But, over Easter, David Hayward put away his beanie and chocolate bunnies to turn up the heat in the apple isle township with another stunning National Deaf Championships campaign.

Hayward took out his sixth masters crown, which now stands the 53-year-old Orange champion alone in terms of masters titles won at the National Deaf Championships.

Prior to his victory at the end of March, Hayward shared the mantle as the championship’s most prolific masters champ with Fred Jordan with five.

But a run of form that has Hayward smashing through the sport’s glass ceilings, the tenpin veteran has won masters crowns in 2015, 2016, 2017 and now 2018 to claim the new high water mark.

Hayward scored games of 202, 178, 170, 202, 265, 208 and 188 to win five of his seven head-to-head matches and win the masters title.

A first crown in 1996 and then a second in 2003, Hayward’s current run of wins suggests he’s in the form of his career – three decades on after taking up the sport.

At Launceston, he also took out the doubles event with scores of 230, 238 and 195 while games of 205, 201 and 256 helped him to second in the trios.

Those podium finishes came after a ball change – Hayward took six tenpin bowling balls with him on his drive, and ferry, to Tasmania.

Prior to the change, he bowled 136 and 167, along with a 222 with a new ball, to finish 33^rd in the singles.

He’s been attending the games for 30 years, missing just the one.

“It’s great to break the record. I didn’t think too much about it, just tried to keep it positive,” Hayward said through his interpreter and sister, Kathy. 

“While I was bowling I tried to keep watch of all the scores of the other players.

“By the fourth game I knew I was doing well and I just had to keep it going.”