David Walters

David Walters
Personal information
Full name	David Walters
Nickname(s)	Que Tip
Nationality	United States
Born	(1987-09-27) September 27, 1987 (age 24) Yorktown, Virginia
Height	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
Sport
Sport	Swimming
Stroke(s)	Freestyle
Club	Trojan Aquatics
College team	University of Texas
Medal record Men's swimming Competitor for the  United States Olympic Games Gold 2008 Beijing 4×200 m freestyle World Championships (LC) Gold 2007 Melbourne 4×200 m freestyle Gold 2009 Rome 4×200 m freestyle Gold 2009 Rome 4×100 m medley Gold 2011 Shanghai 4×200 m freestyle Bronze 2011 Shanghai 4×100 m freestyle World Championships (SC) Silver 2010 Dubai 4×200 m freestyle

David Walters (born September 27, 1987) is an American swimmer and Olympic gold medalist. He graduated from Tabb High School.

At the 2008 Summer Olympics, Walters earned a gold medal by swimming in the heats of the 4×200 m freestyle relay. As part of the American team, he holds the world record in the 4×100 m medley relay (long course). Walters is also a seven-time medalist (five gold, one silver, one bronze) at the World Aquatics Championships.

Career[link]

2008 Summer Olympic Games[link]

Walters swam the first leg of the 4×200 m freestyle preliminaries (in 1:46.57) with Ricky Berens, Erik Vendt, and Klete Keller. Their time of 7:04.66 broke the previous Olympic record of 7:07.05 set by Australia in 2000.^[1] In the final of the 4×200 m freestyle, Michael Phelps, Ryan Lochte, Berens, and Peter Vanderkaay, swam a combined time of 6:58.56, a new world record.^[2]

2009 World Championships[link]

At the 2009 National Championships, Walters competed in three events. In his first event, the 200 m freestyle, Walters placed second to Michael Phelps with a time of 1:44.95.^[3] In the 100 m freestyle, Walters placed second to Nathan Adrian in a time of 48.17.^[4] In the 50 m freestyle, Walters placed 15th in the heats with a time of 22.60.^[5]

At the 2009 World Aquatics Championships in Rome, Walters earned a gold medal as a member of the 4×200 m freestyle relay. Walters, with Michael Phelps, Ricky Berens, and Ryan Lochte swam a combined time of 6:58.55 to break the world record set last year in Beijing.^[6] In the 100 m freestyle final, Walters placed 5th with a time of 47.33 to break Michael Phelps' American record of 47.51.^[7] Walters placed 12th overall in the 200 m freestyle and did not advance to the final.^[8] In the 4×100 m medley relay final, Walters, with Aaron Peirsol, Michael Phelps, and Eric Shanteau, swam a combined time of 3:27.28 to break the world record set last year in Beijing.^[9]

Personal bests[link]

As of August 6, 2010.

Key: NR = National record

References[link]

External links[link]

• USA Swimming athlete bio: David Walters
• University of Texas bio: David Walters

v t e 2008 USA Olympic Swimming Team Men's Team Nathan Adrian Ricky Berens Ian Crocker Mark Gangloff Matt Grevers Brendan Hansen Larsen Jensen Cullen Jones Klete Keller Jason Lezak Ryan Lochte Aaron Peirsol Michael Phelps Eric Shanteau Scott Spann Gil Stovall Peter Vanderkaay Erik Vendt David Walters Mark Warkentin Garrett Weber-Gale Benjamin Wildman-Tobriner Women's Team Amanda Beard Elizabeth Beisel Elaine Breeden Caroline Burckle Natalie Coughlin (Jessica Hardy) Kathleen Hersey Margaret Hoelzer Katie Hoff Megan Jendrick Kara Lynn Joyce Christine Magnuson Christine Marshall Lacey Nymeyer Allison Schmitt Emily Silver Julia Smit Rebecca Soni Chloe Sutton Dara Torres Kim Vandenberg Kate Ziegler Coaches Jack Bauerle (Women's Head Coach) Ray Benecki Bob Bowman Frank Busch Sean Hutchison Teri McKeever Eddie Reese (Men's Head Coach) Mark Schubert (National Team Head Coach) Gregg Troy Jon Urbanchek Paul Yetter

Dave may refer to:

