Viral Video Lies
Viral falsehood: Houston bowler's perfect 300 game not ruined by freak mechanical error after all
Houston bowler Troy Walker stood on the cusp of a perfect 300 game when mechanical disaster allegedly struck — and now the can't-miss video (watch above) is turning into a viral Internet sensation.
If only the story was completely true.
This much is accurate. One strike from a perfect game, Walker sent his last ball spinning down the center of the lane. It seemed right on target . . . but the pinsetter dropped down and blocked the ball right before it could strike the No. 1 pin.
It's easy to feel for Walker, especially with his moment of agony getting covered by TV stations and newspapers around the world, including the Daily Mail in London. But it turns out this freak mechanical mishap actually may have been caused by some old-fashioned human error.
It turns out this freak mechanical mishap may have been caused by some human error.
Walker was at Palace Lanes in Houston bowling in the 2013 Luci Bonneau Doubles Tournament which benefits breast cancer research and is named after a victim of the disease when his 300 game was denied. Palace Lanes manager David Jay calls it an "unfortunate incident."
"If anyone played the entire video from the guys with Inside Bowling— because it was all on Livestream — at the end of the tournament when Troy was interviewed," Jay tells CultureMap, "Troy said he had actually pushed the reset button that started the process.
"Somewhere it was relayed wrong . . . it called for pins to be re-shot and the worker was just doing his job. It was just one of those unfortunate incidences."
Walker did get a second shot at 300. But his redo bowl only took down seven pins, leaving him with a sour, but attention-grabbing 297.
Since the weekend incident, Jay has received a ton of media inquiries. In each response, he makes sure to explain why Walker and the other bowlers in the tournament were there in the first place. Jay believes this is the most important — and usually completely overlooked — element of the story.
"Honestly, yes, he didn't shoot the 300, but we don't really know if he was going to strike the first time," Jay says "He had a better chance to strike the second chance.
"But it's not about that. Listen to his interview. You will get the point of the reason he was there. As much as it was about bowling, it was also about the good of breast cancer research."
