Rakoski rolls 842 series at 2025 Bowlers Journal Championships
March 08, 2025
BATON ROUGE, La. – Jon Rakoski of Estero, Florida, put together an incredible performance to help get things going at the 2025 Bowlers Journal Championships, posting an 842 series during the event’s first week at All Star Lanes.
The 53-year-old right-hander had games of 264, 279 and 299 during his second set of the day to claim the top spot in several events, including Senior Singles.
The 2022 Regular Team champion at the United States Bowling Congress Open Championships leads Open Doubles with Justin Veitch of Kenner, Louisiana, with 1,475. Veitch – Rakoski’s teammate during the victory in 2022 – added 633.
Rakoski also set the bar in Senior Doubles with Bill Nichols of Bella Vista, Arkansas, with a combined score of 1,509. Nichols posted 667 in the performance, and the following day, he connected for the first 300 of the year at the Bowlers Journal Championships (games of 190, 300 and 191 for a 681 series).
Since he participated in both singles and doubles during the set, Rakoski also holds the top spot in the tournament’s Dual Entry prize fund.
His first set at All Star Lanes started going south during the third game, so he used the opportunity to try a few different bowling balls. After settling on the right piece of equipment, he could see early on that he was going to have the opportunity to throw some strikes during his second set.
Rakoski finished the series with strikes on 33 of his 36 deliveries. He left a washout in Game 1 (open), 4 pin in Game 2 and 10 pin on his final shot of Game 3.
“I had 210s-230s to start the first set, but they got a little screwy in the third game,” said Rakoski, the 2024 USBC Senior Masters champion. “I believe I went open, open, open, so I used the rest of the game as practice to throw different bowling balls to see if I had a look with a different ball. The (Hammer Scorpion) Low Flare gave me the best look, so that’s what I was going to stick with during the late squad.
“I knew I had a little bit of room to the right. I had a board left I could miss, too. If you give me two, three, four boards to hit, I could put up a big number. Did I think it was going to be that big? No, I really didn’t. It’s good to put a big number up there, but the shot is definitely playable. Hopefully, people see the big number and don’t shy away from it. I hope everyone goes out there and bowls the best they can. Is it beatable? Of course it is. I liked what I did and the score I put up, so I’m happy with that.”
After his success at All Star Lanes, Rakoski joined his teammates at the Raising Cane’s River Center to try and set the pace at the 2025 USBC Open Championships.
Rakoski and his crew – featuring Matt McNiel, David Langer, Alex Hoskins and Veitch as Storm Products Inc. 1 – left with the lead in Regular Team (3,080), Regular Doubles (Rakoski and Veitch with 1,325) and Team All-Events (9,537).
Storm Products Inc. 1 (from left): Matt McNiel, David Langer, Justin Veitch, Jon Rakoski and Alex Hoskins
Rakoski and Veitch now sit in fourth place for doubles. USBC and Professional Bowlers Association Hall of Famer Mika Koivuniemi and Christopher Sand lead Regular Doubles with 1,369.
McNiel is a five-time Eagle winner and joined Rakoski, Langer and Veitch during the victory in Regular Team (2022). Hoskins made back-to-back stepladders at the USBC Masters in 2017 (third) and 2018 (second).
Although he felt like they left some pins out there, Rakoski noted how well the group has worked together in becoming a household name at the Open Championships.
“We had a rough third game in team (914), but the 10 of us – we really do bowl well together,” Rakoski said. “We communicate very well with each other. We only shot 3,080, which isn’t that great, but they are not easy. The third game beat us up, but it happens.”
With his time in Baton Rouge complete, Rakoski now will look forward to the PBA50 Tour season, which starts in May. The victory at the Senior Masters was his second national title to go along with some success on the regional side, and he has enjoyed the chance to compete against the top senior players.
“Winning the Senior Masters – it’s like a dream come true,” Rakoski said. “The players that bowl that are very, very good. To get through that undefeated – I had a phenomenal look. To win a title connected with USBC feels great, and it gives you a lot of confidence that leads to my career on the regional and national tour. Last year, I won four regional titles and a national title. I’m starting my third year of being a professional bowler. I never wanted to do it as a kid, but my wife encouraged me to do it, so I started a couple years ago. Here I am now, six titles later.”
Along with Nichols’ perfect performance, Randy Mewes of New Richmond, Wisconsin, also connected for a 300 game during the first week at All Star Lanes. He had games of 193, 300 and 219 for a 712 series.
