when she looked around the room at her first Team USA training camp.
In the time since, she's had the chance to learn from and travel and excel with many players she admired and looked up to as a youth and collegiate bowler. She's also now becoming that role model for the next generation of Team USA and PWBA standouts.
"It's so crazy to think back to when I was the rookie on this team and looking up to players like Kelly (Kulick) and Liz (Johnson) and Shannon (O'Keefe) and Stefanie (Johnson) and wondering how I'd ever make it on that team because they're just so good," McEwan said. "I knew I'd have to work so hard to even be a consideration. To now, on the flip side, seeing how much I've accomplished and knowing how hard I had to work for it, really is an amazing feeling."
The 2019 World Women's Championships started with 176 competitors from 34 countries, who competed for medals in singles, doubles, trios, team, all-events and Masters competition.
The 34 countries that participated this year were: Australia, Bahamas, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, China, Colombia, Denmark, England, Finland, France, Germany, Guam, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Israel, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Mexico, Mongolia, New Zealand, Philippines, Poland, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Chinese Taipei, Thailand, United States, Ukraine and Venezuela.
Las Vegas and South Point also hosted the World Championships in 2017. That was a combined event featuring men and women - something that happens every four years.
For more information on the 2019 World Women's Championships, visit WorldBowling.org.