By Gary Anderson

October 21 - Sean Rash (left) and Mika Koivuniemi finished the World Bowling Tour season ranked number one and two respectivelyAmerican Sean Rash claimed the final event of the World Bowling Tour regular season in Thailand to seal his place at the top of the rankings and enter the season-ending World Tenpin Bowling Association (WTBA) World Bowling Tour Finals as top seed ahead of Finland's Mika Koivuniemi and compatriot Mike Fagan.

Rash, the reigning Professional Bowlers Association (PBA) Player of the Year, secured his second title of the 2012-2013 season following his victory at the Kuwait Open in March to end the season on 583 points.

Koivuniemi came into the event in Bangkok looking for his second consecutive World Bowling Tour title, and fourth of the season, after he took the spoils at the Columbia 300 Vienna Open earlier this month and still had the chance to leapfrog the American in the rankings list.

But, the man from Finland could not repeat his performance in the final in Vienna, where he also came up against Rash, as this time his opponent reeled off four consecutive strikes in the final frame of the match to win 245-288.

That result sees the 31-year-old from Alaska head to the World Bowling Tour Finals in Las Vegas on November 3 as the top man, where he will await the winner of the preliminary match between Koivuniemi and Fagan, who finished the season in third place on the rankings list with 496 points.

Kelly Kulick's victory at the Columbia 300 Vienna Open earlier this month sees her going into the season-ending World Bowling Tour Finals as top seedKelly Kulick's victory at the Columbia 300 Vienna Open earlier this month sees her going into the season-ending World Bowling Tour Finals as top seed





























In the women's competition, the line-up for the finals had already been determined prior to the event in Thailand which resulted in the top three not travelling to Bangkok.

Singapore's Daphne Tan was the sole female at the tournament in Thailand and competed under handicap conditions in the men's event where she lost out to Michael Mak of Hong Kong.

Americans Kelly Kulick, Liz Johnson and Missy Parkin will battle it out in Las Vegas after they ended the season well clear of the pack on the rankings list.

Cali 2013 World Games silver medallist Kulick finished with 647 points, cementing her place at the top with victory in Vienna, while women's US Open champion Johnson and United States Bowling Congress (USBC) Masters winner Parkin will compete in the preliminary match for the right to face Kulick in the World Bowling Tour Finals decider next month.

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