Mel Ford of Hinesville won the Georgia State Bowling Association’s annual Super Senior Bowling Tournament March 25-26 in Valdosta.

Ford was seeded sixth in the tourney for bowlers who are 60 or older.

Fort Stewart had one team of six bowlers in the tourney; Ford, Tom Rahn, Les Culver, Jerry Dickie, Joe Muzar and James Willis. They all bowled four games and finished 14th.

At the same time, individual scores were applied and Ford finished first in the all event category.

The field was cut to 66 bowlers, and they bowled four more games. At the end of eight games Saturday, Ford stood at sixth. The cut for Sunday’s matched was eight.

Sunday, competition restarted at 9 a.m. and Ford was the underdog being matched against Paul Bell, who won this year’s Senior All-Star championship two two weeks earlier.

Starting slow, Ford lost his first match at 214-205 to Bell. He won the second match 299-142, third 201-159, fourth 246-207 and fifth 238-224. He lost the sixth match 236-203, but rebounded in the seventh 202-171.

That set up the final match with Ford in first and against Bell again, in second place, and with a 49 pin lead. Ford lost that eighth match 202-197. But that left him with a 19-pin lead for the day and the championship with 19 pins to spare.

He won $650 and a plaque.