The August 8, 1932, issue of the Chicago Daily Tribune wrote that Jones was considered "one of the greatest jockeys ever to come out of the west."
The December 26, 1932, issue of the Tribune reported that he had signed a contract with racing stable owner Willis Sharpe Kilmer that could earn him $50,000 in 1933.
That year, he led all jockeys in the United States in purse money won, finishing ahead of greats such as Silvio Coucci, Charlie Kurtsinger, Raymond Workman, Wayne Wright, and Mack Garner.
Bobby Jones made three straight appearances in the Kentucky Derby between 1933 and 1935 but finished off the board each time.
[3] Although he later returned to racing on a limited basis, Jones never fully recovered and in a weakened condition died of pneumonia on March 9, 1938, at his parents' home in San Ysidro.