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Personal Q&A [1-20] [41-60] [61-80] [81-100] [101-120] [121-140]
 Dana February 18, 2003 Dear Walter Ray Thank-You for responding to my letter, You could be right, that maybe something physical happened after my operations. After two heart operations a 16 pound ball feels like 100. I hope you continue your sucess in the pba, although I dont think that will be a problem. If you could, tell me when The pba will be near massachusetts, I would like to go and rout for you, every time I watch you bowl, I try to study your routine and aproach, then I try to follow every step, but that is not working. If you could think of anything else to help me with my game, it would be very appreciated. My main problem right now is I would think is not throwing the same shot twice, the release is all wrong, well I will stop babling now, thank you for taking the time to respond, your a true athlete. Thank-You Dana Cook ps..........How is ricky ward doing, I havent spoken to him in almost 10 yrs now. Your my favorite but I like to see how he is doing. Hi Dana, I would work on your form, especially a good follow through. Ricky Ward is doing OK. He and Lisa have a child. Good luck. Willie February 18, 2003 Brookhaven PA Walter Ray, what made you decide to enter the pba and not stay with horseshoes? Hi Willie, I still play horseshoes. I did finish 3rd last year at the world championships and even though I don't play as well as I once did I am not that bad. I joined the PBA because I was bowling very well and saw an opportunity to test myself against the best bowlers and maybe make a few dollars doing it. Unfortunately there isn't much money in horseshoes, but I still enjoy competing. Derek February 11, 2003 De Pere WI Dear Walter Ray, I am doing a report on your career and accomplishments for a class. One of the requirements is that we know some of your favorite things. I was wondering if you could tell me your favorite food, car, tv show, music etc. Also if you have any plans for retirement (hopefully we never see the day). Thanks, this would really help me out a lot. Hi Derek, I love all kinds of food. I am lucky that I don't weigh an extra 100 pounds! I tend to love spicy foods. I am not picky about cars. I love comedies and my favorite music is rock & roll from the 70's to now. I know that one day I will retire, but hopefully that will be several years away. Bob February 2, 2003 Falling Waters WV Walter Ray, I just watched you win the US Open. I only wish I could of been there in person. My question is, to me it seemed like this is a much more satisfying win and it looked like a ton was lifted off your shoulders. It was a very demanding shot and you rose to the occasion,,,AGAIN !! If you would give us your insight to what this win meant to you personally and also how important is POY to you this year ? Also before I sign off, I must say to Paige, I enjoyed the interview with Leslie. It is nice to see and hear from the players and the wives. Continued success to you both and I lood forward to seeing you on Taylor, Mich. Your fan and friend, Bob Hi Bob, I definitely would like to be the PBA Player of the Year again. I think that beyond winning a title, that is what most pros are striving for. I bowled very well at the Masters a couple of weeks earlier and was disappointed in my performance at the end of the tournament for a 2nd place finish. I realize that to be Player of the Year having the most titles and TV finals is a good resume. Since I had the most TV finals, a 2nd title, especially a major, would really help in that regard. Also since I am getting older, I realize I will have fewer opportunities to win titles and Player of the Year. ROBERT January 14, 2003 OCALA FL HELLO WALTER RAY, SURE MISSED SEEING YOU IN THE PORTLAND FINALS. BUT WHAT I DID SEE WAS DISGUSTING. DOESN'T THE PBA HAVE A DRESS CODE ? DANNY WISEMAN IS A DISGRACE TO THE SPORT. FREE SPIRIT MY EYE. THIS CLOWN THINKS HE'S CUTE. YOU BOWLERS OWE IT TO YOURSELVES TO GET THIS GUYS ATTENTION.I AM SO HAPPY HE MISSED THE TEN PIN AND LOST THE MATCH. CLEAN UP YOUR ACT WISEMAN!!YOU MIGHT START WITH A DECENT HAIRCUT AND A CLEAN SHAVE. AND THAT SHIRT SUCKS. WHEN DEVANEY WON HIS TOURNAMENT, I HEARD THE ANNOUNCERS MENTION TWO NICK-NAMES HE HAS PICKED UP. THE REAL DEAL WOULD BE TO CALL HIM " NO-NECK DEVANEY " I DON'T BELIEVE THIS GENTLEMAN COULD WEAR A NECKTIE IF HIS LIFE DEPENDED ON IT.HE'S A GREAT BOWLER AND WILL BE HEARD FROM A LOT I AM SURE. GOOD LUCK IN VEGAS AND DO YOURSELF PROUD WALTER RAY. A FAN IN OCALA, BOB JOSEPH Hi Bob, I guess you are referring to the Medford finals. Danny has a line of shirts which he is trying to promote, but I guess you won't be buying any. That is your choice. I personally wouldn't get my haircut the way Danny does, but that is his choice. The PBA does have