Pennsylvania bowler returns to River Center for 2025 Open Championships
May 11, 2025
PHOTO (from left): Steven, Bill and Shane Taylor
BATON ROUGE, La. – The United States Bowling Congress Open Championships is making its third trip to the Raising Cane’s River Center in 2025, with the venue previously hosting the event in 2005 and 2012.
For many of those competing this year, the trip to Red Stick is serving as a second or third visit to the area, giving those individuals the chance to visit familiar spots and see what’s new in the capital of Louisiana.
Others are getting to experience the area’s culture, cuisine and history for the first time.
Bill Taylor of Townville, Pennsylvania, recently returned to Baton Rouge for the first time since 2005, but his first trip didn’t involve rolling strikes or covering spares inside of the vast facility.
That trip was to help those in need in the aftermath of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. The devastating storms hit in August and September of 2005, shortly after the conclusion of the 2005 USBC Open Championships in early July.
The longtime emergency medical technician (EMT) traveled as part of a 23-ambulance caravan from Pennsylvania and spent 16 days in Baton Rouge providing aid to those displaced by the storms.
“We spent the first three days at the LSU (Louisiana State University) campus taking care of people there, then they immediately brought us down here to finish everything,” Taylor said. “When I walked in and saw cot to cot to cot, I said TV did not do it justice. To see it in person was just unbelievable.”
Taylor and his teammates worked side by side across 12-hour shifts with nurses from the Red Cross providing care to those impacted most by the hurricanes.
While the situation was harrowing, Taylor isn’t one to shy away from helping others, noting, “If I can make someone feel better, it’s like a million bucks to me. That’s the real key and why I’ve still been doing it for 25 years.”
Taylor took a lot away from the experience, and many of the individuals he cared for and came across during his time in the city expressed their gratitude to the volunteers who traveled to help from all across the United States.
“The appreciation everyone showed to us was second to none,” Taylor said. “We saw a lot of bad stuff, but to be able to help people and see them appreciate it was just awesome. Even when we went to places like Target, people were thanking us.”
As Taylor has continued his work helping people across Townville, Meadville and Titusville in western Pennsylvania, bowling also has been a longtime favorite for the 64-year-old.
Being able to bowl with his sons – Shane and Steven – always is a top priority for Taylor, and they’ve started to travel the country over the last several years to compete at the Open Championships. Bill and Shane started at the 2018 event in Syracuse, New York, and Steven joined along starting in 2021.
When Bill realized Baton Rouge was on the schedule for 2025 – with the lanes being built inside of the River Center – he knew he had to see it. From seeing the area during a time of devastation, he’s enjoyed seeing the city thriving during his visit.
“I couldn’t wait for Baton Rouge,” Bill said. “I was so pumped when I heard it was here. I was here 20 years ago, and to come here and see it all now … it’s just beautiful. There’s a great atmosphere down here.”
Both Shane and Steven also knew the trip would mean a lot to their father.
“As soon as we knew it was Baton Rouge, you could see him getting excited,” Shane said. “Once he knew it was at the River Center, he’d probably mention at least once a week how he couldn’t wait to see the city and the River Center.”
They both had to wait for their father to return from his trip in 2005, which also brought the recent return full circle for them.
“I just remember when I was 11 and the night he left, I was very worried,” Steven said. “When he got home, I can’t really describe how happy I was to see him again.
“For as much as he was talking about going here, I was pumped as well to see Baton Rouge. For everything that happened here, I was anxious to see what it was like, too.”
It's easy to see how proud Bill is of both of his sons, too. They’ve followed his legacy as volunteers for Townville Ambulance, giving all three the chance to help the people of their community together.
“Shane would see me run all the time, then he started to follow in my footsteps,” Bill said. “Now, I get to run a lot more with Steven. I’m very proud of both of them.”
When they have some down time during their next shift on the ambulance, though, they’ll also have a couple of things to talk about from their time on the lanes at the River Center.
Shane made a run at perfection while competing with Steven in doubles, rolling a 296 game to help the pair into the top 10 for the Standard Division. Shane and Steven currently sit in seventh place with a 1,200 total.
“I was pumped, and I told my youngest here (Steven) that I was going to hug Shane first, but he said, ‘No you don’t,’ and stood right in front of me,” joked Bill. “The thing about Shane – he’s taking his nursing now because he’s a flight paramedic – if he had more time to dedicate to bowling, wow, he’d really tear them up. For all he gets to bowl anymore, to see him do this and still be a natural is great.
“We get to bowl one night together in a league, and that’s my dream – to bowl with the boys. I always look forward to that.”
As the family returns to Pennsylvania, they’ll be able to reflect on an experience 20 years in the making.
“This trip really put everything into perspective about what everybody saw here during the aftermath in trying to take care of so many people,” Shane said. “Being able to see it come full circle, with him seeing the city thriving and this place looking as amazing, probably offers a little bit of closure, too.”
“It does,” Bill followed. “To see everybody out and about and happy means a lot.”
The 2025 Open Championships is scheduled to feature more than 58,000 bowlers and 11,600 five-player teams competing across 150 consecutive days at the River Center.
