As part of the recurring feature "10 Questions with…" here at Daddy’s Sugar Ball we will be interviewing sports and entertainment personalities with connections to the local Central PA area.  Please check out our past interviews here.

This week we are very grateful to have had a discussion with bowler Jim Tomek, Jr. Tomek, Jr. spent a number of seasons out on the PBA Tour and is currently the PBA East Regional points leader which places him in great position to make a run for a Tour exemption next season. We were also very fortunate to speak with Tomek, Jr. shortly after his 2nd place finish at the Cap Card Open at Cedar Lanes in Lebanon.

                                                
                                                               Photo courtesy of Chris Knight, Patriot-News

DSB: You've been bowling since the age of 5...who were your bowling heroes growing up?

Jim Tomek, Jr. (JT): Probably my first bowling hero was Darryl Bower. He and his brother Gary own the ABC Lanes chain of bowling centers in the Greater Harrisburg area. I got to see Darryl bowl quite often because of this. Darryl was on the national tour at that time. He made a few TV shows and won a national title. I remember watching him on TV. Darryl was awesome. He had a very contemporary game. Smooth and powerful! It would be very comparable to a lot of the guys on Tour today. As I got older, I would say Parker Bohn III. Parker was and is still pretty to watch. Poetry in bowling. The coolest thing with Parker is I get to call him my hero, my friend and colleague now.

DSB: Could you describe a typical week in the life of a bowler out on the PBA Tour?

JT : A week on tour starts most weeks on Tuesday travelling to the stop and arriving at the bowling center to check the place out and unload your bowling equipment.

On Wednesday, if you are a non exempt player you will have to bowl the TQR (Tournament Qualifying Round) to earn your spot into the regular tournament. Wednesday afternoon will be practice for the exempt players and for those that qualified out of the TQR. Wednesday evening is a Pro-Am night where some, but not all, of the players are scheduled to bowl. If you are one of the lucky ones not scheduled, you have an evening to relax. Thursday is qualifying and we have 7 games in the morning and 7 games in the afternoon. After the 14 games of qualifying you need to be in the top 32 to advance to the next round. Friday's bowling is all setup in a match play format. We usually use one of two formats for match play; either we use a round robin-style or an elimination-style match play.

The round robin-style is bowling 9 games against 9 different opponents. Your pinfall from qualifying is carried forward and you continue to add to your total by knocking down pins and beating your opponents. Winning your head-to-head match earns you 30 bonus pins to add to your score. After 9 games you need to be in the top 16 to advance to the next round. The next round is the same format and you need to be in the top 5 to advance to the TV show which is held on Sunday.

The elimination style match play is three rounds and a best of 7 game matches. Each round narrows the field down by half until there are 4 left for the Sunday TV show. Saturday is another Pro-Am day and everyone will bowl at least one or sometimes two Pro-Ams in a week. It is our chance to interact with the fans and have a good time with them. Sunday, of course, is our nationally televised TV show on ESPN.

DSB: Just like golf, technology has made huge improvements to the game of bowling. But unlike golf (where courses can be lengthened and hazards added), bowling's "playing field" has to stay the same. Have the advancements gone too far and are most tournaments now how well you can carry?

JT: You are correct. The visible part of our playing field cannot change, but the invisible part can be changed. By the invisible part, I mean the oil patterns we bowl on. League conditions are very easy and scores are very high on them. Currently, I am averaging 257 in league play while my Tour average is around 215. That’s a pretty big difference. That just goes to show the difference between the oiling patterns in your typical league and the ones we use on the Tour.

In my opinion when bowling is at its toughest (i.e. the U.S. Open) it is because of the technology. Bowling is tougher now then it ever was. The technology in the precision oiling machines and the technology in the bowling balls. On Tour, knowing which ball to use at what time is a real challenge. Technology has made the game easier in some aspects, but it also has made it a lot harder in others.

