Tom McBurnie loved to bowl and for a twenty-five year period, from 1940 to 1965, this passion for our sport elevated Tom to the top levels of five pin bowling.

Born in Stirling, Scotland in 1920, Tom moved with his parents to Toronto at the tender age of three. Settling in the west end, Tom attended General Mercer Public School and Bloor Collegiate, where he was a star athlete, before joining General Electric, as a machinist in 1940.

Tom’s parents and his sister were bowlers and with industrial leagues flourishing in the workplace, Tom took to five pin bowling quite easily. Tom also enjoyed mathematics and five pin bowling’s scoring systems certainly caught his attention as well.

While bowling for General Electric, Tom met Cal Curran and they were married in 194 and a daughter, Ann, was born a year later. However, following the second war, five pin bowling boomed and Tom increased his bowling activity dramatically. He enjoyed the leagues, the sweeps and especially the tournaments.

In the City Major League, Tom rolled a 1072 triple in 1950, certainly one of the highest three game scores bowled by that time. He was a member of the formidable Pete’s Grill team and, along with another Hall of Famer, Rusty Starr, won the league title in both 1956 and 1959. Eventually, he would win the high average title in 1962 bowling for the Stanley L. Jarvis team.

With an increase in tournament play in the fifties, Tom was in his glory. The O’Connor Open was a popular event each year and while not winning the event, Tom was always close. He was runner-up to Gord Brown in 1958 when the event drew 1200 entries from across Canada. He followed that with a 2745 score in 1959 as Si Rizun took top honours with a record 2934 ten game score.

A major event took place in Tom’s career in 1963 when he bowled a perfect game in Coburg. Bowling in the annual 7-UP Tournament, a unique tournament that allowed you to count your best seven of ten games. Tom rolled a 450 game as part of a 2123 counting total and, over a one month period, this event drew 235 entries.

Unfortunately, Tom failed to join the Master Bowlers Association and missed an opportunity to display his talents further across Ontario and Canada.

Overall, Tom loved the action of the game, whether it was bowling, cards, horseracing or darts. With a romantic touch, Tom and Cal, remarried on January 25, 1986. However this second marriage only lasted eight months as Tom passed away on August 29, 1986. In a fitting tribute, Tom’s wife, Cal, and his daughter, Ann, buried Tom at Glendale Memorial Gardens at Highways 27 and 50 and within sight of one of his favourite spots, Woodbine Race Track. Today, his granddaughters, Catherine and Elizabeth remember their "Papa" as having taught them the finer and also the competitive side of both cards and sports.