Visit us on Facebook at the official USBC Open Championships page.
BATON ROUGE, La. – The United States Bowling Congress Open Championships is making its third trip to the Raising Cane’s River Center in 2025, with the venue previously hosting the event in 2005 and 2012.
For many of those competing this year, the trip to Red Stick is serving as a second or third visit to the area, giving those individuals the chance to visit familiar spots and see what’s new in the capital of Louisiana.
Others are getting to experience the area’s culture, cuisine and history for the first time.
Bill Taylor of Townville, Pennsylvania, recently returned to Baton Rouge for the first time since 2005, but his first trip didn’t involve rolling strikes or covering spares inside of the vast facility.
That trip was to help those in need in the aftermath of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. The devastating storms hit in August and September of 2005, shortly after the conclusion of the 2005 USBC Open Championships in early July.
The longtime emergency medical technician (EMT) traveled as part of a 23-ambulance caravan from Pennsylvania and spent 16 days in Baton Rouge providing aid to those displaced by the storms.
“We spent the first three days at the LSU (Louisiana State University) campus taking care of people there, then they immediately brought us down here to finish everything,” Taylor said. “When I walked in and saw cot to cot to cot, I said TV did not do it justice. To see it in person was just unbelievable.”
Taylor and his teammates worked side by side across 12-hour shifts with nurses from the Red Cross providing care to those impacted most by the hurricanes.
While the situation was harrowing, Taylor isn’t one to shy away from helping others, noting, “If I can make someone feel better, it’s like a million bucks to me. That’s the real key and why I’ve still been doing it for 25 years.”
Taylor took a lot away from the experience, and many of the individuals he cared for and came across during his time in the city expressed their gratitude to the volunteers who traveled to help from all across the United States.
“The appreciation everyone showed to us was second to none,” Taylor said. “We saw a lot of bad stuff, but to be able to help people and see them appreciate it was just awesome. Even when we went to places like Target, people were thanking us.”
As Taylor has continued his work helping people across Townville, Meadville and Titusville in western Pennsylvania, bowling also has been a longtime favorite for the 64-year-old.
Being able to bowl with his sons – Shane and Steven – always is a top priority for Taylor, and they’ve started to travel the country over the last several years to compete at the Open Championships. Bill and Shane started at the 2018 event in Syracuse, New York, and Steven joined along starting in 2021.
When Bill realized Baton Rouge was on the schedule for 2025 – with the lanes being built inside of the River Center – he knew he had to see it. From seeing the area during a time of devastation, he’s enjoyed seeing the city thriving during his visit.
“I couldn’t wait for Baton Rouge,” Bill said. “I was so pumped when I heard it was here. I was here 20 years ago, and to come here and see it all now … it’s just beautiful. There’s a great atmosphere down here.”
Both Shane and Steven also knew the trip would mean a lot to their father.
“As soon as we knew it was Baton Rouge, you could see him getting excited,” Shane said. “Once he knew it was at the River Center, he’d probably mention at least once a week how he couldn’t wait to see the city and the River Center.”
They both had to wait for their father to return from his trip in 2005, which also brought the recent return full circle for them.
“I just remember when I was 11 and the night he left, I was very worried,” Steven said. “When he got home, I can’t really describe how happy I was to see him again.
“For as much as he was talking about going here, I was pumped as well to see Baton Rouge. For everything that happened here, I was anxious to see what it was like, too.”
It's easy to see how proud Bill is of both of his sons, too. They’ve followed his legacy as volunteers for Townville Ambulance, giving all three the chance to help the people of their community together.
“Shane would see me run all the time, then he started to follow in my footsteps,” Bill said. “Now, I get to run a lot more with Steven. I’m very proud of both of them.”
When they have some down time during their next shift on the ambulance, though, they’ll also have a couple of things to talk about from their time on the lanes at the River Center.
Shane made a run at perfection while competing with Steven in doubles, rolling a 296 game to help the pair into the top 10 for the Standard Division. Shane and Steven currently sit in seventh place with a 1,200 total.
“I was pumped, and I told my youngest here (Steven) that I was going to hug Shane first, but he said, ‘No you don’t,’ and stood right in front of me,” joked Bill. “The thing about Shane – he’s taking his nursing now because he’s a flight paramedic – if he had more time to dedicate to bowling, wow, he’d really tear them up. For all he gets to bowl anymore, to see him do this and still be a natural is great.
“We get to bowl one night together in a league, and that’s my dream – to bowl with the boys. I always look forward to that.”
As the family returns to Pennsylvania, they’ll be able to reflect on an experience 20 years in the making.
“This trip really put everything into perspective about what everybody saw here during the aftermath in trying to take care of so many people,” Shane said. “Being able to see it come full circle, with him seeing the city thriving and this place looking as amazing, probably offers a little bit of closure, too.”
“It does,” Bill followed. “To see everybody out and about and happy means a lot.”
The 2025 Open Championships is scheduled to feature more than 58,000 bowlers and 11,600 five-player teams competing across 150 consecutive days at the River Center.
Visit us on Facebook at the official USBC Open Championships page.