July August 2006 - Inside Pool Magazine

Transcription

July August 2006 - Inside Pool Magazine
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July/August 2006
CONTENTS
INSTRUCTION
16 That’s What I’m Talking About
The Lemonade Man
18 Grady’s Grad School
Three Four-Railers and a Five-Railer
20 Beat People With a Stick
The Joy of Finishing
22 This Is Your Captain Speaking
Which is Harder?
24 Pro Pool Workout
Stroke Training 202
On the Cover
The pool world bids a sad
farewell to Steve Mizerak.
“The Miz” was a four time
winner of the U.S. Open
Straight Pool Tournament,
a winner of the U.S. Open
9-Ball Championships, and a
BCA Hall of Fame member.
He passed away on May 29.
FEATURES
26 Steve Mizerak
We Say Goodbye to “The Miz”
50
30 Ussery is Master of the Game
Second Stop of the Florida Tour Draws an Impressive Field
32 The BCA Trade Show Hits Houston
36 The Hatchet Man Cuts off the Competition
Dennis Hatch Goes Undefeated on the Florida Pro Tour
38 APA Members Take Home $300,000 at National Singles
Championship
World’s Largest Pool League Crowns Amateur Champions in Las Vegas
40 Kelly Fisher Catches a Major Win
Viejas Vaults Her into Third
42 Thousands Invade 30th Annual BCA National Championships
What Happens in Vegas Doesn’t Always Stay in Vegas
48 Repeat for Ralf in Vegas
EnjoyPool.com Championships Goes to Souquet
50 Ouschan Rides the Wave to the End
Claims First-Time Vegas Victory
54 The IP 2006 Table Awards
6 InsidePOOL Magazine - July/August 2006
s
as
ships
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Volume VI, Issue 6
COLUMNS
60 What’s New
62 What’s in the Case?
Richard Broumpton
66 Cue Maker’s Corner
Lambros—Researching the Hit
70 Industry Ink
LEANI Slate and Garborino Cuneo
How slate can improve your game
74 Industry News
48
DEPARTMENTS
10
15
78
80
82
88
90
92
96
Pool on TV
Advertiser Directory
League Player of the Month
Regional Roundup
Northeast
Southeast
Central
Western
World
Photo Caption Contest
40
Publisher
Advertising Sales Director
JR Calvert
Bill Perry
publisher@insidepoolmag.com sales@insidepoolmag.com
Editor
Sally P. Timko
editor@insidepoolmag.com
Graphic Artist
Thomas W. Hartman
art@insidepoolmag.com
Graphic Artist
Pete Hudack
Technical Consultant
Tom Simpson
Instructional Staff
Johnny Archer, Steve Crutchfield, Max Eberle,
Allison Fisher, Bob Henning, John W. Loftus,
Grady Mathews, Keith McCready,
Tom Simpson
Feature Photo Credits
JR Calvert, Rick Davis,
Ashi Fachler
Contributing Writers
Fred Agnir, J.A. Barnes, Carissa Biggs, Jose Burgos,
Rick Davis, Carolina Fernandez, Bill Fuller, Willy
Hermoza, Kay Higgins, Mark Margaretten, Matt Pingor
E-mail
info@insidepoolmag.com
Toll Free
866-961-7665
Website
www.insidepoolmag.com
Administrative Offices
220 S. Jefferson Street, Kittanning, PA 16201
8 InsidePOOL Magazine - July/August 2006
InsidePOOL Magazine Volume VI, Issue 6 (ISSN 1547-3511)
is published monthly except June and August by Spheragon
Publishing, 220 S. Jefferson Street, Kittanning, PA 16201.
Single copy price: $3.95 in U.S.A., $5.95 in Canada.
Subscription prices: $19.99/yr in the U.S.A., $28/yr in
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Pool on TV
(continued on pg. 12)
All times are Eastern Time Zone – check local listings for changes.
ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN Classic, OLN
1999 International Challenge of Champions Semifinal #1
1999 Women’s Tournament of Champions Semifinal #1
1999 Women’s Tournament of Champions Finals
2003 Women’s Tournament of Champions Semifinal #1
2003 Women’s Tournament of Champions Finals
2004 Women’s Trick Shot Challenge Semifinal #1
2004 Women’s Trick Shot Challenge Finals
2004 Women’s Trick Shot Challenge Semifinal #2
1999 International Challenge of Champions Semifinal #2
2006 WPBA San Diego Classic Semifinal #1
2006 WPBA San Diego Classic Semifinal #2
2006 WPBA San Diego Classic Championship
2005 International Pool Tour King of the Hill Invitational Shootout
1999 International Challenge of Champions Finals
2000 International Challenge of Champions Semifinal #1
2000 International Challenge of Champions Semifinal #2
2000 International Challenge of Champions Finals
2001 International Challenge of Champions Semifinal #1
2001 International Challenge of Champions Semifinal #2
2006 WPBA Great Lakes Classic Semifinal #1
2006 WPBA Great Lakes Classic Semifinal #2
2006 WPBA Great Lakes Classic Championship
2001 International Challenge of Champions Finals
2006 Enjoypool.com Men’s Open 9-Ball Championship Semifinals
2006 Enjoypool.com Men’s Open 9-Ball Championship Finals
2005 Men’s Trick Shot Magic Championship Finals
2005 International Pool Tour King of the Hill Invitational Shootout
2002 International Challenge of Champions Semifinal #2
2002 International Challenge of Champions Finals
10 InsidePOOL Magazine - July/August 2006
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Pool on TV
(continued)
All times are Eastern Time Zone – check local listings for changes.
ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN Classic, OLN
2005 Women’s Trick Shot Challenge Championship
2003 International Challenge of Champions Semifinal #1
2003 International Challenge of Champions Semifinal #2
2003 International Challenge of Champions Finals
2006 Enjoypool.com Women’s Open 9-Ball Championship Semifinals
2006 Enjoypool.com Women’s Open 9-Ball Championship Finals
2004 International Challenge of Champions Semifinal #1
2004 International Challenge of Champions Semifinal #2
2004 International Challenge of Champions Finals
2004 Sudden Death 7-Ball Semifinal #1
2004 Sudden Death 7-Ball Semifinal #2
2004 Sudden Death 7-Ball Finals
2005 Texas Hold ‘Em Billiards Championship Semifinal #1
2005 Texas Hold ‘Em Billiards Championship Semifinal #2
2005 Texas Hold ‘Em Billiards Championship Finals
2006 WPBA Great Lakes Classic Semifinal #1
2006 WPBA Great Lakes Classic Championship
2004 Trick Shot Magic Semifinal #2
2004 Trick Shot Magic Finals
1998 Women’s Tournament of Champions Semifinal #2
1998 Women’s Tournament of Champions Finals
2005 Texas Hold ‘Em Billiards Championship Semifinal #1
2005 Texas Hold ‘Em Billiards Championship Semifinal #2
2005 Texas Hold ‘Em Billiards Championship Finals
1993 U.S. Open 9-Ball Championship
1993 U.S. Open 9-Ball Championship
1993 Pro Tour Championship Semifinal #1
12 InsidePOOL Magazine - July/August 2006
12-July
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Pool on TV
(continued)
All times are Eastern Time Zone – check local listings for changes.
1993 Pro Tour Championship Semifinal #2
1993 Pro Tour Championship Finals
1994 PBT U. S. Open 9-Ball Championship Finals
1994 International Challenge of Champions Semifinals
1994 International Challenge of Champions Semifinals
1994 International Challenge of Champions Finals
1995 International Challenge of Champions Semifinal #1
1995 International Challenge of Champions Semifinal #2
1994 WPA World 9-Ball Championship
2006 WPBA Florida Classic Semifinal #1
2006 WPBA Florida Classic Semifinal #2
2006 WPBA Florida Classic Championship
1995 International Challenge of Champions Finals
1996 International Challenge of Champions Semifinal #1
1996 International Challenge of Champions Semifinal #2
1996 International Challenge of Champions Finals
1997 International Challenge of Champions Semifinal #1
1999 BCA Championship Billiards Semifinal #1
1997 International Challenge of Champions Semifinal #2
1997 International Challenge of Champions Finals
1998 Women’s Tournament of Champions Semifinal #2
1998 Women’s Tournament of Champions Finals
1999 International Challenge of Champions Semifinal #1
1999 International Challenge of Champions Semifinal #2
1999 International Challenge of Champions Finals
2000 International Challenge of Champions Semifinal #1
2000 International Challenge of Champions Semifinal #2
ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN Classic, OLN
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ADVERTISER DIRECTORY
To contact any of our advertisers, visit their website, send an e-mail, or give them a call.
ABC Billiards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .65
www.abcbilliardsusa.com
Ambassador Billiards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .21
www.ambassadorbilliards.com
American Poolplayers Association . . . . . . . . .79
www.poolplayers.com
Aramith Billiard Balls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .IBC
www.aramith.com
Atlas Billiard Supplies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10
www.cuestik.com
Beautiful Cues.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .65
www.beautifulcues.com
Bebob Publications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .83
www.bebobpublishing.com
Bella Sera Custom Cues . . . . . . . . . . . . .87
www.BellaSeraCues.com
Billiard Congress of America . . . . . . . . . .35, 83
www.bca-pool.com
Billiard Tables & More . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23
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Billiard Warehouse . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94
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Blue Book, Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .65
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California Tables.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .82
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Chadam Innovations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .83
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Champion Shuffleboard . . . . . . . . . . . . .65
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Connelly Billiards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .61
www.connellybilliards.com
Cue & Case Sales, Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .47
800-835-7665
Cue Cube . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .64
www.cuecube.com
Cue Doctor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .94
www.cuedoctor.com
CueStix International . . . . 73, Back Cover
www.scorpioncues.com
DLT Billiards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .34
www.DLTbilliards.com
Drawknife . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13
www.drawknife.com
Frank’s Center, Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .83
www.frankscenterinc.com
Grady Mathews . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .95
www.gradymathews.com
Great American Recreation Equipment, Inc. . .12
www.GreatAmericanRec.com
Hustlin USA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .87
www.hustlinusa.com
Instroke . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .64
www.frankscenterinc.com
InsidePOOL Magazine . . . . . . . . . . .94, 95
www.insidepoolmag.com
International Cuemakers Association . .95
www.internationalcuemakers.com
International Pool Tour . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2-3
www.internationalpooltour.com
Iwan Simonis, Inc.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14, 15
www.SimonisCloth.com
Jacoby Custom Cues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .78
www.jacobycue.com
John W. Loftus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .95
apacaptainjohn@insidepoolmag.com
J-S Sales Company, Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . .53
www.cuetec.com
L.E.A.N.I. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .IFC
www.leanislate.com
Lou Sardo Products . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1
800-553-3040
Olhausen Billiard Mfg. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29
www.olhausenbilliards.com
Poker Pool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .25
www.playpokerpool.com
Predator Products . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7
www.predatorcues.com
qball promotions, Inc. . . . . . . . . . . .4-5, 91
www.qballpromotions.com
RAM Gameroom Products . . . . . . . . . . . .17
www.ramgameroomproducts.com
Rockwell Billiards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11
www.RockwellBilliards.com
Samm’s Side Pocket . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .94
www.sammspocket.com
Samsara Cues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .21
www.barcue.com
Seybert’s Billiard Supply . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9
www.seyberts.com
Sir Joseph Billiard Gloves . . . . . . . . . . . .78
www.Sirjoseph.com
Sports Fan Products, LLC . . . . . . . . . . . .64
www.sportsfanproducts.com
Stinger JumpBreak Cues . . . . . . . . . . . . .21
www.JumpBreak.com
Super Billiards 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .69
www.superbilliards2.com
The Carolina’s Open . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .89
757-376-1076
Tom Simpson, Billiard Instruction . . . . . . .94
www.poolclinics.com
U.S. Open 9-Ball Championships . . . . . .77
www.BilliardHQ.com
VIGMA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .19
www.vigma.com
www.InsidePOOLmag.com 15
INSTRUCTION
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THATS WHAT I’M TALKING ABOUT
BY KEITH MCCREADY
The Lemonade Man
In 1972, Apollo 17 astronauts explored the
moon’s surface; “M.A.S.H.” premiered on TV;
Jack Nicklaus won the Masters; HBO became
the first pay cable network; and a kind man,
Bob Wallace, and his wife Mary adopted me. I
was 15 years old and very thankful to have a
real home at this time in my life and not to be a
ward of the state of California. My own mother had passed away from cancer several years
before, and my two older brothers and father
had gone their own ways, leaving me to fend
for myself.
The Wallaces owned Bob’s Family
Billiards, a neighborhood gathering spot located in Buena Park, California. It was the kind of
place that, after a few visits, everybody would
know your first name. I went there every single
day and watched many great players of that era,
and my game steadily developed, as did my
reputation for engaging in games of stake.
my best game from the start. Soon we got down
to business, and at the suggestion of our guest,
the game was to be a session of 9-ball, 7 ahead.
That’s the way they liked to do it then.
He introduced himself as Billy, proceeded
to screw his stick together, and flipped a coin to
see who got the first break. Billy sure didn’t look
like much of a pool player to me. We sparred
back and forth at the beginning of the set. He
missed several relatively easy shots, allowing me
to run out with ease, which boosted my confidence. I ended up scoring 7 games ahead, but it
was a long back-and-forth battle. Billy never
wavered during my good performance and paid
me promptly at the conclusion. “Flip it?” he
quickly inquired, wanting to go for another set.
“Absolutely, Billy,” I happily replied. By this
time, a crowd had formed. I couldn’t wait for the
next round to get started, thinking I just caught
myself a big kahuna.
As the set progressed, I noticed that
this time, Billy had a
phenomenal
stroke,
long and fluid, poetry in motion.
As I was practicing one afternoon, in
walked a muscular gentleman wearing eyeglasses with a cue case in tow. The stranger
strolled up to the counter and asked Bob if
there was anyone around who would like to
play some 9-ball. Bob’s eyes widened and then
he replied, “My son might try you some.” He
then escorted him over to my table.
In those days, nobody ever thought of
asking for a little weight or a spot. It was only
a matter of how much you were going to play
for. Bob believed in my abilities and told me
that he’d back me up all the way. Hoping to
make a lucrative score, I was thinking I may
have to lie down a little, meaning not display
16 InsidePOOL Magazine - July/August 2006
Billy excused himself briefly, saying he had
to go outside to his car for a moment. I paused
but then decided to peer out the window to see
where Billy was going. One of the most notorious pool detectives in the region was exchanging
words with Billy. It was Cuban Joe, a local
rounder who himself played but was better
known as a steer and stakehorse for road players.
He handed Billy a large wad of cash, and I knew
at this instant that I hadn’t seen Billy’s best game.
Billy returned alone, and a few moments
later, Cuban Joe slithered in the back door,
attempting to be unnoticed. Fearing the worst, I
didn’t want to lose Bob’s hard-earned cash to a
lemonade man, but I was already locked into
playing another round. I braced myself for
what was to unfold. As the set progressed, I
noticed that this time, Billy had a phenomenal
stroke, long and fluid, poetry in motion. He
dominated me, and I went from one-set winner
to even in what seemed like minutes. “Play
another one?” he asked. I saw the writing on
the wall and said, “Sir, you just lost a
customer.”
A week passed, and I ventured over to a
well-known action spot in Bellflower known as
the Billiard Palace. Lo and behold, there was
Billy competing against a world-beater and
high-roller by the name of Richie Florence. I
asked one of the railbirds what they were playing. He said, “Why, that’s Wade Crane spotting
Richie Florence the call-eight in nine-ball for
ten ahead.” I realized how fortunate I had been
to have escaped the trap I was in the week
before.
Wade Crane used to go by the name of
“Billy Johnson” in the ‘70s, and he was, without a doubt, the best pool player on the planet,
respected by all his peers. He was the only
champion to ever shoot a perfect 1.000 in the
finals witnessed by Accu-Stats.
Competing against a strong player can be
intimidating, but it can be a stepping stone to
achieving peak performance. Strive to play the
table without worrying about who your opponent is, but take it from me, there’s always a
paddle out there that will fit every backside.t
Undeniably one of the most colorful
characters in the game of pool, Keith
McCready never fails to entertain a crowd
with his gutsy and gritty style of play. He is
known as “The Earthquake,” “Keither
With the Ether,” and “The California Kid”
and has been playing pool ever since he
was old enough to hold a cue. Originally
from Southern California, Keith has
traveled all over the world and has won
numerous titles. He is probably best
remembered for his role as Grady Seasons
in “The Color of Money” with Paul
Newman and Tom Cruise. To this day, his
fans quote his infamous line, “It’s like a
nightmare, isn’t it?” He currently resides
in Washington, D.C. and continues to play
in every event he can.
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INSTRUCTION
11:59 PM
Page 18
GRADY’S GRAD SCHOOL
BY GRADY MATHEWS
Three Four-Railers
and a Five-Railer
A
Q
keep pressure on my opponent, plus it
may win me the game immediately.
The third example showcases a
great, old-time one-pocket shot that
will only go if the cloth is old or the
conditions are humid. At Le Cue in
Houston, Texas, in the late ‘60s, the
tables would come so short that we’d
sometimes play this shot five rails for
"With low
right hand english"
Pocket
B. "With low right hand english"
A
The shot is to hit the 1 ball
almost straight ahead, cutting it
slightly to the left. The object ball
goes four rails and either ends up in
our pocket or on End Rail W. The cue
ball, having been struck with high
english, should continue down the
rail toward Pocket C.
Example 4 shows a standard
four-railer for Pocket A. Strike this
"With low right hand english"
shot firmly and use a just-below-center-ball hit with about one tip of out"With low right hand english"
side, right-hand
english.A The 1 ball
goes four cushions toward our pocket, while the cue ball goes up table
into the shaded area. This is about a
half-ball hit on the object ball.
The most important thing here
is to control both balls. If the angle
on a four-railer doesn’t allow for the
controlling of both balls, pass on it. I
don’t like to be any farther away
from the object ball with the cue ball
than the head string if I am to shoot a
four-railer.t"With low right hand english"
Diagram 1
X
Q
My Pocket A
S
Side Pocket Y
Pocket P
P
Q
Diagram 2
My Pocket A
My Pocket A
X
P
Q
Diagram 3
A
Pocket B
Pocket C
X
Grady “The Professor” Mathews
is one of pool’s most recognized figures. His success at the table has
opened doors for him as technical
advisor to movie producers, commentator on Accu-Stats video
productions, producer of billiard
instructional video tapes, and as an
author. Grady has won several onepocket world titles.
P
Sometimes, if a player isn’t careful, he can fall into a defensive
mindset and not shoot enough at
his pocket. This month’s column
shows four examples where a little
extra scrutiny reveals better shots
than simple safeties.
In the first example, the onerail bank is a “stiff.” I like the fiverailer here. The most important
aspects of this shot are to control
the cue ball and to not allow the 1
ball to go into or contact the points
of Side Pocket Y.
If the table has new cloth, the
1 ball should contact the third rail
before Side Pocket Y, at about
Point X. If the cloth is older, the 1
ball should strike the rail at about
Point S. With low, right-hand english, the cue ball will go two rails
and end up in the shaded area.
If a miss-hit is made here, it’s
better to contact a little too much
of the object ball. If the 1 ball is
struck too thinly, neither the object
ball nor the cue ball can be controlled.
I need all four balls in the second example. I can’t see enough of
the 1 ball to play it in my pocket.
The 13 and 11 balls are too thin of
a cut. The shot I like here is to
four-rail the 3 ball.
I can’t really draw the cue
ball back to the end rail because of
a possible kiss. I’d rather draw it a
little bit and pull the cue ball back
to around Pocket P. Every once in
a great while, this type of four-rail
shot will come up where the object
ball actually goes around the stack
(five or more balls).
My second choice would be
to cut the 13 ball toward my pocket, bringing the cue ball up to
around Pocket P. This shot doesn’t
really give me a chance to win the
game. The four-railer allows me to
"With low right hand english"
P
S
6/5/06
End Rail W
46-July-August-2006
Diagram 4
My Pocket A
18 InsidePOOL Magazine - July/August 2006
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INSTRUCTION
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I
6/6/06
12:06 AM
Page 20
BEAT PEOPLE WITH A STICK
BY TOM SIMPSON
The Joy of Finishing
In every sport, coaches and instructors
encourage players to “follow through.”
A good follow-through is as vital for
pool players as it is for all of those
other sports in which we swing something, throw something, or roll something. We pretty much have universal
agreement that this is a sound idea.
Pool players may go through all
types of fidgeting and pre-shot ritual to
get ready to take their shot, but eventually they swing a pool cue and hit a cue
ball. If we’re simply thinking our mission is to hit the cue ball, we may tend
to hit the ball and stop our stick within
an inch or two. Unless this is a very
soft shot, it’s a poke. Throughout the
course of our swing, we had to be
working to stop that stroke. Not a great
idea.
The hit stroke in pool is a motion
that should move forward only. No
pulling back. No pulling back. No
pulling back. Forward only. To the
extent we are pulling back, we are
poking. And, of course, poking is bad.
What happens if we don’t pull
back? We stroke freely through the cue
ball and hit our finish! Finish position
is out past the cue ball, typically 4 to 6
inches past the ball. Our real job, from
a fundamentals perspective, is to get
our tip to the finish position. If you are
a player who does not drop your elbow
on the hit stroke, your finish position
drives your tip happily to the cloth
(don’t worry, it doesn’t hurt the cloth).
If you’re an elbow-dropper, your tip
will still be out there, but it will probably not go to the cloth.
Moving from
poker
to worthy
stroker
is a
goal
for pool players.
A poke is a pool swing that decelerates (slows down) through the hit.
This is very difficult to do with control
and precision. What we want is a
stroke. A stroke is a pool swing that
accelerates freely through the hit.
When we stroke, we get good, consistent action on the cue ball. We feel like
we’re hitting through the ball. Moving
from poker to stroker is a worthy goal
for pool players.
20 InsidePOOL Magazine - July/August 2006
Another way to think about how
to hit your finish is to strive to get your
grip hand to your chest. However, if
your stance is somewhat upright, or if
you drop your elbow, this will not
work for you.
Tip-to-cloth and hand-to-chest
really produce the same result. They
are just different “swing thoughts” for
hitting your finish. If you get one, you
typically get the other. Again, if you
are an elbow-dropper, your finish is
simply somewhere out past the cue
ball, where you’ve run out of stick
speed and come to a stop—without
pulling back.
The finish position is where the
stick stops when you’ve followed
through as far as your stick speed
and your range of motion naturally
allow. In other words, you didn’t
add anything to push forward to an
artificial finish, and you didn’t try to
stop the cue early. It flew through
the cue ball to its natural finish.
Intending to hit your finish
helps prevent jumping up during the
shot. Plan to hit your finish, stick it,
and stay there until the shot is complete. Any jumping up, pulling back,
twisting, or steering actually began
during your hit stroke. Just hit your
finish. No extra stuff. You’ll find a
great deal of satisfaction in hitting
your finish and staying down, looking and feeling confident and
focused. Enjoy your finish! Even if
you miss, you’ll erode your opponent’s confidence with your
demeanor and your beautiful form.
Don’t hit the cue ball—hit your
finish!t
Tom Simpson is a BCA Master
Instructor. A full-time instructor with a
BCA Accredited National Billiard
Academy in Columbus, Ohio, he has
worked with thousands of players. As
founder of Elephant Balls, Ltd., inventor
of Practice Balls®, developer of the
Ghostball Aim Trainer®, and Secret
Aiming Systems™ Coach, Tom’s innovations in training have helped players dramatically improve their skills and deepen
their knowledge. Read 35 instructional
articles at the academy website:
www.PoolClinics.com.
Contact:
Tom@PoolClinics.com, 614-975-8337.
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www.InsidePOOLmag.com 21
INSTRUCTION
46-July-August-2006
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6/6/06
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THIS IS YOUR CAPTAIN SPEAKING
BY JOHN W. LOFTUS
Which is Harder?
Eight-ball is by far the most popular game in
pool, but when the comparison is made, most
good shooters prefer 9-ball----me included. I
started thinking about why this is so. Maybe
it’s because the pros play it and we just want
to play the same game that they do, and they
play it on TV because it’s faster. But many
good 9-ball players say that it’s a harder
game. Is it? Well, everyone has an opinion.
