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STROKE
March
Pool Magazine 2016 Who Are We?
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Amy’s Billiards Stuart, FL 23 Bison Billiards Williamsville, NY 11 Bogies Billiards Houston, TX 21 Brown’s Billiards Raleigh, NC 23 Buck’s Billiards Raleigh, NC 23 Corner Pocket Billiards Martins Ferry, OH 11 Crooked Cue Billiards Clearwater, FL 6 Diamond 8 Latham, NY 29 Gate City Billiards Greensboro, NC 29 Gotham City Billiards Brooklyn, NY 28 Gradys Lexington, SC 29 League Room Parkersburg, WV 28 Lucky 7 Billiards Hollywood, FL 7 Michael’s Billiards Fairfield, OH 6 Premium Billiards Syracuse, NY 9 Sandcastle Billiards Edison, NJ 9 Scotty B’s Rural Hall, NC 23 South Florida BCAPL Davie, FL 23 Steinway Billiards Astoria, NY 28 Union Station Billiards Portland, ME 7 Zingale’s Talahassee, FL 6
Stroke March 2016
5
1861 W Tennessee St. Tallahassee, Florida
March 2016
POINTS EVENT
1st $1100 Mike Dechaine 2nd $700 Jorge Rodriguez 3rd $500 Hunter Lombardo 4th $400 Mike Davis 5th/6th $300 Edwin Guzman/Shaun Wilkie 7th/8th $200 Miguel Laboy/Brooke Meyer
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6
— Jorge Rodriguez, Hunter Lombardo, Mike Dechaine and Mike Davis
Results
Becoming a qualifying event for consideration as a member of the 2016 Mosconi Cup team, the 8th Annual Empire State 10-Ball Championships, held on the weekend of February 20-21, doubled the number of entrants from last year that signed on to compete in the Open/Pro event of those championships. Mike Dechaine, soon to be inducted into the New England Pool and Billiard’s Hall of Fame, went undefeated through the 2016 field of 32, defeating defending Open/Pro champion, Jorge Rodriguez in the finals. The $1,000-added event was hosted by Raxx Billiards in West Hempstead, NY. Rodriguez’ attempt to defend his title was initially sidetracked in a winners’ side final four matchup, in which Hunter Lombardo sent him to the loss side. Dechaine, in the meantime, went nose-tonose against Mike Davis, who, one week prior, had become North Carolina’s 10-Ball Champion and the week before that, the Series VII American Rotation Champion in Indiana. Lombardo defeated Rodriguez 7-5, as Dechaine was busy surviving a double hill battle against Davis. Dechaine then defeated Lombardo in the hot seat match 7-5. On the loss side, Rodriguez met up with Edwin Guzman, who’d gotten by Lee Kang 7-3 and just did get by Miguel LaBoy 7-6. Davis ran into a familiar opponent, Shaun Wilkie, who’d eliminated another consistent rival on the Action Pool Tour, Brandon Shuff 7-4 and downed Brooke Meyer 7-1. Rodriguez and Davis got right back to work; Rodriguez shutting out Guzman and Davis eliminating Wilkie 7-5. Rodriguez then defeated Davis 7-4 in the event quarterfinals, for a second shot at Lombardo in the semifinals. Rodriguez wreaked his vengeance 7-4 on Lombardo for a chance to defend his title against Dechaine in the finals. It was not to be. Dechaine completed his undefeated run 9-6, sending him north to Rhode Island for his induction into the New England Pool and Billiard’s Hall of Fame with an added victory to his resume.
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Round Robin Tournaments 1st and 3rd Sunday of every month $5.00 8-Ball tournament every Wed. at 1:00pm
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By Sunday, the date of the memorial service for Kalsky, Muller had made it to a winners’ side semifinal, facing Elvis Rodriguez. Palacios, in the meantime, squared off against Dany Recinos. Muller gave up only a single rack to Rodriguez and advanced to the hot seat match versus Palacios, who’d sent Recinos to the loss side 7-3. It was Palacios who moved into the hot seat, with a double hill win. On the loss side, Rodriguez and Recinos ran right into their second straight losses. Rodriguez picked up Manny Stamatakis, owner of Steinway Billiards, and winner, at that point, of four loss-side matches on a march to — Gabriel Palacios and Justin Muller the semifinals. Stamatakis had eliminated Austin Tripp 7-3 and Rhys Chen 7-2 to reach Rodriguez. Recinos picked up Three days before the Empire State Amateur Championships (February 20-21), a Rick Miller, who’d gotten by Jessica Lynn 7-2 and Rene Villalobos 7-4. very close friend of Justin Muller’s, John Kalsky, passed away. By the time Muller hit the tables on Saturday, he was sporting a t-shirt, in commemoration of that friend. Stamatakis, chalking up his fifth loss-side win, and Miller advanced to the quarterHe wore it throughout the $2,000-added event that drew 125 entrants to Raxx Bilfinals over Rodriguez and Recinos, both 7-4. Stamatakis went on to defeat Miller, liards in West Hempstead, NY. All the way to the finish line, which he crossed ahead double hill, in the quarterfinals. of Gabriel Palacios in the event finals. Though Stamatakis would force a deciding game against Muller in the semifinals, it was Muller who advanced back for a second shot at Palacios in the hot seat. Muller “It’s been one of my biggest goals, to win this tournament,” he said in the AZBTV prevailed in the single set final 10-5 to complete his undefeated run and honor his broadcast booth, shortly after winning, adding that in the midst of on-going grief friend, John Kalsky. over the loss of his friend and the exhilaration of his victory, he was “just happy” that he’d won it for his friend. Results and Payouts 1st $2500 2nd $1500 3rd $1000 4th $600 5th/6th $450 7th/8th $350 9th-12th $250 13th-16th $175 17th-24th $100
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Justin Muller Gabriel Palacios Manny Stamatakos Rick Miller Dany Recinos/Elvis Rodriguez Rhys Chen/ Rene Villalobos Jessica Lynn Greibesland/Patrick Meyer/Stew Warnock/ Austin Tripp Arturo Reyes/Shawn Jackson/Mark Terel/Riyadh Benghalem Donna Padavano/Giovanni Mata/Kapriel Delimelkonoglu/Marco Dy/Ramilo Tanglao/Victor Nau/Bryan Toosee/Charles Young
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Stroke March 2016
7
Woodward Double Dips Orcollo
Photo by: Ricky Bryant-RB Promotions
POINTS EVENT
SKY WOODWARD
10-Ball Texas Open
Skinny Bob’s Billiards
AzBilliards.com Staff Feb 21, 2016 Tommy Tokoph. Woodward, in the meantime, following victories over Ruben ROUND ROCK, TX Bautista, Billy Thorpeand Warren Kiamco (who’d just sent last year’s winner, Sky Woodward and Dennis Orcollo played three matches against each other Manny Chau to the loss side, never to return), squared off against Bergman. at the 2nd Annual Texas State 10-Ball Championships, held on the weekend Woodward sent Bergman to the loss side 7-4, while Orcollo was downing of February 13-14. All three ended in 7-5 scores, one game away from double Jones 7-3. In their first of three, Orcollo claimed the hot seat 7-5. hill, and Woodward took two out of the three. They were the last two, and On the loss side, Bergman picked up Jueco, who’d eliminated Billy Thorpe allowed him to claim the event title. The $4,000-added event drew a full 7-4 and just did survive a double hill fight against Josh Roberts. Jones drew field of 128 entrants to Skinny Bob’s Billiards in Round Rock, TX. Of the Roberto Gomez, who was exceeding a variety of expectations, and had $4,000-added, $500 went to the highest finisher among the women who defeated Robb Saez 7-5 and CJ Wiley 7-1 to reach Jones. Gomez continued competed. Jennifer Kraber, who finished just out of the money in the tie for his somewhat unexpected run by defeating Jones 7-2, as Jueco surprised 33rd place, took home the $500. Bergman (and quite a few other people) by defeating him 7-2. Of the top 12 finishers in this year’s championship, only one was present Gomez chalked up his fourth straight loss-side win with a 7-4 defeat of among the top 12 last year - Jeremy Jones, who finished third last year and Jueco in the quarterfinals, and gave Woodward a lot to think about during a fifth this year. Junior double hill fight in the Players Auction Jueco, who finished semifinals. Woodward 1st 2nd 13th last year, finished survived and moved 1st: Sky Woodward 4000 7150 3540 fourth this year. Early on to the true double Dennis Orcollo 2300 4770 2650 favorites in this race to 2nd: elimination final. 3rd: Roberto Gomez 1520 3280 1770 the Texas 10-Ball title A pair of not-too4th: Junior Jueco 980 2380 890 were Justin Bergman, surprising tight 5th: Justin Bergman, Jeremy Jones 600 1490 Woodward, Orcollo matches followed, 7th: CJ wiley, Josh Roberts 440 1190 and Tony Chohan. both of them falling 9th: Billy Thorpe, Warren Kiamco, Jones and Jueco that single game Tommy Tokoph, Robb Saez 330 970 matched up in this short of double hill. 13th: Jeff Ignacio, Mark Mendoza, year’s winners’ side Woodward won them Johhny Martinez, Ruben Flores 250 745 quarterfinals, with both to claim the 2016 James Davis Jr, Gerardo Perez, Jones advancing to the 17th: Texas State 10-Ball Tony Chohan, Manny Chau, winners’ side semifinal Championship title Joe Aguilar, Jason Klatt, against Orcollo, who’d Jerry Calderon, Blaine Barcus 200 gotten by (among 25th: Billy Dyke, Charlie Mora, James Davis SR, others) Shane Harvey, Ruben Bautista, Anthony Schaeffer, Jason Klatt and Tracy Sanders, Oscar Dominguez, Doug Young 175
Results
8
March 2016
Stroke OnTheBreakNews.com
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CO E CU A AS P ST T
from left to right: Tony Eckstein Kenote Promoter, Mike Davis tournament champion, Derek Schwager Runner up, Russ Urffer owner and prophetic savior of the legendary Markley Billiards.
Perfect Tenball Promotions held its inaugural East Coast Cup Ten ball event, on Friday February 19th, 2016. The light turnout did not disappoint with top level action though. We had a fine mixture of high level talent and upstart future champions. We want to thank our sponsors: McDermott Cues, Bloodworth Cues and repair, Steam Vapes - the fantastic new vapor smoke company, and, of course, our Marvelous Markley Billiards, hosting the event. Honestly, if we had more players of the caliber that did play, this could’ve been a tournament to remember for 2016. Mike Davis, what a grinder. He’s getting to the legendary status on the east coast open and pro level events and, at this time, still needs a top rank sponsor. I’ve been around pool for 40 years and I’ve seen many players that want no part of Mike Davis holding sponsorships. For all the top company representatives in the great pool world, this man deserves a top spot on someone’s team. And Derek Schwager - Mr. Consistent. I’m telling you, I’ve played in tournaments and watched this kid for a few years now and he’s simply a class act, great player and great for the game.
A great young prodigy Justin Martin (left), this kids been playing for 3 years and already competing at a pro level. Phenomenal, some skills are born into people and it’s awesome to witness when you see kids find their natural arts early.
