July/August - Inside Pool Magazine

Transcription

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July/August 2008
CONTENTS
INSTRUCTION
On the Cover
May was a big month for Alex
Pagulayan. Not only did he
fend off Shane Van Boening in
another challenge match during the BCA Pool League
Nationals, he also won the
prestigious PartyPoker.net
World Pool Masters, a 16-player invitational held in Las
Vegas by Matchroom Sport.
16 Grady’s Grad School
Three Time-Honored “Bugs” Favorites
18 This Is Your Captain Speaking
For the full story, please visit
page 46.
A War Fought by Other Means
20 Pro Pool Workout
9-Ball Banks
22 Tricknology
“Oops... I Meant to Do That
24 Beat People With a Stick
Ball in Mind
FEATURES
30
26 Deuel Brings His Soft Break to Atlanta
28 Chang Claims Second Consecutive Championship
Defeats Wang in Penang, Manila
30 Allison Fisher Scores in San Diego
Takes First Trophy of 2008 Season
32 InsidePOOL’s 2008 Annual Pool Table Issue
38 APA Awards $350,000 in Cash and Prizes
World’s Largest Pool League Crowns Six Amateur Champions
40 Antique Pool Tables 101
43 Archer Is Top Gun In Tempe
44 Souquet Gets Revenge and Wins 8-Ball World Title
Bests Alcano in Damas World 8-Ball Championships
46 Cool Comeback for Pagulayan
“The Lion” Snaps off World Pool Masters
50 The 32nd Annual BCAPL 8-Ball Championships
Brings an Extravaganza of Events
56 Drago Emerges First in the Field
Wrests Predator 10-Ball Championship From Bustamante
2 InsidePOOL Magazine
| July/August 2008
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Volume VIII, Issue 6
COLUMNS
42
59 Stripes
The $350,000 Foul
60 What’s New!
62 Cue Maker’s Corner
Bill Webb - Getting By With a Little Help From His Friends
66 Industry Ink
DMI Sports Continues to Set the Table for Future Growth
70 Industry News
56
DEPARTMENTS
6
14
72
74
78
82
84
86
88
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
Ben Carley
Technical Consultant
Tom Simpson
Feature Photo Credits
JR Calvert
E-mail
info@insidepoolmag.com
Website
www.insidepoolmag.com
Editorial Assistant
Skip Maloney
| July/August 2008
Instructional Staff
Johnny Archer, Steve Crutchfield, Max Eberle,
Allison Fisher, Bob Henning,Jason Lynch,
John W. Loftus, Grady Mathews, Keith McCready,
Tom Simpson
Contributing Writers
Fred Agnir, Samm Diep, Tim Dunkley,
Douglas Jiles, Rob Johnson,
Skip Maloney, Mike Ugulini
Toll Free
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Pool on TV
Advertiser Directory
League Player of the Month
Regional Roundup
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World
Photo Caption Contest
InsidePOOL Magazine Volume VIII, Issue 6 (ISSN 15473511) 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
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Pool on TV
(continued on page 8)
All times are Eastern Time Zone – check local listings for changes.
ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN Classic
Sudden Death 7-Ball
Sudden Death 7-Ball
2006 International Speed Pool Challenge
2006 Men’s Trick Shot Magic
1999 International Challenge of Champions
2007 World Cup of Trick Shots
2007 Women’s Tournament of Champions
| July/August 2008
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Pool on TV
2001 Sudden Death 7-Ball
2006 EnjoyPool.com Women’s 9-Ball Championship
GenerationPool.com Men’s 9-Ball Championship
GenerationPool.com Women’s 9-Ball Championship
2001 Trick Shot Magic
2004 Women’s Trick Shot Magic
| July/August 2008
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www.InsidePOOLmag.com 9
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Pool on TV
WPBA Great Lakes Classic
2005 Men’s Sudden Death 7-Ball
| July/August 2008
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Pool on TV
2007 EnjoyPool.com Men’s 9-Ball Championship
Mosconi Cup 2003
Mosconi Cup 2003
Mosconi Cup 2003
Mosconi Cup 2003
2007 EnjoyPool.com Men’s 9-Ball Championship
2007 World Summit of Pool
Mosconi Cup 2003
Mosconi Cup 2003
2007 Three-Cushion Billiards Challenge
2007 Three-Cushion Billiards Challenge
1994 WPBA National 9-Ball Championships
2004 BCA Open 9-Ball Championships
| July/August 2008
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ADVERTISER DIRECTORY
To contact any of our advertisers, visit their website, send an e-mail, or give them a call.
Allen Hopkins Productions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .55
www.AllenHopkinsProductions.com
American Poolplayers Association . . . . . . . . .73
www.poolplayers.com
Aramith Fusion Tables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11
www.fusiontables.com
Atlas Billiard Supplies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6, 64
www.cuestik.com
Bebob Publishing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .77
www.bebobpublishing.com
Billiard Congress of America . . . . . . . . . . . . .69
www.GenerationPool.com
Billiard Warehouse . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
www.BilliardWarehouse.com
Billiards Express . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8
www.billiardsexpress.com
Billiards911.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9
www.billiards911.com
Blue Book Publications, Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . .72
www.bluebookinc.com
Blue Diamond Chalk . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .83
www.bluediamondchalk.com
Champion Shuffleboard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9
www.championshuffleboard.com
Cheap Shot Billiards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .55
www.cheapshotbilliards.com
College of Pool & Billiards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .68
www.Cue-U.com
Cue Doctor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .75
www.cuedoctor.com
CueStix International . . . . . . . .13, Back Cover
www.scorpioncues.com
Definitive Synergy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .42, 85
www.definitivesynergy.com
Diamond Billiard Products . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .15
www.diamondbilliards.net
DLT Billiards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .71
www.DLTbilliards.com
DMI Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .60, 61
www.dmisports.com
Drawknife Custom Billiard Tables . . . . . . . . .12
www.drawknife.com
Escalade Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .31, 43
www.escaladesports.com
Falcon Cues Ltd. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .37
www.falconcues.com
Franks Center, Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .69
www.frankscenterinc.com
| July/August 2008
Grady Mathews . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .77
www.gradymathews.com
Great American Recreation Equipment, Inc. 10
www.GreatAmericanRec.com
Hatch Billiards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .72
www.hatchbilliards.com
InsidePOOL Magazine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .85
www.InsidePOOLmag.com
International Cuemakers Association . . . . . .87
www.internationalcuemakers.com
Iwan Simonis, Inc. . . . . . . . . .Inside Front Cover
www.SimonisCloth.com
Jim Murnak Cue Cases . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .27, 59
www.JimMurnakCueCases.com
John W. Loftus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .83
apacaptainjohn@insidepoolmag.com
McDermott Handcrafted Cues . . . . . . . . . . . .29
www.mcdermottcue.com
Mueller Recreational Products . . . . . . . . . . . .85
www.poolndarts.com
OB Cues . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .21
www.obcues.com
Ozone Billiards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7
www.ozonebilliards.com
Poison Billiards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23
www.poisonbilliards.com
Predator Products . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3
www.predatorcues.com
Samm’s Side Pocket . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .84
www.SammsPocket.com
Seminole Pro Tour . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .49
www.seminolesportsmanagement.com
Seybert’s Billiard Supply . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5
www.seyberts.com
Solid Citizen, Ltd. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .1
www.solidcitizenltd.com
Tiger Products . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .79, 80
www.tigerproducts.com
Tom Simpson, Billiard Instruction . . . . . . . . .25
www.PoolClinics.com
Tweeten Fibre Co., Inc. . . . . .Inside Back Cover
www.tweeten.us
VIGMA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .19
www.vigma.com
W. T. Mali & Company . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14
www.malicloth.com
65-May/June-2008
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65-May/June-2008
INSTRUCTION
6/10/08
6:07 PM
L
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GRADY’S GRAD SCHOOL
BY GRADY MATHEWS
Three Time-Honored
“Bugs” Favorites
Leonard “Bugs” Rucker was a great bank pool and one-pocket player. I had many battles with my old friend from South Chicago.
Sometimes, upon a dreary occasion, I’ll dredge up memories of my
past engagements on the pool table with Leonard, and I feel better
immediately. Here are three classic bank shots from Bugs, all of
which he made on me many times.
In Diagram 1, I know it looks like there isn’t much of an offensive shot for Pocket A, especially if a player elects to shoot the 1
ball. Bugs would use low, right-hand english and one-rail the 1 ball
into or close to his pocket. The cue ball would travel four rails and
end up behind the 6 and 11 balls.
It always amazed me how Bugs could get “pocket speed” on
off angle banks like this one. It didn’t seem to matter what kind of
equipment he was playing on, either.
In Diagram 2, I never saw Bugs miss this bank when both balls
are about 1/4-inch to 2 inches off the rail. He certainly never missed
it against me. I always hated it when I realized I had left him this
shot because I knew I was in trouble.
Some collision-induced english, a terrific Freddy “The Beard”
term, is applied to the object ball, just by cutting it to the right.
That’s left english on the 1 ball. More left english is applied to the
object ball by using a tip of right-hand english on the cue ball.
Medium speed works best here.
It is worth mentioning that on a table with new cloth, this shot
is even money for me to make, going three rails. What I like about
laying the shot this way is that the cue ball ends up on the far end
rail every time.
Bugs would always have the balls powdered up. I don’t know
what effect that had on them. When I used to play him for big
money, I’d have to clean the balls every other game.
Diagram 3 shows an aggressive, creative bank shot that looks
like a “stiff” (a bank shot that won’t go). But, as shown in the diagram, it not only will go but position can be obtained on the 7 and
9 balls.
About a 2/3 of a ball thick hit, low, left-hand English, and a
firm speed gets the job done. This shot is possible even if the object
ball is frozen to the rail.
Obviously this is a good shot if there were only the one ball on
the table. I would shoot it a little easier and make sure that if I
missed it, it would be on the long side, so that I’d leave my opponent safe.
Bugs was the best end-game player I ever saw. He made awkward-looking bank shots appear easy, and when he didn’t make
them, he had a singular way of getting pocket speed. So, as his
opponent, if you weren’t paying him off for making a great bank
shot, you were moving a ball from his pocket. Sometimes I ask
myself, “What would Bugs do here?”t
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 one-pocket world titles and recently
became the proprietor of “Grady’s” poolroom in Lexington, SC.
| July/August 2008
Q
X
Diagram 1
"Bugs'" Pocket
Q
X
Diagram 2
"Bugs'" Pocket
Q
X
Diagram 3
"Bugs'" Pocket
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65-May/June-2008
INSTRUCTION
6/10/08
6:11 PM
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THIS IS YOUR CAPTAIN SPEAKING
BY JOHN W. LOFTUS
A War Fought
by Other Means
Whether wrong or right, pool is known as
a hustler’s game. From “The Hustler” to
“The Color of Money,” that’s the impression many people have of our sport. And
there is some truth to this. Whether its
sharking one’s opponent or sandbagging,
some players do this.
One good friend of mine, whom I’ll
call Dave, will talk his opponents out of
tractions by considering that every single
thing a person says to us while playing
pool is to distract us from our game …
everything.
The same thing goes for sandbagging. Just like you must stay focused when
sharked, you must also learn how to deal
with sandbaggers. It’s your responsibility
and yours alone. You may not like these
Every single thing a person
says to us while playing pool
is to distract us from our
game … everything.
their game, especially when he knows
what trips their trigger. For instance, if
he’s playing someone who just wants his
approval and that person is winning, Dave
will compliment him by saying, “You’re
really good!” Once his opponent gets the
respect he came for, he just might let up,
and Dave will beat him. Dave claims that
he’s legitimately using everything he has
to win, since the game of pool is more
than just making balls on the table. Is he
right? Yes. Should we do it? That’s up to
you. I don’t moralize about this.
I do think that when we’re playing to
win, it’s our responsibility not let people
like Dave get to us. If we do, it’s our own
fault. We should learn to ignore such dis-
| July/August 2008
tactics, and you may not do such things
yourself. But you must learn that pool is a
war fought by other means. While this
may seem somewhat extreme, it isn’t if
you hate to lose. It all depends on how
much you want to win and whether it’s
worth it to you. I just don’t want to win
that bad, period. But others do.
One of the things we must do is be
able to spot sandbaggers. To do so, you
need to look for specific things. Compare
how they play during practice with how
they play their match, and compare how
they play during a match with how you see
them play throughout the week. Listen to
what people say about their abilities.
Notice their fundamentals—does the form
of play match their handicap? Do they
seem upset when they miss a shot, or are
they just faking it? What does their team
say when a shot is missed? Remember,
some teams “protest too much.” Do they
have spurts where they run a rack and then
miss something easy? Do they have poor
ball selection for their present skill level?
That is, do they stupidly hit in a “duck” or
break balls out at the wrong time? Do they
repeatedly on purpose sink a ball and then
end up hooking themselves on their next
shot? Do they end up scratching on shots
a lot, especially on the 8-ball?
The interesting thing about sandbaggers is that in order to save face they’ll
have the tendency to tell you what they’re
doing. Just talk to them about how poorly
they played afterward. If you appear nonjudgmental, many of them will tell you
they lost on purpose. Then you must
inform other team captains what’s going
on, be even more diligent on marking
defensive shots, and perhaps write up an
action report.
But the bottom line is that if you want
to win in pool, you must take responsibility for letting other people beat you.
Whether it’s sharking or sandbagging, it’s
your responsibility and yours alone if you
let them win. Just consider pool as a war
fought by other means.t
“Captain” John W. Loftus, of Angola,
IN, 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, including VNEA, BCA, and ACS.
John is the author of How to Be the Captain
of a Winning APA 8-Ball Team and has
competed in Las Vegas three times in the
APA Nationals. Contact him at
johnwloftus@verizon.net.
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6:14 PM
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INSTRUCTION
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6:19 PM
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PRO POOL WORKOUT
BY BOB HENNING
9-Ball Banks
The game of 9-ball banks has surged in
popularity in the last few years, primarily because of the Derby City Classic,
where it is one of the three main events.
Unlike full-rack banks, which tends to
have a lot of defense, 9-ball banks is a
highly aggressive game. It has enough
defensive components to make a short
race last a couple of hours, of course,
but winning is almost always a direct
result of great offense—snapping off
three, four, and five banks in a row.
It’s interestingly to note that almost
every great banks player also plays 9ball at a high level and probably onepocket, too. But a good 9-ball player
who has never played banks before is
except for throw, is totally in terms of the
cue ball. As long as the object goes into
the pocket as intended, a 9-ball player
does not care how it was spinning when it
dropped. The true effects of collisioninduced english are not understood. Once
he starts shooting that same object ball
into a rail instead of a pocket, however, a
whole new field of study opens up. If he
shoots enough of them he’ll learn how
different hits on the object ball and different speeds of stroke effect the english
transferred to the object ball. Eventually
he will incorporate this new understanding into his strategy and shot selection.
The second factor is similar but has
nothing to do with english. It is the fact
A good 9-ball player who has
never played banks before is
likely to be shocked and
dismayed when he first tries it.
likely to be shocked and dismayed when
he first tries it. Balls he expected to
make do not go in. Outcomes he imagined do not turn out. Balls he thought
would come off a rail a certain way take
unexplained detours. His confidence is
shaken and the rhythm of banks, he discovers, is different from that of any
other game.
There are four factors at the root of
this experience, and all of them point to
the reality that the game of banks contains an extra dimension. It is more
complex than 8-ball and 9-ball. In regular pool a good player is aware of the
effects of english, but this awareness,
| July/August 2008
that the speed of the stroke changes the
aim of the shot. In regular pool, the player understands speed almost entirely in
terms of the cue ball. The speed of the
stroke determines whether the cue ball
will get to its intended target or not, but as
long as the object ball goes into the hole,
it doesn’t matter what speed it was going
when it went through the jaws. In banks,
however, a specifically aimed shot might
be successful at one speed of stroke, but
even a small increase or decrease in the
firmness of the stroke might result in a
miss.
The third factor is related to the former and is well known to most pool play-
ers. The margin of error on many banks,
especially straight-back banks, is a lot
smaller than it is on normal shots. The
longest straight-in shot on a full-size
table, for instance, is diagonal from corner to corner and roughly 9 feet in
length. If the object ball were at the center of the table, the cue ball would have
to travel about 4.5 feet and hit it accurately enough to send it another 4.5 feet
to the pocket. That makes for a very
demanding shot. A straight-back bank
where the object ball and cue ball are at
opposite end rails, in comparison, doubles those distances. It’s the same margin of error as shooting a table length
straight-in shot on an 18-foot table! Not
to mention that you still have to deal
with factors one and two.
That brings us to the fourth factor,
and that’s the one that changes the
rhythm of the game and does so much
damage to the confidence of 9-ball players. When you add factors one and two
to your pre-shot planning, it messes up
your routine. Determining how the
speed of the stroke will affect the path of
the object ball is something new. It
takes a long time to change your thought
process and planning to include it. But
once you do, you’ll be banking better
…. and you’ll be shooting better 9-ball,
too.
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, on-the-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.
65-May/June-2008
6/10/08
6:27 PM
Page 21
65-May/June-2008
I
INSTRUCTION
6/10/08
6:32 PM
Page 22
TRICKNOLOGY
BY JASON LYNCH
“Oops …
I Meant to Do That!”
I have two shots for you this time. The first is called the
resistance draw shot. This shot will showcase those of you
who can hit a ball with a good stroke and follow-through.
The second version is a mistake. Well, let me explain: I was
shooting the first version of the shot at a tournament in
2004. I hit the cue with what I thought at the time was just
enough english to get around table. Imagine my surprise
when the cue ball doubled the near rail and scratched in the
corner. In our professional tournaments we joke about it and
exclaim, “Oops, new shot!” Sometimes the greatest shots
started as accidents and have become legend. I wonder if
Mike Massey’s boot shot started as a stray jump shot?
For the first version, the set-up is pretty straightforward: The 1, 2, 3, and 4 balls are frozen to the cue ball. This
row of balls is in line with Corner Pocket 1, while the 9 ball
is in the jaws of Pocket 2.
Shoot the cue ball as if the line of balls weren’t there.
Try to push the cue ball forward as you snap through with as
much bottom right-hand english as possible. The draw will
pull it back to the rail, and the right-hand english will act as
running english to bring the cue three rails to pocket the 9.
The set-up for the second shot is as shown. The line of
balls is the same—the difference is that there are a couple of
blocking balls, the 9 ball is in the bottom-left pocket, and
this shot requires a lot more bottom instead of right-hand
english.
One of the best things about trick shots is watching
people’s faces when you do something impossible with the
balls, but as you know now, sometimes the joke is on the
trick shot artist.t
Jason Lynch grew up playing pool in Michigan. In
his early twenties he started playing in the VNEA and
placed as high as 16th in 8 ball and 9 ball. In 2005, he
won the Michigan VNEA speed pool contest. He has also
pocketed 11,100 and 12,011 balls in 24 hours as
fundraisers for the American Cancer Society¢s Relay for
Life. In 2007 he had his best finish to date, placing sixth
at the Artistic Pool U.S. Open and winning the stroke
category.
Jason is ranked 14th in the world by the WPA. His
sponsors are Shelti Pool Tables, Seybert’s Billiard
Supply, Pechauer Cues, Dieckman Cues, OB-1 Shafts,
and Leisure Elements. Visit his website at
www.michigankid.com.
| July/August 2008
Q
X
Q
X
.
65-May/June-2008
6/10/08
6:35 PM
Page 23
65-May/June-2008
INSTRUCTION
6/10/08
6:36 PM
B
Page 24
BEAT PEOPLE WITH A STICK
BY TOM SIMPSON
Ball in Mind
Ball in hand (BIH) is an enormous
penalty for the player who fouls in 9ball, in 10-ball, and, in some rule sets, in
8-ball. It’s also an enormous opportunity for the incoming player. Often this
opportunity is wasted.
