KUALA LUMPUR: From conquering Europe and now the United States, bowling queen Sin Li Jane continued to make the country proud on the world stage.
The 32-year-old scored a first for Malaysian bowling on Tuesday when she was crowned the US Women's Open champion after defeating Dania Zavjalova of Latvia 226-214 in the one-game final at Royal Pin Woodland in Indianapolis, Indiana.
Li Jane had earlier put herself in pole position after qualifying for the stepladder finals as the top seed, which meant she was assured of a minimal second-place finish, a feat which already bested Shalin Zulkifli's third-place finish in 2008.
Li Jane just wasn't going to let the opportunity slip as she secured the one win she needed en route to clinching a remarkable third Professional Women's Bowling Association (PWBA) Tour of the season, and fourth overall in her career.
This victory marked Li Jane's most significant success on the PWBA Tour, as she can now put the disappointment of her narrow miss at the United States Bowling Congress Queens (USBC) in 2019 behind her.
Then, she was denied by Ukraine's Dasha Kovalova 226-216 in the title decider.
USBC Queens, along with the US Women's Open, are considered the two major championships in the United States.
"I feel very happy, I wanted to make sure that I would get the win tonight," Li Jane said in a post-event interview.
"I've dreamt about this moment for a long time, and after watching other bowlers win it while being away, today, I won it."
With three wins from five starts, which also included victories at PWBA Bowlers Journal Rockford Open and PWBA Classic Series - Nashville, Li Jane has reclaimed her position at the top of the PWBA points rankings.
This placed Li Jane as the frontrunner for the PWBA Player of the Year award, and she's in line to be the first winner in the tour history, if she remains at the summit until the completion of the season.
The tour will have another three legs before culminating with the Tour Championship in Detroit, Michigan from August 6-13.
"I have never thought of winning Player of the Year, I'm just going to take it one stop at a time and let what happen," said Li Jane.
Besides being a four-time PWBA Tour winner, Li Jane is also a four-time European Tour winner, with two of them being the prestigious EBT Masters crown.
The EBT Masters winners are hailed as the King and Queen of Europe as only the top eight men and women in the particular EBT season get invited to play in the tournament.