• Dave (given name)

Film and television[link]

• Dave (film), a 1993 film starring Kevin Kline and Sigourney Weaver
• "Dave" (Lost), an episode from the TV show Lost
• Dave (TV channel), a digital television channel in the United Kingdom and Ireland
• Dave the Barbarian, a Disney Channel cartoon series
• Meet Dave, a 2008 comedy film starring Eddie Murphy
• D.A.V.E. from The Batman television series

Other entertainment:

• Dave (singer), a Dutch-born French singer
• "Dave", a song by The Boomtown Rats from their 1984 album In the Long Grass
• Dave, a comedy routine by Cheech & Chong, from their 1972 self-titled album
• Dave FM, a brand for radio stations in Canada and the United States
• Dave (artist) (born 1969), Swiss artist

Software[link]

• Thursby DAVE, Windows file and printer sharing for Macs
• Dangerous Dave, a computer game by John Romero
• DAvE (Infineon), C-language software development tool

See also[link]

• Davey (disambiguation)
• David (disambiguation)

This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the same title. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article.

Walter may refer to:

People[link]

• Walter (name)
• [[Walter (alias) for Josip Broz Tito]]

Television[link]

• Walter (TV movie)
• W*A*L*T*E*R, a pilot for a spin-off of the TV series M*A*S*H

Astronomy[link]

• Walter (crater), on the Moon, more commonly known as Diophantus
• Walther (crater), also on the Moon

Businesses[link]

• Walter Engines, Czech manufacturer of aero-engines
• Hellmuth Walter Kommanditgesellschaft, German manufacturer of rocket engines

Places[link]

Italy

• Gualtieri, Italy

United States

• Walter Township, Minnesota

Characters[link]

• Walter, a puppet of ventriloquist Jeff Dunham
• Walter, a fictional character from The Beano comic strip, Dennis and Gnasher
• Walter, a Muppet introduced in The Muppets.

See also[link]

• Gautier (disambiguation)
• Walters (disambiguation)
• Walther (disambiguation)
• Wolter

This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the same title. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article.

Walter Ray Williams, Jr. (born October 6, 1959 in Eureka, California) is a professional bowler. He currently holds the record for all-time standard PBA Tour career titles (47) and total PBA earnings (over $4.3 million through the 2010-11 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^[2] in the game of horseshoes (3 junior titles and 6 men's titles).^[3]

Bowling career[link]

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.^[4]

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.^[5] [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,^[6] 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.^[7] He is known for several PBA achievements:

• Record highest season spare percentage (88.16%, 655/743; 2004–05) and single-pin conversion percentage (100%, 475/475; 2005–06)
• Second-best strike (68.21) percentage and match play average (235.23).^[4][6]
• Record number of career television appearances (178 through the 2010-11 season), most television appearances in a season (15 in 1993), most consecutive television appearances 5 (2x; 2000, 2001)
• Most final match appearances (92, through the 2009-10 season)
• Tied for most major titles in a season (two in 2002–03)
• Most games bowled in one season (1300 in 1993)
• Second-highest pinfall in a nine game series (2,367 in Tucson, AZ, 2004; broken by Eugene McCune's 2,468 pins in 2010)
• Most 300 games in one tournament (4; Mechanicsburg, PA, 1993)^[4]
• Eight time winner of the George Young High Average Award and Harry Smith Points Leader Award (most all-time for each award)^[6]
• First and, so far, only PBA player to convert the 4-6-7-10 split on television

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.^[8][9] Through the 2009–10 season, he has bowled 80 career 300 games in PBA competition.^[6]

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.^[10] 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.^[11]

In 2008 he also won a gold medal in the singles of the WTBA World Championships.^[12]

PBA Senior Tour[link]

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.^[13]

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.^[14] 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.^[15]

Walter did bowl enough on the Senior Tour to earn 2010 PBA Senior Rookie of the Year honors.^[16]

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.^[17]

To date, Walter has won three PBA Senior Tour titles.^[18]

Popularity and Longevity[link]

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.^[14] (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."^[10]

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.^[19] He won his unprecedented seventh PBA Player of the Year award in 2010, becoming the oldest player in history (50) to earn that honor.^[20]

He is a member of the USBC and PBA Halls of Fame,^[21][22] a member of the World Horseshoe Pitching Hall of Fame,^[6] and was a two-time past president of the Professional Bowlers Association.^[6]

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."^[23]

Horseshoes[link]

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.^[24] He finished 2nd in the 2005 World Horseshoe Pitching Championships after switching from right handed to left handed.

