At the 2006 Mosconi Cup, which took place at Rotterdam, Netherlands between December 7 and 10, the audience was loud, cheering and blowing horns when rooting for Team Europe. During a match with Nick van den Berg, someone shouted from the audience for Strickland to "shut up" since he had continued talking while opponents were taking their shots. The noise was so intense that referee Michaela Tabb warned spectators they could be thrown out of the arena if they persisted. Strickland broke his cue out of frustration during his match against Thomas Engert, smashing it against the floor after a failed attempt at a shot. He replaced the broken shaft and went on to win the match 7–4.