All associations have their top bowlers and, in York Simcoe, Geoff Stevens “STIX” is one of the best.
Geoff was born in Newmarket on June 10, 1959, the youngest of four. The Stevens family were all active in the bowling game. Geoff’s father, Rod, was the first manager of the Rank organization when they established the Odeon Bowl on Davis Drive in Newmarket. His mom, Peggy, and sisters, Carol, Shirley and Thelma, all bowled socially and Thelma is also a member of the Master Bowlers’ Association. At the Odeon, Rod also started the first teenage dancing in the bowling centre.
Geoff won his first trophy in the Youth Bowling Council (YBC), as a Bantam, at the age of seven. He kept improving his game as he moved through the YBC. As a Junior, he finished off with a 206 average and as as Senior his average rose to 220. As a teenager, Geoff played hockey and worked at the bowling centre as a pinchaser, hence, the nickname “STIX”.
Geoff was influenced in his bowling style by his second cousin, Al Snow, who persuaded him to switch from a hook ball to a back-up and mastered this bowling technique with practice and much league bowling. In league play, Geoff bowled in the Crosstown Majors for three years, winning high average in 1991, with a 271. In the City Majors league, in four years, he won the high average title twice, with a 265 mark. In 1993, he captured high average with a yearly tally of 275 in the SLM league at Stellar Lanes, in Newmarket.
Geoff joined the Master Bowlers Association in 1987 and has been a dominant force each year. In 852 games, Geoff has racked up a total pinfall of 224,092, which computes to a 263 average. In addition, he has won three tournaments over a fifteen year period. His first tournament win came in 1989, when he won the Holiday Inn 10% tournament. He followed that with the Special Olympics win in 1993 and the Mixed Triples, with Mike Rancourt and Debbie McAlpine, in 1996. Geoff has been on three gold medal mens teams, in 1992 at Vancouver, 1996, at St. John’s and 2000, in London. As well, he was Bowler of the Year twice. In 1992-93 captured the singles Canadian championships and last year was the singles Bronze medalist. Geoff has thrown back to back ten game scores of 3046 and 3146 in tournament play, as well as a 440 single and 1035 triple. He also won the Mark 10 competition in 1997- 98.
In Open competition, Geoff has qualified a total of nineteen times, eighteen with York Simcoe and one with Toronto. In his first year, 1978-79, he qualified as a single representative. In total Geoff has been on the Men’s team seven times and a Singles representative twelve times. He has qualified every year since 1985-86. Although a Provincial crown has eluded Geoff, he did come second in the step-ladder finals this past season, losing out to another York Simcoe bowler, Kris Babuik, by a score of 295 to 365.
In other tournament play, Geoff won the Dick Adams Tournament, in Oshawa, in 1992 and 1993, and was the Singles champ in the Royal Canadian Legion tournament in 1988. In 1993, Geoff represented Ontario in the CBC 5 pin championship TV show in Winnipeg and has appeared on CHCH TV in the Rose Festival in 1990.
Today, Geoff and his bride, Deb, reside in Newmarket and enjoy baseball and golf. He makes his living as a driver for Serca Food Services and still manages to bowl twice a week.
At 42, Geoff becomes the youngest bowler to be inducted into the York Simcoe Hall of Fame and with many more years ahead, his list of tournament wins will surely grow.