Bowling World Newspaper

6 www.bowlingworld.com - June 2019 SERVING THE BOWLING INDUSTRY SINCE 1967 Noblesville Father, Son Achieve Incredibly Rare Bowling Feat By Dana Hunsinger Benbow, Indianapolis Star Father & Son bowl 300 games and 800 series on same night. They were back at Bowl 32 just two days after the unimaginable had happened. "I know it's bowling and many won't see it as a story," said Jamie Elliott, who wit- nessed a rare feat in the centuries-long history of the sport. "But being a bowler, it was awesome to see." Father-son duo Bryan and Ryan Anten, bowling in the same league, different teams, side-by-side on lanes each scored a perfect 300 game — and then — each an 800 series. Both are rare accomplishments in the sport of pins and three-holed balls, but to have the perfect games occur on the same night, a father-son triumph? Those in bowling centers around the world concur: The Antens are in rare company. For Ryan Anten, the night started with a 300 game and finished with a 227 and 278 for a series score of 805. Not to be outdone, his dad Bryan Anten bowled a 245 then 300 and 257 for an 802. Bowl.com, which keeps records, shows a father-son combo each bowling a 300 in one night and a father-son duo each bowling 800 in one night. It's unclear whether both have ever happened together. Matt Cannizzaro with the USBC said records are kept in a way that can't an- swer that question. He called what the Antens did "a fun accomplishment." "Very rare," is how Jeremy Thurber, general manager of Bowl 32 described what the Antens did. "Right there next to each other. Pretty amazing." And who really cares? Not them. They've already moved on to bigger aspirations. "A nine," said Bryan Anten. That would be a 900 series, three perfect games in a row, 36 strikes in a row. "That's the next goal." That perfect night Ryan Anten had rolled nine strikes in the first nine frames of his first game. He's been bowling since he was a little boy with his dad, but in leagues for only about six years. He'd never scored a perfect game. "Everyone was telling me 'don't look up at your score. Don't think about it.' But it's already in your head. You already know what frame you're in, how many you have," said Ryan, 29. "I was a nervous wreck going into the 10th frame. My hands were shaking, my knees were weak. I said 'If I hit my mark, I'll be fine.' Just let the ball do the rest." The ball did the rest. All the pins fell for a strike on the 10th frame and then Ryan Anten took down 20 more pins on the following two bonus frames. His first 300. "I was ecstatic. I've seen so many people shoot at it and shoot 299, 298," he said. "I saw that last pin drop and I was just like, 'ahhhh.' I felt like butterflies in my chest." A competitor was taking note of what was happening. Bryan Anten, 54, has had plenty of perfect games in his career, maybe 14 or 15. He's been bowling for more than four decades. Still, he has this thing: don't let the kids win. "I had to catch him," said Bryan Anten. "My wife let me know about it. After I got mine (perfect game) she was like, 'way to go Bryan. Way to ruin your son's day.'" But as the night went on, those perfect games were fading into the background as it looked like the Antens might now both top 800 for the series. "Everybody was watching," Bryan Anten said. "Everybody was standing down there watching us bowl." And then, the crowd erupted as the two finished 800-plus. The party moved to the bar, where the drinks flowed toward the Antens. "It was pretty awesome, something that probably will never happen for me to see it again," Bryan Anten said. "It was good that my son did it with me." "I came out and something clicked that night,"' Ryan Anten said. I couldn't miss." Both Antens work at Eli Lilly & Co. Both had chicken salads the night they bowled their 800s. Bowling is in the family genes. Bryan Anten grew up in Pittsburgh. His dad — nick- named "The Hook" for his wicked shot — didn't have a babysitter so he would take the kids to the bowl with him. At first, Bryan Anten played the games in the arcade; then he picked up a bowling ball and fell in love. Ryan Anten learned how to bowl from his dad, too. He remembers driving in deep snow to get to the bowl as a little guy. Bryan Anten's wife, Laura, has scored a 210. Their other son, Josh, scores in the 280s. He bowls in a Thursday night league with his dad. Ryan Anten's fiancee, Heather Cunningham, is an ultra competitive bowler, with a high score of 267. The only non-bowler is daughter Meghan Anten, though she was on "American Ninja Warrior." Both the Antens say the biggest mistake the average bowler makes is not practic- ing enough. They expect to walk into an alley once or twice a year and bowl strikes. Having a ball of the right type and size is also critical. Bryan Anten uses a 15- pounder while Ryan Anten bowls with 16 pounds. Their bowling balls are custom drilled and they have several. "You can't pick up a house ball and expect it to be the same as a ball you would buy out of a pro shop," said Ryan Anten. "A house ball is going to go straight and it's going to be a lot harder to hook it." But the No. 1 tip to bowling a better game, according to Bryan Anten: "Listen to your older people, because they will teach you how to bowl, right?" he said jabbing at his son. Seems like that worked out pretty well for Ryan Anten. Mike Logan Named BPAA Proprietor Of The Year For 2019 ARLINGTON, Texas — Mike Logan, the owner of Grand Station Entertainment in College Station, Texas, has been named the 2019 recipient of the Proprietor of the Year award by the Bowling Proprietors‘ Association of America. Logan will receive his award during International Bowl Expo week, June 23-27, at the Paris Las Vegas Resort in Las Vegas. A special committee selects the award winner from submitted nomination forms. Logan‘s nomination was accompanied by letters of support from fellow proprie- tors, as well as local and state USBC association offi- cials. Logan, a third-generation proprietor, transformed a failing bowling center into a thriving family entertain- ment center. Rather than removing lanes in order to free up space for new attractions, he closed an adjoin- ing roller skating rink and used that space to add a large arcade, laser tag and other attractions. Logan is a bowler at heart, with numerous honor score awards to his credit, but as a businessperson he says he could see the writing on the wall as bowling‘s league participant base has slowly but continually di- minished. While he still strongly supports local and state bowling tournaments, he says new revenue streams were needed to keep bowling available and viable. ―I‘m not a trendsetter by any stretch of the imagina- tion,‖ Logan said in the June issue of Bowling Center Management magazine, official publication of the BPAA. ―But I know how to follow the trends.‖ Logan noted that ―without the arcade and the other additions we made, we would not have been able to buy 40 new pinsetting machines, two new lane ma- chines and so on.‖ Thanks to those capital improvements, and a strong focus on cleanliness, Grand Station Entertainment maintains a strong league base. Logan also has found time to volunteer with both the Texas Bowling Centers Association and at the national level with BPAA. While a TBCA officer, he helped bring many centers into membership and urged that educational programs be presented to the members in multiple locations since Texas is such a large state. He chairs BPAA‘s FEC Committee, and has lobbied for FEC-focused edu- cational seminars at Bowl Expo. ―I did not see it coming,‖ Logan said of the call he re- ceived from BPAA President Randy Thompson inform- ing him of the Proprietor of the Year award. ―I asked Randy, ‗Didn‘t anybody else get nominated?‘‖ A big man with a big personality, Logan retains a humble demeanor and gratitude for his family, which includes wife Deanna and son Scott, both of whom play important roles in the operation of Grand Station Enter- tainment. ―I‘m blessed to have them in my life, and that things turned out the way they did for us,‖ he says. ―Sometimes God looks out for you when you need it.‖