Special thanks to my promoter friends, as I called them, “The first family of Maryland Pool Tournaments” - Steve and Nicole Fleming, Ralph and Nicky, Chris Pyle, Ed Abraham, Adam Kielar, Jose Burgos and Dan Madden, who came to fill in at the last minute for TV Mike as scheduling conflicts dictated. Still we had a great one-night tournament and we look forward to doing our part to bring our beloved games of pool and billiards to a higher place in professional and amateur sports and gaming. Stay tuned and, as we learn our lessons we grow, and we will be stepping up again soon with another event. Thanks to all of you players, for your time and travel from North Carolina, Virginia and western Pennsylvania.
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Stroke March 2016
9
Bison Billiards
9-Ball Tournament
Bison Billiards in Williamsville, NY hosted a $500 GUARANTEED ADDED ($250.00 Gamblers Pro Tour + $250.00 Bison Billiards) tournament on February 13, 14, 2016. This $35 entry (green fees included) event was played on 9’ Diamond Tables with format as follows: triple elimination, alternate break, rack your own, 9-Ball on break spots, race to 5 on winner’s side, race to 4 on loser’s side and race to 3 on elimination bracket. The doors opened at 11am on Saturday with the player auction at 12:30p and play to start at 1pm. This event
was limited to 32 players (first registered and paid) and filled up fast. After two days of competition, the results and payouts are as follows: 1st $1550 Nick Brucato (above) 2nd $775 Danny Kolacz (below) 3rd $400 Cory Welfare (below) 4th $225 Jimmy Doran 5th $155 Dave Grau 6th $110 Robbie Stanton 7th $50 Pedro Rivera 8th $35 Nick Coppola
EMILY HERPEL going to ATLANTIC CHALLENGE CUP
Congratulations to Emily Herpel (above) of Freehold N.Y. Emily has qualified to represent the USA vs Europe in this year’s Atlantic Challenge Cup. This is a Mosconi Cup style event. What a great honor for a nice young lady and excellent pool player.
2nd Annual Junior NY State 9-Ball Tournament
Bison Billiards is hosting their 2nd annual Junior New York State 9 Ball Tournament on March 5th. Young men and young ladies will be qualifying to play in the Nationals. Please come out and support this event.
10
March 2016
Stroke
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Donations this year climbed to a total of $5,442. With donations for the auction, including just to name a few, a custom Jacoby cue, a Tony Layne diamond wood J/B cue, signed billiard memorabilia from many professionals, gift certificates, and many player and supporter donations coming in throughout the day. Interested in donating to Firefly? Log onto Fireflyhope.org.
Located in Parkersburg, WV, the League Room hosted its 3rd annual Shoot for a Cure event February 20th. An event that has doubled in size and donations every year since its inception in 2014. Boasting a 62 player field from all over the surrounding area, these players came to benefit Firefly, a non profit organization based in Marietta, OH. Firefly is headed by the charismatic and caring executive director Ginger McConnell and their mission is to help cancer patients and their families ease some of the financial burdens that come with the diagnosis and fight of cancer. These expenses can include rent or mortgage payments, utility bills, medical bills, prescription costs, medical equipment, travel expenses.
Rounding out the race to 3 8-ball event this year was tough playing with Joey Arbuckle, taking 1st, Josh Owens, taking 2nd, and Matt Taylor taking 3rd (not pictured). With a race to 3 on the winner’s side and 2 on the losers, it’s a toss up on who can come out on top in this event. Even with 62 players, some as young as 14 years old, the event went off without a hitch, completed by 10pm! Can’t beat that with a stick! This event has grown every single year, with no signs on slowing down. Bring on 2017 and hope to see you there.
When you put together a family friendly pool room, owned by Chris Wilson, a great cause, an auction, and a ton of very generous and supportive people, players, and staff, you get this event.
Shoot for a Firefly Cure
— Article written by Dustin Crowe
If you would like more information on upcoming events, operating hours, or anything billiard related, like them on Facebook.com/TheLeagueRoom, stop by The League Room at 1739 Saint Mary’s Ave. Parkersburg, WV 26101, or give them a call at (304) 893-9640.
Bar Box 8-Ball
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1st Saturday of the Month
$35 entry includes green fee - Double Elimination - Race to 3 Doors open Noon - Calcutta 2pm - Starts 2:30pm
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New Location CORNER POCKET BILLIARDS CLUB 56731 Colerain Pike Martins Ferry, Oh 43935 740-738-0357
WEEKLY TOURNAMENTS Tues: Straight 8-Ball $8 entry Fri: Hcp 8-Ball $15 entry Sat: Chip Tourney $15 entry
Stroke March 2016
11
MECHANICAL PLAYERS VS. FEEL PLAYERS by Tom Simpson © February 2000
Master Instructor, National Billiard Academy, “Beat People With a Stick!”
Tom Simpson
Tom Simpson
12
March 2016
There are some players who play very consciously. They think about many many details of stroke, form, alignment, aim, etc. They have elaborate pre-shot routines to help ensure their consistency. They are aware of a lot of body sensations. They use whatever physics grasp they have of the game to help them plan and execute their shots.They try to do everything on purpose. I call these MechanicalPlayers (MP‘s). I‘m somewhere on this end of the spectrum. The FeelPlayers (FP‘s) are the opposite. They trust their body to do the right thing. They are not conscious of how they do what they do, and may not even be interested in knowing much about how things work or why. They appear to be looser and more fluid. Lots of really excellent players are in this category, and many pros. They get it done, but it looks easier when they do it. To generalize, I‘d say the MP‘s are probably held back by carefulness and too much “doing”,while the FP‘s are held back by carelessness and too little knowledge. Ah,the middle road! As an MP, I’ve spent a lot of time and effort studying the FP Way. Those brief, shining moments when I‘m really in the zone are much more FP than my usual game. I see this as a continuum. While you can become very good at either end, you need some of the good stuff from the other end to balance you out and really raise your game. MP‘s that somehow break through and “give up” control of the details and trust their bodies to deliver, can rise to another level. My take on this process (MP‘s can’t help but think this way) is that it
Stroke OnTheBreakNews.com
comes down to INTENT. When you can develop real clarity of intent, trust that intent, and leave doubt and mind chatter behind, the zone opens. There is a martial arts maxim that says “To defeat the sword, you must first master the sword.” This appeals to MP‘s, because we’re happy to spend our time exploring all the details of the weapon, the proper footwork, balance, joint function, and on and on. Butwhat it means at a deeper level is “Master the sword, and then give up your attachment to the details. Integrate the knowledge and then, when it’s time to execute, put your energy into your intent.” In pool talk, that‘s “Shut up and bear down.” At a practical, day-to-day training level, what I do is follow the Mechanical Way in the never-ending quest to perfect my form and fill in gaps in my knowledge. In a way, this is like practicingt he shots you‘re already good at.Even thoughI know better, I indulge myself in mechanical stuff for a while, because this is my comfor tzone, my fun. I know what I have to do to really get better, though, so I make forays into the Feel World. The best method I‘ve found for this is to focus exclusively on the intended RESULT and shoot without hesitation œ faster rhythm. Itworks,butmy MP side doesn’t trust it. I think mostMP‘s envy the FP‘s ease, confidence, and fluidity, but are afraid to give up their mechanicalness and “trustthe force.“ Meanwhile, FP‘s secretly wish they knew more and had mechanical systems and procedures they could rely on, but they don‘t want to be mechanical, and they try to convince themselves they don‘treally need all that technical knowledge: “Hey, the ball goes in the hole, don’tit?” Let‘s leave our comfort zones once in a while and learn from both extremes.
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TABLE TALK
DEALING WITH DOWNTIME Playing the Hurry-Up-and-Wait Game
Michael K Glass
Michael Glass has been teaching pool for close to 10 years. He is a Recognized PBIA Billiards Instructor, taught by none other than Bob Jewett of the San Francisco Billiard Academy. Michael has been playing pool almost all of his life (except when he was in the Navy — it’s hard to install a pool table on a rocking ship!). He managed to stay away from the hustler life; he doesn’t believe in being dishonest in order to win money. He will, however, occasionally play for a beer or two at the local watering hole. Michael teaches all levels of pool players, from beginner to pro, and works on all aspects of the game, from fundamentals, to pattern play, to trick shots. He can be found playing in his home town of San Ramon, CA at Crown Billiards. Visit his website at billiardsprofessor.com for pool tips or to schedule a lesson!
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Recently, we talked about what to do when you’re not at the table: you must continue to do your job while you are sitting in your chair. Today, we’ll talk about what to do when you’re not playing, and you are waiting for your next match. Maybe that’s what you’re doing right now, while reading this article! If you have played in any tournaments, you know what I’m talking about. Some of them are very well-run, with plenty of tables. Some are, well, not so well-run, or don’t have enough tables to accommodate all of the players in one round. Either way, you often have to wait to play your first match – and if you have a first round bye, you might be waiting for a long time. All that warm-up time before the matches started was for naught, because by the time you get to play, you’re cold again! So, you finally get to play your game. The match was a close one, and took an hour and a half to complete, but you won! Congrats! Guess what? You have to play again! This time, you lose, but because it’s a double elimination format, you are still in it. You’re off to get a quick sandwich, because boy, are you hungry! What’s that? They’re calling your name again?! I know. I’ve been there too, my friend. I have also been at the opposite end of the spectrum: I am one of the first players called, and when my match is done, I don’t get called again for 4 hours. YES, 4 hours! How well have you done during such tournaments? Are you like my friend Jason Williams, who can jump up at a moment’s notice and run 9-ball racks in his sleep? Do you shoot well on an empty stomach? How about when you’ve just wolfed down a burger? Did you lose badly, then complain to your opponent that you came in cold? A couple of years ago, I played in the Terry Stonier Memorial at the Jointed Cue in Sacramento, CA. I’m a middle-of-the-road player, and didn’t expect to win the whole thing, but I wanted to do well. If you’ve been to the Jointed Cue, you know that they have a back room with stadium seating. I took advantage of those comfy seats, and took little cat-naps in between my matches. They announced new matches just a few feet away, so I knew I’d hear them when they called my name. I managed to get 7th/8th in that tournament. Each game I played, I felt prepared, and refreshed. I didn’t rush myself, and was very focused. Ever since then, I try to get a little cat-nap in whenever I can. It doesn’t always help, and I don’t always actually sleep. It’s more like I’m resting and meditating. I truly believe it helps. Not everyone is like me. Jason will go outside and chat with friends, and smoke. In fact, I rarely see him sit down. Yet he consistently walks all over his opponents. Shane van
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Boening and Rodney Morris will get on any empty table they can find and just keep hitting balls. They like to keep the engine revving! If you don’t know what works for you, here are a few suggestions to help you get through the (sometimes) rough tournament schedule: • If you know the schedule, plan accordingly. Make sure you stay nourished (food and water), and rested. I strongly recommend you keep some snacks on hand – a candy bar or two, an energy bar, or some nuts. Sometimes you’ll have to play three matches in a row, and you’ll need some quick energy to sustain you until you can eat a real meal. Go to the bathroom when you can. • Stay warmed up. If the tournament allows practice between matches and there’s an empty table, hit some balls. Just stay loose and limber; making a bunch of easy shots helps build your confidence. If you are having a particular problem with a shot, practice it until you can make it fairly often. It will help build your confidence as well. • Find a comfy viewing spot and watch other matches. If you know who you’re playing next, go watch that match and pay attention to their gameplay. Study their strengths and weaknesses. • Catch a cat-nap. Aurora goes with me to almost every match, so it’s nice to know I can nap and have her wake me when they call me. Bring one of those airline neck pillows – they are awesome! • Have fun! Play some pinball or table tennis while you’re waiting. Chat with your friends. Play some games on your phone. • Clear your head. Walk outside. When you are thinking about your last match, only think of the missed shots as a learning experience. Think about what you could have done better to make it. Think about some of the really great shots you made, too. The key is to stay positive. • Between tournaments, think about getting into shape. This is a tough sport, and those who are in good shape have a distinct advantage. There may be many other things you can do between matches to improve your chances of winning. The key thing here is to remember why you are playing. Most of us do this because we enjoy it – so enjoy it! Make sure you figure out what it is that works for you, and try to do it when you can. Pace yourself, and don’t get discouraged. Pool is not always about who plays the best. Sometimes, it’s about who can last the longest. If you would like to share some of your success stories (or even the failures), or have suggestions for future articles, please feel free to drop me a line at pool@billiardsprofessor.com. I can also be found hanging out with fellow billiards enthusiasts at reddit.com/r/billiards. Come on by and join the discussion!