Here’s my two cents’ worth.
In 8-ball, we must think out and plan a
specific sequence of shots, whereas in 9-ball
we already know which ball comes next, so 8ball usually requires more strategy. In 8-ball it
usually gets harder to run out as we proceed to
navigate around our opponent’s balls, whereas
in 9-ball it usually gets easier to finish the rack
the more we pocket balls.
In 9-ball, if we sink 5 or 6 balls before
missing we still may not lose the game, but in
Both games require
skill and strategy.
Which game is harder
will depend on what
you’re better at.
Let’s first look at some of the differences between them. Slop counts in 9-ball
but not in 8-ball, although this isn’t a big factor with better shooters (APA rules are the
exception). And whenever we make the 9
ball, we win, whether by combination,
carom, or luck (even if luck isn’t that big of
a factor with better shooters), whereas in 8ball we must run out our complete set of
balls first, and we lose if we pocket the black
ball out of turn.
It’s easier to begin a run-out in 8-ball,
since we’ll have several easy balls to get
started, whereas in 9-ball it’s usually harder
to start a run-out. More defensive shots usually take place at the beginning of a 9-ball
game, yet more defensive shots seem to
come at the end of an 8-ball game. But once
we get started in 9-ball with a good break,
it’s easier for good shooters to run out. So 8ball can be slower game, depending on the
defensive strategies involved, whereas 9-ball
is usually a faster game. I suspect this is a
major reason why better shooters prefer 9ball—it’s just faster.
22 InsidePOOL Magazine - July/August 2006
8-ball any such failed run out attempt leaves
your opponent in the driver’s seat—at that
point he or she is supposed to win. Many good
shooters hate losing in 8-ball to a lesser shooter when they did all of the hard work. I suspect
this is also a major reason why better shooters
prefer 9-ball.
In 8-ball, we can aim for cue ball shape
zones where we may have two or more balls to
shoot at next, whereas in 9-ball we must play
shape for one ball alone, so better cue ball control is demanded in 9-ball. And in 8-ball there
are many more chances for two-way shots,
where if we make the shot we can proceed to
the next ball, but if we miss the shot there is no
harm and our opponent doesn’t have a good
shot.
In 9-ball, all of our pool skills are
required more often, including carom, combination, billiard, bank, and kick shots, whereas
they are not needed as often in 8-ball. Also in
9-ball, when we hook our opponent, we must
do so by hitting the same object ball that our
opponent is on. Doing so requires knowing
where that object ball, as well as the cue ball,
will end up on the table. But in 8-ball we
hook our opponent by hitting a different ball
than the one our opponent is on, so we mostly need to be concerned with where the cue
ball will end up on the table. And it’s probably more difficult to know where the object
ball will come to rest than the cue ball.
One thing I have noticed is that more
often than not, I can defeat some more
skilled players in 8-ball that I wouldn’t have
as much of a chance of beating in 9-ball, and
lesser skilled shooters can do likewise to me.
Why? It’s probably because 9-ball requires
more skill than strategy, whereas 8-ball
requires more strategy than it does skill.
Most of the factors that make 8-ball a harder
game are strategic in nature, while the factors that make 9-ball a harder game have to
do with skill and ability. I remember the first
piece of advice I received on my first 8-ball
league team. My captain told me, “Make two
balls and then hook ‘em.”
There’s more strategy in 8-ball. So if a
strategic game is harder for you, then 8-ball
is a harder game. For you, 8-ball is just too
slow, strategic, and mentally demanding—if
you do it right; however, if you lack all of the
skills needed for 9-ball, and you depend
somewhat on strategy to win, then 9-ball is a
harder game.
Don’t get me wrong here: Both games
require skill and strategy. Which game is
harder will depend on what you’re better at.
Nine-ball, anyone?t
“Captain” John Loftus, of Angola,
Indiana, has been the captain of a number of
first-place pool teams and is presently a skill
level 7 in the APA 8-ball and a skill level 9 in
the APA 9-ball leagues. He has played on as
many as seven different pool teams a session.
John is the author of How to be the Captain of
a Winning APA 8-Ball Team, and he is the captain for a Master’s Division APA team. Contact
him at captainjohn@insidepoolmag.com.
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INSTRUCTION
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PRO POOL WORKOUT
BY BOB HENNING
Stroke Training 202
This column is the second in a series devoted
to looking at the stroke and how to make it
more effective. Last month we looked at the
importance of keeping the stroke as level as
possible and the cue stick consistent with the
vertical and horizontal planes. This month,
let’s look at some of the physical flaws that
can make this difficult.
The human body is an amazingly adaptive machine. If you give it a job to do, such as
deliver a straight stroke, it will do whatever it
can to produce that result. If one part of the
body is out of whack, the other, more conscious parts will work together to compensate.
Essentially, I’m saying three things here. First,
corner to corner with a laundry pen, or you can
manufacture a straight line with removable
spots that you can buy at any office supply store.
If you set up and shoot a straight, center-ball
shot down this line and the cue tip finishes to the
left or right of the line, you have a stroke flaw.
A perfectly straight shot with a perfectly straight
stroke should leave the cue tip splitting the line,
with half of the tip on the left of the line and the
other half on the right. You can see this easily if
you allow the tip to finish on the cloth as a result
of a normal pendulum stroke. This happens naturally on a draw stroke, so hit it low but on the
vertical axis. A firm draw stroke will exaggerate
any flaw.
There is never just one flaw.
There are always at least
two: the original or root cause
and the compensated flaw.
a flaw is a result of ignorance. You don’t know
what’s happening and your body is not aware
of what it’s doing wrong. Secondly, because of
the compensating effect, there is never just
one flaw. There are always at least two: the
original or root cause and the compensated
flaw. Thirdly, once you know what is off and
how to correct it, you still have the flaw until
you train your body to recognize and produce
the corrected, proper action.
The best way to uncover most flaws is to
do stroke work down a straight line or over a
series of straight spots on the table. You can
actually draw a straight line on the cloth from
24 InsidePOOL Magazine - July/August 2006
If you have this kind of deviation—and
most players do—the next step is to find out
what is causing it. This is difficult for most people because there are so many possibilities.
Some players attempt to fix this error by working on the stance and changing the positioning
of their feet, but this is rarely the source.
Normally it stems from the arm.
Last weekend I worked with a player who
had this condition, and he had learned how to
compensate for it. When he shot down a straight
line the flaw barely showed, but he had to shorten up his stroke significantly to do so. He was a
good player who had trained seriously to
improve his game. He had worked hard to
make sure his forearm was perpendicular and
in line with the cue stick and the intended shot
line. Since having the forearm angled and the
hand inside or outside of the vertical plane is
the main cause of a crooked stroke, he was
stymied.
But since I was an outside observer, I
could see what he could not. When he
addressed the cue ball his forearm was perfectly in line with the cue stick, but his upper
arm was not. The elbow was pulled in towards
the chest so that the line of the upper arm was
aimed about 30 degrees to the right. He compensated for this with a movement of the forearm as he stroked through the ball. When I
held his upper arm in the correct position and
he took a normal stroke down the line, it finished way to the left. That was the compensation error.
He was now conscious of the stroke flaw
and where it originated. I worked with him for
a couple of hours, standing behind him as he
ran balls and physically moving and holding
his upper arm in the proper position whenever
needed. Pretty soon he was doing it on his
own most of the time. He was shooting with a
greater confidence and even looking like a
stronger player. We had removed two flaws
from his game. May life be so good to you!
Good luck & good shootin’!t
Bob Henning is the author of The Pro
Book, widely considered to be the most
advanced training resource for competitive
pool players. It brings the latest techniques of
the top coaches and trainers of all sports into
pool. It is intended for those who wish to prepare physically, mentally, and psychologically
for pool competition. Bob is also the author of
“The Pro Book Video Series,” a complete, onthe-table training system, and he recently
released The Advanced Pro Book. In addition,
he has authored Cornbread Red, a biography
of the colorful Billy “Cornbread Red” Burge.
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“I Do.”
Like Father, Like Son
Steve Mizerak Sr. was a
New Jersey and Eastern States
straight pool champion in his day.
His son Steve Mizerak Jr. was
born on October 12, 1944. When
Steve turned four, the senior Mizerak took him out for his first pool lesson.
Two years later, he realized that his son had the potential to become a worldclass player. He found a local poolroom called Anderson Recreation Center for
sale in their hometown of Perth Amboy, New Jersey, and bought it, thinking it
to be a good practice place for his son and a good business move on his own
part.
When Steve Junior was eleven years old, he was invited to do an
exhibition with New York three-cushion player Joe Procita. As well as threecushion, they played straight pool, which was and always has been Steve’s
game of choice. Abe Rosen, a three-cushion master, was there and said to all
within earshot that Steve was going to be a champion. After the fact, Steve
said, “I didn’t know how good I would get, but I tried, and I got better
better.”
In fact, Steve got so much better that he was classified as a professio
player by the age of 13, which was when he ran 105 balls in straight pool.
his love for the game never hindered his desire to pursue higher educati
During his college years he was banned from the ACI tournaments by B
Presley, the executive director of the BCA, because of his skills on the gre
Undaunted, Steve was graduated in 1968 with a degree in education fro
Athens College in Athens, Alabama, and went on to teach his passion
history—for 13 years.
When Steve was in his thirties, he had the good
fortune to marry his childhood friend, Karen Woloshin
on August 24, 1980. Steve had been teaching American
history and geography at a high school in Perth Amboy
for twelve years, but he never stopped playing. Karen
told a story that is a testament to Steve’s love of and
dedication to the game. “I remember Steve teaching
school, driving to the U.S. Open, which was like thirteen
hours from where he was teaching school in Metuchen,
playing his matches, and driving home to get to school
the next day. It was nonstop with him. And he’s the only
pool player actually that graduated from college that held
down a job while he was doing all this. He was teaching
school while he was doing a lot of things, because he
taught up until nineteen-eighty.”
One of the highest honors that any professional
athlete can aspire to was bestowed upon Steve in the
peaking years of his career. In 1980, Steve was 35 years
old when he was inducted into the Billiard Congress of
America’s Hall of Fame, the youngest inductee at that
time. The only person to ever surpass him as far as youth
went was Jean Balukas, who was inducted in 1985 at the
age of 26.
The Miz’s U.S. Open Legacy
Two years later, in 1970, Steve won his first major tournament. Not ju
any tournament, either - the U.S. Open Straight Pool Tournament, the mo
prestigious event of all. His opponent in the finals was the legendary Luthe
“Wimpy” Lassiter of Elizabeth City, North Carolina, considered by many t
be the finest 9-ball player ever. Steve ran 104 balls in his first inning befor
allowing his opponent to the table. After trading scratches with Lassiter, who
was at 85 points, Steve ran out 50 balls for the win.
Such a heady victory at the exceptionally young age of 25 did not
pollute Steve’s dedication to the game. The following year, he found
himself facing Joe “The Meatman” Balsis of Minersville, Pennsylvania,
in the finals of the Open. Interestingly, Balsis had a similar background
to Steve’s in that his father also owned a recreation room where he learned
to play, and he was performing in exhibitions at age 11 with players such
as Andrew Ponzi and Erwin Rudolph. Steve won the final match but
always considered Balsis to be his toughest competitor, because he was an
offensive player and so was Steve.
In fact, Steve visited the winner’s circle at the U.S. Open a total
of four times, from 1970 to 1973. These four straight years of Steve
occupying the throne were only the launch of the legend that is the Miz.
Domination of the sport in this fashion had been unheard of since Willie
Mosconi’s era and has yet to be experienced again. Five years later, in
1978, the Miz proved himself in another discipline of pocket billiards by
winning Barry Behrman’s U.S. Open 9-Ball Tournament in Chesapeake,
Virginia.
Just Showin’ Off
In 1981, Steve made the journey to New York to do
a screen test for Miller Lite Beer. The meeting lasted a
little over four hours, but it affected the rest of his life.
They called him the next day and made him the proverbial
offer he couldn’t refuse. He starred in 13 commercials
for Miller over a 13-year period. Often he was the only
www.InsidePOOLmag.com 27
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28 InsidePOOL Magazine - July/August 2006
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The Florida Pro Tour made its way to Player’s Billiards
in Melbourne, Florida, where B.J. Ussery made a comeback
to take the lion’s share of the purse and the title of the Space
Coast Open. The event took place April 15-16, and the
photo courtesy of Rick Davis
entry list overflowed to the point that a waiting list was started.
As the pairings began, room for a few last-minute entries was
found, although in the end more than 10 players were
turned away as the tournament chart held a full field of 64.
P
Player’s Billiards closed entirely for the weekend so the event could
utilize all their 9-foot Gold Crown tables with Simonis cloth, which
contrasted against the Aramith Pro Cup cue balls almost keeping the
crowd in a trance, standing three rows deep during some matches.
This event, like the rest of the tour, was 10-ball with a rack-yourown, winner -breaks format. In addition, making the 10 on the break
did not count as a win—instead, the ball was spotted. Otherwise,
normal Texas Express rules were in effect.
Favorites
Fade Away Fast
Saturday’s rounds began late in the morning and continued until
the chart reached the top 16, who would return for play on Sunday.
In the opening rounds, tour regulars Butch Croft and Neil Fujiwara
surprised everyone by getting knocked out, while tournament director John DiToro tried to come back after an early loss but could not
hold out. Meanwhile, Robb Saez and Tony Crosby looked good
until a loss in the third round of the winners’ bracket moved them to
the 17-24th place bracket, where they each lost 7-2. After an early
loss, “Rocket” Rodney Morris knocked out BCA Hall of Famer Nick
Varner, among others, in order to reach play on Sunday. Other regulars like Adam Wheeler, Hunter Lombardo and Richard Broumpton
had a brief run on the winners’ side but could not hold out once on
the left side, rounding out the removal of almost all of the early
favorites to win.
30 InsidePOOL Magazine - July/August 2006
A sad note was with most of the players as they said farewell to
long-time player and tour regular Jim Court. Court had become ill,
and this was his last event. Many of the players signed his name card
used for table assignments, which will be taken to his home room
and displayed.
Other news at the event was everyone’s praise about “the
game.” Wiseman summarized many players feelings by saying, “…
ten-ball, rack-your-own, break-your-own with a spot-the-ten rule is
the ultimate format for players to test their skill.” Most players see
this format as the new game for serious players since “It’s not a
break contest like in nine-ball,” as Morris had said early in the day.
Although everyone likes the format, some players are still unhappy
about the rule that spots the 10-ball if made on the break. Gary
Flannery noted, “It’s hard enough to make the ten—you should be
rewarded if you do.” In either case, the format forces the players to
be aggressive as they try to run racks or be safety-conscious if too
many balls are tied up. Former U.S. Open champion Gabe Owen
mentioned he played very aggressive through most of his matches,
and he thought his opponents did the same, while players like Coats
thought most of their matches were defense- and safety-filled. Many
players also commented that the pockets were big, possibly allowing
many shots to fall that may not have on other tables, but Owen stated, “Yeah, the pockets are big … but they’re big for everyone.” The
first round of the day on Sunday pitted Coats against David
is
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Grossman in a match that saw both play so carefully that it became
the only match in the entire event to be put on the clock by the tournament director.
Former U.S. Open Champ
Gabe Owen tries to prevent
Ussery’s victory.
An Unexpected Group
Continues
Play
Sunday began play of the top 16 with a mix of tour regulars and
newcomers, although many of the crowd favorites were long gone.
On the winners’ side, Sparky Ferrell breezed past Richie Richeson
8-2, while Dave Broxson did the same to Walter Blacker 8-3. Carlos
Viera battled with Dennis Searing and defeated him 8-5, while Owen
defeated “Boston” Bill Ferguson by the same margin. On the oneloss side, Coats slipped past Grossman double-hill then took control
of his game and defeated Searing 8-3. Ferguson almost shut out
Gary Flannery, only allowing him one rack after he knocked out
“Hurricane” Ron Wiseman in the day’s opening round. At the same
time, Richeson knocked out Morris after he won a close double-hill
match against Dennis Hatch. Finally, 2005 InsidePOOL Magazine’s
Amateur Player of the Year B.J. Ussery gave Walter Blacker one
rack and only two racks to Richie Orem in the round before giving
him the last spot in the top 8.
From there, play moved on to the top eight, where Owen defeated Viera 8-3 as Broxson defeated Ferrell 8-5 on the winners’ side.
Meanwhile, Ferguson defeated Coats, although he was stopped in
the next round with a loss to Ferrell. Ussery played strong and
defeated Richeson 8-5 then Viera 8-4.
Ussery Moves Forward, but
Owen
Tries to Block Him Off
Owen faced off with Broxson for the hot seat, in which the
players traded games early on until the score reached 2-2. Owen
grabbed two in a row and the lead at 4-2, but Broxson fought back,
taking 3 of the next 4 and tying the set at 5-all. Catching a gear,
Owen took the next 3 racks to win the match 8-5. This would give
Owen a little rest while he waited for an opponent as Broxson
moved to the one-loss side.
The next table showed an equally strong battle which rounded
out the top 4, although it was clear Ussery was in control. Ferrell
took the opening rack only to lose the next 3. He managed one more
rack, but this time Ussery answered by taking 4 more, putting him
on the hill. Only one more rack went to Ferrell before a scratch on
the break in the next rack gave Ussery a clear 1-10 combo with ball
in hand, securing the match 8-3. Ferrell ended up in 4th place for a
great weekend of play while Ussery moved on yet again, this time to
face Broxson in the semifinals.
Once he got his momentum, Ussery stayed in command.
Broxson took 3 of the opening 4 racks, but then Ussery surged forward and notched 5 straight, taking the lead 6-3. Broxson took one
more, but again Ussery could not be stopped as he won the next two
racks, earning an 8-4 win and the right to move back to the right side
of the chart. Broxson was disappointed with his loss, although his
third-place finish was a very respectable accomplishment.
The final match shaped up to be an unlikely pairing between
Owen, who went undefeated through the winners’ side and had been
waiting in the hot seat, and Ussery, who, after losing his first match
on Saturday, won nine matches to make the finals. The match was
worth $1500 as that was the difference between 1st and 2nd place
payouts. A seesaw battle emerged as the players traded racks, keeping the score tied at 2-, 3- and 4-all. Ussery made a quick move, taking two racks and the lead at 6-4, but Owen took the next rack, only
to watch Ussery win two more, putting him on the hill. Owen took
another rack, looking like he was going to make a comeback, but
Ussery played hard and won the final rack to take the match 9-6.
Ussery continues to show his growing skills with this comeback
to take the title. Traveling from South Carolina, Ussery is a true fan
of the game who works pool into his regular schedule as he funds his
own expenses to travel and compete in various events, including the
Super Billiard Expo in Valley Forge, PA, and a host of Southeast
tours such as the Carolina 9-Ball Tour and Viking Cue 9-Ball Tour,
in addition to appearing at the majority of the Florida tour stops.
Joe Cagnina, B.J. Ussery, John DiToro
photo courtesy of Rick Davis
Results
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
7th
9th
B.J. Ussery
Gabe Owen
Dave Broxson
Sparkey Ferrell
Bill Ferguson
Carlos Viera
Mark Coats
Richie Richeson
Dennis Searing
Gary Flannery
Rodney Morris
Walter Blacker
13th
17th
Dave Grossman
Ron Wiseman
Dennis Hatch
Richie Orem
Ben Conway Jr.
Bruce Pou
Allen Johnson
Hunter Lombardo
Richard Broumpton
Randy Epperson
Tony Crosby
Robb Saez
www.InsidePOOLmag.com 31
46-July-August-2006
6/6/06
12:41 AM
Page 32
BCA Trade Show Hits Houston
by Sally P. Timko
Most of the booths comprised cue makers, tables, bar room furniture, and Groovystuff displayed its new handmade teak chairs.
Trick shot artist “Okinawa Slim” was surrounded by admirers. The VIGMA booth, with its designer ball sets, was always popular.
M
Mixed reviews surrounded the 23rd Annual International Billiard &
Home Recreation Expo, held April 6-8 at the George R. Brown
Convention Center in Houston, TX. The show’s slogan, “Strike it
Rich,” though a witty tribute to the location, fell a bit flat as the barren aisles echoed with faint disappointment.
Light foot traffic and long faces were evident throughout the
show, with many vendors blaming the April dates and others the
location. Billiard Congress of America (BCA) President Gregg
Hovey, who is also the president of Olhausen Billiard
Manufacturing, addressed the latter issue by saying, “While everyone loves going to Las Vegas, the Houston venue provided us a
needed opportunity to spend quality time with our dealers, away
from distractions. The BCA is committed to continuing the success
of our major trade show, and we encourage all of our buyers and
exhibitors to sign up for next year’s show, when we will be back in
Las Vegas April twelfth through the fourteenth.”
The BCA’s second vice-president, Ivan Lee, added, “Although
foot traffic was lighter than we would like to see, we heard from
several exhibitors that their sales have equaled previous years’. It’s
no surprise that we see larger numbers of attendees in Las Vegas,
but we know that sales volume for our exhibitors can remain steady
in other venues.”
The traffic may have been lighter in the show, but at the Hilton
Americas Houston bar, it was standing room only every night. A lot
of business was done there, and even long after closing time, people still lingering and chatting.
The Stars
At every expo, the stars of the billiard world come out: Ralf
Souquet; 2005 Player of the Year, Allison Fisher; Jeanette “The
Black Widow” Lee; Loree Jon Jones; Trick Shot Challenge champion Ewa Laurance; Johnny “The Scorpion” Archer; and others
could be seen at their respective sponsors’ booths taking on challenge matches and offering advice. And another star was honored
by becoming the fiftieth inductee to the BCA Hall of Fame.
32 InsidePOOL Magazine - July/August 2006
Earl “The Pearl” Strickland, a champion many times over, was
the honoree at the Hall of Fame banquet Thursday evening. He was
surrounded by other Hall of Fame members, including Nick Varner,
Jones, Dallas West, Jim Rempe, Laurance, and Robin Dodson. Prior
to Strickland’s induction, Skip Nemecek was given the Presidentís
Award for his contributions to the sport, and retiring BCA Executive
Director Stephen Ducoff was also recognized for his promotion of
the organization over the six years of his tenure.
Lou Sardo and J-S Sales, Inc.’s Janet Shimel both gave moving
speeches to introduce “The Million Dollar Man,” so named for his
incredible feat of running 13 racks, and then it was Stricklandís turn.
Many in the audience did not know what to expect, but Strickland
delivered a short speech that centered around the lack of respect the
world shows pool players and ended with a promise to wear “a new
pair of shoes” in the future.
Earl Strickland became the 50th inductee into the Billiard Congress
of America’s Hall of Fame.
on
Timko
ngress
46-July-August-2006
6/6/06
1:54 PM
Page 33
The Board
Every year at the expo, the new board
members are announced. There were five
open slots this year, and according to the
votes, new or re-elected members to serve
three-year terms are: Bob Radford, Eric
case containing a set of balls and a personalized cue ball, along with eye-catching balls
with iridescent sharks on them.
VIGMA’s booth caught a lot of eyes with
their unusual and beautiful Virgin Pearl,
Shangri-La, and Opal pool ball sets. For the
more whimsical, Poker and Heart-Warming
sets were also on display.
At the Gabriels Billiards’ booth, three-cushion star Semih Sayginer dazzles the crowd.
Always a destination at the show, the Aramith booth was packed with interested buyers.
Weber, Kathy Etheridge, and Mike Baggett.
Sean Cummings will serve two years.
Hovey was elected to a second one-year
term as president of the organization, along
with the remaining officers: First VicePresident Mike Baggett, Treasurer Pat
Conners, and Secretary Renee Poehlman,
with a new appointment of Ivan Lee to
second vice president and chairman of the
long-range planning committee.
The Show
Despite the lack of attendance, there
were still many intriguing booths to visit.
Semih Sayginer executed stunning threecushion trick shots at the Diamond Billiard
Products, Inc./Gabriels Billiards. Another
stunner at that same booth was the magnetic
rails on the Gabriels table a pocket billiards
table became a three-cushion table in a snap.