rules, but nothing about style and I don't think they should. There are plenty of people who think that Danny dresses stylishly. I am a bit more conservative than he is, but that is his option as well as mine. BOB December 10, 2002 OCALA FL HELLO CHAMP, I'M SURE THERE ARE TIMES WHEN YOU GET THE CHANCE TO PLAY GOLF HERE IN FLORIDA. I'M WONDERING WHAT THE DISTANCE OF YOUR AVERAGE TEE SHOT IS, AND WHAT IS THE STRONGEST PART OF YOUR GAME? CAN YOU CONTROL THE GOLF BALL AS WELL AS YOU DO YOUR BOWLING BALL? A FEW YEARS AGO THERE WAS A PRO BOWLER WHO WAS ALSO A PRO GOLFER. HE WAS FROM CALIFORNIA AND HIS NAME I BELIEVE WAS JOHN JOSEPH. ( NO RELATION ). HAS THIS PROSPECT EVER ENTERED YOUR MIND?. JUST CALL ME CURIOUS. WARMEST REGARDS TO YOU AND PAIGE, BOB JOSEPH P.S. THANKS A MILLION FOR ANSWERING MY FORMER INQUIRY. AND GOOD LUCK IN THE UPCOMING TOC. Hi Bob, I average around 240 yards off the tee. On hard ground I have driven 300 yards, but on wet courses be happy with 225. I am not sure what the best part of my game is. I feel that I need work on all parts of it. Usually I am pretty decent at hitting it in play, but not always. I bowled in a PBA regional last year, Chris Wilson, who is also a pro golfer and was the head pro at one of the courses at the Villages. He works for a golf club company now, and doesn't have much time to bowl tournaments. Even as a 3 or 4 handicap I am quite a ways from a pro golfer, especially competitive golfers. I would like to get to a plus handicap, but I need to work on my distance, irons and putting! Doris November 18, 2002 Volant PA Are you happily married and When did you start bowling? Also how can you as a bowler tell me how I can improve in my bowling? Hi Doris, I am happily married. My wife and I have been together for 17 years. I bowled one year when I was 11 and started again when I was a senior in high school at age 17. Practice with some good coaching is a great way to improve. Robert November 18, 2002 Ocala FL hello paige and walter ray, have you ever considered putting on a bowling clinic here in the ocala area? perhaps you could arrange for one of your pro friends who bowls left handed to assist you. i bowl locally twice a week, and never see you unless it's on tv. we see roger bowker on occassion, and thats it. i bowled in the pro-am two years ago in the villages tournament. learned some valuable tips from the pros i bowled with. so, thank you for listening, and continued success out on tour. it's a treat to see you perform. a bowling fan, bob joseph p.s. at the grand rapids tournament, i was very upset with the conduct of mccune.he showed no consideration for his opponent, a hall of famer, who showed real class in defeat. well done champ. Hi Bob, I don't do many clinics, but that doesn't mean that it isn't out of the question. I don't bowl in league in Ocala as Roger Bowker does, but I do practice there a little bit when I am getting ready for the tour to start. I probably won't do too much practicing before the winter swing since I will probably be driving across country and will need to leave early enough to get there in time and the tour will have just ended a couple of weeks before. Normally a couple of weeks off doesn't hurt my game. Eugene really wanted to win and may have been a bit more demonstrative than necessary. I was trying to throw great shots against him and let my ball do the talking, but I came up short. Thanks. Doug November 17, 2002 Westland, MI Out of your 35 Title you've won, which one is the most memorable and Why? Thanks for your time and response. Doug P.S. Is there one title that your wife Paige has any special memories on? Hi Doug, I would say that the most memorable win is my first win in 1986. First titles are probably the most exciting. But trust me, all of my wins are something I will treasure. November 3, 2002 MI You said happy birthday to grandma today and just wondered how young she is? Also how your first date was with your family,...did you all go to the circus or what? Hi, My grandmother, Vi Ehler, is 94 and doing OK. She has a grand-daughter and her boyfriend living with her to help take care of her. She also has 5 daughters who stop by and see her when they can (including my mother). Unfortunately she has fallen down a few times in the last year and she has had hip surgery. She also had a pace maker put in to help her. I try to get over and see her when I am in CA which is about twice a year. My first day with Paige (my wife) was at a pizza restaurant with my 3 brothers and my mother. We were at the CA state horseshoe tournament. I am sure she didn't know what to think of me. She might still not. Kimberlee July 13, 2002 MI I just brought my boat down my canal in Michigan and heard that familar clank of horseshoes from my 84 year old neighbor. I don't know a thing about horseshoes except the ones that were on