THE ROOKIE TAKES POLE

Andy Warhol said that everyone should enjoy 15 minutes of fame, but Mark Siders of the United States (pictured) has the overnight lead, so should enjoy at least 12 hours in the limelight. The 25-year-old student of Industrial System Engineering at OSU has never set foot outside of his homeland before, therefore is competing in his first international event, having been talked into taking this trip by Bill Hoffman, also a citizen of Columbus.

"I'm really impressed with Sweden and the city of Helsingborg," said Siders. "The people are so laid back, and it is so safe and clean. I haven't seen much of the city yet, but plan to do so as soon as I can. It seems that there is so much tradition here."

Siders' 1,408 total will surely make the cut, but the unique format means that you want to be in the leading spots for the next round. "Hopefully my score will stay in the top eight. I matched up well to the lanes and really thought I could have had a better score." Siders added. " I'm very impressed with the bowlers here, they are a lot more sound and fundamental than at home, they seem so much more focused. This is a good format too, I like to play more games."

Just over 60 pins cover the top eight right now, with bowlers from four nations within that group. This has every sign of being a great tournament.

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