(Watch your fingers, though.)
One booth that attracted a great deal of
interest was qball promotions, Inc., the company that will be putting on the Cujorojo
Challenge Series, an amateurs-only event that
promises to award a $1,000,000 payout to a
single winning player. The series kicks off
May 1, 2006, with 48 weekly qualifier matches all over the U.S.
The new AcCueRate cue by Aramith
generated a great deal of interest in their
booth, which was always filled with people.
In addition, they showcased a leather carrying
David “The Ginger Wizard” Pearson
was entertaining as always at Cue & Case
Sales, Inc’s booth, while Billy Stroud was on
hand to promote his Universal SmartShaft,
which continues to gain in popularity.
Introduced last year, the shaft features piezoelectric fabric invented by M.I.T. and eightpiece radial construction.
Another popular booth was, of course,
Predator Products. Having just debuted their
SP Series, which consists of classic Sneaky
Petes designs combined with Predatorís revolutionary shafts, it’s easy to see why this
booth was all the rage.
On the last day of the show, J-S Sales,
Inc., drew one of their dealer’s names at random and awarded them a day with either
Allison Fisher or Earl Strickland, it was the
dealer’s choice. Atlantic Whirlpool and
Billiards in Raleigh, NC, was the lucky winner and chose Fisher for the day.
Fourteen booths won “Best Booth”
awards following a two-day judging process
by anonymous show managers from W.T.
Glasgow. In the 1-2 booth category, Artisan
House, International Trading, KillerSpin, and
PALKO PTY Ltd. were winners. American
Family Products; Anheuser-Busch, Inc.; Dart
World; Hood Leather Goods; and SALUC
S.A. won awards for the 3-9 booth category.
And in the 10+ category, AMF Billiards and
Games; KASSON; Embassy Entertainment;
Tempo Industries, Inc.; and World of Leisure
were given the big green ribbons.
The American Academy
of Cue Art
Revered cue maker Richard Black invited cue enthusiasts to his home in Humble,
TX, the evening the show ended for the first
meeting of the American Academy of Cue Art
(AACA). Members of the media such as
George Fels, a
noted cue enthusiast, and Tom Shaw,
along with other
industry members
like
Kathy
McFarland
of
C u e s t i x
International; cue
makers
Jerry
Olivier, Richard
Helmstetter, and
Jim Buss; Chad
Moses of Atlas
Billiards;
Amy
Long and Steve
Ducoff of the
BCA;
Janet
Shimel, and Ron
Blatt all roamed
the
spacious
grounds.
There
was
much
to
admire: the koi
ponds, the house
on Lake Houston,
the workshop filled
with a stunning cue
collection. To top
things off, Black
provided his guests
with a Mexican
food buffet, complete with a mariachi band.
After
the
meal, the guests
moved to the patio
behind the house
for the meeting.
The introduction of
the board came
first: Jim Stadum
of Samsara Cues;
Dr. Mike Shamos;
Lynn Castle, the
executive director of the Art Museum of
Southeast Texas; Paul Del Giudice, a registered patent practitioner; Tom Watters; Ivan
Lee, president of Simonis Cloth of North
America; and Dan Dishaw, president of the
AACA.
Upon expressing that the academy is
dedicated to promoting the functional art
form of cue-making by challenging the community to “push the envelope” in developing
new creations. Additionally, the academy is
promoting the recognition of cue art in the
arts community at large, as well as supporting
art education with charitable contributions
from the proceeds of the academy.
If you are interested in learning more
about the AACA, log onto www.cueacademy.org or contact Dan Dishaw at
dan@dishawcues.com or call 315-439-1777.
www.InsidePOOLmag.com 33
46-July-August-2006
6/6/06
11:32 AM
Page 34
The Numbers
On the last day of the show, there was a short press conference
headed by Hovey, Lee, and Brian Glasgow. More long faces were in evidence here, and they only seemed to grow longer as the numbers for this
year’s show were announced.
that makes it very hard to be productive,” asserted Hovey as he wrapped
up the meeting.
A few weeks later, the BCA board announced that, after careful consideration, the 2007 show will be moved back to June 21-23 but will
remain at the Sands Expo Center in Las Vegas, NV. “We listened to our
RAM Lighting displays its variety of pool table lights. Foosball tables are always popular gameroom additions.
Carmine and Lou Sardo were demonstrating their new M-5000 Sardo Tight Rack model.
From 299 exhibitors in 2005, there were only 234 this year with 1,272
booths. Qualified buyers numbered 1,843, down from 2,729 the previous
year. There was a small difference in the number of billiard proprietors,
going from 122 in 2005 to 104.
The somber Hovey answered questions put to him with honesty,
which was noticably appreciated by the attendees. “April is a bigger challenge than we anticipated,” he stated toward the beginning of the meeting.
“Our greatest challenge is ourselves,” he added. “The people inside
this industry are nipping at each other and have created an environment
34 InsidePOOL Magazine - July/August 2006
members and felt that this was the best move for the entire industry,” stated Hovey. “Combined with a return to Las Vegas next year, we expect to
produce a very well-attended show.”
The BCA’s upcoming Back to Billiards show in August will feature
over 100 exhibitors with over 400 booths, as well as a billiards fair that will
comprise a televised pro 8-ball event, a world record attempt by David
Pearson, instructional clinics, a wheelchair tournament, and a great deal
more. The public will have access to the fair but not the expo, which is to
be a business-to-business event.
46-July-August-2006
6/6/06
11:34 AM
Page 35
46-July-August-2006
6/6/06
11:35 AM
Page 36
Dennis Hatch Goes Undefeated
on the Florida Pro Tour
by Rick Davis
I
“I had no doubt I would win,” Dennis Hatch stated confidently after
skating undefeated through the third stop of the Florida Pro Tour.
This stop, his second major win in two months, saw “The Hatchet
Man” engage in a neck-and-neck final match with “Rocket” Rodney
Morris before stopping in the last rack, walking up to the awaiting
trophy, and rubbing it for luck. Whether he needed it or not is debatable, but his victory is not.
Host room Stroker’s Billiards closed during April 22-23 in
order to utilize all of their Simonis-covered 9-foot tables, which
contrasted well against the Aramith balls. Originally, the event was
limited to 64 players, but it was opened up to 66 after interest grew,
giving 62 players a bye in the first round. Once the pairings were
explained, play began with the tour’s usual winner-breaks, rackyour-own, race-to-7 format, with Sunday moving into a race to 8.
Also, staying with the tour’s new rule this year, a 10 ball made on
the break is spotted and not counted as a win.
Entries into the event ranged from long-time players like Nick
Varner to younger players such as Dave Broxson. There were plenty of Florida players, such as Neil Fujiwara and Butch Croft from
Jacksonville, as well as road players like B.J. Ussery and Sparky
Ferrell from North Carolina. Also, many players not only came with
a traveling partner but sometimes wound up eliminating them,
which happened with Robb Saez and Morris; Jason Kirkwood and
Chris Bartram; and a group from Miami consisting of Javier
Chirino, Felipe Caraballo and Ricky Sanchez, all familiar faces on
the tour.
As the day progressed, matches picked away at players, both
the favorites and the underdogs. Tournament director John DiToro
lost just one round shy of the payout, while regulars like Tony “The
Sniper” Crosby, Dave Grossman, and “Hurricane” Ron Wiseman all
missed the mark by varying degrees.
36 InsidePOOL Magazine - July/August 2006
Those Are the Breaks
Through the entire event, players had trouble with the break,
and in the 10-ball format, it can literally make or break someone’s
game. Early in the day, Saez commented, “I’m feeling good and
playing good, but I wish my break was better.” And after defeating Fujiwara, Bartram commented on his match, saying, “We
pushed out on the break almost every time.” Ferrell was visibly
unhappy about the breaks, and when asked about his play, he just
shook his head and said, “I have bad luck on the breaks today.”
But it was Destafeno who summed up the players’ feelings the best
when he said, “The break is almost a disadvantage because you
usually don’t get anything on the snap.”
Early on Sunday was a “rocket” race, as Morris faced off
against Dave “The Red Rocket” Broxson on the winners’ side. The
Hawaiian clearly had more fuel as he flew through the match.
Another treat was the match between Ferrell and Varner on the
one-loss side where the Hall of Famer got knocked out.
The next round saw one of many traveling partner pair-ups, as
Bartram faced and defeated Kirkwood. Both come from roughly
the same area in Michigan and are equally dangerous opponents.
Croft was eliminated by Destefeno, clearing out the other half of
the Jacksonville squad after Fujiwara, Croft’s road partner, was
knocked out the round before.
In the winners’ side of the top eight, Morris took a surprising
loss to Richeson, who went on to face Hatch, the other undefeated
player, after he sent Frank to the one-loss side. Meanwhile, on the
one-loss side, Ferrell chalked up two more victims while Morris
was doing the same. Trying to stand in the way of Morris reaching
the top four was Saez, whose match against Morris was a treat.
Both players are local to the area, with their home room close by
46-July-August-2006
6/6/06
6:30 PM
Page 37
in Spring Hill; therefore, an entourage of
support for each player was in attendance.
Morris commented afterwards, “Its always
tough playing a friend because of the emotions involved. I want to see him run the
racks, but at the same time I want to win too.
I knew that no matter what the outcome, I
would feel upset.” In the end, Morris overtook Saez, making the top four pairings
complete.
The Hot Seat
Match Gives Way
to a Re-run
Battling for the hot seat, Hatch defeated Richeson 8-5 after taking the racks in
pairs too many times for Richeson to keep
up with. The tables were brutal, not allowing any break and runs; in fact, they usually
made the racks pretty ugly, with balls frozen
to each other and the rails. Early on, the lead
swayed back and forth, with Hatch taking 3
of the first 4 racks, only to have Richeson
counter by taking 3 of the next 4. Amidst
these eight racks, both players took several
breaks away from the table, and each scrambled away from the playing area for various
reasons once their turn was complete. The
players stress and confusion over the tables
were definitely showing, and whether it was
for some fresh air or just to stretch, everyone kept moving away from the tables. In
the homestretch, Hatch lodged another pair
of racks, and after allowing his opponent
one more, he finished things off by taking
the final two games he needed. Throughout
the day, Hatch seemed to come up short on
several rolls, and he hesitated to take some
of the more aggressive shots that were available, explaining, “The fast tables are making me play timid, because I have a big
stroke and I can’t let the cue ball get away
from me.”
With all of the players stepping away,
the tournament director was forced to
remind players of their break limits.
Meanwhile, on the one-loss side, Morris
bested Ferrell 8-3 in the quarterfinal match,
then got a rare chance at replaying his match
against Richeson. Ferrell, who took fourth
place in the last tour stop, could not get past
that point again. Morris said, “Ferrell should
have had more racks … he missed a lot of
shots,” and then added, “I played the best I
have in the whole tournament. I am keeping
the cue ball where I want it. As long as I
don’t cool off too much before my next
match, I should do good.”
Morris’ thoughts were valid, as Ferrell
had missed many simple banks and cuts,
while the Hawaiian was shooting them in at
a rapid clip. Ferrell just did not seem comfortable, possibly because he did not having
his cue for this event, and it showed in nearly every rack. In the semifinals, Richeson
seemed to have a good chance as the match
Richie
Richeson had
a good run at
this event,
falling to Morris
in the semifinals.
“Rocket”
Rodney Morris
sports a new
‘do at Stroker’s
Billiards.
photo by Rick Davis
photo by Rick Davis
Dennis
Hatch never
felt a
moment’s
doubt that he
would win.
went double-hill, but he could not keep up
with Morris and had to settle for a hardearned third place. This match, like the preceding ones, really grinded away at the
players, and each took extra care with every
shot and ball placement. Although none of
the matches was put on the clock, the event
was nearly a full 90 minutes behind schedule by the time the final match began.
The Hatchet Falls
to Ground the
Rocket
In the final match, it was a tug of war
between Morris and Hatch. Both recently
earned big titles—Morris won the UPA
Championships in Las Vegas, and Hatch
scored the Brunswick Professional Players
Championship at the Super Billiards
Expo—and the match was not an easy one
for either, given their glittering resumes.
Hatch opened the set taking 6 of the first 7
racks by capitalizing on Morris’ errors and
using some incredible defense, but Morris
answered by taking 6 of the next 7 after that
to knot the score at 7. What started as a oneman show by Hatch slowly shifted to Morris
as he started to string together longer runs
and finally had the chance to play some of
his own safeties. The next two racks
changed control several times, but Morris
could not close them out fast enough before
Hatch won the match 9-7.
Morris, who left with a second-place
finish, mentioned the break and table as his
downfall, saying, “I just could not get used
to the table, and it had me playing bad all
match. Also, the break is huge and mine
wasn’t working. If your break is working,
you have a huge advantage in ten-ball, but
mine could not get going.” Hatch, on the
other hand, seemed to exude confidence
after taking first place, asserting, “I had no
doubt I would have a chance to win. Players
have spurts, like I went up six to one, then
he came back almost even. Once he did that,
I had no doubt I would get another chance
and then I would win the match.”
photo by Rick Davis
RESULTS
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
7th
9th
13th
17th
Dennis Hatch
Rodney Morris
Richie Richeson
Sparky Ferrell
Robb Saez
Troy Frank
Mike Destafeno
Chris Bartram
Dave Broxson
Jason Kirkwood
Carlos Viera
Butch Croft
Scotty Townsend
Ricky Sanchez
Neil Fujiwara
Nick Varner
Donnie Mills
John Stone
Hunter Lombardo
T.F. Whittington
James Roberts
Cliff Joyner
Mark Hatch
Richie Orem
www.InsidePOOLmag.com 37
6/6/06
11:37 AM
Page 38
by InsidePOOL staff
46-July-August-2006
Over $300,000 in cash and prizes was
awarded to American Poolplayers
Assocation (APA) members at the APA
National Singles Championships, held
April 27-29 in Las Vegas, NV, at the
Riviera Hotel & Casino. The National
Singles Championships consisted of both
the 8-Ball Classic and 9-Ball Shootout
Singles Championships, and both events
were sponsored by Cuetec Cues, Valley
Tables, Valley Ultra Teflon Cloth, and
Aramith Billiard Balls.
The final round of the 9-Ball
Shootout featured three championship
matches, one for each skill level tier, with
two shooters in each match competing for
$10,000 in cash and prizes.
In the Green Tier (Skill Levels 1-3),
Andrea De Rossett of Woodstock, GA,
defeated Brian Gannon of Bayonne, NJ.
De Rossett advanced to the finals after a
semifinal-round victory over Melissa
Casanova of Winter Park FL, while
Gannon advanced after defeating Curtis
Dixon of Oklahoma City, OK.
Following her victory, De Rossett
was at a loss for words. “This has just
been such a highlight to a great weekend—thanks to the APA for putting on
such a spectacular event!” De Rossett
exclaimed.
After besting Monica Clark in the
semifinal round, Lee Cox of Richmond,
VA, bested Jameson Newton of Largo,
FL, 38-20 in the finals of the White Tier
(Skill Levels 4-5) for the championship.
Newton advanced to the finals by defeating Angela Flores of Norcross, GA.
“I didn’t come here expecting to win
it all, but I felt I had as good a shot as anybody,” said an elated Cox after the match.
O
38 InsidePOOL Magazine - July/August 2006
The finals of the Black Tier (Skill
Levels 6- 9) featured defending champion
Brian Parks of Bakersfield, CA, against
Gary Wheeler of Apache Junction, AZ,
and Parks was able to keep his title another year by winning over Wheeler 75-45.
Wheeler advanced to the finals after
defeating Robert Stiles of Marietta, GA,
in the semifinals, while Parks advanced
after a victory over Edward Marriott Jr. of
Rock Hill, SC, in the semifinal match of
the Black Tier.
After the win, Parks said the key to
defending his title was patience. “I got
behind early on in the match, but I was
able to keep my composure, wait for my
chance … and I came back,” stated Parks.
Each of the three champions received
a prize package worth $10,000. The runners-up in each of the three tiers took
home a prize package worth $5,000.
Over 12,000 amateur shooters
attempted to qualify for the 2006 APA 9Ball Shootout Singles Championship in
their local league area, and more than
1,900 pool players made it to the regional
level of the 9-Ball Shootout before the
field was whittled down to 136 men and
women competing for 9-ball crowns in
each of three skill level tiers.
More than 40,000 shooters attempted
to qualify for the 2006 8-Ball Classic.
Over 5,000 pool players made it to the
regional level before the field was narrowed to 364 men and women competing
for 8-ball crowns in each of three skill
level tiers.
In the finals of the 8-Ball Classic,
three champions each took home a prize
package worth $15,000 for their performances.
46-July-August-2006
6/6/06
11:38 AM
Page 39
In the Blue Tier (Skill Levels 2-3) of the 8Ball Classic, it was Ron Shippert of Las Vegas,
NV, defeating Frank Titus-Rogan of
Springfield, VA, 3-2 in the final match.
Shippert defeated Crystal Hefferman of Cocoa,
FL, in the semifinals to advance, while TitusRogan defeated Dennis Larson of Loranger,
LA.
“This is just incredible,” exclaimed
Shippert. “I played smart and played good
defense, and that made the difference.”
The finals of the Yellow Tier (Skill Levels
4-5), saw Armando Leal of Live Oak, TX,
defeat Brian Holgate of Camby, OR, 4-0 in the
finals. Leal advanced to the finals by defeating
William Grubbs of Bluff City, TN, earlier in the
day in the semifinal round, and Holgate defeated George Van Zandt of Metairie, LA, in the
semifinals.
“I was happy just to qualify [for the
National Singles Championships]. This was my
first time out here, so it was an experience in
itself. Winning it all was just over the top,” said
Leal with excitement after his win.
The finals of the Purple Tier (Skill Levels
6-7) pitted former U.S. Amateur Champion
Robert Hall of Huntsville, AL, against William
“B.J.” Hastings of Pasadena, MD. Hall bested
Hastings in the finals 5-1, having defeated
Dave Dreidel of Utica, NY, in the semifinal
round. Hastings advanced after defeating
Melinda Huang of Los Angeles.
“It just feels great. It really capped off my
goals as an APA member of winning the U.S.
Amateur Championship and now this,” said
Hall.
First-place champions in each of the three
tiers received cash and prizes worth $15,000.
The runners-up in each of the three tiers
received cash and prizes worth $9,000.
In conjunction with the National Singles
Championships, APA conducted the annual
Jack & Jill Doubles Championship in the
MiniMania Tournament Room. Champions
Larry and Lisa Overstake of Fayetteville, OH,
defeated Mike Jones and Chrissi Moore of
Mobile, AL, capturing the first-place title. The
Overstakes took home a $5,000 cash prize, and
runners-up Jones and Moore took home a
$3,000 cash prize.
Sportsmanship awards were presented to
Meghan Barrette of Chapel Hill, NC, and Kim
Steinle of Mansfield, TX, for their outstanding
conduct throughout their matches in the 9-Ball
Shootout and 8-Ball Classic, respectively.
Opposite page from top to bottom:
8-Ball Yellow Tier winner Amando Leal
8-Ball Blue Tier winner Ron Shippert
9-Ball Black Tier winner Brian Parks
This page clockwise from top:
8-Ball Purple Tier winner Robert Hall
9-Ball White Tier winner Lee Cox
9-Ball Green Tier winner Adrea De Rossett
Jack & Jill winners Larry and Lisa Overstake
www.InsidePOOLmag.com 39
46-July-August-2006
6/6/06
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Page 40
by Mark Margaretten
photos by Ashi Fachler
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When defending champion Kelly Fisher defeated Karen Corr 7-4 to win
the 10th Annual San Diego Classic, the muttering heard about the room
focused on a single issue: Can the fearless Kelly Fisher be the player who
finally challenges Allison Fisher and Karen Corr for the top slots on the
WPBA tour?
It doesn’t hurt, of course, that Fisher seems to own this room. Two
years ago, she earned her WPBA touring pro status here, and last year
she followed up that performance by winning the event. With this year’s
win, she appears unbeatable at the Viejas Casino. “I only want to play
here,” laughed Fisher.
She’s only played 9-ball for two years but is consistently a top finisher. “I’m still learning. My potting is as good as anybody,” said Fisher,
but added, “I’m still learning about the break, about banking, about kicking.”
Hosting the April 19-23 event, the Viejas Casino, the sponsor for the
past 10 years, hosted the 64 players in their concert hall, a venue
equipped with a full lighting grid, state-of-art sound system, and lush
seating in a mezzanine above the perfectly lit tournament floor. “We’re
happy for the ten years,” said Bobby
Barrett, vice chairman of the tribal
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councils. “It’s been an /incredible
run,
and//////we’re
looking forward to
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another ten years.” ///////////////
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Starting this year, each WPBA Classic Tour event begins with a
standard 64-player, double-elimination bracket. When 16 players are left
standing, the 8 players from the one-loss side conduct a blind draw to
determine which of the 8 undefeated players they’ll face in the final 16,
single-elimination bracket. The new format is designed to give more
players a shot at the final TV rounds.
In the first round of the new format, Jeanette Lee shot out to a 6-0
lead over reigning world 9-ball champion Ga-Young Kim, allowing Kim
only two racks before dispatching her 9-2. “I don’t feel like I shot well,
though [Kim] gave me four balls,” said Lee afterward.
But the final 16 carnage didn’t end there, with Allison Fisher finishing off Hsin Huang 9-0 in a lopsided blowout and Sarah Ellerby eliminating Ellen Van Buren 9-2. Despite being knocked out, Van Buren had
the best weekend of her career, finishing ninth, her highest finish ever,
and, after 30 years, finally earning her WPBA touring pro card.
Jennifer Barretta was tied at 3 with newcomer Xiaoting Pan before
screaming ahead to defeat Pan 9-4. Corr had a tough time early in her
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40 InsidePOOL Magazine - July/August 2006
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46-July-August-2006
6/6/06
11:40 AM
Page 41
Sunday Tea with
the UK’s Best
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Sarah Ellerby tied with
Allison Fisher for third
in Alpine.
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For the first time in the WPBA’s new
double/single-elimination
format,
Sunday’s televised ESPN matches featured only undefeated players, with
number-one-ranked Allison Fisher facing
off against the defending champ Kelly
Fisher, and Ellerby versus Corr, yet another all-European TV round in the increasingly tough WPBA field.
In the early semifinal match,
Allison Fisher battled Kelly Fisher with a
series of break and runs, tying the match
up at 2, and then at 4, before Kelly Fisher
took off on a three-game run to win 7-4.
In the late semifinal match, Ellerby
broke and left all nine balls on the table,
allowing Corr to run the table and not look
back. Corr never relinquished her lead, eliminating Ellerby 7-2.
The final match, Karen Corr versus Kelly Fisher, began quickly,
with the early momentum going to Corr, who ran ahead to a 3-0 lead. But
in the fourth rack, Fisher broke and ran out, beginning an amazing fivegame run to take the lead 5-3.
After eight racks of almost flawless play, both players were making
costly mistakes and taking big risks. After a rare empty break by Corr,
Fisher, who seemed to be having trouble with her speed, pushed out and
left her opponent with a shot at a 1-9 combination. Corr missed the 9
ball, but when Fisher returned to play safe on the 1 ball, she scratched in
the side. Corr jumped on the mistake and ran the table to get back in the
match 5-4.
A confident Fisher came right back with a 9-ball break to reach the
hill 6-4. Corr broke, sunk a ball, and stayed on the table, fouling first on
the 1 ball and then again on Fisher’s perfect safety. With Corr on two
fouls and the 1 ball still on the table, Fisher began her run on the difficult table. After missing the 5 ball while trying to set up a natural 6-9,
Corr came back and missed the same 6-9, letting Fisher run the table
from the 6 ball to win the match 7-4.
Fisher, who’s still making adjustments to 9-ball from her snooker
days in England, remarked that she’s “still learning more and more”
about 9-ball. “I always thought that snooker gave you every stroke, but
it’s slightly different with the amount of english that you can put on these
balls, the way that the [balls] react.”
