Bill Werbeniuk

William Alexander Werbeniuk ( ; 14 January 1947 – 20 January 2003) was a Canadian professional snooker and pool player. Recognisable for his girth, he was nicknamed "Big Bill". Werbeniuk was a four-time snooker World Championship quarter-finalist and also a snooker UK Championship semi-finalist, reaching a career high world ranking of #8 for the 1983–84 season.

Early life Werbeniuk was born on 14 January 1947 in Winnipeg. His paternal grandfather had emigrated to Canada from Ukraine; his father, according to Werbeniuk, "was one of the biggest fences in Canada" and "committed armed robberies, peddled drugs, every larceny in the language."

Career Werbeniuk won the Amateur Championship in 1973, with a 16–15 victory against Robert Paquette after being 12–15 behind. This qualified him for the North American Amateur Championship. Doctors advised Werbeniuk to drink alcohol to counteract a familial benign essential tremor. Later in his career he also took propranolol, a beta blocker, to cope with the effects of his alcohol consumption on his heart.

Werbeniuk was reported to have successfully claimed the cost of six pints of lager before every match as a tax deductible expense. 28 pints of lager and 16 whiskies over the course of 11 frames during a match against Nigel Bond, in January 1990 – after which Werbeniuk then consumed an entire bottle of Scotch to "drown his sorrows" after losing the match. Later in the match, he had an unusual fluke, when he missed a simple brown to the top corner, but it cannoned out of the pocket, off the opposite cushion and into the centre pocket on the same side.

Use of propranolol Werbeniuk was ranked 8th in the world in 1983 where he lived with his mother and brother.

Performance and rankings timeline

Performance Table LegendLQ lost in the qualifying draw#R lost in the early rounds of the tournament(WR = Wildcard round, RR = Round robin)QF lost in the quarter-finalsSF lost in the semi-finalsF lost in the finalW won the tournamentDNQ did not qualify for the tournamentA did not participate in the tournamentWD withdrew from the tournament NH / Not Held means an event was not held.NR / Non-Ranking Event means an event is/was no longer a ranking event.R / Ranking Event means an event is/was a ranking event.

Career finals Non-ranking finals: 4 (2 titles)

Team finals: 4 (1 title) OutcomeNo.YearChampionshipTeam/partnerScoreRef.Runner-up 1. 1980 World Challenge Cup Canada Wales 5–8 Winner 1. 1982 Canada England4–2 Runner-up 2. 1986 World Cup (2) Canada Ireland "A" 7–9 Runner-up 3. 1987 World Cup (3) Canada Ireland "A" 2–9

Amateur finals: 7 (5 titles) OutcomeNo.YearChampionshipOpponent in the finalScoreWinner 1. 1973 Canadian Amateur Championship Robert Paquette 16–15 Winner 2. 1973 North American Amateur Championship Cliff Thorburn 26–22 Winner 3. 1974 North American Amateur Championship (2) Runner-up 1. 1975 Canadian Amateur Championship Cliff Thorburn 1–11 Winner 4. 1975 North American Amateur Championship (3) Cliff Thorburn 11–9 Runner-up 2. 1976 Canadian Amateur Championship (2) Cliff Thorburn 2–9 Winner 5. 1976 North American Amateur Championship (4) Cliff Thorburn 11–10