RENO, Nev. - George Atkinson Jr. of Henderson, Nev., is 62 years old and jokes that every day starts with Aleve because he just knows something is going to hurt.

Taking the Classified Singles lead at the United States Bowling Congress Open Championships certainly helped ease some of those aches and pains Thursday as he used games of 208, 215 and 240 to secure the top spot with a 663 series. Ryan Peterson of Story City, Iowa, previously held the lead with 640.

Atkinson celebrated his 20th USBC Open Championships appearance this week at the National Bowling Stadium, and that, coupled with his performance in singles, made for an emotional experience.

"It certainly was emotional for me out there because this has been a long time coming," said Atkinson, who added 490 in doubles, but did not bowl team. "I work really hard at my game, and this is a nice reward. After everything, it just means a lot that I was even able to be out there competing. That's all I really wanted."

The right-hander is a lifelong bowler, but injuries in recent years have kept him from bowling as much as he'd like to. He made his 18th trip to the Open Championships in 2006 before being sidelined by a back injury.

Atkinson was able to start practicing again in 2010 with the right amount of stretching and exercise, before needing the first of two rotator cuff surgeries in 2011. When the first one failed, he was forced to undergo the procedure again in May of 2012. He did make an appearance at the 2012 Open Championships in Baton Rouge, La., and shot 497 in doubles and 496 in singles.

"I don't know if I'd say I still have it like I used to, but I had it today," said Atkinson, whose high series at the Open Championships is a 665 set, rolled at the 2000 event in Albuquerque, N.M. "I didn't make 500 in two events in Baton Rouge, so that was a little frustrating. So was today, until singles."

After struggling to games of 157, 194 and 139 in doubles, Atkinson switched balls and made a move on the approach.

"I have an old-time game that's just up and in, and while it doesn't always work, today, it worked perfectly," Atkinson said. "I moved further outside and went back to an old ball. I just went straight up, and it worked."

Atkinson, who is retired from General Motors, recently moved from Michigan to the Las Vegas area to be closer to the active bowling community in the Entertainment Capital of the World. Since Reno only is a scenic seven-hour drive from Las Vegas, he used the Open Championships sub board on BOWL.com to secure a spot in this year's tournament and made the drive, so he could gauge his recovery progress on the sport's biggest stage.

"We moved to Las Vegas because, to me, that is the bowling capital of the world, and there's always something to bowl in," Atkinson said. "Bowling has been out of my life for so long, and now, it's back. Going from 490 to 660 today was unbelievable. It would be fabulous to win and definitely would make it a lot easier to go to the bowling alley to practice."

Presenting sponsors for the 2013 USBC Open Championships include Circus Circus Reno, Eldorado Hotel Casino Reno and Silver Legacy Resort Casino Reno.