Designed & Engineered by
Victory after victory, unleash your game with precision. Every Valhalla Cue is designed, engineered and backed by the craftsmen at Viking Cue. Valhalla Cues offer a LIFETIME WARRANTY against manufacturing defects including warpage. Valhalla premium import cues are hands down the best value in billiards. Prices starting at $49.99 VA471
VA211
VA951
New 2017 Viking Catalog
VA603
18 New Valhalla Cues Wicked Tribal Designs New Paint Cues Real Woods Rich Colors
VA601
VA204
www.vikingcue.com
4
March 2017
Stroke
OnTheBreakNews.com
www.facebook.com/onthebreaknews
2017
STROKE
Pool Magazine
Who Are We?
We recognize the players achievements, accomplishments and championships!
We Promote Pool
© 2017 Stroke Pool Magazine
r e v o C e h T n O y: Ric
Photo b
otions
B Prom
ant - R ky Bry
No Excuses, No Apologies OnTheBreakNews.com
FEATURE ARTICLES
8 Tri-State Tour 9 Steinway 11 Sandcastle 18-23 Derby City Classic COLUMNISTS
12 Tom Simpson 15 Anthony Beeler 14 Bob Jewett 13 Stefano Pelinga
Your Subscription: 32 Home Delivery WEEKLY TOURNAMENTS 33 Eastern U.S. Weekly Tournaments 34 Eastern U.S. Tournaments OnTheBreakNews.com
PLACES PEOPLE PLAY
Amy’s Billiards Stuart, FL 6 Bison Billiards Williamsville, NY 6 Brown’s Billiards Raleigh, NC 24 Corner Pocket Billiards Martins Ferry, OH 16 Crooked Cue Billiards Clearwater, FL 7 Diamond 8 Latham, NY 17 Gotham City Billiards Brooklyn, NY 9 Gradys Lexington, SC 17 League Room Parkersburg, WV 9 Lucky 7 Billiards Hollywood, FL 10 Markley Billiards Norristown, PA 16 Michael’s Billiards Fairfield, OH 7 Q-Master Billiards Virginia Beach, VA 17 Sandcastle Billiards Edison, NJ 11 South Florida BCAPL Davie, FL 24 Steinway Billiards Astoria, NY 9 Union Station Billiards Portland, ME 10 Zingale’s Talahassee, FL 7
BILLIARD SUPPLIES
If you can’t find a copy of Stroke Pool Magazine, go online to: www.onthebreaknews.com www.facebook.com/onthebreaknews DEADLINE:
25th of each Month - CALL IF LATE
CONTACT US: ***NEW ADDRESS*** On The Break News P.O. Box 1566 Bozeman, MT 59771 Phone 406-285-3099
billiards@onthebreaknews.com www.OnTheBreakNews.com
www.facebook.com/onthebreaknews
Stroke
CueStix International Lafayette, CO 36 Delta Sport Int’l Canada 4 McDermott Menomonee Falls, WI 2 Valhalla Middleton, WI 3 Viking Cue Middleton, WI 35
INSTRUCTION/SERVICES
Anthony Beeler 15 Bob Jewett 14 Cue of the Month 31 OnTheBreakNews.com 31 Stefano Pelinga 13 Subscription 32 Tom Simpson 12 Stroke is a monthly publication, dedicated to the advancement of the sport of pool. The opinions expressed are those of the author or advertiser and do not necessarily reflect the views of On The Break News or its staff. We reserve the right to edit or reject any material submitted for publication. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may Publisher be reproduced.
Don “Cheese” Akerlow
March
March 2017
5
BISON BILLIARDS 9-Ball Shootout The Bison Billiards 9-Ball Shootout, with $500.00 added and a triple elimination format, drew 32 players competing for $3790 in prize money including some of the best shooters from Buffalo, Rochester, and Canada.
Bella Bauer Benefit
RESULTS 9-BALL SHOOTOUT 1st $525/$1400 Danny Kolacz 2nd $250/$650 Dave Grau 3rd $150/$300 Jeff Purcell 4th $125/$140 Adam Smith 5th $100 Eddy Williamsville, Rosas NY 6th $75 RandyFebruary Fawcett18, 2017 7th $50 Daniel DeVos Results from our 6 and under bar box 8 ball tournament 8th $25 Tom Dimatteo
1st 2nd 3rd 4th
Adam Bishop Amanda Eisensmith Tyler Burroughs Justin Miller
$120.00 + $400.00 $60.00 + $200.00 $40.00 + $75.00 $20.00 + $20.00
Held on February 4, 2017 at Bison Billiards in Williamsville, New York, our Bella Bauer Benefit Tournament drew 50 shooters competing for $4100.00 in cash payouts. What a great turnout for a great little girl. Special thanks to my wife Lynn, for not only cooking all the food, but for also working the benefit and to the Dave Bauer family who ran the entire basket auction and 50/50 drawing. Thanks also to Cheryl Wright, our resident basket organizer, who gathered, delivered, and set up dozens of baskets, Cheryl Reed, who before going out of town, donated and dropped off 3 baskets and Vicki Schara who spent over 22 hours making a beautiful angel painting that was a real labor of love. I know I’m probably leaving people out, because for events such as these to be successful, you need a lot of help. So thanks to everyone else who helped. God bless you all. RESULTS BELLA BAUER BENEFIT 1st $425 Eddy Rosas 2nd $425 Mark Hatch 3rd $175 Danny Kolacz 4th $125 Pedro Guerra 5/6 $90 Mark Creamer/Ron Kingsley 7/8 $50 Karl Kasprzak/Jeff Fessenden 9-12 $30 Santo Merlo, Ken Purdy, Nick Brucato and Rob Stanton
NON SMOKING
Bar Box 8-Ball
Added Money
1st Saturday of the Month
$35 entry includes green fee - Double Elimination - Race to 3 Doors open Noon - Calcutta 2pm - Starts 2:30pm
6
March 2017
Stroke
OnTheBreakNews.com
www.facebook.com/onthebreaknews
B ig A pple C hallenge Steinway Billiards in Astoria, New York hosted the Big Apple Challenge on February 4-5, 2017. The format was ABCD split chart, 9-Ball, Double Elimination, Race to 7, $60 entry with $1000 added and 100% payout. I would like to thank everyone that attended the big apple challenge. The two winners for the event were Rene and Earl (pictured above).
