By BILL SNIER
NORTH CANTON — Josh Haddad knew what pair he was bowling on in the Pizza Oven Classic league at Park Centre Lanes.
“The left lane always hooks a little more than the right,” the 40-year-old Perry Township right-hander said of Lanes 9 and 10.
So after leaving a 2-8 spare on his first shot of the night, the TCC-Verizon Wireless employee decided to make a ball change — but not on both lanes.
“I threw my (Columbia Cuda) Powercor on the right lane the first time and it just didn’t get there,” Haddad said. “So I decided to throw the (Storm) Axiom Pearl on the right lane and stay with the Powercor on the left.”
The change resulted in Haddad shooting 290 in Game 1, striking out after that first frame spare. From there, he added 236 and 279 for an 805 series — his sixth career 800 and his first since the 2022-23 season when he recorded three in the same season en route to a 238 average in the league.
But it didn’t come without another ball decision in Game 3.
“In the second game, the ball was hooking more on the right lane so I knew there was going to come a time when I was going to have to change something,” Haddad said. “Once it started hooking, I can play them kind of similar to each other. And that’s kind of what happened.”
Haddad left a couple of 8-pin spares and two 4-7 spares before finishing with a double in the 10th frame of Game 2. He had no open frames.
But in the third game, he had a shot on the right lane go high and leave a 6-pin spare after a pair of strikes.
“I went right through the face and it probably should have been a split,” said Haddad, who is averaging a league-high 232.6 this season. “I told myself now is the time to switch again. So I went back to the Powercor on that lane the rest of the way.”
He then ran off the final nine strikes to earn his 800. But that wasn’t what was on his mind in the 10th frame of Game 3.
“Our team is in first place in the half and I knew we needed to win that third game. So after that 6-pin, I knew I had to make a change, buckle down and throw good shots,” Haddad said. “I was in the pocket and had good carry. It all just came together.”
Haddad, who won the Ted Nagle Memorial tournament in December in Alliance, said he has had a “solid” season as his RJ Flooring team also attempts to win its second straight Northeast Ohio Travel League title.
“It’s been a good season … not too many honor scores. I’ve been focusing on having a chance to win the traveling league back-to back years and a chance to win the title on Wednesdays by taking the second half,” Haddad said.
Haddad’s father, Jack Haddad, also was there to see his son’s latest milestone. Jack, who also bowls on the team, has been sidelined after shoulder surgery.
“He told me he was going to hang around until I blew my 800,” Josh said. “That was when I left the 6-pin in the third frame. I told him I would try to make him stay as long as possible.
“It was pretty cool to have him there. He hasn’t seen many of my 800s.”
TAKING APPLICATIONS
The NEOTL still is accepting applications for the 2025-26 season. The trio league bowls on Thursdays, beginning at anywhere from 8 to 9:30 p.m. and includes 16 teams and four divisions.
The 30-week league has weekly fees of $25. The league’s annual draft is set for 7 p.m. May 17 at a site to be announced. There is a $10 application fee.
For information and draft applications, go to its Facebook page at: https://www.facebook.com/NEOHIOTL