DATE: Tuesday, October 21, 1997             TAG: 9710210396

SECTION: BUSINESS                PAGE: D1   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: BY MICHAEL CLARK, STAFF WRITER 

                                            LENGTH:   31 lines

AMF BOWLING PLANS TO PURCHASE EIGHT PINBOYS IN HAMPTON ROADS

The industry's biggest owner of bowling centers is on a roll toward Hampton Roads.

Richmond-based AMF Bowling Worldwide will buy eight locations in the local Pinboys chain owned by Mitchum Recreation Services of Virginia Beach.

Merrell Wreden, AMF vice president for marketing, would not disclose terms of the deal, but industry experts say the average worth of bowling centers - no longer called alleys - such as Pinboys is around $6 million each.

Dwight Mitchum, owner of Mitchum Recreation Services, was not available for comment.

No changes are planned in the management at the facilities, and the deal should be closed in January, Wreden said.

A phone book advertisement lists nine locations affiliated with the Pinboys name, including Indian River Lanes and eight Pinboys centers throughout Hampton Roads. Wreden said AMF is not acquiring the Pinboys location on Laskin Road in Virginia Beach.

``AMF likes to acquire more centers in Virginia,'' Wreden said. ``The centers are very well run and in good condition.''

Before the Pinboys purchase, AMF owned 353 bowling centers across the United States, or about 5 percent of the total of 6,800.

``We tend to acquire centers with more lanes so our share of lanes is higher,'' Wreden said. AMF prefers centers with 24 lanes, he said, and the eight Pinboys in the deal meet that requirement.

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