For anyone not in San Diego, Fisher’s performance can only be
described as breathtaking. She ran rack after rack, eliminated opponent
after opponent, and showed no signs of “still learning the game.” If this
weekend’s performance is an accurate look at a player in their ascendancy, then the pool world will continue to see Kelly Fisher’s name at the
top of the tournament charts for years to come.
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match with Jennifer Chen. The two were tied at 3 before trading games,
keeping it close to the end, when Corr took the last two racks to send
Chen home early with her 9-5 victory.
Alice Rim started out hot in her match with Kim “The Cooler”
Shaw, jumping out front 5-1, but Shaw won the next three rack to come
within a game at 5-4. Rim’s response was to win the next four games and
send Shaw back to her hotel room. Final score: Rim 9, Shaw 4. Rim had
a tremendous week, again finishing in the top 16 for the second event in
a row. “In the whole time since 2001, she’s only had one top-sixteen finish,” said tour director Steve Tipton.
The only player to give Kelly Fisher a run for the money was Gerda
“The G-Force” Hofstatter, who roared out in front of Fisher 3-0 before
Fisher came back to tie it up at 5 and then move ahead to 8-5. But
Hofstatter didn’t go gently, and she battled back to force a hill-hill showdown before Fisher forged ahead 9-8.
In stark contrast to some of the other, quicker matches, Dawn
Hopkins finally eliminated the always-tough Melissa Herndon 9-8 in a
two-hour marathon.
Saturday’s late-night quarterfinal matches were mostly one-sided
affairs. Allison Fisher, who had only lost eight games since Thursday,
steamrolled Hopkins 9-3, while across the room, Kelly Fisher and Lee
fought to a 3-all tie before Fisher sprinted out to a 9-4 victory. Ellerby
and Rim were close early, tied at two games apiece, when Ellerby put
together three straight racks, flying to a 9-4 win. Only the Corr/Barretta
match was close, with Corr finally eliminating Barretta 9-7.
“The Black Widow” plays
to the crowd during a
difficult shot.
1st Place
2nd Place
3rd-4th Place
5th-8th Place
9th-16th Place
RESULTS
Kelly Fisher
Karen Corr
Allison Fisher
Sarah Ellerby
Dawn Hopkins
Jeanette Lee
Alice Rim
Jennifer Barretta
Hsin Huang
Melissa Herndon
Gerda Hofstatter
Ga-Young Kim
Ellen Van Buren
Kim Shaw
$13,000
$8,000
$5,300
$3,000
$2,100
www.InsidePOOLmag.com 41
46-July-August-2006
6/6/06
11:41 AM
Page 42
42 InsidePOOL Magazine - July/August 2006
46-July-August-2006
6/6/06
11:42 AM
Page 43
www.InsidePOOLmag.com 43
46-July-August-2006
6/9/06
4:31 PM
Page 44
44 InsidePOOL Magazine - July/August 2006
46-July-August-2006
6/6/06
11:44 AM
Page 45
www.InsidePOOLmag.com 45
46-July-August-2006
6/6/06
11:45 AM
Page 46
46 InsidePOOL Magazine - July/August 2006
46-July-August-2006
6/6/06
11:45 AM
Page 47
46-July-August-2006
6/6/06
11:51 AM
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48 InsidePOOL Magazine - July/August 2006
46-July-August-2006
6/6/06
11:52 AM
Page 49
www.InsidePOOLmag.com 49
46-July-August-2006
6/9/06
4:33 PM
Page 50
50 InsidePOOL Magazine - July/August 2006
46-July-August-2006
6/6/06
11:53 AM
Page 51
www.InsidePOOLmag.com 51
46-July-August-2006
6/6/06
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Page 52
52 InsidePOOL Magazine - July/August 2006
46-July-August-2006
6/6/06
11:54 AM
Page 53
46-July-August-2006
6/6/06
11:55 AM
Page 54
So youSothink
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poolatable.
pool table.
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InsidePOOL
InsidePOOL
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helptoyou
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and
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tables
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stacked
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twelve
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your buck.
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beforebefore
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InsidePOOL
InsidePOOL
Magazine
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has compiled
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tablestables
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forto
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helptoyou
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Sheraton
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Rated Rated
numbernumber
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one“Economy
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Sheraton
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in thein most
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“Economy
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Manufacturing,
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offers playability.
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economic
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solid
to and
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wood
or veneer
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Laminates
Laminates
are hard-wearing
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while
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oak
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Caravel
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IIIIII
This value-packed
This value-packed
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54 InsidePOOL Magazine - July/August 2006
Laminates
Laminates
Laminates
Laminates
46-July-August-2006
6/6/06
11:57 AM
Page 55
Veneers
Veneers
Veneers
Veneers
AnAn
elegant,
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clean
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cabinet
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Prescott
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Contact
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at800800suggested
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Contact
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www.connellybilliards.com.
www.connellybilliards.com.
Eternity
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This
This
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ABC
Billiards
Billiards
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polyurethane
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table
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available
polyurethane
polyurethane
finish
finish
will
will
add
add
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class
to to
in inblack,
black,mahogany,
mahogany,andandcherry
cherryfinish.
finish.
any
any
gameroom.
gameroom.
This
This
table
table
is
is
available
available
The
The
suggested
suggested
retail
retail
price
price
is is
$7,995.
$7,995.
ForFor
in
in
black,
black,
mahogany,
mahogany,
and
and
cherry
cherryfinish.
finish.
ordering
ordering
information,
information,
call
call
714-792-2838.
714-792-2838.
The
The
suggested
suggested
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retail
price
price
is is
$7,995.
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ForFor
ordering
ordering
information,
information,
callcall
714-792-2838.
714-792-2838.
www.InsidePOOLmag.com 55
46-July-August-2006
6/6/06
11:59 AM
Page 56
Specialty
Specialty
® ®
VERY
VERY
Table
Table
Exclusively
Exclusively
distributed
distributed
in North
in America
North America
by
by
Olhausen
Olhausen
BilliardBilliard
Manufacturing,
Manufacturing,
Inc., the
Inc., the
VERYTable’s®
VERYTable’s®
design offers
designall
offers
the advantages
all the advantages
Soayou
So
think
you
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local
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of another.
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How can
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you choose?
Tables®
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concept,
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Chevillotte
Chevillotte
of compiled
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InsidePOOL
InsidePOOL
Magazine
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has
has
a list has
ofaour
list favorite
of our favorite
tables for
tables
2006
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helptoyou
help
figure
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get the
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meetittothoroughly
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its ambition.
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Steel, composite
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the purity
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suggested
The suggested
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retailisprice
$16,070.
is $16,070.
Available
Available
at an authorized
at an authorized
Olhausen
Olhausen
dealer dealer
near you.
near
Toyou.
order,
To call
order,
800-866-4606,
call 800-866-4606,
or visitor visit
their website
their website
at www.olhausenbilliards.com.
at www.olhausenbilliards.com.
Sheraton
Sheraton
College
College
Series
Series
Rated Manufactured
Rated
numbernumber
oneSports
for
one“Economy
forProducts,
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Selection”
Manufactured
for
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LLC,
LLC,
in
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most
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most
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table
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Inc.,
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Digest
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Olhausen
Olhausen
Billiard
tables
are
tables
designed
are designed
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bring
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true
the
sports
true Billiard
sports
Manufacturing,
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Sheraton
Sheraton
offers offers
an
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pool table
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the exclusive,
officially
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while providing
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the playability.
same playability.
favorite
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quality
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Laminates
Laminates
are hard-wearing
are hard-wearing
and resistant
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professional
professional
playability
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that
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marking,
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expect
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from
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The
suggested
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suggested
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retail
a perfect
a perfect
entry-level
entry-level
table for
table
the for
discriminating
the discriminating
price
price
$2,899.
is
Available
to all
dealers.
to alloakdealers.
For
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player.
pool
player.
Its$2,899.
solid
Its Available
Northern
solid
Northern
red
red
rail
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rail
more
information,
more
800-493-3408,
call craftsmanship
800-493-3408,
or to
visit
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coupled
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withcall
American
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www.sportsfanproducts.com.
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and playability
and playability
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table. Available
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Modena
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6-, 7-, 6-,
and7-,
8-foot
and models,
8-foot models,
this table
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standard
is standard
with Original
with Original
Italian Slate®.
Italian Slate®.
The suggested
The suggested
retail retail
price is price
$2,195.
is $2,195.
For ordering
For ordering
information,
information,
contact contact
Olhausen
Olhausen
Billiards
Billiards
at 800-866-4606,
at 800-866-4606,
or visitor visit
By
C.L.
By
Bailey
C.L. Bailey
Co., the
Co.,
the
Modena
new
Modena
www.olhausenbilliards.com
www.olhausenbilliards.com
fornew
an for
authorized
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was
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by
tradition
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of Italian
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dealer
near
dealer
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Caravel
Caravel
IIIIII
that features
that features
elegant,elegant,
clean lines
cleanwith
linescarved
with carved
taperedtapered
legs and
legscarved
and carved
blinds. blinds.
One ofOne
the of the
unique unique
featuresfeatures
of thisoftable
this istable
the iswalnut
the walnut
burl rails
burl with
rails inlaid
with inlaid
mother-of-pearl
mother-of-pearl
and and
abalone
abalone
sights.
sights.
Built
with
Built
bolt-together,
with
bolt-together,
metalThis value-packed
This value-packed
8-foot 8-foot
table from
table Legacy
from metalLegacy
to-metal
to-metal
construction,
construction,
double
double
main styling
main
beam
Billiards
Billiards
combines
combines
the graceful
the graceful
styling
of an beam
of an
with
interlocking
with
interlocking
support
support
beams
that
ensure
that
arched
arched
cabinet
cabinet
and
Queen
and
Queen
Annebeams
legs
Anne
with
legsensure
with
maple structural
maple
veneer
veneer
cabinetry,
hardwood
hardwood
topactive
rails,
topactive
rails,
structural
integrity
integrity
forcabinetry,
generations
for generations
of
of
blinds,
blinds,
legs,
and
legs,
round
and acrylic
roundand
acrylic
sights.
This
sights.
table
This table
use,
the
use,
table’s
the
table’s
playability
playability
performance
and
performance
features
features
Legacy’s
Fortress
Fortress
Lock
system,
Lock system,
are
enhanced
are
enhanced
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the
by
usethe
ofE-Z
use
diamond-honed,
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diamond-honed,
which ISO-certified,
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fast,
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assembly
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assembly
and
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oversized
oversized
one-inch-thick
strongest
strongest
cornerIt
support
corner
system
system
available.
available.
Threeframed
framed
slate.
slate.
is available
Itsupport
is available
in cinnamon,
inThreecinnamon,
quarter-inch
quarter-inch
slate
sits
slate
atop
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a
single
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honey, honey,
maple, maple,
and mahogany
and mahogany
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The The
supportsuggested
support
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retail with
price
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iswith
price
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is $2,995
with aplies
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guarantee.
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For ordering
For ordering
information,
information,
contactcontact
strong foundation
strong foundation
for yourfortable.
yourAvailable
table. Available
in a in a
C.L. Bailey
C.L. Bailey
Co. at Co.
417-258-2300,
at 417-258-2300,
or log onto
or log onto
traditional
traditional
mahogany
mahogany
finish, the
finish,
suggested
the suggested
retail retail
www.clbailey.com.
www.clbailey.com.
Dealer
Dealer
inquiries
inquiries
only.
only.
price ofprice
the Caravel
of the Caravel
III is $1,899.
III is $1,899.
Visit Legacy
Visit Legacy
Billiards
Billiards
online at
online
www.legacybilliards.com
at www.legacybilliards.com
for
for
more information
more information
or to find
or atodealer
find anear
dealer
you.
near you.
56 InsidePOOL Magazine - July/August 2006
Laminates
Laminates
46-July-August-2006
6/6/06
12:00 PM
Page 57
SolidWood
Wood
Solid
Veneers
Veneers
Contempo
Contempo
Series
Series
This This
new new
line line
of solid
of solid
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An elegant,
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combined
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CaliforniaTables.com
CaliforniaTables.com
offersoffers
a modern,
a modern,
the
simple
the
simple
beauty
beauty
of
a
of
Royal
a
Royal
Queen
Queen
Anne
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twentieth-century
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style.style.
Built Built
with with
uniquely
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leg
give
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Tiburon
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from
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DLT
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shaped,
shaped,
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legs, legs,
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table table
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nice
prominence
prominence
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quality.
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many
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The double-diamond
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table table
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honey
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inlayed
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retail
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price
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the
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is $2,895.
To retail
order,
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order,
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CaliforniaTables.com,
CaliforniaTables.com,
For
ordering
ordering
information,
information,
contact
contact
DLTDLT
or For
orcontact
contact
them
themat at
800-769-6826.
800-769-6826.
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International
at 888-782-2208,
at 888-782-2208,
or visit
or visit
theirtheir
website
website
at www.dltbilliards.com.
at www.dltbilliards.com.
Cochise
Cochise
Connelly
Connelly
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Billiards
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four- fourpart
of Connelly’s
of Connelly’s
Plateau
Plateau
Collection,
Collection,
rail part
bolt
rail
bolt
system
system
with with
its
British-bred
its
British-bred
ICONICON
which
which
offers
performance
performance
features
such
cushion,
cushion,
andoffers
1.25-inch
and
1.25-inch
slate,slate,
and
itand
isfeatures
available
it issuch
available
as
Rapid
as
Rapid
Rail,
Rail,
Connelly’s
Connelly’s
exclusive
exclusive
in allin sizes.
all sizes.
The The
suggested
suggested
retailretail
price price
is is
four-rail
four-rail
boltordering
bolt
system
system
with
with
its British-bred
its
British-bred
$4,995.
$4,995.
For
For
ordering
information,
information,
visit
www.c
visit www.c
onnellybilliards.com,
onnellybilliards.com,
callor1.25-inch
800-861-8619.
call 800-861-8619.
ICON
ICON
cushion,
cushion,
and orand
1.25-inch
slate,slate,
and and
it is itavailable
is available
in allinsizes.
all sizes.
As shown,
As shown,
the the
suggested
suggested
retailretail
priceprice
startsstarts
at $3,995.
at $3,995.
Contact
Contact
Connelly
Connelly
Billiards
Billiards
at 800at 800861-8619,
861-8619,
or
log
or
onto
log
onto
their
their
website
website
at at
Offered
Offered
by Drawknife
by Drawknife
Billiards,
Billiards,
the Gallatin
the Gallatin
www.connellybilliards.com.
www.connellybilliards.com.
table table
has ahasdistinctive,
a distinctive,
square-leg
square-leg
design,
design,
Gallatin
Gallatin
Eternity
Eternity
paneled
paneled
on allonfour
all sides
four sides
of theoflegs
the and
legsbody,
and body,
including
including
rectangular
rectangular
insetsinsets
with with
contrasting
contrasting
quarter-round
quarter-round
log trim.
log trim.
Recently
Recently
Drawknife
Drawknife
introduced
introduced
the Gallatin
the Gallatin
Group,
Group,
a lineaof
line
pieces
of pieces
that This
that
compliment
compliment
theirABC
their
Gallatin
Gallatin
table.
table.
The
This
table
table
fromfrom
ABC
Billiards
Billiards
is made
isThe
made
newfrom
products,
new
products,
introduced
introduced
Architectural
the Architectural
from
a combination
a combination
of at
solid
oftheat
solid
maple
maple
and and
Digest
Digest
Home
Home
Showveneer.
Show
in veneer.
New
in The
New
York,
York,
allEuropean
have
all have
maple
maple
hardwood
hardwood
The
European
design
design
elements
elements
that reflect
that
reflect
the style
the style
ofand
theofand
the
styling,
styling,
hand-carved
hand-carved
craftsmanship,
craftsmanship,
Gallatin
Gallatin
table.table.
For more
For more
information,
information,
call 800call 800polyurethane
polyurethane
finishfinish
will will
add add
classclass
to to
320-0527,
320-0527,
or logoronto
log www.drawknife.com.
onto www.drawknife.com.
any any
gameroom.
gameroom.
This This
tabletable
is available
is available
in black,
in black,
mahogany,
mahogany,
and and
cherry
cherry
finish.
finish.
The The
suggested
suggested
retailretail
priceprice
is $7,995.
is $7,995.
For For
ordering
ordering
information,
information,
call 714-792-2838.
call 714-792-2838.
www.InsidePOOLmag.com 57
46-July-August-2006
6/6/06
12:02 PM
Page 58
Lexington
Lexington
Series
Series
Carved
Carved
Reminiscent
Reminiscent
of when
of when
America
America
was was
new, new,
the the
Lexington
Lexington
SeriesSeries
from from
CaliforniaTables.com
CaliforniaTables.com
offersoffers
simplicity
simplicity
and and
sophistication.
sophistication.
This This
table table
utilizes
utilizes
a polyurethane
a polyurethane
clear clear
coat, coat,
preserving
preserving
the the
mahogany
mahogany
maplemaple
woodwood
finishfinish
for many
for many
years.years.
It It
features
features
Carpathian
Carpathian
elm burl
elm finishing
burl finishing
and massive
and massive
legs and
legs isand
available
is available
in 8- in
and
8- 9-foot
and 9-foot
models.
models.
The The
construction
construction
is solid
is solid
hardwood,
hardwood,
and aand
semi-gloss
a semi-gloss
finishfinish
is available
is available
in black,
in black,
cherry,
cherry,
or mahagony.
or mahagony.
OtherOther
features
features
include
include
hand-carved
hand-carved
lion lion
head head
designs,
designs,
6-inch
6-inch
wide wide
profile
profile
rails,rails,
and and
leather
leather
shielded
shielded
or fringe
or fringe
(aluminum
(aluminum
casting)
casting)
pockets.
pockets.
The The
suggested
suggested
retailretail
priceprice
is $11,500,
is $11,500,
but the
butsale
the price
sale price
SoTo
you
So
think
you
think
you
want
you
want
to buy
to abuy
pool
aorpool
table.
You’ve
You’ve
takentaken
the measurements.
the measurements.
You’ve
You’ve
scrimped
scrimped
and saved.
and saved.
You’ve
You’ve
got the
got the
is $3,595.
is $3,595.
order,
To
order,
visit
visit
CaliforniaTables.com,
CaliforniaTables.com,
or table.
gameroom
gameroom
ready
ready
and
waiting.You’ve
and
waiting.You’ve
even
even
gotten
gotten
permission
permission
from
from
your
your
spouse.Then,
spouse.Then,
checkbook
checkbook
in
hand,
in
hand,
you
go
you
down
go
down
to
your
to your
contact
contact
themthem
at 800-769-6826.
at 800-769-6826.
Cortez
Cortez
locallocal
billiard
billiard
supply
supply
storestore
and lo
and
and
lo behold,
and behold,
therethere
are tables
are tables
stacked
stacked
twelve
twelve
deep,deep,
one on
onetop
onoftop
another.
of another.
How How
can you
canchoose?
you choose?
InsidePOOL
InsidePOOL
Magazine
Magazine
has compiled
has compiled
a list aoflist
ouroffavorite
our favorite
tablestables
for 2006
for 2006
to help
to help
you figure
you figure
out how
out how
to gettothe
getmost
the most
bangbang
for for
your your
buck.buck.
MakeMake
sure you
surego
youover
go it
over
thoroughly
it thoroughly
before
before
braving
braving
the billiard
the billiard
supply
supply
storestore
again.
again.
New New
from from
Connelly
Connelly
Billiards,
Billiards,
the Cortez
the Cortez
features
features
deep,deep,
detailed
detailed
carvings
carvings
throughout
throughout
the table
the table
that that
are reminiscent
are reminiscent
of theofSpanish
the Spanish
conqueror
conqueror
for whom
for whom
it is named.
it is named.
The Cortez
The Cortez
modelmodel
is partisof
part
Connelly’s
of Connelly’s
Pinnacle
Pinnacle
Collection,
Collection,
whichwhich
offersoffers
performance
performance
features
features
such such
as Rapid
as Rapid
Rail, Rail,
Connelly’s
Connelly’s
exclusive
exclusive
four-rail
four-rail
bolt system
bolt system
with with
its British-bred
its British-bred
ICONICON
cushion,
cushion,
and 1.25-inch
and 1.25-inch
slate.slate.
A coordinating
A coordinating
wall wall
rack rack
is available.
is available.
The The
suggested
suggested
retailretail
priceprice
is is
$11,795.
$11,795.
For number
ordering
Forone
ordering
information,
information,
visitSelection”
visit
Connelly
Connelly
Rated
Rated
number
for
one
“Economy
for
“Economy
Selection”
Billiards
Billiards
at www.connellybilliards.com,
at pool
www.connellybilliards.com,
or by
or
in the
in online
most
the online
most
recent
recent
pool
table table
analysis
analysis
by
call
them
call
them
at 800-861-8619.
at 800-861-8619.
Consumer
Consumer
Digest
Digest
Magazine,
Magazine,
Olhausen
Olhausen
Billiard
Billiard
Manufacturing,
Manufacturing,
Inc.’s,Inc.’s,
Sheraton
Sheraton
offersoffers
an an
economic
economic
alternative
alternative
to solid
to solid
woodwood
or veneer
or veneer
tablestables
whilewhile
providing
providing
the same
the same
playability.
playability.
Laminates
Laminates
are hard-wearing
are hard-wearing
and and
resistant
resistant
to to
Amarking,
blend
Amarking,
blend
ofstaining,
design
ofstaining,
design
and heat,
architecture
and
isthe
featured
isthe
featured
by by
and architecture
heat,
making
making
Sheraton
Sheraton
the
Hawaii
the
Hawaii
model
model
by table
DLT
by table
DLT
Billiards.
Billiards.
Constructed
Constructed
a perfect
a perfect
entry-level
entry-level
for
the
for
discriminating
the
discriminating
of
solid
ofpool
solid
oak,
oak,
the
the
offers
offers
thered
fithe
nest
finest
handpool
player.
player.
Its Hawaii
solid
Its Hawaii
solid
Northern
Northern
oak
red
rail
oakhandrail
rubbed
rubbed
teak
finish.
teak
finish.
Other
Other
features
features
include
include
abalone/
abalone/
coupled
coupled
with
American
with
American
craftsmanship
craftsmanship
adds
to
adds
the
to the
mother-of-pearl
mother-of-pearl
double-diamond
sights;
sights;
one-inch,
one-inch,
beauty
beauty
and playability
anddouble-diamond
playability
of thisoftable.
this
table.
Available
Available
in in
three-piece
three-piece
slate;
and and
Uni-frame
Uni-frame
construction.
6-, 7-,
6-,and
7-, 8-foot
and slate;
8-foot
models,
models,
this
table
this construction.
table
is standard
is standard
The
suggested
suggested
retail
retail
price
price
issuggested
$5,995.
issuggested
$5,995.
Forretail
For
withThe
Original
with
Original
Italian
Italian
Slate®.
Slate®.
The
The
retail
ordering
information,
information,
contact
contact
DLT
DLT
International
International
priceordering
price
is $2,195.
is $2,195.
For ordering
For
ordering
information,
information,
contact
contact
atOlhausen
888-782-2208,
atOlhausen
888-782-2208,
orat visit
orat visit
their their
website
at
Billiards
Billiards
800-866-4606,
800-866-4606,
orwebsite
visit
orat visit
www.dltbilliards.com.
www.dltbilliards.com.
www.olhausenbilliards.com
www.olhausenbilliards.com
for an
for authorized
an authorized
dealerdealer
near you.
near you.
Sheraton
Sheraton
Hawaii
Hawaii
Rococo
Rococo
This
This
table
table
by Olhausen
by Olhausen
Billiards®
Billiards®
captures
captures
the the
Caravel
Caravel
III
III
elegance
elegance
of true
of true
baroque
baroque
styling.
styling.