Advanced players take full advantage of BIH, intelligently planning cue
ball placement, the shot, the position,
and the strategy. Working with many
novice and intermediate players, I find
they typically fail to consider some of
the aspects of the situation that are obvious to their more experienced opponents. They tend to rush in and plop the
cue ball down and shoot the first shot
they see and, of course, don’t get the
appropriate shape on the next shot.
Sometimes a safety or strategic ball
rearrangement is the smart play.
Good Shot Sequence: Don’t just
shoot the ball that’s closest to a pocket.
And don’t consider just the closest pockets for your first ball. When possible,
chose position routes that are simple and
natural—don’t shoot extreme, fancy
shots with BIH. If you can’t get to your
second shot from your first shot, it’s probably not a good plan. Minimize use of
english on the first shot. Why make it
harder?
Good Distance: Make the shot easy.
Place the CB reasonably close to the OB.
Too close and you might not have room
for your full, normal stroke. Typical good
distance is about a foot. Note: There is
Try to find the simplest, most natural
plan. Learn from what happens.
My advice is, “When you get ball
in hand, take ball in mind.” Stop and
study the table and the game situation.
Consider the current possibilities, the
next shots, the layout problems, your
skills, and your opponent’s skills. Make
a plan before you place that cue ball. In
pool, the standard concern is always
“How do I shoot the current shot in such
a way that I get an angle on the next shot
that takes me to the one after that?”
We’re nearly always planning at least
three balls. With BIH, we can think the
plan through and set up the current shot
in a way that most easily or naturally
pockets the ball and gets us to the next
shot or solves the next problem. Let’s
look at the primary factors.
Good Plan: Study the table until
you have arrived at the plan you will try
to execute. This is a big opportunity.
Your first idea might not be your best.
Don’t be shortsighted. Good plans don’t
always mean you run out for the win.
| July/August 2008
nothing manly about putting the CB four
feet away when it’s not necessary. If possible, don’t place the CB where you have
to stretch or use the mechanical bridge.
Avoid rail bridges, too, when you can.
Good Angle: Consider the shot angle
for your CB placement. Is it an angle for
which you have high confidence in pocketing the ball? Can you see the path the
cue ball will take off the OB, and is that
the path you want? Thin cut angles will
leave a lot of speed in the CB, while thick
hits will take speed out of the ball. Shoot
angles that make it easy to move the CB
the amount of distance you want.
Good Speed: Once you have a good
cue ball plan and placement and it’s time
to shoot, you just have to think about
speed. How much speed will it take, given
the distance, angle of approach, and spin?
Is this a comfortable, reliable speed for
you?
Good Landing Zones: If you stand
behind your next shot, you can use your
stick to help you roughly visualize the
wedge-shaped position zone you need to
land in for that shot. The wedge is smaller near the OB, which means it’s harder
to land in that part of the zone. Smart
players often play to roll across the fat
part of the wedge or to roll toward the
OB through the distant portion of the
zone. This makes it a lot easier to stop
successfully within the wedge.
Good Results: Draw is hard to
control. Go for simple follow or stop
shots. Don’t move the CB more than
necessary. Don’t disturb balls that don’t
need to be moved. Go for the easiest
plan to execute. If your plan calls for
you to do things at the outer limits of
what you can reliably do, maybe you
need to switch to a defensive plan. After
you sink a ball, re-analyze your plan,
adding a new third ball and adjusting for
the new reality of the table situation.
Good Improvement: In practice,
shoot hundreds of “three-ball patterns.”
Throw three balls on the table, study the
layout, make a plan to run out, place the
CB, and shoot the pattern you saw. Try
to find the simplest, most natural plan.
Learn from what happens. If you’re
playing in a league that allows coaching,
or if you’re playing a friendly game, talk
through your plan and their plan and see
whether there is a good alternative you
hadn’t thought of or a problem you hadn’t foreseen.
So when you get ball in hand, don’t
play ball in hope. Seize the opportunity—take ball in mind. Plan your play
and then play your plan. And remember
the number-one rule of BIH: Don’t
miss!t
Tom Simpson is a Master Instructor in both
the BCA and ACS instructor programs. He is a
full-time instructor, operating the National
Billiard Academy in Columbus, OH, and
delivering his Three-Day Weekend Intensive in
selected cities nationwide. 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 thousands of players dramatically
improve their skills and deepen their knowledge.
Contact Tom@PoolClinics.com, 614-975-8337.
65-May/June-2008
6/10/08
6:41 PM
Page 25
65-May/June-2008
6/10/08
6:47 PM
Page 26
Deuel Brings His Soft Break
to
Atlanta
by Skip Maloney
Corey Deuel’s been employing his soft break
technique in tournaments for quite some time
now, and while it isn’t anything new (it was used
almost exclusively in the 2001 World Pool
Championships and the 2002 U.S. Open 9-Ball
Championships by a variety of players), Deuel
has turned it into something of an art form.
Reviews of this style have been—and continue to
be—mixed, ranging from opinions of Deuel’s
ingenuity and mastery of the technique to rules
that attempt to ban it from tournament play.
Deuel brought his soft break with him to the
second stop on the Seminole Pro Tour, April 46 at Mr. Cues 2 in Atlanta, GA, and not only
used it to great, undefeated effect, but so frustrated his fellow finalist Larry Nevel that the
final match never made it past that break.
Nevel, who’d crawled back through nine
opponents on the one-loss side of the bracket
to face Deuel in the final, took the early lead in
the final match-up 4-1. Deuel then put together a strong run and came back to take a onegame lead 5-4. Nevel came back, winning the
next two, and Deuel answered with two of his
own to make it 7-6.
Late in the fourteenth game, Nevel
missed an open shot on the 9 ball with an
apparent clear shot on the 10 available to him
afterwards, and before Deuel stepped up to
take advantage, a visibly frustrated Nevel conceded the game by sweeping his stick across
the table.
Down 8-6, Nevel then watched as Deuel
once again stepped to the table and employed
his soft break, leaving Nevel (not for the first
time in the match) with limited options. Nevel
swept his stick over the playing surface and, in
front of a sizeable crowd of spectators, ended
the match 9-6 right then and there.
Seminole Pro Tour administrators are
looking into the possibility of changing the
rules for subsequent tours that would effectively eliminate the soft break, even though they
sponsor Deuel’s efforts.
Kevin Pickard, somewhat fresh from a
Master’s degree in sports management and
working on what was only his second tournament with the Seminole Pro Tour in Atlanta,
heard about the technique before he actually
saw it in play. Responding to what he
described as a “buzz” among other players in
the tournament, he stepped up to a table and
D
| July/August 2008
watched Deuel break, looking to ensure that it
fulfilled the rule obligation that four balls
strike a rail.
“It was actually pretty impressive that he
could pull it off and be so consistent with it,”
he said.
Former Florida Pro Tour director John
DiToro, while noting that the technique does
have a tendency to slow games, matches, and
tournaments themselves down, was equally
complimentary.
“You can’t fault the way he’s thinking,”
said DiToro. “He’s just being innovative, creative, and being the first to come up with the
way to beat [the normal “smash and hope”
break].”
Deuel’s philosophy about his soft break is
really quite simple.
“I’m just trying to win a tournament,” he
said. “I’m trying to come up with the best shot
possible for the situation in hand and [on the
break] that doesn’t include trying to hit [the
rack] hard and get lucky.”
He thinks, too, that it isn’t necessarily the
success of his soft break that’s been the story,
but the failure of the alternative hard breaks
being practiced by his opponents.
“I think that the ‘naysayers’ about this
probably have more productive things to be
worrying about than my soft break,” he said.
Deuel had started his final day in Atlanta
by meeting Jeremy “Double J” Jones in one of
the two final match-ups in the winners’ bracket. Mitch Yarborough and Jonathan Pinegar
faced off in the other. Deuel and Jones stepped
to the table having only lost 11 games between
them in their last 3 matches (5 for Jones; 6 for
Deuel). By comparison, Pinegar and
Yarborough had lost 25 games in their last 3
match-ups. Jones moved to the one-loss bracket on the heels of an 8-3 victory for Deuel and
an illness forfeit by Yarborough. Deuel moved
into the hot seat with an 8-5 victory over
Pinegar.
Over on the one-loss side of the bracket,
Johnny Archer and Nevel were still alive, as
were Dave Grossman, Jesse Middlebrooks,
Steve Moore, Tommy Kennedy, Sparky Ferrell
(winner of the tour’s first event in Florida), and
Jason Richko. Archer, Moore, Ferrell, and
Nevel made it into the next round, before
Archer took out Moore 8-7 and Nevel defeated
Ferrell 8-5. Jones, over from the winners’
bracket, knocked off Archer 8-7, while Nevel
advanced on the basis of a second Yarborough
forfeit.
Jones and Nevel then battled to hill-hill
before Nevel took the last game and moved
into the one-loss bracket final against Pinegar,
whom he defeated 8-5.t
RESULTS
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
Corey Deuel
Larry Nevel
Jonathan Pinegar
Jeremy Jones
Johnny Archer
Mitch Yarborough
7th Sparky Ferrell
Steve Moore
9th Dave Grossman
Jesse Middlebrooks
Tommy Kennedy
Jason Richko
13th Helena Thornfeldt
James Roberts
Ron Park
Mike Davis
65-May/June-2008
6/10/08
6:49 PM
Page 27
65-May/June-2008
6/10/08
6:51 PM
Page 28
With all four representatives going through to the final day, the Chinese-Taipei domination of the Guinness 9-Ball Tour continued as pool ace Chang Jung-Lin overcame
a stern challenge from compatriot and close friend Wang Hung-Hsiang 11-7 to
secure his second title this year as the Penang leg of Asia’s premier pool competition
concluded at the packed grand ballroom of the G Hotel April 6.
Still riding the momentum from his impressive semifinal victory against Yang
Ching-Shun with a hard-fought 9-6 win, it was actually Taipei’s number-one-ranked
player Wang who jumped the gun and took an early 3-1 lead, courtesy of a foul by
Chang in the opening rack. Not wanting to let up the pressure, he immediately followed up the opening salvo with table routs in the second and fourth.
But, as the reigning tour champion, a confident Chang was visibly unfazed by
the early deficit. Calm and collected, he quietly gathered himself and was finally
able to stop the bleeding via some well-placed approach shots to get back in contention 2-3.
From there on, Lady Luck completely turned her back on Wang as multiple
errors surfaced in his game, haunting the lanky player nicknamed “The Sage.” A
simple 1 ball line drive was badly missed in the sixth rack and was followed by a
muffed rail try on the 1, following a well-placed safety by Chang in the next rack to
concede the valuable lead 3-4.
Things proved to turn for the worse for Wang as, midway through the race-to11 final, he suffered three consecutive dry breaks that saw Chang come alive and utilize his accurate potting and incredible table management skills to stump his rival
and claim an amazing seven straight racks to skyrocket towards the hill 10-3.
But as a player recognized of thriving under immense pressure, Wang simply
refused to give up. Living up to his Chinese-Taipei number-one-ranking, he courageously battled back and displayed his own version of billiards flair to string four
racks in a row, much to the delight of the appreciative crowd.
But clearly the day belonged to Chang, who ended the incredible final showdown at rack 18. Taking his chance, he jacked up on the brown 7 ball bank shot,
which he hit with incredible precision to send it screaming into the corner pocket.
W
Consecutive
Chang Claims
Second
Championship
Defeats Wang in Penang, Manila
by InsidePOOL Staff
Chang Jung-Lin, winner of the Guiness 9-Ball Tour’s Penang leg, poses
with his trophy and check.
Asked about his formula for success, Chang replied, “I believe that one of the
reasons I am able to keep winning here is that I have found a way to control my temper. For you to be able to win in such a major tournament, it is important to be able
to keep your emotions in check. If the pressure gets to you, you are bound to make
crucial mistakes, and you won’t be able to think clearly. I made sure to keep calm
and maintain my focus, and that gave me the edge. It feels great to win again, and I
hope I can maintain this level of performance for the next tournament!”
Surprisingly, Wang was not disappointed with the runner-up finish. “I’m definitely not disappointed by my performance here in Penang . I was able to defeat
some very tough opponents on the way to the final, and it showed that I have what
it takes to win. Although it would have been nice to win, since it is my birthday
tomorrow as it would have been a nice birthday present.
“I was just unfortunate that I did not have luck by my side for my match against
Chang. Those dry breaks really hurt my chances a lot. But I think I managed to give
the crowd a good show, and I’m proud of myself for that. I will try my best to win
next time.”t
| July/August 2008
65-May/June-2008
6/10/08
6:53 PM
Page 29
until the score stood at 4 apiece. She then took the next two games as well
to reach the hill. Fisher, however, missed a key 5-9 combo in the next rack
for the win, and Corr fought back to make it a double-hill nail-biter. The
last rack was a real killer: Fisher broke and ran out to the 5 ball but locked
her cue ball up on the 6. She tried to play safe, and Corr reversed it on
her, playing the 6 and the cue to opposite end rails. Fisher went for the
uncompromising shot and attempted the long bank but missed; however,
Corr was unable to capitalize, missing a straightforward shot on the 8 ball
in order to get position on the 9 ball, and Fisher finished the match off
with a 7-6 win.
In the second semifinal match, Hofstatter and former Player
of the Year Ga Young Kim matched up for the right to meet Fisher in the
finals. Hofstatter, who hails originally from Austria, suffered a 9-7 loss
to Kim after two solid wins in the first two rounds. Once on the one-loss
side, she faced down Laura Smith 9-4 to reach the final 16 draw. From
there she soundly defeated Monica Webb 9-3 and then ousted three-time
defending champion Kelly Fisher 9-7 to advance to the semifinals and a
rematch with Kim.
Kim took command from early on, but her aggressive play
caused some unexpected errors that Hofstatter benefited from to make
the score 6-4 Kim. Two more key missed by Kim brought the score to
hill-hill with Kim breaking in the final rack. She made the 1 ball on her
last break but opted to play a bank on the 3 ball, having missed position
off the 2. Kim missed, and Hofstatter calmly picked her way through the
final six balls for a 7-6 victory.
Having made their way to the ESPN-televised final match,
Fisher and Hofstatter squared off to fight for first place. Fisher began
confidently by winning the lag and then breaking and running out. Hofstatter answered with the same, but a scratch on the 3 ball in the following
game apparently shattered her confidence, and it wasn’t long before she
was down 4-1 to Fisher. The Austrian managed to capture the next two
racks to draw within a game of her opponent, but nerves seemed to have
gotten the best of her again. She scratched on the 2 ball in the eighth
game and missed the 8 ball in the ninth, allowing Fisher to reach the
hill 6-4. A wicked safety battle ensued in the final rack, with both ladies
scrapping over the 7 ball, but Hofstatter eventually allowed Fisher an
open shot, which she took full advantage of for her 7-4 victory. s
A
by InsidePOOL Staff
llison “The Duchess of Doom” Fisher triumphed at the WPBA’s first stop of the 2008 season—the San Diego Classic, winning 7-4 over
Austria’s Gerda Hofstatter in the finals to cap off a four-day run of excellent
play. This 64-player event was hosted by the Viejas Casino in Alpine, CA, and
ran from April 10-13.
Having come through undefeated to the semis by virtue of wins
over daunting opponents such as Jennifer Barretta, Vivian Villareal, and Helena Thornfeldt, Fisher was primed for her semifinal match against Karen “The
Irish Invader” Corr. In the shortened race to 7, Corr was the one to take an
early two-rack lead, which she kept until the fifth game when she missed a
4-9 combo. Gaining momentum with every ball she sank, Fisher climbed back
Results:
1st Allison Fisher
2nd Gerda Hofstatter
3rd Ga Young Kim
Karen Corr
5th Helena Thornfeldt
Anna Kostanian
Kelly Fisher
Sarah Ellerby
9th Eleanor Callado
Caroline Pao
Monica Webb
Xiaoting Pan
Vivian Villareal
My-Hanh Lac
Melissa Herndon
Carol Metzinger
65-May/June-2008
6/10/08
6:57 PM
Page 31
InsidePOOL’s
2008
Annual Pool Table Issue
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at 812-288-7665, or log onto www.diamondbilliards.net.
SPECIALTY
Chamberlin
The Chamberlin by DLT Billiards is perfect for homes without the
needs of a dedicated gameroom. Hand-rubbed in teak finish, this
multi-functional game table features a pool, poker, and dining table all
in one. The solid pool table features mother-of-pearl diamond sights,
genuine leather liner-buckets, and a pre-felted, high-density play bed.
The solid oak / oak veneer table top features a poker game on one side
with eight chip slots and stainless steel cup holders. Flip over the top
and get an elegant dining table. The suggested retail price is $2,195.
For ordering information, please contact DLT International at 888782-2208, or visit their website at www.dltbilliards.com.
Arch
The Hatch Billiards Arch pool table is a contemporary
original, hand-built in the designer’s studio. The Arch table
combines playing functionality with an artistic sensibility
honed by Howard Hatch’s background in fine furniture design and construction. Supported by massive, solid, 4-inchthick cherry keystone arches, this table boasts rails of expertly
matched cocobolo and inlays of mother-of-pearl for the sights
and maker’s logo. Ingenious joinery, spare elegant design, and
luxurious materials are the hallmarks of this maker’s art. Custom materials and design are available. Prices start at $18,000.
For ordering information, please contact Hatch Billiards at
603-447-8486, or visit www.hatchbilliards.com.
Fusion Table
Aramith has created the Fusion Table, a
premium dining/pool table that fuses a sleek
European design with functionality. The Fusion Tables will add a new dimension to the
dining room, board room, recreational room,
conference room, media room, and gameroom. The formal dining room is fading
away and people are looking for practical
uses for a room once reserved for holidays
and special occasions. The Fusion Table is
that practical answer. The table has other
features, including an Easy-Lift system,
invisible stretch pockets, and game cloths.
Visit them at www.fusiontables.com, or call
877-348-2229.
Burl Teton Table
Drawknife Billiards recently created this burl version
of its Teton billiard table, including side and end panels of original wildlife artwork. The art, copied from
artists’ sketches, was transferred to wood panels inset
into the table body. The table has four burl legs and
free-form burl rails and aprons. This custom table can
be built with a client’s choice of artwork and offers
a unique addition to Drawknife’s line of “One-ofA-Kind” rustic game furniture. With its lodgepole
burl legs and trim, this table is both unusual and
functional. For more information, please call 800320-0527, or log onto www.drawknife.com.
65-May/June-2008
6/10/08
6:59 PM
Page 37
So, what do you plan on doing with that old table in the basement?
Most owners of antique tables rarely ask this question, but should.
T
here are literally hundreds of thousands of old pool, snooker and billiard tables made prior to 1960 in varying conditions strung out across the
globe. A lot of them are in use in pool halls, private homes, and clubs. However, many forlornly rot away in basements, attics, and garages, decaying
into shadows of their old splendor. Without proper intervention and restoration, they can and many times do degrade to the point where no amount of
work will salvage them.
As a history buff and restorer, the above statement cuts me to the heart.
Let’s consider, for a moment, the influence the games collectively known
as billiards have had on history:
• Mary, Queen of Scots, was buried in the cloth from her billiard table.
• Thomas Jefferson had a billiard table installed in the room under the
dome of the Monticello.
• Virgil Earp was shot while playing pool in the town of Tombstone.
• The use of elephant ivory in the production of billiard balls is the main
reason for the diminished elephant population in Africa to this day.
• Vladimir Putin took breaks in his billiard room in Russia during the
Cold War Arms Treaty as recently as October 2007.
These are but a few examples. But the list goes on.