Stroke March 2016
13
San Francisco Billiard Academy www.sfbilliards.com PBIA certified instruction is available for all levels from beginners to instructor training.
CUE BALL FOULS (NOT) ONLY
Bob Jewett
Bob Jewett
14
March 2016
When playing without a referee, it’s common in the U.S. to play by the so-called “cue ball fouls only” rule. This rule is often misunderstood, so here are some details about it. First, I’d like to say that we would all be better off if we played by the “all fouls” rule all the time. Players would be better prepared for tournament play and they might even be motivated both to be careful when they are shooting and to read the rules. The rule itself varies a little from rule set to rule set -and you better check the rules for the particular game/ league/event you’re in -- but it is generally something like this: If the shooter accidently disturbs an object ball it is not a foul. The opponent has the option of leaving the ball where it was moved to or putting it back where it was. However, if the disturbance has an effect on how the shot comes out, it is a foul. Let’s go through some examples. In Shot 1 the player is shooting the 1 ball at 8 ball and the cue stick touches the 7 ball. The 7 rolls an inch where it just blocks the 7 and 8 from any good shot but it does not hit the 8. The cue ball comes off the cushion and rolls to a stop without hitting the 7. The opponent puts the 7 back so that he will have a better chance for a shot at the 8 later. If the game were 9 ball, the opponent might not put the ball back because the movement tied up the two balls. But suppose the shooter says, “Oops,” and reaches out and puts the 7 ball back where it was without asking, out of reflex. That is a foul. He has to let his opponent decide “here or there”. It is better to allow the restoration before the shot, if you can, because once your opponent is satisfied with the position of the touched ball, it is no longer a foul to hit it during the shot, as in the next case. Suppose that the 7 is moved farther and the cue ball runs into it as it comes off the cushion. That is a foul because it changes the outcome of the shot. Suppose the player shoots the shot with right English and the cue ball comes off the cushion back along the line of the cue stick. If the 7 had not been moved, the cue ball would have run into it, but instead the cue ball has a clear path back across the table. That’s a foul because it changes the outcome of the shot. Next example: the 7 ball is moved and runs softly into the 8 ball while the cue ball passes as shown without hitting either one. This is a foul by some rule sets. If you move two or more object balls accidently, it is a foul. You need to read the rules to see if this applies to your games. Next example: The player bridges on top of the 7 ball to shoot the shot. This generally isn’t done by anyone who has played in competition, but I’ve seen it. This is a foul because it is not accidental. You are never allowed to intentionally touch object balls that are in play except when
Stroke OnTheBreakNews.com
Shot 1 1 8
7
Oops.
Shot 2 What to do at 9 ball? 6
5 9
REJ
acting as the referee. The final example is in Shot 2. The player is totally hooked in a game of 9 ball, with no way to hit the 5 ball except by jumping off the pocket facing. Instead, using the 5 ball as his cue ball, he shoots the 9 ball into the pocket. If you take “cue ball fouls only” literally, there was no cue ball foul. This particular non-cue ball foul is loss of game. This strategy may seem unbelievable but I’ve heard of it being tried at least twice. Desperate players do desperate things. Considering all of the exceptions which are fouls under “cue ball fouls only” -- moving two balls, running into a moved ball, running through the space previously occupied by a moved ball, intentionally touching a ball -- I think it would be as easy to just call all fouls. That’s the way most of the world plays.
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POWERFUL POSITIVE THINKING! Negative thinking is a habit that can destroy your selfconfidence and harm your pool playing performance. This month we are going to give an in-depth look at two strategies that will help you change the way you talk to yourself during a match.
Anthony Beeler is a 2013 BCA National 9-Ball team champion. He also finished 9th out of 1086 players in the 2013 BCA National 8-Ball Championships. He is a certified Level 3 instructor for the American CueSports Alliance and is the founder of Maximize Your Potential Billiards Academy located in Bradfordsville, Kentucky. Beeler is also a fully licensed Kentucky Educator having, received his bachelor’s degree at Campbellsville University and his master’s degree in Education Leadership at Eastern Kentucky University. Throughout his poolplaying career Anthony has won over 300 tournaments and has defeated numerous professional players in tournament competition.
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Attitude is a little thing that makes a big difference. -Winston Churchill Strategy #1: Replace negative thoughts with positive ones. Why do you tense up on an important shot? It usually comes down to the fact that you are putting some type of mental or emotional pressure on yourself to pocket a ball during a crucial situation. This stress usually comes from the fact that you’re afraid of what might happen if you do not pocket the ball. Below you will find a list of negative things you might say to yourself during an intense game: • “I’ve got to win this game to stay close.” • “I hate long shots… Don’t miss!” • “My partner is depending on me. He will hate me if I mess up!” • “This is for the championship...don’t blow this!” The number one reason that you are “stressing” is because you are constantly hearing negative thoughts inside your head. Those voices usually become “vocal” during an important shot. To remedy this problem, I suggest for you to develop a plan of action. Start by making a list of negative thoughts that pop into your mind as you attempt to pocket a meaningful shot. Next, you should develop another list of phrases that totally debunk the way that you currently think. I call this “Powerful Positive Thinking.” Your positive thoughts will counteract the negative ones, thereby reducing the amount of stress you place on yourself during crucial “end game” situations. Below, you will find some examples of what this looks like: • Negative thought: • “Don’t miss this simple shot.”
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Positive thought: “Not even world champions make all of their shots. I will remain calm and do my best to focus on the shot at hand.” • Negative thought: “My scotch doubles partner will get mad at me if I miss.” • Positive thought: “My partner is my best friend, and he knows I will do my best. I am going to put all of my effort into pocketing this ball. • Negative thought: “This shot is for the tournament championship…don’t screw this up!” • Positive thought: “This is the final nail in my opponent’s coffin. I am going to pocket this ball with a nice smooth stroke.” Now you should make your own personal list of positive thoughts to counteract any negative ones that might be plaguing your game. Changing the way that you talk to yourself will help you pocket key balls in high-pressure situations. After you develop your own list, you will have several phrases that you can fall back on during stressful situations. Strategy #2: Understand what you can and can’t control. You must understand that: • You do control what you do up until you shoot. • You don’t control what happens once the ball has been struck. • You do control how you decide to react after each shot. • You don’t have any control of what happens once you shoot. Many outside factors can cause problems: an unleveled table, a speck of dirt, or a bad tip could wreak havoc with your ability to perform. What if you decided to let go of the idea that you should be able to make all gamewinning shots? The reality is that you won’t… and neither do the best players in the world! Let it be okay if you miss during a match. The fear of missing creates tension, which causes you to miss more often. Pre-accept the idea that you will be okay if you miss. This is actually a way to trick your mind. You should intend or feel as though you are going to pocket every shot each time you work through your pre-shot routine. However, at the same time you should also accept and understand that you may miss because you don’t fully control the outcome. Once you start implementing this thought pattern into your game, you’ll instantly become more successful as you attempt to pocket balls during high-pressure situations.
Stroke March 2016
15
OVER THE HURDLES STEFANO PELINGA stefanopelinga.com Stefano Pelinga (born 1964) hails from Rome, Italy, where he has served since 1985 as a police officer for the Italian government (Polizia di Stato), until his retirement in 2011. He began to play pool at the age of 12, drawing inspiration from his favorite singer and actor, Dean Martin. Stefano, currently a 5-time World Champion in Pool Trick Shots, won several titles in Italy in straight pool and nine-ball throughout the late 1970s and 1980s. In 1990, he devoted himself entirely to “Artistic Pool,” commonly referred to in its practice as “Trick Shots.” Due to his outstanding achievements, Stefano is recognized worldwide as one of the greatest Trick Shot champions in the history of the sport, and has earned a spot in ESPN’s Trick Shot Magic Hall of Fame. Most importantly, on November 17, 2012, Stefano was inducted into the National Italian American Sports Hall of Fame. In the presence of approximately 500 VIP guests and many sports stars such as Tommy Lasorda, Mike Piazza, Tony Esposito and Ray “Boom Boom” Mancini, Stefano was awarded this honor, becoming a member of this group of legendary Italian Americans.
16
March 2016
Stroke
In the last issue, I diverted from my usual and useful trick shots only to introduce you to a historic crowd-pleaser. Back to the trick shots which can help us win a pool game, this month I am going to focus on an extremely useful concept: jump an object ball over an obstacle ball. Normally we all know, to a degree, how to jump our cue ball over an object ball, and that has been a fairly easy task since jump cues (shorter and lighter than standard cues) were officially approved. But, as you see in the diagram, sometimes it would be nice if we could have our object ball clear an obstacle. Following the diagram, place your Cue Ball close enough to the short rail so that you can prop your bridge hand on top of it for a more comfortable shot. Then place the 1-Ball (the Yellow Ball) in front of the Cue Ball in direction with the far right corner pocket and at about 10-14” distance. Then place an Obstacle Ball (in this case the green 6-Ball) in front of the 1-Ball making sure there is a distance between them of at least 12 inches (roughly the segment between two diamonds). I also added a third ball (the Red 3-Ball) to prevent us from cutting the 1-Ball into other available pockets. Get your full size cue ready (yes, I mean it!) which, as a matter of fact, decreases the difficulty of this shot, and elevate the back of it by about 30⁰. Aim the 1-Ball for the corner pocket and hit firmly the Cue Ball dead center at its equator. Use a speed 3 for your stroke otherwise the Cue Ball may jump out of the table. You want the Cue Ball to leave the surface of the table only by 1”. By doing so, the Cue Ball will land on the Obstacle Ball at a perfect angle in order to get it airborne. In this shot you will need to stroke the Cue Ball with some follow-through. In other words, while delivering your stroke, push through trying to get for a split second the Cue Ball squeezed between the surface of the table and the tip of your cue. That is what will give the OB a longer but controlled jump and what will also keep the CB on the table. Last but not least, I am going to share with you a secret that not many trick shot artists know: when shooting shots like the one described in this article, remember that the CB and the OB will act as if they were smaller because of the way they make contact with each other. That means that if you normally need to aim 3/4 of the OB to make it in the corner pocket without have it jump over the hurdle, in this case you will need to aim it fuller, likely about 7/8 of it.
