On the Lanes with Duane Hagen
June 12, 2010
In the coming months, we'll talk with some of the best-known bowlers at the USBC Open Championships and get their thoughts on their time at the tournament and what it takes to succeed on the championship lanes.
This week, we heard from Duane Hagen, who is the Open Championships tournament manager. He will take to the lanes this year on June 19 and 20.
Hagen has dedicated his career to promoting the sport of bowling, so it is no surprise that he was chosen to fill the Open Championships' top management role as tournament manager.
A 10-year veteran of the Open Championships, Hagen lists his first march down Center Aisle as his favorite memory. He is committed to maintaining the tournament's many traditions, while also helping the storied event continue to evolve.
Hagen brings with him 20 years of marketing and management experience in the recreation and food service industries as well as a decade of experience as the owner and operator of a bowling center in Virginia. His career travels have taken him to Australia, Europe and the Middle East, where he benefited from the diverse clientele and their cultures.
He joined the Open Championships as tournament manager on Oct. 1, 2008 and took the reins from Brian Lewis, who held the position since Aug. 1, 2001. Lewis moved into a larger supervisory role as USBC's Managing Director of Tournaments.
On the lanes as a league bowler, Hagen consistently averages above 200 and owns numerous 300 games and other honors.
Originally from Arlington, Va., Hagen resides in the tournament's host city each year to build relationships as a member of the local community.
HOMETOWN: Open Championships Host City
OPEN CHAMPIONSHIPS APPEARANCES: This will be 11.
OPEN CHAMPIONSHIPS TITLES: 0
BOWLING BALL WEIGHT: 15 lbs.
FAVORITE BRAND OF BOWLING BALLS: Storm
ONE all-time favorite host city: Las Vegas
TWO best Open Championships memories: 1. first walk down Center Aisle in Niagara Falls - 1983; 2. making my first presentation to a 50-year participant and suddenly grasping the magnitude of the accomplishment.
THREE keys to success at the Open Championships: 1. patience; 2. spares; 3. remember, it is only a game.
FOURgettable Open Championships moment: Bowling a 145 triplicate in Tulsa in 1985
FIVE bowlers in history on your Open Championships fantasy all-star team: Nelson Burton Jr., Jeff Richgels, Dave Cirigliano, Rick Steelsmith and Ernie Schlegel
SIX bowling balls currently in your Open Championships arsenal: Storm Black Thunder, MoRich Awesome Finish, Roto Grip Pluto, Ebonite Maxim - more than that requires too much thinking for my game.
SEVEN cities you'd like to see the Open Championships go to/return to: Myrtle Beach, S.C.; San Francisco; Boston; Charleston, S.C.; Colorado Springs, Colo.; Oahu, Hawaii; Hampton Roads area of Virginia - Virginia Beach / Williamsburg
EIGHT favorite bowling balls ever: Black Hammer, El Nino Gold, Roto Star, Black Diamond, Lion, Black Thunder, Yellow Dot, Green Bolt Pearl
NINE other current/eligible bowlers you would choose to join you on your ideal pair of companion teams at the Open Championships: Clara Guerrero, Michelle Feldman, Shannon Pluhowsky, Barry Asher, Carmen Salvino, Glenn Allison, Jeff Richgels, Bo Goergen, Jeff Jensen
TEN seconds or less, who is your favorite bowler of all-time?: Marshall Holman
ELEVEN strikes in a row to start a game at the Open Championships, what's going through your head?: You already got the hard ones, now make history.
TWELVE years from now, where do you hope to be in your bowling career?: Directing the Open Championships as the greatest sporting event in the world.
This week, we heard from Duane Hagen, who is the Open Championships tournament manager. He will take to the lanes this year on June 19 and 20.
Hagen has dedicated his career to promoting the sport of bowling, so it is no surprise that he was chosen to fill the Open Championships' top management role as tournament manager.
A 10-year veteran of the Open Championships, Hagen lists his first march down Center Aisle as his favorite memory. He is committed to maintaining the tournament's many traditions, while also helping the storied event continue to evolve.
Hagen brings with him 20 years of marketing and management experience in the recreation and food service industries as well as a decade of experience as the owner and operator of a bowling center in Virginia. His career travels have taken him to Australia, Europe and the Middle East, where he benefited from the diverse clientele and their cultures.
He joined the Open Championships as tournament manager on Oct. 1, 2008 and took the reins from Brian Lewis, who held the position since Aug. 1, 2001. Lewis moved into a larger supervisory role as USBC's Managing Director of Tournaments.
On the lanes as a league bowler, Hagen consistently averages above 200 and owns numerous 300 games and other honors.
Originally from Arlington, Va., Hagen resides in the tournament's host city each year to build relationships as a member of the local community.
HOMETOWN: Open Championships Host City
OPEN CHAMPIONSHIPS APPEARANCES: This will be 11.
OPEN CHAMPIONSHIPS TITLES: 0
BOWLING BALL WEIGHT: 15 lbs.
FAVORITE BRAND OF BOWLING BALLS: Storm
ONE all-time favorite host city: Las Vegas
TWO best Open Championships memories: 1. first walk down Center Aisle in Niagara Falls - 1983; 2. making my first presentation to a 50-year participant and suddenly grasping the magnitude of the accomplishment.
THREE keys to success at the Open Championships: 1. patience; 2. spares; 3. remember, it is only a game.
FOURgettable Open Championships moment: Bowling a 145 triplicate in Tulsa in 1985
FIVE bowlers in history on your Open Championships fantasy all-star team: Nelson Burton Jr., Jeff Richgels, Dave Cirigliano, Rick Steelsmith and Ernie Schlegel
SIX bowling balls currently in your Open Championships arsenal: Storm Black Thunder, MoRich Awesome Finish, Roto Grip Pluto, Ebonite Maxim - more than that requires too much thinking for my game.
SEVEN cities you'd like to see the Open Championships go to/return to: Myrtle Beach, S.C.; San Francisco; Boston; Charleston, S.C.; Colorado Springs, Colo.; Oahu, Hawaii; Hampton Roads area of Virginia - Virginia Beach / Williamsburg
EIGHT favorite bowling balls ever: Black Hammer, El Nino Gold, Roto Star, Black Diamond, Lion, Black Thunder, Yellow Dot, Green Bolt Pearl
NINE other current/eligible bowlers you would choose to join you on your ideal pair of companion teams at the Open Championships: Clara Guerrero, Michelle Feldman, Shannon Pluhowsky, Barry Asher, Carmen Salvino, Glenn Allison, Jeff Richgels, Bo Goergen, Jeff Jensen
TEN seconds or less, who is your favorite bowler of all-time?: Marshall Holman
ELEVEN strikes in a row to start a game at the Open Championships, what's going through your head?: You already got the hard ones, now make history.
TWELVE years from now, where do you hope to be in your bowling career?: Directing the Open Championships as the greatest sporting event in the world.