Walter Ray Williams Jr. moved a step closer toward another record in his illustrious career Friday by winning the 2019 PBA50 National Championship.

The PBA Hall of Famer won his 13^th career PBA50 Tour title, one short of the all-time record, by defeating Michael Haugen Jr., 278-243, in the championship match of the season’s first PBA50 major at Spanish Springs Lanes in The Villages, Florida.

With one more victory, Williams, who already owns the PBA Tour record for victories with 47, will match John Handegard’s PBA50 record of 14 titles.

The victory also puts Williams in the driver’s seat for 2019 PBA50 Player of the Year as he has won both events to open the season. Just a week ago, he captured the title at the PBA50 Johnny Petraglia BVL Open in Clearwater, Florida.

In the championship match against Haugen, Williams opened with a double before leaving a 10 pin and converting it. He wouldn’t miss again until the fill ball in the final frame as he rolled to the title.

Haugen survived a heart-stopping semifinal match against PBA Hall of Famer Norm Duke with a 215-206 victory thanks to a big break in the final frame.

Needing just a mark to advance, Haugen came up light and appeared to leave the 4-10 split to possibly lose, but at the last second, the 10 pin fell making it a single-pin conversion instead. Haugen got the spare and advanced.

Haugen took down PBA Hall of Famer Amleto Monacelli in the second stepladder match with a 277-237 victory.

Both players got out of the gates quick as Monacelli started with the front five and Haugen had the front six before both players left 10 pins. Monacelli went on to leave 10 pins in the eighth and ninth frames, which proved to be the difference. Haugen, finishing the match first, needing just a mark in the final frame to secure the win and buried a strike.

In the opening match, Brian LeClair started with the front four and was in control against Haugen but went on to lose 287-251.

LeClair left the 2-4-8-10 split in the fifth frame for an open, a frame that proved to be devastating, as Haugen strung strike after strike after starting with a spare to roll to the win.