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Stroke
January 2016
17
Fisher splits two 2016 WPBA Masters Soaring Eagle
1st 2nd 3rd 5th 7th 9th
($7500) - Allison Fisher (GBR) ($4500) - Monica Webb (USA) ($2750) - Jennifer Barretta (USA), Brittany Bryant (CAN) ($2000) - Teruko Cucculelli (USA), Ga-Young Kim (KOR) ($1750) - Tamara Peeters (NED), Ewa Laurance (SWE) ($1500) - Line Kjoersvik (NOR), Jessica Barnes (USA), Taylor Hanson (USA), Joanne Ashton (GBR) 13th ($1250) - Belinda Calhoun (USA), Vivian Villarreal (USA), Laura Smith (USA), Helena Thornfeldt (SWE) 17th ($1000) - Janet Atwell (USA), Kim White-Newsome (USA), Michelle Cortez (USA), Sandy Badger (CAN), Erin McManus (USA), Angela Williams (USA), Melissa Little (USA), Emily Duddy (USA) 25th ($750) - Jennifer Chen (TPE), Liz Cole (USA), Susan Williams (USA), Cheryl Pritchard (USA), Gail Eaton (USA), Stehanie Goens (USA), Stacie Bourbeau (USA), Beth Fondell (USA)
18
March 2016
Stroke
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Allison Fisher, sent to the loss side by Monica Webb in the final winners’ side round of the WPBA Masters tournament, came back from the loss side to eventually meet and defeat Webb in the finals. The event, held on the weekend of February 4-7, drew 48 entrants to the Soaring Eagle Resort and Casino in Mount Pleasant, MI. A preliminary round of 32 advanced 16 competitors to face 16 seeded opponents, including the #1-ranked Ga Young Kim, Fisher (#2), Webb (#5), Jennifer Baretta (#9), and Brittany Bryant (#12). Double elimination play continued until there were two opponents left on each side of the bracket. Following two, 9-2 wins in her opening rounds, Kim was sent to the loss side by Bryant 9-6, where, after another 9-2 win, she locked up in a double hill battle against Ewa Laurance. Kim won that match, only to be eliminated from play by Fisher 9-6 in the match that put Fisher into the re-seeded semifinals against Baretta. Webb’s winners’ side path to the semifinals went through Laurance 9-3 and Teruko Cucculelli 9-6 before finishing up with the 9-4 win that sent Fisher to the loss side. Baretta’s path to the semifinals went through two double hill tests (against Kathy Friend and Line Kjorsvik) before defeating Bryant 9-4 to secure the other winners’ side slot in the semifinals. Bryant and Fisher played one match on the loss side to earn their loss-side seed into the semifinal. Bryant defeated Cucculelli and Fisher downed Kim, by the same 9-6 score. The re-seeded semifinal pitted Fisher against Baretta, and Bryant against Webb, in two, race-to-4 sets. Fisher and Webb took both semifinal sets 2-0 and squared off in the championship. With the same format, Fisher completed her WPBA Masters’ run with a 2-0 set victory in the finals.
Atwell
successfully defends VA State 10-Ball Title
AzBilliards.com Staff Feb. 15, 2016 For the second year in a row, the Women's VA State 10-Ball Championships came down to Janet Atwell and Jacki Duggan squaring off in both the hot seat match and the finals. And also for the second year, Atwell won both matches to claim that title. The 2016 event drew 18 entrants to Diamond Billiards in Midlothian, VA, on the weekend of February 13-14. In her first 34 games, over five matches, Atwell chalked up an aggregate score of 30-4. She'd shut out Kristine Wylie (opening round), and given up only a single rack to Nicole Monaco (third round). In between, Tina Scott, who finished third in 2015, managed to take three against her in the second round. Atwell chalked up her third shutout against Buffy Jolie in a winners' side semifinal. Duggan, in the meantime, was awarded an opening round bye, before being challenged, double hill, by Sierra Reams. Duggan advanced to defeat Kia Sidbury and in the other winners' side semifinal, Judie Wilson, both 7-2. Atwell added a fourth shutout, over Duggan, to claim the hot seat. Atwell had also shut Duggan out in the 2015 hot seat match. On the loss side, Buffy Jolie picked up Meredith Lynch, who'd gotten by Cheryl Pritchard 5-3 and survived a double hill fight over Sidbury. Wilson drew Nicole Monaco, who, after her defeat at the hands of Atwell on the winners' side, had defeated Nicole King 5-3 and Kassandra Bein 5-2. Monaco defeaTed Wilson, as Jolie eliminated Lynch, both 5-2. It was Lynch's second straight finish in the tie for fifth place, while Wilson improved from 21st in 2015 to fifth this year. Monaco defeated Jolie 5-2 in the quarterfinals, but ran into a very determined Duggan, who gave up only a single rack to her in the semifinals. Atwell, though, proved to be equally determined. Though Duggan would improve on her 2015 performance in the finals against Atwell (1-9), Atwell prevailed in 2016, 8-3, to claim her second straight VA State 10-Ball Championship.
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1
ATWELL Janet
1,000
2
DUGGAN Jackie
550
3
MONACO Nicole
250
4
JOLIE Buffy
120
Stroke March 2016
19
Raphael Dabreo Returns to The Top Undefeated at Steinway
Two weeks after the Predator Pro/Am Tour's 2016 season opener, 97 tour players headed back to Steinway Billiards in Astoria, NY for Stop #2 on January 3031. This event highlighted many of the tour's most dedicated amateur competitors including the player to break out for a return to victory, top amateur Raphael Dabreo. For players such as Dabreo, who tout the highest handicap rating on the tour of "A++", there is a unique challenge. In the tour's handicapped 9-ball format for the amateur division events, "A++" players must spot the lower-rated players the most number of games in a given set, requiring them to stay at the top of their games. In this event, Dabreo would push to the top for an undefeated run to victory, which included wins over Redgie Cutler (7-6), Peter Ziemak (7-1), Lidio Ramirez (7-6), Steinway manager Manny Stamatakis (7-4), and Brooke Meyer (7-3), to position himself in the winner's side final. On the other half of the bracket, which featured players rated with "D" to "B" handicaps, one of the region's most consistent players out of New Jersey would shine. Paul Wilkens (rated "B") had a dominant run at Steinway to match up with Dabreo in the "hot seat" match, marking six straight wins along the way. In the match that sent him to the winner's side final, he defeated Emit Yolcu (C+) by a score of 7-3. Wilkens then matched up against Dabreo to determine who would guarantee a spot in the final. Their duel would be closely-contended, but in the end, Dabreo pulled away to win 9-7. On the loss side, "C" player Jose Kuilan had a strong day, finishing tied for 5th/6th place after being eliminated by Emit Yolcu (7-4). Alongside Kuilan, Complete Payouts 2nd Chance 1st: 2nd: 3/4
$150 $80 $45
Rhio Anne Flores Juan Guzman Julie Ha, William Finnegan
L-R PAUL WILKINS, EMIT YOLCU, BROOKE MEYER, RAPHAEL DABREO former Predator winner and "A+" player Miguel Laboy also landed in the 5th/6th position after a 7-6 loss to Brooke Meyer (rated "A"). The quarterfinal would then feature Meyer versus Yolcu in a cliff-hanger match that resulted in an 8-7 win for Meyer. Yolcu, who finished in 5th/6th place at Stop #1, improved upon his previous position to take 4th place. Awaiting Emit Yolcu in the semifinal was Paul Wilkens, who lost to Dabreo in the "hot seat" match. As in the quarterfinal, this match went down to the wire, and Wilkens secured a rematch with Dabreo in the final after a 7-6 victory over Yolcu. In the match for the title, Wilkens and Dabreo also fought right down to the very last game. The final was tied up at 8-8 before Raphael Dabreo walked away with the tournament-winning game. With this win, Dabreo has again shown himself to be one of the toughest forces in New York City-area amateur pool. On the second day of the event, "secondchance" and "third-chance" mini tournaments were held for the players who had been eliminated on day one or in the early rounds of day two. These events feature a $20 entry for those who competed in the main event, but
Complete Payouts ABCD 1st: $1,500 Raphael Dabreo + $350 Side Pot 2nd: $1,000 Paul Wilkens+ $225 Side Pot 3rd: $700 Brooke Meyer + $150 Side Pot 4th: $500 Emit Yolcu + $75 Side Pot 5/6 $300 Miguel Laboy, Jose Kuilan 7/8 $225 Dan Faraguna, Rhys Chen 9-12 $170 Irene Kim, Manny Stamatakis, Riyadh Benghalem, Lenore Chen 13-16 $130 Alex Osipov, Adalberto Nazario, Pascal Dufresne, Mike Panzarella 17-24 $100 Rhio Anne Flores, Darrin Schmidt, Earl Leacraft, Lidio Ramirez, Rene Villalobos, Redgie Cutler, Erick Carrasco, Jason Platt are also open to non-players for an entry of $40. 16 players filled the fields in both events. In the first of the two single-elimination events, Rhio Anne Flores defeated Juan Guzman 7-3, while in the second event, Rene Villalobos scored a final 7-3 win over Marco Dy. Story by Alison Fischer
Complete Payouts
3rd Chance
1st: $150 Rene Villalobos 2nd: $80 Marco Dy 3/4 $45 Erin Bechner, Victor Nau
L-R JUAN GUZMAN, RHIO ANNE FLORES
20
March 2016
Stroke
L-R MARCO DY, RENE VILLALOBOS
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In My Opinion:
How would I change a Tournament to make it better?....Maybe?
Let’s look at the Mosconi Cup, Good or Bad? Does the Mosconi Cup have a good set up as it is or don’t they? What I mean by this is, let’s look at who we are as pool players. When I grew up in the 60’s in the pool hall no one would ever play for money in a short race. You would never race to 5. You would always race to 9 or 11 or more. This notion that we are going to bring in more viewers from the general public, is in my opinion … wrong. Pool is a complicated game if you don’t know how to play. Just trying to figure out the commentators words from english, to draw, to force follow, could be lost to the general public. To be quite honest it could be lost to most league players. But most assuredly it would be lost to anyone who only considers this a “game”. If you look at baseball which is 3 to 3 1/2 hours for most games. Would anybody think it would draw in more of an audience if it were only 6 innings instead of 9 in the world series? So why would you think having short races would be better? A race to 9 or 11 would make the match better. Another reason would be making the 9 on the break or an early 9 from a carom or combination wouldn’t matter as much. All of the players on the Mosconi Cup are pros. They all play in tournaments that are long races. They know how to handle it and play their strategies. Another change would be winner break. Lag for the break. If you win the game you break again and so on. Is anybody going to run out 9 racks? And if they did how exciting would that be? Some would say that would make the matches too long or it wouldn’t be fair. Is that true? Maybe for some. Maybe before live streaming came along. As players we sit and watch live streaming events and races to 9 or more. There is a theory that some people adhere to is that it would be boring to watch long races that are being played by some of the best players in the world. I would
disagree with that. It’s more exciting. Another change that I would make would be to have an afternoon and evening session. This may not be the World Series or Super Bowl or the Daytona 500 or any other championship but it just may very well be the closest thing we have to it in our sport. The first two matches in the afternoon session, maybe the third. All single play a race to 9 any doubles at least a race to 7. The evening matches could start at 6 or 7 pm. Arrange it that if you have 2 or 3 matches to play - at least one single and one doubles. Any combination can work for the evening session. Some may say that it would go too late into the night. Is that because no pool player would ever play after dark or late into the night or early into the morning? The only complaint most pool players would have is playing in the morning. Or should I say if there was only one. We don’t like to play in the morning hours. That’s because we play late into the night. It is as with any other tournament with big money added, keep the true double elimination which I prefer. And the reason for that, for all of you who want to keep it fair, the player who is sitting on the point or rocking chair or hot seat, it’s still only their first loss regardless. I know I may get ridiculed for this but what can you come up with to make it better? Or do you like it the way it is? There is one fact that you have to face, this game, this tournament will not appeal to the general public no matter what you do, no matter what you say. This is because to most of the general public, it is just a game. And to us who play this game, it is our passion. It is our love. It is what we do!!!