1861 W Tennessee St. Tallahassee, Florida
(727) 539-7665
22 - 9’ pool tables - HD TVs Darts - Liquor - Full Kitchen 10,000 Sq Feet Tournaments weekly and monthly OnTheBreakNews.com
11 - 9’ tables (3 - Diamonds) Darts 8 - TV’s
850 224-8644
Round Robin Tournaments 1st and 3rd Sunday of every month $5.00 8-Ball tournament every Wed. at 1:00pm
www.michaelsbilliards.com
www.facebook.com/onthebreaknews
Stroke
March 2017
7
T R I S T A T E
10-Ball February 19, 2017 Cue Bar Bayside, (Queens), NY 1st Dave Shlemperis $550 2nd Lionell Olivera II $320 3rd Luis Jimenez $210 4th Andrew Cicoria $130 5th Kevin Shin $75 Vjay Pate $75
DAVE SHLEMPERIS, LIONELL OLIVERA II
Steinway Billiards February 5, 2017 Astoria, Queens, NY 1 Elvis Rodriguez $680 2 Lidio Ramierez $400 3 Quin Chen $260 4 Tony Ignomirello $160 5 Henri Hernandez $95 Ryan Dayrit $95
ELVIS RODRIGUEZ
T O U R 8
PLUMMER WALKER, DAN PRAPORT
BASDEO SOOKHAI, DAVID LAGGAT
January 29, 2017 Clifton Billiards, Clifton, NJ. 1st Dan Praport 2nd Plummer Walker $280 3rd Rich Boschulte $180 4th Adrian Daniel $110 5th Dennis Quinn $65 Guy Triolo $65
March 2017
Stroke
OnTheBreakNews.com
9-Ball January 15, 2-17 Rockaway Billiards Rockaway, NJ. 1st 2nd
Basdeo Sookhai; David Laggat
www.facebook.com/onthebreaknews
Lukas Fracasso-Verner RESULTS 1st Lukas Fracasso-Verner
Wins at Steinway Billiards
2nd 3rd 4th 5/6 7/8 9-12
Atif Khan John Cullen Duc Lam Nick Limberatos, Kanami Chau Tom Hagan, Junior Singn Tim Fitzsimmons, Matt Harricharran, Kevin Shin, Matthias Gutzmann 13-16 Max Watanabe, Shawn Sookhai, Troy Deocharran, Abel Rosario 2nd Chance 1st Dave Callaghan 2nd Shawn Sookhai 3/4 Elvis Rodriguez, Jerry Almodovar 3rd Chance 1st Jud Parker 2nd Dwight Dixon
(l to r) John Cullen, Lukas Fracasso-Verner, Atif Khan
Stop # 2 on the Predator ProAm Tour was January 28-29, 2017 at Steinway Billiards, Astoria, New York. Predator Tour Director Tony Robles had to scour his tour archives to determine whether 15-year-old Lukas Fracasso-Verner had become the youngest competitor to ever win a stop on the tour. He was not. As Robles discovered, Fracasso-Verner was the second youngest competitor to win a stop on the tour; the youngest being Thomas Rice, who at the age of 14, won a Predator stop in September, 2013. FracassoVerner’s victory was made all that more dramatic by the teenager’s 13-match winning streak on the losers’ side of the bracket. The $1,000-added event drew 80 entrants to Steinway Billiards, in Astoria (Queens), NY. With Fracasso-Verner already at work on the loss side (he’d lost his opening match in a double hill fight against Eugene Ok), his eventual finals’ opponent - Atif Khan - advanced to a winners’ side semifinal match against Nick Liberatos. John Cullen faced Kanami Chau in the other winners’ side semifinal. Cullen and Khan moved into the hot seat match, following Cullen’s 8-6 win over Chau and Khan’s 7-5 victory over Liberatos. Khan claimed the hot seat, double hill, over Cullen. On the loss side, Fracasso-Verner edged past the halfway mark in his
Steinway Cafe & Billiards 9-Ball Tournaments at 8pm Every Monday & Wednesday
13-match, loss-side odyssey and into the money rounds. He then got by Kevin Shin 7-3, and Junior Singh 7-1, to pick up Chau. Liberatos drew Duc Lam, who’d defeated Matthew Harricharan and Tom Hagan, both 7-4. Two double hill fights advanced Fracasso-Verner and Lam over Chau and Liberatos to the quarterfinals. Fracasso-Verner eliminated Lam 8-5 in those quarterfinals, and then finished Cullen’s weekend 7-3 in the semifinals. Khan and Fracasso-Verner were each looking for their first win on the Predator Tour, though Khan had two wins on the Tri-State Tour in his resume. Khan completed his unlikely, but strong loss-side run with a 9-6 win in the finals.
2nd Chance L-R: Elvis Rodriguez, Shawn Sookhai, Dave Callaghan, Jerry Almodovar
THURS: 9-Ball - 7PM Sat: 8-Ball - 7PM Last Sat: 8-Ball - Noon
717-714-1002
Take Lessons with Earl Strickland and other World Champions Hours: Monday-Sunday 11am-4am 3525 Steinway St. Astoria, NY 11102 (718) 472-2124
OnTheBreakNews.com
1739 St Mary’s Ave Parkersburg, WV
www.facebook.com/onthebreaknews
Stroke
93 Avenue U - Brooklyn, NY
March 2017
9
Union Station’s On February 11, 2017, the Valentine’s Day Tournament at Union Station Billiards in Portland, Maine was 20 teams strong. Thank you to everyone that came out for our Valentine’s Tournament, it was a great time!
y a D s e n i t n Va l e a m e n t To u r n
272 St John St - Portland, ME
19 Pool Tables (16 - 9’ & 3 coin op) Darts Foosball Ping Pong Arcade Games Pub Style Menu Daily Food Specials Full Bar
10
Results 1st Cody/Joanne 2nd Xavier/Lindsey 3rd Brent/Noreen 4th Kyle/Liz
---- All Day Every Day ---Bud & Bud Light 16 oz Draft - $2
March 2017
r: Hou 6pm y p p Ha 3 to ) - Fri le Mon pool/tab r h 5 ($
Every Friday Night 8-Ball at 8pm $8 buy-in - Race to 2
Stroke
7
Lucky Billiards
207-899-3693
4850 South State Road 7
www.lucky7billiards.com
Hollywood, FL 954-239-8254
Home of the Pink Table (pinkie)
14 Pool Tables - 1 Snooker Table - Weekly Pool Tournaments APA - TAP - Player Leagues
Smoke Free Environment
OnTheBreakNews.com
Hours: Mon-Fri 3pm to 2am Sat-Sun Noon to 2am
www.facebook.com/onthebreaknews
Sandca Stle
Billiards
ness H Night Mad ay d n o th 0 M 3 s January om tonight’ ko, Manny & Bob finishers fr -R) Din Our top 3 ngrats!!! (L o C t! en m Tourna
igh Speed
February 13th Monday Night Madness top 3 finishers: Who will take it down tonight? L-R 2nd Julie Ha, 1st Kevin Freeman, 3rd Manny Garcia
February 13th Monday Night Madness top finishers: 1st Dinko 2nd Muaz 3rd Troy 4th Tony
OnTheBreakNews.com
www.facebook.com/onthebreaknews
Stroke
March 2017
11
SEE WHAT YOU’RE LOOKING AT by Tom Simpson © November 2004 – All Rights Reserved – PoolClinics.com
Master Instructor, National Billiard Academy, “Beat People With a Stick!”