Now, I doubt that old relic of a table you have is the one Virgil Earp
was playing on when he was shot. But surely the table you have could tell
a mountain of its own stories.
Your great-grandfather purchased the table new back in the early 1920s.
It was passed on through previous generations, and now you’ve ended up
with it. Or maybe your friend is the one with the table. He is not a billiard
enthusiast, so you convince him to sell it to you. Half of the veneer is missing or peeling up. It has strange-looking bolts holding the rails on, and you
can’t loosen them. Somebody removed the nameplate along with the sights.
The nearby washing machine has repeatedly overflowed, and partially rotted the tables cabriole legs. What should you do now?
First and most imperatively don’t move it yourself! This,
in my estimation, lists as the number-one reason why more
of these tables didn’t survive to the present. Slate is about as
brittle as glass, and the only thing holding it to the frame of
the table is a handful of medium-sized wood screws. Those
screws aren’t meant to be pulled up on.
Recruiting eight of your buddies so that everyone takes a
piece of the action should never enter your mind as an option.
Call a professional. As I tell my customers, There’s a reason
why we get paid to do what we do.
Let’s say you bought an antique table that’s in pretty good
condition. What next? Ask lots of questions.
I am more than willing to spend 30 minutes or more,
in telephone conversations, explaining the intricacies of an
antique table to my customer. They ask me questions. I give
them answers. If there is a question I don’t know the answer
to, I will take the time to look up the answer either with them
on the phone or do the research and get back with them. Your
technician should be willing to do the same.
Beware of misinformation. Should you receive conflicting
information, research it on your own. Decide on the most
logical and consistent explanation. Some information just
will not be available, such as the exact dates of manufacture,
the number of tables made of that model, and the number of
tables made in that specific species of wood.
Your technician should know the basics involved with an
antique table. If he says he has never seen a table with bolts
that have three holes, run! If he has never seen a table with
a four-piece slate, you may want someone else. He should
know the difference between number-three and number-six
All loose veneer
and missing pieces
of molding are repaired. Larger areas
of veneer work is
glued and left overnight in clamps.
Pockets can be sent out for new leather and netting.
Then, 23k gold leaf applied to the pocket arms.
irons and what to do should there be something wrong with the
ones you have. No industry standard on pockets existed prior to
the mid-1930s. The pockets you have are specific to that table.
So, if he suggests wholesale replacement with modern pockets,
politely show him the door.
Once you find a qualified technician, he should be able to
get your table back up to playing condition. Most technicians
should be able to perform the first two options listed below.
However, most don’t do touch-ups, fewer do restorations, and
conservation work on tables is almost unheard of.
Some furniture restorers will tackle a pool table. But they
usually won’t move or recover them. So in most instances, the
customer must use at least two different contractors for one
pool table. Keep it in mind that rarely does one company or
individual perform more than two of these services:
Now, most of us have seen that show on TV, Antiques Roadshow. Their experts would have you believe that any and all
repair or restoration devalues a piece. This is not the case. A
well-documented and well-executed restoration will always
increase the value of case goods where the original finish or
structure is in less than good condition.
Most all tables made prior to World War II can sell for over
$15,000. A fully restored Brunswick Improved Union League
can sell for anywhere between $25,000 and $45,000. I have
worked on tables made prior to 1850 that sold for $250,000.
(Yes, tables do get that expensive!)
Veneer that has been too damaged for repair can be removed
and replaced.
Once the new veneer is on, the rails
can then have new sights and a new
reproduction name plate inlaid.
1. Move only.
Pros: This is the least expensive way to go
Cons: Inconsistent play, questionable table stability, the table will
continue to degrade, no increase in table value
2. Move, recover, and new rubber.
Pros: The table will play better, still inexpensive
Cons: Questionable table stability, the table will continue to degrade,
only slight increase in table value
3. Touch-up
Pros: Minor scratches and dings are less obvious, inexpensive,
slightly greater table value
Cons: Questionable table stability, the table will continue to degrade,
table will not sell anywhere near restored value
4. Restoration
Pros: Table is structurally sound, looks and plays like new, greatly
increased value
Cons: Cost, finding a qualified restorer
5. Conservation
The damage seen on this leg
is typical of what one might
find on any antique table.
However, even seemingly
hopeless cases can be
resurrected.
Pros: The table is structurally sound, the finish is meticulously
cleaned or repaired.
Cons: Extremely expensive, VERY difficult to find a conservator
familiar with billiard tables
65-May/June-2008
6/10/08
7:01 PM
Page 42
Recently, while researching a table, I came across a post
on an online classified website. The ad featured a neglected
Brunswick Rochester with a Chicago-style ball return that,
fully restored, was worth around $18,000. The entire table
was veneered in mahogany. However, somebody broke the
ball return, and roaches ate away the finish. The veneer was
peeling. The rails were heavily gouged. And the ivory sights
were missing. Sound familiar?
The table originally listed for $500. Two weeks went by.
The same table was listed again, now, for $250. Finally the
owner dropped his price to $150 and someone bought it.
Do you want to be the guy selling that table? If you were
the one buying it, what would you do with it? Would you
doom the pool table to a life as a glorified, beat-up laundry
table? Or, would you restore it to its former beauty and make
it the centerpiece in your home?
A pool table is more than just recreational equipment. It
is one of the few things that provide a common ground for
the aristocrat and the average man.
Once everything is completed, the table is once again
returned to the customer’s home and re-installed.
For me, there is nothing better than seeing my customers
face light up after I have restored and reinstalled their table.
The memories they have of playing on that table as a kid are
rekindled. Charged with a renewed enthusiasm for the game,
they have a sense of satisfaction and a deeper appreciation
for the craftsmanship of those who crafted the billiards table
and played the game before us. s
Solutions For
Tomorrow
JILES
Turnkey Systems
Sales Tracker POS
| July/August 2008
definitivesynergy.com
Billiard Business
Solutions
Matchroom Sport, the entity responsible for such excellent billiard events
as the World Pool Championship and the Mosconi Cup, brought the Masters over
to the U.S. for the first time in its 16-year history. The 16-player, single-elimination event invites the toughest players in the game, and this year boasted the most
challenging field yet, with players such as defending champion Thomas Engert,
Francisco Bustamante, reigning 9-ball champion Daryl Peach, Tony Drago, and
Ralf Souquet. Additionally, Michaela Tabb and newcomer to the scene, Patricia
Murphy were the elegant referees.
Though nicknamed for the King of the Jungle, Alex Pagulayan should consider changing his nickname to reflect his ability to make a mind-blowing comeback
when all seems lost. His recovery from a 6-3 deficit against Mika Immonen in the
finals of the PartyPoker.net World Pool Masters to an 8-6 victory seemed far-fetched
at best, but “The Lion” pulled it off with typical dramatic flair.
Hosted by the Riviera Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, NV, the weekend of
May 9-11, the event was held in conjunction with the BCA Pool League Nationals.
One day off was allotted before the Predator 10-Ball Championship commenced
May 13 in the same location.
Matt Jackson’s Pick Decimated
N
ever really one to make things easier on himself, Pagulayan went hill-hill in his first match of the event,
which happened to be against snooker champion Mark Gray and Matchroom’s Matt Jackson’s official
pick on their website as a possible event winner. “The Lion” took the first three racks with ease but did
not reckon on his opponent putting up a fight, for Gray took advantage of several missed shots by Pagulayan to take
control and win the next five racks in a row to make it 5-3 in his favor. They traded the next several racks, and then a foul
by Gray made the score 6-all. A missed 6-9 combo by Gray gave Pagulayan the hill, but when Pagulayan fouled in the
subsequent rack, brushing the 7 ball en route to the 4, Gray made it a double-hill nail-biter. Attempting to kick out of a
safety on the 2 ball in the last rack, Gray fouled, giving Pagulayan ball in hand and the match.
Listed at the top of the bracket, Pagulayan then had to play the first quarterfinal match against Rodney Morris, who
had vanquished defending champion Thomas Engert’s chances at a repeat win in the first round 8-3. In the most hotly
contested match of the day, Morris started out by breaking and running out two racks in a row. Pagulayan answered by
taking the next two—Morris missed the 1 ball and Pagulayan cleared that rack and then broke and ran the next rack to
knot the score at 2 each. The players traded the next four racks with some excellent play by both.
“Come on, make some balls!” screamed Pagulayan as he broke in the race to 4 that remained. They split the next
four racks—with the score 6-5 Morris, the Hawaiian broke and then attempted a dicey bank on the 2 and missed, leaving Pagulayan to tie it up again. Pagulayan played a strategic safety on the 1 ball in the next, and when Morris fouled,
Pagulayan should have been out easily, but he got out of line on the 4 and missed. However, Morris missed the 4-8
combo, and Pagulayan redeemed himself to reach the hill. He came up dry in his final break, but with no shot on the 1
ball, Morris opted to push out. Pagulayan gave the option back to Morris, who hit the 1 and got safe. Pagulayan kicked
at the 1 and also got safe. Morris made the easy jump shot in the side but then hit the 2 ball, knocking it out of position,
so he played safe instead. Pagulayan was able to hit the 2 and fluke in the 5 ball. From there it was smooth sailing for
“The Lion,” who cleaned up for the 8-6 win.
Pagulayan Surpasses Mentor;
Immonen Deposes Young Gun
Sunday evening’s session featured the two semifinals and then the final match. First up, the all-Filipino cast of Pagulayan and Bustamante traded
rack for rack until the halfway point. Pagulayan won the lag and broke and
ran out the first rack, while Bustamante got on the board in the next rack with
a stupendous shot on the 2 ball off the rail. They traded the next six racks to
knot the score at 4 apiece.
Tony Drago only made it to a fifth-place tie in
this event, but it’s doubtful he was too disappointed, for he took first in the Predator 10-Ball
Championship the following week.
Immonen Takes the Dazzle out of
Peach
At that point, the match was all about “The Lion.” He double-kissed
in the 1 ball in the ninth rack and cleared the table to take the lead, and then
he came out ahead in a safety battle in the next rack to go up another game.
Things started rocky for him in the following game when he fouled on an
attempted push-out, but Bustamante ended up leaving a dead 2-9 billiard for
Pagulayan to reach the hill. He came up dry on his break, but Bustamante
tried for dramatic two-rail position to get on the 4 ball on the bottom rail and
came up short and played safe behind the 5. Pagulayan tried for a two-way
shot but left the 4 on the top rail, which Bustamante attempted to bank in. He
almost fluked in the 6 ball but made neither. With only four balls remaining
on the table, Pagulayan dished up to advance to the finals 8-4.
Finland’s Mika Immonen, at the bottom of the bracket, had a considerably easier time of things. In his first-round match against world champion
Daryl Peach, Immonen took some of the “dazzle” out of his opponent. Peach
fell down early in the match and never recovered, though Immonen easily
shook off the first-game jitters. Interestingly, the illegal break rule, which
states that three balls must either go past the headstring or into a pocket after
the break, came into effect several times in this match.
Immonen had rocketed to a 4-1 lead, playing superb pool, when he
failed on a safety attempt in the next rack and Peach cleared the table. That
turned out to be Peach’s swan song, though. He fouled in the next game to
give Immonen ball in hand and that rack. Peach then made a strong two-rail
kick on the 1 ball but peculiarly missed an easy 2 immediately afterward. Immonen reached the hill when Peach left him a shot on the 1 ball in the ninth
rack. The next and final rack saw Immonen play a jam-up safety on the 2 ball
and Peach whacked haphazardly at it without appearing to make a genuine
attempt to make contact. With ball in hand, Immonen cleared the table for
the 8-2 win.
In the quarterfinal match between Corey Deuel and Immonen that was
filled with strange choices and errors, Deuel reached a 4-2 lead by virtue of
two key misses by Immonen—one on the 9 ball and one on the 8—but the
Finn fought back in the next two racks to make it 4-all, exhibiting superb
jumping skills. Deuel scratched in the next on the 1 ball, and with ball in
hand, Immonen set up for and made the 1-9 combo to take the lead for the
first time.
An illegal break by Immonen gave the table to Deuel, who cleared to
draw even again, but when Deuel set up and then missed the 3-9 combo in
the next, the momentum swung again toward the Finn when he made the 3-9
billiard. Immonen then broke and ran out the next to reach the hill. In the final
rack, he dropped the 5 ball and had a rather tough shot on the 1, which he
made to clear the table and win 8-5.
A scratch on the 1 ball down 7-6 to
Pagulayan in the final rack drove
the nail into Mika Immonen’s
coffin; however, the Finn warned
afterward that the number-one spot
would be his eventually.
Though responsible for topping
U.S. giant Shane
Van Boening in
the first round
8-4, Imran Majid
of Great Britain fell
next to Francisco
Bustamante by the
same score.
Francisco Bustamante
stayed with Pagulayan
until halfway through
their semifinal match,
at which point “The
Lion” swept past him to
advance to the finals.
The second semifinal match started off ominously for Immonen—when he won the lag but came up empty on his break, Ko
attempted to play a kick safety on the 1 ball but fluked it in the side
and then ran out the rest of the rack. The score seesawed to 4 each
with some flawless play by both, but empty breaks stealing a bit of
the thunder.
Things fell apart for the young Taiwanese in the second half
of the match, though. A scratch by Ko in the ninth rack led to Immonen taking the lead for the first time, and then the Finn had the
first break and run-out of the match to make it 6-4. He came up dry
on the next break, and Ko kicked in the 1 ball but got out of line for
the 3 and badly missed a safety attempt. Immonen cleared that rack and
then broke and ran out the final to win 8-4.
Pagulayan evidently did not bring his A-game to the first half of the
finals, for he faltered from the get-go. He took first blood after Immonen
kicked out of a safety and left a shot, but from there it was the Finn who
was in charge. Pagulayan drove the 2 ball into the rail in the following
game, and Immonen cleared that table and then dropped the 9 on his subsequent break to go up 2-1. He then hung the 9 on his next break and played
a quick 2-9 combo.
Things looked bleak for the Filipino when Immonen reached a 6-3
lead, but fortune smiled upon Pagulayan when Immonen had an illegal
break. Pagulayan not only cleared that rack but broke and ran the next
three to reach the hill and retake the lead for the first time in this match
since the first game. He came up empty on his next break and scratched, a
tough knock to fade, but with ball in hand, Immonen shot in the 1 but drew
the cue ball so far back, it sank into the corner pocket. Instantly revived,
Pagulayan sprang up and cleared the table, emitting a whoop when he sank
the last 9 ball.
“This was like winning the World Championship for me. I’ve always
wanted it, but I’ve finally broken the ice,” said a jubilant Pagulayan. “This
is nine-ball, and I couldn’t get too upset because I didn’t get a chance. I
thought if he runs the set, then he runs the set, but I knew that if I got a
chance I would need to focus and concentrate and do the best I can.
“I really didn’t think I’d won it until the last nine ball dropped, but
there were lots of people who like me watching, and that was good for me
to have that support,” he added.
This Taiwanese 18-year-old knocked out veterans Ralf Souquet and Tony Drago before being
eliminated by Immonen in the semifinals. Ko Pin-yi
might be young, but it’s evident that he will have a
tremendous future in billiards if he chooses it.
Regarding his untimely scratch in the final rack, Immonen shook his
head and said, “It was brutal, why did it have to happen there? I was able
to get a good lead but the illegal break was the real turning point as it gave
him the opportunity to get back in it.
“He had some nice lay-outs, but he played well and probably deserved to win. But that’s the way it is sometimes. I’m getting more consistent, and the number-one spot will come sooner or later,” he added. s
65-May/June-2008
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7:03 PM
Page 49
65-May/June-2008
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7:05 PM
Page 50
The 32nd BCAPL 8-Ball Championships
Bring an Extravaganza of Events
by Samm Diep
T
The annual BCA Pool League National
Championships were held this year at the faithful
Riviera Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, NV,
May 7-17. These may just be the most highly
anticipated ten days of any BCA league member’s
year. In the past, it has also become the opportunity
to catch admired pros live in action and away from
the table. When the league players found out that the
EnjoyPool.com (now GenerationPool.com) men’s
and women’s pro events would not be held
simultaneously with their tournament this year, many
were greatly disappointed. However, no one expected there would be even more pool events than before:
the World Pool Masters, the Predator 10-Ball
Championship, and TAR (TheActionReport.com).
E
dey Sets Takes Home
the First Trophy
For the second year in a row, the BCA extravaganza kicked off a
couple days early with the Open 9-Ball Challenge. Open to everyone,
this event’s winner-breaks, race-to-7 format made it anyone’s prize to
capture.
Of the 172 hopefuls, 32 cashed and 24 returned on day two for
more. In the end, Minneapolis’s Demitrius Jelatis left Kansas City’s star
Mike Banks, Jr. with the third-place trophy as he went back for a
rematch with Alberta, Canada’s, Tyler Edey, who sent him to the
one-loss side. Although he was playing a Minnesotan again for the title,
Edey, last year’s runner-up, was determined not to have déjà vu in this
year’s finals.
Jelatis won the first two games but came up just short against
Edey’s smooth precision and confidence. “I’m a better player this year.
I’ve lost so much. I don’t want to come in second anymore,” said an
overjoyed Edey.
RESULTS
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
8
Tyler Edey
Demitrius Jelatis
Mike Banks Jr.
Kings Santy
$3,000
$2,200
-Ball Singles and Scotch Doubles Saw
Countless Thrilling Double-Set Finals Masters Scotch Doubles
Typically a player feels he or she has
the advantage when entering the
tournament finals undefeated. This year’s
BCAPL 8-Ball Championships wrapped up
the singles and scotch divisions with a
number of nail-biting double-set finals.
More than 7,000 players from all over the
world rolled in for their shot at the
$750,000 in prize money. The first of the
divisions to get underway was the scotch
doubles, followed by the singles, then
teams.
| July/August 2008
The first of all the divisions to wrap up
was the Masters Scotch Doubles. Jessica
Frideres is no stranger to the finals. Having
originally signed up to play with her husband Jerrod, a last-minute switch to fellow
league-mate Chad Vilmont proved to be
lethal. Vilmont and Frideres stormed
through the field without a loss leaving,
Oklahoma favorites, John Gabriel and
Michelle McDermott in second place.
RESULTS
1st Chad Vilmont / Jessica Frideres
$3,200
2nd John Gabriel / Michelle McDermott $2,200
3rd Andrew Quinn / Kristen Werner
$1,550
65-May/June-2008
6/10/08
7:08 PM
Page 51
Open Scotch Doubles
Men’s Grand Master Singles
Jason Kirkwood of Grand Rapids, MI, is
another veteran to the winners’ circle. In the
Men’s Grand Master Singles, Kirkwood delivered near flawless performances. His speedy
final matches left Houston’s Scott Tollefson in
third and Louisiana’s Gary Abood runner-up
in a single set, 7-5 final score.
Meanwhile, the Open Scotch
Doubles division was slightly backed
up while juniors champion Mary
Rakin was fighting her way through
the singles brackets. Husband and wife
team Mike and Susan Williams from
Chandler, AZ, had barn-burning
double hill-hill sets against Rakin and
her partner, Colin Mazaika. Of the 414
entries, team Williams prevailed in the
end.
RESULTS
1st Mike Williams / Susan Williams
2nd Colin Mazaika / Mary Rakin
3rd LynWechsler / Tammy Brook
RESULTS
1st Jason Kirkwood
2nd Gary Abood
3rd Scott Tollefson
$4,300
$3,250
$2,400
Women’s Grand Master Singles
On the ladies’ side of the Grand Masters,
Kelly Fisher has played in the finals before,
but never in a bar table 8-ball event. Losing to
seasoned 8-ball champion Bonnie Plowman
for the driver’s seat, Fisher came back with 71, 7-1 victories in her speedy, “KwikFire”
fashion. “I’m so surprised. She had very bad
luck.
