After a two-year absence, professional bowlers will return to Toledo to compete in a major tournament.

For more than two decades the Professional Bowlers Association held its top tournament here, but abruptly left in 2003. Many of those stars who participated in the PBA National Championship at Southwyck and Imperial lanes will be back with the newly formed Generations Bowling Tour.

The top senior bowlers will be gunning for a prize fund of $205,000 in the GBT Toledo Classic Oct. 20-26 at Southwyck Lanes.

Steve Sanders, a bowling promoter from Woodbury, N.Y., who founded the Generations Bowling Tour this year, said senior stars such as Mark Roth, Johnny Petraglia, Marshall Holman and Dave Soutar will return to Toledo for what will be the fourth stop on the tour.

"This is the greatest bowling market in the history of the sport," Sanders said. "Our first major event will be held here. All the greats will be here. These are the stars that made bowling what it is."

Up to 380 senior pros could attend the Toledo stop, Sanders said. Roth, who attended a press conference yesterday at Southwyck Lanes, said he has great memories here.

"We always had super crowds in Toledo," Roth said. "We're bringing a major back to Toledo and back to the people who supported bowling in the '70s through the '80s."

None of his 34 PBA titles were achieved in Toledo, but Roth said he "made the TV show" more than once. Roth, who is known for his hard-throwing style, earned more than a million dollars in his career.

"The crowd support here always got me going," he said.

The GBT will stop at 35 cities in its inaugural season and will offer up to $5 million in prize money. All of the tournaments will be open to any bowler over the age of 50 with a minimum 200 average.

"These mean bowling is coming back alive here," said Southwyck owner Sherry Gratop, who hosted the PBA's major event at her center from 1999-2002. "These are the bowlers the fans grew up with. There are a lot of good memories with the PBA players here in Toledo."

Before Southwyck hosted the World Championship, the tour's National Championship was held at Imperial from 1981-98. Toledo had hosted one of the PBA's top events from 1981-2002 until a scheduling conflict forced the organization to move its World Championship to Taylor, Mich.

The GBT is not affiliated with the PBA Senior Tour, but Sanders said he hopes the associations complement each other. The PBA senior tour takes place in the summer, while the GBT will be held in the fall, winter and spring. Sanders said senior pros, including Nelson Burton Jr., David Ozio and Dave Davis, will compete on both tours.

Gratop said Toledo always had the largest pro-am event on the PBA Tour and she expects similar attendance at the GBT pro-ams.

"We're very excited to welcome them back," Gratop said. "I'm sure everyone in Toledo will give it their support. We're ready to roll."

Contact Mark Monroe at:

mmonroe@theblade.com

or 419-724-6110.

First Published September 14, 2006, 4:54 p.m.