$2,000 added money $200 entry fee Race to 4 winners Race to 3 one loss PLAYERS AUCTION APRIL 14TH PLAYED ON 4 ½' x 9' TRIPLE SHIMMED GOLD CROWNS WITH SIMONIS
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Stroke March 2015
21
Shooters Olathe
MidWest 9 Ball Tour
22
March 2016
28 players, $500 ADDED - Women’s 1 $550 Liz Lovely 2 $375 Anna Tulauan 3 $225 Jessica Frideres 4 $150 Brittany Maynard 5/6 $100 Michelle McDermott Sharon Vermule
Stroke
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158 players $3500 ADDED - 9-Ball 1. $2300 Skyler Woodward 2. $1600 Jason Klatt 3. $1000 Dennis Orcullo 4. $700 Roberto Gomez 5/6 $500 Warren Kiamco Shane McMinn 7/8 $400 Dave Coles John Gabriel 9/12 $300 Jon Hennessee Taylor Anderson Terry Young Andy Craig 13/16 $200 Danny Smith Justin Bergman Darren Everett Tommy Tokoph 17/24 $150 Alex Olinger Jesse James L.V. Abernathy Andy Wyatt Eric Pickar Chip Compton Lance Schofield Hamilton Boss 25/32 $100 Devin Poteet K.C. Massey Gordy Vanderveer Joey Gray Harvey Click David Matlock Chuck Raulston Jerrod Frideres
61 players $1000 ADDED - One Pocket 1 $1000 Dennis Orcullo 2 $650 Danny Smith 3 $500 Skyler Woodward 4 $350 Justin Bergman 5/6 $200 Chuck Raulston Taylor Anderson 7/8 $120 Chip Compton Joey Gray 9/12 $75 Roberto Gomez Warren Kiamco Doug Patrick John Gabriel
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1ST 2ND 3RD 4TH 5-6 7-8 9-12
NC State 9-Ball
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Stroke March 2016
23
Captains named for MC XXIII 19th February 2016 Mosconi Cup MARCUS CHAMAT and MARK WILSON have been retained as respective captains (l to r) Mark Wilson and Marcus Chamat of Team Europe and Team USA for the 23rd annual Mosconi Cup match which takes place at the Alexandra Palace, London from Tuesday 6th to Friday 9th December. Chamat, 40, was victorious on his captaincy debut at the Tropicana in Las Vegas last year as he guided his side to an 11-7 victory. He will be hoping to make it two from two in London. The diminutive Swede’s Mosconi Cup journey began at the York Hall in 2000 when he made his debut and two years later was a key member of the European side which won for the first time in seven years. “Last year was like a dream come true for me, to be part of such a great event as the Mosconi Cup once again,” said Chamat. “I really missed it so much every year, and what was great to see was that it has really grown and got even bigger and better if that’s possible, and the best is yet to come! “I really felt like I was a part of the team and you have to prepare so differently from the players; less practice and your mindset is to get the team together and work well. “I really learnt a lot from my first year as captain, and the bad news for the American team is that I will only improve and come out even stronger. “But London is where it all started for me in 2000 and since then it’s never left my heart. With over 2,000 screaming fans, most of them from England one can only imagine what it will feel like!” For Mark Wilson it will be his third time at the helm and he feels that he is on a sharp learning curve that could well come to fruition in London. “Last year was terrific, knowing what to anticipate and then improving upon the preparation for the team based on the lessons learned from year one. Playing in Las Vegas was a big asset as well that was unfulfilled and frustrating to not defend home court. “The biggest difference for me as Captain was my confidence level of leading Team USA. Preparation is ever so important for getting players into circumstances where they can excel. We applied the harsh first year lessons and added to the things that worked very well and that really allowed the team to focus and execute. “Team USA is improving but has much more to accomplish, which is not confined to simply winning the Mosconi Cup one time but rather regaining superiority over Team Europe. This is an ambitious undertaking and we sincerely work on it every day. “I am keenly excited to return to London, the home of Shakespeare and James
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March 2016
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Bond, plus the biggest venue ever for a Mosconi Cup, Alexandra Palace. The crowd will be a very partisan crowd which will present a challenge but if we can get off to a good start perhaps the pressure will shift a bit. “We have a great sense of what to expect from Team Europe and coach Marcus Chamat. They have never missed a beat and continue to dominate the US with superlative play. We must train harder and be much more effective with our tactical game and specifically the safety and kicking game and continue with the progress made on offense. Team USA will definitely respect Europe but we will not fear them.” Tickets for the Mosconi Cup are selling fast and are available from www.matchroompool.com
2016 MOSCONI CUP TEAM USA QUALIFICATION SERIES
MATCHROOM SPORT can announce the Official Mosconi Cup Team USA Ranking Events for the 2016 Europe v USA match which takes place at the Alexandra Palace in London from 6th to 9th December. Three of the five spots on Team USA will be allocated to the three highest placed players on the ranking list following the conclusion of the US Open in October. The roster of events has been significantly expanded from 2015 and this year there are a total of 25 tournaments which carry Mosconi Cup points. These events have been grouped into three categories: Category One is major international events both in the USA and overseas; Category Two is events played on 9 foot tables in the US and Category Three is events taking place in the US played on 7 ft tables. In addition, within Categories Two and Three there are three separate grades each, making a total of seven levels of points through the three Categories. The maximum number of points a winner can receive would be 80 for winning a Category One event. The least number would be 21 points for winning a Category Three, Grade Three event. Commented a spokesman for Matchroom Sport, “For 2016, we’ve decided to be as inclusive as possible and involve more and more tournament promoters across the USA. This gives players many more opportunities to play for Mosconi Cup ranking points and may cut down on some of the expense of playing every single event as in previous years. “We’re also creating a strong connection to the Mosconi Cup with a variety of promoters and pool rooms across the USA which can only be good for everyone involved in this fantastic event. With such a range of points available, players can pick and choose which events they play in and it will all culminate at the US Open next October. Matchroom Sport will be publishing regular ranking lists as the season develops.”
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2016 U.S.A. MOSCONI CUP RANKING & POINTS ALLOCATION
Level 1
US Open 1st 80 pts 2nd 67 3rd 59 4th 51 5/6 43 7/8 35 9/12 27 13/16 21 17/24 16 25/32 11
AUGUST 21/28 - WPA China Open – Shanghai, China Table: 9 ft - Players: 64 - Added: $200,000 SEPTEMBER - WPA World 9 Ball Championship – Doha, Qatar Table: 9 ft - Players: 128 - Added: $250,000 OCTOBER - US Open 9 Ball – Norfolk, Virginia Table: 9 ft - Players: 128 - Added: $70,000
Level 2
Events played on 9ft tables
JANUARY 7/10 - Turning Stone Classic I – Verona, New York Table: 9 ft - Players: 128 - Added: $25,000 - Grade: One JANUARY 27/30 - Derby City Classic 9 Ball – Elizabeth, Indiana Table: 9 ft - Players: 250-400 - Added: $25,000 - Grade: One FEBRUARY 12/14 - Texas Open 10-ball Championship - Round Rock, Austin, TX Table: 9 ft - Players: 128 - Added: $4,000 - Grade: Three FEBRUARY 20/21 - Jay Swanson Memorial - Hard Times, Bellflower, California Table: 9 ft - Players: 128 - Added: $2,320 based on a full field - Grade: Three FEBRUARY 20/21 - Empire State 10 Ball Championship – Raxx, W Hempstead, NY Table: 9 ft - Players: 64 - Added: $1,000 - Grade: Three APRIL 6/10 – Don Coates Memorial (Tony Coates) – Raleigh, North Carolina Table: 9 ft - Players: 128 - Added: $8,000 - Grade: Two APRIL 14/17 –Professional Players Championship – Oaks, PA Table: 9 ft - Players: 64 - Added: $10,000 - Grade: Three TBD – Chuck Markulis Memorial - Sacramento, CA Table: 9 ft - Players: 100 - Added: $15,000 - Grade: Two MAY 29/30 - Ginky Memorial (Tony Robles) – Steinway Billiards, New York Table: 9 ft - Players: 64 pros (plus 96 amateurs) - Added: $4,000 - Grade: Three AUGUST 13/15 - Eastern State 10 Ball Champs (Tony Robles) – Snookers, Providence, RI Table: 9 ft - Players: 64 - Added: $2,000 - Grade: Three AUGUST 25/28 - Turning Stone Classic II (Mike Zuglan) – Verona, New York Table: 9 ft - Players: 128 - Added: $25,000 - Grade: One SEPTEMBER 3/5 Texas Open 9-ball Championships - Round Rock, Austin, TX Table: 9 ft - Players: 128 - Added: $5,000 - Grade: Three OCTOBER – Gotham City Billiards Pro 9 Ball Classic, Brooklyn, NY Table: 9 ft - Players: 64 - Added: $11,000 - Grade: Three
Level 3
Grade One 1st 50 pts 2nd 40 3rd 35 4th 33 5/6 28 7/8 23 9/12 18 13/16 13 17/24 8 25/32 5
Grade Two 1st 40 pts 2nd 32 3rd 28 4th 26 5/6 22 7/8 18 9/12 14 13/16 10 17/24 6 25/32 4
Grade Three 1st 30 pts 2nd 24 3rd 21 4th 20 5/6 17 7/8 14 9/12 11 13/16 8 17/24 5 25/32 3
Derby City (with a slightly skewed format): 1st 50 pts 2nd 40 3rd 35 4/5 30 6/8 23 9/13 18 14/24 13 25/35 5
Events played on 7ft tables
MARCH 11/13 - Chinook Winds Open 8 Ball (Andrew Monstis) – Lincoln City, OR Table: 7 ft - Players: 96-128 - Added: $12,000 - Grade: Two MAY 17/22 - USTBC 8 Ball (CSI) – Reno, Nevada Table: 7 ft - Players: 100 - 200 - Added: $5,000 TBC - Grade: Three MAY 17/22 - USTBC 9 Ball (CSI) – Reno, Nevada Table: 7 ft - Players: 100 - 200 - Added: $5,000 TBC - Grade: Three May 17/22 - USTBC 10 Ball (CSI) – Reno, Nevada Table: 7 ft - Players: 100 - 200 - Added: $5,000 TBC - Grade: Three JULY/AUGUST TBC – Midwest 10 Ball Tour – Olathe, Kansas Table: 7 ft - Players: 128 - Added: $15,000 - Grade: One JULY 22/24 - US Open 10 Ball (CSI) – Las Vegas, Nevada Table: 7 ft - Players: 128 - Added: $15,000 - Grade: One JULY 27/29 - US Open 8 Ball (CSI) – Las Vegas, Nevada Table: 7 ft - Players: 128 - Added: $15,000 - Grade: One SEPTEMBER 15/18 - 4 Bears 8 Ball Classic (Ray Poitra) – New Town, ND Table: 7 ft - Players: 150-192 - Added: $25,000 - Grade: One OCTOBER 7/9 - Chinook Winds Open 10 Ball (Andrew Monstis) – Lincoln City, OR Table: 7 ft - Players: 128 - Added: $12,000 - Grade: Two
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WPA events 1st 80 pts 2nd 67 3/4 53 5/8 40 9/16 27 17/32 13
Grade One 1st 35 pts 2nd 28 3rd 26 4th 23 5/6 19 7/8 16 9/12 12 13/16 9 17/24 7 25/32 4
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Grade Two 1st 28 pts 2nd 22 3rd 21 4th 18 5/6 15 7/8 13 9/12 10 13/16 7 17/24 6 25/32 3
Grade Three 1st 21 pts 2nd 17 3rd 16 4th 14 5/6 11 7/8 10 9/12 7 13/16 5 17/24 4 25/32 2
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25
Mike Davis WINS
Series VII American Rotation Championship
by: Joe Tucker Yet another final match with the Touring Pro vs. the Working Joe. Mike Davis vs. Kevin West might have played the best final match we’ve seen yet, certainly the most dramatic with a final score of 138-140. 22 Players across the country as far away as Lee Ladouceur in Vermont to Max Adams in Alaska qualified for 2016 Derby City Finals. Play began one day prior to the 9 Ball Banks event with every player playing four 120-point round robin matches on Thursday to determine our top 8 on Friday. Shannon Fitch of Gate City Billiards Greensboro NC coming back to the game after more than a 10-year layoff had everyone saying “Who the hell is that guy?” topped Mike Davis & Johnny Archer for the #1 seed with a 4-0 record and point differential of +193, defeating his opponents by the average score of 48 points in a race to 120 points, very impressive. Semi Final matches guaranteed that we would see working man vs touring pro finals; Kevin West, Great Slates Billiards, MD vs Jody McLaughin, Big Dog Billiards, IA; Johnny Archer, Marietta Billiard Club vs Mike Davis, Brass Tap, Bucks & Brown’s, NC!