She’s
a
much
better
eight-ball player than me,” said a humble
Fisher about her final match with Plowman.
RESULTS
1st Kelly Fisher
2nd Bonnie Plowman
3rd Rebecca Wagner
Men’s Masters Singles
The Men’s Masters Singles was the first
of the singles matches to wrap up. In less than
an hour, Justin Bergman of Fairview, IL, flew
through the finals with a 7-3 triumph over
Bozeman, MT’s, Jeff Boucher. Tony Sulsar of
Sherman, TX, finished third.
RESULTS
1st Justin Bergman
2nd Jeff Boucher
3rd Tony Sulsar
$5,700
$4,200
$3,200
Women’s Masters Singles
The Women’s Masters top-three finishers
brought an international flavor. In third place,
Amalia Matas Heredia traveled all the way
from Spain, while Iris Ranola came from the
Philippines for a shootout in the finals against
Texas’s rising star Kyu Yi. In a double-set
cliffhanger, Yi took the first set hill-hill, but
Ranola came out ahead in the end.
RESULTS
1st Iris Ranola
2nd Kyu Yi
3rd Amalia Matas Heredia
$3,500
$2,200
$1,500
$4,300
$3,000
$2,000
$2,600
$1,700
$1,200
65-May/June-2008
6/10/08
7:13 PM
Page 52
Kane Captures 2008 BCAPL
National Artistic Pool
Championship
“We had record entries this year
and continue to marvel at the growth and
magnetic interest of trick shots...and so
much more,” said an exuberant Tom
“Dr. Cue” Rossman. This event, which
has been running strong since its first
year in 1993, was the first stop of the
year for the Dr. Cue Classic Artistic Pool
Tour.
Of the 158 participants, Jason Kane
of New York had a colossal lead, finishing with a score of 99 out of a possible
108 points. He was able to take it easy
during California’s Josh Ulrich and
Oklahoma’s Buddy Eick’s second-place
tie-breaker review. Both Ulrich and Eick
were tied with 92 points, but Ulrich ultimately took second with 9 first attempts,
where Eick only had 8 first attempts.
RESULTS
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
Jason Kane
Josh Ulrich
Buddy Eick
Jamie Moody
$750
$500
$350
$275
2008 BCAPL Speed Pool
Crowns New Champs Kane
and Frideres
For a mere $10 entry, you receive
three chances at becoming the next
BCAPL speed pool champion. Speed
pool is racked with all 15 balls and the
clock starts as soon as the cue ball is
struck. Once the cue ball comes to a
complete stop, pocket all balls as quickly as possible, finishing with the 8 ball.
This year’s competition yielded a
clear winner in the women’s division,
with Jessica Frideres from Iowa in the
lead with a 22-second landslide at
1:23:03. On the men’s side, however, it
was a much closer road to victory. Jason
Kane’s success in the in the Artistic Pool
Championship may have been clear-cut
with his 1:03:18, but in the speed pool, a
tenth of a second is all that separated
him from Jerrod Frideres, who finished
runner-up at 1:03:28.
RESULTS
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
Jason Kane
Jerrod Frideres
Shayne Morrow
Scotty White
$168
$126
$84
$42
WOMEN’S RESULTS
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
Jessica Frideres
$68
Melahat Cag Caliskur $48
Vicky Rose
$32
Bernie Store
$16
| July/August 2008
Men’s Open Singles
Newport, MI’s, Danny Barnes looked
like he was ready for the Masters. Barnes
went undefeated through the field of 1,480
players and met up with Muncie, IN’s, Sam
Kirby in the finals for a 5-2 victory. Both
players were competing in the singles division for their first time. Third-place finisher
Shayne Morrow of Erie, PA, also finished
third in the speed pool competition.
RESULTS
1st Danny Barnes
2nd Sam Kirby
3rd Shayne Morrow
$11,000
$8,000
$6,000
Women’s Open Singles
The most dramatic finals match came
in the Women’s Open Singles where an
emotional 20-year-old Mary Rakin lost on
the hill of the second set to fellow
Californian Noel Campos. An overjoyed
Campos was a pleasure to watch as she
wheeled her way to victory from the field of
410. She’s been competing in the BCA singles for seven years now and attributes her
success to her new table. “I’m so thrilled!”
she exclaimed.
RESULTS
1st Noel Campos
2nd Mary Rakin
3rd Serena Copenance
$6,000
$4,000
$3,000
men’s Senior Singles
“I’m pretty darn excited. It doesn’t happen too often,” said Tim Joseph of Pocatello,
ID, after he defeated Canada’s Carl
Sampson in a 5-2 finals match. Both were
still cheery as they collected their payout
vouchers. Jose Zaragoza of Fort Worth, TX,
finished third after a 5-1 loss to Sampson.
RESULTS
1st Tim Joseph
2nd Carl Sampson
3rd Jose Zaragoza
$4,600
$3,300
$2,400
WOmen’s Senior Singles
The Women’s Senior Singles also saw a
double set showdown as North Carolina’s
Cheryl Pritchard fought her way back to
earn a spot in the finals. Pritchard knocked
out Idaho’s own Kim Anderson 4-3 after
being down 3-0. She continued her fight
against Holly Robinson of Concord, CA,
taking the first set 4-3 only to suffer a loss in
the second set 4-1.
RESULTS
1st Holly Robinson
2nd Cheryl Pritchard
3rd Kim Anderson
$2,500
$1,700
$1,200
65-May/June-2008
6/10/08
7:15 PM
Page 53
Super Senior Singles
BCA Master Instructor Randy
Goettlicher was proud to be in the
finals. “My new hip, man! I can bend
over the table!” he exclaimed. After losing the driver’s seat match to
California’s Donald Harp, Goettlicher
sent Colorado’s Angel Garcia home
with a 5-2 walloping before getting his
rematch with Harp. Goettlicher took the
first set 5-3 but came up short in the
second set 5-1. “My opponent is an
excellent player. I feel proud,” said a
humble Harp.
RESULTS
1st Donald Harp
2nd Randy Goettlicher
3rd Angel Garcia
$3,000
$2,150
$1,500
Men’s Player Member Singles
Of all the double-set finals, only in
the Player Member divisions did the
player from the back side come out
ahead. The Player Member divisions
were created for non-league members to
participate in the BCA nationals. In the
Men’s Player Member Singles, London,
England’s Ramesh Gokhul came back
through the B-side to defeat Michael
Couvrette of Newport Beach, CA, 7-2
and 7-1, while Donald Helbig of
Oakland, MD, finished third.
RESULTS
1st Ramesh Gokhul
2nd Michael Couvrette
3rd Donald Helbig
WOMen’s Player Member Singles
At nearly 2 a.m., the very last singles match wrapped up with the
Women’s Player Member division. Also, triumphing from the B-side was
Indiana’s Chinim “Sunny” Griffin, newly wedded wife of league owner
Mark Griffin, over Michigan’s Mary Ann Marr. It came down to the final
game of the second set when Griffin made a brilliant run at hill-hill, leaving herself a challenging cut on the 8 ball that she fired in. Her only
response after the match was, “I feel relieved.”
1st Chinim Griffin
2nd Mary Ann Marr
3rd Keitha Belin
Significant rule changes were strictly
enforced this year. Some rules included: players must rack for themselves when breaking;
players must call all bank shots, combinations,
and carom shots; if a player accidentally move
more than one ball, it is a foul; and players
must use an open break. More details on the
official BCAPL rules can be found at
BCAPL.com.t
Thursday night, May 8, began the first of a threeday Bar Table All-Around Challenge series between
England’s Darren “Dynamite” Appleton and the U.S.’s
Scott “The Freezer” Frost.
Format: The showdown included one match per
day, beginning with 8-ball and then moving on to 10ball and then 9-ball. Each discipline was a race to 11,
winner breaks, best 3 out of 5 sets on a 7-foot Diamond
Smart
Table
in
the
OB
Cues
TAR
(TheActionReport.com) Pit.
Stakes: Each day’s match up was played for a
total of $5,000.
Highlights: In the event that the players split the
first two matches, the final day of 9-ball would’ve been
worth the entire $15,000 pot. However, Appleton prevailed in the first two days of 8-ball and 9-ball. He won
3-2 sets in the 8-ball match with a nail-biting score of
11-9 in the final hill-hill set. He then took the 10-ball
match 3-1, stating that was his choice of the three
games. By the time 9-ball rolled around, Frost was
clearly the favorite. In the rack-your-own-break style,
Appleton admitted to not having much experience
playing bar table 9-ball. Meanwhile, Frost figured out
the break and was consistently pocketing the wing ball.
Though Appleton had dominated the 10-ball match,
Frost stole the show with a 3 to nil sweep in 9-ball.
Final Scores: Appleton, 3-2 disciplines (8-ball –
Appleton, 3-2; 10-ball – Appleton, 3-1; 9-ball – Frost,
3-0)
Challenge #2 – “The Kid” Got Too Close
to “The Lion”
$4,900
RESULTS
Appleton and Pagulayan Escape the
TAR Pit
Challenge #1: “Dynamite” Defrosted
“The Freezer”
$1,800
$1,100
$700
This was the third official “Action Challenge” for
The Action Report team. A pumped-up Alex “The
Lion” Pagulayan came straight from his high of
becoming the new World Pool Masters champion down
the hall into the TAR Pit for a three-day face off with
Shane “The South Dakota Kid” Van Boening.
Format: Race to 100 games of 10-ball on a 9-foot
Diamond table in the OB Cues TAR
(TheActionReport.com) Pit. Winner breaks.
Stakes: $20,000 total, winner-takes-all.
Highlights: After more than 23 hours of pool over
three days, the Lion’s slow cookin’ method prepared
himself a South Dakota Kid roast. Not ahead once until
the score was 93 to 92, Pagulayan never gave up. In
fact, as each night got later, Pagulayan’s game got
stronger. “I want to play a race to one hundred straight
up, to tell you the truth. I don’t like to play it in three
days just because I’m a very, very slow starter,” said
Pagulayan about his own late-blooming style. He overcame deficits of 13 in day one, 23 in day two, and 15
in day three. On the last night, neither player missed a
ball for hours, giving the packed room and online viewers the match of a lifetime. Van Boening attempted to
regain his lead, but some fatal errors in the end cost
him the century mark. Ultimately, Pagulayan’s patience
and tenacity paid off. When asked if we could anticipate a rematch? “Of course!”
Final Scores: Day 1 – Van Boening, 30-24; Day 2
– Van Boening, 70-63; Day 3 – Pagulayan, 100-94
65-May/June-2008
6/10/08
7:16 PM
Page 54
8
-Ball Teams Wrap Up with Minnesota
and Texas in the Lead
Keeping with the theme, there were more doubleset finals action in the team events, with the
Minnesota and Texas teams dominating
the divisions.
Women’s Masters Teams
Chicago’s “Never Mistresses”
Women’s Masters Team included Jacqui
Schroeder, Pam Patton, Debbie
Tasharski, Kassy Werner, and thirdplace Women’s Grand Masters finisher
Rebecca Wagner. Although this was
their first time playing together in the
masters team event, they were able to
come through the B-side to take a double-set victory against the “NPL Chix”
of Longview, WA, with Cindy Doty, Liz
Cole, Jackie Fitchner, Mary Hopkin,
and Andrea Asenz-Maes.
RESULTS
1st Never Mistresses
2nd NPL Chix
3rd NY Dolls
$5,000
$3,000
$1,500
Men’s / Mixed Masters Teams
Minnesota’s “Metro” included veterans Ty Wilson, Brian Brekke, Josh,
Burbul, Richie Cunningham, and Kim
Stigall. They came out of their round
robin bracket unscathed and marched
through the field undefeated to take the
title of Men’s Masters Team champions.
Texas’s “Big Tymers” Billy Sharp,
Mark Avery, Lanny Herrin, Andy
Jethwa, and Chris White put up a good
fight in the end but proved to be no
match for the Minnesota masters.
RESULTS
1st Metro
2nd Big Tymers
3rd Strokers
$6,000
$4,500
$3,000
Men’s / Mixed Open Teams
Out of 709 team entries, having Men’s Open
Singles champion, Danny Barnes on their team
proved to be lucky. Minnesota’s “Slight Breeze
No Gust” led by Rob Mattson, included heavy
hitters Jared Bailey, Shane Jackson, Sean
Johnson, Dave Eckert, and 9-Ball Challenge runner-up Demitrius Jelatis. But they may have
found it breezy as Michigan’s “Hustlin” with
Barnes, John Binion, Chris Flavin, Kenny
Massicotte, Craig McPartlin, and Billy Pinion II
left them in the cold with a double-set defeat in
the end.
RESULTS
1st Hustlin’
2nd Slight Breeze No Gust
3rd Rather Be Golfing
$12,000
$9,200
$7,200
Women’s Open Teams
Atlanta ladies’ team “Redrum” (named from
“The Shining”) was no match for Dallas’s
“Dammit Dolls” (named for a stuffed green mascot they would beat up on after missed shots).
The Dammit Dolls included OB Cues Tour players Monica Anderson, Melinda Bailey, Kathy
Knuth, Tara McCracken, Alicia Teskey, and
Tracy Voelkering. They might be looking for a
new mascot after losing in the finals to Phoenix’s
“Kitty’s Bad Cats” with Cathy Kelley, Kitty
Carroll, Debbie Compton, Sonia Flores, and
Leandrea Gaff, who started off each match with a
team huddle while chanting kitty sounds.t
RESULTS
| July/August 2008
1st Kitty’s Bad Cats
2nd Dammit Dolls
3rd Redrum
$5,500
$4,000
$2,900
65-May/June-2008
6/10/08
7:18 PM
Page 55
by Sally P. Timko
T
ony “Tornado” Drago was crowned the new champion of the
Predator 10-Ball Championship by virtue of his victory over
Francisco Bustamante in the finals. Often called the “fastest
pool player in the world,” Drago has now won every 10-ball tournament he
has ever entered: one.
The 8th Annual Predator 10-Ball Championship kicked off May 13 and
wrapped up May 17, bringing 96 of the world’s most talented players to the
Riviera Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, NV. Produced by Dragon Promotions,
this tournament was hosted by the BCA Pool Leagues and sponsored by The
Predator Group, Seyberts.com, Diamond Billiard Products, Simonis Cloth,
Aramith Balls, Delta-13 Rack, and Extreme Focus Sports Drink.
In addition to the usual suspects, a new twist was added to this event:
Four professional women players joined the rosters. The WPBA’s number-one
player, Allison Fisher, received a seed in this event, and Gerda Hofstatter, Yu
Ram-cha, and Sarah Rousey also participated.
The tournament followed a double-elimination, rack-your-own, winner-breaks, race-to-10 format. Making the 10 ball on the break in either of
the bottom corner pockets did not count as a win. Once the field was whittled
down to eight players on the winners’ side and eight on the one-loss side,
tournament director Scott Smith effected a
redraw and seeded the players by record in
a 16-player, single-elimination format that
became a race to 11.
Kozoom.com, a media company
from France, was on hand to provide
full coverage on the Internet. Every single round of the event featured one live
streaming match on Predator10Ball.com
and Kozoom.com, and there were also live
Coming in as the defending
scoring, brackets, and results.
champion, Shane Van Boening
went out with a fifth-place tie.
Van Boening Bested by Veteran Dominguez
Adding another layer to an already complex event, defending champion Shane Van Boening was embroiled in another challenge match with Alex
Pagulayan at The Action Report’s room at the start of the tournament. In fact,
right after winning the World Pool Masters May 11, Pagulayan raced off to
begin his nightly bout with Van Boening, which lasted several days.
This may or may not have taken its toll on either champion, but Van
Boening experienced his first loss of the event Wednesday to veteran player
Ernesto Dominguez. Up 6-4, Van Boening opened the door for Dominguez to
come at him, and the table mechanic won the next three to make it 7-6 in his
favor. Dominguez left Van Boening a shot on the 5 ball in the next rack after
a safety by “The South Dakota Kid,” so Van Boening took that rack, and then
a miss on the 5 in the following put Van Boening on the hill. Van Boening
broke and ran out the next rack but badly missed a routine 10 ball. Dominguez
grabbed the lifeline to make it 9-8 and then broke and ran out the last two
racks.
Van Boening trudged through the one-loss side along with many other
fine players, making it through to Friday’s matches, which began at 10:30 a.m.
to try to make it through to the final 16. He made it through and, as the fickle
finger of fate would have it, played Dominguez in the first round. Dominguez,
having already defeated Van Boening once, might not have taken him seriously enough the second time around, for it wasn’t long before Van Boening
took a 5-2 lead. He pushed that to 7-4 and then 9-5, ultimately winning 11-6
after Dominguez got funny on the 8 ball.
Semifinals Yield Interesting Results
Canada’s Tyler Edey even
bested the reigning world 9-ball
champion before being halted by
Jeremy Jones.
Unfortunately, there was apparently a miscommunication between
Smith and event promoter Charlie Williams, for Smith seemed unaware that
with the change in format to single elimination, the race changed to 11 from
10. This was not discovered until Tony Drago had already “won” his match
with Darren Appleton 10-6. The match was considered a concession to Drago
by Appleton.
Chamat, playing Niels Feijen out of The Netherlands, reached the “hill”
9-3 to find that he had another two racks to go instead of one. Momentarily
taken aback, Chamat was forced to watch Feijen take control of the table after
a 5-10 combo gave the Dutchman a game. A break and run-out saw Feijen
move another step closer; however, Feijen was playing to break up the 9 and
10 balls in the next and scratched. Chamat took the hill (again) and then broke
and ran out the final table to win 11-5.
Canada’s Tyler Edey struggled through a tough match-up with reigning
world champion Daryl “Dazzler” Peach that he ultimately won 11-7, while
Pagulayan thoroughly trounced John Schmidt to advance to the quarterfinals.
From a 5-2 and then a 9-4 lead, Pagulayan took the hill but then missed the 9
ball. Schmidt bagged that game but then scratched on his next break, handing
the match to Pagulayan.
Robb Saez and Francisco Bustamante played a hotly contested match
that went double-hill, with Bustamante advancing. On the flip side, Jeremy
Jones had a rather one-sided match with Great Britain’s Raj “Hitman” Hundal. In a set where Jones took an early lead and never relinquished it, the
Texan soon found himself up 10-4. He flubbed the following 1 ball, but when
Hundal scratched on the 6, it was all over.
Former U.S. Open champ
Gabe Owen put up a good fight
against Filipino Lee Van Corteza
and managed to keep the score fairly
even until the score was 7-6 Van
Corteza. “Van Van” won the next
and then missed a bank attempt on
the 9 ball, but Owen also missed the
9, so Van Corteza took that rack. A
safety skirmish in the next rack ended when Owen missed the 7 ball in
the side, with Van Corteza reaching
the hill. The Filipino broke the final
rack, and it was no gimme, but he
carefully ran out to win 11-6.
Winner of the PartyPoker.net World
Pool Masters only a few days prior,
Alex Pagulayan also placed high in
this event with a fifth-place tie.
Pagulayan Fouls Out, Four Advance to Semis
In the quarterfinal round, Van Corteza went on to challenge Bustamante. With the score tied 4-all, Bustamante gradually pulled away from his opponent, going up 8-5 and then 10-6. He played a defensive shot on the 1 ball
in the next rack, and Van Corteza fouled, allowing Bustamante the win.
Chamat had an excellent match against Van Boening in which he
whizzed to a daunting 7-3 lead over the defending champion. He faltered a bit
when he got out of line on the next 9 ball and missed, and Van Boening took
the next rack. They traded the next two to make it 8-5, and then Van Boening
missed what appeared to be an easy 7. Chamat took that rack and then the
Robb Saez had a strong
tournament that only ended
after a hill-hill bout with
Francisco Bustamante.
next when Van Boening scratched, giving Chamat ball in hand and the hill.
