By Canadian Press

Canadian bowler Francois Lavoie back on track after pandemic lockdown rust

Oct 20, 2020 | 1:59 PM

Bowling is a game of repetition, so Francois Lavoie’s game suffered when he was separated from his sport during the pandemic lockdown.

But the Canadian showed he is back on track with a perfect game in the round of 16 at the 2020 PBA Playoffs, picking up a US$10,000 bonus.

It marked the PBA Tour’s 29th televised 300 game — with Lavoie accounting for two of them. He did it the first time in the semifinal of the 2016 U.S. Open, which he went on to win for his first pro title. He captured the major again in 2019.

Lavoie joins Sean Rash, the man he beat in the PBA Playoffs, as the only two bowlers to have two perfect games on TV.

The 27-year-old from Quebec City, who now makes his home in Wichita, Kan., bowled 12 straight strikes this month in Centerville, Va., just outside Washington, D.C.

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“It’s one of those things that you kind of dream about,” he said. “When I was growing up watching the PBA on TV, I always thought ‘Man, this would be cool if I ever got the chance to do something like this.’ It’s really kind of a surreal moment. It’s hard to put into words what it’s like when something you’ve dreamed about actually does happen.”

Lavoie, who started bowling at age two, reckons he has probably bowled around 40 perfect games in total. Doing it on the sport’s biggest stage is rare, however.

“It’s a little bit more common than it used to be. But it’s still noteworthy if it happens,” he said. “It’s not something that happens every week. It’s not something that happens every tournament we go to.

“We’re some of the best bowlers in the world and we don’t bowl perfect games all that often. Every year there are probably a handful of perfect games but it’s still quite a feat when it does happen.”

After the lockdown, he eventually spent time in Florida with coach Shawn Ryan prior to the PBA Playoffs to get his game to where it was before.

“It definitely took some time to get back to top form and to get back to where I was feeling comfortable with my game and how I was playing,” he said.

“Because bowling is such a repetition sport, the smallest details translate into really big differences,” he added. “It took a while and a lot of working with coaches to try to get back to my old form.”

Unable to bowl during the lockdown, Lavoie started practising against in late July when he got access to Wichita State University’s bowling centre. He did so wearing a mask, which took some getting used to. But Lavoie, who has had lung surgery in the past, was not about to take risks with COVID-19 and he correctly anticipated having to wear on during competition.

“I just wanted to get a head start and get used to it … It’s almost become normal at this point,” he said.

Lavoie won doubles gold with partner Dan MacLelland of Kitchener, Ont. at the 2015 Pan American Games. At Wichita State, a bowling powerhouse with 20 national titles, he won the intercollegiate singles title in 2014 and team championship in 2015.

Lavoie graduated from Wichita State with a degree in business administration in 2015. He joined the PBA Tour in 2016, earning rookie of the year honours.

The PBA Playoffs are the Tour’s season finale with the 24 top players competing for a $100,000 first prize and the last title of the year in the bracket-style, single-elimination tournament.

The pro bowling season was suspended March 17 with the Tour returning in June with two made-for-TV invitational special events, the Strike Derby and Summer Clash.

Events that were postponed – the World Series of Bowling animal pattern events, PBA League Elias Cup, and PBA Playoffs – were all rescheduled and aired in September/October. The PBA Playoffs continue to air through November, divided up for TV scheduling purposes.

The ninth-seeded Lavoie’s quarterfinal against top-seeded Jason Belmonte is slated to air Nov. 8. The 37-year Australian, renowned for his two-handed ball delivery, won his 25th Tour title earlier this month. He has earned more than $1.8 million on tour.

Lavoie, who has four titles to his name, has won more than $320,000.

Typically the main portion of the Tour, which airs on Fox and FS1, runs January to June. Canadians can follow the Tour via www.flobowling.com.

Canadians Graham Fach of Guelph, Ont., Patrick Girard of Jonquiere, Que., Mitch Hupe of Winnipeg and Zacharay Wilkins of Barrie, Ont., are also part of the PBA Tour.

Bowlero Corp, the world’s largest owner and operator of bowling centres, bought the Professional Bowlers Association in September 2019 from a group of former Microsoft executives — Mike Slade, Chris Peters and Rob Glaser.

The PBA, which describes itself as “the pinnacle of professional bowling since 1958,” was founded by Eddie Elias, a lawyer from Akron, Ohio. The pro bowling circuit was launched a year later with three tournaments.

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This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct 20, 2020

Neil Davidson, The Canadian Press