DSB: Could a smooth stroker like Johnny Petraglia or Earl Anthony compete out on the Tour today?

JT: Absolutely a smooth stroker can compete on Tour. In fact, Johnny Petraglia just won a national senior tour stop about 6 months ago. With the newer balls its better to be smooth with your release. Its fine to have a high revoultion rate which allows you to hook the ball a lot. But the release needs to be smooth. The newer balls react better when you let it hook by being smooth, rather trying to make it hook with a hard, jerky release.

DSB: Kingpin and The Big Lebowski have brought bowling to the silver screen in recent years. What’s your favorite depiction of bowling in the movies?

JT: Actually my favorite movie about bowling is a documentary called A League of Ordinary Gentlemen. It is a very accurate portrayal of life on Tour. It follows the ups and downs of 4 different guys on the Tour. If you have not seen it, please check it out.

DSB: What are your feelings to the changes that have been made to the TV presentations (such as the inclusion of skills challenges and HORSE-type competitions). Has this helped the sport grow in popularity?

JT: The skills challenges are okay. I am glad to see bowling on TV more often, but I feel there are better ways to showcase the talents of our players. As far as helping bowling, I think it has helped because it has created a buzz. When I walk into the bowling center you hear people talking about the skills challenge and that’s a good thing...so you know people are tuning in to watch.

DSB: Just like you bowled with Parker Bohn in a Pro-Am when you were a kid, I bowled with a young Pete Weber once upon a time. Concerning his issues with women and alcohol, Weber was John Daly before John Daly. Yet, he seems to be a good marketing fit for the Tour...what do other professional bowlers think of his "peacocking"?

JT: Pete has that "bad boy" image. Not to mention, he is the son of the legendary Dick Weber. Every sport needs to have a "bad guy". Pete is ours. He's the guy you love to hate. I just think that it is easier to market a sport when you have a controversial figure or a rivalry. Its simple...you love Pete or you hate Pete. He's very much like Kyle Busch right now in NASCAR...he is their bad guy. And the thing that people admire or hate the most is that they have the talent to back it up.

DSB: A recent trend is the two-handed delivery. In goofing around have you ever tried it and what were the results?

JT: Yes, I have tried it. As a coach I feel it is necessary to understand the two-handed style. I think it is bowling of the future. You will more see more and more kids doing it junior leagues. And it is important to be able to teach and understand this style of bowling. As far as my results using two hands...let's just say it’s a work in progress.

DSB: Explain to our readers how important sponsorships are to bowlers out on Tour.

JT: It is very simple...there would not be a Tour without sponsorship dollars. I feel we still need a lot more sponsors then we have now. I feel the Tour is still too dependent on entry fees to drive our tournaments instead of sponsorship dollars. I am not really sure why we do not procure more sponsors when our TV ratings beat out quite a few other sports. Hopefully we keep working on it and more and more potential sponsors see how good our product is and we will get the dollars necessary to make the Tour great.

DSB: I understand you are a big NASCAR and Tony Stewart fan. The #14 car is having a great season leading the Sprint Cup standings, in top 5 finishes, and prize winnings. As a fan, is anything short of a championship this season a disappointment?

JT: I would love for Tony to get his third championship. But it certainly would not be disappointing if he did not get it. He has done an outstanding job with his new team and I am very excited to see him doing well. It is not entirely shocking to see the team do so well. Tony has four very successful sprint car teams (two in USAC and two in the World of Outlaws) and they win championships almost every year. I think Tony knows what it takes to operate successful racing teams. I see a very bright future for Stewart-Haas Racing.

We here at DSB again wish to thank Jim Tomek, Jr. for his time and cooperation. Jim can be seen in local action during the Bowlers Supply Open next weekend (August 7th - 9th) at the Colony Park Lanes North in York. We wish Jim the best of luck the rest of the season and in returning to exempt status on the PBA Tour.

Thanks for coming and suckling on Daddy’s Sugar Ball...