Van Boening started to make a comeback, winning the next two racks, but
at 10-8, he scratched on the break. The last rack was a dicey one, but with a
sweet break-out shot off the 7 ball into the 9 and 10 balls, Chamat claimed
the victory 11-8.
Jones started off strong in his match against Edey, quickly reaching a
6-3 and then a 9-4 lead. When he missed the 5 ball in the side, though, Edey
got back in gear to stage a return, taking that rack and the next to make it
9-6. Jones took ball in hand after Edey scratched to reach the hill, but when
“Double J” missed a cut on the 4 ball, Edey took that rack. Edey did not manage to catch up in time, though, for when he underhit a 2-8 combo in the last
rack, Jones was out for the 11-7 win.
In probably the most entertaining match of the evening, Pagulayan met
the fast-firing Drago on the featured table. It turned out to be the closest quarterfinal match of the event, with the players trading rack for rack. Pagulayan
reached the hill first after Drago hung up a 4 ball, making it 10-8 Pagulayan.
Drago got his chance in the next game, running out from the 2 to pull within
a rack. A five-inning safety battle on the 6 ball ended with Pagulayan erroneously calling a foul on himself, and Drago made it a hill-hill nail-biter. The
Maltese came up dry on his break, and Pagulayan pushed out. Drago played
a safety on the 1, and Pagulayan kicked at it and left a shot for Drago, who
dished up to win 11-10.
In the semifinals, Drago bided his time in his match against Chamat. In
fact, Chamat held the early lead of 5-2 before Drago made his move. Drago
narrowed the gap to one rack by taking advantage of a dry break and then a
faulty safety by Chamat, and he drew even with a break and run. “Napoleon”
took the next two, but Drago counter-attacked to make it 7 apiece, and then
he took the lead for the first time in the set with a 3-10 combo. Another break
and run nudged the Maltese one game closer. A safety battle over the 1 ball
saw Chamat try for a bank and miss; on fire now, Drago sped through the rack
at his usual rapid clip to reach the hill. He came up dry on his final break, but
Chamat left him a shot on the 1 ball after a failed safety attempt, and Drago
buzzed through the rack to win 11-7.
Bustamante met with former U.S. Open champ Jeremy Jones in the
more lopsided second semifinal match. Jones took the first two racks, but
he scratched on his next break and then committed two glaring errors to al-
low Bustamante to take a 3-2 lead. A quick 2-10 combo by the Filipino got
him another step away from Jones, and in the next rack, several innings were
exchanged over the 7 ball alone, with Bustamante getting that game as well.
Some excellent defensive play followed, with the players splitting the next
two games to make it 6-3. However, things seemed to go Bustamante’s way
when he broke next and followed a road map to get out and then cleared the
table after Jones missed an easy 1 ball. The next two racks also went to “Django,” putting him on the hill 10-3. He came up empty on his break, and Jones
cleared to put one more rack under his belt, but it wasn’t nearly enough. Jones
made nothing on his break, and Bustamante played a strong safety on the 1
ball, hiding the cue behind the 3. When Jones fouled, Bustamante took ball in
hand and took the simple way out, lining up the 1-10 combo in the side.
One of the few players to have
bested Shane Van Boening
within the past year or so, Ernesto
Dominguez had a great showing
at this event.
A flubbed 5-10 carom by “Django” ended up costing him the next
rack, as Drago zeroed in on the 7-10 combination; however, Bustamante took
the next rack after Drago came up short for the 5 ball and left the Filipino
an out. One of the biggest errors in the match that gave Drago the hill came
when, in the next rack, Bustamante shot at a hanging 1 ball and drew the cue
ball so far down the rail, it scratched. Only in need of one more game, Drago
broke and ran out the last rack to win 13-10.
Francisco Bustamante got run over by
Tony Drago’s speedy pace through the
extended race-to-13 finals.
Bustamante Gets Hit by a “Tornado”
The extended, race-to-13 final match began inauspiciously when, in the
first rack, Bustamante scratched off the 6 ball into the side pocket, Drago
rattled the 7 ball, and both players took a couple of turns at the 8 before
Bustamante finally scratched and Drago won the game. Indeed, not just the
match but almost every rack was peppered with uncharacteristic errors by
both players.
It was obvious, though, that Drago was the front-runner as he quickly
pulled in front of Bustamante, his trademarked speedy pace and jaunty walk
around the table showing his confidence. Up 4-3, Drago ran the table after
Bustamante missed a 5 ball and then broke and ran the next to gain a threerack lead. They struggled with gaining and keeping control of the match, and
Bustamante managed to knot the score at 9 apiece, but when he sent the cue
ball off the table on his next break, Drago again pulled ahead.
Jeremy Jones made it through a
tough bracket but was stopped by
“Django” in the semifinals.
In the awards ceremony that followed, the contestants were awarded
with medals, and then both gave short speeches. “I have to give credit to myself,” announced Drago to cheers and laughter. “I have never played ten-ball
before, so to win this event, that’s really saying something.”
Results:
1st
2nd
3rd
Tony Drago
Francisco Bustamante
Jeremy Jones
Marcus Chamat
5th Tyler Edey
Lee Van Corteza
Alex Pagulayan
Shane Van Boening
9th
Niels Feijen
Ernesto Dominguez
John Schmidt
Darren Appleton
Robb Saez
Gabe Owen
Raj Hundal
Daryl Peach
17th Alex Lely
Ramil Gallego
Dan Louie
Stan Tourangeau
Jose Parica
Charlie Williams
Mika Immonen
Mike Dechaine
$17,000
$7,500
$4,000
$2,700
$1,500
$1,000
by Ken Shuman
Ken Shuman of Sacramento, CA, is one of the top professional referees
and tournament directors in the country. He is the referee instructor for
the BCA Pool League’s national referee school and is considered by his
peers to be an expert on the rules of play. Ken has served as head referee for the International Pool Tour and currently directs or co-directs
several major events, including the Reno Open, the Derby City Classic,
and the U.S. Bar Table and U.S Open 9-Ball Championships. Contact
him at shucue@yahoo.com.
He called the 8 in the corner. It’s one of those shots that you could look at
for an hour and still not know if it would go. If Efren makes the 8 ball, he’s on
the hill and breaking to win a half a million dollars. Screw this one up, and I
might cost one of these guys $350,000.
I remember saying to myself, Just rely on your experience and judge it by
the reaction of the balls”they’ll tell you what happened. I knew this would give
me the information I needed, and I’ve done this thousands of times. As I got
into position, I gave myself one last reminder: Even The Magician can foul.
You must never let a player’s known ability or reputation affect your judgment
of what happens.
My eyes were glued to 15, 8, and 10 balls as he struck the cue ball. The
instant I saw the speed and direction the 15 ball took I called a foul. Efren knew
it was a bad hit. He gave that little boy smile of his and even pointed his cue at
the 15 ball. And wouldn’t you know it, he made the 8 anyway and the audience
went nuts. But he lost the game for pocketing the 8 ball and fouling. That made
it 6-6. Rodney broke, scratched, and never went back to the table. Match to
Reyes, 8-6, and a $500,000 payday.
When I think about it now, it still amazes me how calm I felt while all this
was going on. I certainly knew how critical the shot would be, but I wasn’t so
taken by the moment that it prevented me from doing what I’d been trained to
do. Sure there was pressure on me, but by trusting my experience I was able to
make the right call. I feel honored to have refereed such a historic pool match
and have a story to tell for years to come. s
P
layers arena the only ones who feel pressure during a pool match.
One way or another and regardless of the stakes, it affects everyone who has an interest in the outcome. Family members, friends,
backers, railbirds, spectators, and bettors all feel some kind of pressure while
sweating a match.
Someone else with an interest in the match who isn’t immune to feeling
pressure is the referee. In all sports, the last thing a referee wants to do is affect
the outcome with a bad call or an incorrect ruling. So how do referees deal with
the pressures of getting it right? They rely upon their training and experience to
perform under difficult circumstances.
My most pressure-packed moment occurred at the 2006 International Pool
Tour’s World Open 8-Ball Championship. I was refereeing the final match between Rodney Morris and Efren Reyes. It was a single race to 8. The champion
was to receive $500,000 cash, the largest winner’s share for a pool tournament
in the history of the sport. The loser would get $150,000 for second place. With
$150,000 each already in the bank, they were playing for a mere $350,000!
The match went back and forth until Efren took a 6-5 lead. The call I had to
make in the twelfth game has been etched into my memory forever. Efren was
running out to get on the hill, but he missed the 8. Rodney played safe. Efren
was left with the position shown in the diagram.
65-May/June-2008
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What’s
New!
FSP Splice Series
Falcon Cues is proud to introduce their new FSP Splice series cues tothose
who appreciate traditional design and craftsmanship. In this series, Falcon
took exotic woods such as curly maple, tulipwood, walnut, hollywood,
bacote, and snakewood from around the world and spliced it with African
black ebony to create clean yettraditional looks. The FSP Series features a
radial pin system, Triangle tip, Canadian maple shaft, and Falcon’s famous
double-pressedgenuine Irish linen wrap. For more information, please contact Falcon’s U.S. distributor J&J America at 562-229-9688.
Don’s Rack
Don’s Rack is the newest pool ball rack on the
market that allows anyone to rack like a pro. The
ergonomic design of Don’s Rack allows the rack to
be removed using just your thumbs, without
disturbing the balls. Don's Rack’s state-of-the-art
design features a precision lip that channels the
balls tightly into formation. The two thumb tabs on
the back of the rack provide leverage for flipping
the rack off the balls, preventing movement. Don’s
Rack retails for $32.99 and is available at Ozone
Billiards for only $26.39. For more information,
please call 866-481-7665, or visit
www.OzoneBilliards.com.
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Air Hockey Table
Drawknife Billiards has expanded its line to include air
hockey tables. This particular unit was built to coordinate
with their Glacier billiard table, but the air hockey tables
can be ordered to complement the design of any of
Drawknife’s other styles. For more information, please call
800-320-0527, or log onto www.drawknife.com.
What’sNew!
Barstool
Drawknife Billiards has added a new straight-back barstool
to its product line. The barstool features an upholstered seat
and back in the client’s choice of stain and upholstery. For
more information, please call 800-320-0527, or log onto
www.drawknife.com.
Bill Webb
Getting By with
a Little Help from
His Friends
H
umility. The cue-making world needs a
little more humility. It certainly doesn’t
need any more egomaniacs. The industry’s members have historically held
their basic techniques as guarded secrets, while claiming implicitly or explicitly that “mine is
better than yours.” But the industry has been changing. More
cue makers have been willing to share their information. And
with the changes in the industry, a new breed of cue makers
eager to learn has come on the scene. Billy Webb of Spider
Web Cues is one of those whose humility and affability are
signs that the industry attitude is truly changing.
Born in Lake City, Arkansas, July 11, 1949, just a few
miles away from where he currently lives, Bill Webb joined
the Navy at 19 years old. He retired from the Navy in 1970
in Seattle, WA. While in Seattle he apprenticed as a glazier
working in commercial building development.
Like most cue makers, Bill started playing pool at a
young age when he was 13 years old. “The pool hall owner
sometimes didn’t like the younger kids in there. And neither
did my dad!” said Bill, recalling that he often would have to
have a friend as a lookout in case his father walked by the
room.
His early experience with pool also had him fascinated
with cue sticks. Although he doesn’t consider himself a cue
collector, Webb has purchased several dozen cues. “It would
be very neat to have all the cues I’ve ever owned,” he ruminated. “I buy and sell them. But, I never seem to make any
money at that. I just move them.”
by Fred Agnir
Floating Like a Butterfly
Bill returned to Seattle in the late ‘80s, continuing with his quest
to build cues. He partnered with another cue maker to form Finish
Line Cues, building approximately 50 cues a year from 1999-2000.
Unfortunately, the partnership dissolved, and Bill decided to take his
cues a different path.
Fade to Black and Beyond
Bill moved back to Arkansas in 2000. The sale of his home in
Seattle provided enough proceeds to allow him to focus on building
cues as his sole job in Arkansas. His cues had mostly been the sixpoint variety, with Bill owing much of that decision to his fondness of
the cues made by the late Jerry Franklin of South West Cues. Throughout his learning, he never did the repair route nor did he make a significant amount of plain cues or Sneaky Petes.
In the early ‘80s, he took his glazier career from Seattle to Houston, TX, where he would spend approximately eight years before
moving back to Seattle. While in Houston, Bill and his roommates
would often visit the shop of legendary cue maker Richard Black.
Between him and his roommates, they purchased over 15 cues from
Black. Their visits intrigued Bill enough to think about making cues
himself “I didn’t know much (about cue making), so I visited him a
lot. I was trying to get some secrets,” joked Webb.
He had always been something of a woodworker, building many
craft projects from ornate jewelry boxes to pool triangle racks. He
also has built fishing gear as well as a small boat! Those projects have
shaped his approach to wood craftsmanship, as his cues today reflect
his attention to quality, keeping things square and plumb and holding
tight fits and tolerances.
He started building cues by working on half-spliced point construction. He knew enough about the process to have fixtures built
by a machine shop to cut V-grooves in the forearm wood on a table
saw. Although the resultant product weren’t quite the right angles he
was looking for, this served as the building block for his continued
pursuit.
Bill credits most of his learning of the basics of cue construction
from California’s Jerry McWorter. He had visited Jerry’s shop several
times in the 1980s while Jerry was still a relatively new cue maker
not yet making the designs for which he has become internationally
known. “I learned more from Jerry than anyone else,” Webb stated.
The flavor of Bill’s cues changed dramatically after seeing some
of the modern butterfly cues being built by Paul Fanelli. “After I saw
one of [Fanelli’s] cues on the Internet, it took me three months just
to figure out what was going on in that cue,” Webb started. “Then
it took me another three months before I was actually able to make
one!” Webb considers Paul Fanelli one of the greatest cue makers who
has ever lived, as he has come to understand many of the intricacies
involved in the butterfly splicing that Fanelli was executing.
“He is also a very nice guy,” continued Webb. “I e-mailed him
to tell him that I couldn’t sleep until I figured out how he was doing
these things, and he e-mailed me back giving me a lot of information.” Though much of the information he had already figured out over
painstaking trials and errors, much of the information on materials,
equipment, and tools that Fanelli provided has been invaluable.
“I’m also friends with Ron Haley, who is one of the nicest guys
in the world,” said Bill. “And I’ve gotten a lot of help from him. And
he would help anyone.” Ron Haley builds a more traditional-style cue
but has raised the craftsmanship and artistic bar of that style to unbelievable heights. Haley is considered by many of his peers to be the
very top of his craft at that style.
When Bill Webb first started, he said that there was little information out there and little help available. “Nobody would tell you
anything,” he averred. “I wasted a lot of wood in the eighties because
I used the best wood available when I should have been using two by
fours.
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Now I’ve met so many cue makers along the way that I can just
pick up a phone if I have questions, continued Webb. “I might call
four different people just to see the different way they do things and
choose which way would work out better for me. To that end, Bill
Webb has always been humble enough to give the proper credit to all
of the cue makers who have helped him along the way. That includes
his early visits with Richard Black to his current friendships with Ron
Haley and fellow Ozark cue maker, Missouri’s Andy Gilbert.
Building for the Enjoyment
Today Bill Webb tries to make about 50 Spider Web Cues a
year, most with combinations of butterfly and V-groove splicing techniques. Unlike most other cue makers, he doesn’t do any marketing
and doesn’t take any orders. “I play pool and I know that if you make a
cue from eighteen-and-a half to nineteen-and-a-quarter ounces, a oneand-a-quarter-inch-diameter butt, and a thirteen-millimeter shaft or a
teeny bit under, then that cue will suit eighty percent off all pool players out there, explained Webb. “That other twenty percent, I probably
don’t want to deal with. By that, Webb clarifies that his shop isn’t set
up to do special lengths or unique customization, so he steers away
from that type of work, knowing the difficulty and time it would take
to please those certain customers. Therefore, he continues to make
cues the way he wants to make them, having more fun at his full-time
hobby than most could dream.
“I m not a very good salesman. Other people do a good job at
tooting their horn, but I don’t, said Webb jokingly. “I should prob ably be easier to find. I should also probably get a website, but I’m
computer-stupid. Additionally, Bill claims to not have any product
to show on the website to begin with. Like many other cue makers
whose product is sought after, he can’t keep a cue in his hands or shop
for too long.
So, if you’re looking for a cue maker with a high regard for construction fit and finish and who is personable, with a good attitude and
fun demeanor, look no further than Billy Webb of Spider Web Cues.
This humble man is always quick to praise his fellow cue makers and
thank them for the help they’ve given him. And in return, he is producing some of the fanciest and technically sound butterfly cues available
with the highest quality that all cue makers strive for.
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D
DMI Sports knows the importance of their top-quality brands. They
know that the strength of their brands is the strength of their company. With this in mind, DMI Sports seeks to provide innovative
and exciting products to their customers through the brand names
they market.
“The Best Names in Indoor Games” is what DMI is all about,
and they work hard to give their customers new products that incorporate leading-edge technology. They manufacture and distribute
complete lines of billiards, dart, and table tennis equipment, as well
as air hockey and soccer tables.
The company began in 1976 as Dart Mart Inc., hence DMI,
manufacturing professional-quality dart equipment. In 1988, two
brothers, Paul and Gary Giegerich, purchased the company and
operated it out of New York City. In 1993, they moved the company to its current home of Fort Washington, PA, a suburb of
Philadelphia. This is the site of DMI’s global office headquarters. In
fact, the company just recently completed a move to a newer office
space there. They also have a distribution warehouse facility in
Hazleton, PA, and California.
Graham Bowe is the head of marketing and product development at DMI Sports and in his fifth year with the company. He
speaks of the entrepreneurial spirit of the Giegerich brothers, saying, “They are really the driving force behind this company.” The
brothers worked hard and transformed a specialty dart company into
a premier indoor games enterprise. Bowe points out that what Gary
| July/August 2008
and Paul have excelled at “is acquiring key brands in each of the
categories we compete in.”
Bowe himself has a background rich in product development.
He brought to DMI his 15 years of experience as a product manager in the hard goods category at Prince Sports Group, a top brand in
tennis. Bowe sees the value of DMI in the quality of the brands the
Giegerichs have acquired. He works to provide DMI’s top-notch
network of dealers with these top-notch brands, always striving to
offer them competitively priced innovative lines.
Bowe says, “What DMI can offer a dealer is a broad selection
of product that will likely fit whatever niche they’re targeting, whatever consumer they’re trying to appeal to.” DMI distributes these
products throughout the United States, Canada, and to more than
twenty other countries around the world.
DMI has many fine products to fulfill their dealers’ wishes.
Their name brands are the Minnesota Fats and Legend lines in their
billiards division. In their dart division they feature the Arachnid
and Nodor brands. Their full range of table tennis products is branded Prince, while American Legend is the brand name of their premium air hockey and soccer tables.
When DMI acquired the Minnesota Fats brand in 1997 they
knew they had the best-known name in billiards in their fold. As
Bowe puts it, the Minnesota Fats brand is “certainly the most wellregarded and well-known name in all of billiards.” Name recognition drives the brand and DMI Sports.
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Speaking of the Minnesota Fats brand, Bowe remarks,
“What’s really special about some of our pool tables is the convenience of them ... the focus of pool tables under the Minnesota Fats
brand has been more on easy-to-install, full-sized pool tables.”
DMI Sports offers these billiard tables in 7- and 8-foot sizes.
Because they are easy to assemble, a player can have the table
ready to go in a couple of hours. That’s innovation and making
things less complicated for your customers.
