USBC Hall of Famer Tim Mack makes memorable return at 2019 USBC Open Championships
May 06, 2019
By Daniel Farish
USBC Communications
LAS VEGAS - Fresh strawberries. That's how it feels to United States Bowling Congress Hall of Famer Tim Mack of Indianapolis to be back on the lanes.
For the first time in over two years, Mack picked up a bowling ball in a competitive setting, and he did it on the biggest, grandest stage of them all at the USBC Open Championships.
To understand how big the moment was to Mack, his family and his teammates, you first must know what Mack has accomplished throughout his career, and how devastating the latest of a series of injuries was, nearly ending his bowling career for good.
Mack has won more than 70 titles around the world and was one of the first Americans to compete overseas. His travels and success helped bowling become more of a global sport, and his efforts earned him a spot in the Pioneer category of the USBC Hall of Fame in 2018.
Among his dozens of wins were victories at the 2002 Qatar Open, the 2003, 2004 and 2006 Bahrain Open and the 2003 Indonesian International Open - events that later were recognized by the Professional Bowlers Association as PBA Tour titles.
Mack, once a football player at Penn State University, also made one appearance on Team USA, winning five medals at the 2003 World Bowling World Championships in Malaysia, including a gold medal in the trios event.
Fast forward to the 2017 Open Championships at the South Point Bowling Plaza in Las Vegas. Mack barely could walk. In fact, he couldn't even take a full approach. He was bowling on one leg and used a one-step approach on the way to a 1,986 all-events total.
What followed was a two-year road to recovery with a few bumps along the way.
"Following the 2017 Open Championships, I had exploratory surgery on my knee," said Mack, who has won titles in 30 countries on five continents. "They cut my shin bone in half and broke my leg to try and re-route my knee movement. I went through 19 months of rehab, and at the end of all of that, nothing changed."
That led to knee surgery in December 2018, the seventh knee surgery of his career.
After going through the long rehab with no results, and yet another surgery to repair a knee shredded from a lifetime of continuous bowling and athletics, Mack felt hopeless.
"I've had a lot of mental, physical and emotional battles," Mack said. "Not just these last two years, but when you have seven surgeries, it's quite hard to stomach. I didn't know if I was ever going to bowl again."
Mack received a bit of inspiration from another athlete, formerly at the top of his game but hampered by injury, who, like Mack, was trying to claw his way back up the rankings.
"I watched what Tiger Woods went through, and then to come back and win the Masters, that was inspiring from an athlete's perspective," said Mack, who made his 13th Open Championships appearance this year. "By no means am I comparing myself to Tiger, but it certainly was inspirational to watch, and it helped push me to make my comeback."
As the director of global relations for Storm Bowling, Mack always is on the run and in the trenches helping other competitors find success on the lanes.
Over the last two years, it would not be surprising to see Mack at a major event hopping from one settee to the next on a set of crutches to help Storm's staff players find the right ball or get lined up.
The 47-year-old right-hander has dedicated his life to the sport of bowling, but it wasn't until a few weeks ago that he first saw a glimmer of hope for his own bowling career, a point he could look at and say, 'that's where I need to get to.'
"A few weeks ago, I was able to throw a shot and not fall over," Mack said. "To me, that was the difference. It showed me that my tunnel might be very long, but for the first time in a long time, I saw a flicker of light at the end of it."
Mack's support system in his return to the Open Championships this week was, as he put it, 'the best nine guys you could ever want to bowl with.'
It is necessary to have people in your corner who only want what's best for you when trying to make a comeback of this magnitude. But, sometimes, you need something more. You need a reason - something that you can't create on your own. Mack had that, in the form of family.
"My brother James has always been my benchmark, and he's the one I've always looked up to," Mack said. "Bowling with him this year means absolutely everything. He doesn't bowl much anymore, and he's a cancer survivor. My mom is out here, too, and those are two of the biggest reasons I laced up this year. It has a lot to do with them, because I don't know if I would've been able to summon the mental strength."
He also was joined in Las Vegas by his wife, Brenda, a former collegiate standout at Nebraska and a champion on the Professional Women's Bowling Association Tour in 2002.
