Glen Grow
He was known as “Mr. Consistency” in Muskegon-area bowling circles. And he had the numbers to back up the nickname.
Glen Grow was what you would call an avid bowler. “Toddy,” a name he was also known by, bowled his entire life, and as often as he could.
You would be hard-pressed to find a better bowler in the area during the 1940 - 1970 time frame. And you’d be hard-pressed to find someone who frequented the lanes as often, as Glen was bowling every night of the week in his prime.
Glen’s numbers aren’t staggering by today’s standards. His highest average was 193, he high game 289, and his high series is 714. However, factor in the era in which this was accomplished, the 1940s - 1960s, and you have numbers that were considered elite.
According to his son Bill, Glen liked the dependence of bowling. It meant he could rely on himself for a good score, and no one else. Glen was an extremely competitive person, and enjoyed baseball, basketball, and golf nearly as much as he did bowling.
Glen was the scorekeeper when he bowled, so he knew exactly what the scores were and what was needed from him. More often than not, he pulled through with clutch shots and big strikes.
As a member of the legendary Wolverine Express team, Glen won eight city tournament team titles, all in a 20 year time span. Not a bad run. It didn’t end there. Glen won the city tournament actual singles title in 1965, took the doubles actual event three times, and won all-events in the 1964 city tournament.
For all the accomplishments Glen achieved, the most impressive feat didn’t end in a first place finish. During the 1965 national tournament, the Wolverine Express machine that Glen was a part finished fourth, and led for some time at the tournament.
Glen’s dominance wasn’t exclusively in tournaments, either. Eight times, Glen had the high series in the leagues he was bowling in for that particular season. Three times, he achieved the high score for his league.
One of the more memorable moments in bowling had to be when he took to the lanes with professional Steve Nagy.
It’s been a long time coming for Glen’s arrival into the Greater Muskegon Bowling Hall of Fame. But, all good things are worth waiting for.
Welcome, Glen!