my horses feet, anyway this neighbor of mine was out pitching horseshoes one day last year and mentioned he had won a super seniors event I think in Midland..Mi. Anyway to make a boring story short, I mentioned the WRW bowler slash/ horseshoewer and he just about dropped his dentures and said "Don't you know he's the best!" So I guess you have that star status of the geritol generation Hi Kimberlee, In some circles people think I am a pretty good bowler and sometimes a good horseshoe pitcher. Some of them are older and even a few are young. By the way I might have to start taking that geritol myself. Jamie April 5, 2002 Strawberry AZ Walter Ray, I was wondering if you knew and coaches that could teach me to the level of becoming a pro (only in Arizona). Or if you knew of someone that lived in AZ that i could talk to. Thank you Jamie PS. Johnny P. told me of Fred Borden i will probably go to his school in a couple of years. Hi Jamie, I seem to remember that Wayne Zahn teaches and lives near Phoenix. Other than that there are many top players in AZ who should be able to help you. I would contact some of the top players in your area and ask them. Good luck. Jason March 21, 2002 South Portland ME Walter Ray, Congrats on another great year. This is a totally non-bowling question...what programming languag(es) have you used in building your horseshoes' statistics program? And how do you like living in Florida compared to California (my home state)? Thanks in advance. Hi Jason, I wrote my current programs in QuickBasic 7.0. I am currently trying to update the programs to a Windows based program with Visual Basic, but it's going very slowly. I like the weather in FL during the winter (who wouldn't?) and it isn't too bad in the summer, but CA has better summer weather (I don't like the thunderstorms). I grew up in Eureka CA which is actually very cool in the summer (average high of 65 during August) and now I don't like it when it doesn't get to at least 60! Dominic March 19, 2002 Aurora IL Dear Walter Ray & Paige, My 12 year old daughter and my 10 year old son (both bowlers) are in the fan club and love the packages that they received. I would like to know, WHEN DO YOU GUYS REST! I try to visit the web site daily to keep up with my favorite bowler and I see the tour is finished until September. Between regionals and horseshoes coming up, do you ever just sit, rest and do nothing? I'm always looking for Walter Ray in the standings of tournaments and on the ESPN telecasts. Good luck bowling in the future, can't wait until September. GO WALTER RAY!!! Dominic Hi Dominic, I am glad that both of your kids enjoyed their fan club packages. I do have a fair amount of 'rest' time in the next several months, but as you will see on the website I will be busy almost every weekend. We will also try and keep the fans entertained with some other things so keep checking in. Thanks. Ronald February 21, 2002 Hermitage PA Hello Walter Ray, I saw you bowling in the Pro Am in Erie, Pa. I really like the patch on your shirt for the web site. I have a question? Is there a reason why you use your middle name? I can understand the use for the web site. I was just wondering why you have used it ever since you have come on tour. Thanks, Good Luck in Erie! Ron Hi Ronald, I don't know if there is a place on my website, but here is the explanation. My grandfather was Walter Whitman Williams. My grandmother was Hazel Rae Williams. They named their second son Walter Ray Williams. He always went by Ray as his father was Walter. When I was born (the first boy of the family after 3 girls) my parents named me Walter Ray Williams, Jr. Since there was a Walter and there was a Ray, my parents have always called me Walter Ray even though I was born in San Jose. I prefer the whole name (first and middle names) even though most institutions like to omit the middle name. I always sign my autograph with my entire name (which is a bit long), but that is the way I like it and prefer to be addressed that way. Thanks. Matt February 12, 2002 West Chester OH Dear Walter and Paige: My name is Matt Koenig I think paige knows my grandparents Dick and Scitch koenig they live in florida. Well I have a couple things. Well im 13 years old and i bowl in a league on saturday mornings and i got picked to go to europe to bowl in a tournament and i was wondering if u hade any advice for me? I also wanted to ask u anoter thing every time i throw the ball down the lane i usualy hit the pocket when i do i usualy never get a strike why is that? Hi Matt, Have lots of fun in Europe. It looks like I might also be going to Europe in May for a couple of tournaments they are working on in Germany and Sweden. At 13 you might have a light ball and slower speed and those might contribute to not getting as many strikes as you would like. Try to remember that you