Local bowler joins historic list of Nevada residents to bowl 50 years in the USBC

Local resident Randy Gulley has been bowling professionally longer than some communities have been established.

First picking up a bowling ball in 1958 at Azusa High School after not wanting to participate in physical education, Gulley quickly fell in love with the sport.

“Most people start real young, but believe it or not, I never did.” Gulley said. “One day in high school, my algebra teacher comes into the gym and asked if anybody wanted in a bowling club. I hated PE, being the smallest in my class, so I asked, ‘when do we bowl?’ and when I found out it was during PE, I was in.”

In 1959, Gulley’s lane confidence was rekindled after winning his first youth certified sanction league and his first adult league.

“At the time, I was in track and tennis so I could not participate in sports anymore because I actually got ‘paid’,” Gulley said.

Joining the Army in 1961, Gulley spent 32 years working for the government as an administrative officer running bases and even played a hand in drafting the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and the Privacy Act in 1974.

“When I was in Korea, I was a records manager for Korea. Every record on Korea I was responsible for, so I had the highest clearance of any anybody on any base, because I could see any records that ever happened.”

According to Gulley, being on an IG inspection in Korea and the birth of his daughter was the only reason he missed having 50 consecutive years of participation in the USBC Open Championships.

While he was stationed in Germany and Korea, Gulley would routinely arrange for Americans working on base to play match games.

“At 20-years-old, I set up a league, a six-team league at a four-lane house. We bowled at three o’clock, the first four teams, and then the next two teams would go because I put six teams,” Gulley said. “I recall bowling in Germany in a league and all of a sudden, they cut the mic and the lights off and said, ‘President Kennedy is dead!’ As soon as a president gets killed, no matter where you’re at in the world, you’re back on base immediately in case something comes up.”

Gulley described earlier USBC tournaments not being held at bowling alleys but rather at convention centers that were set up to hold multiple lanes.

“I didn’t start with the USBC until 1974 when I was 31 years-old,” Gulley said. “I still love these tournaments because they allowed me to travel and see a lot of the country.”

As it stands today, Randy still holds the record for the highest series at the Open Championships (684 in singles in 1988).

Gulley’s bowling accolades go far beyond his sets on the lanes as the Colorado State USBC and Pikes Peak USBC Halls of Fame inductee has also made a name for himself in media.

Serving as the head staff writer of The Colorado Bowler for 14 years (without requesting to receive compensation), Gulley’s memory to recall events and captured photos is sharper than iron.

“I got photos of every pro you could think of; I take photos all the time,” Gulley said. “That’s what I’ve been doing since I was 12-years-old.”

If you ask anyone in Pahrump, they may tell you the same, as Gulley routinely shouts-out local birthdays of friends and bowling family on Facebook.

Making History

In March, Randy and his brother David Gulley became the first pair of brothers to reach 50 years of USBC play during the same tournament in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

Randy became only the fifth person in the state to accomplish the feat. Only 355 bowlers in the country have achieved this milestone since 1901. In his career overall, Randy’s pinfall total sits at a 77,276 (177.6 average).

Leading up to the historic event, Randy said his two sons took up bowling again last year just for their dad and bowled with him in the tournament.

“It was so awesome. It was probably the first time the two boys have been together in years so it was like a family reunion,” Gulley said.

Commemorating the event, the brothers were gifted a plaque and diamond lapel pin while donning custom I AM bowling shirts that reflected different photos of past Open Championship events.

Three days prior leading up to the event, David was freshly discharged from the hospital, yet determined to bowl with his brother at any cost.

“And funny enough the sad thing is, he did better than I did. I had to quit, because I was having some discomforting pain that just kicked in and took over,” Gulley said. “Bowling, when I look back has really come full circle. If you come to my house, you’ll think it’s a museum of bowling.”

Contact Jacob Powers at jpowers@reviewjournal.com. Follow @jaypowers__ on X.