Eagle winner reaches 50 years at USBC Open Championships
May 24, 2025
BATON ROUGE, La. – Tom Kelley Sr. of Omaha, Nebraska, has compiled some impressive accolades across his years on the lanes and in the industry as a pro shop operator, and he can now add membership to the 50-Year Club at the United States Bowling Congress Open Championships to the list.
Kelley, who celebrated his 85th birthday the day after his milestone appearance, was recognized at the Raising Cane’s River Center and presented with a plaque, chevron and diamond lapel pin to celebrate the occasion.
“It was pretty exciting to reach 50 years – it’s something that you think about, especially when you get past 40 and 45 years,” Kelley said. “I had to miss the year I opened the pro shop (1980), so it wasn’t consecutive, but it’s pretty special to know that you joined a group of special bowlers. It was a special moment. I enjoyed the plaque, but that pin is a standout. That’s going to go on my tie for all occasions when I have to wear one.”
He made his tournament debut at the 1974 event in Indianapolis, and he walked away from that experience leading Regular Team with his Olympia Beer teammates. The group’s 3,186 score held on to claim the title, helping Kelley place his name in the tournament’s record book for the first time.
After an 868 start, the team – featuring Kelley, Boyd Hayden, Bob Lane, Jim Rood and Gary Wilson – closed with 1,147 and 1,171 to get to the top of the leaderboard. Kelley started the final game with nine strikes on the way to a 279 finish and 644 series.
“We didn’t know at that time if our score would hold up, but just leading it was quite the thrill,” said Kelley, a Greater Omaha and Nebraska State USBC Hall of Famer. “We had two of the guys who would call back every week to check on scores. It was one of those deals where if you get beat, you get beat, but we knew we were in for some pretty good prize money with our scores. We ended up winning, which was quite the thrill, and I got a lot of enjoyment out of it because it opened a lot of doors from the ABC (American Bowling Congress – now USBC).”
Behind one of those doors was the chance to represent the United States at the Tournament of Americas in 1975, where he joined Gary Brooks of Lancaster, Pennsylvania, in setting several doubles records at the event.
The Olympia Beer teammates ended up parting ways after the victory in 1974, but the five members reunited for the first time at the Open Championships in 2009 to celebrate the 35th anniversary of their title, thanks to the encouragement of Ted Baer.
Encouragement has been a big factor for Kelley as he made his journey to 50 appearances, with his son, Tom Kelley Jr., leading the way.
Tom Kelley Jr. made his 42nd consecutive appearance at the Open Championships alongside his father in Baton Rouge, and he owns a 300 game at the tournament, too (1991). He now runs the family’s main pro shop – Tom Kelley’s Pro Shop – in Omaha and also operates shops in Norfolk and Columbus.
“I have to thank my son, Tom Jr.,” Kelley said. “He pushed me to keep going. There were times when I really wasn’t feeling up to bowling, and he would say, ‘C’mon, dad. You can do this.’ It worked out well, and I’m glad that he pushed me.
“I think it was pretty cool that both my son and granddaughter (Sydney Kelley) both came up and helped me bowl this year. I know he was proud that the old man made it that far.”
Kelley’s passion for the sport has always included helping others share the same enjoyment from seeing a bowling ball knock over all 10 pins.
He served others through his time on the local board in Omaha and also was a director for the ABC. He started working at Omaha’s Rose Bowl at the age of 15, which is where he started to drill bowling balls before opening up his pro shop. Kelley also gave back to the bowling community by coaching and teaching classes in the area.
Kelley only bowled in the team event during his trip to Baton Rouge, and he now has knocked over 80,851 pins for his career at the Open Championships for a career average of 187.5 at the tournament.
The Open Championships is celebrating its third trip to Baton Rouge in 2025 and scheduled to feature more than 58,000 bowlers and 11,600 five-player teams competing across 150 consecutive days at the River Center.
Visit us on Facebook at the official USBC Open Championships page.
Kelley, who celebrated his 85th birthday the day after his milestone appearance, was recognized at the Raising Cane’s River Center and presented with a plaque, chevron and diamond lapel pin to celebrate the occasion.
“It was pretty exciting to reach 50 years – it’s something that you think about, especially when you get past 40 and 45 years,” Kelley said. “I had to miss the year I opened the pro shop (1980), so it wasn’t consecutive, but it’s pretty special to know that you joined a group of special bowlers. It was a special moment. I enjoyed the plaque, but that pin is a standout. That’s going to go on my tie for all occasions when I have to wear one.”
He made his tournament debut at the 1974 event in Indianapolis, and he walked away from that experience leading Regular Team with his Olympia Beer teammates. The group’s 3,186 score held on to claim the title, helping Kelley place his name in the tournament’s record book for the first time.
After an 868 start, the team – featuring Kelley, Boyd Hayden, Bob Lane, Jim Rood and Gary Wilson – closed with 1,147 and 1,171 to get to the top of the leaderboard. Kelley started the final game with nine strikes on the way to a 279 finish and 644 series.
“We didn’t know at that time if our score would hold up, but just leading it was quite the thrill,” said Kelley, a Greater Omaha and Nebraska State USBC Hall of Famer. “We had two of the guys who would call back every week to check on scores. It was one of those deals where if you get beat, you get beat, but we knew we were in for some pretty good prize money with our scores. We ended up winning, which was quite the thrill, and I got a lot of enjoyment out of it because it opened a lot of doors from the ABC (American Bowling Congress – now USBC).”
Behind one of those doors was the chance to represent the United States at the Tournament of Americas in 1975, where he joined Gary Brooks of Lancaster, Pennsylvania, in setting several doubles records at the event.
The Olympia Beer teammates ended up parting ways after the victory in 1974, but the five members reunited for the first time at the Open Championships in 2009 to celebrate the 35th anniversary of their title, thanks to the encouragement of Ted Baer.
Encouragement has been a big factor for Kelley as he made his journey to 50 appearances, with his son, Tom Kelley Jr., leading the way.
Tom Kelley Jr. made his 42nd consecutive appearance at the Open Championships alongside his father in Baton Rouge, and he owns a 300 game at the tournament, too (1991). He now runs the family’s main pro shop – Tom Kelley’s Pro Shop – in Omaha and also operates shops in Norfolk and Columbus.
“I have to thank my son, Tom Jr.,” Kelley said. “He pushed me to keep going. There were times when I really wasn’t feeling up to bowling, and he would say, ‘C’mon, dad. You can do this.’ It worked out well, and I’m glad that he pushed me.
“I think it was pretty cool that both my son and granddaughter (Sydney Kelley) both came up and helped me bowl this year. I know he was proud that the old man made it that far.”
Kelley’s passion for the sport has always included helping others share the same enjoyment from seeing a bowling ball knock over all 10 pins.
He served others through his time on the local board in Omaha and also was a director for the ABC. He started working at Omaha’s Rose Bowl at the age of 15, which is where he started to drill bowling balls before opening up his pro shop. Kelley also gave back to the bowling community by coaching and teaching classes in the area.
Kelley only bowled in the team event during his trip to Baton Rouge, and he now has knocked over 80,851 pins for his career at the Open Championships for a career average of 187.5 at the tournament.
The Open Championships is celebrating its third trip to Baton Rouge in 2025 and scheduled to feature more than 58,000 bowlers and 11,600 five-player teams competing across 150 consecutive days at the River Center.
Visit us on Facebook at the official USBC Open Championships page.