Mark Roth, whose explosive power game made him one of bowling’s all-time greats and the second to earn $1 million in career earnings in the sport, died on Friday in Oswego, N.Y. He was 70.
The cause was congestive heart failure, his wife, Denise Roth, said. Since 2009, he had two strokes — the first ended his career — and two heart attacks and was in a long-care facility at his death.
Roth was a star of the Professional Bowlers Association in the 1970s and ’80s and a mainstay of its P.B.A. Tour. He won 34 titles, a record eight of them in 1978; earned $1.5 million on the tour; and was named the P.B.A.’s player of the year four times. He was inducted into the association’s Hall of Fame in 1987 and in 2008 was voted its fifth greatest player.
Roth brought a nearly violent approach to bowling, one that he once compared to “ripping the cover off the ball.” By turning his wrist severely as he released the ball, he created great speed and spin, causing the ball to hook toward the strike pocket.
Mark Stephen Roth was born on April 10, 1951, in Brooklyn. His mother, Hilda (Rocker) Roth, was a legal secretary, and his father, Sidney, was a postal worker. Bowling began to dominate his early life after Rainbow Lanes was built near his home.
At age 13, he was averaging 160; at 17, his average was up to 195 (he often averaged in the 210s as a professional). He also worked at the bowling alley, first as a pin boy and then as a mechanic operating the automatic pin-setting machines. He bowled for Sheepshead Bay High School’s team and traveled to other bowling centers in addition to Rainbow for doubles matches, sometimes with Johnny Petraglia, who would also be inducted into the P.B.A. Hall of Fame.
Leave a Reply