And Charlie Williams, who potted the final 9 ball, revealed he was delighted to rest the ghosts of last year when he failed to win a point.  “I’ve had nightmares for a year, but this feels really good – I didn’t expect to hit the winning nine ball, because I had a chance to do that before, and you don’t often get it twice.  Earl said that to contribute to the team, you have to have a winning record, so this feels great, and to hit the winning nine ball is a dream come true.  Everyone played their part – it was Gabe’s first year and he didn’t choke - he won four matches, and that showed what we’re made of.”

Dejected European captain Oliver Ortmann was gracious in defeat, “Congratulations to the American team - they played a great tournament. Thanks to Dutch crowd for their support, hopefully we’ll beat them next year, but they’re a tough team to beat.  Everyone played great, and we were fighting, but somebody has to win and lose - that’s the way it is.”

Thomas Engert 2 – 5 Gabe Owen

Gabe Owen took Team USA to the hill earlier today as he defeated Germany’s Thomas Engert 5-2.  The result completed a miserable tournament for Engert, who failed to score a point throughout – but it was a nervy encounter from start to finish.  Both players made plenty of mistakes, but it was Owen who came good as he dug deep in the second half of the match to control the table and take his chances.

The young Oklahoman won the lag and broke and ran out to give his side an early lead, but a good break from Engert gave him shape o­n the 2 ball, and he continued his run to clear the rack and level things at 1–1.  Owen made a ball o­n the break but ran out of position, drawing the cue ball from 3 to 5. The safety wasn’t precise, but Engert made a hash of laying a snooker and left it available into the top left pocket for Owen, but he missed by a long way.  Engert, though, flashed home an unintentional bank o­n the orange 5 but missed a cut o­n the 7-ball to give Owen half a chance. He cut the 7 in and then the 8 and 9 to go into the lead.

Engert pushed out in the third, but when Owen put him back in, he scratched trying to bank the 1 across the table.  Owen disastrously hooked himself behind the orange 5, but then an increasingly nervous Engert missed the 2 ball.  Owen, who looked no more confident himself, missed the bank but left himself safe.  In the end, Engert scratched trying to kick the 5 ball safe, and with ball in hand, Owen increased the American lead to 3–1.

The German got lucky in the next, as Owen came up dry and left the 1 ball o­n. Engert twitched his way through the rack and deposited the 9 ball down to get back to 3–2.  Disaster struck in the next for Engert as he made three balls o­n the break but drew the cue ball back into the middle pocket. Owen grasped the opportunity to run out and get to the hill.  A decent break by Owen saw the balls position themselves nicely, and from there he made a composed clearance to put Team USA o­n the hill.

“I played pretty well, broke well, and things went my way,” Owen said afterwards. “I’ve been playing well and my record’s good – we played good in the doubles when I was with Johnny.  I can’t tell you about the pressure – we’re all under pressure, and I’m just trying to deal with it the best I know how.  I can’t ask for anything more from my debut, and here they’ve been putting pressure o­n us, but I’ve got us to the hill.”

Oliver Ortmann 5 – 1 Earl Strickland

Oliver Ortmann put o­n a captain’s performance for Team Europe as he made light work of Earl Strickland, winning 5–1 to grab a point back for his team and put them within two points of Team USA. 

The opening rack was a confidence booster for Ortmann as he unraveled the pack with a medium-paced break and ran it out to get ahead.  Strickland came up dry in the second, and Ortmann ran the rack out in quick time to go two racks up.  Ortmann pushed out in the next and offered Strickland a chance at a table-length jump shot. He declined, but Ortmann couldn’t manage it himself. Some safety play followed before Strickland clipped the 2 ball into the bottom corner, and from there he ran the table to get back to 2–1. 

A great break from the temperamental American saw two balls drop, but he missed badly o­n the blue 2 to leave it o­n for Ortmann. “The Machine” cleared the table to go 3-1 into the lead.  Ortmann slaughtered the pack in the fifth as three balls dropped and the 1 ball was left hanging over the top right-hand pocket. He made no mistakes from there to get to the hill at 4–1.  Strickland pushed out in what was to be the final rack, but Ortmann put him back in to leave him with a long jump shot o­n the 2 ball.  The American missed, and the 2 fell nicely for Ortmann. He took it o­n and cleared the rest of the table to score a much-needed captain’s victory for his team.

“It feels fantastic -- we had nothing to lose and we’re still in it,” Ortmann said. “We have to fight, and if the team spirit goes o­n, we still have a chance.  It feels like the York Hall, the crowd’s unbelievable and has been getting better every day – we love to play in Holland, and we still believe we can win.”

Steve Davis 2 – 5 Charlie Williams

Charlie “The Korean Dragon” Williams, who endured a miserable time at the MGM Grand in 2003, was o­n hand to knock in a 5-9 combination, defeat Steve Davis, and claim the glory as the United States retained the Mosconi Cup following some great individual performances over the four days of competition.  Williams’ match was the last of three singles matches in the final day of the Cup, putting them at a 12-9 victory.

What was to be the final match of the tournament saw Williams and Davis enter the packed arena with both players carrying the hopes of their sides broadly across their shoulders. 

Williams drew first blood as he broke and ran out, and he got an opportunity to push out in the next after a dry break from Davis.  With the balls grouped in two separate clusters, neither player wanted to pot the 1 ball.  Eventually Williams trapped Davis in a snooker, and he missed trying to escape.  The American took his time deciding where to position the white but eventually managed to clear the remaining eight balls to look good at 2–0. 

A dry break from Williams allowed Davis a golden opportunity to run out the rack out, but he ran out of position o­n the 6 ball and was forced to leave Williams in a snooker. Or thought he did, but the 6 ball kicked the brown 7 down.  That left Davis in a snooker, and he tried to kick the 6 ball in but disastrously scratched to give Williams ball in hand and effectively the rack.

In the next, the rack hinged o­n a jump shot by Williams that went awry, but Davis miscued o­n the 1 ball and lost his position. He redeemed it, though, to clear the table and get his first rack of the match.  Davis took the next after Williams failed to get safe, and at 3–2, Team Europe still had a chance.

“The Nugget” made the 3 ball o­n the next rack and had good shape o­n the yellow 1. He jawed it into the middle bag, though, but the cue ball ran safe. Williams jumped it in but ducked o­n the 2 ball, leaving it tied up behind the 9 ball.  Davis made a three-cushion escape, but the cue ball rolled into the pocket to give Williams ball in hand. The saving grace was that the 6 ball got knocked up alongside the 9 ball, tying it up.

When Williams reached it, all he could do was play a safety, leaving the cue ball tight behind the 9. Davis tried to bank the 6 all in but missed it completely to o­nce again give Williams ball in hand. He ran out to put himself and his team within o­ne rack of the Mosconi Cup.

“The Dragon” made the 4 ball off the break but had no clean shot to pot the 1 ball. He reached for the jump stick but missed the pocket and gave Davis the chance of playing a safety.  Davis’ last stab at redemption saw him attempt a low-percentage attempt at a 2-3 combination, but it missed, leaving Williams with a shot at glory. It was down to a 5-9 plant, and Williams took it coolly to land the 2004 Mosconi Cup for Team USA with a 5-2 victory.

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