Charlie's Run Ends on 5th Day at World Pool Championships
After going undefeated in the Round Robin Group Stages at the World Championships, Charlie faced a red hot Sandor Tot of Serbia. Sandor's game was on as he made only one error in the match while Williams missed one shot and one key safety in the match. Tot led the match at 3-0, then Williams started to comeback at 6-4 when he made a crucial miss on the 8ball that would have made the match 6-5 with Williams breaking next to tie the match. Sandor went on to win the match 10-5 leaving Charlie out of the event.
(Note: Tot went on to defeat Thomas Engert of Germany before losing and finished 9th. Ronnie Alcano of the Philippines became the new World CHampion defeating Ralf Souquet of Germany in the finals) www.worldpoolchampionship.com
Not to feel too bad for Charlie, as he joined fellow DP pro Thorsten Hohmann (who also finished in the same round of 64) and they flew to the beautiful island of Cebu for an unexpected early vacation!
Charlie should be well rested for his next event....
Williams at the beautiful water fall pools of Marco Polo Tower Hotel, Cebu Philippines
Photo Courtesy of Thorsten Hohmann (Former World Champion & Fellow Poolside Companion)
Korean Dragon Fires Through Group Qualifying Stages
Charlie Williams advances in the Final 64 players at the 2006 World Pool Championships held in Manila, Philippines. The event started out with 128 players from around the world. Each player was nominated by their national federation according to their rankings as well as winners of world qualifiers. The top 12 players from USA are invited and Charlie has been ranked in the top 5 for the USA the last 5 years. This was Charlies 9th invite and appearance at the World Championships.
Williams Dominated Group #30
Players were divided into 32 groups of 4 players each. Every player played round robin format race to 8 games and the top 2 players in each group advanced to the Final 64 players knockout stages. Charlie was placed in group 30 and his first opponent was Apsi Chaniago of Indonesia. Apsi started off strong against Williams coming out leading 3-0. Eventually Apsi was close to winning and held a 6-4 lead, then Williams played flawless and put the pressure showed on Apsi as Williams closed the match with 4 straight wins to take the match at 8-6.
On Day 2, his second match was against World Championship Qualifier Eduardo Villanueva from the Philippines, who earned his spot in the event winning a very tough tournament. The first part of the match saw flawless play from both players as neither player gave up an error until the score was 3-3. THen Villanueva took advantage of a dry break from Williams to take the lead and garner a 5-3 cushion. Williams again came back to flawless form and won 5 unanswered games to win the match 8-5. This win earned Williams a guaranteed passage to the final rounds.
Day 4 his final group match was against Italy's #1 Fabio Petroni. Petroni had also won his 2 matches and would be guaranteed into the final 64. This match would determine who would finsih #1 in the group and be placed as the higher seed in the final 64 draw. Petroni started off strong with a 3-0 lead and later a 5-2 lead. Williams then came back with superb play to take the match at 8-6. This was Williams 3rd match in a row where he won from behind.
Williams went undefeated and will today face Hungary's #1 player Sandor Tot ina race to 10 games. The winner will advance to the Final 32 players.
The Main TV arena at The 2006 World Pool Championship in Manila
Earl Strickland Receives Official Warning at the 2006 WPA World 9-Ball Championships
Regarding the protest lodged by Ying-Chieh Chen (TPE) and the Chinese Taipei Billiard Federation over the specific incidents that occurred during his match with Earl Strickland (USA) which was played on the evening of November 5th, 2006, at the World Pool Championships in Manila, Philippines, a meeting was held today, November 6th, between the accused player and the tournament management represented by Sharron Tokley from Matchroom Sport as the Tournament Director and Thomas Overbeck from the World Pool-Billiard Association as the WPA Sports Director.
Mr. Strickland was asked for his views on Mr. Chen’s complaint against him. He admitted that his behaviour was completely unacceptable and apologised for it. Whilst not excusing his behaviour, he did present valid reasons for it, trying not to excuse himself but to explain his conduct.
After reviewing the evidence given by all parties, Mr. Strickland was informed that he is officially warned for his further participation in this tournament that any future misbehaviour will lead to him forfeiting the match. Mr. Strickland accepted the verdict and has promised to change his behaviour.
The WPA is recognized as the world governing body for pool by the World Confederation of Billiard Sports – the permanent member for cue sports of the International Olympic Committee since 1998.
World Cup Resend of Results from Dr. Cue!
Players, Fans, and Friends of our Sport,
On November 2, 2006 Team USA defeated Team Europe in the Finals of the inaugural World Cup of Trick Shots by a score of 13 to 11. All four players from each team competed in a special competitive format to determine the final “gold medal” champion team.
In the 1st of 2 Semi - final matches, Bruce Barthelette and Andy Segal of Team USA bested Nick Nikolaidis and Bogdan Wolkowski of Team Europe by a score of 11 to 9. Team USA was awarded a solo “match” point, which was used in the final match points total.
In the 2nd Semi - final match, Stefano Pelinga and Luke Szywala of Team Europe won over Mike Massey and Tom Rossman of Team USA by a score of 11 to 9. Team Europe was awarded a solo “match” point, which was used in the final match points total.
This unique event…promoted by Billiards International…presented new and spectacular “artistic pool” shots and enjoyed an audience friendly environment in the Wolf’s Den at the Mohegan Sun Hotel and Casino in Uncasville, CT.
The projected release date for ESPN viewing is January 7, 2007. Please check your local listings for specific times.
Submitted By, Tom “Dr.Cue” Rossman
