``If you can't make the team, be an official,'' chuckled Williams, who has been named a range officer for 10-meter air rifle and air pistol events at Wolf Creek Gun Club. It's believed he also is the first Georgian to be named to that position.

Williams, who founded the Augusta Shooting Sports Association 10 years ago, also has completed training as an International Shooting Union judge.

In addition to the Summer Games, Williams will be a range officer at the U.S.A. Atlanta World Cup matches in April.

``Shooters from the whole world will compete in the World Cup so they'll have a chance to shoot at the Olympics venue and possibly qualify for the few quota places left in the Games,'' Williams said.

``It's very gratifying that people think enough of my experience and abilities to give me those positions.''

Williams said range officers supervise each event and warn participants of technical violations of the rules.

``If a participant continues to disobey the warnings, that's grounds for disqualification,'' he said. ``Our job is to make sure everyone gets fair play. We're not out there to get in people's ways - just to keep 'em honest.

``The `Golden Rule' for range officers is `to open your rulebook before you open your mouth.' But the scary part is you don't want to overlook anything.''

Williams began competitive shooting in 1985 and ``blames'' Johnny Finley of United Loan and Firearms in Augusta for everything that's happened.

``Johnny and some others had set up a little firing range in the basement of the Ninth Street police headquarters,'' Williams said. ``It was an awful place - just a little room with a metal backstop and sand pit. It was dark and dirty and you nearly choked to death on the powder fumes because there was no ventilation.

``Johnny invited me to come shoot and loaned me a .38 Special target model which, incidentally, I purchased and still have. I don't remember their names, but there was a Georgia State Patrolman and an Augusta policeman in a friendly get-together.

``The upshot is that I beat 'em all, although I'd never competed before. That got me started.''

Williams, a board member at Pinetucky Gun Club with which his shooting sports group merged a couple of years ago, became a member of the Georgia pistol team and competed in the nationals at Camp Perry, Ohio.

Williams stopped shooting conventional pistol matches in 1986, ``after my shoulder got messed up from constant recoils. I moved over to international pistol (.22 caliber), finally settling on free pistol and air pistol.

``I made the finals in the U.S. air pistol team selections for the 1988 Olympics, but I was just a weekend shooter and not as prepared as I needed to be. I finished 13th out of the top 60, but only the top two are taken.''