# 1967 World Open Snooker Championship

The 1967 World Open Snooker Championship was a series of 51 matches between Fred Davis and Rex Williams for the title won by Davis at the 1960 World Open Snooker Championship. Despite the name of the competition, Davis and Williams were the only contestants. Williams took the title by winning 26 matches to Davis' 25, a winning margin having been achieved at 26–23.

## Summary

Fred Davis had won the 1960 World Open Snooker Championship, which had been held in Australia with eight players competing in a round-robin. Davis and Rex Williams arranged to play a series of 31 matches with the winner taking the title, and with each player taking a fee from each of the match venues. Snooker historian Clive Everton has suggested that the agenda behind the contest was to allow Williams to gain a world snooker title and become more marketable, at a time when he was unlikely to win against the reigning world champion John Pulman. Everton claims that Davis remarked "I had a devil of a job to let him win."
All matches were of five frames. Originally there were going to be 31 matches in the series, but this was later extended to 51.
Davis won the first three matches, before Williams had his first win in the fourth match. These were played in front of capacity crowds at each venue. Williams later levelled at 5–5, with Davis then winning three of the next five matches to lead 8–7 by Christmas 1966. After the resumption of the series in January 1967, Williams won two matches to take the lead for the first time, at 9–8, but then lost the next three to trail 9–11, before winning four in succession to lead 13–11. With the pair each obtaining four wins from the next eight matches, Williams led 17–16. Thirteen matches later, Williams had increased his lead to 25–21, needing only one further win out of the remaining five matches.
Williams reached a winning margin at British Sidac, St. Helens, to win the title at 26–23. Davis won the last two matches to make the final score 26–25. Williams was presented with the trophy by Harold Phillips, Chairman of the Billiards Association and Control Council, after the final match, which was held at Ferranti Recreation, Manchester.

## Known match details

| Date | No. | Winner | Score | Matches | Venue | Notes |
| November 1966 | 1. | Davis | 3–2 | 0–1 | United Club, Workington | Davis compiled an 89 break. |
| November 1966 | 2. | Davis | 3–2 | 0–2 | Heaton Norris Conservative Club, Stockport | Williams had led 2–0. |
| November 1966 | 3. | Davis | 3–2 | 0–3 | Wilmslow British Legion | |
| November 1966 | 4. | Williams | 3–2 | 1–3 | Acregate Labour Club, Preston | Williams won the first three frames. |
| December 1966 | 5. | Davis | 4–1 | 1–4 | Boscombe Conservative Club, Bournemouth | Davis compiled an 87 break. |
| December 1966 | 6. | Davis | 3–2 | 1–5 | Mackworth Club, Neath | Davis compiled a 103 break, in his second visit to the table. |
| December 1966 | 7. | Williams | 3–2 | 2–5 | Crewkerne Conservative Club | |
| 5 December 1966 | 8. | Williams | 4–1 | 3–5 | Moreton Social Club, Birkenhead | |
| December 1966 | 9. | Williams | 3–2 | 4–5 | Hall Green Home Guard Club, Birmingham | |
| December 1966 | 10. | Williams | 4–1 | 5–5 | Central Conservative Club, Ashton-under-Lyne | |
| December 1966 | 11. | Davis | 4–1 | 5–6 | Sleaford Social Club | Davis compiled a break of 89. |
| December 1966 | 12. | Davis | 3–2 | 5–7 | Kirkby-in-Ashfield | Williams compiled breaks of 77 and 102. |
| December 1966 | 13. | Williams | 4–1 | 6–7 | Lancing British Legion | Williams compiled a break of 87. |
| December 1966 | 14. | Davis | 4–1 | 6–8 | Tooting Conservative Club | |
| December 1966 | 15. | Davis | 3–2 | 7–8 | High Wycombe British Legion | Williams compiled a break of 97 in the deciding frame. |
| 9 January 1967 | 16. | Williams | 3–2 | 8–8 | James Gibbons Social Club, Pensnett | |
| 11 January 1967 | 17. | Williams | 4–1 | 9–8 | Belmont Conservative Club, Swadlincote | |
| 12 January 1967 | 18. | Davis | 3–2 | 9–9 | Eastwood View Working Men's Club, Rotherham | Davis won on the black ball in the deciding frame. |
| 13 January 1967 | 19. | Davis | 4–1 | 9–10 | Wellington Tube, Tipton | |
| 16 January 1967 | 20. | Davis | 3–2 | 9–11 | Louth Town and Country Club | |
| 17 January 1967 | 21. | Williams | 3–2 | 10–11 | Ironopolis Men's Club, Middlesbrough | |
| 18 January 1967 | 22. | Williams | 3–2 | 11–11 | Castle Ward Conservative Club, Lenton | |
| 19 January 1967 | 23. | Williams | 3–2 | 12–11 | Retford Conservative Club, Nottingham | |
| 20 January 1967 | 24. | Williams | 3–2 | 13–11 | Nu-Way Sports and Social Club, Droitwich | Williams compiled a break of 109. |
| 1 February 1967 | 25. | | | | Elliot Lucas Sports and Social, Cannock | |
| 2 February 1967 | 26. | | | | Elliot Lucas Sports and Social, Cannock | |
| 3 February 1967 | 27. | | | | Audco Sports and Social, Newport, Shropshire | |
| 9 February 1967 | 28. | | | | Parish Hall, Rhabon, near Wrexham | |
| 13 February 1967 | 29. | | | | Hitchin Conservative Club | |
| 14 February 1967 | 30. | | | | Fordham British Legion, Ely | |
| 15 February 1967 | 31. | | | | Maldon Constitutional Club | |
| 16 February 1967 | 32. | | | | Victoria Billiards Club, Southend | |
| 17 February 1967 | 33. | | | | Eastbourne Constitutional Club | |
| 23 February 1967 | 34. | | | | Marconi Athletic, Chelmsford | |
| 24 February 1967 | 35. | | | | A.C. Delco Sports and Social, Dunstable | |
| 27 February 1967 | 36. | | | | Port Sunlight Men's Club | |
| 28 February 1967 | 37. | | | | Grange Town British Legion, Middlesbrough | |
| 8 March 1967 | ?? | Davis | 4–1 | 19–17 | Friendly Societies' Hall, Tunbridge Wells | |
| | 46. | | | 25–21 | | |
| April 1967 | 47. | Davis | 5–0 | 25–22 | Newark Conservative Club | |
| April 1967 | 48. | Davis | 5–0 | 25–23 | Skipton British Legion | |
| April 1967 | 49. | Williams | 3–2 | 26–23 | British Sidac, St. Helens | Williams achieved a winning margin. |
| April 1967 | 50. | Davis | 3–2 | 26–24 | Merthyr Labour Club | |
| April 1967 | 51. | Davis | 4–1 | 26–25 | Ferranti Recreation, Manchester | |