After cashing and narrowly missing the finals in last month's Nation's Capital/ Baltimore Area Masters Scratch Tournament at Alexandria Bowling Center, Bobby discussed his recent scoring binge and other subjects with BOWL Magazine Editor Bob Cosgrove.

No. This is the first time I've ever averaged this high. I'd love to finish the season with a 230—for my self-confidence.

If I shoot 190 on a difficult lane, it's like averaging 220. But we rarely see conditions like that where your average would go down. You won't find any OB [out-of-bounds] shot around here.

The 801 was more emotional for me because I've never shot an "8" before. My previous high was 771. I needed a double in the 10th. I knew I needed a 270-anything to get the 800. I didn't think I was going to do that, so I just bowled.

Next thing I know I have eight-in-a-row—I actually have a chance for 270, so now I'm thinking about it! I got stuck with the 10-pin, and I needed a double in the 10th. Of course I threw the double, and then on my 12th ball, I didn't care too much about it; I just knew with that double, I had 800. So I was a little more emotional about that.

On the 863, I didn't think about it because I didn't think I'd shoot 800 again. After I shot it the first time, it was pretty much easy. I just sat down and then threw each frame.

When I threw my first 300, I was a little more emotional, but when I threw my second one, I didn't think anything about it because I'd already done what I wanted to do.

I needed 217 to shoot another 800. I thought it would be a little hard to shoot because when you want to shoot something, you usually don't get it. So it's best that you just have a clear mind going into the last game. You just bowl and don't think about it. You've had 298 and 285, so what you need to think about is, `That's a lot of strikes you just threw!' so thinking about what you're going to do now is too late. You just execute and repeat the best way you can.

When I was going at that pace, I tried to find a corner of the bowling circle and stay to myself. People talked to me a little, but they tended not to bother me while I bowled.

I thought about it the whole weekend. A serious feeling came over me that's hard to describe. I still to this day don't think that I did it.

Average. Somewhere between 600 and 620.

Not really. Usually I never try to repeat what I've already done. If it happens, it happens. As soon as you try to repeat what you've done, you usually have a letdown. The best thing I'll do is practice if lanes are available. I just do it.

I've had serious thoughts about doing that. That's why I've been working hard on my game. My father pretty much laid the foundation for me and told me what was expected of me if I want to pursue this as a career. I need events like this [the Masters] for self-confidence and to get noticed, really. It's hard enough as it is to get sponsors, so I have to do outrageous and spectacular things such as I have been doing just to get noticed.

It used to be. But after I did what I did, it doesn't matter anymore because I already feel that I earned their respect—at least I'm pretty sure that they respect me, as far as on the lanes.

After I did that, it's time to move on to another step. Now I'm trying to impress the people out there on the professional level. I'm trying now to step up my level of play.

Exactly. Hopefully, somebody will see what they like and take me up.

I don't know!

Well, he does have an ink pen, so it is kind of important. People read his stuff.

Kind of, because everybody reads the magazine. So when they see your name, they automatically have an opinion of you and what this individual thought about you.

There's a lot of people who read the magazine who may not know The Guru and might think that he's really something and that this must be important. Somebody else might say that it's just his opinion—ask a half a dozen people and see what they think. So there's two ways you can come out on that.

That a good question! Where would I put myself?

No, but at the risk of not trying to offend anybody....

I know I can compete with anybody around here. I don't think anybody here is throwing the ball any better than I am. A few people have more experience than I do, but I'm slowly getting the experience that I need.

Experience and remembering—if you can remember what you did. I hate to leave a pair of lanes—even if I shot good or bad—and not know what I just did or not have a clue about how I just played or if I didn't read the lanes. That ticks me off. As long as I can leave a bowling alley learning something, I'm happy. The more knowledge you have is power.

Right now, I suppose my physical game is somewhat ahead of my mental game, as far as overall knowledge about the game.