Hand-carving
Hand-carving
This This
value-packed
value-packed
8-foot8-foot
table table
from from
Legacy
Legacy
throughout
throughout
the table
the table
and and
the highest
the highest
attention
attention
Billiards
Billiards
combines
combines
the graceful
the graceful
styling
styling
of anof an
to detail
to detail
and and
custom
custom
craftsmanship
craftsmanship
are clearly
are clearly
arched
arched
cabinet
cabinet
and and
QueenQueen
AnneAnne
legs legs
with with
apparent
apparent
in this
in “Select”
this “Select”
Cottage
Cottage
CoveCove
finishfinish
on on
maplemaple
veneer
veneer
cabinetry,
cabinetry,
hardwood
hardwood
top rails,
top rails,
maplemaple
with with
contrasting
contrasting
traditional
traditional
cherry
cherry
stain stain
blinds,
blinds,
legs, legs,
and round
and round
acrylic
acrylic
sights.sights.
This This
table table
on maple
on maple
rails.rails.
The The
rail sights
rail sights
are featured
are featured
in in
features
features
Legacy’s
Legacy’s
Fortress
Fortress
E-Z E-Z
Lock Lock
system,
system,
genuine
genuine
mother-of-pearl
mother-of-pearl
with with
abalone
abalone
inlays.
inlays.
whichwhich
ensures
ensures
fast, fast,
easy easy
assembly
assembly
and is
andtheis the
Original
Original
Italian
Italian
Slate®
Slate®
and Accu-Fast®
and Accu-Fast®
cushions
cushions
strongest
strongest
cornercorner
support
support
system
system
available.
available.
ThreeThreeare aare
standard,
a standard,
and this
and table
this table
is available
is available
in solid
in solid
quarter-inch
quarter-inch
slate slate
sits atop
sits aatop
single
a single
interlocking
interlocking
oak or
oakmaple,
or maple,
with with
specialty
specialty
woods
woods
as anasoption.
an option.
support
support
beambeam
with with
cross-laminated
cross-laminated
plies plies
that that
As shown
As shown
the suggested
the suggested
retailretail
priceprice
is $12,288,
is $12,288,
prevent
prevent
racking
racking
or shifting
or shifting
and and
provide
provide
a
a
but inbut
standard
in standard
finishes,
finishes,
it begins
it begins
at $11,350.
at $11,350.
For For
strongstrong
foundation
foundation
for your
for your
table.table.
Available
Available
in a in a
ordering
ordering
information,
information,
contact
contact
Olhausen
Olhausen
Billiards
Billiards
at at
traditional
traditional
mahogany
mahogany
finish,finish,
the suggested
the suggested
retail retail
800-866-4606,
800-866-4606,
or visit
or www.olhausenbilliards.com
visit www.olhausenbilliards.com
price price
of theofCaravel
the Caravel
III is III
$1,899.
is $1,899.
Visit Visit
Legacy
Legacy
for anfor
authorized
an authorized
dealerdealer
near you.
near you.
Billiards
Billiards
onlineonline
at www.legacybilliards.com
at www.legacybilliards.com
for for
more more
information
information
or to find
or toafind
dealer
a dealer
near you.
near you.
58 InsidePOOL Magazine - July/August 2006
Laminates
Laminates
46-July-August-2006
6/6/06
12:04 PM
Page 59
Commercial
Commercial
Veneers
Veneers
An An
elegant,
elegant,
clean
clean
cabinet
cabinet
combined
combined
withwith
the simple
the simple
beauty
beauty
of aof
Royal
a Royal
Queen
Queen
Anne
Anne
Art leg
Art
and give
and
functionality
meet
meet
here
here
in
Olhausen
in Billiards
Olhausen
leg
give
the functionality
the
Tiburon
Tiburon
from
from
DLT
DLT
Billiards
Manufacturing,
Manufacturing,
Inc.’s,
Inc.’s,
Waterfall
Waterfall
table.table.
aBilliard
nice
aBilliard
nice
prominence
prominence
in
the
in
the
gameroom.
gameroom.
It features
It features
brushed
brushed
aluminum
aluminum
with with
commercial
commercial
The
The
solid
solid
wood
wood
rails
are chrome
are
decorated
decorated
with
with
black
black
laminate
laminate
rails
rails
withrails
with
chrome
sights.
sights.
Recently
Recently
standards
with
with
mother-of-pearl/abalone
mother-of-pearl/abalone
seenstandards
seen
at theatEnjoyPool.com
the
EnjoyPool.com
9-Ball
9-Ball
Championships
Championships
double-diamond
double-diamond
sights.
sights.
The
The
Uni-frame
Uni-frame
in Las
inVegas
Las Vegas
and all
and
this
allyear
this
on
year
ESPN
on
ESPN
in Billiards
in Billiards
International,
International,
Ltd.,Ltd.,
events,
events,
the
brushed
the
brushed
aluminum
aluminum
support
support
structure,
structure,
which
which
is below
is below
the
solidthe
solidWaterfall
Waterfall
tableoffers
table
is offers
available
isstyle
available
in 7-,
in 8-,
7-,
8.5-,
8-, The
8.5-,
andThe
and
core
core
board,
board,
style
and
and
support.
support.
9-foot
9-foot
models.
models.
Shown
Shown
in 9-foot
in 9-foot
tournament
tournament
Tiburon
Tiburon
is available
is available
in cherry,
in cherry,
honey,
honey,
teak,teak,
style,style,
this table
this table
is standard
is standard
with with
Original
Original
Italian
Italian
and
and
medium
medium
oak
oak
stains,
stains,
and
and
the
the
one-inch
one-inch
Slate®
Slate®
and Accu-Fast®
and Accu-Fast®
Cushions.
Cushions.
The suggested
The suggested
slate
slate
comes
three
in
three
pieces.
pieces.
The
suggested
suggested
retail
retail
pricecomes
price
is in
$12,000.
is
$12,000.
For ordering
For The
ordering
information,
information,
contact
contact
Olhausen
Olhausen
Manufacturing
Manufacturing
800at 800retail
retail
price
price
forBilliard
for
theBilliard
the
Tiburon
Tiburon
is $2,895.
isat $2,895.
866-4606,
866-4606,
or visit
or
visit
www.olhausenbilliards.com
www.olhausenbilliards.com
For
For
ordering
ordering
information,
information,
contact
contact
DLTDLT
for an
forauthorized
an authorized
near
near
you. you. or visit
International
International
atdealer
888-782-2208,
atdealer
888-782-2208,
or visit
theirtheir
website
website
at www.dltbilliards.com.
at www.dltbilliards.com.
ThePrescott
The
Signature
Signature
Pro Pro
is
Prescott
the
is the
state-of-the-art
state-of-the-art
commercial
commercial
pool pool
tabletable
built built
by Gabriels
by Gabriels
Billiards.
Billiards.
Connelly
Connelly
Billiards
Billiards
has
has
not
not
onlyonly
embraced
embraced
WithWith
over over
70 years
70 years
of experience,
of experience,
the Dutch
the Dutch
amanufacturer
new
amanufacturer
new
trend
trend
in
home
inuses
home
furnishings,
itavailable.
has
itavailable.
has
set set
uses
the
best
the furnishings,
best
materials
materials
trends
trends
of
its
of
own
its
own
in
the
in
the
billiard
billiard
business
business
The base
The base
of theofSignature
the Signature
Pro table
Pro table
is a massive,
is a massive,
welded-steel
welded-steel
frame
frame
thatfiensures
that
optimal
optimal
stability
stability
with
with
its its
two-tone
two-tone
nish.
fiensures
nish.
TheThe
Prescott
Prescott
for model,
for
the their
the
1.25-inch-thick
1.25-inch-thick
slates.
slates.
The
The
table
isnowis
model,
their
mostmost
popular
popular
table,
table,
is
now
istable
finished
finished
with with
rails.rails.
In 2006,
In 2006,
the Signature
the Signature
available
available
inDianite
two-tone.
inDianite
two-tone.
The
The
Prescott
Prescott
is is
Pro was
Pro chosen
was chosen
as theasofficial
the official
tabletable
of theof2006
the 2006
part
part
ofStraight
of
Connelly’s
Connelly’s
Plateau
Plateau
Collection,
Collection,
World
World
Straight
Pool Pool
Championships
Championships
and and
the the
which
offers
offers
performance
performance
features
features
such
such
2006which
2006
Gabriels
Gabriels
Open
Open
8-Ball
8-Ball
Professional
Professional
Players
Players
as
as
Rapid
Rapid
Rail,
Rail,
Connelly’s
Connelly’s
exclusive
exclusive
Championship.
Championship.
Diamond
Diamond
Billiard
Billiard
Products
Products
is the
is the
official
official
U.S.
U.S.
distributor
distributor
for British-bred
Gabriels.
for Gabriels.
four-rail
four-rail
bolt
bolt
system
system
with
with
its British-bred
its
For ICON
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and and
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ICON
cushion,
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and and
1.25-inch
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at 812-288-7665,
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www.InsidePOOLmag.com 59
46-July-August-2006
6/6/06
6:52 PM
Page 60
01
02
Bella Sera Cues
Years of combined cue-making experience enable the craftsmen of
Bella Sera to make just about any combination of points, joints, pins,
woods, veneers, tapers, et cetera in a custom cue to fit your game. A
one-on-one chat with Wayne, Bill, or Cosmo is the first step to
building a cue designed to best suit your tastes. Their combination of
traditional techniques with newer materials and close attention to
detail limits production but is what they feel is necessary to provide
the quality expected by their customers—serious players and
collectors. Visit them online at www.bellaseracues.com.
Gallatin Collection
Drawknife Billiards recently introduced a new group of products in
the style of their Gallatin Billiard
Table. The two-in-one poker table
has a pedestal base, paneled on all
four sides with inset rectangles of
contrasting, quarter-round log trim
in Drawknife’s distinctive Gallatin
design. The 54-inch octagonal top
is reversible to serve as
either a poker or dining table.
Three chair styles are available to
compliment the table. Drawknife
also builds this table as a three-inone game table that includes
bumper pool inside the body. For
more information,
call 800-320-0527, or log onto
www.drawknife.com.
What’s
NEW
03
BW Jump/Break Cue
05
BilliardWarehouse.com’s new BW Jump/Break Cue
features two shafts—one designed for breaking with
a 14-millimeter phenolic ferrule and tip and one
designed for jumping with a short melamine ferrule
and 14-millimeter extra-hard leather tip. Shafts are
quickly and easily changed with the quick-release
joint. The cue is made from palisander and ebony
and features a quick-release jump/break conversion
joint, while the shafts are hard rock maple.
Available exclusively at
www.billiardwarehouse.com for $149.
Second-Generation Shafts
What if the game could be made even easier?
The 314 and Z shafts were already the
best-performing shafts on the market, but
Predator has re-engineered its shafts to bring
you even more performance, so you can pocket
more balls and have more fun! For more
information, visit www.predatorcues.com.
60 InsidePOOL Magazine - July/August 2006
04
Predator Special Editions 8 and 9
by J. Pechauer
Only 100 of each of these instant collectors’
items will be handcrafted, numbered, and
signed by the artist, J. Pechauer. With your
choice of Predator’s 3142 and Z2 shafts, you
will devastate your opponents with much
more than their beauty. More information and
close-up pictures are available on Predator’s
website at www.predatorcues.com.
46-July-August-2006
6/6/06
12:07 PM
Page 61
46-July-August-2006
6/6/06
W
4:17 PM
Page 62
C
?
by
Mark Margaretten
WITC
O
WITC
Originally from England, the mildmannered Richard Broumpton has quietly been winning tournaments
throughout the country, making a living in the competitive world of highstakes pool. He’s consistently finished
high in UPA events, the Seminole
Florida Pro Tour, the J. Pechauer
Southeast Open 9-Ball Tour, and the
Tiger Planet Pool 9-Ball Tour.
“I came here to play,” Broumpton
says while tossing aside the condoms,
red women’s panties, and dental floss
spilling from his Predator case. “I’ve
been here for almost ten years, though
for the first seven or eight years I pretty much just played pool in Florida …
local tournaments and the Florida Tour.
Did a bit of gambling, but I’ve never
been a huge gambler.”
The former bartender played 8ball in England before moving to West
Palm Beach, Florida. “My father
62 InsidePOOL Magazine - July/August 2006
owned a pub [in England], so there was
a bit of nepotism going on. I actually
played eight-ball in England and then
they started playing nine-ball. I did
play snooker, but not professionally.
Now I work one day a week at Playboy
Billiards in Lake Worth giving lessons,
so I’m making a living doing that and
playing in bigger tournaments. I was a
professional in England, but I use that
term loosely, because I wasn’t making
any money.”
So like most players, he has his
eye on the International Pool Tour,
where the money and talent is bigger
and better than the other tours. “I like
what they’re doing, but it’s a tough nut,
traveling and all that.”
While Broumpton clearly enjoys
variety in his game choice, his cue
selection remains constant. “My playing cue is a Dennis Searing. I use it
because I like it, and I’ve had it a long
WITC
HAT'SINthe ASE
time,” say Broumpton, mirroring his
advice to players in the market for a
new cue. “Get whatever makes you
happy.”
Broumpton prefers Predator 314
shafts and lightweight cues. His
Searing weighs only 17.6 ounces, and
the ferrule diameter is 11.6 millimeters,
with a pro taper. The tip? “Yeah, I’ve
got a tip. It’s a Triangle. I think it’s a
hard [tip.] It’s just regular.” It’s
wrapped in Irish linen and has a “flexy
hit.” For breaking, Broumpton uses an
18.3 ounce Predator BK2 with a phenolic tip.
With the exception of the women’s
underwear, the condoms and dental
floss, Broumpton carries surprisingly
little else. Tip tools? None, “unless you
count the dental floss. I’m not sure.”
No shaft maintenance. So how does he
clean his shaft? “Paper towels,” with
water from the bathroom.
WITC
6/6/06
Page 63
WITC
WITC
Richard Broumpton
Case:
Playing Cue:
Predator
Weight:
Dennis Searing
custom cue
17.6 ounces
Wrap:
Irish linen
Tip:
Shaft:
Break Cue:
Weight:
Tip:
ROXME
NB
Y
ER
EVA
WITC
WITC
Triangle, hard
Predator 314
Predator BK2
19 ounces
Phenolic
Wrap:
Irish linen
Shaft
Maintenance:
None
Tip Tools:
Other Tools
or Techniques:
None
Dental floss,
toothbrush (soft),
red Run-Out
Sportswear
women’s panties
(for his girlfriend),
condoms —
multicolored,
unflavored
EQUIPMENT STATSEQUIPMENT STATSEQUIPMENT
WITC
T'SINthe ASE
?
C
?
12:09 PM
WITC
C
46-July-August-2006
www.InsidePOOLmag.com 63
46-July-August-2006
6/9/06
4:37 PM
Page 64
WHER
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46-July-August-2006
ols
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rs
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6/6/06
12:14 PM
Page 65
46-July-August-2006
6/6/06
12:14 PM
Page 66
BY FRED AGNIR
CUE MAKER’S CORNER
W
What happens if you take a serious
pool player with an engineering background and a desire to make cues and
give him access to the most extensive
research system in the world, as well as
putting high-level machinists at his
disposal? You get a highly motivated
individual who has the ability to understand the mechanics of cue construction, the available information on construction technique from a multitude of
industries, and the know-how in precision machining to execute those construction techniques. In other words,
you get the incomparable Mike
Lambros.
The Research Begins
Mike Lambros was born and
raised in Baltimore, MD, but later
moved to Southern California. While
pursuing a degree in electrical engineering at the California Polytechnic
Institute, he worked at the Jet
Propulsion Lab in Pasadena, CA. He
eventually received his Masters Degree
in electrical engineering while working
his way up the career ladder at the Jet
Propulsion Lab as a microwave
research and development engineer,
and then as cognizant design engineer
for the Mark 4A Deep Space Network.
He moved back to Baltimore after ten
years in California. “It’s a nice place to
visit, but the daily life is hectic,” said
Lambros.
He had played pool most of his
life, starting out at the Plaza Billiards in
66 InsidePOOL Magazine - July/August 2006
Baltimore. “I used to play top-level
tournaments, especially in California,”
he commented. When he moved back
east, he went to work at the Johns
Hopkins Applied Physics Lab as a
microwave engineer. His lab personnel
comprised several machinists, including a top-level model-maker machinist.
He also had unlimited access to
research libraries ranging from various
manufacturing fields to the latest
NASA developments.
“My cue needed a lot of repair, and
I really didn’t know many cue makers
in the area, so I asked my model maker
how to run a lathe so I could do the
repairs myself,” he explained. “He told
me to go hire someone!” But Lambros
was determined to learn the basic
machinist techniques, so the model
maker agreed to help.
Lambros took full advantage of the
research materials available as well. In
the years before the explosion of the
Internet and search engines, being a
research engineer and having the material available put him at a distinct
advantage. “All of the construction
techniques from Brunswick were available to me. I also found many construction techniques in unrelated fields that I
modified for cue-making,” expressed
Lambros. His research gave him the
information on wood-working and finishes used in various industries, and his
connection with NASA allowed him
access to the information on the latest
adhesives.
In 1992, Mike went full-time as a
cue maker. The cue business grew so
fast that he had to cut his work days
back at the Applied Physic Lab while
spending more days making cues. A
friend offered to do a joint venture with
Mike so that Mike could make cues
full-time, and he accepted the offer and
has been a full-time cue maker ever
since. The feel of his cue were dubbed
“The Hit” because the feel of his 3/8th10 flat-faced joint with phenolic collars
was so different than the piloted stainless joints that were prevalent in the
Northeast.
The Hit Becomes Ultra
Hoping to introduce his cues into
the Korean market, Lambros built a
billiard cue for a Korean friend in
1993. Mike brought the cue to New
York City to visit U.S. Three-Cushion
Billiard Champion Sang Lee to get his
feedback.
“He hated it. He said it was horrible,”
shared Mike candidly. Lee let Mike
46-July-August-2006
6/9/06
5:07 PM
Page 67
shoot with his billiard cue. The difference in quality was
astounding. “When I struck the ball, the cue acted like a
musical instrument. It vibrated, but very little. No twang or
strange feeling in the hands,” said Mike. Lambros set to
making a worthy billiard cue for the next eight months, coming up with different iterations until Lee finally approved.
“Being a microwave engineer, I understood vibration
transfer through material. The joint wasn’t allowing the shaft
to be ‘optimally coupled’ to the butt,” he says. He developed
his Ultra Joint to optimize the transfer of energy from the
shaft to the butt across the wide range of shots. For the technically-minded, the original Ultra Joint design took advantage of a tapered locking angle at the base of the shaft’s pilot,
rather than a flat shoulder.
Sang Lee played with the Ultra Joint and he loved it, continuing to play with one, as did several top U.S. ThreeCushion Billiard professionals. But Lambros didn’t make billiard cues for long. By and large, they were lower in price
compared to modern pool cues, as the billiard players generally did not have wraps or adornments. However, he continued making the Ultra Joint available on the pool cues.
Never ceasing to improve, Lambros has recently modified the design of the Ultra Joint. “There have been two failures over the years due to over-torquing,” he shared. The
modified design is an extreme dimensional mechanical challenge, but it guards against torque failure while keeping true
to its taper lock design. Fortunately, the equipment in the
Lambros shop has the precision and repeatability to meet that
challenge.
Precision, Repeatability, and the CNC
“My shop is technologically advanced, as I’m obviously
very much into technology,” stated Mike. “I have standard
equipment seen in most shops like lathes and mills, but I also
have several high precision CNC lathes, as well as a four-axis
CNC lathe that I built. I also cut V-grooved points on CNC
machinery.
“A lot of people have misconceptions about CNC work,
as if it’s not true custom work. That’s wrong,” averred
Lambros. “There are two aspects to CNC machines (in cuemaking). You can set up a CNC for mass production with
larger end mills, rounded points, and mass-production speeds.
Or you can set it up to mimic high-precision, intricate
detailed manual work.” It’s the high precision and repeatability that allows Lambros to make the Ultra Joint. “To achieve
manually that type of high precision with repeatability would
be cost-prohibitive, considering the time and effort it would
take,” Lambros affirmed.
“Every step we do, we have to keep to the tolerances and
fits that I’ve designed in. Every cue that comes out of our
shop has to be perfect. That’s our philosophy. We have to hold
less than one one-thousandth-of-an-inch tolerance on some of
the dimensions.” It’s the tighter engineering design and the
dedication to make each piece of the cue to those designed
dimensions that set Mike Lambros apart from his peers.
www.InsidePOOLmag.com 67
46-July-August-2006
6/9/06
5:09 PM
Page 68
The Dragon Cue
“A customer approached me with the idea to make the
finest artistic cue that I’d ever done,” Mike began. “Up
until then, I really wasn’t doing much with artistic cues.
But I had a project sitting in my drawer already: the
Dragon Cue. I made an artistic rendition, and he just fell
in love with it. He agreed to fund the project … and then
the nightmare began!”
Mike built the four-axis lathe to accommodate the tolerances that his project demanded. He had never done any
four-axis CNC programming previously. “Visually, working in three dimensions is a lot different than two dimensions. The tolerances are different. The end mills are different. The male parts are made different. Everything.”
The Research Continues
“I’ll do any custom work, until they ask me to copy someone else’s design. That’s not happening,” Lambros explained
emphatically. “I will also accommodate customers to the nth
degree until they try to tell me how to do my job.”
To the new cue makers, Lambros suggests to learn everything
they can. “There is a lot of information out there, if you know
where to look. There are a lot of different techniques you have
to learn to get proficient at, building several cues at a time. It’s
very difficult to build one cue at a time and make a living at
it,” he pointed out.
`“Every day new technology is developed. I’ve just gone
to a new finish that isn’t found in our industry. It is crystal
clear and goes on in half the time,” Lambros said. “And I
would never have found it if I didn’t look outside the cuemaking industry or even outside the wood industry.”
Lambros takes much of December and January off from making cues to dive into research and development to improve his
product. He talks to product manufacturers and their engineering departments directly, rather than their sales representatives. He describes his application and finds out if their product will work directly from them. He does this every year.
Why? Because it has been through his research, research, and
more research that has helped Mike Lambros succeed in making one of the premier hitting cues today and has placed him
among the very top of his profession.
68 InsidePOOL Magazine - July/August 2006
Some of the parts for the Dragon Cue are wraparound solid inlays over four inches long. Mike went outside the cue world and recruited the help of the software
salesman to train him in “rotational programming,” since
he knew nobody in the cue-making industry who had done
what he was he was embarking upon. “Basically, I picked
his brain for months on end,” explained Lambros. The
stunning masterpiece took over two years to complete and
is priced well into six figures.
Loving the challenge, another similar but more elaborate project is in the works. “When you can do something
that technologically has never been done before, artistically has never been done before, and with materials that
have never been used before, you’ve really pushed the
envelope. That’s what I’m doing, and that’s what I’m
going to continue to do,” Lambros stated.
46-July-August-2006
6/8/06
10:45 AM
Page 69
46-July-August-2006
6/6/06
12:17 PM
Page 70
LEANI Slate and Garbarino Cuneo
How slate can improve your game
A
A satisfying game of billiards requires several
elements: a sturdy table, a good-quality cloth,
and a perfectly flat surface to provide a true
roll. For more than two centuries, Italian slate
has been providing this surface, and although
some manufacturers have tried using other,
cheaper stones, the top-quality producers
always come back to Italy, realizing that only
Italian slate can give them the qualities they
need.
LEANI Slate and Garbarino Cuneo has been
producing top-quality slate for billiard tables
since 1974 and is one of the foremost suppliers
70 InsidePOOL Magazine - July/August 2006
in Italy. The founder of the company is the
charismatic Batti Garbarino, whose business
sense helped him to realize that the slate in his
mines had all the properties needed for producing the large slabs necessary for billiard tables.
In those days, the world was a much larger
place, and the term globalization had not yet
been coined. Unperturbed by problems such as
language barriers and custom regulations, Batti
set about equipping himself for the high-precision line of billiard production. He and his
wife Anna also enrolled in an evening course in
English. The ball was set rolling!
46-July-August-2006
6/6/06
12:18 PM
Page 71
The details of each customer are stored in the software,
and both pockets and screw holes are precision-made in one
shot exactly as requested according to the customers’ patterns.
The production is all water-cooled to keep the temperature
down and not interfere with the perfectly honed surface. For a
perfect game, it is fundamental that the three slabs that make
up the billiard bed be perfectly and precisely aligned.
