Our bowling league home AMF closed it's doors today-YIKES!

[Hammer]

The place we bowled on leagues for years closed today. I read other folks on this FORUM talking about their AMF bowling center closing. I never thought that would happen to ours. Right now we are trying to see if we can hook up with another center for our league. I was really looking forward to our fall league starting the 14th of September. If we can't get into another house it will seem strange to not be bowling on every other Saturday night from September to May.

I have been doing this for 28 years. I will be going through withdrawal. It has been said here that AMF was bought out by someone. Who?

[Blomer]

Wow! Sorry to hear. Was there no warning? Hopefully someone will buy it.

[MiggityMatt]

Bummer man, I'm sorry to hear that. You can read about the company that purchased AMF and Brunswick here:

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bowlmor_AMF

[Hammer]

With Bowlmor buying out AMF and Brunswick it sounds a lot like it has to do with making more money changing to open bowling and group events. That puts league play out to pasture. I guess us leaguers will have to hunt for centers that accept league play. The times they are a changing and not for the better in a lot of things.

[MICHAEL]

Yes one of our AMF's close here in Kansas City Missouri... been around for many years, some people bowled there for over 20 years,,, broke their hearts... It was a fine establishment.... Bowlmor just decided to pull the plug!

[HughScot]

I bowl at an AMF center and Bowlmor has been making a number of changes and improvements to the place. And Bowlmor is very receptive to Leagues and even sends out emails asking I like the place, etc. So far so good.

[Jaescrub]

It's sad some of the AMF like mine are doing things to improve and some are shutting down sorry to hear about you loss.

[foreverincamo]

We have lost do many centers over the years. It isn't funny. I used to bowl in a traveling league that covered 12 centers. 9 are gone. The center I am coached at and the other center I'm in a league are owned outright by individuals, not a corporation. I hope they stay open because after 24 years of marriage I got my wife to start bowling and she's really into it. To have these remaining places close would crush her.

[Amyers]

We've only lost one center here luckily in my memory about 10 years ago. Wasn't that they didn't do a good business the land it was on just got too valuable for other purposes. We have 2 I'm afraid might be on the brink now. All of ours are locally owned. The worst thing about centers closing is we lose bowlers a lot of the don't travel to the others centers they just quit.

[rv driver]

We've only lost one center here luckily in my memory about 10 years ago. Wasn't that they didn't do a good business the land it was on just got too valuable for other purposes. We have 2 I'm afraid might be on the brink now. All of ours are locally owned. The worst thing about centers closing is we lose bowlers a lot of the don't travel to the others centers they just quit.
A center closing is kind of like a betrayal. Can't say I blame them for just quitting. It's like getting thrown out of your house.

[Stormed1]

We had a 48 lane center close a couple years ago. It was more about the changing neighborhood and problems with cars being broken into and stolen and gang activity in the area that was creating fear. As a result many leagues left and the closed the center. They gutted it and sold the equipment

[Hammer]

I had a friend that got married and bought a house in South Holland around 1968. It used to be a real nice neighborhood for years. Then a bad element started moving in there
and things went downhill from there. Your right about the gangs taking hold there. That is getting to be common not only in the city of Chicago but in some of the suburbs. It
has to do a lot with drug sales. That's the way things go now unfortunately. Some businesses move out because of that.

[Blomer]

I had a friend that got married and bought a house in South Holland around 1968. It used to be a real nice neighborhood for years. Then a bad element started moving in there
and things went downhill from there. Your right about the gangs taking hold there. That is getting to be common not only in the city of Chicago but in some of the suburbs. It
has to do a lot with drug sales. That's the way things go now unfortunately. Some businesses move out because of that.

It's a shame, but you can't blame them. Hopefully for every closing center, a new opens......but we know how it really is.