By Craig Anderson

MIDDLETOWN — He earned $10,000 in prize money at the PBA Delaware Classic and reaped a lifetime full of memories too.

Seaford resident Tim Foy Jr. described his fourth-place finish at the bowling event on March 4 as a “dream come true.”

Competing at the Mid-County Lanes & Entertainment bowling alley he often frequents, Mr. Foy acknowledged he drew inspiration from being the local crowd favorite.

“I think the perfect way to do this was at home with so many people in the stands pulling for me,” he said.

“I knew I was definitely in a special moment.”

The competition was stiff and the 31-year-old Mr. Foy topped E.J. Tackett of Bluffton, Indiana, 244-209 in the first game, then fell to Bill O’Neill of Langhorne, Pennsylvania, 209-184.

“The two guys I faced are probably the two hottest bowlers in the world right now, they’re probably the best anywhere,” he said.

“Those are the ones that everyone pulls for, which is natural, but to be home with the crowd on my side was special.”

While Mid-County Lanes & Entertainment has hosted PBA events since 2009, a telecast on FS1 was a first.

The top 32 bowlers throughout the week received prize money, with David Krol of Nixa, Missouri earning $25,000, followed by $15,000 and $12,500 for the second-and third-place finishers, respectively. The No. 32 bowler received $2,500. The entry fee for contestants was $500.

There were around 400 attendees at the sold out event on March 4, and Mid-County Lanes & Entertainment General Manager Mike Zanghi said “a good amount of people” arrived at events throughout the seven-day event.

“I think we made a lot of people happy here, got a lot of compliments and thank yous throughout the week,” he said.

“We appreciate everyone coming out to the center or watching on FS1, it’s all been important to us.”

Mr. Zanghi noted that Mr. Foy’s run made for a good story locally.

“He’s part of the Mid-County family for sure and to see him make it, we were really pumped for him,” Mr. Zanghi said.

“We pushed for him but had a ton of respect for the other four bowlers on the show as well for what they did.”

While the run in Delaware is complete, Mr. Foy will continue on the Professional Bowlers Association Tour with the USBC Masters in Las Vegas, Nevada, March 24-31. He’s scheduled for events in Ohio and Michigan in April.

With all that, Mr. Foy also works as a correctional officer at a Maryland prison and operates his Snap It Off Pro Shop in Cambridge, Maryland. He’s married and has two children ages 3 and 11.