A little over a month ago, I put together a column about a bowling challenge between a co-worker and myself.Christine Mann, a member of the Star Herald co-ed team, and I squared off in what I tabbed the Showdown at Luverne Lanes.My less-than-stellar performance was good enough to best Mann that day, but I found myself on the receiving end of jokes and challenges offered by residents from all corners of the county.Considering my pathetic scores (98, 109 and 144 for a whopping 117-pin average) during the Showdown, I used the evasive tactic of changing the subject when the gauntlet was dropped in front of me.So far, the tactic has worked. I have not had to embarrass myself by making what would be another pathetic appearance at the local bowling alley.However, when I learned of the recent exploits of a local youth bowler, I’m toying with the idea of entering the arena of bowling once again. Not as a player, but as the partner of what I think could be a money-making operation with 12-year-old Johnathon Sudenga.Sudenga, a Luverne Middle School sixth-grader, is my new bowling hero.Two days after Mann and I rolled some of the most hideous scores in Luverne Lanes history, the son of Jeff and Lila Sudenga was dominating the competition in Pipestone at a District Qualifying Tournament for the Minnesota State Youth Bowling Tournament.One of three local boys to attend the tournament, Sudenga rolled a 726 series to win his handicap division. His best game at the qualifier was a 176, which, if I remember correctly, would have topped the combined score of the first game rolled by Mann and myself during our competition.By winning the qualifier, Sudenga earned the right to compete in the state tournament at Inver Grove Heights two weeks ago. Playing on what his father described as challenging lanes, young Johnathon managed to record 105-, 148- and 99-pin games to place in the middle of the pack in his handicap division."We’ve been bowling together for a couple of years, but this is the first year Johnathon has been going at it hard," said Jeff Sudenga. "He’s been bowling in the kids’ program in Luverne on Saturday mornings for the last four months, and he seems to be getting it pretty well down. He already knows how to adjust (to lane conditions) and things like that."Best of all, Johnathon is still a hungry bowler.When the father and son returned to Luverne from the state tournament, Johnathon asked his dad if they could go to Luverne Lanes and bowl a couple of games before going home.It’s that type of attitude that could turn our partnership into a success.I can see it now.Somebody will be trying to rope me into a bowling challenge, like they have many times since my disgraceful appearance at Luverne Lanes in early December.Only this time, I’ll reply in the third person, "John will gladly accept your challenge."After explaining that John should get a 40- to 50-pin per game bonus for the match (he did, after all, average 117 pins during his last three-game series), the bait will be in place.If the bait is taken, I’ll serve as the official scorer while my 12-year-old partner takes care of the bowling part of the business against an unsuspecting challenger.