Did you bowl at Don Carter’s or Cloverleaf? Here’s what Miami landmarks looked like
By Miami Herald Archives
Saturday morning youth leagues. A hot dog and a beer. A Friday night date. The thunder of the roll and the clack of the pins.
Bowling in Miami is now an endangered species.
A few old-style alleys still exist, but most of them are gone, along with the peeling paint, greasy snack bars and sweaty rental shoes. In their place: a few boutique bowling alleys with better food, neon lights and lots of sports on TV.
Let’s take look at the bowling alleys of yore through the photo archives of the Miami Herald:
Bowling lanes at Miami Beach Convention Hall in 1967. Dave Didio Miami Herald File
Jossie Lynn Martinez of Miami, 1971 Miss Tournament of the Americas, looks out from a “forest” of pins while inviting bowlers to the ninth annual Tournament of the Americas at Cloverleaf Lanes in North Miami-Dade. Miami Herald File
Ibra Nauritz shows her excitement after hitting a strike at Cloverleaf Lanes in near North Miami Beach. Nauritz was bowling with the super seniors league in 1993. David Bergman Miami Herald File
In 1979, Congress Bowl in North Miami. It was demolished for a development. Alan Freund Miami Herald File
Cloverleaf Lanes bowling center in 2005. It’s now a medical complex. Miami Herald File
In 1967, Richard Canicatti at Coliseum Lanes. Miami Herald File
The bowling balls at Holly Lakes in 1999. Miami Herald File
Gary Yohe helps his neighbor, Stephanie Wright, 3, at Don Carter’s Tamarac Bowling Center in 1986. Bob Eighmie Miami Herald File
Jay Waterbury shows his form while bowling at Flamingo Lanes in Broward in 1992. Mike Stocker Miami Herald File
At a celebrity bowling at even at Don Carter’s Lanes in Sunrise in 1995, former Miami Dolphins quarterback Earl Morrall signs an autograph for Dick Vucenic of Lauderhill. Bob Eighmie Miami Herald File
In 994, a day of youth bowling at University Bowl in Davie. Justin Padilla, 2 of Pembroke Pines, cheers after his turn. Miami Herald File
Youngsters inspect bowling balls on one of the six lanes a 1976 open house at the new Miami Beach Youth Center. Joe Rimkus Jr. Miami Herald File
Coral Springs Charter School tammates bowl at Sawgrass Lanes in Tamarac, Florida on Thursday, October 17, 2019. Carl Juste Miami Herald File
Coral Springs Charter School eighth-grader Katarina Hagler, 13, warms drys her hand as she bowls with teammates and is on the verge of setting county, state, and national records bowling average as she competes at Sawgrass Lanes in Tamarac, Florida on Thursday, October 17, 2019. Carl Juste Miami Herald File
Ida Fagan, more than 90 years old at the time, bowls in North Miami in 1983. Bruce Gilbert Miami Herald File
In 1992, Thomas Guerriero lets the bowling ball go during a game with some friends at the Holiday Lanes in Hallandale Beach. The bowling alley, near a casino, was recently demolished. A. Enrique Valentin Miami Herald File
This story was originally published August 20, 2024 at 10:48 AM.