are going to grow and get stronger and then use the heavier balls and a bit more speed and those pins should fall down easier. Keep hitting the pocket! Jesse January 10, 2002 Hi - How are you ??? - I don't know if you will actually read this or not but - this is kind of an off the wall question !!!!!!!!!! I believe it is in February at some point - And it takes place in Centervill, OH and it's an adult/junior tournament !!!! So as you might have already guessed - I was wondering if you would like to bowl with me in this tournament !!! I know that you probably have no time to but i just thought I could ask !! FYI - My name is Jesse Buss - I'm 17 years old and a Junior at Freeport High School from Freeport, Illinois !! I currently bowl in 2 leagues and average 220 in both of them! I also bowl in High School and so far for that I'm the high average with 228 ! I have bowled 2 sanctioned 300 games and 1 that's not !! My high series is a 779 !! I bowl in many scholarship tournaments in Iowa, Wisconsin, Illinois, and have bowled in Ohio before!! I'm a Junior Gold member and will be competing in the Junior National Gold Tournament next July. So I know that this probably has no way of going through but please respond with an answer or comments of any choice !!!! I love to bowl and I bowl everyday working to improve my game and I would really like to bowl for a long time and so if you have any advice that you can give to me would be much appreciated !! Thank you for you time - Jesse Buss Hi Jesse, I do read most of the questions submitted. I won't be able to bowl with you in your adult/junior tournament. Thanks for the invite. It sounds like you are bowling great. Keep it up. Maybe I'll see your name on the tour in the future. Mike November 28, 2001 Normal IL Hey there Walter! Let me just say that you're my favorite pro bowler, I watch ya all the time. Almost had that 300... tough break. I just wanted to know a few things for my presentation I'm doin on ya for a class of mine. 1)How many games a week do you bowl? 2) What's your average? 3)How many 300's do you have? 4)High series? Thanks a lot for the info, I really appreciate it. Take care, bowl good! -Mike P.S. In the text area you provide for this q/a thing, tell the webmaster to add WRAP to the tag for it, since the text just keeps going off to the left without it... Hi Mike, 1) a. During the tour I probably bowl about 30 games of practice each week. But that is usually during the official practice sessions. b. Off of the Tour I won't bowl for weeks until a tournament comes up and then I will bowl 2 or 3 days for about an hour each day. 2) My average on Tour is about 216 this year. I haven't bowled in league since 1982. 3) I believe that I have 57 in PBA competition and about 6 outside of that. But these are guesses. 4) My high series is an 857. I bowled it in 1982 at a regional tournament with most likely a plastic ball (I don't remember). I had 300, 299, 258 with 3 solid 10 pins. I also finished 2nd at the tournament to Mark Baker. For horseshoes the answers are: 1) 1 or 2 hours a week when I am home except when the main tournaments start and I will practice 4 to 6 hours a week. 2) The NHPA keeps averages by using the highest 3 in your last 10 events so my ringer percentage average is about 79% right now. 3) 12 - 4 as a Junior including the longest on record of 56 in the men's division. 4) My highest tournament is 92.4%. They don't have a series in horseshoes. I hope this helps. priner@webtv.net Subject: The play by play. I really enjoy your play by play accounts of the action. Being that your loyal fans aren't always able to follow you ring side we still rout for you always through the television. Hope your able to sustain the momentum of Michigan despite your age ha ,ha and injuries. Heat and then followed by ice works for me. I ruptured a few discs in that area after a fall from my horse. Better luck next week. Hello, Thank you so much for taking the time to write. Your kind words are appreciated! It is so nice to know that there are people out there rooting for me. Alternating heat and ice are pretty much my strategy too, for the aches and pains of this old guy. Sue June, 2001 Reedsport Or Comments: Hi My late husband, Robert, was a Williams from Penn. and Okla, his father was named Walter ,so was his brother. I was wondering if we could be related as the resemblance to my step-son is remarkable! If you don't wish to continue with this line I totally understand. Just have wondered for years because of the resemblance. Love to watch you bowl and admire your style, hope to see more of you on T.V.!! Thanks Sue Williams We might be related, but it is probably quite distant. My grandfather, Walt Williams, was originally from MN and of Norwegian descent I believe. Personal Q&A [1-20] [41-60] [61-80] [81-100] [101-120] [121-140] | ||