Mark Williams’ awkward reaction to being wolf-whistled by snooker fan at Champion of Champions tournament
MARK WILLIAMS awkwardly reacted to a wolf-whistle from a fan during his thrilling win over Kyren Wilson.
The three-time world champion, 49, booked his place in the semi-finals of the Champion of Champions with a 6-5 victory over the reigning Crucible king.
It is the first time Williams has beaten Wilson – having lost their previous seven meetings.
And one fan in particular was thoroughly impressed as early as the second frame.
After the Welshman had made a century break, he continued to clear the table by potting a relatively routine blue.
He put a lot of power into the shot to ensure the cue ball made it onto the pink.
And while the ball travelled around the table, one member of the Bolton crowd produced a wolf-whistle.
Williams turned around to see what had happened, before he awkwardly smiled and got back down to the job at hand.
While the snooker commentator joked: “Well someone liked that one.”
Williams, who will now face Australian Neil Robertson for a place in the final, led 5-3 before being taken to a decider.
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And he admitted when Wilson was battling back that he thought another chance to beat the Englishman was slipping away.
Speaking to ITV, Williams, who left the pundits in hysterics, said: “I thought he was going to come back, he made a good break at 5-4 and then, the 5-4 it was cursed.
“He got into the pack, they split lovely, and then he’s gone for a long red, butchered it, and somehow left two reds.
“I thought, well, I can’t say what I thought, but I just thought I’m not going to win. It’s just one of those things.
“But it was a good break on the last frame and I’ve got him on my mantelpiece now.”
Meanwhile, Wilson was left frustrated after losing his flawless record to the legend of the game.
Talking about losing to Williams at the eighth time of asking, he said: “It’s very flattering because he’s an all-time great.
“I don’t now what it is, maybe his style just suits the way I play. He’s so relaxed out there I think he makes me feel relaxed. I just always enjoy playing Mark.”
List of all-time Snooker World Champions
BELOW is a list of snooker World Champions by year.
The record is for the modern era, widely considered as dating from the 1968-69 season hen the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association (WPBSA) took control of the sport.
The first World Championships ran from 1927 – with a break from 1941-45 because of World War II and 1958-63 because of a dispute in the sport.
Joe Davis (15), Fred Davis and John Pulman (both 8) were the most successful players during that period.
Stephen Hendry and Ronnie O’Sullivan share the record for the most titles in the modern era, with seven each.
- 1969 – John Spencer
- 1970 – Ray Reardon
- 1971 – John Spencer
- 1972 – Alex Higgins
- 1973 – Ray Reardon (2)
- 1974 – Ray Reardon (3)
- 1975 – Ray Reardon (4)
- 1976 – Ray Reardon (5)
- 1977 – John Spencer (2)
- 1978 – Ray Reardon (6)
- 1979 – Terry Griffiths
- 1980 – Cliff Thorburn
- 1981 – Steve Davis
- 1982 – Alex Higgins (2)
- 1983 – Steve Davis (2)
- 1984 – Steve Davis (3)
- 1985 – Dennis Taylor
- 1986 – Joe Johnson
- 1987 – Steve Davis (4)
- 1988 – Steve Davis (5)
- 1989 – Steve Davis (6)
- 1990 – Stephen Hendry
- 1991 – John Parrott
- 1992 – Stephen Hendry (2)
- 1993 – Stephen Hendry (3)
- 1994 – Stephen Hendry (4)
- 1995 – Stephen Hendry (5)
- 1996 – Stephen Hendry (6)
- 1997 – Ken Doherty
- 1998 – John Higgins
- 1999 – Stephen Hendry (7)
- 2000 – Mark Williams
- 2001 – Ronnie O’Sullivan
- 2002 – Peter Ebdon
- 2003 – Mark Williams (2)
- 2004 – Ronnie O’Sullivan (2)
- 2005 – Shaun Murphy
- 2006 – Graeme Dott
- 2007 – John Higgins (2)
- 2008 – Ronnie O’Sullivan (3)
- 2009 – John Higgins (3)
- 2010 – Neil Robertson
- 2011 – John Higgins (4)
- 2012 – Ronnie O’Sullivan (4)
- 2013 – Ronnie O’Sullivan (5)
- 2014 – Mark Selby
- 2015 – Stuart Bingham
- 2016 – Mark Selby (2)
- 2017 – Mark Selby (3)
- 2018 – Mark Williams (3)
- 2019 – Judd Trump
- 2020 – Ronnie O’Sullivan (6)
- 2021 – Mark Selby (4)
- 2022 – Ronnie O’Sullivan (7)
- 2023 – Luca Brecel
- 2024 – Kyren Wilson
Most World Titles (modern era)
- 7 – Stephen Hendry, Ronnie O’Sullivan
- 6 – Ray Reardon, Steve Davis
- 4 – John Higgins, Mark Selby
- 3 – John Spencer, Mark Williams
- 2 – Alex Higgins