General News

Alicia Melton looking to surprise again at TPL Decider

After years of playing in junior and local leagues, Alicia Melton thought her best competitive bowling days were behind her. That all changed when she received an unexpected call from Tenpin Premier League organiser Kristi Middleton, inviting her to play in the league. 

“It has been a huge honour to play in the TPL,” Melton admitted. “I honestly spoke to Kristie and thought she was joking when I got the call-up. This has been an awesome opportunity and I can’t thank the TPL enough for allowing me to go.”

Melton immediately repaid the organisers’ trust, making it into the top eight at her very first TPL tournament, the Wodonga Classic. A result that came as another big surprise to her.

“It was a thrill because I didn’t think I had any chance at all! It was a very big achievement and will be remembered for a while,” she said.

By then Melton had proved to herself that she had a chance to compete against anyone, so she went into round two of TPL with a more relaxed approach. Having already played at Suncity Bowl, she knew exactly what to expect from the lanes. 

She started off the Suncity Showdown with some good bowling to go through the round-robin and the top-16 semi-finals, reaching the top eight for the second time in a row. Once again, Melton delivered beyond expectations, bowling her way into the final top two, where she came up against Wodonga champion Jarrod Langford. 

After a close battle, Langford just nipped Melton at the post, winning by three points to claim back-to-back TPL titles. Having only just missed out on taking home the trophy, Melton was certainly not let down by her efforts. 

“I am extremely proud, I have had some mixed results in the past, so this is awesome for me. I really surprised myself over this weekend. I had changed a few things in my game over the last week so I was quite nervous, but overall I’m extremely happy with my results,” she said. 

Melton is now placed third overall in the TPL standings, only 10 points away from second-placed Grace Fahey. Knowing Melton, she might have one more big surprise saved for the grand finale.

The TPL Decider round will be held at Keon Park, from October 29th to 30th. For all event details and ticket information go here.