It was whisper quiet on Oct. 9th at Forest Lane bowling alley as Kevin Webster, center, and son Travis, 20, bowled strike after strike and both completed a perfect game. The Big Tyne teammates wowed the crowd who applauded. The Lake Forest residents are photographed Mon., Oct. 23. (Photo by Cindy Yamanaka, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Like father, but not like son. Travis Webster, 20, is a two-fisted bowler, but his dad is not. Both bowled 300 on Oct. 9th at Forest Lane bowling alley in Lake Forest. The Big Tyne teammates took it in stride without showing too much emotion. Photographed on Mon., Oct. 23. (Photo by Cindy Yamanaka, Orange County Register/SCNG)

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Kevin Webster is a one-fisted bowler. His son Travis, 20, is not. Father and son both bowled a perfect game causing commotion at Lake Forest’s Forest Lane on Oct. 9. Photographed on Mon., Oct. 23. (Photo by Cindy Yamanaka, Orange County Register/SCNG)

Kevin Webster, center, is no stranger to bowling a perfect game. He’s bowled 300 five times to date. His son Travis, 20, and he bowled a perfect league game on Oct. 9th at Forest Lane bowling alley, pictured, in Lake Forest. The Lake Forest residents are on the Big Tyne team. Photographed on Mon., Oct. 23. (Photo by Cindy Yamanaka, Orange County Register/SCNG)

They’re perfect! Travis Webster, 20, and dad Kevin, 46, hit the “Big Tyne” with their 300 perfect game scores during an Oct. 9th league game held at Forest Lane bowling alley, pictured, in Lake Forest. The Lake Forest residents are on the Big Tyme team. Photographed on Mon., Oct. 23. (Photo by Cindy Yamanaka, Orange County Register/SCNG)



A sizable crowd formed behind Lane No. 32 at the Forest Lanes bowling alley in Lake Forest as Kevin and Travis Webster entered the 10th frame of a league match.

As it turns out, when someone notices something special happening at Forest Lanes, word spreads quickly.

The father and son were on the verge of bowling perfect games. Each entered the 10th frame with the opportunity to score 300. Three more strikes were needed to reach bowling’s highest achievement.

Despite one little hint of drama, the two pulled it off on that Oct. 9 evening, and are believed to be the first father and son to bowl perfect games in the same game in Orange County.

“After the 12th, and final, strike, the whole place erupted,” Kevin Webster said.

John Diso, general manager at Forest Lanes, said he’s seen his fair share of perfect games, but never by teammates in the same game, let alone a father and son.

“Just the timing of it, the fact that they did it,” Diso said. “It’s happened before where people have done it on the same team, but in different games. But to do it in the same game, the chances of that are very small.”

Travis Webster, 20, went first. Despite the pressure and shaky knees, he kept his composure, using his two-handed bowling style to knock down the final 30 pins to complete his first-ever 300.

“It was definitely nerve-wracking,” said Travis, who has been bowling competitively with his father for two years.

After throwing the final strike, Travis did a fist pump and walked back to receive a quick hug and high five from his dad before being greeted by the rest of the league.

Kevin, 46, didn’t have much time to celebrate. He, too, was hoping to complete his perfect score.

But it didn’t come without a little scare. On the second of Kevin’s three remaining throws, the No. 10 pin in the back right corner attempted to make a stand, but was knocked over by a rolling pin after a few tense seconds.

Kevin, who had accomplished the feat four times before, said he wouldn’t have minded if that pin had stayed up.

“I was so focused on him that it didn’t matter to me,” he said about his son. “It was just icing on the cake.”

Kevin’s final throw left no doubt, and the father and son were greeted with cheers from the other 17 teams in the league.

Diso, who has worked at Forest Lanes for six years, said the pair’s perfect games were the most impressive feat he’s seen at the bowling alley.

“As far as something like that, not even close,” he added.

Bowling has become a family tradition for the Websters, who both live in Lake Forest. Kevin said his father taught him the game at a young age and, when he was ready to get back into competitive bowling, he included his son.

“I’d go with friends to late-night cosmic bowling,” Travis said, referring to the bowling with lights, fog machines and music he did before joining the league with his father. “I enjoyed it more than I thought I would.”

In two years, Travis’ previous high score was 275 in a practice round. He averaged 174 during the previous league season, while Kevin averaged 213.

Kevin said he and his son have developed a deeper bond through the sport.

“My dad taught me the game and this sport is one of the few where father and son can participate at the same time,” Kevin Webster said. “Having the passion for the game, being with (Travis) on the lanes and bowling as a teammate and competitor with him is amazing, I would have never in my wildest dreams thought of that scenario.”

The two play on a three-member team called Big Tyne, an ode to Domingo Ayala, a baseball parody character that became popular with his comical “instructional videos” on YouTube.

Big Tyne is definitely big time at Forest Lanes — the team sits at the top of the standings after eight weeks of play.

But nothing will top what the Websters accomplished.

“I told him, from here on out, it doesn’t matter what we do,” Kevin said about his son. “No one can take this away from us.”