Tom Simpson
Tom Simpson
12
March 2017
As we become better players, our habits deepen. We rely on those habits to help us do the same sequences of little things throughout our pre-shot and shooting routines, time after time. Once our physical habits are solidly in place, we can put our focus on strategy and winning. Well, maybe for a while… Pros in every sport continuously return to their fundamentals. Many of our troubles seem to arise from the gradual decay of our fundamentals. Whatever our old habits were, they tend to return. We often make little adjustments to our form, our equipment, or our routines, and we forget to consider how each change relates to the bigger picture of what we’re trying to accomplish. Further, we don’t always remember to notice whether the changes we made are actually helping. This came home to me recently when I made an equipment change and failed to notice the effects. I changed my contact lenses, optimizing them a bit more for distance, since I was hitting golf balls further than I could see (unfortunately, not because I’m a great golfer). Five or six weeks went by, and my pool game was way off. I hadn’t had a slump this long in many years. Then one day, I was hitting a pool shot and realized I was not seeing the balls clearly. I had been seeing them poorly ever since I changed the contacts, but I just hadn’t consciously noticed. I went back and got contacts optimized for pool distances, and immediately got my game back. The moral of the story is that we really do have to check ourselves out, especially when we’re in a slump. Something has changed somewhere, and change is not automatically for the better. In my case, and I suspect, for many of us, we’re often not seeing what we’re looking at. We’re running on habit and not bothering to really focus hard on what we’re doing. Let’s talk about how we use our vision in pool. We rely on our eyesight to judge distances, spatial
Stroke
OnTheBreakNews.com
relationships, gaps, angles, and alignments. For most of these tasks, we have to make an effort. For example, to determine how close to straight-in a shot is, we have to put our body on the line through the balls, move our head side to side a little to get a 3D perspective, and perhaps bend down to get closer to the table surface. It takes more than a glance. If we get lazy and line up without making the necessary and appropriate effort, we may have time to consider the error of our ways while we’re in the chair hoping to get back to the table. Think about when you’re in the zone, playing your best. How are you seeing? What are you seeing? I’ll bet you’re using your eyes quite well, making the effort, bothering to focus, clearly and consciously seeing what you’re seeing. The difference is that when you’re in the zone, it doesn’t seem like effort. You’re totally focused and you simply do the right things. You’re fully in the moment, seeing, feeling, doing. On the other hand, I’m wagering that most of the time, most of us are not even fully focusing our eyes when we’re down on a shot. As we get older, it can take a couple of seconds to fully focus on the cueball and a couple more seconds to then bring the object ball into full focus. Even worse, I believe a good percentage of players “black out” during their hit stroke. They aren’t focused on the vital physical aspects of their game. Instead, they’re focused internally, on distractions such as fear of missing, selfconsciousness, trying to look good, and so on. What are you actually seeing during the hit moment? What are you aware of? Take some shots and see what you’re seeing. To be focused enough to consciously see during the hit, you have to be focused before the hit. And that’s what we’re really after. Getting out of whack might be a gradual process, but recovering from it doesn’t have to be. Put forth more effort. Focus. Give yourself a better chance. Lazy loses.
www.facebook.com/onthebreaknews
ONE MORE DELAYED DRAW SHOT 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.
A
B
I have already covered in the past the “delayed draw shot”, which basically consists in a jump-draw using a “ramp ball”. Here is another example of this useful technique. Let’s start by placing the 1-ball (the yellow one on my diagram) frozen to the long rail at the 2nd diamond. Place another ball (the green one in the diagram) frozen to the 1-ball and even to it so that their line of centers is perpendicular to the long rail. Place an “obstacle ball”, in this case the red ball, right on the foot spot and the object ball (the blue one) by C-pocket. At last, place the cue ball frozen to the long rail at about half diamond from the 1-ball. Jack up your cue by about 20° and use either an open or a close bridge partly propped on the rail. Aim 2/3 of the 1-ball to the left and shoot with a 3-3.5 speed stroke. Most importantly, use a good and smooth follow-through and hit the cue ball at 5:30 (if you’d rather use the mirror image of the same shot, obviously, you’ll need to hit the CB at 6:30) using 2.5 tips of English. In this kind of shots, it is an absolute must to be able to hit the CB exactly where we need to, as shown in the diagram. However, it is indeed very easy to miscue because the more we jack up the butt of our cue, the more we tend to drop the tip when we deliver the final stroke. Again, we don’t need to elevate our cue by much as the CB is helped by the “ramp ball” (the 1-Ball) to jump higher and clear the green obstacle ball. If we succeed in applying F a good amount of draw, by the time the CB will land on the table, it will bounce a couple of times and then the spin will start grabbing, drawing it around the red ball and towards the blue object ball to then pocket it into C-pocket. For an easier version of this shot, in case you get too frustrated, move the obstacle red ball one diamond to the right (where I place the dotted pink ball) and keep in mind that the trendy stiff/no-deflection shafts don’t help in this kind of shots. E
C OnTheBreakNews.com
www.facebook.com/onthebreaknews
D Stroke
March 2017
13
San Francisco Billiard Academy www.sfbilliards.com
PBIA certified instruction is available for all levels from beginners to instructor training.