Further to the Minnesota Fats line, Bowe says, “We’ve built
now a full line of cues, and now we offer a full line of pool tables
and all the accessories that tie back to that brand.” He asserts that
the Minnesota Fats brand is an important brand in the billiards category, being an integral part of the company.
DMI’s Legend brand is their premium billiard cue line, which
they sell through specialty billiard dealers only. It is a much more
exclusive line and features high-end maple cues made from select
grade and top-quality maple. Their Stellar Shaft in the Legend line
is a five-part laminated shaft. The artisanship in the manufacture
of this shaft is the laminating of five sections of maple wood
together. This laminating takes out the grain in the wood. This
process provides high resistance to warping and eliminates any
directional effect that the continuous grain may have. The continuous grain could affect warping and consistency of play so lami-
nating these five maple sections effectively can contribute to more
consistent play. DMI’s commitment to quality is at the heart of
their development process, the Stellar Shaft being a perfect
example.
DMI Sports is set to unveil their Vayron Cue this year at BCA
Expo. This cue is of composite carbon fiber material, offering
durability and softness of feel. “It’ll be the first time this has been
introduced in billiards,” states Bowe. “With the soft feel this
Vayron material offers it’s a unique product. The material itself
comes out of the boating industry and the aerospace industry.”
Bowe is familiar with graphite carbon fiber products from his days
at Prince and their use of this material in tennis rackets. It’s this
graphite knowledge that he has brought to DMI Sports.
Another innovative billiards product exclusive to DMI sports
is the light-up pool cue. Bowe points out, “One of our most successful products has been a line of light-up cues, with a series of
imbedded LEDs that light on impact with the ball.” It’s a unique
twist on a pool cue and is a product that can introduce new players to the game. Bowe says that this product “can get people who
are perhaps not playing billiards interested with the novelty of the
product.” Innovation and technology combined are driving DMI
Sports forward when it comes to the billiard aspect of their
business.
Brand strength is evident in DMI’s other lines. Their Arachnid
brand is the premium brand in darts. “The same thing is true of
Arachnid in our soft tip dart category. It is the most well-regarded,
well-known name in soft tip darts,” says Bowe. He speaks of their
cutting-edge GoalFlex air hockey tables that feature lighted goals
that expand and contract so that games can be handicapped, allowing better players to still have fun competing against beginners.
Again, DMI constantly strives to add unique elements to a familiar game that makes it more interesting to the consumer. Bowe
points out Marketing 101 when he says, “There always has to be
something new to capture the imagination of the consumer.”
Bowe works closely with Matthew Hartwig, who heads up
the sales group at DMI Sports. Matthew conveys what’s happening out in the field at retail to Bowe so together they can respond
quickly to new happenings in the market. Bowe takes input from
Hartwig and responds from the product development side. Their
daily and even hourly collaboration ensures DMI Sports stays on
top of trends and issues involving their products. This attention to
detail is another reason DMI Sports continues to expand the
boundaries of the table game market.
DMI Sports, Inc. continues to set the table for future growth.
As Bowe says, “Remaining innovative, remaining focused on
finding new technologies, and having good partnerships with your
dealers—that’s what it comes down to.” That focus has DMI
Sports at the forefront of the indoor games business.
It’s a great business to be in when you know you can offer
your dealers and their customers the top brands, with state-of-theart technology, at affordable prices. As Bowe puts it, “What could
be better than designing and making game tables and pool cues
and bringing new technologies to the market?” DMI Sports knows
that helping consumers get the most out of their leisure time is as
good as it gets.t
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On Board With the BCA
by Rob Johnson, BCA Executive Director
I
Take Your Business to
the Next Level with
GenerationPool.com
In March 2008, the Billiard Congress of America (BCA) introduced its
new, state-of-the-art consumer website, GenerationPool.com. The site is
designed to be an industry portal and marketing tool that affords consumers
the opportunity to access informative and interesting content in a firstclass, consumer-minded manner.
A sampling of this content includes: customized searches for pool
halls, retail locations, manufacturers and instructors; playing tips; pro player answers and advice; up-to-the-minute industry news; downloadable
videos; and a social networking forums for players and fans alike.
In addition, GenerationPool.com has created a series of new opportunities for BCA members to promote their businesses and services via the
site, once again providing another valuable reason to be a BCA member.
BCA members get the benefit of being connected to this innovative
online resource. Additional benefits include being listed in the search
functions for retail locations, pool halls, Internet-only retailers, manufacturers, and instructors, as well as the opportunity to link their company’s
website to GenerationPool.com. And if a company doesn’t currently have
a website, a mini-site can be created, where locations and other details
about the company can easily be added.
Today’s ever-changing world is focused on consumers deriving their
information and making buying decisions via the Internet. With this in
mind, your company simply cannot afford to not be a part of
GenerationPool.com. To take advantage of all of the opportunities to promote your business and become involved in this exciting new initiative,
join the BCA today. Membership details can be found online at bcapool.com.
Take your business to the next level and visit GenerationPool.com
today! You’ll also want to make sure you add GenerationPool.com to your
list of favorite websites. And, as always, additional information regarding
the activities of the BCA can be found online at bca-pool.com. Be sure to
visit the site often for the latest and greatest updates.
| May/June 2008
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Turnkey Systems
Sales Tracker POS
Billiard Business
Solutions
65-May/June-2008
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NEWS
INDUSTRY
Viking Tour
Offers Insurance
The Viking Tour 9-Ball has just
launched a new membership-only benefit:
Viking Tour Health and Benefits Solutions.
Through this new program, Viking Tour
player members and business associate
members across the country can take
advantage of lower rates and broader benefits on comprehensive health insurance
(individual or group), life insurance, longterm care, dental, disability, and critical illness. Health Benefits Professionals &
Association Health Programs of Overland
Park, KS, has been retained to administer
the program.
Viking Tour player members and business associate members who currently provide health insurance coverage for themselves or their employees should take a
moment to compare their existing plan with
one offered by the Viking Cue 9-Ball Tour
Tour/AHP. Plus members who want to
begin providing health insurance and other
benefits should begin shopping with the
Viking Tour.
Health insurance is available to the
group or individuals within the companies
of Viking Tour business associate members
on a discriminatory or select basis. With
this new program, part-time and full-time
employees can have access to coverage
without ever losing their coverage and
employers can afford to provide access to
their employees for health insurance.
In addition to health insurance, Viking
Tour player members and business associate members should investigate the longterm care program. This offers our members access to every long-term care
provider nationwide at up to 40% savings.
Also, the life insurance programs should
benefit members by savings and underwriting for risk while saving up to 20% off current and new policies. Disability income,
critical illness, guaranteed issue limited
medical plans for the uninsurable, dental,
and vision are just a few of the other benefits the Viking Tour can offer members.
The Viking Cue 9-Ball Tour is proud to
be the first tour in the U.S. to offer these
types of benefits to Viking Tour player
members and business associate members.
For more information about the Viking Cue
9-Ball
Tour,
please
visit
www.vikingcue.com/9balltour.htm.
| July/August 2008
Ozone Billiards Sponsors the
Viking Cue 9-Ball Tour
Ozone Billiards is pleased to announce their participation as a sponsor of the
Viking Cue 9-Ball Tour for the 2008-2009 seasons. Ozone Billiards hopes their
involvement with the tour will be of great benefit to all of the tour’s players and host
locations.
Ozone Billiards has been providing top-quality service and unbeatable prices to
players and billiards enthusiasts for years. As one of the largest Viking cue dealers
in the nation, Ozone is excited to be working hand in hand with the Viking Tour and
extending their already superior relationship.
Not only is Ozone Billiards the one of the leading retailers for billiard supplies
and accessories, their pricing and return guarantee has been taking the industry by
storm. They offer a 90-day, 100% satisfaction guarantee, even on chalked cues and
shafts. “With this kind of flexibility, it provides the customer the confidence and reassurance that they will receive the absolute best products,” says Derek Dubois,
Ozone’s marketing assistant.
For more information about Ozone Billiards, please visit ozonebilliards.com.
Visit the Viking Tour’s website at vikingcue.com/9balltour.htm.
McDermott Handcrafted Cues
Introduces “Cue for the Cure”
McDermott Handcrafted Cues has debuted the Pink Ribbon Limited Edition Cue
to benefit the Triple Negative Breast Cancer Foundation, a New Jersey non-profit corporation dedicated to raising public awareness and supporting research of triple negative breast cancer. The specially designed cue features a pink breast cancer awareness
ribbon to support those touched by breast cancer.
“We are proud to display the Triple Negative Breast Cancer ribbon on our latest
limited edition cue,” says Nat Rosasco, president and CEO of McDermott. “We all
know someone who has been affected by breast cancer, and we are pleased to be working with an organization that makes a difference and ultimately saves lives.”
The Pink Ribbon cues feature highly figured birdseye maple, aged burl wood, six
floating points, 134 total inlays, an Everest tip by Tiger, a stainless steel joint, and
German brass rings. This cue is the latest design from renowned cue designer Larry
Liebl.
As with all McDermott cues, the new Pink Ribbons come standard with
McDermott’s lifetime warranty and will carry a manufacturer’s suggested retail price of
$1,449 and will be available at authorized McDermott retailers starting May 15.
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BCA Resumes Control of Men’s
Rankings, Communications
The Billiard Congress of America (BCA) announced it will manage the
men’s professional rankings system and player communications duties in its
role as the North American representative to the World Pool-Billiard
Association (WPA). Most recently these duties were handled by the U.S.
Professional Poolplayers Association.
“The tremendous international expansion of men’s events in recent years
has made it clear that the BCA needs to take steps to solidify the men’s professional ranking system,” said BCA Board President Ivan Lee. “We have grown
from a single World 9-Ball Championship to WPA World Championships in 8Ball, 9-Ball, 10-Ball and 14.1, and it is imperative that we maintain a ranking
system that consistently allows us to send the best players North America has
to offer to compete and represent our continent in these events.”
This decision was made after the BCA learned that an American pro event
was conducted in direct conflict with the World 8-Ball Championship. The conflict resulted in players being required to choose between competing in the
World 8-Ball event and losing ranking points or competing in the American
event and sacrificing their opportunity at a world title.
“The BCA believes that the task of communicating with and assigning professional players to compete in international events is now so critical that they
must have direct control of the process in order to take responsibility for it,” further stated Lee.
The BCA has requested that AZBilliards, a leading source in pool and billiard news and information, assist with creating and maintaining the new ranking system. “AZBilliards, in partnership with the BCA, is helping to create a
thorough, carefully planned player ranking process that will allow the BCA to
provide the best possible representation from North America to the World
Championship events,” concluded Lee.
Jim Murnak Adds
Womens’ Tournament
to Predator 9-Ball Tour
Jim Murnak of Jim Murnak Cue Cases is
teaming up with Tony Robles and Predator to
sponsor a women’s open 9-ball tournament at
Comet Billiards in Parsippany, NJ, July 19-20.
“There aren’t enough tournaments for
women, and Tony’s tour is a great place to have a
women’s open,” says Murnak. One of Jim’s cases
will be raffled off at the event. For more information, please contact Jim Murnak atfist98@aol.com
or 800-443-3478.
GO4POOL.COM
Jim Murnak has opened a website called
go4pool.com that is showing videos of matches of
a variety of skill levels. There will be lessons
from pro players and interviews so viewers can
get an in-depth idea of what it took for them to
become professionals. There will be a variety of
pool-related subjects. Most of the videos, large or
small, can be viewed for a charge of $2. “For the
price of a bottle of water, you can learn something
from a pro that will help your game,” says
Murnak. The best thing is that a large percentage
of the money brought in on these videos will go
back to the players. For more information, please
contact Jim Murnak a fist98@aol.com, or call
800-443-3478.
65-May/June-2008
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www.hatchbilliards.com
P.O. Box 1467
Conway, NH 03818
603-447-8486
howard@hatchbilliards.com
Hatch Billiards
Exceptional Tables for
the Exceptional Home
Handcrafted pool tables, billiards furniture
& accessories for the discriminating pool player.
We deliver anywhere in the U.S.
Customs designs available.
65-May/June-2008
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65-May/June-2008
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Page 74
C
RegionalRoundup
norTHEAST
HEIDRICH HANGS ON TO WIN
JOSS NORTHEAST 9-BALL TOUR / PARSIPPANY, NJ
by Skip Maloney
In a true double-elimination
final match on the Joss Northeast 9Ball Tour in Parsippany, NJ, Dan
Heidrich withstood a strong attack
that put him on the brink of defeat.
He rallied in the second match to
defeat Adam Kielar and capture the
first place prize in the $2,000-added
event. The tour stop drew 29 entrants
to Comet Billiards on the weekend of
April 26-27.
Earlier in the day, Heidrich
knocked Jesse Ramirez to the oneloss side of the bracket as Kielar was
doing the same to Jonathan Smith.
The last two winners then squared
off in the hot seat match, battling
back and forth to a 9-7 win for
Heidrich.
On the one-loss side, Bucky
Souvanthong dropped Jason Michas
into the seventh-place slot, as
Carmen Lombardo, in a 9-7, threehour marathon, did the same to
Bobby Blackmore. In a series of
tightly contested games and matches
leading up to the quarterfinals,
Smith, fresh from the winners’ side,
defeated Souvanthong, and Carmen
Lombardo got by Jesse Ramirez.
Smith then knocked Lombardo into
fourth place with a 9-6 win.
With visions of the 9-7, backand-forth struggle that had knocked
him onto the west side in his mind,
Kielar wasted little time dispatching
Smith into third place. He jumped
out to a 7-0 lead before trading a couple of games and closing it out 9-2.
At the beginning of the true
double-elimination match-up versus
Heidrich, it looked as though Kielar
was going to build on the momentum
he’d established in his semifinal
match against Smith. He won that
first set handily 9-3 and stood poised
to avenge his earlier defeat in the hot
seat match. But Heidrich turned the
tables rapidly, capitalizing on a few
mistakes, running five racks in the
middle of the contest and closing it
out at 9-4 for the victory.
CORR WINS HER FIFTH JOSS BILLIARD TOUR EVENT
JOSS NORTHEAST 9-BALL TOUR / PROVIDENCE, RI
by Skip Maloney
Women's Professional Billiards Association
(WPBA) player Karen Corr is still the only
woman billiard player to have ever won an event
on the Joss Northeast 9-Ball Tour, and on the
weekend of May 3-4, she worked her way
through a field of 60 entrants undefeated to
become the only woman to win five of them.
Corr defeated Ivaylo Petrov twice, once for the
hot seat and again in the finals of the $2000added event at Snookers Café and Billiards in
Providence, RI.
Earlier on Sunday, the four finalists on the
winners’ side battled to identical 9-5 scores to
put Corr in the hot seat. Petrov defeated Bob
RESULTS
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
Dan Heidrich
Adam Kielar
Jonathan Smith
Carmen Lombardo
Bucky Souvanthong
Jesse Ramirez
7th Jason Michas
Bobby Blackmore
Karen Corr
| July/August 2008
Madenjian, while Corr moved past Randy
Labonte. Petrov battled, but Corr prevailed in the
hot seat match.
By Sunday, there were only four left on the
one-loss side of the bracket, and the early matches there were close. Dave Fernandez and Ray
McNamara battled back and forth through
advances and ties, neither player moving further
than a single game ahead of the other. Both had
opportunities to close it out in the subsequent
hill-hill game to win it, but it was McNamara
who advanced. Bucky Souvanthong jumped out
to a 5-0 lead in his battle versus Tom
McGonagle, but McGonagle fought back to tie
and kept it close, before falling just shy of bringing the match to hill-hill.
Madenjian, over from the winners’ side,
took on McNamara, defeating him 9-5, as
Souvanthong took on Labonte, defeating him
handily 9-3. Souvanthong then held on to best
Madenjian 9-6 to move into the semifinals
against Petrov. Petrov jumped out to an early 30 lead before Souvanthong responded to tie it.
The match wavered back and forth to hill-hill,
where, just as in the earlier match-up between
Fernandez and McNamara, both players had an
opportunity to win the final game but passed
until Petrov prevailed.
Corr lost no time establishing her rhythm in
the final against Petrov. She jumped out to an
early lead that she never relinquished and closed
out her undefeated weekend with a commanding
9-4 victory.
RESULTS
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
Karen Corr
Ivaylo Petrov
Bucky Souvanthong
Bob Madenjian
Ray McNamara
Randy Labonte
7th Dave Fernandez
Tom McGonagle
9th Trystan Speedwell
Jason Michas
Pete Ziemak
Dennis Levesque
13th Damon Sobers
Joe Tucker
Chris Leal
Chris Uhlman
YourLine Up
best
shot
!!
CUETABLE.com
Free Online Billiard Diagram Tool
for Communication & Education
65-May/June-2008
6/10/08
7:45 PM
Page 75
C T. D E . M A . M D . M E . N H . N J . N Y. O H . PA . R I . V T.
CHAU AND SHEA MAKE STRONG CLOSINGS
TIGER POOL TOUR / ROCKVILLE, MD
Manuel Chau
by Skip Maloney
Billiard player Manuel Chau started
strong and finished strong in an undefeated romp at the Tiger Pool Tour stop
on the weekend of May 3-4. The $1,250added event drew 64 entrants to Orange
Ball Billiards in Rockville, MD.
Chau started on Saturday with a
decisive 9-2 victory in the tournament’s
opening round, only to struggle through
his next three match-ups. By the time he
reached the final four on the winners’
side on Sunday, he’d lost 18 of 45 games
in his middle three matches. His opponent in that final four, Joey Ryan, had
lost 24 of his 54. By contrast, the other
two opponents in the winners’ side final
four, Shaun Wilkie and Brian Deska, had
lost only 26 games combined. Both
Deska and Wilkie had each shut out one
of their opponents on their trip to the
winners’ side final four.
As Wilkie and Deska struggled to a
9-6 Deska victory, Chau embarked on a
closing run that saw him lose only 6 of
his next 33 games. He defeated Ryan and
then Deska 9-2 to move into the hot seat.
Over on the one-loss side of the
bracket, Ryan McCreesh, Brandon
Shuff, Eric Moore and Shane Jackson
met in the final four match-ups there,
with McCreesh and Moore advancing.
McCreesh tallied his eighth victory on
the one-loss side, defeating Moore
before turning to Brian Deska in the
semifinal match. Deska, having just lost
to Chau, turned the 9-2 scoring in that
match upside down, defeating McCreesh
9-3 to move back into the finals against
Chau. The turnaround didn’t last long, as
Chau closed out an undefeated weekend
with his third 9-2 victory in a row to capture the first place prize.
In the women’s event, it was Linda
Shea who emerged as the winner from a
field of 14 entrants. Shea had been
knocked to the one-loss side of the
bracket by Ming Ng in the winner’s side
round of eight and worked her way back
through five opponents, losing only 10
games to meet and defeat Ng 9-6 in the
final. She defeated Cheryl Squire in the
quarterfinal match and Sharon O’Hanlon
in the semifinal.
OPEN RESULTS
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
Manuel Chau
Brian Deska
Ryan McCreesh
Eric Moore
Joey Ryan
Shaun Wilkie
7th Brandon Shuff
Shane Jackson
9th Kevin Tsui
Andy Lincoln
Matt Clatterbuck
WOMEN’S RESULTS
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
Linda Shea
Ming Ng
Sharon O’Hanlon
Cheryl Squire
5th Ji-Hyun Park
My-Hanh Lac
7th Spring Helligrath
Ceci Strain
norTHEAST
SHIN PARK CLAIMS ANOTHER
PREDATOR BILLIARD TOUR STOP
PREDATOR 9-BALL TOUR / QUEENS, NY
Shin Park
by InsidePOOL Staff
With a strong field of 50 pool players over Memorial
Day weekend at Master Billiards in Queens, NY, the
Predator 9-Ball Tour hosted its sixth stop of the season.
