Bowling, The Wright Way - January 18, 1998 by Don Wright
Poll's Are For Opinions And I Got the Wright One!

Well, I just finished reading my copy of the Bowlers Journal International 18th annual reader's poll and I must admit, I don't agree with all the responses. I know I mailed back my ballot, but for some reason I have either forgot what my response was, or I have certainly changed my mind over the long period of time. So, in this column I thought I would re-visit the topics and give my two cents worth.

Who has the biggest ego in bowling?
I agree with the response "the once a week bowler with the 210 average." Every center has one. He's the guy who spares the least, complains the most, and only wants to bowl in his center. The number one response in BJI was Pete Weber. Personally, I have no problem with a little ego when you can back it up and Pete does that very well. Too many people have written Pete off. Not me. On the ladies side I would have to give the honor to Judy Soutar. Anyone who would deliberately not show up to be honored in a Hall of Fame is pretty egotistical in my book. Was I the only one to cast a vote for John Jowdy?

A non-bowling amenity that all-modern bowling centers should have.
This was a no-brainer for me. I like entries to the center that do not have curbs or steps and doors that automatically open when I approach.

If bowling had a homecoming court, who would be the king and queen?
For my money there is only one king - Dick Weber. Every bowler should have the opportunity to meet this gentleman. He is to bowling what Arnold Palmer is to golf and Nolan Ryan is to baseball. Marion Ladewig would get my vote for queen. Her records still stand and the popularity of women's bowling is directly attributable to her success. There may be a lot of knights in shining armor and a few ladies in waiting, but the king and queen in my court are Weber and Ladewig.

On a scale of 1-10, with 10 being ideal, how would you rate bowling's integrity today?
At the amateur level I have a problem with integrity. You only have to look at articles like Jim Goodwin's in BJI on the Brunswick World Team Challenge to question the amateur integrity. But, across the board I think that in the eyes of the bowling public integrity is pretty high. In the eyes of sportscasters and those not closely tied to the sport, it seems to suffer from an image problem. Sure bowlers complain about inflated averages and bowling ball technology, but they still believe in the sport and accept this as part of it. I give it a 7 with a bullet.

What suggestions would you have for the System of Bowling panel?
I think the acronym SoB is fitting. Time to send that group home. They have taken too long and will be unable to make significant changes. Bowling is losing too many bowlers and making the game more difficult won't increase league play, tournament entries or improve the image.

What slogan would you use to promote bowling?
Slogans won't promote anything. They may remind you of the product, but they don't cause you to react. You'll bowl because you want to. Hey, that might be a good slogan. We know gimmicks don't work. BIF didn't help YABA.

What is your favorite memory of the Pro Bowlers Tour on ABC-TV?
There are many, but I think about Pete McCordic's perfect game. He was so nervous he was visibly shaking.

Who do you think would make bowling's oddest mixed doubles team?
How about Ernie Schlegel's wife and Randy Pederson?

What do you hope will be your favorite memory of the PBT on CBS?
That they never chose Bret Munsburger as the announcer.

You have one question to ask Strike Ten's Steve Ryan. What is it?
I love BJI's number one response "who the hell are you?" I would also ask, "what have you done lately. Or for that matter, at all?

What is the best thing a proprietor can do to retain league bowlers?
No doubt about it - be consistent. He could also have those automatic doors. How long do you think each broadcast should be on CBS? Most folks like the 90-minute telecast, but I prefer two hours. I would like to see something similar to the ESPN coverage of what's going on in the bowling world. Tips, ball specifications, tournaments and much more could be part of a "bowling magazine" aspect of the telecast.

Who is going to be the Bowler of the Decade?
BJI responses were clearly Walter Ray Williams Jr. and Wendy Macpherson. I don't know. Mike Aulby didn't do all that badly and neither did Carol Gianotti-Block. The 90's were not bad to a lady named Leanne (Boomer) Barrette either and we still have a couple of years to go. Tish Johnson, as I recall was a pretty darn good lefty in the 90's.

If any bowler wins the $1 million bonus on the CBS telecasts, who will it be?
I don't agree again with the BJI response. If Pete Weber is given the opportunity, somebody better be ready to sign a check. Nobody strikes better for the money that Pete.

What will be bowling's next hot new product?
BJI responses were a new ball. What else can they do to a ball? Personally, I think all the ball manufacturers are doing is changing the appearance of old, recycled balls and giving them a new name. How much can you do with cover stock and weight blocks? I would like to see computerized mechanics so when you have pinspotter problems they get fixed in less than the six months to a year it takes a real live person. One mechanic explained it to me this way - "they are machines ya know. They have movin' parts." My problem at the time was that the parts weren't movin'.

Who would make the perfect broadcasting team for the CBS shows?
There were some good and not so good responses in BJI. I would like to see Denny Schreiner back. I also like Jan Schmidt. Jay Randolph did a pretty good job and so do Holman and Durbin. I would like to see Chris Warren as the color commentator. If you spend 15 minutes with Chris, you too will agree.

What do you like most about league bowling? Least?
Competition and camaraderie were the primary BJI responses and I guess they are mine also. I love tournament bowling and Travel League bowling for the competition. I bowl some leagues simply because it's the only time I get to see old friends. What I like the least is sandbagging and teams that are in arrears financially. If you can't afford to bowl, don't commit.

Well I skipped 3 or 4 because they really don't mean anything to me. But, I guess the poll is pretty good. I agreed with most, and so folks don't think I am trying to pick a fight, most of my responses are tongue in cheek. Some are not and I will let you determine those.

See you on the lanes.