PROGRESSIVE FOLLOW DRILLS
Bob Jewett
Bob Jewett
14
March 2017
One of the best ways to practice your skills is 3 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 by a general method I call Progressive Practice. The idea is to have a general kind of shot -- we’re going to work on follow shots as examples -- and to make P 5 the shot harder if you make the current attempt and 3 easier if you miss it. This ensures that the shots you are working on are at the edge of your comfort zone. Area Area 1 The PP method also allows you to easily keep track 1+2 of your progress. 4,6 1 In the left shot in the diagram is the first level of follow shot. The goal is to make the ball in pocket P and to follow forward to leave the cue ball within a diamond of the end cushion (Area 1). If you do 1 2 3,7 that successfully, move the object ball farther back and try again but if you miss the shot or the cue ball placement, move the object ball closer to the pocket. The cue ball should be exactly a diamond from the object ball for all shots. You are free to adjust the 3 2 cue ball left-right as you choose. You should mark your present object ball position with a coin on the rail and be sure to move it after every shot to remember your current 1 difficulty level. The coin will automatically move to 4 where you are about 50% on the shot. Do the drill for 10 or 15 shots and note where the coin is when you move it after the last shot.That position is your score for the drill for that session. 4 5 I recommend moving the coin half a diamond at a time so that you gradually get to shoot harder shots. You may want to move it a whole diamond until your first miss if you start from position 1. 5 6 That’s the first-level follow drill, suitable for beginners and maybe intermediate players if they need a confidence builder. The second level is similar but the cue ball must end up in Area 2 which is just a diamond square. For this level you 7 will have to be a lot more careful about the cue ball placement. The shot needs to be nearly straight but not perfectly straight as scratches are not allowed. The level 3 drill uses the same basic placement, but with a much smaller target. There are two ways REJ to play it. The first is that you have to scratch in pocket P following the object ball in. This is the best way to work on seeing straight shots as straight and towards you from the level 4 numbers. The double numbers hitting right through the center of the cue ball. The near the far rail mean that the cue ball must bounce off the second way is more practical in game play. The cue ball has end cushion to get to the higher number. Consider a shot that to contact the 3 ball on the cushion after making the object leaves the cue ball within half a diamond of the goal as OK. ball. This lets you learn the connection between cut angle and If you would like to see these drills demonstrated along follow angle. For a little variation, move the 3 ball to other with 170 other drills for all levels of play, check out the DVD locations on the end rail. set The Video Encyclopedia of Pool Practice that I made with For levels 4 and 5, the somewhat different setup is shown Dr. Dave Alciatore. It is available from his web site at http:// on the right with the 4 ball and 5 ball in fixed locations. dr-dave-billiards.com/vepp/. That site has a free video clip that The goal is to send the cue ball to successively farther covers the five draw drills that correspond to the five follow points as shown by the numbers on the cushion. For drills above level 5 you have to use a rail bridge. The numbers for level 5 are not shown but are one diamond
Stroke
OnTheBreakNews.com
www.facebook.com/onthebreaknews
IMPROVE YOUR “POOL” PLAYING ABILITY
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.
By now, you are probably wondering what a boy in a swimming pool has to do with learning how to play pool. Have you ever heard the story about the little boy that wanted to learn how to swim? His parents took him to the local swimming pool and enrolled him with an instructor. After a few weeks, he had learned the basics of swimming and could perform a few strokes. His parents cheered and clapped, but the boy thought that he could still do better.
improve his or her game. In K-12 education this process could be linked or referred to as response to intervention (RTI). As in K-12 education, the first thing you need to do is assess yourself. Initially, I want you to take a test (diagram your next 25 misses during match play) that will show you where some of your weakness areas lie. Not only do I want you to diagram the shot, but I also want you to diagram the overall layout of balls (what you are trying to get position on next).
So he kept going to swimming classes and after a few more weeks, he was able to swim across the pool. His parents cheered and clapped, but the boy thought that he could still do better. After a few more months, he was able to complete a few laps of the pool. His parents cheered and clapped, but the boy thought that he could still do better. He started to enter swimming competitions and eventually won his first race. His parents cheered and clapped, but the boy thought that he could still do better. Next, he entered an ocean race and won it in his first attempt. His parents cheered and clapped, but the boy thought that he could still do better. So, he stood on the beach and looked out over the ocean, out to the horizon beyond. He wondered what the limits were on what he could achieve and whether he had reached his limitations yet. In a sense, pool players are a lot like that little boy. As an instructor, I embrace the philosophy of Continuous Improvement (CI). Unlike other practice models, Continuous Improvement is not a one-time process. It is a powerful way of improving that focuses on the continual efforts made by a player to
OnTheBreakNews.com
www.facebook.com/onthebreaknews
The shots I am referring to should be makeable at least a moderate percentage of the time. I don’t want you to spend time diagraming impossible shots. Look for patterns as to why you miss makeable shots and then practice each shot that you diagramed exactly 100 times. As you practice each shot, I want you to score yourself using the following scoring guide: Give yourself a “0” if you miss the shot. Give yourself a “1” if you pocket the ball but do not get position on your next shot. Give yourself a “2” if you pocket the ball and the cue ball is on the correct line for position but either “goes long” or “falls short” of the desirable position zone. Then give yourself a “3” if you pocket the ball and your cue ball falls into the correct position zone. Once you have completed the shot 100 times divide your total score by 3 and this will give you an overall success percentage for that particular shot. You can use this success percentage to monitor your improvement over time. A good player will go through this cycle several times, building on the success of each previous cycle. I recommend setting both short and long-term goals. Each is an essential part of the improvement process. If you initially scored a “55” your short-term goal might be to improve to 65 by the end of the month. Likewise, your long-term goal might be to be successful 95 percent of the time within 12 months. Always write your goals down. This makes you more accountable. Down deep, we’re all like that little boy who learned how to swim. We all have some basic skills, but let’s not stop there. Let’s go from basic skills to competent, from competent to good, from good to great, from great to expert, and from expert to world-class. Sometimes it is important to look out to the horizon, dream big dreams and find a way to make them into a reality.
Stroke
March 2017
15
Congratulations to the 8-Ball Doubles teams that won the trip to Vegas to play in the Nationals. Robert Kinney & Dean Hudson and Michelle Holbrook & Chris Loye at Gate City Billiards in Greensboro, NC earlier this month.
Gate City Billiards Congratulates 56731 Colerain Pike Martins Ferry, Oh 43935 740-738-0357 www.bhindthe8ball.com
WEEKLY TOURNAMENTS
Tues: Straight 8-Ball $8 entry Fri: Hcp 8-Ball $15 entry Sat: Chip Tourney $15 entry
16
December 2016
Stroke
OnTheBreakNews.com
www.facebook.com/onthebreaknews
B V m Tea
1st Annual
The Commonwealth Cup was held at Q-Masters in Virginia Beach, VA on February 4-5, 2017. Big Congratulations to Team VB for winning the first annual Commonwealth Cup!!! It came down to a very exciting hill hill final between Chris Futrell and Danny Mastermaker. Great play by both teams. Can’t wait till next year!!! We have the CUP! Congratulations to the players, sponsors, promoters and fans for all the support of this amazing game! See you next year in Virginia Beach where we will host the event!
