Two bowlers join 50-Year Club at OC
May 15, 2013
RENO, Nev. - The 50-Year Club at the United States Bowling Congress Open Championships got two new members this week as John Kerpan of Waukegan, Ill., and Clifford Thompson of Waterford, Mich., claimed their spots in tournament history.
Kerpan made his ceremonial march down Center Aisle at the National Bowling Stadium on Monday, while Thompson celebrated his five decades of participation Tuesday afternoon.
Kerpan, a 70-year-old right-hander, has traveled to every corner of the country, seen many famous landmarks and played golf on a variety of courses during his 50 trips to the USBC Open Championships. Now, his travels landed him in the tournament record books as the 162nd bowler in history to make 50 appearances.
Even though he'd already made 49 trips down Center Aisle, his latest march definitely provided some new and unexpected feelings.
"I was very excited and looking forward to competing in this year's tournament, and I really enjoyed all of the special attention I got," said Kerpan, who still bowls regularly at Bertrand Lanes in Waukegan. "Walking down Center Aisle today was a world apart from a normal year, where I'd walk down with my team. That's always exciting, but this ended up being pretty emotional."
He was joined at the NBS by his girlfriend, Gerry Knapowski, while his daughter Kim Wilkens and her family were expected to watch the day's activities on BOWL.com from their home in Wisconsin.
Kerpan spent much of his youth in a bowling center, and he began setting pins when he was 11 or 12 years old. Eventually, the owner of the bowling center invited him to join his group at the Open Championships, and Kerpan made his tournament debut at the 1961 event in Detroit, where he only bowled doubles and singles as the group's sixth member.
"I liked that it was the national tournament, and it gave me a chance to travel to different cities," said Kerpan, who cites Mobile, Ala. (1994) and Billings, Mont. (2002) as two of his favorite host cities. "It was part vacation and part bowling. The event has changed over the years, and the venue has gotten a little more spectacular. Today was so tremendously exciting. I enjoyed going through the experience of the 50th and the pageantry involved with it. It turned out really good."
Even though the ink on his scoresheet barely is dry, Kerpan already is setting new goals at the Open Championships.
"One of my goals was to make 50, and every time you hit one plateau, you increase your goal by five years," Kerpan said. "My next goal is to reach 55 years and maybe 100,000 pins."
This year, Kerpan shot 631 in singles, 585 in doubles and 557 in team for a 1,773 all-events total. In 50 tournament appearances, he has knocked down 85,184 pins for a career average of 190.5.
Thompson is 87 years old and has had two hip operations, so he doesn't move as well across the approach as he used to, but he also has his sights set on the 55-year plateau because he plans to walk down Center Aisle with his son, Larry, who would be celebrating 50 years at the same time.
Larry made his 45th consecutive tournament appearance at the NBS on Tuesday, and the two would be the fourth father-son duo in the 50-Year Club. Thompson's oldest son, David, also enjoyed more than three decades on the championship lanes before health issues forced him from competing.
"I never even thought much about getting to 50 tournaments, but now that it's happened, I want to make it to 55, so I can march out with my son," said Thompson, who made his tournament debut at the 1963 event in Buffalo, N.Y. "He's had to deal with diabetes and had a stroke because of it, but I told him if he can throw the ball, and I can, too, I'd keep coming until he made it."
Thompson always has been competitive, but he also competed in the Open Championships to see the different host cities. Among his favorites were Miami, Jacksonville, Fla., Louisville, Ky., and Indianapolis.
"I used to bowl in all the tournaments, and this was one of the biggest, so we just went, and we really liked it," Thompson said. "I didn't usually feel any nerves, but today, there was a lot of excitement and nerves compared to the rest."
This year, Thompson shot 457 in team and did not compete in doubles and singles. In 50 tournament appearances, he has knocked down 73,541 pins for a 170.2 career average.
Presenting sponsors for the 2013 USBC Open Championships include Circus Circus Reno, Eldorado Hotel Casino Reno and Silver Legacy Resort Casino Reno.
Kerpan made his ceremonial march down Center Aisle at the National Bowling Stadium on Monday, while Thompson celebrated his five decades of participation Tuesday afternoon.
Kerpan, a 70-year-old right-hander, has traveled to every corner of the country, seen many famous landmarks and played golf on a variety of courses during his 50 trips to the USBC Open Championships. Now, his travels landed him in the tournament record books as the 162nd bowler in history to make 50 appearances. Even though he'd already made 49 trips down Center Aisle, his latest march definitely provided some new and unexpected feelings.
"I was very excited and looking forward to competing in this year's tournament, and I really enjoyed all of the special attention I got," said Kerpan, who still bowls regularly at Bertrand Lanes in Waukegan. "Walking down Center Aisle today was a world apart from a normal year, where I'd walk down with my team. That's always exciting, but this ended up being pretty emotional."
He was joined at the NBS by his girlfriend, Gerry Knapowski, while his daughter Kim Wilkens and her family were expected to watch the day's activities on BOWL.com from their home in Wisconsin.
Kerpan spent much of his youth in a bowling center, and he began setting pins when he was 11 or 12 years old. Eventually, the owner of the bowling center invited him to join his group at the Open Championships, and Kerpan made his tournament debut at the 1961 event in Detroit, where he only bowled doubles and singles as the group's sixth member.
"I liked that it was the national tournament, and it gave me a chance to travel to different cities," said Kerpan, who cites Mobile, Ala. (1994) and Billings, Mont. (2002) as two of his favorite host cities. "It was part vacation and part bowling. The event has changed over the years, and the venue has gotten a little more spectacular. Today was so tremendously exciting. I enjoyed going through the experience of the 50th and the pageantry involved with it. It turned out really good."
Even though the ink on his scoresheet barely is dry, Kerpan already is setting new goals at the Open Championships.
"One of my goals was to make 50, and every time you hit one plateau, you increase your goal by five years," Kerpan said. "My next goal is to reach 55 years and maybe 100,000 pins."
This year, Kerpan shot 631 in singles, 585 in doubles and 557 in team for a 1,773 all-events total. In 50 tournament appearances, he has knocked down 85,184 pins for a career average of 190.5.
Thompson is 87 years old and has had two hip operations, so he doesn't move as well across the approach as he used to, but he also has his sights set on the 55-year plateau because he plans to walk down Center Aisle with his son, Larry, who would be celebrating 50 years at the same time. Larry made his 45th consecutive tournament appearance at the NBS on Tuesday, and the two would be the fourth father-son duo in the 50-Year Club. Thompson's oldest son, David, also enjoyed more than three decades on the championship lanes before health issues forced him from competing.
"I never even thought much about getting to 50 tournaments, but now that it's happened, I want to make it to 55, so I can march out with my son," said Thompson, who made his tournament debut at the 1963 event in Buffalo, N.Y. "He's had to deal with diabetes and had a stroke because of it, but I told him if he can throw the ball, and I can, too, I'd keep coming until he made it."
Thompson always has been competitive, but he also competed in the Open Championships to see the different host cities. Among his favorites were Miami, Jacksonville, Fla., Louisville, Ky., and Indianapolis.
"I used to bowl in all the tournaments, and this was one of the biggest, so we just went, and we really liked it," Thompson said. "I didn't usually feel any nerves, but today, there was a lot of excitement and nerves compared to the rest."
This year, Thompson shot 457 in team and did not compete in doubles and singles. In 50 tournament appearances, he has knocked down 73,541 pins for a 170.2 career average.
Presenting sponsors for the 2013 USBC Open Championships include Circus Circus Reno, Eldorado Hotel Casino Reno and Silver Legacy Resort Casino Reno.