For some in Milwaukee’s LGBTQ community, nothing conjures Thanksgiving spirit like the ambient rumbling roll of a ball on pine and maple boards, climaxing with the ringing clatter of falling pins. The Holiday Invitational Tournament (HIT), the world’s longest running LGBTQ bowling tournament, celebrates its 40th anniversary this weekend. For its hardcore adherents, it’s both a tribute to the sport and a milestone of community history.
It all began in 1978, when representatives of Milwaukee’s various LGBTQ bowling leagues decided to organize a national tournament. Scheduled over Thanksgiving weekend, it would provide gay and lesbian players not only with a fun weekend with friends, but also offer a respite from what might otherwise be a lonely holiday. Although, almost a decade prior, the Stonewall Riots launched the movement towards LGBTQ equality, many of those who embraced their liberation found themselves ostracized personae non gratae at such traditional family gatherings.
The first HIT was held in 1979; the tournament would grow exponentially each year thereafter. Initially, bowlers came from the immediate region. Then, as it grew, teams from Chicago, Toronto, Dayton, Detroit, Minneapolis, Louisville, Kansas City and St. Louis were joined by those from the far-flung coasts, with contingents from San Francisco, Seattle and Vancouver, and from the eastern bowling bastions of New York City and Washington, D.C. Speaking of far flung, later tournaments would host teams from New Zealand and Australia, as well.
Within two years of the first HIT, Milwaukee would be among the six founding cities of the International Gay Bowling Organization (IGBO). Today, that organization boasts 250 leagues with 8,000 members in five countries. Within a decade, 30 other cities had followed suit with bowling tournaments of their own. But Milwaukee’s HIT proudly bore the appellation “the Grand Daddy of Gay Bowling Tournaments.”
While the competition is serious, HIT always stressed the sport’s fun and camaraderie. By the mid-1980s, gay bowling’s mission had also taken a fundraising role in the fight against AIDS. The 13th HIT, in 1991, brought more than 300 bowlers to Cream City, while its 25th silver anniversary in 2003 greeted nearly 400 participants. That latter event’s fundraising raffle included a Harley-Davidson motorcycle and benefitted Camp Heartland, BestD Clinic and the Wisconsin AIDS Fund.
This year’s 40th anniversary HIT welcomes only 100 mostly local and Chicago bowlers, along with representatives from Florida and Nevada. But, while that waning number may seem significant, it’s not necessarily a bad thing. There’s been an overall decline in bowling nationwide, and LGBTQ leagues have followed suit. But, perhaps more importantly, times have changed, not only for the sport but also for LGBTQs. Thanks to the community’s advances, rather than bowling, many are probably bringing their partners or spouses and kids to the grandparents’ house or entertaining their families themselves for that traditional Thanksgiving dinner.
Still, for those who do attend, they’ll enjoy HIT’s hospitality as before. Bowling takes place at Bowlero in Wauwatosa, with host bars welcoming players each evening. The closing HIT banquet will take place at the Hilton City Center, when a new Hall of Fame member will be announced and tournament trophies presented. This year’s fundraising beneficiary is the Holton Street Clinic.