Commonwealth Cup
GRADY’S BILLIARDS
Hours: Mon-Thur: 2pm-2am / Fri-Sat: 1pm-2am / Sun: 6pm-2am
FULL BAR - FOOD WEEKLY POOL TOURNAMENTS LEAGUES - CUE REPAIR 850C South Lake Dr - Lexington, SC 803-957-7665
OnTheBreakNews.com
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
www.facebook.com/onthebreaknews
Stroke
Host of the U.S. Open 9-Ball Championships 25,000 square feet Full retail department Two lavishly stocked bars 70 pool tables covered with Simonis 860
Tournaments and Leagues Corporate functions 5612 Princess Anne Rd Private parties Virginia Beach, VA Smoking and non smoking areas Fun for the whole family (757) 499-8900 Q-Masters.com The largest billiards room in the country
March 2017
17
BANK POOL CHAMPION Derby City Classic Bank Pool Finals Friday, January 20, 2017 thru Monday, January 23 Article by: Phil Capelle on Facebook Photo by: Ricky Bryant - RB Promotions FINALS FRANCISCO BUSTAMANTE 3 – LARRY NEVEL 2 Congratulations to Francisco Bustamante! Larry Nevel held a 2 games to none lead over Francisco Bustamante in this race to 3 finals, and he lead 4 balls to none when 5 are needed to win the game. Nevel then expertly pocketed a thin cut cross over bank cross corner and, for a moment, it looked like he had won the Bank Pool Division. But the cue ball went diagonally down the table and scratched in the distant corner pocket. Still, he led the game 3-0. Then Bustamante, a previous winner of the Banks in 2013, went to work. He came back to win that game. Then he won again sending the match into double hill. In the deciding game Nevel took an early lead, 2-0, but Bustamante fought back, winning the game 5-3 with a relatively routine cross corner back. 1st $10,000 Bustamante, Francisco 2nd $4,000 Nevel, Larry 3rd $2,000 Kiamco, Warren 4th $2,000 Murphy, Shannon 5th $1,400 Hatch, Dennis 6th $1,400 Runnels, Ike 7th $1,400 Thorpe, Billie 8th $1,100 Bergman, Justin 9th $1,100 Chohan, Tony 10th $1,100 Melling, Chris 11th $850 Lunda, Evan 12th $850 Rogers, Glenn 13th $850 Orcullo, Dennis 14th $850 Heath, Tim 15th $600 Brown, Jason 16th $600 Brumback, John 17th $600 DeRuyter, Tim 18th $600 Gabriel, John 19th $600 Gorst, Fedor 20th $600 Hall, Justin 21st $600 Kirby, Samuel 22nd $600 VanBoening, Shane 23rd $400 Calderon, Yerry 24th $400 Alli, Bobby 25th $400 Coats, Mark 26th $400 Daulton, Shannon 27th $400 DeMarco, Louis 28th $400 DeMet, Jonathan 29th $400 Frost, Scott 30th $400 Leek, Mike 31st $400 McIntire, Caleb 32nd $400 Miller, Jason 33rd $400 Pinegar, Johnathan 34th $400 Richeson, Richie 35th $400 Smith, Danny
o c s i c n a Fr e t n
18
a m a t s u B March 2017
Stroke
OnTheBreakNews.com
www.facebook.com/onthebreaknews
ONE POCKET CHAMPION 2017 Derby City Classic 1-Pocket Congratulations to Billy Thorpe! Article by: Phil Capelle on Facebook Photo by: Ricky Bryant - RB Promotions
Billy Thorpe, at the very young age of 20 (for a 1-Pocket player), captured first prize, beating Alex Pagulayan, last year’s all around champion, in the finals. In the process he also took the lead in the race to win that crown in this year’s edition. Thorpe announced his pending arrival at the elite level of the pro game with a win over Shane Van Boening at the Great Dismal Swamp 9-Ball Classic three months ago. So, just when it appeared that all future stars would be born abroad, we Americans may now have a player to root for who can compete with the best on the world stage - and who might be a welcome addition to the USA’s Mosconi Cup team. 1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6th 7th 8th 9th 10th 11th 12th 13th 14th 15th 16th 17th 18th 19th 20th 21st 22nd 23rd 24th 25th 26th 27th 28th 29th 30th 31st 32nd 33rd 34th 35th
$12,000 Thorpe, Billie $6,000 Pagulayan, Alex $4,150 Orcullo, Dennis $3,000 Woodward, Skyler $2,000 Jones, Jeremy $2,000 McMinn, Shane $2,000 Roberts, Josh $1,375 Corteza, LeeVann $1,375 Daulton, Shannon $1,375 Reyes, Efren $850 Biado, Carlo $850 Deuel, Corey $850 Gabriel, John $850 Hall, Justin $850 Hatch, Dennis $850 Schmidt, John $500 Adkins, Dee $500 Bergman, Justin $500 Brown, Jason $500 Jordan, Jeff $500 Meglino, Anthony $500 Olinger, Alex $500 Compton, Chipper $350 Gorst, Fedor $350 Appleton, Darren $350 Bustamante, Francisco $350 Chohan, Tony $350 DeMarco, Louis $350 Frost, Scott $350 Gomez, Roberto $350 Joyner, Cliff $350 Kiamco, Warren $350 Melrose, Robert $350 Rentz, Rod $350 Shuff, Brandon
OnTheBreakNews.com
www.facebook.com/onthebreaknews
y l l i B
e p r o Th Stroke
March 2017
19
9-BALL CHAMPION DERBY CITY CLASSIC – 9-BALL Congratulations to Dennis Orcullo!! Article by: Phil Capelle on Facebook Photo by: Ricky Bryant - RB Promotions Dennis Orcullo finished off a 9 day long week of world class pool action by winning the 9-Ball Division over Shane Van Boening and, in the process, capturing the super prestigious Master of the Table award. He earned it with his win in the 9-Ball, a 3rd in the 1-Pocket, and an 11th place finish in Bank Pool. Orcullo’s final match with Van Boening began inauspiciously when he hung a super easy combo on the 9. They split the next 2 games. Then, in game 4, the roof caved in for SVB. It started when he broke dry and Orcullo ran out. In game 5 Van Boening surprisingly missed an easy 8-ball and Orcullo won again. Van Boening missed again and Orcullo ran out again to take a 4-2 lead. It looked like Van Boening would surely run out game 7, but the ball skidded, he missed, and he lost again. In the following game Orcullo made a tough 2-9 combo and then broke and ran out to take a commanding lead of 7-2. In game 10 Van Boening missed twice, then left a shot on a kick and Orcullo ran out to reach the hill. In game 11 Orcullo missed position, played a poor safe, and Van Boening made the 9 for his third and last win. In the finale, Van Boening played a bad safe and Orcullo ran out.
