I for one think it's harder for Walter Ray to win in this day in age than it was for Earl at his peak for these reasons.
There were far few players in Earl's era that could even come close to his greatness. Earl was more accurate than anyone in his day, mentally tougher, and could optimize his reaction greater than anyone. There was everyone else, and Earl. Now with the exempt tour, open fields, and the wealth of knowledge that's easily attainable, you have 40+ players that are as good as Walter Ray in execution, optimizing reaction, and reading a pattern.
With matching up being a large percentage of today's modern game, and the fact that Walter Ray carries less equipment than anyone on tour, week by week it's a crapshoot of who can match up the quickest and stay the hottest. How many weeks have we seen a guy come out of nowhere and had the week of a lifetime due to throwing certain equipment drilled up by a rep who modified the set of balls for that week to give that player a look for the week that puts them way above everyone else? I could name at least 12 times in the past 2 seasons alone. The fact that "matchup or go home" plays such a pivotal role in today's success over yesteryear's where is was "execute the best or go home", it's amazing that Walter Ray can still be as dominant as he is. That's not to say that Walter Ray isn't just matching up everyweek, yes he is, but he is doing it with far less balls than anyone on tour by a huge margin. I believe there was a 6 week stretch last season where Walter only used 2 different N'Sane LevRG balls and was in the top 12 or 16 or so every week. That's amazing considering that you have guys drilling nearly a dozen new balls week to week to get the matchup part of the game down.
Walter Ray's ability to outexecute the guy with "the best look" due to an equipment matchup and just win matches based on outscoring someone in a matchplay dominant setting is just amazing. With this format in place and the simplicity of Walter's game, he could bowl another strong 10 seasons easily, especially since he's in such good physical shape.
Yes Earl did it in an era with more tournaments and fewer seasons, but outside of about 8-10 guys of his era, who really stood a chance week in and week out while Earl was hot? With today's tour, the guy with a good look and the right rep can destroy someone executing better shots on the lane since the equipment now plays such a large part in who is in contention.
This is an argument that cannot be won, and a score that cannot be settled. The fact that people have a hard time seeing Earl's record "go away" really shows how much of a lack of forward progression that bowlers are really trying to make to further the sport. Sure it's fun to debate about topics like these but that "The present sucks, back in ____ was real bowling" attitude isn't rekindling any kind of new spirit into a game that desperately needs it.
I still think Walter Ray's accomplishments at the end of his retirement will solidify him as the best ever.
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-DJ Marshall
...The Twelve In a Row Pro Shop. AMF Bowie Lanes -- Bowie, MD
