Walter Ray Williams Jr. interview done by email on December 30, 1997

10 Questions I ask Walter Ray!

1.What is your favorite ball of all time? "That is really hard,because the manufactures keep coming out with great new balls. And I use them because i think they will work. I really liked the Danger Zone when it came out,but right now my favorite is the Speed Zone!!"

2.Do you have any superstitions? "Not really. But I tend to like the lanes next to me,when the games are finished, to be on the 1st cycle (all 10 pins up).

3.Who is your favorite PBA player?? (a) as a person (b) favorite to watch? "(a) I guess Mark Williams would be one of my favorites.He has a rather abbusive sense of humor (as do many of the other guys do) and I think that has alot of integrity. (b) About any body who is on a roll".Almost everybody gets a little more pumped up when they are throwing alot of strikes."

4.What do you do to prepare for a telecast? "Not much. I try to do things to take my mind off of the telecast."

5.When did you bowl your first 300 and 800 and how long had you been bowling? "I first bowled when I was 11.A horseshoe pitcher introduced bowling to me and my brother.We joined a league that year,but I really did'nt bowl again untill I was 17 when I was a senior in high school.I bowled my first 300 and 800 when i was 20."

6.How many first place place finishes do you have in regional and national? "As of 12/30/97 I have won 24 national titles, and 11 regional titles"

7.How many second place finishes do you have? " As of 12/30/97 I have 29 seconds in National PBA tournaments and about 15 or 20 in regionals."

8.How many 300's do you have? "As 0f 12/30/97 I have 44 pba 300's. I have also bowled 6 in ABC sanctioned competition outside of the PBA. I dont file for ABC for everyone which I bowl,so I dont think I will ever get close to Bob Learn in that department. I hav'nt bowled in a league since the 82-83 season when I went on tour"

9.Have you ever been nervous before a shot? "Yes".

10.Do you like any team sports? If so, who is your favorite team and player?? "I dont really follow team sports. I would rather play than watch. I could always go pitch horseshoes or bowl when I wanted (and now i golf) and did'nt need a bunch of other guys. I have 3 brothers and we used to play football together, but I also realized that you could get hurt very bad in that game as well as alot of other team sports. I want to be able to walk when I'm 50, and so many men have hurt themselves playing some of those `other` sports."