1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6th 7th 8th 9th 10th 11th 12th 13th 14th 15th 16th 17th 18th 19th 20th 21st 22nd 23rd 24th 25th 26th 27th 28th 29th 30th 31st 32nd 33rd 34th 35th 36th 37th 38th
$16,000 Orcullo, Dennis $8,000 VanBoening, Shane $5,650 Mastica, Ramon $3,500 Mills, Donny $3,500 Gorst, Fedor $3,500 Reyes, Efren $1,500 Chinakhov, Ruslan $1,500 Giallourakis, Damianos $1,500 Hall, Justin $1,500 Rojas, Enrique $900 Appleton, Darren $900 Biado, Carlo $900 Hatch, Dennis $900 Takano, Tomoo $900 Thorpe, Billie $900 Wilkie, Shaun $600 Kazakis, Alexandros $600 Lo Li-Wen $600 Shaw, Jayson $600 Daigle, Martin $600 Kaci, Eklent $600 Melling, Chris $400 Archer, Johnny $400 Boyes, Karl $400 Chua, Johann $400 Deuel, Corey $400 Hohmann, Thorsten $400 Immonen, Mika $400 Jacobs, Neal $400 Oneal, Joshua $400 Szuter, Chris $400 Klatt, Jason $400 Miller, Jason $400 Murphy, Shannon $400 Seaman, Jeremy $400 Lewis, Josh $400 Hamada, Shosuke $400 Roberts, Josh
s i n n e D
20
March 2017
Stroke
o l l o c r O
OnTheBreakNews.com
www.facebook.com/onthebreaknews
BIGFOOT 10-BALL CHALLENGE DIAMOND “Big Foot” 10-Ball Challenge Derby City Classic Friday, January 20, 2017 thru Monday, January 23 Article by: Phil Capelle on Facebook Photo by: Ricky Bryant - RB Promotions FINALS JAYSON SHAW 11 - ALEX KAZAKIS 7 Congratulations to Jayson Shaw! After 8 games Greece’s Alex Kazakis had broken out to a 5-3 lead after winning 4 straight games. But Shaw stormed into the lead with a 4 game streak of his own to move ahead, 7-5. Kazakis won games 13 and 14 following a Shaw miss in each game. So, at this point, it looked like we were possibly heading for a double hill thriller. Wrong. In game 15 the players traded several kicks and safeties before Shaw finally got a shot and ran out. Then his break and run game shifted into high gear as he kept Kazakis in his seat while running 3 and out to capture the title, 11-7. He shot another .900, this time a .911 to be precise, while Kazakis shot a very respectable .838 – good, but not nearly good enough. With his win, Shaw joins Shane Van Boening as the only two time winners of this event since it shifted to a 10 foot table. 1st 2nd 3rd 4th
$16,000 Shaw, Jayson $8,000 Kazakis, Alex $4,000 Cortezza, LeeVan $4,000 Biado, Carlo
OnTheBreakNews.com
www.facebook.com/onthebreaknews
n o s Jay
w a Sh Stroke
March 2017
21
BANKS RING GAME
SHANNON DAULTON Photo by: Ricky Bryant - RB Promotions
BANK MINI
1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6th 7th 8th 9th 10th 11th 12th 13th 14th 15th 16th
22
$800 $400 $250 $250 $125 $125 $125 $125 $50 $50 $50 $50 $50 $50 $50 $50
Nicolas, Kevin DeMarco, Louis Davis Jr, James Diaz, Tim Ledoux, Cyriel Krenzel, Dave Norton, Gary Vidal, Marc Frost, Robert Jones, Jeremy Jacobs, Neal Robinson, Richard Hart, Rob Reichle, Gerald Miller, Billie Buckley, Benji
March 2017
Stroke
1st 2nd
SKY WOODWARD
$8,000 Daulton, Shannon $4,000 Woodward, Skyler
AMERICAN ROTATION
1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6th
$2,500 McDaniel, Chris $1,500 Blackburn, James $800 McLaughlin, Jody $800 Hanson, Randy $400 Hopfer, Paul $400 Richardson, Justin
ONE POCKET MINI
1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6th 7th 8th
$800 $400 $200 $200 $50 $50 $50 $50
Hickman, Steve Dudanets, Maksim Vidal, Marc Davis Jr, James Mougey, Tony Louie, Dan Jones, Jeremy Denny, Franky
OnTheBreakNews.com
9 BALL MINI 1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5th 6th 7th 8th 9th 10th 11th 12th 13th 14th 15th 16th
$800 $400 $250 $250 $125 $125 $125 $125 $50 $50 $50 $50 $50 $50 $50 $50
Chinakhov, Ruslan Bautista, Ruben Dudanets, Maksim Davis Jr, James DeMarco, Louis Majors, Tim Gentile, Chris Adkins, Dee Roberts, Eric Guzman, Juan Vichiensaen, Neal Griess, Patrick Kehler, Darren Buckley, Benji Vidal, Marc Moody, Rocky
www.facebook.com/onthebreaknews
2017 George Fels Memorial Straight Pool Challenge Congratulations to Chris Melling! Article by: Phil Capelle on Facebook Chris Melling of England, who is not known for his straight pool, managed to lead all qualifiers for the single elimination event with a run of 225. He then beat Lo Li Wen and got a bye as Jayson Shaw did not have time to play to earn his spot in the finals. His opponent was Mika Immonen, who made the top 8 with a run of 146. He then beat Dennis Orcollo and got a bye because Darren Appleton also did not have time to play to earn his match with Melling. Immonen will be defending his title in the World Straight Pool later this year. Melling raced to a 57-12 lead before overcutting a break shot. Immonen took 1st $6,500 Melling, Chris advantage of the miss with a 57 ball run that 2nd $2,500 Immonen, Mika ended when with a miss of a tricky shot into 3rd $1,300 Shaw, Jayson the side. 4th $1,300 Appleton, Darren The two traded mistakes and missed 5th $900 Wen, Li-Wen opportunities before Melling missed while 6th $900 Archer, Johnny leading 114-80. Immonen ran to 90, but the 7th $900 Pagulayan, Alex cue ball went off the stack on a break shot and 8th $500 Orcullo, Dennnis made a beeline for the corner pocket. Melling, who was leading 114-89, ran 11 to win the match.
CHRIS MELLING
File Photo
STRAIGHT POOL CHALLENGE
MASTER OF THE TABLE 1st 2nd 3rd
$20,000 Orcullo, Dennnis $3,000 Thorpe, Billie $2,000 Bustamante, Francisco
(L TO R) BILLIE THORPE, DENNIS ORCULLO, FRANCISCO BUSTAMANTE OnTheBreakNews.com
www.facebook.com/onthebreaknews
Stroke
March 2017
23
Chop’s Memorial Pool Tournament (FRONT: L TO R) TYLER HESS, TOMMY MULDROW, ROGER JEFFCOAT
Congratulations to Tommy Muldrow for finishing 1st, Tyler Hess 2nd, and Roger Jeffcoat 3rd in the Chop’s Memorial Pool Tournament held at Grady’s Pool Room in Lexington, SC on February 12, 2017. $1405 ($685 from the tournament and Calcutta, $395 in donations from Eric Norton/Tommy Crossroads, James Bratcher/Time Out Bar&Grill and donations from players and $180 from a cue raffle) was raised in all
including $145 won by Troy Lytle in the 50/50 drawing that he generously donated to the family. Great shooting guys and thanks again to each and everyone who participated and donated to Chop’s Family. Thank you Crystal Lloyd for allowing us to use Grady’s Pool Room to hold this tournament. It was a great success and the family appreciates everything everyone has done for them.
SOUTH FLORIDA BCA POOL LEAGUE League Operator: Janis Sessions - 305-903-4029 - sesh51@hotmail.com BEYOND BILLIARDS K & K BILLIARDS 5705 S University Dr, 1090 NE 79th St. Davie, FL 33328 Miami, FL. 33138 (9 Ball - Monday Night) (9 Ball - Monday Night) (8 Ball - Thursday Night) In House Both In House
Come Join the FUN!