Mack quickly turned his attention back to his teammates, the guys who patted him on the back and kept pushing, even when things got tough.
"Bowling the Open Championships this year was the goal, because I couldn't do it last year, and these are nine of the best guys in the world," Mack said. "If you all could be down here and experience what I do, you'd see what I mean."
Mack's first competitive outing in over two years was a success, even against his own personal standards and the standards of the tournament itself. His team, Storm Indy, shot 3,096 with Mack contributing a 600 series.
The group rolled games of 947, 1,013 and 1,136. Chris Curry led the way with a 670 set and was followed by James Mack (622), Mark Schoch (610), Tim Mack and Christopher Seyffarth (594).
Their companion team, Bowlers Sport Shop, made a run at the lead in Regular Team and had an outside chance at the top spot heading into the final frames, before falling just short and settling into third place with a 3,249 total. Melrose Bowl Red of Norwood, Minnesota, leads with 3,301.
"The five-man team title at the Open Championships is the most coveted team title in our sport," Mack said. "It's euphoric to compete in an atmosphere like this and have a chance. There is nothing like it."
After a final deep breath, Mack tried to verbalize what was a very successful comeback.
"Tonight was a taste of fresh strawberry," Mack said. "It felt so good to have that taste tonight of being back in the thick of it and being in battle again. It felt great."
Bowlers Sport Shop continued its success in doubles and singles Saturday and moved into fifth place in Team All-Events with a 9,577 total.
Mack also enjoyed an exciting finish, striking in his final frame to finish with a 1,802 all-events total. He had 638 in singles and 564 in doubles.
As far as his future in the sport, Mack takes a very personal approach to it.
"I have a lot of responsibilities with Storm and my coaching, but the goal has always been to finish on my terms," Mack said. "If I can progress a little bit each day, then I'm on the right path to compete. I'd like to bowl in the USBC Masters next year. I have a couple of fifth place finishes there, and it's one of my favorite events to bowl. So, the goal isn't to bowl for a living, but to compete on my terms."
Visit us on Facebook at the official USBC Open Championships Facebook page.
USBC Communications
LAS VEGAS - Fresh strawberries. That's how it feels to United States Bowling Congress Hall of Famer Tim Mack of Indianapolis to be back on the lanes.
For the first time in over two years, Mack picked up a bowling ball in a competitive setting, and he did it on the biggest, grandest stage of them all at the USBC Open Championships.
To understand how big the moment was to Mack, his family and his teammates, you first must know what Mack has accomplished throughout his career, and how devastating the latest of a series of injuries was, nearly ending his bowling career for good.
Mack has won more than 70 titles around the world and was one of the first Americans to compete overseas. His travels and success helped bowling become more of a global sport, and his efforts earned him a spot in the Pioneer category of the USBC Hall of Fame in 2018.
Among his dozens of wins were victories at the 2002 Qatar Open, the 2003, 2004 and 2006 Bahrain Open and the 2003 Indonesian International Open - events that later were recognized by the Professional Bowlers Association as PBA Tour titles.
Mack, once a football player at Penn State University, also made one appearance on Team USA, winning five medals at the 2003 World Bowling World Championships in Malaysia, including a gold medal in the trios event.
Fast forward to the 2017 Open Championships at the South Point Bowling Plaza in Las Vegas. Mack barely could walk. In fact, he couldn't even take a full approach. He was bowling on one leg and used a one-step approach on the way to a 1,986 all-events total.
What followed was a two-year road to recovery with a few bumps along the way.
"Following the 2017 Open Championships, I had exploratory surgery on my knee," said Mack, who has won titles in 30 countries on five continents. "They cut my shin bone in half and broke my leg to try and re-route my knee movement. I went through 19 months of rehab, and at the end of all of that, nothing changed."
That led to knee surgery in December 2018, the seventh knee surgery of his career.
After going through the long rehab with no results, and yet another surgery to repair a knee shredded from a lifetime of continuous bowling and athletics, Mack felt hopeless.