The event saw stand-out players such as Shin Park, Mika
Immonen, Shaun Wilkie, Warren Kiamco, Frankie
Hernandez, Matt Krah, Tony Robles and many others.
As day one ended, the final twelve were brought back
for a chance at the top prize of $1,025. On the winners’
side, Frankie Hernandez battled newcomer Scott
Simonetti in the quickest match of the day, lasting under
an hour. The quick-fires fought to hill-hill, and Simonetti
looked to win the match with a killer safety on the 2 ball.
But the unfazed Frankie kicked three rails to make an
amazing 2 ball and run out for the 5-9 combination.
The common match-up of Robles and Park was the
other winners’ side match. Robles took an early 5-2 lead
on Park, but again Robles’ break proved inconsistent.
Both struggled to make balls, and Park managed to pull
ahead and win the match 9-6.
After a loss to Park, Immonen came back to win his
next six in a row, including wins over Bobby Blackmore,
Thomas Wan, Eddie Abraham, Robles, and Kiamco to face
Hernandez in the semifinal match. Hernandez came out
strong and took an early lead over Immonen, but Immonen
fought back with some offensive shots and a few good
rolls to win the match 9-4, leaving Hernandez to settle for
third place.
The final was all Park. Immonen seemed to show
signs of fatigue from the day’s battles and missed shots
unexpectedly. Park capitalized and played some great
pool, earning a 9–5 win over the “Iceman” and winning
the event.
RESULTS
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
Shin Park
Mika Immonen
Frankie Hernandez
Warren Kiamco
Scott Simonetti
Tony Robles
7th Matt Krah
Eddie Abraham
9th Kari Paloheimo
Jorge Rodriguez
Joey Kong
Victor Nau
65-May/June-2008
6/10/08
7:47 PM
Page 76
norTHEAST
ICEMAN FINALLY BREAKS THE ICE
PREDATOR 9-BALL TOUR / QUEENS, NY
by InsidePOOL Staff
The Predator 9 Ball Tour made its seventh stop of the season at Comet
Billiards in Parsippany, NJ, the weekend of May 31-June1. The event drew 62
players, with Mika “Iceman” Immonen coming out on top.
Stop 7 had nine women participating. Karen Corr had a rare early exit after
winning her first match against Dave Deserio 9-2 but lost her next two to Shane
Winters 9-2 and Bobby Blackmore 9-6. Also, Liz Ford was the highest-finishing
lady, earning $100. She won her first two matches but then ran into newly elected
Hall of Fame member Allen Hopkins, who bested her 9-3. Once on the one-loss
side, she was eliminated by Bill Horne 9-6.
Immonen was business as usual, taking care of the bottom portion of the chart
by defeating Julie Kelly 9-6, Bill Gricenko 9-2, Gail Glazebrook 9-1, Jim Conn 91, and Warren Kiamco 9-8 to earn a shot at the hot seat.
Tony “The Silent Assassin” Robles was taking aim, defeating Jonathan
Castillo 9-1, Bora Jeong 9-4, Carmen Lombardo 9-2, Victor Nau 9-5, and the
always-dangerous Hopkins 9-6 to earn his shot at the hot seat.
The hot seat was all Robles, who played a near flawless match to beat the
Iceman 9-5. But Immonen was not to be denied as he defeated Kiamco 9-5 in the
semifinals to earn another opportunity with Robles.
In the finals, Robles won the first two games and missed a tough 2-9 billiard
and then lost the next seven games in a row as Immonen fell into dead stroke. The
Finn missed only one shot from that point on, as Robles struggled throughout the
match to pocket a ball on the break, allowing Immonen to earn his first Predator 9Ball Tour Championship.
SCHMIDT AND LAC TAKE FIRST IN MIDLOTHIAN
TIGER TOUR / MIDLOTHIAN, VA
Cindy Dorsey, John Schmidt, Brandon Shuff, Thomas Dorsey
by InsidePOOL Staff
The Tiger Tour was held at Diamond Billiards in Midlothian, VA,
for the first time May 31-June 1, where the room added a total of $2500
to the event with the help of Jagermeister and a cue donated by John
Schmidt’s sponsor, OB1, and the sponsors of the Tiger Tour. Pro John
Schmidt took top honors in the open division, while My-Hanh Lac took
the ladies’ event.
The open field was a strong one, with 41 players coming out to
prevent Chau from taking his fourth tournament in a row and 20 ladies
attending for the title of Virginia State champion. Saturday’s line-up
included several of the top points leaders of the tour, along with some
new faces from the Richmond area.
The surprise visitor from Florida was pro player Schmidt, currently sponsored by the host pool room. Schmidt’s tournament run didn’t
allow a single player to reach above four games. He fought his way
through to the final four in the winners’ bracket, where he dispatched
of David Hunt 9-3 to face Chau. This was a much-anticipated match,
but Schmidt sent Chau to the one-loss side with a 9-4 win.
His wins Saturday included Dave White 9-3, Larry Kressel 9-4,
and his final match for Saturday against Dustin Paris ended 9-3, taking
him into Sunday, where he would meet Richmond local David Hunt in
the final four of the winners’ bracket.
After taking an early loss Saturday to Paul Helms, Brandon Shuff
began plugging away to get back to the top. He struggled through the
| July/August 2008
Tony Robles, Bill Haley, Mika Immonen
RESULTS
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
Mika Immonen
Tony Robles
Warren Kiamco
Allen Hopkins
Joey Kong
Shane Winters
7th Steve Lillis
Jason Michas
9th Jimmy Conn
Victor Nau
Mike Fingers
Chris Lynch
13th Mike Wong
Wali Muhammad
Bill Horne
Marc Vidal
one-loss side to best Larry Kressel 7-0 and advance to the semifinals
against Chau. He bested Chau a stunning 7-1 to meet Schmidt. The
finals weren’t too evenly matched, for Schmidt walked away with the
first-place prize after defeating Shuff in an 11-0 victory.
The ladies’ division Sunday saw 20 players vying for the title of
Virginia State champion and the much-coveted spot at the WPBA 2008
U.S. Open. With a surprise visit from Virginia’s Governor Gilmore, the
ladies were really in the spotlight.
Newcomer to the tour Iris Ranola of Manila, Philippines, appeared
to be the toughest competition for Ming Ng and My-Hanh Lac early in
the day. The big surprise for the day was longtime friend of the tour,
Christine Foster. Foster pushed her way through the winners’ bracket,
defeating Ann Bellamy 7-4 and Katie Cowan 7-5 but was sent to the
elimination bracket by Lac. She didn’t give up and went on to defeat
Sharon O’Hanlon 7-5 for a shot at Ng. Ng didn’t give her a chance,
defeating her 7-0, sending Foster into fourth place. Ng and Lac
matched up to see who would go on to play Ranola in the finals, with
Lac coming up with the win. Lac had already qualified for the U.S.
Open and was going strictly for the Virginia State title. Lac came out
ahead 9-7 against Ranola, so Ranola will be attending the WPBA 2008
U.S. Open alongside My-Hanh Lac.
MEN’S RESULTS
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
John Schmidt
Brandon Shuff
Manuel Chau
Larry Kressel
Danny Green
David Hunt
7th Joey Ryan
Paul Helms
9th Dustin Paris
Eric Moore
Bernie Kirby
My-Hanh Lac
WOMEN’S RESULTS
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
My-Hanh Lac
Iris Ranola
Ming Ng
Christine Foster
5th Sharon O’Hanlon
Katie Cowan
7th Cheryl Pritchard
Ji-Hyun Park
C
65-May/June-2008
6/10/08
7:51 PM
Page 77
norTHEAST
UPCOMINGTOURNAMENTSNORTHEAST
Date
Tournament
Venue
City, ST
Contact
$ Added
Eligibility
7/6
Blaze 9-Ball Tour
Skyline Billiards
Brooklyn, NY
718-627-3407
$1,500
Open
7/12-13
NJ State 9-Ball Championships
Prime Time Sports Bar and Café
South Amboy, NJ
732-721-6555
$4,000 + qual. Ladies
7/12-13
7/13
Tri-State Tour
Blaze 9-Ball Tour
Comet Billiards
Cosmo’s Billiards
Parsippany, NJ
Dickson City, PA
973-334-7429
570-207-7665
TBA
$1,000
Invitational
Open
7/20
Blaze 9-Ball Tour
Drexeline Billiards
Drexel Hill, PA
610-259-9144
$1,000
Open
7/26-27
Predator 9-Ball Tour
Master Billiards
Sunnyside, NY
718-706-7689
$1,000
Open
8/2-3
Predator 9-Ball Tour
Comet Billiards
Parsippany, NJ
973-334-7429
$1,000
Open
8/9-10
Blaze 9-Ball Tour
Raxx Pool Room
West Hempstead, NY 516-538-9896
$2,000
Open
8/14-17
8/24
Turning Stone Classic XI 9-Ball Open Turning Stone Casino
Blaze 9-Ball Tour
Skyline Billiards
Verona, NY
Brooklyn, NY
518-356-7163
718-627-3407
$25,000
$3,000
Open
Open
8/24-30
Predator World 14.1 Championship Hilton
East Brunswick, NJ
732-828-2000
$25,600
Open
8/31
Blaze 9-Ball Tour
One Shot Billiards
Somerset, NJ
732-249-4555
$1,000
Open
9/7
Blaze 9-Ball Tour
Riley’s Concord Billiards
Boothwyn, PA
610-859-8058
$1,000
Open
9/14
9/21
Blaze 9-Ball Tour
Blaze 9-Ball Tour
Castle Billiards
Atlantic City Billiard Club
East Rutherford, NJ 201-933-6007
Egg Harbor, NJ
609-645-7576
$1,000
$1,000
Open
Open
9/28
Blaze 9-Ball Tour
Drexeline Billiards
Drexel Hill, PA
$1,000
Open
| July/August 2008
610-259-9144
65-May/June-2008
6/10/08
8:07 PM
Page 78
RegionalRoundup
SOUTHEAST
GROSSMAN HANGS ON IN
MARATHON FINAL
J. PECHAUER SOUTHEAST OPEN 9-BALL TOUR / GAINESVILLE, FL
MILLS JUMPS FOR VICTORY
by Skip Maloney
Early birds were chirping in Florida when Dave
Grossman sunk the final three balls in the J. Pechauer
Southeast Tour billiard stop on the weekend of May 1011. Grossman bested Tommy Kennedy in a doubleelimination final that featured two hill-hill games and
lasted until 3:30 a.m. Monday morning. The $1,000added event drew 44 entrants to The Art of Billiards in
Gainesville, FL.
Grossman and Kennedy had their first meeting in
the hot seat match, where an in-house electric panel shut
down and the lights went out, forcing a delay that contributed to the subsequent early morning finals. When
play resumed, Grossman completed a 9-6 win, sending
Kennedy to the west side of the bracket.
Bob Moore and Chris Walls faced each other in the
quarterfinal match. In a back-and-forth contest that went
hill-hill, Walls advanced to face Kennedy in the semifinals. Walls jumped out to an early 6-3 lead, but
Kennedy fought back to tie it at 6. The match worked its
way to Walls’ second consecutive hill-hill contest, but it
was Kennedy advancing to the finals for a second crack
at Grossman.
It looked as though Grossman was going to make it
a single set in the finals. He was on the hill and up by 4
when Kennedy rallied to win the next five games and
force a second match. The back-and-forth struggle that
ensued saw the two tied at 5 and 6 apiece before
Grossman won two in a row to reach the hill first, but
Kennedy caught up with him to make it double-hill. The
two jockeyed for position through seven balls until
Grossman took advantage of an open position to sink
the final three.
RESULTS
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
Dave Grossman
Tommy Kennedy
Chris Walls
Bob Moore
Jason Richko
Neil Fujiwara
SEMINOLE PRO TOUR / HOLIDAY, FL
Donnie Mills
by Skip Maloney
Donnie Mills used his jump stick to
great effect on the Seminole Pro Tour
billiard stop in Holiday, FL, the weekend of May 17-18, defeating David
Grossman in the finals. After being
knocked to the one-loss side earlier in
the day, Mills worked his way back
through three opponents to capture first
prize in the $8000-added event that
drew 61 entrants to Hammerheads
Billiards.
Mills faced Hans Berber Oglu in
the final four winners’-side matches
early Sunday, while his eventual opponent in the finals, Grossman, matched
up with Tommy Kennedy. Oglu sent
Mills westward with an 8-4 victory as
Grossman moved into the hot seat
match by defeating Kennedy 8-6.
7th Livrago
Danny Wascom
9th Walter Blacker
Steve Foster
Adam Crawford
John Dykes
FULLER WINS SECOND STRAIGHT
BILLIARDS EVENT
JACOBY CUES CAROLINA TOUR / ROCKY MOUNT, NC
by Skip Maloney
After recording his first victory in five attempts on the Jacoby
Cues Carolina Tour in April, Mike Fuller picked up his second
straight billiards tour victory the weekend of May 17-18. Fuller
defeated Phillip Richardson twice to capture first place in the
$1,000-added event, which drew 39 entrants to Sharks-N-Shooters
in Rocky Mount, NC.
On Sunday, Fuller and Richardson were half of the final four on
the winners’ side. They gave up only three games total between
them in defeating Rob Krull 7-1 and Delton Howard 7-2, respectively. The going got a little rougher in the hot seat match, with Fuller
prevailing 7-5 to send Richardson to the semifinals.
On the west side, Robert Ray faced Mike Gulyassy in the quarterfinal match. He’d sent Gulyassy to the one-loss side in the tour78 InsidePOOL Magazine
| July/August 2008
Grossman secured his seat in the finals
with an 8-5 victory over Oglu.
On the one-loss side, Dan Lavoie
moved on when Corey Deuel forfeited
(his second forfeit of the tournament; he
ended up in the 9-12 slot without ever
having lost a match). Joining Lavoie
among the final four on the left side of
the bracket were Anthony Meglino,
Marc Vidal, and Hunter Lombardo.
Lombardo and Vidal advanced to face
Mills and Kennedy, respectively, who
dropped them both into the fifth-place
slot and squared off against each other
in the quarterfinals.
Mills defeated Kennedy in a tightly
contested 8-6 quarterfinal match and
renewed acquaintances with Oglu,
who’d defeated him earlier, on the winners’ side of the bracket. In another 8-6
contest, Oglu dropped into third place,
leaving Mills and Grossman to face
each other in the finals.
Grossman jumped out to an early 41 lead, but he only won one of the next
nine games. As Mills fought his way
back, Grossman hooked him on a number of occasions, leading Mills to break
out his jump cue and, ultimately, make
every jump shot that Grossman forced
him into. It was Mills’ first win on the
Seminole Pro Tour, and he was able to
manage it in front of a partisan crowd
that had gathered to root him on in his
homeroom at Hammerheads Billiards.
RESULTS
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
Donnie Mills
David Grossman
Hans Berber Oglu
Tommy Kennedy
Marc Vidal
Hunter Lombardo
7th Dan Lavoie
Anthony Meglino
9th Butch Croft
Mike Caron
Mark Coates
Corey Deuel
13th Tony Ruberto
Elvis Rodgriguez
Adam Wheeler
Mike Hutchenson
nament’s opening round and defeated him a second time 7-5 to
move into the semifinals against Richardson. Richardson defeated
Ray 7-4 to advance to the finals.
Richardson took an early 3-0 lead in the finals before Fuller
responded. They tied and then struggled back and forth to doublehill before Fuller closed it out and collected his second straight tour
victory.
RESULTS
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
Mike Fuller
Phillip Richardson
Robert Ray
Mike Gulyassy
Rob Krull
Delton Howard
7th Ron Park
Mac Harrell
9th Matt Reed
Peaches Fuller
Jeff Pruitt
Russell Sasser
65-May/June-2008
6/10/08
8:09 PM
Page 79
A L . F L . G A . K Y. M S .
NEVEL CAPTURES THIRD STRAIGHT
GREAT SOUTHERN WIN
GREAT SOUTHERN BILLIARD TOUR / KNOXVILLE, TN
Larry Nevel
by Skip Maloney
Larry “The Truth” Nevel picked up his third straight victory
on the Great Southern Billiard Tour the weekend of May 17-18 in
Knoxville, TN. He defeated Jonathan “Hennessee From
Tennessee” Pinegar in the final match, adding to a string of six victories on the tour dating back to the finale of last year’s tour in
January. He’s defeated six different opponents in the finals on the
tour and has been defeated only twice. The $1,500-added event
drew 40 entrants to Breakers Sports Bar & Grille.
The hot seat match that followed between Nevel and Daulton
was the second time in a week that the two had squared off in a
critical Great Southern Tour match. Once again Nevel prevailed,
defeating Daulton.
On the one-loss side, bank champion John Brumback faced
off with Pinegar in the quarterfinal match. Brumback put up a
fight, forcing the match to hill-hill before Pinegar closed it out and
turned to face Daulton, who’d sent him to the one-loss side earlier
in the day.
In the semifinals, “Hennessee” jumped out to a 4-0 lead
before Daulton came back to tie it. They fought back and forth
beyond the tie to a 6-5 Hennessee lead. They traded the next two
racks before Pinegar won two to drop Daulton into third place.
Pinegar brought some of his semifinal momentum with him to
the true double-elimination finals against Nevel. He took a 5-0
lead, but Nevel was not to be denied. He took the next five to tie
it, and after a seesaw round of six games that took the match to
hill-hill, Nevel won the seventh and last game.
RESULTS
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
Larry Nevel
Jonathan Pinegar
Shannon Daulton
John Brumback
Randy Vaughn
Robert Green
7th Tony Smith
Curtis Blevins
9th Janet Atwell
Scott Eller
Ricky Patterson
Wes Covington
65-May/June-2008
6/10/08
8:10 PM
Page 80
A L . F L . G A . K Y. M S . N C . S C . T N . VA . W V
SOUTHEAST
DAULTON TALLIES FIRST GREAT SOUTHERN BILLIARD WIN
GREAT SOUTHERN BILLIARD TOUR / GREENVILLE, SC
by Skip Maloney
before missing a 9 ball and watching Moore win five in a row.
Daulton regained the lead and hung on to win 9-6.
Nevel, already on the one-loss side, faced off against Mike
Laney in the quarterfinal match, defeating him 9-3, to move into
the semifinal against Moore. The final two matches of the event
were close from start to finish. In the semifinals, Nevel and Moore
battled their way one game at a time to a 7-7 tie, at which point
Moore scratched on the break. Nevel ran the rack and repeated that
performance for the 9-7 win and a chance to pick up his fourth
event victory in a row.
In the double-elimination finals, Daulton moved out to a slim
6-4 lead. Nevel fought back to go ahead 7-6 before Daulton surged
to the hill. Nevel followed suit before Daulton closed it out.
“You kind of get your stroke back a little,” Daulton said, “and
it gets you playing again.”
Shannon Daulton
In his eighth attempt, tour director Shannon “The Cannon”
Daulton picked up his first win on his own Great Southern Billiard
Tour the weekend of May 31-June 1. In so doing, he snapped a
three-week winning streak by Larry “The Truth” Nevel, defeating
him in the hill-hill finals. The $1,500-added event drew 34 entrants
to Palace Billiards in Greenville, SC.