Yes, I do. It just takes me a little longer than other people to do it, but I'm learning slowly but surely. It's part of the learning process.

Gee.... I basically don't do anything but bowl. I do a lot of practicing, I bowl [leagues, tournaments, and pot games], and that's it. I don't do anything else. This is what I'm trying to make a living at.

No. For where I'm trying to get to, my father won't allow me to have too much responsibility because if you've got a lot of bills and a lot of things coming in, it's hard to focus in on what you're trying to do. This is what I'm trying to do. It's the only thing I'm trying to do, and so right now, I'm doing it.

My goal is to make a living—simple as that. Hopefully along the way, I will get some kind of fame. But it's more important to make a living. What's the use of winning one title but losing money at the end of the year—you're not making a living. So my main objective is to bowl well enough and to be self-sufficient and make a living.

I'd go back to school. My major was criminology/criminal justice at Prince George's Community College, where I went for three years, and I have a year or two to go. I could either become a lawyer or a policeman—I haven't decided which one yet. Someone suggested that I become a lawyer because I love to talk!

I've taken a year or two off just to pursue [bowling as a career]. It's my first love and I grew up on it.

I feel I have a little more self-confidence on the lanes. How I feel when I'm on the lanes, I now try to display within myself—and keep it within myself. This is something that comes from inside; this is what I work out. It's what helps me perform well on the lanes.

It has become more important because a lot of people are watching me and judging me by my performance. So now it does become important in how people think of you.

If you carry yourself right, people will do a lot for you. If you carry yourself badly, no matter how good you are, people are always rooting against you whether you hear it or not, and there's not too many people who will go out of their way to help you. That way, you'll find yourself by yourself.

The only person I ever really truly looked up to was my father. He showed me a lot of love as I grew up and has done so much for me, so I've never had any reason to be envious or jealous or have reason to look up to anybody else.

One of the best pieces of advice he ever gave me was to never change my arm swing and footwork. Because of that, I've always been able to repeat. I've always been able, from the time I start to the time I end, to arrive at the same point shot after shot after shot. He said to change anything else but not that. He also told me to always make your spares because then you're never out of it. That's about it.

Yes, he did. After you reach a certain point, it becomes mental. With these balls coming out, it's not so much physical anymore—it's mental. How long can you remain focused enough to execute shot after shot?

I don't know how it was back then; I can only speculate on what I've heard. Apparently there was a lot of physical as well as mental. Now, it's reading the lanes, where you're at, hitting your mark, and getting the kind of result you're looking for.

I read a little. I keep my eyes and mind open. I listen, especially when I'm in a pro shop, and I observe what an individual is doing. I stay in a bowling alley constantly because you can only get better by constant participation. With constant bowling, you can't go down.

I'm a non-smoker. I hate to come home and have that smoke on my clothes so that everyone knows where I've been. There's only a couple of places you can come from where you smell like smoke—a bar and a bowling alley. I don't care for smoking because the smoke really bothers me.

Of course there are a few insensitive people who put the ashtray right in front of you and smoke is blowing directly in your face and that becomes especially irritating. I hate to leave a bowling alley smelling like smoke.

Stepping my game up. Continue to bowl regionals and hopefully next year I'll bowl a few national stops.

I can only go by what people say, but you don't actually know what it's like out there until you bowl in a national PBA event, and I can't wait to get there.

I think about it. I still have a lot of goals in mind—they may or may not ever happen, but they are goals to reach for. I'd like to be the first one to do it; I'd like to be the first black to do it.

I'd like one day to be on TV. Hopefully one day I'd win on TV. There are a lot of goals I'm trying to do, step by step. If I do them in order, maybe [winning a national pro title] would happen.

What I'd immediately do have a talk with that gentleman! Give him my name, address, etc., and then we'd sit down and have a conference.

If anything spectacular is going to happen next, it hopefully would be winning a regional. I wanted to shoot 300; I did. I wanted to shoot 800; I did—back-to-back. My next goal is to win a title. ·