Mike Taylor sends the ball flying down the lane at the Orleans Bowling Center. Taylor has earned a spot on the 2009 U.S. Masters, which pits pros and amateurs to find the best bowler in the country.
Thursday, Sept. 11, 2008 | midnight
There's no doubt in Mike Taylor's mind that he can compete with the top bowlers in the country.
He'll try to prove himself at the 2009 United States Bowling Congress Masters tournament Feb. 9 to 15 at Cashman Center. The tournament transfers the convention area into a bowling alley.
The tournament features 500 bowlers and pits professional with amateurs to find the nation's top bowler.
Taylor, of southwest Las Vegas, earned his spot when he won the Southern Nevada United States Bowling Congress Association Masters tournament Aug. 2 and 3 at the South Point.
Taylor, who has a 230 average, defeated fellow Las Vegan Rod McLean 537-430 in the first match and 494-443 in the second of the double-elimination tournament.
"I had no problem losing to such a great bowler," McLean said. "Mike will be a great representative for Las Vegas in the 2009 Masters tournament."
Taylor finished in the top 64 at the 2007 event and is a former member of the Professional Bowling Association Tour.
"I turned pro when I was 18 and it didn't go good, so I left it for a couple of years," Taylor said. "After a while, I came back, and for the next three years, I was in the top 50, but never won."
He estimated that he has won approximately $750,000 in his 28-year bowling career. "It sounds great, but when you break it down by year, the money is just not in bowling," Taylor said.
Bowling has been a lifelong passion for Taylor, something he picked up from his father, Lee Taylor, who is also a former professional bowler.
"My dad did it, so I got into it," Taylor said.
Taylor quit the tour in the early 1990s because, he said, it wasn't financially viable to try and earn a living.
"I've got three kids and the money just isn't there," Taylor said. "Ever since ABC pulled the contract in 1990 things have gotten worse."
He ran the bowling shop in the Orleans bowling center for several years and is now a stay at-home dad.
Despite his problems with the professional tour, bowling is still a sport he loves.
"I've bowled a long time, and I love it," he said. "That's why I care so much about what's going on with it."
Brent Hinckley can be reached at 990-2687 or [email protected].
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