The Manufacturing
Process
e
s
s
.
r
t
s
i
s
n
The black slate used for billiards is mined from the heart
of the Ligurian mountains, in the northeast section of Italy. It
is a sedimentary rock laid down 150 millions of years ago and
is embedded in the rock in seams. Getting to it is not easy and
requires the skill of good quarry men to know where to follow
the seam and how to obtain the best cuts. Once the block has
been identified, measured forms are used to outline it and then
high-powered cutting machines free it on four sides. The
block is finally detached with a jackhammer following the
natural vein surface and loaded onto trucks for its journey
down the mountain to the factory. The next phase of the production chain is about to begin.
Once in the factory, the blocks are loaded onto giant
gangsaws that saw them into slabs. Each 12-ton block yields
about 25-30 slabs. The slabs are then transported to the workshop, and the surface is honed to precision smoothness using
diamond-encrusted grinders. Automation plays a key role in
Garbarino Batti factories. Capital investment in technology
means that Gabarino Cuneo can guarantee that all their products have the same high quality by using computerised controls and lasers, obtaining perfect slabs made ad hoc to the
customer’s requirements.
Why Do the Top
Players Prefer Their
Slate?
Almost all of the
world’s top tournaments
are played on Italian slate.
No other stone is good
enough. Players have
always known instinctively
that Italian slate is the very
best, but it is only recently
that university tests carried
out in Italy and America
have come up with the scientific reason why. Tests
show that Italian slate has the highest level of internal friction,
which, in everyday terms, means that the material has natural
“damping” properties and absorbs vibrations better than any
other slate. The balls don’t bounce!
In addition, LEANI Slate and Garbarino Cuneo constantly update its machinery in order to guarantee the most precise
playing surface possible. It is their 30 years of experience,
combined with their high quality exclusive Italian quarries,
which make them one of the most sought-after producers by
top manufacturers.
It is not only their technical expertise and Italian quarries
that place them as a leader in billiard production. Batti
Garbarino is adamant that customer care and attention to
detail have top priority in the company mission. “In today’s
market, where there is fierce competition from other countries, it is more important than ever to provide the best quality and service to our clients and make sure the products arrive
on time. I must say that I have to thank my workers for that,
as they are extremely loyal and always willing to go that extra
mile to get an order out on time.”
46-July-August-2006
6/6/06
12:20 PM
Page 72
Top from left:
Daughter-in-law Barbara with Stella
Signora Anna with Chiara and Batti
Top right:
The next generation: Chiara, Sara with
Stella and Frederico
Middle:
Son-in-law Ivo
Bottom right:
Batti's son and daughter, Angelo and
Franca
All in the Family
LEANI Slate and Garbarino, while exporting its products
all over the world, remain very much a family business. Batti,
famous for his energy, seems to be blessed with the gift of ubiquity and appears to be able to be in more than one place at the
same time: in the factory, in the quarry, at the docks supervising the embaking of his slate. Signora Anna, his wife, helps
him with the administration of the business, while son Angelo
manages the quarries and son-in-law Ivo manages the factories.
Moreover, Batti’s dynamic daughter Franca not only acts as
export manager for the company but is also president of Italy’s
mining industry consortium. Even granddaughter Sara pulls her
weight in the family business. Although still only 15, Sara is
already adept at promoting her family’s product at trade fairs
around the world while waiting for her three-year-old brother
Federico and cousins Chiara (three years old) and Stella (seven
months old) to get a little older. One thing is sure, though: In
Italy, where families do everything together, it won’t be long
before they, too, are doing their bit to make sure the
Garbarino‘s slate reaches the world’s top-quality billiard tables.
72 InsidePOOL Magazine - July/August 2006
L.E.A.N.I.
SELECTED GENUINE ITALIAN SLATE
46-July-August-2006
6/6/06
12:20 PM
Page 73
INDUSTRYNEWS
46-July-August-2006
6/6/06
12:22 PM
Page 74
MCDERMOTT
HANDCRAFTED CUES
ANNOUNCES THE SPORT
PERFORMANCE CLOTHING
COLLECTION BY
ADIDAS
INDUSTRY NEWS
Some of the new
products in the
Adidas collection.
McDermott Handcrafted Cues
has announced the Sport Performance
Clothing Collection by Adidas. The
Collection consists of ClimaLite
Athletic
Polos,
ClimaProof
Windshirts, and Relaxed Cresting
Caps, all with the distinctive
McDermott and Adidas logos.
Adidas products have been
designed to give its customers performance, comfort, and style. For
over 50 years, world-class athletes
have been relying on Adidas to meet
their training and competition needs.
Adidas has a clear mission: “to
be the leading sports brand in the
world.” To accomplish this mission,
their Sport Performance division is
aimed at meeting the sport-specific
needs of athletes at all performance
levels. “The new Sport Performance
apparel line from Adidas allows
McDermott to offer the best clothing
available in the industry today,” says
Nat Rosasco, executive vice president of McDermott. “We wanted to
align ourselves with a company as
obsessed with performance as we
are.”
“The new merchandising relationship aligns our heritage of performance with the rich heritage of
performance at Adidas,” McDermott
74 InsidePOOL Magazine - July/August 2006
President and CEO Claude Napier
said. “We wanted to give loyal
McDermott customers access to two
of the world’s finest brands.”
This exciting line of apparel is
exclusively online at www.mcdermottcue.com.
CALIFORNIA
TABLES OFFERS
CLIENTS STREAMLINED
E-SHOPPING
CaliforniaTables.com
has
announced the debut of their new
expanded and user-friendly website.
Offering the finest billiard and pool
tables for the upscale home or office,
California Tables’ wide selection of
tables range from the basic model to
a masterpiece of elegance crafted in
solid mahogany. All are available
with the ease of online shopping.
“We felt it was time to offer customers easier access to high-end pool
tables and accessories at very competitive prices,” said Hosea Walker,
general manager. “Our products combine awesome performance, sophistication, contemporary styling, and
luxury refinements.”
Additionally, by eliminating the
middle man and purchasing factory
direct, there are substantial savings
and
no
hidden
fees.
CaliforniaTables.com also offers free
shipping and free crating within the
continental USA and offer their
clients professional table set-up and
installation. All of this from a stateof-the-art website that makes it quick
and easy for customers to navigate
and find what they need without
wasting time.
Is customer service sacrificed for
lower costs and the speed of online
shopping? Not one bit. Walker
explains, “It is exciting to provide
excellent customer service as well as
unique products. Our main focus is to
become a major player in the online
billiards industry and to change the
industry by offering such a high-quality product at a competitive wholesale
price without losing sight of the individual needs of each customer.”
The California Tables extensive
product line accommodates all gaming
needs, from billiards to poker tables
and
much
more.
Visit
www.CaliforniaTables.com.
OLHAUSEN® MOVES
CORPORATE
HEADQUARTERS
Olhausen® Billiard Mfg., Inc., has
announced that it will relocate its headquarters, manufacturing, and distribution operations from the San Diego,
California, area to Portland/Robertson
County, Tennessee. The company will
build a 250,000-square-foot facility at
the Tennessee/Kentucky Industrial
Park, which will bring approximately
130-150 new jobs to the region.
“Olhausen is a humble success
story that has become an American
phenomenon,”
said
Tennessee
Economic
and
Community
Development Commissioner Matthew
Kisber. “We welcome Olhausen to
Tennessee as part of our growing
league of respected and diverse headquarter operations. By choosing to
locate to Tennessee, officials at
Olhausen have recognized what other
leading companies are experiencing—
a strong business climate, cooperative
economic approach, good infrastructure, and access to a skilled work
force.”
Olhausen is a family-owned company whose concept started in the
childhood home of Butch and Donny
Olhausen as they watched their father
set up and recover pool tables. In 1973,
after both brothers moved to
46-July-August-2006
6/6/06
12:23 PM
Page 75
California, they took everything they
had and purchased an existing company for $1,000, doubling the sales
from 35 tables annually at the time to
more than 300 in two years. Today,
the company ships over 32,000 tables
a year all over the world.
The new Olhausen facility in the works.
MCDERMOTT
HANDCRAFTED CUES
NAMES HAMPTON
RIDGE BILLIARDS
2005 DISTRIBUTOR
OF THE YEAR
McDermott product range with their
customers was a key factor in them
winning this prestigious award.”
“Dave Suit has been a key supporter of McDermott and has made a commitment to the billiard industry as a
whole,” said Claude Napier, president
and CEO of McDermott. “Dave has
represented the McDermott brand
admirably.”
POKER POOL PARTY
The Radisson Fort McDowell Resort and
Casino is hosting the first Poker Pool event.
guest and BCA Hall of Fame member
Loree Jon Jones will be in attendance
for exhibitions and autographs. To participate in the finals, one must compete
in a qualifying tournament, which will
be held at six locations in Phoenix,
Tucson, and Prescott during the month
of July. Visit www.playpokerpool.com
for details, times, and locations.
www.InsidePOOLmag.com 75
INDUSTRY NEWS
All of Donny Olhausen’s sons Link Pendley,
Dorothy and David
are making the move to Tennessee Suit, Claude Napier
and will continue to carry on the family tradition. Donny’s daughter
The criteria to be selected as
resides in Ohio and her husband McDermott Handcrafted Cue’s
manages the Columbus, OH, Distributor of the Year includes
Olhausen Game Room Design Store. measurement of key factors imporGregg Hovey, president of tant to ensuring customers receive the
Olhausen Billiards, said, “Moving its highest level of support. Support levfacility to Tennessee will help the els for existing products, new prodcompany better mange costs and stay ucts, and future products are measahead of customer demands. We have ured to determine the winner. This
experienced tremendous growth over year, Hampton Ridge Billiards of
the past few years, and at this point in West Virginia outshone the competiour business, moving to Tennessee tion.
makes a lot of sense for us. The
“Our relationship with Hampton
Portland/Robertson County area has Ridge has shown steady growth each
the right business environment, and year, with two thousand and five
the community has been extremely being a break-out year,” reported
cooperative and welcoming. I have Vice President of Global Sales Link
no doubt we will be able to continue Pendley. “Dave Suit is a dedicated
our tradition of dedication to quality, individual that appreciates a superior
service, selection, and value.”
product and knows how to market it
Along with the support from the to his customers. Based on our obserTennessee Department of Economic vations and comments we have heard
and Community Development, the from his customers, his customer
Tennessee Valley Authority, the service is exemplary,” Pendley conNashville Area Chamber of tinued.
Commerce, the Middle Tennessee
“Business in billiards was very
Industrial Development Association, good for the entire McDermott distriRobertson County, and the city of bution and dealer network in two
Portland all worked together to bring thousand five,” said Nat Rosasco,
this project to the state.
McDermott’s chief operating officer.
The new, state-of-the-art facility “As a result, there were a number of
is currently under construction and is possible winners. Hampton Ridge’s
expected to be completed by August, clear commitment to the entire
with hiring beginning early summer.
The Poker Pool Company, in
cooperation with Olhausen Billiards,
will be holding their first Poker Pool
tournament, with over $15,000 in cash
and prizes, at the Radisson Fort
McDowell Resort and Casino in
Scottsdale, AZ.
The Poker Pool Company will
have a “kick-off gala” and pre-registration event on June 24, 2006, at the
Radisson Fort McDowell Resort and
Casino, where spectators and players
can watch the number-one men’s
ranked player Johnny “The Scorpion”
Archer and twelfth-ranked WPBA pro
Jennifer Baretta play in a celebrity
showdown. This event is open to the
general public and begins at 7 p.m.
The Poker Pool Tournament finals
will take place August 18-20. Special
46-July-August-2006
6/6/06
12:27 PM
Page 76
“We’re honored to be affiliated
with Olhausen in hosting the first
Poker Pool tournament. This dynamic game is like no other in the industry, and we’re looking forward to
growing this into a national tournament series,” says President Johnny
Dust, The Poker Pool Company.
Poker Pool is an exciting new
game that combines the skill of billiards with the popularity of poker. It
is played on a pool table using 15
balls decorated with playing-card
emblems. The object of the game is
to shoot a higher poker hand than
your opponent.
For tournament and product
information, call 1-888-4 POOLGAMES or visit http://www.playpokerpool.com.
INDUSTRY NEWS
CONNELLY BILLIARDS
ANNOUNCES SALES
TEAM EXPANSION
Connelly Billiards, a billiard
manufacturer and gameroom retailer
based in Tucson, AZ, has added to the
sales team to better serve its independent retailers and become a better
billiard table and gameroom product
provider.
Connelly dealers across the
United States and Canada will have
the opportunity to work with a reshaped and revitalized sales and support team led by John Dorney, director of Connelly’s independent retail
division. Joining John are Taf
Mulitalo, Western regional sales
manager; and Blaine Martin, Eastern
regional sales manager. They represent more than 40 years of retail
expertise. All of these gentlemen
worked for no less than seven years
in Connelly’s successful retail division, with Dorney at the helm for the
last nine years. “You can no longer be
satisfied with just building product—
you have to be willing to build relationships, build support, and work
with the retailer to build their busi76 InsidePOOL Magazine - July/August 2006
John Dorney of
Connelly Billiards
ness. This is our commitment at
Connelly,” said Dorney.
The Northeastern United States
will also be benefiting from the
changes, with the addition of Aqua
Quest independent sales team to the
Connelly Billiards family. Aqua
Quest, a 8-year-old company that
specializes in representing multiple
products and services for the pool
and spa industry, is now handling the
northeast states (NY, NJ, CT, RI,
MA, PA, VT, NH, VA, DC) for
Connelly. Aqua Quest is no stranger
to the billiard industry, and the team,
led by Jim Gillick, expects their professionalism and strong coverage of
this territory to better serve
Connelly’s existing independent
retailers, as well as assist in growing
this competitive market.
“9-BALL”
PROMOTIONAL EVENT
If you’ll be at the Riviera Hotel
and Casino in Las Vegas, NV, around
August 24, stop by the “9-Ball”
movie
promotional
event.
Corresponding with the APA
National Team Championships taking place August 18-26, this event is
part of the marketing package to publicize the feature film, starring
Jennifer Barretta.
The first part of the event will feature a single-elimination tournament
open to APA members. The winner will
get to play Jennifer Barretta in the final
match and will be invited to be a featured extra in “9-Ball.” The second
part is an exhibition match between
Barretta and Kim White. All APA
members are encouraged to register
now for the opportunity to be selected
for the tournament at www.mainstreetproductions.com. If you are not
already an APA member, please visit
www.poolplayers.com for information
on how to join.
Jennifer Barretta
chalks up for her
next opponent.
The general public is invited to
attend the “9-Ball” movie promotional
event tournament at no charge.
Spectators are also welcome to attend
the exhibition match, and tickets will
be available for advance purchase on
our website.
Currently in pre-production, “9Ball” follows the story of a young amateur player as she strives to become the
women’s 9-ball champion of the world.
Barretta says of the film, “This project
is the most exciting thing happening in
pool right now, and I’m excited to be a
part of it. ‘9-Ball’ is destined to
become a classic.”
V
T
p
46-July-August-2006
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7:29 PM
Page 77
46-July-August-2006
M O N T H
t h e
12:28 PM
Page 78
EAGUE EPORT
OF THE
EAGUE PLAYER MONTH
L L
LPM
T
The American Poolplayers
Association (APA) Player of
the Month is Leslie Packman of
the
Atlanta-area
APA.
According to her league operator, Woody McClure, Leslie
embodies the best in an amateur
APA
player—enthusiastic,
enjoys being around pool, loves
to play, and takes her play—but
not herself—seriously. She
plays three days a week on five
APA teams. That’s quite a commitment, considering Leslie
doesn't drive. When she is not
L E A G U E
P L A Y E R
o f
6/6/06
78 InsidePOOL Magazine - July/August 2006
R
playing pool, Leslie loves to
travel, recently returning from
an extended journey to China.
She is no slouch at the table,
either, boasting a Skill Level 3
in both 8-ball and 9-ball, and
late last fall she became the oldest player we can recall to earn
an 8-on-the-Snap patch in
Atlanta. She already earned a 9on-the-Snap patch earlier in her
APA career. To sum it up,
Leslie says she would rather be
playing pool than anything else.
Leslie
Packman
46-July-August-2006
6/6/06
12:29 PM
Page 79
46-July-August-2006
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Page 80
DAVIS EARNS RIGHTS TO NEW NICKNAME
C T.
D E .
M A.
M D .
M E .
N H .
N J .
N Y.
O H .
PA.
R I .
V T.
BLAZE 9-BALL TOUR / EGG HARBOR, NJ
by Matthew Pingor
Mike Davis earned the honor of
receiving a new nickname when he
placed first out of a 46-player field at
the Blaze 9-Ball Tour’s April 2 stop.
Dropping in at Atlantic City Billiards
Club of Egg Harbor, NJ, the extravaganza put out $1,500. Davis pushed
around a few ideas for his new alias
and decided to go with “Mike ‘The
Baby-Faced Assassin’ Davis.”
The hot seat match saw Joe
Frady pair up with Danny Basavich.
Frady didn’t pose much of a problem
for “Kid Delicious” but did manage
to show four wins before Basavich
ended the affair 7-4.
Davis was busy hacking his way
out of the darker bracket. In the quarterfinals, he ran into Al Lapena. He
then proceeded to run him over, again
and again. Lapena is usually a strong
contender, but this weekend, Davis
was the stronger. The match ended 74 with Lapena taking fourth, and
Davis taking on the responsibility of a
semifinal match.
In the semifinal match, Davis
gave Frady his coat and pushed him
out the door. Frady tried to stay, but
his efforts to hold the table became
fruitless as Davis gave him his second
loss 7-3.
With just one more peg to go,
Davis was ready for Basavich. These
two took the finals to a lengthy finish.
Had Basavich put more than four wins
on the board, the match would have
lasted longer, but that was all. Placing
first, Davis won 9-4.
FORSYTH KEEPS FIRST IN HIS SIGHTS
CNY 9-BALL TOUR / YORKVILLE, NY
by Matthew Pingor
Hippo’s
House
of
Billiards was busy as a field
of 36 players came out for the
April 1-2 stop of the CNY 9Ball Tour. Surpassing all, Jim
Forsyth went after the
$1,700-added purse with
gusto as he took first place in
Yorkville, NY.
During the hot seat
match, Dave Dreidel was preoccupied playing Vince
Capatto. This did not end the
way Dreidel intended, and he
fell to Capatto 7-4.
In the quarterfinals,
Forsyth made his stand.
Facing Bruce Carroll, he
began making his presence
known. The match went hillhill, and because of the handicap system, Carroll had to
win the match by 2 or lose by
a tie. When the quarterfinals
ended
7-7,
Forsythe
advanced.
Dreidel had but one more
chance in the semifinals. He
tried to hold on as he posted a
handful of wins; however,
Forsyth had the foresight to
prepare for that and stepped
in to make sure that Dreidel
would be stopped in his
tracks 7-4.
The finals featured a
double-elimination format,
and Forsyth had much work
to do. Winning the first
match, Forsyth slighted
Capatto in an amazing 7-1
victory. With one more race
to go, Forsyth began driving
on a bumpy road. Both players bartered games back and
forth in a race to 4. Tied at 3all, Forsyth took advantage of
one more chance to stay on
the table and won the event.
80 InsidePOOL Magazine - July/August 2006
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
Jim Forsyth
Vince Capatto
Dave Dreidel
Bruce Carroll
Ray Hart
Ryan Snow
7th Paul Enslin
Bob Fuller
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
Mike Davis
Danny Basavich
Joe Frady
Al Lapena
Jose Garcia
Neil MacGregor
7th Billy Kirschner
Ed Sheahan
Mike Davis
HERNANDEZ HOLDS DOWN THE FORT
J. PECHAUER NEW ENGLAND 9-BALL TOUR / ABINGTON, MA
by Matthew Pingor
Dave Hernandez kept up his money–placing profile
April 1-2 as the J. Pechauer New England 9-Ball Tour
dropped in to Cue Sports Café in Abington, MA. This
stop offered over $500 in prize money and featured a
field of 25 players.
Hernandez clinched the hot seat, only allowing Joey
Dupuis to place four wins on the scoreboard in their race
to 7. Randy Labonte was working up a sweat in the quarterfinals against Louis Rios and progressed into the next
stage 7-6.
The semifinals entertained just as well as the quarterfinals. In a lengthy and tight battle, Labonte attempted to end Dupuis’ campaign for another shot at
Hernandez. Labonte came out strong, winning the first
few games, but
Dupuis would not have any of that. He took over
quickly, ending the match 7-5.
With the rest of the field out of the way, all attention
was on Hernandez and Dupuis in the final race to 10.
Hernandez invested interest in exploiting Dupuis’s mistakes. They paddled back and forth for a while until
Hernandez caught a glorious gale of wind, sinking
Dupuis 10-6 and placing first.
1st Dave Hernandez
2nd Joey Dupius
3rd Randy Labonte
4th
5th
Luis Rios
Gary Abood
Gary Sosian
Page 81
COME-FROM-BEHIND VICTORY GOES TO DAVIS
BLAZE 9-BALL TOUR / ROCKAWAY, NJ
easy on his adversaries and took the win
against Melissa Burr 7-1 and Wali
Muhammad 7-3. Greg Antonakos and
Bill Gircenko both fought a hard match
against Abraham but still came out on the
bottom 7-4.
Inevitably, Wilkie and Abraham met
in the hot seat match. Both were unwilling
to give an inch to the other, but in the end,
Wilkie came out on top and won 7-5.
Leading the one-loss side, Mike
Davis was slicing through the competition
with barely any effort. He annihilated
Antonakos 7-0 and then moved on to
eliminate Carmen Lombardo 7-4. In the
seminals, Abraham put up a bit of a fight
but still was shown the door with a 7-3
victory by Davis. And in the finals against
Wilkie, Davis struck once more, coming
from behind to take the final match 9-6.
Mike Davis
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
Mike Davis
Shaun Wilkie
Eddie Abraham
Carmen Lombardo
5th Eric Grasman
Greg Antonakos
7th Wali Muhammad
Matt Krah
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
Eddie Abraham
Shaun Wilkie
Phil Sherman
Dennis Spears
Mike Davis
match, both players were so
charged that the match went hillhill. Basavich came out on top
with the 7-6 win, sending Frady to
the one-loss side.
Davis worked through the
west side, defeating Spanish Pete,
Omen, Spears, Billy Kirschner,
and Frady to reach the finals.
Once there, both Basavich and
Davis decided to split, thus
becoming co-champions of this
event.
1st Mike Davis
Danny Basavich
3rd Joe Frady
4th Billy Kirschner
5th Matt Krah
Dennis Spears
UPCOMING TOURNAMENTS NORTHEAST
Venue
Bill & Billies Cuesport
Bobby D’s Billiards & Grill
Amsterdam Billiards & Bar
Drexeline Billiards
Bill and Billies CuesPort
Castle Billiards
Ivory Billiards
Green Room Billiards
Mohegan Sun
Castle Billiards
Rak Pak Bar & Billiards
Atlantic City Billiard Club
City, ST
Contact
Arnold, MD
410-544-8185
Burlington, ONT
905-639-5550
New York, NY
212-496-8180
Drexel Hill, PA
610-259-9144
Arnold, MD
410-544-8185
East Rutherford, NJ 201-933-6007
York, PA
714-843-1992
Maple Shade, NJ 856-482-2227
Uncasville, CT
888-226-7711
East Rutherford, NJ 201-933-6007
Mississauga, ONT 905-821-2500
Egg Harbor Twp, NJ609-645-7576
$ Added
Eligibility
$500
Open
$500
Ladies
$1,000
Invitational
$1,500
Open
$1,500 + qual.Ladies
$1,500
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$1,000
Open
$50,000
Invitational
$3,000
Open
$1,000
Ladies
$1,500
Open
www.InsidePOOLmag.com 81
V T.