"I've had a lot of mental, physical and emotional battles," Mack said. "Not just these last two years, but when you have seven surgeries, it's quite hard to stomach. I didn't know if I was ever going to bowl again."
Mack received a bit of inspiration from another athlete, formerly at the top of his game but hampered by injury, who, like Mack, was trying to claw his way back up the rankings.
"I watched what Tiger Woods went through, and then to come back and win the Masters, that was inspiring from an athlete's perspective," said Mack, who made his 13th Open Championships appearance this year. "By no means am I comparing myself to Tiger, but it certainly was inspirational to watch, and it helped push me to make my comeback."
As the director of global relations for Storm Bowling, Mack always is on the run and in the trenches helping other competitors find success on the lanes.
Over the last two years, it would not be surprising to see Mack at a major event hopping from one settee to the next on a set of crutches to help Storm's staff players find the right ball or get lined up.
The 47-year-old right-hander has dedicated his life to the sport of bowling, but it wasn't until a few weeks ago that he first saw a glimmer of hope for his own bowling career, a point he could look at and say, 'that's where I need to get to.'
"A few weeks ago, I was able to throw a shot and not fall over," Mack said. "To me, that was the difference. It showed me that my tunnel might be very long, but for the first time in a long time, I saw a flicker of light at the end of it."
Mack's support system in his return to the Open Championships this week was, as he put it, 'the best nine guys you could ever want to bowl with.'
It is necessary to have people in your corner who only want what's best for you when trying to make a comeback of this magnitude. But, sometimes, you need something more. You need a reason - something that you can't create on your own. Mack had that, in the form of family.
"My brother James has always been my benchmark, and he's the one I've always looked up to," Mack said. "Bowling with him this year means absolutely everything. He doesn't bowl much anymore, and he's a cancer survivor. My mom is out here, too, and those are two of the biggest reasons I laced up this year. It has a lot to do with them, because I don't know if I would've been able to summon the mental strength."
He also was joined in Las Vegas by his wife, Brenda, a former collegiate standout at Nebraska and a champion on the Professional Women's Bowling Association Tour in 2002.
Mack quickly turned his attention back to his teammates, the guys who patted him on the back and kept pushing, even when things got tough.
"Bowling the Open Championships this year was the goal, because I couldn't do it last year, and these are nine of the best guys in the world," Mack said. "If you all could be down here and experience what I do, you'd see what I mean."
Mack's first competitive outing in over two years was a success, even against his own personal standards and the standards of the tournament itself. His team, Storm Indy, shot 3,096 with Mack contributing a 600 series.
The group rolled games of 947, 1,013 and 1,136. Chris Curry led the way with a 670 set and was followed by James Mack (622), Mark Schoch (610), Tim Mack and Christopher Seyffarth (594).
Their companion team, Bowlers Sport Shop, made a run at the lead in Regular Team and had an outside chance at the top spot heading into the final frames, before falling just short and settling into third place with a 3,249 total. Melrose Bowl Red of Norwood, Minnesota, leads with 3,301.
"The five-man team title at the Open Championships is the most coveted team title in our sport," Mack said. "It's euphoric to compete in an atmosphere like this and have a chance. There is nothing like it."
After a final deep breath, Mack tried to verbalize what was a very successful comeback.
"Tonight was a taste of fresh strawberry," Mack said. "It felt so good to have that taste tonight of being back in the thick of it and being in battle again. It felt great."
Bowlers Sport Shop continued its success in doubles and singles Saturday and moved into fifth place in Team All-Events with a 9,577 total.
Mack also enjoyed an exciting finish, striking in his final frame to finish with a 1,802 all-events total. He had 638 in singles and 564 in doubles.
As far as his future in the sport, Mack takes a very personal approach to it.
"I have a lot of responsibilities with Storm and my coaching, but the goal has always been to finish on my terms," Mack said. "If I can progress a little bit each day, then I'm on the right path to compete. I'd like to bowl in the USBC Masters next year. I have a couple of fifth place finishes there, and it's one of my favorite events to bowl. So, the goal isn't to bowl for a living, but to compete on my terms."
Visit us on Facebook at the official USBC Open Championships Facebook page.