But the 57-year-old PBA Senior Tour pro isn’t just bowling, he’s racking up the honors scores just six weeks after undergoing a total knee replacement. Three days after leaving his doctor’s office, he was back on the lanes and his second practice game was a 300. A week later, he rolled a 259-204-278 — 741 in the City Mixed Doubles Tournament.
“I’m going to the line a little slower but that might be a good thing,” Kelly said.
Throwing a cracked ball on Tuesday, Oct. 20, in the Miami Valley Classic League, Kelly opened the night with a perfect game and finished with an 823 series (300-267-256). It was six weeks to the day from his surgery.
“It was an old ball that I was going to throw away because it was cracked but I had plugged it and re-drilled it and I thought I’d see what happened,” Kelly said. “I don’t know what it was but I was just nailing it that night.
“I’ve shot a lot of 300s, but this one was pretty special.”
Kelly’s knee problems began with a high school football injury incurred when he was a running back at Fairview High School. He had surgery in the late 1980s but the pain had intensified over the past year.
“This year, on tour, it was getting really bad,” he said. “I bowled 52 games or so in Las Vegas and the next week my knee was so swollen I could hardly get to the line. I knew I couldn’t keep that up.”
There is still some pain and swelling but less every day.
“I feel like I’m back on track,” Kelly said.
He is putting that theory to the test this weekend at a match-game tournament and hopes to bowl some regional tour stops in November.
“After my surgery, I was watching Megan and Linda bowl and it was just killing me not to be out there,” he said. “With this brand new, state-of-the-art knee, I’m ready.”
• City champions: Jane Bloom and Andy Parker's tournament-leading score of 1,516 held out through the final weekend of the City Mixed Doubles Tournament at Capri Lanes as did the 2,736 bowled by the High Roller Pro Shop squad of Trisha Reid, Linda Kelly, Jim Hilligas and Chris Mahaffey in the team competition.
• On the air: Local professional bowler Shannon Pluhowsky will be among the competitors vying for a title this weekend as ESPN broadcasts the PBA Women's and Senior World championships and Trick Shot Invitational at 1 p.m. today.
Contact this writer at djunie@aol.com.
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