Tournament
Tiger Planet Pool 8-Ball Tour
Tiger Canadian Women’s Pool Tour
Tri-State 9-Ball Tour
Blaze 9-Ball Tour
Maryland State 9-Ball Champs
Blaze 9-Ball Tour
Blaze 9-Ball Tour
Blaze 9-Ball Tour
International Challenge of Champions
Blaze 9-Ball Tour
Tiger Canadian Women’s Pool Tour
Blaze 9-Ball Tour
R I .
Date
7/8-9
7/8-9
7/8-9
7/9
7/15-16
7/16
7/23
7/30
8/9-10
8/12-13
8/12-13
8/27
PA.
by Jose Burgos
The Blaze 9-Ball Tour made
its way to Primetime Billiards in
South Amboy, NJ, the weekend
of May 6-7. A strong field of 30
Northeast players showed up for
the event, but top pros Danny
Basavich and Mike Davis ended
the evening in the winners’circle.
Leading the way on the top
half of the bracket was Basavich,
who notched wins over Mario
Sahatjian, Spanish Pete, Shaun
Wilkie, and Dennis Spears. Joe
Frady was working his way
through the bottom half, scoring
over Mike Fingers, Wali
Muhammad, Rob Omen, and
Matt Krah. When Frady and
Basavich met in the hot seat
Sherman. When the two met in
the battle for the hot seat, both
players had so much momentum going that it was a hill-hill
match before Wilkie won 7-6.
Now in the one-loss side,
Abraham triumphed over
Sherman 7-3 to earn a rematch
with Wilkie in the finals. This
time, Abraham was in the driver’s seat, taking control of the
match from the beginning to
win 9-6.
O H .
by Jose Burgos
Players such as Mike
Davis, Danny Basavich, Matt
Krah and Shaun Wilkie came
out to participate in the Blaze
9-Ball Tour’s tenth stop of the
season, but it was Eddie
Abraham who walked away
with the first-place title and
cash. The event was held at
Green Room Billiards in
Maple Shade, NJ.
Abraham led the way
through the top half of the
bracket with wins over Chuck
Whims, Al Lapena, Krah, and
Al Waldo. In the bottom half,
Wilkietookvictories over Gary
Barnish, Brett Stottlemyer,
Carmen Lombardo, and Phil
N Y.
BLAZE 9-BALL TOUR / SOUTH AMBOY, NJ
N J .
BLAZE 9-BALL TOUR / MAPLE SHADE, NJ
N H .
DAVIS AND BASAVICH BLAZE CO-CHAMPIONS
M E .
ABRAHAM ACES BLAZE TOUR
M D .
by Jose Burgos
The Blaze 9-Ball Tour stopped at
Rockaway Billiards in Rockaway, NJ,
April 9, bringing out top players such as
Al Lapena, Mike Davis, Danny “Kid
Delicious” Basavich, and Eddie
Abraham. Coming from behind, Davis
triumphed in the finals to take top honors.
Leading the top half of the bracket,
Shaun Wilkie cut through his competition, winning by at least 3 racks against
each of his opponents. When he met Kent
Wuethrich, Wilkie didn’t bat an eye, besting him 7-2. Lapena and Eric Grasman
weren’t much tougher, as each lost to
Wilkie 7-3. Matt Krah put up more of a
fight but still succumbed 7-4.
The bottom half of the bracket was
led by Eddie Abraham, who didn’t go
M A.
ORT
4:29 PM
D E .
egor
er
6/6/06
C T.
vich
46-July-August-2006
A L .
F L .
GA.
K Y.
M S .
NC .
S C .
T N.
VA.
W V
46-July-August-2006
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4:31 PM
Page 82
KATRINA BENEFIT WON BY JONES
NELSON TAKES A TAMPA WIN
MCDERMOTT ALL-AMERICAN TOUR / MOSS POINT, MS
KBP TIGER FLORIDA LADIES AMATEUR 9-BALL TOUR / TAMPA, FL
by InsidePOOL Staff
The McDermott AllAmerican Tour staged a special event Saturday, April 15,
when they held a Katrina
Survivors Benefit tournament.
Featuring a $500-added purse,
this event attracted 32 players
and was hosted by the Gulf
Coast Billiards Association at
Miss-A-Bama Country Palace
in Moss Point, MS.
Todd West marched undefeated through the winners’
bracket, besting Mike Jones in
the hot seat match. David
Nelson defeated Joey Knight
in the quarterfinal match, relegating him to fourth place.
Nelson advanced to meet
Mike Jones in the semifinals
and faltered, which meant that
Jones went on to the finals
against West. Coming from
the one-loss side, Jones had to
win both sets to earn the title,
and with quality shooting
skills, he prevailed.
Mike Croney, Claude Napier, Link Pendley
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
Mike Jones
Todd West
David Nelson
Joey Knight
Bob Walker
Ralph West
LEWIS TAKES THE WIN
KBP CENTRAL FLORIDA AMATEUR 9-BALL TOUR / TAMPA, FL
by Kay Higgins
Young gun Josh Lewis
came out ahead of a 37-player field for the KBP Central
Florida Amateur 9-Ball Tour.
This one-day, $500-added
event saw a lot of talent come
out to Fatso’s Billiards in
Tampa, FL, the first time the
tour had stopped at this room.
While Jeremy Bell
earned the hot seat match
over Tim Daniel that went
double-hill, Julio Delpozo
and Josh Lewis faced off in
the quarterfinals, where
Lewis relegated Bell to fourth
place. Remaining true to
form, Lewis kept up his sharshooting skills and ousted
Daniel in the semifinals,
going on to meet Bell in the
final match.
Bell and Lewis were neck
and neck throughout the
match, always within a game
of each other. A missed shot
by Bell gave Lewis a chance
at the table to knot the score
at 6, and then, after the players traded the next four racks,
a missed 4 ball by Bell gave
Lewis all the opportunity he
needed to win the match 9-8.
82 InsidePOOL Magazine - July/August 2006
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
Josh Lewis
Jeremy Bell
Tim Daniel
Julio Delpozo
Steve Foster
Dale Derosier
7th Robert Noon
Bill Bloom
by KBP Staff
Fatso’s Billiards in
Tampa, FL, hosted the four
stop on the KBP Tiger
Florida Ladies Amateur 9Ball Tour on April 22, with
13 participating in the oneday $300 event.
Amanda
Davidson
(formerly Snell) and
Jeannie Seaver met in the
quarterfinal match, with
Seaver squeaking by and
leaving her opponent in
fourth place. While the
west side was battling it
out, Stephanie Mitchell
and Jennifer Nelson was
busy playing in the hot seat
match. Nelson jumped
ahead and just seemed to
have the rolls going her
way as she took match with
a 7-3 win. Mitchell went to
the one-loss side to face off
with Seaver, where her
competitive energy must
have kicked in, for she
ousted Seaver by a stunning 5-0.
The final race to 9 match
saw both Nelson and
Mitchell showing their
skills as they battled for the
first-place spot and the
entry. The score see-sawed
back and forth, but it was
Nelson who took the 9-8
win.
1st Jennifer Nelson
2nd Stephanie Mitchell
3rd Vanessa Seaver
46-July-August-2006
6/6/06
4:38 PM
Page 83
Rule Changes!
PA, FL
Available now!
Billiards: The Official
Rules & Records Book
2006 edition
Contains the updated world-standardized
rules for: 8-Ball & 9-Ball • 14.1 &
One-Pocket • Snooker & Caroms and
much more!
Order today from your
favorite billiard retailer.
Find one near you at
enjoypool.com!
Produced and published by Billiard Congress of America
46-July-August-2006
6/6/06
4:40 PM
Page 84
FIRST PLACE FOR DAVIS AND BARNES
A L .
F L .
GA.
K Y.
M S .
NC .
S C .
T N.
VA.
W V
MCDERMOTT ALL-AMERICAN TOUR / NORFOLK, VA
by InsidePOOL Staff
A $1,000-added purse attracted
26 men and 15 women to Flipper
McCoy’s in Norfolk, VA, the weekend of April 28-29. Because of the
large contingency of women, a separate division was arranged, and Jack
Davis and Toni Barnes came out the
winners
of
their
respective
McDermott All-American Tour
events.
Davis went through to the finals
unscathed, dispatching Bernard
Andico 7-3 in the hot seat match.
Harry Kernodle eliminated Jeff Smith
5-1 in the one-loss side, advancing to
meet Vern Steinke in the quarterfinal
match. Steinke then stopped Kernodle
in his tracks, sending him home with
fourth place by a 5-4 margin, and he
continued to finish off Andico 5-2 in
the semifinals. Davis survived a firstset drubbing 2-7 by Steinke to recover
with a 7-5 win in the second.
Barnes had a similar experience in
the women’s division, marching undefeated to the hot seat by sending
Cassandra Johnson to the one-loss side
5-3. Cheryl Prichard clipped Mary
Ellen Clements 3-2 in the quarterfinal
match and marched on to the finals by
dispatching Johnson 3-1.
The finals were a character tester,
as Pritchard took the first set by a narrow 5-4 margin only to be bested in
the second by Barnes 5-4 for the tournament win.
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
Jack Davis
Vern Steinke
Bernard Andico
Harry Kernodle
Jeff Smith
David Swartz
1st Toni Barnes
2nd Cheryl Pritchard
3rd Cassandra Johnson
7th Billy Tipton
Tommy Sullivan
9th John Wertenbach
Dwayne Theirjung
Patrick Espino
Frank Haniball
4th Mary Ellen Clements
5th Carla Rossetti
Connie Rhodes
ULRICH SNAPS OFF COLUMBUS OPEN SCHJODT POSTS SPIRIT TOUR WIN
J. PECHAUER SOUTHEAST OPEN 9-BALL TOUR / COLUMBUS, GA
by InsidePOOL Staff
San Diego, CA, transplant Louis Ulrich
snapped off the J. Pechauer Southeast Open 9Ball Tour’s Columbus Open the weekend of
April 29-30. Held at Golden Cue in Columbus,
GA, the $1,000-added stop attracted 24 players
and set them to work on the room’s 9-foot tables.
The first day of the event saw Ellen Hale
and Jared Stephens earn $50 each for being the
highest lady and junior finisher, respectively, at
the event. On Sunday, only a handful of players
remained, ready to fight to the finish. Monroe
Jones and Larry Hayes battled in the quarterfinal
match, with Jones forging ahead with a 9-6 win.
He went on to meet George Rothrock, who had
just suffered a stunning 9-3 defeat at the hands of
Ulrich in the winners’-side finals.
The semifinal match was a close one, but
Rothrock seemed determined to avenge his earlier loss and took the match 9-7. In the finals, a
rematch of the hot seat, Ulrich was cool and collected, earning the title with his 11-7 victory.
“I’ve been having a great time playing in
various tournaments since I moved to Atlanta,”
reported Ulrich after the event, “and, of course,
am glad to have won the
event! I’d like to thank
Tommy Kennedy, the
host room Golden Cue, 1st Louis Ulrich
and my sponsors Tiger 2nd George Rothrock
Products and Ned 3rd Monroe Jones
4th Larry Hayes
Morris Custom Cues.” 5th Craig Houghton
Randy Lee
84 InsidePOOL Magazine - July/August 2006
LADIES SPIRIT TOUR / DELRAY BEACH, FL
by J.A. Barnes
Out of a field of 32 determined
ladies, all fighting for the WPBA
qualifier to the Florida Classic,
Debbie Schjodt emerged triumphant
with the prize. Held April 29-30 at
Jumpshots Sportsbar & Billiards in
Delray Beach, FL, the event’s qualifier
was
donated
by
LTLUniverse.com.
Schjodt advanced to the hot seat
match by virtue of a 7-4 victory over
Tracie Hines, while Veronique
Menard met her there after winning
7-2 over Stephanie Mitchell. Menard
took the first rack, but Schjodt
jumped in to tie and then won 5 of
the next 6 games to lead 6-2. After a
safety battle on the 2 ball, Schjodt
took ball in hand to clear the table
and close the set at 7-2.
Menard took to the B-side to
face Hines, and the players traded
racks to knot the score at 3. Then
Hines took control, dominating the
set to charge ahead to a 6-3 lead.
Menard made a stand in the final
rack, but a position error on the 8
ball cost her dearly, and she gave ball
in hand to Hines, who pocketed the
last two balls and moved on to the
finals with a 7-3 victory.
Schjodt and Hines seemed
evenly matched in the double-elim
ination final match, and the score
seesawed to 6 racks apiece. This
game was critical for Schjodt, for a
win by Hines would force the second set. Schjodt ran out but missed
a critical shot on the 6 ball; however, she was reprieved when Hines
missed the 7. With only three balls
left, Schjodt had no trouble clearing
up to secure the victory and the
qualifier.
Debbie Schjodt
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
Debbie Schjodt
Tracie Hines
Veronique Menard
Xiaoting Pan
Jeannie Seaver
Stephanie Mitchell
7th
9th
Jessica Barnes
Laura Lindauer
Bonnie Coats
Vanessa Seaver
Kelly Coyle
Crystal McCormick
Page 85
THE ROCKET SHOOTS TO THE TOP
SEMINOLE FLORIDA PRO TOUR / TAMPA, FL
K Y.
M S .
NC .
Rodney Morris, John Ditoro
Rodney Morris
Robb Saez
Trevor Braymore
Troy Frank
Louis Ulrich
Butch Croft
7th Neil Fujiwara
Jeremy Jones
9th Chris Bartram
Tony Crosby
Jimmy Wetch
Richard Broumpton
13th Dave Broxson
Charlie Williams
Ben Conway Jr.
John Schmidt
www.InsidePOOLmag.com 85
W V
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
VA.
flew past Braymore 8-2 to wait in the
hot seat, while Braymore moved over
to play Saez for the second time in
two rounds. Saez bested Braymore
double-hill in their second match-up
after losing by the same margin the
first time around. This led to the
colossal final match of Morris and
Saez in a single race to 9. Although
Saez fought hard, Morris would not
be denied, as he took the match 9-6.
T N.
Schmidt were each pointed to the exit,
as was Dave Broxson, another of the
tour’s consistent finishers. On the
winners’ side, Butch “The Butcher”
Croft bested Tony Crosby in a doublehill match, while Morris and Robb
Saez continued to chalk up victims. In
the next round, on the left side, Troy
Frank scorched Jimmy Wetch to stay
alive, while Ulrich squeaked past
Crosby double-hill. Also, Florida’s
Neil Fujiwara knocked out Chris
Bartram, while Jeremy “Double J”
Jones did the same to Richard
Broumpton.
Moving along, Ulrich knocked
out Fujiwara to stay alive only to be
eliminated by Saez in the next round.
Frank defeated Jones and then Croft,
but then he lost to Saez in the top four.
On the way to the top four, Saez
received his first loss from Braymore,
while Morris continued to go undefeated by moving past Croft. Morris
S C .
by Rick Davis
“Rocket” Rodney Morris blasted
past the competition to take first
place at the Florida Pro Tour’s fourth
stop, held at Planet 9-Ball in Tampa,
FL. The May 6-7 event drew 63 players, just 1 shy of the announced maximum, to compete on the Robertsons
9-foot tables with Simonis cloth in
the winner-breaks, race-to-7 format.
An impressive collection of
players were in attendance to compete for the $8,000-added purse,
including Hall of Famers, local tour
regulars, and internationally known
masters. The day began with no
major pair-ups in the opening round,
although the difference in skill was
apparent, as the scores often showed
the defeated player only taking two
or three racks.
The fallout began on the one-loss
side when Richie Richeson eliminated Ray “Cool Cat” Martin, although
Richeson fell in the next round to
Louis Ulrich. Corey Deuel knocked
out tour regular Donnie Mills 7-2,
while Hunter Lombardo eliminated
Sparky Ferrell by the same margin.
Tour director John DiToro lost a
tough battle against Gabe Owen,
while recent Hall of Fame inductee
Earl Strickland was also eliminated.
Nick Varner, another Hall of Famer,
and Owen fell in the next round, thinning out the popular choices for a
possible winner.
As the event moved towards the
end of the first day, a few surprises
were in store as the players raced to
return in the top 16 on Sunday.
Charlie “The Korean Dragon”
Williams defeated Deuel, while
Buddy Hall and B.J. Ussery, who
won the tour’s second event, also
shocked the crowd by getting eliminated. It was clear that the competition was fierce, since the Hall of
Famers, previous U.S. Open champions, and a handful of players who
had finished in the top four in previous events did not even see play on
Day Two.
Sunday’s matches showcased
some of the best players around, and
there were no clear favorites even
with the dust settling from the previous day. On the one-loss side,
Williams and John “Mr. 400”
GA.
Barnes
indauer
Coats
a Seaver
oyle
McCormick
4:41 PM
F L .
Clements
setti
odes
6/6/06
A L .
livan
enbach
eirjung
pino
ball
46-July-August-2006
46-July-August-2006
6/6/06
4:43 PM
Page 86
LOMBARDO FINDS SUCCESS AT JUMPSHOTS
A L .
F L .
GA.
K Y.
M S .
NC .
S C .
T N.
VA.
W V
J. PECHAUER SOUTHEAST OPEN 9-BALL TOUR / DELRAY BEACH, FL
by InsidePOOL Staff
Tenacious Hunter Lombardo,
well-known in the South, took off the
J. Pechauer Southeast Open 9-Ball
Tour when it hit Delray, FL. The May
13-14 stop was hosted by Jumpshots
Sports Bar & Billiards and featured a
$1,000-added purse, attracting a field
of 26.
Lombardo worked his way
through the one-loss side, tackling
tour director Tommy “TK” Kennedy
in the quarterfinals. After ousting
Kennedy with a stunning 9-2 score,
Lombardo advanced meet Nathan
Rose in the semis. Rose had just come
from the hot seat match, where he
played Richard Broumpton and was
sent to the one-loss side 9-7. Rose’s
luck wasn’t much better against
Lombardo, who sent him packing
after winning their double-hill match.
Advancing to the finals, Lombardo
kept the momentum going and bested
Broumpton 11-6 for the title.
1st Hunter Lombardo
2nd Richard Broumpton
3rd Nathan Rose
4th Tommy Kennedy
5th Brandon Thomas
Tom Karlis
ENGERT CAPTURES FLORIDA PREDATOR OPEN
UPA PREDATOR FLORIDA OPEN / JACKSONVILLE, FL
by Rick Davis
Thomas “The Lean Machine” Engert fought through the
toughest field the Predator Florida Open has seen in its six
years, and after four long days, he captured the title. This was
double the pleasure for the German star, as it was his first UPA
Tour win.
The professional event that took place May 24-28 in
Jacksonville, FL, was the crown jewel of the week’s activities.
In addition to the pro open, an amateur open, a charity pro-am,
and a celebrity basketball game were staged. Roughly 1,000
amateurs attended, along with the impressive list of pros, who
were in the middle of a solid month of play, as many arrived
from the EnjoyPool.com 9-Ball Championships the prior week
and would go on to attend the World 14.1 Championships the
following week. Because of this, a larger contingent of international players was on hand. Also, the event counted as a stop
on the Florida Pro Tour, so many regulars from that found their
way to the event.
Like the Florida Pro Tour, this event was 10-ball, making
it the first 10-ball event that the UPA had sanctioned. Most of
the top pros are pushing for 10-ball events because of the higher skill needed for play and the removal of many problems that
a 9-ball rack can spawn.
The 128-player board gave nearly everyone a bye in the
opening round, as well as the first round of the one-loss side.
Early play saw some powerful upsets, such as Sparky Ferrell’s
9-7 surprise win over Johnny Archer and Go Takami’s hill-hill
victory over Earl Strickland. The winners’ side for the entire
event seemed to be a four-man wrecking crew as Shawn
Putnam, Engert, Mika Immonen, and Corey Deuel tore
through each of their opponents and went undefeated for four
rounds.
Hohmann met fellow countryman Engert in the right side
of the bracket and was dealt his first loss 9-6. Engert advanced
to oust Putnam from the winners’ side 9-4, who went on to be
eliminated by Orcollo 9-1.
After a 9-4 loss to Immonen, Deuel had to play back-toback matches in the one-loss side, cruising through Jeremy
Jones 9-4 and then kept control over Dennis Orcollo 9-6,
though he fouled five times on the break in this match.
Immonen went on to meet Engert in the hot seat match, in
which the German took a decisive 9-2 victory, setting himself
up for the finals.
86 InsidePOOL Magazine - July/August 2006
Playing convincingly, Deuel
dismantled
Immonen 9-3 in the
semifinals and went
on to face Engert.
The finals didn’t
begin well for the
2004 InsidePOOL
Magazine Player of
the Year, as he
missed an early 8
ball to trail 1-0, but
that was the only
time he didn’t hold
the lead in this
Thomas Engert
match.
Deuel’s
multiple
errors
caught up with him, and Engert reached the hill 10-5 before
making a glaring mistake by missing the 10 ball in the side
pocket. After trading shots several times on the 10, Engert
finally pocketed it for his 10-5 victory. Letting out a shout, he
celebrated with his German friends Ralf Souquet and
Hohmann.
“This is my first big win in America in a major tournament. I look forward to coming back to defend this title. It’s a
really good feeling,” stated the excited Engert.
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
Thomas Engert
Corey Deuel
Mika Immonen
Dennis Orcollo
Shawn Putnam
Jeremy Jones
7th Thorsten Hohmann
Ralf Souquet
9th Gandy Valle
Marcus Chamat
Carlos Cabello
Fabio Petroni
13th Johnny Archer
Go Takami
Timothy Hall
Dave Grossman
17th Tony Crosby
Danny Hewitt
Dennis Hatch
Sparky Ferrell
Butch Croft
Andreas Koukiadakis
Rodolfo Luat
Mike Davis
6/6/06
4:45 PM
Page 87
UPCOMING TOURNAMENTS SOUTHEAST
M S .
Eligibility
Pros
Amateurs
Amateurs
Open
Amateurs
State residents
Amateurs
Amateurs
Amateurs
Open
Amateurs
Amateurs
Open
Amateurs
Open
Open
Amateurs
Amateurs
Amateurs
Open
Open
Amateurs
Amateurs
K Y.
$ Added
N/A
$300
$500
$1,000
$500
N/A
$500
$300
$300
$1,000
$500
$300
$1,000
$500
$500
$1,000
$500
$300
$500
$10,000
$2,000
$500
$500
GA.
Tournament
Venue
City, ST
Contact
WPBA Florida Classic
Seminole Hard Rock Casino Hollywood, FL
704-344-8664
KBP Tiger Florida Ladies’ Tour Strokers Billiards
Palm Harbor, FL 727-786-6683
KBP Central Florida Tour
Strokers Billiards
Palm Harbor, FL 727-786-6683
J. Pechauer Southeast Open 9-Ball Stix N Stones
Palatka, FL
386-326-3605
KBP Adrenaline North Florida Tour Bankshot Billiards
Ocala, FL
352-867-8100
Virginia State 9-Ball Championships The Playing Field
Richmond, VA
804-358-7665
KBP Central Florida Tour
Fast Break Billiards
Longwood, FL
407-830-1036
KBP Central Florida Tour
Planet 9 Ball
Tampa, FL
813-818-7665
KBP Florida Ladies’ Tour
Planet 9 Ball
Tampa, FL
813-818-7665
J. Pechauer Southeast Open 9-Ball Crooked Cue
Waynesville, NC 828-456-2802
KBP South Florida Tour
Cue Time Billiards
Sebring, FL
863-471-2202
KBP Tiger Florida Ladies’ Tour Fast Break Billiards
Longwood, FL
407-830-1036
J. Pechauer Southeast Open 9-Ball Sevierville Billiard Club
Sevierville, TN
865-300-7957
KBP Central Florida Tour
Fast Break Billiards
Longwood, FL
407-830-1036
Tiger Planet Pool 8-Ball Tour First Break Café
Sterling, VA
703-444-2551
J. Pechauer Southeast Open 9-Ball Yauhannah Billiards
Georgetown, SC 843-545-5220
KBP Adrenaline North Florida Tour Anastasia Billiards
St. Augustine, FL 904-461-9224
KBP Tiger Florida Ladies’ Tour Strokers Billiards
Palm Harbor, FL 727-786-6683
KBP Central Florida Tour
Strokers Billiards
Palm Harbor, FL 727-786-6683
The Carolina’s Open
Fast Eddie’s Sports Bar & GrillGoldsboro, NC
757-376-1076
J. Pechauer Southeast Open 9-Ball Southside Billiard Club
Savannah, GA
912-925-5398
KBP Adrenaline 8-Ball Tour
Poolies Billiards
Palm Bay, FL
321-951-7560
KBP Central Florida Tour
Old Time Billiards
New Port Richey, FL 727-849-9225
F L .