Earlier Sunday, Daulton sent Brad Black westward with a 9-5
victory, while Steve Moore was ending Helena Thornfeldt’s day on
the winners’ side with a commanding 9-1 victory. In the hot seat
match that followed, Daulton jumped out to an early 4-1 lead,
RESULTS
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
Shannon Daulton
Larry Nevel
Steve Moore
Mike Laney
Brad Black
Helena Thornfeldt
UPCOMINGTOURNAMENTSSOUTHEAST
Date
7/5-6
7/6
7/11-13
7/12-13
7/12-13
7/12-13
7/13
7/18-20
7/19-20
7/19-20
7/19-20
7/20
7/20
7/26-27
7/26-27
7/26-27
7/26-27
8/2-3
8/2-3
8/8-10
Tournament
Venue
Tiger Pool Tour
First Break Café
KBP Amateur 9-Ball Tour
Side Pocket
Seminole Pro Tour
Art of Billiards
Jacoby Custom Cues Carolina Tour Break Time Billiards
Great Southern Billiard Tour
Diamond Billiard Club
Viking Cue Open 9-Ball Tour
Game Time Sports Bar
Viking Cue Amateur 9-Ball Tour
Game Time Sports Bar
Seniors’ Championship
Grady’s
Chalk It Up
Ladies Spirit Tour
Amy’s Billiards
Viking Cue Open 9-Ball Tour
High Pockets
High Pockets
KBP Amateur 9-Ball Tour
The Corner Pocket
Virginia State 9-Ball Championships The Playing Field
Stroker’s Billiards
Q-Master Billiards 9-Ball Tournament Q-Master Billiards
Breakers Sports Bar & Grille
Tiger Pool Tour
First Break Café
Breakers Sports Bar & Grille
Seminole Pro Tour
Fast Eddie’s Billiards
City, ST
Sterling, VA
Seminole, FL
Gainesville, FL
Wilmington, NC
Chattanooga, TN
Greenville, SC
Greenville, SC
Lexington, SC
La Grange, GA
Stuart, FL
Memphis, TN
Memphis, TN
Largo, FL
Richmond, VA
Sumter, SC
Virginia Beach, VA
Knoxville, TN
Sterling, VA
Knoxville, TN
Goldsboro, NC
Contact
703-444-2551
727-399-0890
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65-May/June-2008
6/10/08
8:14 PM
Page 81
A L . F L . G A . K Y. M S . N C .
NEVEL AND WALKER TAKE
MARIETTA BILLIARD STOP
J. PECHAUER SOUTHEAST OPEN TOUR / MARIETTA, GA
by Skip Maloney
For the third weekend in a
row, Larry “The Truth” Nevel
stepped into a billiards tournament
and stepped out with the first-place
prize. On Memorial Day weekend,
he joined a field of 38 entrants in
the $1,000-added J. Pechauer
Southeast Open Tour stop at the
Side Pocket Cue Club & Grill in
Marietta, GA, and did it the hard
way, defeating Steve Moore twice
for top honors.
Already on the one-loss side,
Nevel was faced with tournament
director Tommy Kennedy, whom
he bested 9-5, dropping him into
fifth place. He then went on to
defeat Jason Richko in the quarterfinals and then turned to face Jesse
Middlebrooks, who only won two
of the eleven games that delivered
Nevel to the finals against Atlanta’s
Steve Moore.
Nevel and Moore fought back
and forth to double-hill in the first
set of the double-elimination finals.
With two balls left on the table in
the final game and the cue in
Moore’s hand, it looked as though
Moore was going to take it, but he
missed. Nevel stepped to the table,
sinking the 8 but watched as the
cue ball traveled a little farther
down table than he’d anticipated,
leaving him with a long bank to finish the game. He made the bank,
won the game, and moved on to the
second set.
They struggled again. Back
and forth to a second double-hill
game, where Moore committed a
foul prior to the break. Moore
handed Nevel the ball, and with
ball in hand, Nevel touched the 1
and hooked Moore. They wrestled
back and forth through a few successful kicks that managed to
nudge the 9 ball out of what was
still a fairly tight pack of balls in
the center of the table. Until Moore
missed. Nevel set up to shoot the 1
ball, and a carom knocked the loose
9 ball in to win the game, set, and
tournament.
In the amateur event Sunday,
Bryant Walker defeated Jeff Hooks
7-1 in the finals to capture the firstplace prize in the $500-added
event. Walker had sent B.R. Tatum
to the one-loss side earlier in the
day and defeated Jeff Tabet in the
subsequent hot seat match.
OPEN RESULTS
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
Larry Nevel
Steve Moore
Jessie Middlebrooks
Jason Richko
Tommy Kennedy
Johnny Archer
7th J. R. Rossman
Ron Park
9th George Rothrock
B.R. Tatum
Craig Houghton
Jeff Tabet
InsidePool
AMATEUR RESULTS
1st Bryant Walker
2nd Jeff Hooks
3rd Jeff Tabet
4th Denny Singletary
5th B.R. Tatum
John Hossman
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65-May/June-2008
6/10/08
8:18 PM
Page 82
A
RegionalRoundup
central
TORRES WINS BIG AT BOGIES
JUNIOR NATIONAL QUALIFIER / HOUSTON, TX
Kim White, Joey Torres
by InsidePOOL Staff
Eleven-year-old Joey Torres, poolplaying prodigy, made his way through a
22-player field at Bogies Billiards in
Houston, TX, on April 26 to earn a ticket to
the Junior Nationals in Tucson, AZ.
In the quarterfinals, Torres wreaked
revenge upon Brandon Turner, who had sent
him to the one-loss side earlier, in a hill-hill
match that ended in a tough loss for Turner.
Torres moved on to play Aaron Hughey in
an all-Texas shootout, with Torres capturing
the win.
The final round saw the undefeated
Eric Calhoun, who traveled all the way
from Albany, GA, and Torres dueling in a
final race to 7. Torres took an early lead and
maintained it throughout, besting Calhoun
7-4.
The players not only receive a spot for
Nationals, they also take home certificates
and trophies, most of which are donated by
the South East Texas APA League. South
Texas Junior Pool Tour (stjpt.com) is a nonprofit organization that holds 22 junior
events per year, holds qualifiers for
Nationals, and raises money to make sure
they get there. When a junior wins a qualifier, they want them to accept that spot and
will help provide them with the financial
means to make that dream a reality. Each of
the six players who qualified at Bogies
received $50 each for travel expenses. All
14 of the juniors will benefit from BBQ
fundraisers being held throughout May. If
you would like to help make a youngster’s
pool dream come true, you can make a
donation by visiting stjpt.com.
RESULTS
1st Joey Torres
2nd Eric Calhoun
3rd Aaron Hughey
4th Brandon Turner
| July/August 2008
STONE STORMS THROUGH UNDEFEATED
VIKING CUE OPEN 9-BALL TOUR / FAIRFIELD, OH
by Skip Maloney
In a stop on the Viking Cue Open 9Ball Tour that almost didn’t happen, Ryan
Stone worked his way undefeated through a
field of 27 entrants to face Shannon
Murphy in the finals. Thanks to Viking
Cues, which provided a majority of the
funding that allowed the event to go on, and
a deal struck by the venue with its’ lease
holders, the $1,500-added event was held
the May 17-18 weekend at Michael’s
Billiards in Fairfield, OH.
Early Sunday, Stone was among four
players still left on the winners’ side of the
bracket. He faced Jamie McWhorter, as
Mike Cantrell squared off against Joe
Brown. After two hard-fought matches in
which Stone defeated McWhorter 9-6 and
Cantrell knocked off Brown 9-7, Stone and
Cantrell advanced to the hot seat match.
Stone wasted no time sending Cantrell west
with a commanding 9-2 victory.
Shannon Murphy and Shawn Putnam
dropped Justin Daniels and Lykins into the
seventh-place slot and turned to face Jamie
McWhorter and Joe Brown, just over from
the winners’ side. Murphy and Putnam continued their advance, moving into the quarterfinal match, won by Murphy 9-4.
Murphy duplicated that score in the
semifinal match against Cantrell before
moving into the true double-elimination
finals against Stone. Stone defeated
Murphy in the first set 9-6, capturing the
first-place prize.
RESULTS
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
Ryan Stone
Shannon Murphy
Mike Cantrell
Shawn Putnam
Joe Brown
Jamie McWhorter
7th Shayne Lykins
Justin Daniels
9th Mike Grooms
Mike Franklin
Mike Janis
Shane Jackson
THE FIRECRACKER ON FIRE
OB CUES LADIES’ 9-BALL TOUR / HOUSTON, TX
Tara McCracken
by InsidePOOL Staff
The OB Cues Ladies’ 9-Ball Tour
held its second stop of the year in
Houston, TX, and Tara McCracken was
hotter than her nickname “The
Firecracker” when she took off the whole
thing. Hosted by Bogies Billiards, this
stop attracted 52 women to compete in
the $2,000-added event that also featured
a WPBA qualifier.
McCracken, who hails from the
Dallas area, quietly made her way
through the brackets until Sunday, when
she took down the formidable player Lisa
Marr from Arkansas 7-5 and then semipro
Susan Mello from Arizona 7-3 in the hot
set match.
On Sunday morning, six players
were still vying for the qualifier for the
qualifier. In the end, it came down to the
semifinal match between Mello and
Nicole Keeney. It was a close fight, with
both players playing well for the crowd,
and Keeney ultimately took home the
qualifier with a 7-5 score. Keeney then
went on to the finals to challenge
McCracken, but “The Firecracker” maintained her undefeated run to best
Keeney 7-4.
RESULTS
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
5th
Tara McCracken
Nicole Keeney
Susan Mello
Lisa Marr
Heather Lloyd
Helen Hayes
7th Cristina de la Garza
Deanna Henson
9th Terry Petrosino
Catherine Naes
Ricki Lee Casper
Cheyna Wigley
65-May/June-2008
6/10/08
8:22 PM
Page 83
A L . F L . G A . K Y. M S . N C . S C . T N . VA . W V
central
UPCOMINGTOURNAMENTSCENTRAL
Date
7/12
7/12-13
7/19
7/26-27
7/30-8-3
8/2
8/9
8/9-10
8/16
9/13
Tournament
Gateway Amateur Tour
Fast Eddie’s Olhausen 9-Ball Tour
Oklahoma State Championship
WPBA U.S. Open
Fast Eddie’s Olhausen 9-Ball Tour
Venue
City, ST
Teacher’s Billiards
St. Peter’s, MO
Austin, TX
Riverbend Billiards
Alton, IL
Magoo’s Restaurant & Billiards Tulsa, OK
Riverwind Casino
Norman, OK
Shooter’s Sports Bar
Metropolis, IL
Shooter’s Sports Bar
Centralia, IL
Amarillo, TX
Baxter’s
Fairview Heights, IL
Radar’s Sports Bar
St. Peter’s, MO
Contact
636-441-0077
210-367-4761
618-462-4435
918-663-3364
615-859-9722
618-524-4835
618-532-9931
210-367-4761
618-355-9940
866-681-6883
$ Added
Qualifier
$2,100
$300
$2,000 + qual.
N/A
$300
Qualifier
$2,100
$300
Qualifier
Eligibility
Amateurs
Open
Amateurs
Ladies
WPBA members
Amateurs
Amateurs
Open
Amateurs
Amateurs
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65-May/June-2008
6/10/08
8:31 PM
Page 84
RegionalRoundup
western
PLOWMAN TAKES UNUSUAL 8-BALL EVENT
ARIZONA WOMEN’S BILLIARD TOUR / PHOENIX, AZ
by Skip Maloney
There was some confusion about when exactly the tournament finals were to be
played, but there was no confusion about who won it. Bonnie Plowman traveled from
Colorado to Phoenix, AZ, for the Arizona Women’s Billiard Tour’s May 3-4 stop and
took home first prize. The $500-added 8-ball event drew 18 entrants to Alexander’s
Bar and Grill.
Played under the auspices of an Arizona rating system, the women played handicapped matches, equal to their Arizona rating, minus three. Under this format,
Plowman, with an Arizona rating of 9, played Sara Miller, with a rating of 7, for the
hot seat, forcing Plowman to win 6 before Miller won 4. They battled to a 3-2, early
lead for Miller, which put her on the hill, before Bowman responded, winning the
next four to assure her place in the finals.
Miller moved over to the one-loss side of the bracket, where she met Bernie
Store, rated as an 8, in the semifinals. Store dropped Miller into third place with a 52 victory and moved on to face Colman in the finals.
While originally scheduled for Sunday morning, the final match actually took
place on Saturday night, when some confusion reigned over whether the venue would
be available in the morning. As it turned out, it was going to be available, but before
that determination was made, Store and Plowman had moved to a table and started
their match.
In the true double-elimination format, Plowman needed to win 6 games before
Store won 5. Plowman made it a single-set victory, defeating Store 6-3 to capture the
first-place prize.
RESULTS
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
Bonnie Plowman
Bernie Store
Sara Miller
Susan Williams
5th Kathleen Wallace
Holly Sholes
7th Holly Ryan
Marney Teague
MCKEON CRACKS THE COMPETITION
PECHAUER ALL-AMERICAN TOUR
COLORADO SPRINGS, CO
J. Pechauer All-American Tour Players
by InsidePOOL Staff
The fiftieth and final stop of the 2007/2008
Pechauer All-American Tour was hosted by
Antique Billiard Museum in Colorado Springs,
CO, the weekend of May 3-4. The $1,000added event featured a $5 entry and drew 72
players in a double-elimination 9-ball format on
7-foot bar boxes, with Jeff McKeon recovering
from an early loss to take top honors.
Ruben Silva marched undefeated through
his bracket to the finals, while McKeon, despite
an earlier round 9-4 loss to Silva emerged from
his bracket to the finals.
In the last eight, Jim Barber eliminated
Mark Morgan 7-3, while Nick Smith dominated
Adrian Ayala 7-1. Both Smith and Barber fell at
fifth place in the next round at the hands of Nate
Smith and Bobby Hibbetts, respectively.
Hibbetts, whose only loss came at the hands of
Silva earlier, kept his momentum by dumping
Nate Smith at fourth place by a 7-2 margin.
Hibbetts’ recovery ended on the hill in the next
round, courtesy of a 7-6 loss to once-defeated
McKeon. The final match was a single race to
11, and McKeon took a small lead over Silva
and never looked back in his 11-7 title win.
RESULTS
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
Jeff McKeon
Ruben Silva
Bobby Hibbitts
Nate Smith
UPCOMINGTOURNAMENTSWESTERN
5th Jim Barber
Nick Smith
7th Mark Morgan
Adrian Ayala
Date
7/11-12
7/19-20
7/26-27
8/15-21
8/30-31
9/27-28
10/1-5
Tournament
Venue
BEF Junior Nat’l Artistic Pool Champs University of Tucson
Arizona Women’s Billiard Tour
Kolby’s Corner Pocket Billiards
Southern California 14.1 Tournament Hard Times Billiards
APA Nat’l Artistic Pool Champs
Riviera Hotel & Casino
Pockets
Kolby’s Corner Pocket Billiards
WPBA Pacific Coast Classic
Chinook Winds Casino
City, ST
Tucson, AZ
Tempe, AZ
Bellflower, CA
Las Vegas, NV
Tucson, AZ
Tempe, AZ
Lincoln City, OR
Contact
765-795-4968
480-829-7344
562-867-7733
765-795-4968
520-571-9421
480-829-7344
615-859-9722
$ Added
Awards only
$500
$2,000
$1,600
$500
$500
N/A
Eligibility
BEF juniors
Ladies
Open
APA members
Ladies
Ladies
WPBA members
11/1-2
Peoria, AZ
602-997-5717
$500
Ladies
Metro Sportz Bar
| July/August 2008
65-May/June-2008
6/10/08
8:34 PM
Page 85
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65-May/June-2008
6/10/08
8:36 PM
Page 86
RegionalRoundup
World
WIPPER WHIPS IT UP
TIGER CANADIAN WOMEN’S POOL TOUR / QUEBEC, ON
by InsidePOOL Staff
Susan Wipper took the third
event of the Tiger Canadian
Women’s Pool Tour this season,
winning over Veronique Menard
in the finals. This stop was hosted by LeSkratch Billiards in
Brossard the weekend of May 34 and attracted 22 women to
Veronique Menard, Tony Retsinas, Susan
compete for the WPBA qualifier
Wipper, Marina Linguerri
spot.
Some of the favorites were sent packing early, leaving the outcome up to
new future players Sunday. On the A-side in the final four, Marina Linguerri did
not bring her A game, and Wipper sent her to the west side of the chart. In the
semifinals, Linguerri faced off with local favorite Menard, who was on a mission during this match and ousted Linguerri in third place.
In the finals, Menard had to defeat Wipper two sets
of races to 7. Both women had excellent run-outs, and
in the first set, Menard made some great kick shots as
well. With Menard winning the first set 7-4, and second
set began.
Both ladies battled it out, knotting the score at 4
apiece until Wipper broke the chain and won two more
racks to reach the hill. Feeling the pressure, Menard
brought the score to double-hill. In the final rack, the
match came down to the last four balls, and Menard had
a miss on the 6 ball, giving Wipper the match.
RESULTS
1st Susan Wipper
2nd Veronique Menard
3rd Marina Linguerri
WORLD LADIES BILLIARDS & SNOOKER ASSOCIATION
2008 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS
by Tim Dunkley
Reanne Evans
Reanne Evans has written a new chapter in the annals of
women’s snooker by claiming a record fourth straight WLBSA
World Championship title. Shrugging off a bout of flu, the 22year-old mother of one from Dudley defeated first-time finalist
June Banks 5-2 at Cambridge SC Wednesday, May7.
“In some ways it’s as good as the first,” she said. “I felt no
pressure, just play my game and hope for the best. Coming up to
this tournament, I hardly picked my cue up because I haven’t
been very well.”
Evans, partner of NI professional and world number 16
Mark Allen, eased through to the final winning 23 successive
frames and chalked up the highest break of the tournament, 102
in the group stages. But former England international Banks
ended the run by taking the first frame of the final with a
long pink.
| July/August 2008
4th Janet Ritchey
5th Leanne Amable
Christine Gauthier
Evans responded with a 52 to win the second. Banks fell
foul of the miss rule when trailing 2-1 and the 16 penalty points
cost her the chance to level.
Although the 39-year-old from Orpington did pull a second
frame back in the sixth, Evans dominated the next.
The two-time IBSF World Ladies Champion, who defends
her European title in Poland next month, has again ruled out
joining seven-time champion Allison Fisher and five-time champion Kelly Fisher on the lucrative U.S. pool circuit for the foreseeable future. But neither of the two great queens of the green
baize lifted the title four years running.
“People might say it’s because Kelly or Allison or whoever
are not here, but it’s their choice to go to America,” insisted
Evans. “It’s up to them at the end of the day, and I’m happy with
what I’ve done.”
Maria Catalano’s dream of a first world title ended less than
24 hours after her cousin Ronnie O’Sullivan claimed his third in
a 4-2 semifinal defeat by Banks.
Evans bested Portsmouth’s Emma Bonney 4-0 in the second semi but had to survive a black-ball game in the second
frame and a re-spot in the third.
Emma Bonney clinched a third World Ladies Billiards title
with a 216-119 victory over shock finalist Eva Palmius. But the
31-year-old from Portsmouth was forced to dig deep in the last
seconds of her semifinal clash with Tina Owen-Sevilton from
Taunton.
Bonney, champion in 2000 and 2002 but runner-up in 2006
and 2007, trailed throughout the one-hour match but was gifted
a chance with a minute left. “I thought, ‘Right, I’ve got to make
about fifteen and I’ve got about a minute to do it,’” she said.
Making a first appearance in a final, former Swedish pool
star Palmius ended Indian star Chitra Magimairaj’s hopes of a
hat-trick of titles in the second semi.
Derby schoolgirl and England international Hannah Jones,
11, won the World Ladies Junior snooker title. Chris Sharpe
clinched a first Seniors title, and Pam Wood repeated her 2007
doubles success, this time partnering Jaique Ip Wan In.
65-May/June-2008
6/10/08
8:38 PM
Page 87
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6/10/08
8:40 PM
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LAST MONTH’S
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| July/August 2008
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