Not Fade Away - Mike Aulby, champion bowler, interview - Interview

Bowling Digest, June, 2001 by Lyle Zikes

He's the only four-decade PBA tour champion, a true bowling sportsman, and a successful proprietor--so don't dare tell Mike Aulby it's time to move on

CHARACTERISTICALLY, MIKE Aulby epitomizes steadiness. Reserved, thoughtful, and pleasant, he's as polite when he's losing as when he's winning. In fact, he's earned the PBA's Steve Nagy Sportsmanship Award three times.

Yet Aulby's even-keeled manner contrasts with the peaks and valleys of his career. His hot streaks are of supernova proportions, followed by cooling-off stretches when his strike ball and shot-making appear rather ordinary by tour standards. He's been voted Bowler of the Year three times by the Bowling Writers Association of America (1985, 1989, 1995) and ranks third on the tour's all-time money list despite suffering a couple of seasons when he dropped below the top 50 on the PBA's annual money list.

The bottom line? Aulby is an all-time great. That fact was confirmed by his first-ballot choice for the PBA Hall of Fame in 1996 and his recent induction into the ABC Hull of Fame, also in his first year of eligibility.

Now 41 and with a bowling center bearing his name--Mike Aulby's Arrowhead Bowl in Lafayette, Ind.--many expected the lefthander to fade from the tour, especially after he was dropped from the Brunswick Pro staff at the end of last year. Instead. Aulby went on one of his patented hot streaks, winning the Silicone Valley Open in January and contending almost weekly during the eight-event winter tour. His victory January 21 at the Silicon Valley Open in San Francisco added another leather to his cap, as he became the first PBA player to win on the regular tour through four decades.

Aulby wasn't even initially among the bowlers scheduled for the winter tour's culminating event, called the Battle at Little Creek. He gained the 32nd and final spot in the field through fan voting via the PBA's Web site showing that you don't have to be flashy or controversial to gain the respect and admiration of bowling fans.

Aulby's first title came as a 19-year-old, in the 1979 PBA National Championship. He added 17 titles during the 1980s and eight more during the 1990s. In the midst of his 2001 hot streak, Aulby talked to BOWLING DIGEST, providing the perspective of a veteran who still has plenty of good strokes remaining in his bowling ann.

BOWLING DIGEST: It must be gratifying to win again. Were you aware it made you the first bowler to win in four decades on the major tour?

MIKE AULBY: I was aware it was four decades but didn't know it hadn't been done before exclusively on the national tour. Apparently, the others who have won during five decades must have done it with the help of senior tour titles.

BD: Right. Dick Weber, Johnny Petraglia, and Dave Soutar have titles in five decades but needed senior tour titles to complete the fourth and fifth decades. So your accomplishment was even more impressive than you knew.

MA: The fact that I started young and got that title in 1979 would be the key. But it is nice to be told you've accomplished something all those great players hadn't.

BD: Not only that, given your performances lately you still seem to be in the prime of your career.

MA: Obviously, there had been a little lull the last couple of years, so it's fun to get reinvigorated. Trying out some new equipment kind of made it like Christmas again. I came into the year with more on the line and a little more kick to my step, and that seems to have been a factor with the resurgence.

BD: Apparently, you're referring to the fact you are now on your own without financial and equipment support from Brunswick. How long had you had that connection?

MA: I had been on their shirt staff since 1992 and the full ball staff since 1996. They dropped me in December.

BD: Because there were several other players also dropped from the staff, did you have an inkling that you would be dropped?

MA: They had told a few players in October that cutbacks were coming. With me, it looked like we would be able to renegotiate a deal, but I received a call on December 20 that the numbers didn't work out.

BD: It sounds as though you took it as an insult. Was that the case?

MA: As a player, that's the only way you can look at it. They obviously don't care for your talent or want you. It's an insult to a degree and a gut-check time.

BD: It also didn't give you much time to explore other equipment before the tour started.

MA: Being with Brunswick for that period of time, I hadn't paid much attention to what the other companies were making. Suddenly, when everything is available to you, it gets very confusing. There is going to be a trial-and-error period. If you had told me I was going to win in the second week [of the 2001 tour] with new equipment, I would have been shocked. Even though I won early, I'm still learning, and I need to narrow my scope. Plus, you begin to doubt your talent when you haven't done well for a period of time. Seeing different balls do different things was an experience I haven't had for a while.