make the match 90-90 & 102-98. From there both players scored exactly 20 points to make the score 118 Kevin 122 Mike with Kevin’s turn to break. He did what we all hope to do in that position, broke the 15 balls and ran them all perfectly in rotation to score 20 points making the score 138-122 and now Mike’s break. Who would rather be? The player needing just 2 points sitting in the chair or the player needing 18 but has break ball in hand? Mike broke a table that looked very difficult from the 5 ball on out. He ran 1-4 and played position for a preplanned safety on the 5. It worked as Kevin missed an off angle kick that required just the right amount of spin. Even with ball in hand on the 5 Mike still has his work cut out for him. The 6-7 were tucked under the 14 ball and would require Mike to shoot the 5 ball six feet up the left side rail while moving the cue ball forward and across a position zone about 6 inches wide and 5 ft. away. The entire room was pressure packed and wondering what he was going to do and would he succeed or not. Iron Mike did no disappoint. After rebridging several times he struck it perfectly and fell on the only spot on the table where the 6 could be pocketed. From there on out we simply held our breath the see if Mike could run the rest of the table to nab the Series 7 title. Iron Mike came through with a 140-138 victory! All 22 players received travel money for attending and our top 8 earned additional money $2,500 & Series VII Champion Mike Davis $1,500 & a Great performance Kevin West $1,000 each of 3rd 4th Johnny Archer & Jody McLaughlin $500 each Shannon Fitch, Rob Hall, Cleiton Rocha, Chris McDaniel Series VII Finals was an awesome experience for all of us. The American Billiard Club helped put $25,000 in the pockets of some aspiring players and some pro players while they attended what is probably the greatest pool show of the year, The Derby City Classic.
While Kevin and Jody battled back and forth Mike Davis got the jump on Johnny and held it throughout the entire match.
We thank all the players there and all the players at home who competed in their local 10-week Series. We thank Diamond Billiards for allowing us to come in one day early, the use of the tables, for making us feel welcome and for putting on such a great event. We also want to thank BadBoy Billiard Productions and TVMike.
The final match was not looking good for our working man who also happens to be a Type 1 Diabetic. Mike started strong taking a 64-16 lead in a race to 140. American Rotation is a very tough game to come back in so we actually started to lose some spectators as they believed Mike would continue on as he did in his earlier match with Johnny. Many would soon return when somehow Kevin came back strong to
The plan for 2016 is to allow just 32 clubs to qualify 2 players each (March-June & Aug-Nov) so we can have a 64 player Series VIII Championship at the 2017 Derby City Classic. Please email Joe Tucker at JTtenball@gmail.com to support a fantastic format and to secure your clubs spot as we are shutting it down to just 32 clubs, some of which will be coming from different countries.
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Dominguez is Early Leader Qualification Race Heats UP WITH FIVE of the scheduled 25 tournaments in the Official Mosconi Cup Team USA Ranking list having taken place, it is California’s Oscar Dominguez who leads the way following his win at the Jay Swanson Memorial at the weekend. His 30 point haul, added to the 38 he won at Turning Stone and the DCC in January, gives him an 11 point lead over seasoned Mosconi Cup veteran Rodney Morris in second place. Dominguez, 30, is looking to make his second appearance in Team USA colours after winning on his debut in 2009. In third position is Shane Van Boening, who has only played in one of the five events, but made the most of it in winning the Derby City Classic. Other tournament winners include 7th placed Skyler Woodward who took the Texas 10 Ball Open and Mike Dechaine who claimed the Empire State 10 Ball at the weekend. That event had its allocated points reduced by a third and awarded them to top 16 players only following a reduced entry of 32 players. There will be an additional tournament on both the American and European tournament rosters following the WPA’s announcement of the $275,000 Kuwait 9 Ball Open, set to take place in September. The 2016 Mosconi Cup takes place at the Alexandra Palace in London from 6th to 9th December. Three of the five spots on Team USA will be allocated to the three highest placed players on the ranking list following the conclusion of the US Open in October.
The roster of events has been significantly expanded from 2015 and this year there are now a total of 26 events which carry Mosconi Cup points. These events have been grouped into three categories: Category One is major international events both in the USA and overseas; Category Two is events played on 9 foot tables in the US and Category Three is events taking place in the US played on 7 ft tables. RANKING AFTER FIVE EVENTS 1. Oscar DOMINGUEZ 68 2. Rodney MORRIS 57 3. Shane VAN BOENING 50 4. Shaun WILKIE 47 5. Mike DECHAINE 38 6. Hunter LOMBARDO 37 7. Skyler WOODWARD 30 8. Scott FROST 23 9. Brandon SHUFF 23 10. Ernesto DOMINGUEZ 21 The next events on the ranking list are Chinook Winds 8 Ball Open in Oregon in March, followed by the Don Coates Memorial in Raleigh, North Carolina and then the Super Billiards Expo, both in April.
Good Samaritan Finds Johnny Archer I found this on Johnny Archer’s Facebook page. I thought I would share what one man can do to change a difficult situation that could have gone bad. I am stuck in a snowstorm somewhere in Indiana between two cornfields. I wanted to take a rescue snowmobile back to a warm shelter but I was talked out of it by the driver of the car I am in. He said that the snow plows would be out here to help us but I havnt seen one in over 4 hours. I am panicking. Can some of you come up with a couple of options for me cause I have run out. To let everyone know that we are ok but we are still stuck out here on hwy 18. We just had somebody come try to get us out but had nowhere to tie the strap to on our car. I want to thank all of you for trying to help and for your concerns. If anybody can get to us and pull us out of our rut then I think we can follow them out of here. In the meantime I appreciate all of your prayers cause we have been here more than 8 hours. God bless you. This guy’s name is Rodney Hester and he was going to bed at 3am and a friend of his said that he seen on Facebook that I was stuck and was near him. He got out of bed and was out here at 3:45 looking for us. He just found us and pulled us out of our rut and now we are about 2 miles from 65-north. That is 5 and 1/2 hours roaming these back roads looking for us. I know we would still be there if it wasn’t for Mr. Hester. The police around the area had no idea when we might have been rescued. Mr. Hester messed up his 4 wheel drive getting us. I know God sent Mr. Hester to save us and I will be forever indebted to him. I know if the world had more people in it like Mr. Hester then it would be a much better place. Thank you all from the bottom of my heart for your prayers and help for making this happen. God is great!! God bless you!! Bill Dunne Melanie Wynne Archer commented: Thank you Rodney!! You are a blessing!! And are always welcome at our home!! RODNEY HESTER WITH JOHNNY ARCHER
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Update: I am on my plane back to Atlanta. Thank you lord. Please don’t any of you worry about donating the $400 on the go fund me website to help fix Rodney’s truck. The money will be there in full. It’s the least I can do.
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Stroke March 2016
27
DAX DRUMINSKI Undefeated
Dax Druminski went undefeated in his first Tri-State, hosted by Steinway Billiards, Astoria, NY. Dax’s tournament trail included wins over Bob Toomey (6 – 2); Nyam Roy (6 – 2); Erick Carrasco (6 – 4); Jaydev Zaveri (6 – 5) and, in the hot seat match, Steve Kaminow (8 – 2). During this time, Shivam Gupta was sent to the loss side by Steve Kaminow (7 – 6) and won 4 matches to once again face Steve. Shivam pulled out their second match 7 – 6, to clinch 2nd and face Dax in the Finals. It was a tougher battle in the Finals than the score reveals. Dax pulled ahead to a 5 - 1 lead and Shivam tied it up at 5 - 5. Shivam had an opportunity to take the lead but snookered himself with only the 7 and 2nd - Shivam Gupta, 3rd - Steve Kaminow 9-ball on the table. Dax made a good out to make it 6 - 5. Another miss by Shivam and the match was all but over, with Dax finishing 8 - 5. Steve Kaminow and Jaydev Zaveri deserve recognition for their solid 3rd and 4th place finishes respectively. PAYOUTS: 1st Place - $640 - Dax Druminski 2nd Place - $320 - Shivam Gupta 3rd Place - $200 - Steve Kaminow 4th Place - $130 - Jaydev Zaveri
The next Tri-State event will be held on Sunday, February 21 at Rockaway Billiards, in Rockaway, NJ. Please provide a thank you to Ozone Billiards, Sterling-Gaming, Kamui Tips, Ron Vitello, Phil Capelle, BlueBook Publishing, Human Kinetics, and Bloodworth Ball Cleaners for their sponsorship leading to this event.