Date
6/28-7-2
7/8
7/9
7/15-16
7/16
7/22-23
7/23
8/6
8/12
8/12-13
8/13
8/19
8/19-20
8/20
8/26-27
8/26-27
8/27
9/9
9/10
9/11-17
9/16-17
9/16-17
9/17
A L .
nnedy
homas
46-July-August-2006
NC .
S C .
T N.
VA.
W V
www.InsidePOOLmag.com 87
46-July-August-2006
6/9/06
5:11 PM
Page 88
A R .
I A.
I L .
KS .
L A.
M I .
M N.
M O .
N D .
N E .
O K .
S D .
T X .
W I .
BRANNEN BACK ON TOP
HUNTER CLASSICS AMATEUR WOMEN’S TOUR / LAKE JACKSON, TX
by InsidePOOL Staff
Lisa Brannen showed up in the
winners’ circle once again, besting a
43-player field on the Hunter
Classics Amateur Women’s Tour the
weekend of April 8-9. The tour held
their fourth event of the year at
Shooters II, and several states were
represented,
including
Texas,
Oklahoma, California, Florida,
Arkansas, and New Mexico.
Eighteen-year-old
Anna
Kostanian ran over opponents as she
made her way to the hot seat match
undefeated, besting Brannen there. In
the quarterfinals, Heather Lloyd was
relegated to fourth place by Belinda
Lee, who went on to be defeated by
Brannen in the semifinals.
In the rematch with Kostanian,
Brannen played strong and won the
first set 7-2 to force a second set in the
true double-elimination finals. The
second set was a reverse of the first, as
Kostanian led the match 4-1. But
Brannen fought back and turned the
match around to take the lead 6-5. A
tricky combo on the 9 ball by
Kostanian tied the match hill-hill.
Though both players were at the table
in the final rack, it was Brannen who
was left with only two balls to sink
for the victory, which she easily handled.
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
Lisa Brannen
Anna Kostanian
Belinda Lee
Heather Lloyd
Brandi Booth
Courtney Peters
7th Kyu Yi
Tara McCracken
9th Cristina De la Garza
Snowy Belt
Emily Wilmoth
Julie Stephenson
ALL-AMERICAN WIN FOR WILDER
MCDERMOTT ALL-AMERICAN TOUR / STERLING, IL
by InsidePOOL Staff
Dustin Gunia took a long, scenic
trip to the finals of the McDermott
All-American Tour’s stop at Big Dog
Billiards in Des Moines, IL, before
he came out on top. Held April 29,
the one-day event featured a $1,000added purse with 39 players all trying
for their piece of it.
After losing his first match,
Gunia had an uphill climb to the final
match, finishing off Lee Norton 5-3
and then moving on to eclipse Chad
Vilmont 5-3 in the quarterfinals. In the
hot seat match, Tony Wilson outlasted
Dwaine Bowman, defeating him 4-3
and sending him to the west side to
meet Gunia. Keeping his momentum
going, Gunia ousted Bowman 5-3 and
went on to challenge Wilson in the
finals. Even though Gunia had to
defeat his opponent in both sets, he
didn’t think twice about it, forging
ahead to earn the title by virtue of his
5-2, 5-2 victories.
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
Dustin Gunia
Tony Wilson
Dwaine Bowman
Chad Vilmont
Lee Norton
Jesse Bowman
7th Mike Bennett
Mike Athens
9th Victor Granstaff
Scott Kitto
Som Phet
Jamie Fenton
STEWART NOTCHES A WIN IN SAN ANTONIO
FAST EDDIE’S OLHAUSEN 9-BALL TOUR / SAN ANTONIO, TX
by Bill Fuller
Returning to the scene of the
tour’s first event ever, the Fast
Eddie’s Olhausen 9-Ball Tour came
back to Fast Eddie’s-Culebra in San
Antonio May 6-7. With a whopping
88 players, it was tough to pick a
favorite, but action man Robert
Stewart was in the winners’ circle at
the end of the day.
James Davis Sr. holds the number-two spot in the tour’s ranking
system, having won the previous
stop. He matched up with current
points leader Jui-Lung Chen of
Dallas in the quarterfinals, with Chen
won the match double-hill.
A quiet man, Chen’s opponents
have learned not to be fooled by his
constant smile; however, he finally
88 InsidePOOL Magazine - July/August 2006
match, with Stewart coming out
ahead hill-hill. Now in their rematch,
Stewart jumped out to a 5-3 lead in
the race to 9 only to see it disappear,
with Marrier taking over 7-5 with
three quick games with combos on
the 9 ball. Looking like it would go a
second set, Stewart took command
and won the next 4 games and the
title.
Claude Marrier, Robert Stewart
succumbed to Claude Marrier in the
semifinals and settled for a third-place
finish.
Marrier, a Houston resident out of
Canada, fought his way through the
field to face Stewart in the hot seat
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
Robert Stewart
Claude Marrier
Jui-Lung Chen
James Davis Sr.
Hassan Hosein
Vivian Villareal
7th Danny Almaraz
Kenny Greer
9th Albert Luna
Manuel Ayala
Rick Stanley
Manny Guerra
YI EARNS ANOTHER FAST EDDIE’S WIN
FAST EDDIE’S OLHAUSEN 9-BALL TOUR / SAN ANTONIO, TX
by Bill Fuller
The field at the May 6-7 stop of
the Fast Eddie’s Olhausen 9-Ball
Tour was loaded with talent, and onethird had won at least one event on
the tour. Held in San Antonio, TX,
the Fast Eddie’s on Culebra hosted 20
ladies, all with the intent to win, but
previous tour winner Kyu Yi ended
up taking top honors.
Fourth place went to Michelle
Cortez of Austin, while Belinda Lee
earned third place after being ousted
by Amanda Lampert.
Meanwhile, Yi, who hails from
San Antonio, was quietly working her
way to the hot seat. With one of the
best breaks around, she is becoming a
force to be reckoned with.
The format was a race to 7 and a race
to 5, alternating break. The first set of
the finals seesawed back and forth,
with Lampert reaching the hill first at
6-5. Kyu tied it up at hill-hill with a
crucial cross-side bank on the 7 ball,
but Lampert took the final game to
force a second match.
Again, the ladies traded games to
3-3, when Yi cleared to reach the hill
first. Lampert worked her way
through the next rack only to come
up a little out of line on the 6, 7, and
8 balls, which she made. She was
forced to settle for a half-table cut on
the 9, only to have it jaw in the corner pocket, easy pickings for Yi, who
sank it for the victory.
1st Kyu Yi
2nd Amanda Lampert
3rd Belinda Lee
4th Michelle Cortez
City, ST
Contact
Clicks Billiards
Par-a-dice Hotel & Casino
Legends Billiards
Carom Club
Bogie’s Billiards
Rosemont Convention Center
Waco, TX
East Peoria, IL
League City, TX
Albuquerque, NM
Houston, TX
Chicago, IL
254-776-2261
$2,000 + qual. Amateurs
704-344-8664
N/A
Pros
281-332-7716
$2,000 + qual. Amateurs
505-242-1966
$2,000 + qual. Amateurs
281-821-4544
$2,000 + qual. Amateurs
internationalpooltour.com $1,270,000
Members
1308 Parkway Drive
Goldsboro, NC 27530
The
Eligibility
Minimum of $10,000 added
presents:
September
11-17, 2006
Hotel Accomodations (must be booked three weeks in advance)
Holiday Inn Goldsboro
909 Spencer Ave
(919) 751-1999
Special Rates:
$65 / night double occupancy
$450 / week double occupancy
Comfort Suites
2613 N. Park Drive
(919) 759-0098
Email comfortsuitesgoldsboro@yahoo.com
Virtual tour www.waynecountychamber.com
$65 / night standard suite
Sponsored By: Irish Inns, Comfort Suites, Holiday Inn Goldsboro, On Cue Sports Bar, Tar Heel Amusements, Dr. Jay Collie, Roy Butler,
Cameron’s Clubhouse, Fun Products, Dunlevy’s, Wanda’s, and Lucille Hooker
www.InsidePOOLmag.com 89
W I .
Irish Inns
1104 Sunburst Drive
(919) 778-1400
Between Wal-Mart and Target
Special Rate: $49.95
Night double occupancy
T X .
For Sponsorship, call Bucky Braxton (252) 341-0525
For Sponsor’s Hotel, call Gene Hooker (252) 560-1396
`Tournament Promoters:
Gene Hooker, Bucky Braxton,
Dave Kindrock, and Frank Owens
S D .
Dress Code - Casual Dress - No Sweatsuits
O K .
For More Information Call
Tournament Director Buxton Turner
(757) 376-1076 Before September 9th
(919) 759-0071 After September 9th
N E .
One Pocket Tournament
September 11-12
$2,500 Added
Based on 32 players- $100 entry fee ($85 tourney fee, $15 green fee)- Limited to 64 players
Race to 3 – Double Elimination – finals Race to 5
Mandatory Player’s Meeting Monday, September 11th, 12:00pm
9-Ball Tournament
September 13-17
$2,500 Added
Based on 128 players- $100 entry fee ($85 tourney fee, $15 green fee)-Limited to 128 players
Race to 11- Double Elimination- finals Race to 15
Mandatory Player’s Meeting Wednesday, September 13th, 12:00pm
N D .
Carolina’s Open
M O .
Fast
Eddie’s
Sports Bar and Grill
$ Added
M N.
Venue
Hunter Classics Amateur Women’s
WPBA Midwest Classic
Hunter Classics Amateur Women’s
Hunter Classics Amateur Women’s
Hunter Classics Championship
IPT Masters 8-Ball Championship
M I .
Tournament
7/15-16
7/26-30
8/19-20
9/23-24
10/28-29
11/26-12/3
L A.
UPCOMING TOURNAMENTS CENTRAL
Date
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46-July-August-2006
46-July-August-2006
6/6/06
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Page 90
CRONK CRANKS OUT A WIN
A K .
A Z .
C A .
C O .
H I .
I D .
M T.
N M .
N V.
O R .
U T.
WA .
W Y.
MCDERMOTT ALL-AMERICAN TOUR / ROSEBURG, OR
by InsidePOOL Staff
Mike Cronk of Myrtle Creek,
OR, bested a field of 42 players at the
April 8-9 stop of the McDermott AllAmerican Tour. Held at Yogee’s in
Roseburg, OR, this stop featured
double-elimination 9-ball on 7-foot
bar tables.
Cronk went undefeated through
the winners’ bracket, besting Tom
Huynh in the hot seat match, which
went double-hill. On the B-side, Ken
Cavener eliminated Randy Baker 73, while Greg Christensen ousted his
son Jesse Christensen 7-2. Cavener
then finished Christensen’s run by a 73 margin in the quarterfinals, only to
be turned out himself by Huynh in the
semis.
Advancing to the finals, Huynh
had to defeat Cronk twice to gain the
title. He succeeded in the first set by a
7-5 score, only to have Cronk turn the
tables with an identical 7-5 margin in
the tournament finals to claim the
championship.
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
Mike Cronk
Tom Huynh
Ken Cavener
Greg Christensen
Jesse Christensen
Randy Baker
7th Bruce Deal
Brent Galloup
9th Bret Baker
Carlos Rodriguez
Rick VanBerger
Alberto Ayala
13th Jay Krause
Eric Baird
Joey Christensen
Dave Butler
CHAVEZ OUSTS YOUNG GUN FOR SHOOTER’S WIN
SHOOTER’S BILLIARD CAFÉ / RIVERSIDE, CA
by Carissa Biggs
Bernardo “King Kong” Chavez
worked his way through a field of
nearly 70 players Memorial Day
weekend at Shooter’s Billiards in
Riverside, CA.
Chavez met Johannes Kauhanen
in the hot seat match where the
young, straight shooter battled back
from behind to take the point by a
slim 9-7 margin. Chavez then faced
Alex Laoingco on the west side in a
hill-hill nail biter. In the final game,
Laoingco looked to be in complete
control as he speared in a tough,
back-cut 1 ball, but he made a mental
error executing his shape from the 3
regaining the advantage in the match.
Kauhanen seemed to have more control over the individual games, but in
the end, Chavez closed out the finals
with a 13-11 victory over the Finnish
19-year-old.
Bernardo Chavez
ball to the 4 ball and scratched.
Chavez made sure to keep control of
the table to pull out the win and a
chance for revenge at Kauhanen.
The final match, a single race to
13, saw Kauhanen and Chavez seesaw
back and forth, relinquishing and
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
Bernardo Chavez
Johannes Kauhanen
Alex Laoingco
Dave Hemmah
Corey Harper
David Nakano
7th Fach Garcia
Don McClelland
9th John Bryant
Damian Alishan
Randy Paguio
Marshall Jung
13th Tang Hoa
Lorry DeLeon
Nick Spano
Frank Howe
UPCOMING TOURNAMENTS WESTERN
Date
Tournament
City, ST
Contact
$ Added
Eligibility
7/22-23 Arizona Women’s Billiards Tour Alexander’s Bar & Grill
Phoenix, AZ
602-973-1638
$500
Ladies
7/22-30 IPT North American 8-Ball Open The Venetian
Las Vegas, NV
internationalpooltour.com $2,000,000
Open
8/19-20 Arizona Women’s Billiards Tour Pockets
Tucson, AZ
520-571-9421
Ladies
9/2-10
IPT World 8-Ball Open
Reno, NV
internationalpooltour.com $3,000,000
Open
10/4
International Speed Pool Challenge ESPN Zone
Las Vegas, NV
860-379-8414
$50,000
Invitational
10/4-5
Trick Shot Magic
ESPN Zone
Las Vegas, NV
860-379-8414
$50,000
Invitational
Sandia Casino
Albuquerque, NM 704-344-8664
N/A
Pros
Phoenix, AZ
480-272-2016
$500
Ladies
Lincoln City, OR
704-344-8664
N/A
Pros
10/18-22 WPBA U.S. Open 9-Ball
11/4-5
Venue
Reno Hilton
Arizona Women’s Billiards Tour Metro Sportz Bar
11/8-12 WPBA National 9-Ball Champs Chinook Winds Casino
90 InsidePOOL Magazine - July/August 2006
$500
driguez
erger
ala
e
tensen
r
ryant
Alishan
Paguio
ll Jung
oa
eLeon
pano
Howe
46-July-August-2006
6/6/06
4:59 PM
Page 91
46-July-August-2006
6/6/06
5:02 PM
Page 92
NO PAIN FOR ACHE
SETO WINS WPBA QUALIFIER
Wo r l d
R e p o r t
TIGER CANADIAN WOMEN’S POOLTOUR / NORTH YORK, ONT
by Carolina Fernandez
The Tiger Canadian Women’s Pool Tour (CWPT)
held a major event April 8-9, 2006, with local pro
Maureen “Mo” Seto scoring the title and WPBA qualifier. The 30-player field was studded with tough competition, including Hsin Huang, a WPBA touring pro.
In the hot seat match, Seto squared off against Nikki
Manzer and came out ahead with a strong 7-1 win. Over
on the B-side, the quarterfinal match pitted Terri “Tiger”
Mason against Naomi Williams. After trading games back
and forth, the score was knotted at 5, and Mason surged
ahead to win 7-5.
Mason then advanced to the semifinal match against
Manzer, who had deposited Mason in the B-side earlier in
the tournament. Mason was motivated, though, and took
the match with a whopping 7-0 score.
The double-elimination final match went back and
forth and finally see-sawed to 5-all. Despite an early foul
by Mason, Seto was unable to capitalize and run out,
hanging the 9 ball in the jaws. Mason reached the hill
courtesy of that routine pot and then took the first match
after Seto scratched on the 9 in the next rack.
A few costly errors quickly saw Seto take a 4-1 lead
in the second set, and then flawless play in the next 2 racks
put her on the hill. Under the
gun, Mason pocketed a 3-9
combo and then cleared the
table in the next rack to bring
the score to 6-3. Abuzz rose
in the room as Seto stepped
up to break. The 1 ball flew
into the side pocket, and she
calmly ran the table for her Maureen Seto, Terri Mason
7-3 victory.
1st Maureen Seto
2nd Terri Mason
3rd Nikki Manzer
4th Naomi Williams
5th Hsin Huang
Dawn Craigie
CANADIAN 20K TOUR / NEWMARTQUET, ONT
by Willy Hermoza
Roberto Ache took first place on the Canadian 20K Tour at Bigwig
Billiards in Newmartquet, ONT. That Easter weekend event drew 52 players,
and tour founder Kenny Chen was present to ensure that
things ran smoothly.
Feared WPBA player Hsin Huang went up against
Ache in the hot seat match and went the distance, heading 1st Roberto Ache
to double-hill with Ache coming out on top. Neil Buzza 2nd Neil Buzza
Hsin Huang
was waiting for Huang in the semifinals, and after a fine dis- 3rd
4th George Cornelius
play, he took the match 7-2. Back on the right side, Buzza 5th Andrew Attard
went up against Ache, who disposed of him with a 9-1
Paul Tytler
score and took first place for the first time.
REPEAT WIN FOR BRANDENBURG
CANADIAN 20K TOUR / BRAMPTON, ONT
by Willy Hermoza
Rob Brandenburg again triumphed
on the Canadian 20K Tour over
Filipino master Ramon Mistica for first
place. Held at The Raxx in Brampton,
ONT, the weekend of April 22-23, the
room was bursting at the seams by
nightfall.
Brandenburg and Doug Huether
went head to head in the hot seat match,
with Brandenburg coming out on top 83. In the quarterfinals, Mistica went up
against Greg Plester, and Mistica
remained true to form, winning the
match 10-4. Now facing Huether,
Mistica eliminated him 9-3. Back on
the A-side now, Mistica went up against
Brandenburg, who was ready for him.
Smoothly Brandenburg dismanted
Mistica 8-5, claiming this stop again.
Ramon Mistica, Rob Brandenburg
1st Rob Brandenburg
2nd Ramon Mistica
3rd
4th
Doug Huether
Greg Plester
HJORLIEFSON HANDLES THE 20K TOUR
20K TOUR / TORONTO, CANADA
by InsidePOOL Staff
Erik Hjorliefson triumphed over a
strong field at Shooters Billiards the
weekend of April 29-30 to earn first
place on the 20K Tour. Though he faltered against Ed Muir in the doubleelimination finals, Hjorliefson regained
his confidence to sweep the second set.
When the final eight players
returned on Sunday, Hjorliefson had no
trouble with his first competitor of the
day, going up against Muir and handily
defeating him 9-1. He went on to meet
Rob Brandenburg, who had just bested
Kenny Chen 8-7, in the hot seat match.
92 InsidePOOL Magazine - July/August 2006
It was an intense match-up, and
Hjorliefson ended up the 9-6 victor.
Muir was busy fighting his way
back to the finals and defeated Chen in
the quarterfinals by a large 7-1 margin.
From there, he went up against
Brandenburg and moved ahead to the
finals. He won the first set 7-5, but
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
Erik Hjorliefson
Ed Muir
Rob Brandenburg
Kenny Chen
5th
7th
Hjorliefson came alive again in the second, sweeping past Muir with a 9-3 win
to claim the stop.
Mike Patrowicz
Ron Ranalli
George Cornelius
Naomi Williams
Erik Hjorliefson
46-July-August-2006
6/9/06
5:13 PM
Page 93
BRYANT BAGS FIRST VICTORY
TIGER CANADIAN WOMEN’S POOL TOUR / WATERLOO, ONT
us
A
by Carolina Fernandez
It was a long night but a great day,
as Brittany Bryant took her first Tiger
Canadian Women’s Pool Tour victory
the weekend of May 6-7. Held at Pool
Paradise in Waterloo, ONT, the event
had $500 added and drew 26 players.
Sunday’s hot seat match pitted
newcomer Bryant against Naomi
Williams. Missing a couple of key shots
and scratching cost Williams two racks,
which gave Bryant the match 5-4.
Williams met Hsin Huang in the semifinals, and after six racks held a 4-2 lead.
The players traded racks back and forth,
and after a 2-9 combo, Huang held a 76 lead. Williams ran the final rack to the
5 ball but rattled it, and Huang swept
past to win the match 8-6 and advance
to the finals against Bryant.
With the double-elimination format, the final match was a marathon.
The score was fairly even at the
beginning, but soon Huang pulled
away to reach the hill 7-3. A 4-9
carom won Huang the first set—now
she just needed to do it again. It
looked as if she had the match sewn
up when she took a 5-1 lead in the second set, but the table turned in
Bryant’s favor, and she closed the gap
and brought the score to double-hill. A
tricky 2-9 combination made her the
youngest player to take first place on
the Tiger CWPT.
Brittany Bryant
1st Brittany Bryant
2nd Hsin Huang
3rd Naomi Williams
4th Danielle Morris
5th Grace Nakamura
Carrie Dwyer
HOLDAWAY FIRST ON 20K TOUR
winning ways, taking the match 10-4.
Now back on the A side, Holdaway
took the first set of the double-elimination finals against Smith 9-3. He then
sent his opponent to the donut shop
with a 9-0 second-set win.
1st Jason Holdaway
2nd Damian Smith
3rd Tyler Nearing
4th Derek Claus
5th Ron Ranalli
Leanne Amable
Jason Holdaway
HUANG CAPTURES 20K STOP
20K TOUR / BARRIE, CAN
by Willy Hermoza
With 45 players showing up at
Dunlop Billiards for the 20K Tour stop
May 27, a new record was set as the
two-day event was compressed into
one. This didn’t seem to bother Hsin
Huang, who recovered from an early
loss to take the whole event.
Leo Sauve was responsible for
sending Huang to the one-loss side
early in the day, and she fought hard to
make it back. After delivering Roberto
Ache to seventh place, she went on to
face down Paul Tytler. In the quarterfinals, she whizzed past Mike Patrowicz
6-1 and then came face to face with
Sauve again. Once was more than
Brian McDougall wrested the hot
seat match from Sauve earlier 7-4 and
waited for his next match. Though both
players were tired when they began the
finals, Huang defeats McDougall 6-3 in
the first set. McDougall made good use
of defense in the next match, but he
only managed to get four racks before
Huang won 6-4.
Hsin Huang
enough for her, and she eliminated
Sauve 6-2.
1st Hsin Huang
2nd Brian
McDougall
3rd Leo Sauve
4th Mike Patrowicz
5th Paul Tytler
Hal Borchardt
www.InsidePOOLmag.com 93
R e p o r t
er
r
by Willy Hermoza
Thirty-seven players converged at
Strokers Billiards in London, ONT, for
the 20K Tour’s May 13 stop. With double points being awarded, it was a popular event, and Jason Holdaway was
triumphant with his win over Damian
Smith in the finals.
After a 9-4 victory over Derek
Claus in the quarterfinals, Holdaway
advanced to the semifinals against
Tyler Nearing. There he continued his
Wo r l d
20K TOUR / LONDON, ONT
46-July-August-2006
6/6/06
7:20 PM
Page 94
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94 InsidePOOL Magazine - July/August 2006
46-July-August-2006
6/9/06
5:31 PM
Page 95
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Entries can be submitted in two ways. By mail, entries must be postmarked by August 22. E-mails through
www.insidepoolmag.com must be submitted no later than midnight August 31. We will contact the winner by phone and
announce it on our website. The winner receives a Viking cue with a retail value of $300-$400 and a one-year subscription
to InsidePOOL Magazine.
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46-July-August-2006
6/6/06
5:05 PM
Page 96
LAST MONTH’S
WINNER
Preparing to demonstrate his world famous
"Pinocchio shot," Deno starts with thinking of
a really good lie.
Steven Gatlin - Salem, Oregon
To enter the contest,
log onto www.insidepoolmag.com.
96 InsidePOOL Magazine - July/August 2006
>>
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