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Lee garners bowling title By Kevin Goff Winning has become old hat for Medford bowler Jerome Lee. The 65-year-old has won numerous events and awards in the state of Oregon, but on Thanksgiving Day, he set a new precedent for himself. Lee, who has bowled in 28 high roller tournaments, swept through six matches amongst 287 other competitors en route to first place in the inaugural 60-over High Roller bowling tournament at the Castaways bowling center in Las Vegas ,Nev. With the win, Lee pocketed $12,000 and is the all-time money leader in the senior division at high roller events, an honor he achieved three years ago and still holds. In the first match, Lee rolled his finest game of the tournament, a 299, to breeze past Marvin Alvis of Springfield, who finished with a 192. Things didn�t come quite as easily for Lee the rest of the way. "I got off to a real hot start," said Lee. "After that first match, it was real tight, everyone one of them." In the second match, Lee and his opponent, Utah�s Jack Wadley, each finished with a 203. A ninth- and 10th-frame roll-off ensued, with Lee advancing. A third-match bye and close wins over Doug Johnson and Ed Hansen in the fourth and fifth matches, respectively, pushed Lee into the finals against Dave Deken of Reno, Nev. Needing to strike out in his final three frames, Lee left a 7-10 split on his final shot. Deken needed only a spare to win. But it was Lee who got the last stroke of luck and the win when Deken left a split as well and couldn�t convert. "I felt it was a pretty good hit, but it didn�t turn out that way," said Lee of his final shot. "I was thinking, �Oh dear, I�ll just lose.� "But he ended up opening the door for me." He moved on to take ninth out of 600 bowlers in the Thanksgiving Senior Classic on Friday with a narrow 226-224 win in the final match. "I don�t know how many more I�m going to bowl," said Lee of his High Roller future. "I make more dubious shots than I used to, and the game has changed quite a bit. It�s hard to keep up with. But we�ll wait and see." Lee holds the Oregon State Bowling Association singles record with an 833 series set in 1975 at Timber Lanes, now known as the Hollywood Bowl, in Portland. He also rolled an 836 in 1994 with doubles partner Andy Anderson in Brookings. Lee has more than 35 300 games to his credit and 10 series of 800 or better. He�s won the state singles title four times. Lee also is a member of the Rogue Valley Bowling Association and Medford sports halls of fame. Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2000 Mail Tribune, Inc.