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PENNSYLVANIA BOWLER JOINS 60-YEAR
The 85-year-old right-hander was surrounded by family and friends as he made his milestone march down Center Aisle at the National Bowling Stadium on Thursday night.
The Silverstrim name was proudly displayed on the scoreboard as the man of the hour was joined on the lanes by his four sons, John, who made his 35th trip to the tournament, Andrew (13), Nelson III (7) and Gary (6). The family name extended to the third generation when Silverstrim's 19-year-old grandson, Chris, made his tournament debut for doubles and singles Friday.
"This is about the fifth time we have bowled together," said Silverstrim, who is a two-time Pennsylvania State Tournament all-events champion. "The first time we bowled together was 1987 in
Silverstrim began his USBC Open Championships journey at the 1950 event in
"I was glad and lucky to be able to do it," said Silverstrim, who is a member of the Lycoming County Bowling Association Hall of Fame. "I have Parkinson's disease, which affects my walking. Sometimes, it's difficult to bowl, but I am glad I was able to be here tonight."
Silverstrim originally was asked to go to the Open Championships because he was among the top five bowlers in his home bowling center. He has seen many changes in the sport since his first Open Championships appearance.
"It was really different back then," said Silverstrim, who bowls league at Cloverleaf Lanes. "In 1961, there were six houses in my area. Out of the six houses, all the 700s that were bowled that year could fit onto one sheet of paper, double-spaced. One of my teammates and I were the only two bowlers who had two 700s that year. Today, you can go to any center and find that amount shot in one night."
Silverstrim has been to 41 different cities during his 60-year journey, and it was always a goal to make the annual trek to the Open Championships a family experience.
"I bowled with a lot of good friends," Silverstrim said. "We always did other things besides bowl together. In 1972, my wife and I went to
Through a mutual friend, Silverstrim met late USBC Hall of Famer Joe Norris of
"Well, you have to be pretty lucky just to make it to 60," Silverstrim said.
"If the boys want to come back next year, then I might bowl one more year. I don't see myself bowling anymore after that, but you never know."
Silverstrim finished this year with 421 in singles, 394 in doubles and 393 in team for a 1,208 all-events total. In 60 tournament appearances, he has knocked down 92,284 pins for a career average of 171.8.
TWO BOWLERS TOSS PERFECT GAMES AT USBC OPEN CHAMPIONSHIPS
It had been nearly two weeks since there was a 300 game at the USBC Open Championships, but this week, there were three in less than 24 hours.
Michael Klimpel of
Klimpel's run at perfection couldn't have been possible without his Farmington Lanes B teammates, and their keys to success were teamwork, strategy and execution. Despite an 892 opening game, the bowlers stuck to their game plan, which was play the lanes together with the hope of creating more area to work with later in the team event.
"The guys I bowl with are great bowlers, and because of that, they are going to stick with the plan and grind it out," said Klimpel, who shot 171, 300 and 198 for a team-high 669 series. "You have to stay with the game plan so you can open up the lanes and possibly have a big game later in the series.
You just can't panic and move too soon because then there won't be anything left for the end."
The team's strategy was simple and proved to be effective as it added games of 1,106 and 1,006 for a 3,004 total at the National Bowling Stadium.
Bowlers Edge Pro Shop of Neenah, Wis., leads Regular Team with 3,408.
"The goal is to stay ahead of the moves, and if you can do that, you'll do well out here," Klimpel said. "I got a little bit lucky tonight. I didn't throw the ball anywhere good enough to score the way I did, but we got to 3,000, and it's always nice to finish plus. Along with stringing strikes, you also have to get some breaks to put up big numbers here."
Gilliard attributes his success to his versatility, which helped him bounce back from a disappointing start on the championship lanes this year.
"My bowling instructor taught me to do a lot of things, and if you can't bowl the way you're most comfortable, you have to try something else," said Gilliard, a warehouse manager for Davis Bowling Supply. "I decided I was going to have to move left, break my wrist and play a little straighter, and it worked. I started getting a look, and when the strikes were adding up, I started getting excited. It was fun."
The 70-year-old left-hander's 300 came in his second game of singles early Friday morning, and his wife, Charlotte, who has never seen him roll a perfect game, was back at the hotel sleeping.
"I've shot 300 before, so I didn't get nervous, but it feels great to shoot one here," Gilliard said. "I was in the dumps about bowling badly in team, and if I was going to wake up at 5:30 to bowl some more, I really wanted to shoot something good."
Gilliard took advantage of the tournament's new policy allowing bowlers to enjoy beverages while competing and used an energy drink to help him get going.
He finished singles with games of 186, 300 and 236 for a 722 series, the first 700 of his nine-year Open Championships career. He added 557 in doubles and 516 in team for a 1,795 all-events total.
Presenting sponsors for the 2010 USBC Open Championships are Circus Circus, Eldorado Hotel Casino and Silver Legacy Resort Casino in
For more information on the USBC Open Championships, visit USBCopen.com.
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Bowl with US
2010 USBC OPEN CHAMPIONSHIPS
At National Bowling Stadium,
(Top 10 division leaders with hometowns and pinfalls)
REGULAR DIVISION
Team
1, Bowlers Edge Pro Shop (Brad Kuhr, Timothy Rice, Dan Paul, Kenny Kempf, Jason Wendt),
8, Lakeview Lanes,
Doubles
1, Steve Bohn, Norwood, Minn./John Kreyer Jr., Fridley, Minn., 1,514. 2, Jeffrey Mersch, Orlando, Fla./Erik Vermilyea, Mansfield, Texas, 1,507. 3, Tom Milton,
Singles
1, Terrence Syring,
10, Dale Hofmeister,
All-Events
1, Matt McNiel,
8, John Eiss,
Team All-Events
1, Northern Lanes Pro Shop (Bo Goergen, Derwin Pitre, Dale Hofmeister, JR Raymond, Dan MacLelland),
CLASSIFIED DIVISION
Team
1, Huikko's
Doubles
1, Tyson Sims/Scott Wilcox,
Singles
1, David Garcez,
All-Events
1, Harry Arnold,
8, Jake Acuna,