24
March 2017
Stroke
OnTheBreakNews.com
PREMIER BILLIARD CLUB GREAT DAILY SPECIALS
FREE POOL ALL DAY MONDAY: LADIES SUNDAY: SERVICE INDUSTRY
http://brownsbilliards.com 5500 Atlantic Springs Rd Raleigh, NC (919) 878-9092
www.facebook.com/onthebreaknews
left to right: Chi-Ming Lin (4th); Florian Kohler (3rd); Interpreter; Sebastian Giumelli (Champion); Interpreter; Lucasz Szywala (2nd)
The 2017 WPA World Artistic Pool Championship was held January 12 – 15 at the beautiful Bikini Square Convention Center in Xingcheng, China, overlooking the ocean. We had 27 players from all over the world, vying for 8 WPA World Artistic Pool Discipline Champion titles, 1 “overall” WPA World Artistic Pool Champion title, and much more. Luke Szywala from Krakow, Poland played Florian Kohler from France, in the semifinals winning 90-88. Sebastian Giumelli from Argentina came thru the preliminary rounds with the highest score at 270 points and moved into the playoff rounds, defeating Charlie Darling 4529 with both players getting off to a slow start. Sebastian continued his winning way defeating Wang Mengan 82-72 and Chi-Ming Lin 103-79, until finally claiming the overall “championship victory” in a close match in the finals with Luke Szywala 72-65. The individual Discipline WPA World Champions were: Florian Kohler with 4 titles: Trick and Fancy 40 /40 points, Special Arts 39/40 points, Jump 40/40 points, and Masse 38/40 points; Sebastian Giumelli with 2 titles: Follow
2017 WPA World Artistic Pool Champion
Sebastian Giumelli
39/40 points, Bank/Kick 38/40 points; Luke Szywala winning Stroke with 39/40 points; and Jason Lynch victorious in Draw with 39/40 points. Wang Mengnan was the recipient of both the Sportsmanship Award and the Rising Star Award. I would like to thank the sponsors that made this event possible: WPA, WPA Artistic Pool Division, Xingcheng Rural Commercial Bank, CBSA, WPPA, Star Billiard Tables, LEQI Billiard Cloth, CYCLOP Balls, Dr. Cue Promotions, plus the Chinese table judges and translators, the supporting staff, and all of the players involved. A “big” congratulations to Sebastian Giumelli for his outstanding performance and earning the prestigious 2017 WPA World Artistic Pool Championship Title! On behalf of the WPA APD, We would like to thank all of the players for their continued support and recognition of the 2017 WPA World Artistic Pool Championship as the only officially recognized championship for Artistic Pool under the WPA umbrella. We look forward to more championships in the near future. Mark Dimick, President WPA Artistic Pool Division
World Artistic Pool C
hampionship
OnTheBreakNews.com
www.facebook.com/onthebreaknews
Stroke
March 2017
25
STATE OF MAINE Congratulations Dave Hall State of Maine 8 Ball Champion Union Station Billiards Portland, ME Feb 18-19, 2017 1st 2nd 3rd 4th 5/6 7/8 9-12 13-16
Dave Hall Samoth Josh Rupard Ivo Petrov Guy Bouthot Cody Francis Jimmy Hayden Nick Conner Chad Mallone Dan Couture Rick B Gary Bryant Jim P Steve Reynolds Jeff Provencher Joey Meuse
$960 + $1,100 $590 + $700 $390 + $400 $285 + $300 $210 + $200 $150
Results of the 2nd chance tournament 1st. Kyle P. 2nd Tony A. 3rd Ben L. 4th Steve S. 5th Brian H. 6th Sam H. Great Job Everyone !!!
$110
Thank you to everyone that participated and all the fans!
26
March 2017
Stroke
OnTheBreakNews.com
www.facebook.com/onthebreaknews
Danny
BASAVICH
Wins Season Opener @ Sandcastle
Mezz Pro-Am Season Opener made its way to Sandcastle Billiards in Edison NJ. On Sunday January 15th. Strong players came out to play, the field included players like: Jerry Dunne, Danny “Kid Delicious” Basavich, Eddie Abraham, Scott Evans, Tony Viesti and Justiin Toye to name a few. I like to Thank Ed Liddawi and his wonderful staff for hosting the event for hosting the event. Leading the top half of the bracket was Richard Ng with wins over Mike Aldendefer 7-2, Tyler Moffett 7-2 and Eddie Abraham 7-6, Leading the bottom half of the bracket was Danny Basavich with wins over Adam Kosmin 7-4, Jerry Dunne 7-6, and Paul S. Playing for the hot seat was Danny Basavich Vs Richard Ng This was a great match that had Danny Dasavich pulling away late to win 7-5 and sending Richard Ng to the on lost side. It was Jerry Dunne working his way through the one lost side with wins over Kevin Early 7-4, Scott Evans 7-4, Eddie Abraham 7-4 Paul S 7-3 and Richard Ng 7-4 to get to the finals. In the finals was Basavich Vs Dunne, this is a double elimination event first set race to 7 with the second a one
OnTheBreakNews.com
game sudden death both players decided to be co-Champions. Congratulations to Jerry Dunne and Danny “Kid Delicious” Basavich. I would like to thank all the players that came out to play and all our sponsors. Title Sponsor: Mezz Cues Miki Platinum Sponsors: Mezz USA, Zan Tips, Turtle Rack Gold Sponsor: Andy Billiard Cloth, Jab Cues & Things, Castillo Leather Goods, Jacoby Custom Cues, Bludworth Ball Cleaner, Tony Viesti Custom Cases & Custom Cue Dealer Silver Sponsor: Mike Ricciardella RE/ MAX, Billiard Life, Kamui Allen Hopkins Super Billiards Expo 1st $425 Danny “Kid Delicious” Basavich 1st $425 Jerry Dunne 3rd $190 Richard Ng 4th $100 Paul S Pictured above: (l to r) Richard Ng, Jerry Dunne, Danny “Kid Delicious” Basavich
www.facebook.com/onthebreaknews
Stroke
March 2017
27
A lcaide is SPAIN’S DAVID ALCAIDE is the 2017 World Pool Masters champion as he beat Jayson Shaw in a thrilling final that went down to the final rack. The Malaga man, who now lives near Madrid, had beaten a slew of star names en route to ultimate victory – Ralf Souquet, Shane Van Boening, Albin Ouschan and finally Jayson Shaw.
