Legendary Williams looks for gold at Men's World Championships
08/08/08
With a career record 44 Professional Bowlers Association titles and being regarded as one of the greatest bowlers in history, it's hard to believe the trophy case of the legendary Walter Ray Williams Jr. still has a missing piece.
"A gold medal at the World Championships would be cool," said Williams of Ocala, Fla. "It would definitely be one of the highlights of my career."
Williams, a PBA and United States Bowling Congress Hall of Famer, will have the chance to fill that void when he makes his Team USA debut at the upcoming World Tenpin Bowling Association Men's World Championships, scheduled for Aug. 22-30 in Bangkok, Thailand.
This event marks the much anticipated first appearance of professionals at the World Championships. Joining Williams in Thailand on the six-player Team USA squad are Denny's PBA Tour stars Chris Barnes (left) of Double Oak, Texas, Patrick Allen (right) of Wesley Chapel, Fla., Tommy Jones of Simpsonville, S.C., and Rhino Page of Topeka, Kan., along with amateur Bill Hoffman of Columbus, Ohio.
Professionals are now eligible to compete with Team USA in international competition, thanks to a change in WTBA legislation last August.
At age 48, Williams still is considered one of the best bowlers in the world today. He finished No. 1 in the PBA points and average standings each for a career-record seventh time in 2007-08, a season that saw him win twice and make eight championship round appearances.
Now Williams will put his skills to the test on a different stage. He will take on a field of the best bowlers in the world while also competing in a team environment and he hopes competing alongside some of the sport's best will pay dividends for Team USA.
"We've obviously got some great players on this team and hopefully we can gel together," Williams said. "It will be nice to have someone else's eyes to say, 'Try this, try that,' especially when things aren't working well. Definitely, it will be a different mode for me, but I welcome the opportunity to work with (head coach) Jeri (Edwards, pictured left with Tommy Jones) and my teammates."
Having the opportunity to compete in something new 28 years after he turned professional is something Williams is looking forward to about the upcoming World Championships.
"This is going to be a lot of fun and a new experience for me," said Williams, who has plenty of familiarity at the World Championships of horseshoe pitching - winning the world title six times. "It's definitely going to be an eye-opener. Hopefully, we'll be able to help each other out when we need it and throw a lot of strikes."
At the 2006 World Championships, Page (left) and Hoffman (right) helped the United States win the team gold medal for the first time since 1971, highlighted by Hoffman's 300 in the second-to-last game. Page also won singles and all-events silver and Masters bronze in 2006.
The Men's World Championships, which will be held at SF Strike Bowl Ngamwonwan, will feature more than 300 athletes from 56 countries competing in six disciplines - doubles, trios, team, singles, all-events and Masters.
United States
PBA, USBC Hall of Famer to make his Team USA debut in Thailand
With a career record 44 Professional Bowlers Association titles and being regarded as one of the greatest bowlers in history, it's hard to believe the trophy case of the legendary Walter Ray Williams Jr. still has a missing piece."A gold medal at the World Championships would be cool," said Williams of Ocala, Fla. "It would definitely be one of the highlights of my career."
Williams, a PBA and United States Bowling Congress Hall of Famer, will have the chance to fill that void when he makes his Team USA debut at the upcoming World Tenpin Bowling Association Men's World Championships, scheduled for Aug. 22-30 in Bangkok, Thailand.
This event marks the much anticipated first appearance of professionals at the World Championships. Joining Williams in Thailand on the six-player Team USA squad are Denny's PBA Tour stars Chris Barnes (left) of Double Oak, Texas, Patrick Allen (right) of Wesley Chapel, Fla., Tommy Jones of Simpsonville, S.C., and Rhino Page of Topeka, Kan., along with amateur Bill Hoffman of Columbus, Ohio.Professionals are now eligible to compete with Team USA in international competition, thanks to a change in WTBA legislation last August.
At age 48, Williams still is considered one of the best bowlers in the world today. He finished No. 1 in the PBA points and average standings each for a career-record seventh time in 2007-08, a season that saw him win twice and make eight championship round appearances.
Now Williams will put his skills to the test on a different stage. He will take on a field of the best bowlers in the world while also competing in a team environment and he hopes competing alongside some of the sport's best will pay dividends for Team USA.
"We've obviously got some great players on this team and hopefully we can gel together," Williams said. "It will be nice to have someone else's eyes to say, 'Try this, try that,' especially when things aren't working well. Definitely, it will be a different mode for me, but I welcome the opportunity to work with (head coach) Jeri (Edwards, pictured left with Tommy Jones) and my teammates."Having the opportunity to compete in something new 28 years after he turned professional is something Williams is looking forward to about the upcoming World Championships.
"This is going to be a lot of fun and a new experience for me," said Williams, who has plenty of familiarity at the World Championships of horseshoe pitching - winning the world title six times. "It's definitely going to be an eye-opener. Hopefully, we'll be able to help each other out when we need it and throw a lot of strikes."
At the 2006 World Championships, Page (left) and Hoffman (right) helped the United States win the team gold medal for the first time since 1971, highlighted by Hoffman's 300 in the second-to-last game. Page also won singles and all-events silver and Masters bronze in 2006.The Men's World Championships, which will be held at SF Strike Bowl Ngamwonwan, will feature more than 300 athletes from 56 countries competing in six disciplines - doubles, trios, team, singles, all-events and Masters.