Personal[link]

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."^[25]

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.

Williams' 47 PBA National Tour career titles[link]

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 three PBA Senior Tour titles.

Standard PBA Tour Titles[link]

1. 1986 True Value Open, Peoria, Ill.
2. 1986 Fair Lanes Open, Baltimore, Md.
3. 1986 Hammer Open, Edmond, Okla.
4. 1987 Miller Lite Classic, Miami, Fla.
5. 1987 Hammer Open, Edmond, Okla.
6. 1991 Oronamin C Japan Cup, Tokyo, Japan
7. 1993 Flagship City Open, Erie, Pa.
8. 1993 Columbia 300 Open, San Antonio, Texas
9. 1993 Northwest Classic, Kennewick, Wash.
10. 1993 Oregon Open, Portland, Ore.
11. 1993 Tucson Open, Tucson, Ariz.
12. 1993 Greater Grand Rapids Open, Grand Rapids, Mich.
13. 1993 Paula Carter's Homestead Classic, Homestead, Fla.
14. 1994 Showboat Invitational, Las Vegas, Nev.
15. 1994 Touring Players Championship, Indianapolis, Ind.
16. 1995 Rochester Open, Rochester, N.Y.
17. 1996 Track Synergy Open, Kennewick, Wash.
18. 1996 Showboat Invitational, Las Vegas, Nev.
19. 1996 Brunswick Johnny Petraglia Open, North Brunswick, N.J.
20. 1996 Rochester Open, Rochester, N.Y.
21. 1996 Greater Harrisburg Open, Mechanicsburg, Pa.
22. 1997 Columbia 300 Open, Austin, Texas
23. 1997 Brunswick Johnny Petraglia Open, North Brunswick, N.J.
24. 1997 St. Clair Classic, Fairview Heights, Ill.
25. 1998 Storm Flagship Open, Erie, Pa.
26. 1998 BPAA U.S. Open, Milford, Conn.
27. 1998 Brunswick Long Island Open, Coram, N.Y.
28. 1998 Bay City Classic, Bay City, Mich.
29. 1998 National Finance Challenge, Indianapolis, Ind.
30. 1999 Tucson Open, Tucson, Ariz.
31. 2000 Track Canandaigua Open, Canandaigua, N.Y.
32. 2000 Brunswick Johnny Petraglia Open, North Brunswick, N.J.
33. 2001–02 PBA National Championship, Toledo, Ohio
34. 2001–02 Greater Cincinnati Classic, Erlanger, Ky.
35. 2002–03 Greater Detroit Open, Taylor, Mich.
36. 2002–03 U.S. Open, Fountain Valley, Calif.
37. 2002–03 PBA World Championship, Taylor, Mich.
38. 2003–04 Earl Anthony Classic Presented by Storm, Tacoma, Wash.
39. 2003–04 ABC Masters, Reno, Nev.
40. 2004–05 Uniroyal Tire Classic, Wickliffe, Ohio
41. 2005–06 Denny's PBA World Championship, Indianapolis, Ind.
42. 2006–07 Dydo Japan Cup, Tokyo, Japan
43. 2007–08 Motor City Classic, Taylor, Mich.
44. 2007–08 Great Lakes Classic, Wyoming, Mich.
45. 2008–09 Lake County Indiana Golden Anniversary Championship, Hammond, Ind.
46. 2009-10 Motor City Open, Allen Park, Mich.
47. 2009-10 USBC Masters, Reno, Nev.

PBA Senior Tour Titles[link]

1. 2010 Miller High Life Senior Classic, Mooresville, NC.
2. 2011 PBA Senior Mark Roth Allentown Open, Allentown, PA.
3. 2012 PBA Senior Don Carter Memorial, Winter Garden, FL.

References[link]

External links[link]

• Walter Ray Official site
• YouTube Video of Walter Ray Williams, Jr. 4-6-7-10 split conversion
• Walter Ray Unofficial site
• Walter Ray Clips
• Text interview with Williams from Wisconsin Public Television