Now that Walter Ray Williams Jr. has broken the record set by bowling legend Earl Anthony for most career Denny's Professional Bowlers Association Tour titles, he has his sights set on winning his second United States Bowling Congress Masters title when the event returns to suburban Milwaukee from Oct. 24-29.
Williams won his record 42nd PBA Tour title in the Dydo Japan Cup on Sept. 24 by defeating rival Pete Weber, 289-236, in the championship match. Picture courtesy of PBA LLC/Noda.
"I was very happy with the way I bowled the entire week," Williams said. "Winning a tournament gives you so much confidence. The only sad thing is that the tour doesn't start for another month, so I have to still go out and practice a little bit so I don't lose what I had."
Williams realizes it's important that he is in top form for the Masters, which kicks off the PBA's domestic schedule and is one of four majors on the 2006-07 schedule.
While he enjoyed many other top finishes, Williams struggled for most of his career to find success in the Masters. That changed in 2003 when the eight-time Bowling Writers Association of America Bowler of the Year finally made it to the stepladder finals only to finish second to tour journeyman Bryon Smith. Williams came back in January 2004 with renewed confidence to win the Masters by defeating Chris Barnes 268-239 in the championship match.
The wave of success didn't last. Williams was eliminated when he lost his first two matches in the October 2004 Masters and he settled for a 19th place finish in 2005. The 46-year-old Ocala, Fla., resident understands the challenges of competing in the event's trademark double-elimination match play format.
"I think it's harder to win the Masters than a normal tour stop because there are so many good bowlers in a much larger field," Williams said. "You have to not only bowl well but catch some breaks along the way. But if I can bowl as well as I did in 2003 and 2004, my chances are as good as anyone's."
A testament to that challenge is that Williams will have to compete against an expected field of 450 of the world's top professional and amateur bowlers.
He will have to battle through a demanding Masters format that begins with 15 games of qualifying. If he is one of the top 63 players after qualifying, he'll enter the three-game double-elimination portion of the event, hoping to survive as one of the four players who will compete in the ESPN-televised stepladder finals, set for 1 p.m. EST on Oct. 29 at the Wisconsin Exposition Center at State Fair Park in West Allis, Wis.
In a tour career that has spanned a quarter-decade, the USBC and PBA Hall of Famer is also professional bowling's all-time earnings leader with more than $3.7 million. His Japan Cup win gave Williams a tour title in 14 consecutive seasons, which ties the record held by Anthony.
"When I first started bowling on tour, to be the all-time tour winner was the last thing I ever would have thought of," Williams said. "I thought that having five or 10 titles would have made for a successful career.
"My career is longer than Earl's so you never know how many titles he would have won if he was on tour as long as I have been. But to break the record is awesome and something great to be remembered for."
Story & Picture Courtesy of Bowlingdigital.com
Williams won his record 42nd PBA Tour title in the Dydo Japan Cup on Sept. 24 by defeating rival Pete Weber, 289-236, in the championship match. Picture courtesy of PBA LLC/Noda.
"I was very happy with the way I bowled the entire week," Williams said. "Winning a tournament gives you so much confidence. The only sad thing is that the tour doesn't start for another month, so I have to still go out and practice a little bit so I don't lose what I had."
Williams realizes it's important that he is in top form for the Masters, which kicks off the PBA's domestic schedule and is one of four majors on the 2006-07 schedule.
While he enjoyed many other top finishes, Williams struggled for most of his career to find success in the Masters. That changed in 2003 when the eight-time Bowling Writers Association of America Bowler of the Year finally made it to the stepladder finals only to finish second to tour journeyman Bryon Smith. Williams came back in January 2004 with renewed confidence to win the Masters by defeating Chris Barnes 268-239 in the championship match.
The wave of success didn't last. Williams was eliminated when he lost his first two matches in the October 2004 Masters and he settled for a 19th place finish in 2005. The 46-year-old Ocala, Fla., resident understands the challenges of competing in the event's trademark double-elimination match play format.
"I think it's harder to win the Masters than a normal tour stop because there are so many good bowlers in a much larger field," Williams said. "You have to not only bowl well but catch some breaks along the way. But if I can bowl as well as I did in 2003 and 2004, my chances are as good as anyone's."
A testament to that challenge is that Williams will have to compete against an expected field of 450 of the world's top professional and amateur bowlers.
He will have to battle through a demanding Masters format that begins with 15 games of qualifying. If he is one of the top 63 players after qualifying, he'll enter the three-game double-elimination portion of the event, hoping to survive as one of the four players who will compete in the ESPN-televised stepladder finals, set for 1 p.m. EST on Oct. 29 at the Wisconsin Exposition Center at State Fair Park in West Allis, Wis.
In a tour career that has spanned a quarter-decade, the USBC and PBA Hall of Famer is also professional bowling's all-time earnings leader with more than $3.7 million. His Japan Cup win gave Williams a tour title in 14 consecutive seasons, which ties the record held by Anthony.
"When I first started bowling on tour, to be the all-time tour winner was the last thing I ever would have thought of," Williams said. "I thought that having five or 10 titles would have made for a successful career.
"My career is longer than Earl's so you never know how many titles he would have won if he was on tour as long as I have been. But to break the record is awesome and something great to be remembered for."
Story & Picture Courtesy of Bowlingdigital.com
