Legally Blind Man, 78, Bowls Perfect Game

Says He Hit 299 Once, And Averages 180; Knows By Sound Of Ball Hitting Pins How He Did

(CBS/AP)  A 78-year-old legally blind man nicknamed "The Hammer" has bowled a perfect game.

Dale Davis of Alta, Iowa, nailed 12 consecutive strikes and reached 300 during league play.

"It's a great sport. It's something the young, the old and the handicapped can do," Davis says. "I guess I count as the old and handicapped!"

Davis tells CBS News he's actually come very close once before, falling one pin short of perfection at 299! He says he averages 180.

"The other bowlers tell me, 'Sit down' every time I get a atrike, so I heard 'Sit down' 12 times, so it was great!" David told Chris Wragge on The Early Show Saturday.

"I didn't feel nervous. My hand was a little sweaty, but other than that, I wasn't really nervous. I just thought, 'Good Lord, let me throw a couple or three more good balls' ... and I got the help, I guess."

Davis has suffered from macular degeneration, a chronic eye disease, for the past decade. He can't see out of his left eye and has limited peripheral vision in his right eye.

Davis' perfect game came at a roll-off to conclude the league season at a four-lane alley in the small northwest Iowa community of about 1,800 people.

Century Lanes owner Clem Ledoux said Davis' game didn't draw much attention until he reached 10 strikes. That's when folks poured out of the bar to watch his final two shots.

Davis, who stands 5-foot-8 and weighs just 115 pounds, threw a "Brooklyn," where a right-hander strikes the left side of the head pin, for his final strike. The feat brought wild cheers from Davis' fellow bowlers and onlookers.

"It went down there and somebody hollered 'Brooklyn!' It was just a solid sound in the pocket," said Davis. "It was quite a thrill. For just a few minutes there, I felt like a pro."

Davis, who earned his moniker "The Hammer" as a child from his blacksmith father, moved from California to live with his sister in Iowa shortly after losing sight in his left eye in 1997.

She encouraged him to start bowling again. Davis now bowls twice a week, and his fellow bowlers help him with pin placement and in making sure he picks up the right ball.

He tells CBS News he started bowling in 1939 - and had to set up the pins by himself at the time. He adds bowling has always been a passion of his.

Davis said the only time he sees the ball is when he picks it up, but he can usually tell how his throw went by sound. All 12 tosses sounded great to Davis, who bowled the first 300 that Ledoux could recall at the alley since he took over in 1984.

"He's got good coordination. He's got good timing," Ledoux said. "We've always kidded him that we think his bowling ball has eyes."

[fibonacci_]

loooooooooooool!

[pedersenfarm]

Go Dale!! This is my hometown so it''s been really exciting to have our little town on the news!!

[jeanner6]

Greta news for a change! This is a lesson for all of us, never give up when life gets tough. God Bless him.

[dnsallday]

Well, I realize Barack Obama is pretty busy right now, but when he finds some spare time, he could take a couple of lessons from this talented man.

[fibonacci_]

Something like that cannot be just luck. Amazing.

[rushlimpdrug]

I know a blind man in town that drives.

[guest173]

cool

[libsblow]

This guy is definitely a "Republican Conservative". If he were a liberal, this would have never happened. Instead of bowling a perfect game, he would be blaming society for his blindness.

[cfin5]

I love it! Get a big kick out of stories like this. I can see very well, can bowl with either hand and hit those pins so hard they''ll bounce out past that retracting gate,.....and there will always be one or two untouched, UGH! I think he faking the blindness to be a bowling shark :)

[creeper00]

"This guy is definitely a "Republican Conservative". If he were a liberal, this would have never happened. Instead of bowling a perfect game, he would be blaming society for his blindness."

Posted by libsblow at 07:31 AM : May 11, 2008

This is the most pathetic post I have ever seen on a net board. Why does it not surprise me that a knee-jerk Republican put it up?

[jack5798]

nice story but not all the amazing, he can see well enough to bowl. I''m "legally blind" (less than 20/200 in both eyes) and have played many sports including volleyball, football, soccer, and bowling. Bowling is fairly easy, just need to look at the floor to get your bearing.