| Walter Ray Williams, Jr. | |
|---|---|
| Born | Walter Ray Williams, Jr. October 6, 1959 Eureka, California |
| Other names | "Deadeye" |
| Occupation | Ten-Pin Bowler, Horseshoer |
| Years active | 1980–present |
| Spouse | Paige Pennington |
Walter Ray Williams, Jr. (born October 6, 1959 in Eureka, California) is one of the top-ranking professional ten-pin bowlers in history. He currently holds the record for all-time standard PBA Tour career titles (47) and total PBA earnings (over $4.25 million through the 2009-10 season).[1] He won at least one PBA Tour title in 17 consecutive seasons (1993 through 2009-10), which is also a record. He starred in the ten-pin bowling sports documentary A League of Ordinary Gentlemen. He is also a nine-time world champion in the game of horseshoes (3 junior titles and 6 men's titles).[2]
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Williams is a seven-time PBA Player of the Year (1986, '93, '96, '97, '98, 2003, 2010) which is one above Earl Anthony for the most Player of the Year awards. He has won a record eight Bowling Writers Bowler of the Year awards and is also the all-time leading money winner on the PBA Tour.[1] He has the most PBA money titles (seven). He was the first bowler in history to surpass $2 million in career earnings, achieving this in 1997. With his win in the 2003 U.S. Open, he also became the first $3 million career winner; and became the first $4 million career winner in 2008. Williams also has the highest monetary winnings in a single season, with $419,700 during his 2002–03 season.[3]
On September 24, 2006, Williams eclipsed Earl Anthony's then recognized career record of 41 PBA regular tour titles with his 42nd win at the Dydo Japan Cup over Pete Weber in a 289–236 single game pinfall.[4] [Note: Anthony's title count was amended to 43 in 2008, when the PBA chose to include ABC Masters titles earned by a PBA member as PBA Tour titles.] Williams has been known as "Deadeye" in PBA fan circles,[5] but he actually first got the nickname in horseshoes, when he threw 45 ringers out of a possible 50 in a junior tournament when he was 10 years old.[6] He is known for several PBA achievements:
In the 2007–08 season, at age 48, Walter Ray established the second-highest average in PBA history for a single season — 228.34. Only Norm Duke's 2006–07 mark of 228.47 is higher.[7][8] Through the 2009–10 season, he has bowled 80 career 300 games in PBA competition.[5]
Upon winning the 2009 Motor City Open championship, Williams extended his record of winning at least one PBA Tour title per season to 17 consecutive seasons, two years more than Earl Anthony's 1970–84 run.[9] Williams' streak ended when he failed to win a title in the 2010-11 season.
In August 2008 Walter Ray joined Team USA to participate in that year's FIQ World Men's Championships in Thailand. For the first time professionals were allowed to compete in this truly international event with over 330 participants from 56 countries. Walter Ray was the most successful bowler, winning 4 medals: Gold in Masters, Gold in Singles, Gold in Team and a Bronze medal in Trios.[10]
After turning 50, Williams announced that he would participate in the 2010 PBA Senior Tour, but in limited events due to Team USA and other obligations.[11]
Williams made his PBA Senior Tour debut on May 3, 2010, at the Miller High Life Senior Classic in Mooresville, NC. To the surprise of no one, he won the tournament three days later.[12] On June 18, 2010, Williams had a chance to become just the second bowler to win the USBC Masters and USBC Senior Masters in a career (joining Dave Soutar), and the first to win both in the same year. Williams made the three-game final, but he was denied the title when he fell, 705-628, to fellow PBA Hall of Famer Wayne Webb.[13]
Walter did bowl enough on the Senior Tour to earn 2010 PBA Senior Rookie of the Year honors.[14]
In the 2011 PBA Senior season, Williams again had a chance to match Soutar as the only bowlers to win both the USBC Masters and Senior USBC Masters. But he again came in second, this time falling to Dale Traber in the finals, 707-695.[15]
Although Pete Weber is frequently presented as the poster-boy of the PBA to the general public, Williams, in bowling circles, might be the most respected and popular player on tour. This is because of his cool, confident demeanor, and his unparalleled success over the last two decades. Walter's longevity is further evidenced by the fact that more than one-third of his 47 titles (17) and 6 of his 8 majors have come after he reached age 40. Williams' most recent title in the 2010 USBC Masters came after he reached age 50. In fact, Williams swept every major PBA statistical category in the 2009-10 season, leading the tour in earnings ($152,670), average (222.89), match play appearances (15), and overall competition points.[12] (See PBA Bowling Tour: 2009-10 season.)
On his longevity and future plans, Williams said: "As long as I feel good and stay competitive, I’ll keep on bowling. I don’t want to be out here if I’m not competitive; I’d be too frustrated. When I can’t compete, when it’s isn’t fun, I’ll retire. I have no issue with that. But I feel like I’m still doing pretty well."[9]
Walter was named "Male Bowler of the Decade" (2000–2009) in the Winter, 2010 issue of U.S. Bowler -- an incredible accomplishment considering he started the decade at age 40.[16] He won his unprecedented seventh PBA Player of the Year award in 2010, becoming the oldest player in history (50) to earn that honor.[17]
He is a member of the USBC and PBA Halls of Fame,[18][19] a member of the World Horseshoe Pitching Hall of Fame,[5] and was a two-time past president of the Professional Bowlers Association.[5]
In the 2008–09 season, the PBA's 50th, the PBA commissioned a panel of bowling experts to recognize the "50 Greatest Players of the Last 50 Years." Walter Ray finished #2 on the list, behind only Earl Anthony. On an ESPN telecast January 25, 2009, Nelson Burton Jr. noted that the voting was close, but Anthony reached the #1 spot primarily for having more major titles than Williams (10 to 7 at the time). Williams was gracious in accepting second-place honors:
"I feel Earl's record is better than mine because it was more condensed. Earl bowled 14 years and 400 or so events. I've bowled well over 600 by now, maybe 700. I feel very pleased to be No. 2."[20]
Walter Ray has also won six Men's World Horseshoe Pitching titles. He was invited to pitch horseshoes at the White House with President George H. W. Bush in 1989.[21] He finished 2nd in the 2005 World Horseshoe Pitching Championships after switching from right handed to left handed.
Williams graduated from Cal Poly Pomona in 1984 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Physics and a minor in Mathematics. He has stated that, if he wasn't a successful bowler, he would "probably be either a teacher or working for NASA."[22]
He is married to Paige Pennington. The couple reside in Ocala, FL, and adopted a daughter in 2007. In addition to being a champion in both bowling and horseshoes, Williams has a three-handicap in golf.
Among Williams' 47 career PBA Tour titles are eight majors (in bold type below). He is a three-time winner of the PBA World Championship, and has also won two U.S. Open crowns, two ABC/USBC Masters titles, and a Touring Players Championship. He needs only a Tournament of Champions title to complete a career "triple crown" and a career "super grand slam."
He has also won two PBA Senior Tour titles.