May 26, 2002 By Gary George 3 min read

Championship Bowling just completed its third season … well let’s call it two and two-thirds seasons. Our very first season started in January of 2000 and we had 10 shows on HSTV and a Grand Championship, which was held at Manor Lanes. That’s the one where local lefty, Al D’Andrea, put it all together on that final Sunday and became our first Grand Champion.

If I remember my history correctly, the last match was a battle between two tough lefties because Al was up against another great one in John Marshall.

I also remember that was the season of Lenny Tolnai. He was such a dominating force every week of qualifiers.

The second season started in September, 2000, and ran through May of 2001. We had 15 shows that year and the Grand Championship was held at Fairbank. Interestingly enough, another lefty won that final show when John Krasonic bested Mike Miller to become the second Grand Champion.

Then, we had this past season that started in September, 2001, and ran through just last week. We had big Jim Yex rolling in the Grand Championship final match at Mt. Vernon Bowl against the ever-dangerous Dave Show (dangerous because you never know what he might say or do). Jim caught fire at the end of the game (that is a figure of speech – he really didn’t catch on fire) and went on to become our third Grand Champion.

That final TV show is currently playing on HSTV Channel 12. If you haven’t watched it yet, you owe it to yourself to catch it the next time it is on. The Shootout at the beginning of the show contains some of the best bowling by six guys as I have ever seen in my life. Bo Umbel, Kenny Umbel, Jr., Scott McIlvaine, Ted Yanak, Frank Gadd, Jr., and Griff Riggar were all locked into the pocket, and they made it a Shootout that I will never forget.

So while it is really immaterial about how many seasons we’ve had, I guess it is good to know that there have been three. That is mostly because whenever you first start something like this, the first year is always the hardest, what with the rules and regulations and all. The second year is when you normally try to iron out all the bugs (I love that expression).

And, finally, the third year is when everything is supposed to run as smooth as glass.

That is exactly how our third season of Championship Bowling went – as smooth as glass.

I can hardly wait until next season.

The Ladies

The qualifiers are done at Klondike for the Ladies Show. Robin Wilson is sitting in the No. 1 position with Mikie Vinch right behind her.

But there are some tremendous lady bowlers pressing them from the other spots below, so I expect to see an exciting affair when we have the TV taping next Saturday, June 1, at 10 a.m. at Klondike.

Any one of these eight ladies could be our next Champion. So if you really want to enjoy yourself, come on out to Klondike and watch us tape the show.

There is plenty of room for everyone, and proprietor Joe Pascia and I would love to have you there.

Summer leagues

Remember, if you haven’t signed up yet, the summer leagues have started, but there are some spots still available in most of the leagues in the area. And, the summer is a great time to bowl, so get in out of the heat and have some fun.

I’ll see you on the lanes.