The Bowlers Journal Championships is making its 78th appearance alongside the Open Championships in 2025.
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.
The 53-year-old right-hander had games of 264, 279 and 299 during his second set of the day to claim the top spot in several events, including Senior Singles.
The 2022 Regular Team champion at the United States Bowling Congress Open Championships leads Open Doubles with Justin Veitch of Kenner, Louisiana, with 1,475. Veitch – Rakoski’s teammate during the victory in 2022 – added 633.Rakoski also set the bar in Senior Doubles with Bill Nichols of Bella Vista, Arkansas, with a combined score of 1,509. Nichols posted 667 in the performance, and the following day, he connected for the first 300 of the year at the Bowlers Journal Championships (games of 190, 300 and 191 for a 681 series).Since he participated in both singles and doubles during the set, Rakoski also holds the top spot in the tournament’s Dual Entry prize fund.
His first set at All Star Lanes started going south during the third game, so he used the opportunity to try a few different bowling balls. After settling on the right piece of equipment, he could see early on that he was going to have the opportunity to throw some strikes during his second set.
Rakoski finished the series with strikes on 33 of his 36 deliveries. He left a washout in Game 1 (open), 4 pin in Game 2 and 10 pin on his final shot of Game 3.
“I had 210s-230s to start the first set, but they got a little screwy in the third game,” said Rakoski, the 2024 USBC Senior Masters champion. “I believe I went open, open, open, so I used the rest of the game as practice to throw different bowling balls to see if I had a look with a different ball. The (Hammer Scorpion) Low Flare gave me the best look, so that’s what I was going to stick with during the late squad.
“I knew I had a little bit of room to the right. I had a board left I could miss, too. If you give me two, three, four boards to hit, I could put up a big number. Did I think it was going to be that big? No, I really didn’t. It’s good to put a big number up there, but the shot is definitely playable. Hopefully, people see the big number and don’t shy away from it. I hope everyone goes out there and bowls the best they can. Is it beatable? Of course it is. I liked what I did and the score I put up, so I’m happy with that.”
After his success at All Star Lanes, Rakoski joined his teammates at the Raising Cane’s River Center to try and set the pace at the 2025 USBC Open Championships.
Rakoski and his crew – featuring Matt McNiel, David Langer, Alex Hoskins and Veitch as Storm Products Inc. 1 – left with the lead in Regular Team (3,080), Regular Doubles (Rakoski and Veitch with 1,325) and Team All-Events (9,537).
Storm Products Inc. 1 (from left): Matt McNiel, David Langer, Justin Veitch, Jon Rakoski and Alex Hoskins
Rakoski and Veitch now sit in fourth place for doubles. USBC and Professional Bowlers Association Hall of Famer Mika Koivuniemi and Christopher Sand lead Regular Doubles with 1,369.
McNiel is a five-time Eagle winner and joined Rakoski, Langer and Veitch during the victory in Regular Team (2022). Hoskins made back-to-back stepladders at the USBC Masters in 2017 (third) and 2018 (second).
Although he felt like they left some pins out there, Rakoski noted how well the group has worked together in becoming a household name at the Open Championships.
“We had a rough third game in team (914), but the 10 of us – we really do bowl well together,” Rakoski said. “We communicate very well with each other. We only shot 3,080, which isn’t that great, but they are not easy. The third game beat us up, but it happens.”
With his time in Baton Rouge complete, Rakoski now will look forward to the PBA50 Tour season, which starts in May. The victory at the Senior Masters was his second national title to go along with some success on the regional side, and he has enjoyed the chance to compete against the top senior players.
“Winning the Senior Masters – it’s like a dream come true,” Rakoski said. “The players that bowl that are very, very good. To get through that undefeated – I had a phenomenal look. To win a title connected with USBC feels great, and it gives you a lot of confidence that leads to my career on the regional and national tour. Last year, I won four regional titles and a national title. I’m starting my third year of being a professional bowler. I never wanted to do it as a kid, but my wife encouraged me to do it, so I started a couple years ago. Here I am now, six titles later.”
Along with Nichols’ perfect performance, Randy Mewes of New Richmond, Wisconsin, also connected for a 300 game during the first week at All Star Lanes. He had games of 193, 300 and 219 for a 712 series.The Bowlers Journal Championships is making its 78th appearance alongside the Open Championships in 2025.
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.