Alex Aguiar qualified 8th and Jon Van Hees 13th this week in the inaugural WTBA International Open, the first event created by the WTBA specifically for the World Bowling Tour, now in its second year. Under the rules of the tournament, this gave Van Hees a one-round bye and Aguiar a two-round bye in the finals, with Van Hees averaging just over 220 for 6 games to make the cut to Round 3. Aguiar averaged just under 221 for 6 games in Round 3 to finish 38 pins behind Walter Ray Williams Jr. for the third and final spot in the stepladder, while Van Hees averaged just over 208 for his final round. The stepladder is rounded out by top-seeded Liz Johnson and second seed Chris Barnes, who had a 300 game in the final game of Round 3 to move into position.
The stepladder will be contested on March 25 at the Brunswick Euro Challenge outside of Paris, France.
The Tenth Board 
The stepladder was actually contested earlier this week, and Chris Barnes defeated Liz Johnson in the title match.