Patchogue Resident Makes a Living on Bowling Tour

Patchogue’s own Mike Fagan has worked hard over the course of his career as a professional bowler. Since joining the tour in 2002, Fagan has enjoyed success that has allowed him to ascend to ninth in the Professional Bowlers Association Tour rankings in 2010.

After growing up in Greenlawn and attending Harborfields High School, Fagan’s passion for bowling drew him to the professional ranks. Shortly after earning his Bachelor’s degree in Finance from St. John’s University, he turned pro at the age of 22. He is a resident of Patchogue.

“I’ve been doing it since I was a little kid,” said Fagan. “It was always a social environment for me. I got to meet a lot of people and I made a lot of lifelong friends thanks to bowling.”

However, like most young bowlers on the professional tour, Fagan failed to win a tournament early in his career. Though he wasn’t at the top yet, Fagan remained confident, picking up valuable experience along the way.

“The tour has such a huge learning curve when you get out there, that you need to get that experience,” said Fagan. “The first year I was out there I didn’t expect to do anything. I had some limited success but I really just went out there to learn the game and learn how to bowl at the professional level.”

In 2008, he won his first title in his 108th event at the PBA Exempt Doubles Classic with Danny Wiseman.

“It was probably a little bit long overdue for me to win that event,” he said. “But I had gotten close a bunch of times before that and it just made it even more sweet when it came after waiting that long.”

Fagan, who has been nicknamed the King of Swing thanks to his high backswing, also competes internationally for the US National team, then went on to win his first singles event in 2010, defeating Walter Ray Williams, Jr. at the Dick Weber Open.

“I had led tournaments before, I had qualified for PBA finals before, but I stepped up on TV and I bowled really well and I won the event,” he said. “It was a great moment for me. It was definitely a confidence booster." 

Fagan has been a resident of Patchogue for the past five years, and tries to fit some coaching into his busy schedule when he returns home. This past fall, he helped coach the East Islip boys and girls bowling teams. 

“I coached them a little bit at the beginning of the seasons. Both the teams were very talented, and they went on to win the county.”

The teams didn’t just win the county championships, they both finished undefeated, a combined 26-0 record.

It was that same level of care and coaching expertise that fueled Fagan’s career when he was at Harborfields. He credits his high school coach Rich Armenio, an English teacher at Harborfields High School, for getting the best out of him when he was younger.

“I worked with a lot of coaches and things like that, but the one person who wanted to push me as much as I could was my high school bowling coach Rich Armenio. He was an avid bowler, and was definitely motivational. He pushed me in the right direction for what I wanted to do with my bowling career.”