1st - Dax Druminski
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9-Ball Shoot-Out Pictured above: 2nd Shaun Dobson, 3rd Stewart Warnock, 1st Billy Gallagher
NORRISTOWN, PA The Mezz ABCD Super Bowl 9-Ball Shoot-Out was held at Markley Billiards on Saturday, February 6, 2016. Because this tournament was played on a limited number of Diamond bar boxes, the first twenty players to sign up got the opportunity to compete. The field consisted of Billy Gallagher, Stewart Warnock, Shaun Dobson, Joe Hong, Rick Scarleto, Carl Morgan, Scott Haas, Wess Dobson, Danny Gonzalez, Matt Douglas, Chuck Sampson, Carlo Favertto, Muaz Khan, Rick Miller, Jerry Dunne, Loye Bolard, Tony Long, Greg Leflar, John Herman and Mike Saleh. Leading the top half of the bracket was Billy Gallagher with wins over Tony Long 8-7, Carlo Favertto 8-5, and Carl Morgan 8-6. Leading the bottom half of the bracket was Shaun Dobson with wins over Loye Bolard 8-5, Chuck Sampson 8-1, and Steward Warnock 8-6. Playing for the hot seat was Gallagher and Dobson. The match went the hill with Gallagher coming out on top with an 8-7 win sending Dobson to the one-loss side. Waiting for Dobson was Stewart Warnock. Dobson took control of the match early and went on to win 7-3 and a seat in the finals.
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In the finals, Dobson Vs Gallagher, a rematch from the hot seat, both players decided to race to five. With a 5-4 win, Gallagher won the match and the Mezz ABCD Super Bowl 9-Ball Shoot-Out. I would like to thank all the players that came out to play and thank Markley Billiards owner Russ and his wonderful staff for hosting the event. I would also like to thank all our sponsors Title Sponsor: Mezz Cues Miki Platinum Sponsors: Mezz USA, Zan Tip, Turtle Rack, Gold Sponsor: Andy Billiard Cloth, JAB Cues & Things, Steve Klapp Custom Cues, Bloodworth Ball Cleaner, Enhanced Chiropractic Silver Sponsor: Mike Ricciardella RE/MAX, Billiards Life, Kamui, Allen Hopkins Super Billiard Expo and AZ Billiards. Results and Payouts 1st Billy Gallagher $1250 2nd Shaun Dobson $825 3rd Stewart Warnock $530 4th Joe Hong $300 5th Rick Scarleto $200 5th Carl Morgan $200 Mon - Thurs : 5pm - 1am Fri - Sat: Noon - 2am Sun: Noon - 1am
• Pool Tables • Great Food • • Full-Service Elevated Bar • Drink Specials • Lottery & Quickdraw • Electronic Darts • • Foosball • Video Games • Pro Shop And More! 9 Johnson Road Latham, NY • 518-786-8048 www.diamondeight.com
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Stroke March 2016
29
Oscar Dominguez Wins 20th Annual “Swanee” Memorial
Photo by: Don Akerlow
POINTS EVENT
Oscar and Ernesto Dominguez AzBilliards.com Feb 22, 2016 Oscar Dominguez came back from a hot seat loss to meet and defeat Rodney Morris in the finals of the 20th Annual Jay Swanson (Swanee) Memorial Tournament, held on the weekend of February 20-21. The event’s $10,000 prize package drew a full field of 128 entrants. The tournament came within a match or two of featuring a finals contest between Oscar and his father, Ernesto, who faced separate opponents in the winners’ side semifinals. Oscar met up with Amar Kang, as his Dad faced Morris. Oscar defeated Kang 8-5, as Ernesto was sent to the loss side by Morris 8-4. Morris took the hot seat 8-5 and waited on the younger Dominguez’ return. On the loss side, Ernesto ran into Johnny Kang, who’d defeated Jonny Martinez 7-5 and Santos Sambajon, Jr. 7-3 to reach him. Amar Kang picked up last year’s runner-up Hungarian Vilmos Foldes, who’d eliminated Max Eberle 7-4 and Brendan Crockett 7-2. Ernesto locked up in a double hill battle that he won versus Johnny Kang, while Amar Kang fell to Foldes 7-2. Ernesto then downed Foldes in the quarterfinals 7-5, setting up a father-son semifinal, which, by family tradition, they chose not to play; Ernesto allowing Oscar to face Morris in the finals. “When we first started playing together,” Oscar explained, “we were both so bad that it was funny, so we decided that we wouldn’t play against each other, and it stuck. “It’s usually me who advances,” he added, “because my father always wants me to get more experience.” It paid off handsomely, although there’s no way to determine whether it would have paid off just as handsomely if Ernesto had faced Morris. As it turned out, Oscar got his second shot at Morris and delivered, 11-9, to claim the 20th Annual Jay Swanson Memorial title.
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Rodney Morris 1st $2500 2nd $1500 3rd $900 4th $600 5th/6th $400 7th/8th $300 9th-12th $215
Oscar Dominguez Rodney Morris Ernesto Dominguez Vilmos Foldes Amar Kang/Johnny Kang Brendan Crockett/Santos Sambajon Tyler Van Wulvan/Max Eberle/ Henry Brodt/Jonny Martinez 13th-16th $160 Chris Tate/Beau Runningen/ Ruben Bautista/Shaun Murphy 17th-24th $120 Victor Ignacio/Barba Butch/ Joe Delio/Sal Butera/ Stephen Eakins/Dave Martineau/ Ray Lorenzo/Ernesto Bayaua 25th-32nd $80 Delbert Wong/Tony Castro/ Winnie Tolentino/Attila Csorba/ John Nekali/Scott Slayton/ Alfred Martinez/Abel Lim
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Moore uses Two Double Hill Wins in Route to VA State 10-Ball Title
AzBilliards.com Staff Feb. 15, 2016 What a difference a year makes. Last year at this time, we were reporting on Shaun Wilkie's sixth straight win on the Action Pool Tour at the 2015 VA State Open 10-Ball Championships, in which he defeated Matt Krah in the finals to claim the title. A year later, two competitors who weren't even involved in last year's championship, emerged from the pack to battle twice for the 2016 title; Eric Moore and Brandon Shuff. And in what could only be termed a surprise ending, it was Moore who bested Shuff, twice, double hill, to claim the title. The 2016 VA State Open 10-Ball Championships drew 59 entrants to ERIC MOORE, BRANDON SHUFF Diamond Billiards in Midlothian, advanced 7-5 to defeat three straight opponents (Rick VA. A concurrently-run Women's Senter, Nilbert Lim and Rick Scarleto) 7-2. He capped event (separate story), drew 18, and saw Janet Atwell this with the double hill win that sent Shuff to the loss defend her title, with, for the second year in a row, side. Chris Futrell and RJ Carmona, in the meantime, Jacki Duggan as the runner-up. squared off in the other winners' side semifinal, won In the Open event, four of the five matches by Futrell 7-3. Moore claimed the hot seat over Futrell that Brandon Shuff played on the winners' side went 7-3 and waited on Shuff's return. double hill, including his first two versus Shane On the loss side, Shuff walked right into his Wolford and Rich Glasscock. Shuff got by APT Tour sixth double hill match; this one, against Reymart Director Ozzy Reynolds 7-2, before engaging in his Lim, who'd defeated Christopher Wilburn and Adam fourth and fifth double hill battles. He won the fourth Kielar, both 6-4, to reach him. Carmona picked up over Bill Duggan before running into Moore in a Scarleto, who, following his winners' side defeat at winners' side semifinal. Moore had some early trouble the hands of Moore, had defeated Rafael Reyes 6-4 against Sean Sporleder in his opening round, but
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MOORE Eric SHUFF Brandon FUTRELL Chris SCARLATO Rick CARMONA R.J. LIM Reymart KIELAR Adam WILKIE Shaun REYES Rafael DUGGAN Bill WILBURN Christopher MILLER Kenny LIM Nil 100 REYNOLDS Ozzy MASTERMAKER Joey HORNSBY Doug
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and eliminated last year's champion, Shaun Wilkie, in a double hill match. Shuff won his sixth double hill match (over Lim), as Scarleto eliminated Carmona 6-2. Perhaps in preparation for what was to come, Shuff bore down and took the quarterfinal match over Scarleto and the semifinal match against Futrell, both 6-3. In the finals, Shuff and Moore locked up in what was Shuff's seventh double hill match, out of eight played. Moore prevailed to claim the 2016 VA State 10Ball Championships.
