BATON ROUGE – One of the best friends a bowler can have is a pro shop owner, particularly one that can drill equipment to your wants and needs.

You know as well as I do, and I can certainly attest to it, you want the ball drilled perfectly and you want the first several shots out of the box to be strikes.

Unfortunately a lot of bowlers lost that someone this past Friday when Steve Cross passed away after a long and often painful health journey. For some 28 years, he ran the pro shop at All Star Lanes in Baton Rouge, drilling bowling equipment with a passion of doing it correctly and carefully for each individual bowler.

The pro shop at All Star was a spot where bowlers came to check out supplies and scope out the latest bowling ball releases (and there have been many in recent years) but also many times just to visit, hangout and talk bowling.

Steve did his best over the years to help my bowling with equipment suggestions and ideas that might help. It’s the old adage if you bowled great it was all me and if I bowled bad, it was the pro shop guy that messed it up. There were a few times I made sure and gave him the credit as well when I bowled well.

Steve tried to put me in this grey urethane bowling ball several years ago. For some reason, I just never could release it right or make it do much of anything (bowler’s fault, not ball driller’s fault). It was several months before I knew this but during a break in league, he took another ball of the same make and color and tried to drill it a different way to help my delivery and put in my bowling bag and took the other one out.

Like I say, I never knew for months. I still didn’t seem to grasp the concept of what the ball was supposed to do and how to throw it (no surprise, really), but he on his own wanted to try to improve my game. It’s a small example why people came from even outside of the Baton Rouge market for his services.

He is as much a part of All Star Lanes as anyone over the past 28 years. That’s why it seems very appropriate that a gathering of friends will be held at the lanes on Friday at 2 p.m. to celebrate Steve Cross’ life and maybe tell a few stories about a servant to our sport and a friend to all who throw the rock at the pins.

E. J. Tackett Perfection

This weekend, the world’s top bowler, E. J. Tackett, will be one of eight competing in the PBA Tour Finals on CBS Sports Network (four hours Saturday, five hours on Sunday). But before that he was in Baton Rouge to bowl in the USBC Championships at the Raising Canes River Center.

He concluded his tournament with a perfect 300 game and in the process became the 46th bowler to achieve both a 300 game and an 800 series in the history of the event.

Tackett posted games of 228, 247 and 300 to finish with a 775, good enough for eighth place.

Ironically, his USBC Open appearances began right here in Baton Rouge. 

“I’ve been bowling the Open for many years. My first year was right here in Baton Rouge back in 2012,” Tackett said in a USBC release. “It’s fitting that I finally bowl a 300 here.”

Tackett previously recorded an 802 series during doubles at the 2022 USBC Open Championships in Las Vegas. This year, he shared the moment with friends and family, bringing more than 10 teams to compete from his hometown in Indiana.

“For me, bowling a 300 in the Open Championships currently holds a little bit more weight than a PBA one,” he said. "At the Open Championships, you only get nine games at it every year. So to finally be able to bowl one in this environment, it is pretty special.”

He posted an all-events score of 2,033 (225.9 average).

Two-time Eagle winner Marc McDowell of Black River Falls, Wisconsin, leads singles with 795.

“It wasn’t for lack of good shots. I just could not get 10,” Tackett said. “In the first game of singles, it was ring 10 after ring 10.”

The second game brought more of the same, including a blower 7 pin and three more ring 10s.

“I threw the shots to be able to take over the lead,” Tackett said. “The pins just did not cooperate enough.” 

I know we promised the Baton Rouge Hall of Fame members for today, but we’ll get those to you in next week’s edition.

Until then, good luck and good bowling,

                                       Kent Lowe