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If you have any changes to your weekly pool tournaments EMAIL: billiards@OnTheBreakNews.com DATE CITY Mondays Astoria, NY Statesville, NC Warren, MI Warren, MI Dayton, OH Hilliard, OH Akron, OH Tuesdays Edison, NJ Bowling Green, KY Martins Ferry, OH Wednesdays Tallahassee, FL Clearwater, FL Astoria, NY Lexington, SC Martins Ferry, OH Statesville, NC Rural Hall, NC Dayton, OH Raleigh, NC Thursdays Edison, NJ Williamsville, NY Lexington, SC Statesville, NC Bowling Green, KY Lansing, MI Warren, MI Vernon, IN Parkersburg, WV Fridays Decatur, AL Hollywood, FL Greensboro, NC Syracuse, NY Lexington, SC Martins Ferry, OH Portland, ME Fairfield, OH Statesville, NC Saturdays Decatur, AL Hollywood, FL Greensboro, NC Lexington, SC Parkersburg, WV Rural Hall, NC Leitchfield, KY Martins Ferry, OH Grand Rapids, MI Grand Rapids, MI Battle Creek, MI Battle Creek, MI Reynoldburg, OH Sundays Clearwater, FL Edison, NJ Edison, NJ Statesville, NC Raleigh, NC Jackson, MS Orlando, FL Syracuse, NY Portage, MI Livonia, MI Vernon, IN Dayton, OH Columbus, OH Fairfield, OH Mansfield, OH
LOCATION Steinway Billiards Chandley’s Chalk & Cue Ultimate Sports Bar Hall of Fame Airway Bankshots Crown Billiards Sandcastle Billiards Cue Time Corner Pocket Zingales Crooked Cue Billiards Steinway Billiards Grady’s Pool Room Corner Pocket Chandley’s Chalk & Cue Scotty B’s Airway Buck’s Billiards Sandcastle Billiards Bison Billiards Grady’s Pool Room Chandley’s Chalk & Cue Cue Time Coaches Ultimate Sports Bar Phat Guy Birds League Room 6 Pockets Billiards Lucky 7 Billiards Gate City Billiards Club Premium Billiards Grady’s Pool Room Corner Pocket Union Station Billiards Michael’s Chandley’s Chalk & Cue 6 Pockets Billiards Lucky 7 Billiards Gate City Billiards Club Grady’s Pool Room League Room Scotty B’s Scooters on Main St Corner Pocket The Break Room The Break Room Brickyard Brickyard Scotty’s Crooked Cue Billiards (1st Sun) Sandcastle Billiards Sandcastle Billiards Chandley’s Chalk & Cue Buck’s Billiards Rack Clicks Billiards Premium Billiards Play Time Snookers Phat Guy Birds Airway Cushions Michael’s (every other Sun) Sundown
PHONE (718) 472-2124 (980) 635-1109 (586) 751-2222 (586) 939-8880 (937) 274-1230 (614) 777-0022 (330) 644-3985 (732) 632-9277 (270) 782-2740 (740) 738-0357 (850) 224-8644 (727) 539-7665 (718) 472-2124 (803) 957-7665 (740) 738-0357 (980) 635-1109 (336) 377-9358 (937) 274-1230 (919) 467-5411 (732) 632-9277 (716) 632-0281 (803) 957-7665 (980) 635-1109 (270) 782-2740 (517) 882-2013 (586) 751-2222 (812) 346-0870 304-893-9640 256-686-3171 (954) 239-8254 (336) 856-8800 (315) 488-4888 (803) 957-7665 (740) 738-0357 (207) 899-3693 (513) 860-0044 (980) 635-1109 256-686-3171 (954) 239-8254 (336) 856-8800 (803) 957-7665 304-893-9640 (336) 377-9358 (270) 230-1879 (740) 738-0357 (616) 454-0899 (616) 454-0899 (269) 968-0692 (269) 968-0692 (614) 755-9407 (727) 539-7665 (732) 632-9277 (732) 632-9277 (980) 635-1109 (919) 467-5411 (601) 372-6576 (407) 275-6064 (315) 488-4888 (269) 323-2295 (734) 422-9510 (812) 346-0870 (937) 274-1230 (614) 882-5986 (513) 860-0044 (419) 564-4538
EVENT / RULES ENTRY ADDED 9-Ball - Handicapped $25 9 Ball on 9’ Diamonds-Hdcp $20 Break & run 9 Ball $20 $100 w/32 Open 9 Ball $10/$20 Call Open 9 Ball $5 Call 9 Ball $10 Call Open 9 Ball $8 Call 9-Ball Hdcp/DE/Race to 5/4 $25 Call 8 Ball $5 Call Straight 8-Ball $8 Call 9-Ball Handicap $10 8-Ball $5 Call Open 9 Ball Am/Pro $20/$40 8-Ball 7’ Tables race to 5 $15 $100 w/16 9-Ball $10 Call 9 Ball on Diamond bar box 3-4-5 $15 Break & run 9-Ball $10 50% Match 8 Ball $10 Call 8 Ball-Sc Doubles-Max skill 12 $20 9-Ball - Handicapped Call 10-Ball Handicap-SE $15 Call 9-Ball 7’ Tables $15 $100 w/16 1 Pocket on 9’ Diamonds-Hdcp $20 Break & run 9 Ball $5 Call 8 Ball $5 Call 9 Ball $20 $100 w/32 Open 9 Ball $5 Call 9-Ball SE $12 incl g.f. Call 9-Ball $13 9-Ball $5 Matching w/20+ Scotch Doubles 8 Ball/9 Ball Call Open Bar Box 8 Ball-SE $20 9-Ball Handicap $20 $200 w/16 8-Ball $15 Call 8 Ball - Race to 2 $8 Call 8-Ball $1 $5/player 8 Ball on Diamond bar box-Hdcp $20 Break & run 9-Ball $13 8-Ball-Race to 2-DE $5 Match w/20+ 8 Ball/9 Ball (1st Sat) Round robin Call 9-Ball Handicap $20 $300 w/24 8-Ball (except last Saturday) $7 incl g.f. Call FREE POOL 8 Ball Chip Pool $15 Call 9 Ball $5 Call 8 Ball $5 Call 8 Ball $20 Call 9 Ball $20 Call 8 Ball Call 200% payout 8-Ball ‘B’ Only Mod. Rnd Robin $10 $200 w/32 9-Ball - Ladies (1st Sun) Call 10-Ball (3rd Sun) Call 10 Ball on 9’ Diamonds-Hdcp $25 Break & run 9 Ball-6 & Under Masters Style $15 70% payout 9 Ball $10 Mixed 8 Ball & 9 Ball $7 9 Ball - 10-Ball Break Pot $20 9 Ball $15 Call 8 Ball - bank the 8 $10 Call 8 Ball Call Call Alt 8 & 9 Ball Call Call 9 Ball $10 Call 8 Ball - Race to 3 $10 Call 8 Ball $7 1/3 pot
TIME 7PM 7PM 7PM 8PM 7PM 8PM 7:30PM 7PM 8PM Call 8PM 1PM 7PM 6:30PM 7:30PM 7PM 8PM 7PM 7:30PM 7PM 7PM 8PM 7PM 8PM 7:30PM 7PM 7:30PM 7PM 8PM 8PM 8PM 7PM 8PM 7:30PM 8PM 7:30PM 7:30PM 8PM 8PM 7PM 7PM 7PM 7PM Call 6PM 6PM 1PM 7PM 3PM 6PM Noon Noon 3PM 6PM 8:30PM 2PM 7PM 4PM 2PM 7:30PM 7PM 8PM Call 5:30PM
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Stroke March 2016
33
Call First - All Tournaments are subject to change without notice DATE CITY LOCATION PHONE Mar 5 Williamsville, NY Bison Billiards 716-632-0281 Mar 5 Martins Ferry, OH Corner Pocket 740-738-0357 Mar 6 Clearwater, FL Crooked Cue 727-539-7665 Mar 10 Lincoln City, OR Chinook Winds 360-703-4081 Mar 11-13 Lincoln City, OR Chinook Winds 360-703-4081 Mar 11-13 Lincoln City, OR Chinook Winds 360-703-4081 Mar 12 Lexington, SC Grady’s 803-957-POOL Mar 12 Martins Ferry, OH Corner Pocket 740-738-0357 Mar 12-13 Clifton Park, NY Trick Shot Billiards 518-383-8771 Mar 13 Rockaway, NJ Rockaway Billiards 973-625-5777 Mar 19 Martins Ferry, OH Corner Pocket 740-738-0357 Mar 19 Clifton, NJ Clifton Billiards 973-928-6622 Mar 20 Edison, NJ Sandcastle 732-632-9277 Mar 26 Astoria, NY Steinway Billiards 718-472-2124 Mar 26 Martins Ferry, OH Corner Pocket 740-738-0357 Mar 27 Portland, ME Union Station 207-899-3693 Mar 28 Parkersburg, WV League Room 304-893-9640 Apr 2 Williamsville, NY Bison Billiards 716-632-0281 Apr 2 Parkersburg, WV League Room 304-893-9640 Apr 3 Clearwater, FL Crooked Cue 727-539-7665 Apr 5 Greensboro, NC Gate City Billiards 336-856-8800 Apr 9-10 N Syracuse, NY Salt City Billiards 315-454-8643 Apr 10 Bayside, NY Cue Bar 718-631-2646 Apr 15-17 Houston, TX Bogies 281-821-4544 Apr 16 Martins Ferry, OH Corner Pocket 740-738-0357 Apr 17 Portland, ME Union Station 207-899-3693 Apr 23-24 W Hempstead, NY Raxx Pool Room 516-538-9896 Apr 24 Astoria, NY Steinway Billiards 718-472-2124 Apr 24 Edison, NJ Sandcastle 732-632-9277 Apr 30 Parkersburg, WV League Room 304-893-9640 May 1 Jackson Hgts, NY BQE Billiards 718-779-4348 May 1 Clearwater, FL Crooked Cue 727-539-7665 May 7 Williamsville, NY Bison Billiards 716-632-0281 May 7 Rockaway, NJ Rockaway Billiards 973-625-5777 May 14 Astoria, NY Steinway Billiards 718-472-2124 May 15 Portland, ME Union Station 207-899-3693 May 21 Martins Ferry, OH Corner Pocket 740-738-0357 May 21 Clifton, NJ Clifton Billiards 973-928-6622 May 24-26 Astoria, NY Steinway Billiards 718-472-2124 May 28 Parkersburg, WV League Room 304-893-9640 Jun 4-5 Astoria, NY Steinway Billiards 718-472-2124
EVENT / RULES ENTRY ADDED Bar Box 8-Ball $35 incl g.f. $$$ Youth Academy Boot Camp Call Call 8-Ball ‘B’ Only Mod. Rnd Robin $10 $200 w/32 Chinook Winds Open Warm up Call Call Chinook Winds Open Men’s 8-Ball $175 incl g.f. $12,000 Mosconi Cup Points for 2016 Chinook Winds Open Women’s 8-Ball $175 incl g.f. $5,000 9-Ball $50M/$35W-Jr Call 8-Ball Powder Puff $40 Call 9-Ball $120/$70 $1,500/$500 9-Ball Varies $1,000 9-Ball $40 Call 9-Ball Varies $1,000 Duel of Dames $120Pro/$60Am $500 9-Ball Varies $1,000 8-Ball $40 Call USB 9-Ball Series $35 $250 8-Ball $30 $$$ Bar Box 8-Ball $35 incl g.f. $$$ 9-Ball $50/$35 Call 8-Ball ‘B’ Only Mod. Rnd Robin $10 $200 w/32 9 Ball Challenge Match $20/match 9-Ball $120/$70 $1,500/$500 9-Ball Varies $1,000 Seniors One Pocket Classic $200-Limit 24 $2,000 8-Ball $40 Call USB 9-Ball Series $35 $250 9-Ball $120/$70 $1,500/$500 9-Ball Varies $1,000 Duel of Dames $120Pro/$60Am $500 8-Ball $30 $$$ 9-Ball Varies $1,000 8-Ball ‘B’ Only Mod. Rnd Robin $10 $200 w/32 Bar Box 8-Ball $35 incl g.f. $$$ 9-Ball Varies $1,000 9-Ball Varies $1,000 USB 9-Ball Series $35 $250 9-Ball $40 Call 9-Ball Varies $1,000 Geo “Ginky” San Souci 9-Ball Varies $4,000 8-Ball $30 $$$ 9-Ball Varies $2,000
TIME Noon Call 6PM Call 3PM 3PM Noon 1PM Call 11:30AM 1PM 11:30AM Call 11:30AM 1PM 11AM 3PM Noon Noon 6PM 7PM Call 11:30AM Call 1PM 11AM Call 11:30AM Call 3PM 11:30AM 6PM Noon 11:30AM 11:30AM 11AM 1PM 11:30AM 11:30AM 3PM 11:30AM
MOSCONI CUP POINT EVENTS
LEVEL 2 APRIL 6/10 – Don Coates Memorial – Raleigh, North Carolina Table: 9 ft - Players: 128 - Added: $8,000 - Grade: Two APRIL 14/17 –Super Billiard Expo – Oaks, PA Table: 9 ft - Players: 64 - Added: $10,000 - Grade: Three POINTS EVENT TBD – Chuck Markulis Memorial - Sacramento, CA Table: 9 ft - Players: 100 - Added: $15,000 - Grade: Two MAY 29/30 - Ginky Memorial – Steinway Billiards, New York Table: 9 ft - Players: 64 pros (plus 96 amateurs) - Added: $4,000 - Grade: Three
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March 2016
Stroke
LEVEL 3 MARCH 11/13 - Chinook Winds Open 8 Ball – Lincoln City, OR Table: 7 ft - Players: 96-128 - Added: $12,000 - Grade: Two MAY TBA - USBTC 8 Ball – Nevada Table: 7 ft - Players: 100 - 200 - Added: $5,000 TBC - Grade: Three MAY TBA - USBTC 9 Ball – Nevada Table: 7 ft - Players: 100 - 200 - Added: $5,000 TBC - Grade: Three May TBA - USBTC 10 Ball – Nevada Table: 7 ft - Players: 100 - 200 - Added: $5,000 TBC - Grade: Three
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