Alcaide was so overcome with emotion at the end that he needed to leave the arena and compose himself before the trophy presentation by The Hon Steven Linares, the Gibraltarian Minister of Sport. The gutsy Spaniard picked up a $20,000 payday and more importantly joins a list all-time greats of the game who have held aloft this coveted trophy. The match itself was a thriller from start to finish. “This trophy is for my children,” said Alcaide. “Thank you to Matchroom for the invitation to the tournament and thank you to all of my fans. I hope to play here next year and defend the title.” Shaw had been gifted a free pass in Sunday afternoon’s quarter final when Alex Pagulayan missed the 9 ball with the score at hill-hill, and he took advantage to cruise past Chang Jung Lin in the semifinal. Alcaide overcame a shaky start against Albin Ouschan in his last four match to dominate the table and run out an 8-6 winner. As the final match unravelled, they shared the opening four racks before Shaw moved into a 4-2 lead in the race to eight encounter. Alcaide took the next and despite some nervous moments tied the match up in the eighth game. Shaw though missed the brown 7 down the rail to give his opponent a great chance to clear which he did to take the lead for the first time at 5-4. The Spaniard came up with a dry break in the next and Shaw seized the chance to run out for 5-5. Shaw took the next running out, but Alcaide got back to the table in the twelfth game and made a great run out to bring a roar from his bank of fans. The 8 and the 9 were stuck together but his clever positional play allowed him to get behind the 8 ball and push it into the centre pocket. Alcaide made two balls on the break in the next but
28
March 2017
Stroke
OnTheBreakNews.com
www.facebook.com/onthebreaknews
the M aster! missed the 2 ball. With the balls out in the open, Shaw ran the table to regain the lead at 7-6. With chances to close the match out, Shaw made two misses and each time the cue ball rolled safe.
The second time, Alcaide, with little option chose to make a very short range jump shot and his fans erupted as the 6 ball skidded into the middle pocket. He closed out the rack to make it hill-hill and with the break in his favour it was to win. A great break shot saw balls drop and with the table open, Alcaide composed himself for what must have been the most difficult run out of his lengthy career, and he made it to become the 16th different player in the 24-year history of the Masters to etch his name on the trophy. Alcaide said, “I didn’t play my best in the final, I missed two or three easy balls but there is a lot of pressure and I managed to get a bit of luck. I beat the best two players in the World, Shane and Jayson. The last 6 ball, the jump shot, that is my best shot. It was unbelievable; I don’t know how I made it.” For Shaw it was a disappointing ending; “I had two chances, I blew it. I didn’t deserve to win it after having two chances. I watched all his matches this week and he played well. He deserved to win. “I hadn’t played for a couple of weeks coming here. For the first couple of matches I was just trying to get in stroke but as the tournament went on I got better. I had chances but didn’t take them at the end – I was a little bit pumped, but that is the way it goes.” Earlier, Alcaide had overcome Albin Ouschan in a match that flowed two ways. First Ouschan won three in a row before Alcaide kept him rooted in his chair for six racks and he went onto win by two. Shaw had an easier run as he beat Chang Jung Lin at a canter. 8-3 was the final score. Taking place in Gibraltar, the Masters sees 16 top international players competing in the shadow of the Rock of Gibraltar to determine the destination of the $20,000 top prize. The whole event is broadcast live on Sky Sports in the UK & Ireland and on networks around the world. The Masters carries an $80,000 prize fund, and the event is broadcast live for 20 hours in total.
OnTheBreakNews.com
www.facebook.com/onthebreaknews
Stroke
March 2017
29
le
e r p i s m C e l l a h i m S s e v Tit aD (l to r) Eugene Ok, Elvis Rodriguez, Dave Shlemperis
The last time we reported on Dave Shlemperis’ appearance in the winners’ circle of a tour event (in June 2016), we noted that he’d had something of a ‘dry’ year, which, to the point of the report on a Predator Tour stop, had failed to include a win. He only cashed twice in 2016; winning once and finishing (a month later) in a tie for 7th place, both on the Predator Tour. Well, he’s back, and in a February 11-12 appearance on the Predator Tour, he won seven on the loss side and downed hot seat occupant, Elvis Rodriguez in the finals. The $1,000-added event drew 54 entrants to the Cue Bar in Bayside (Queen), NY. Shlemperis was sent to the loss side, in a double hill battle, by Rhio “Annie” Flores, who advanced to a winners’ side semifinal against Rodriguez, who was the winner, coming from the loss side, on the previous week’s (Feb. 5) stop on the Tri-State Tour. Eugene Ok, in the meantime, squared off against KC Clayton. Rodriguez downed Flores
30
March 2017
Stroke
7-4, and in the hot seat match, faced Ok, who’d sent Clayton to the loss side 7-3. Rodriguez claimed the hot seat and his last match win of the weekend with an 8-6 victory over Ok. On the loss side, Shlemperis was four matches into his sevenmatch, loss-side winning streak, having downed, most recently, Tim Fitzsimmons 7-5, and Tom Hagan, double hill, to earn himself a rematch against Flores. Clayton drew Paul Lyons, who’d defeated Amy Yu 7-4 and Darrin Schmidt 7-2 to reach him. In their second double hill fight of the event, Shlemperis downed Flores. He was met, in the quarterfinals, by Lyons, who’d eliminated Clayton 7-3. Shlemperis then downed Lyons 7-2, before locking up in another double hill match against Ok in the semifinals. Shlemperis advanced to the finals, where he defeated Rodriguez 9-4 to claim the event title.
OnTheBreakNews.com
www.facebook.com/onthebreaknews
News
PRESS RELEASE
MIDDLETON, WI (March 1, 2017) –Viking Cue Manufacturing, LLC is a World leading designer, developer and manufacturer of authentic, AmericanMade billiard cues and performance shafts. Viking is proud to announce the introduction of the new PowerBuys Cue of the Month Giveaway for the month of March. As we began in February 2017, the artisans at Viking Cue will be taking one of our legendary designs and transforming it into a new and exciting NEW! custom cue, each and every month. By exploring our vast collection of PCustOWERBUYS om Viking MARCH C-A37 rich custom stains, paints, wraps, inlay and ring materials, exotic woods, Cues with out the Cu 6 stom Cu e Prices. C -A 3 7 6 Ma performance shafts and tip options, our designers will create a truly ViKORE A rch Viking Custom merican custom, limited edition cue without the additional customization charges Per forma Cue with nce Shaft you would normally expect to pay for when creating a custom cue. Every month, Viking Cue will be giving away the PowerBuys Cue of the Month to one very lucky individual. For the month of March, we took the very popular A376 and customized it to make the C-A376. The C-A376 features a custom white pearl sleeve, 24 custom Green and White Premium Pearl Inlays, custom Green and White Premium Suggeste d MSR Customiz P $495 Pearl and Black IMA Rings, Emerald Green stain, Black/Green ati March S on Fee $125 Double Pressed 100% Irish Linen Wrap and Black Butt Cap. It also ale Price $370 comes standard with the Viking low-deflection ViKORE American Viking Powe rbuys Cue of the Mo nth Performance shaft with Everest Tip as well as the Viking Limited Lifetime Warranty including warpage. To enter the drawing, please visit https://www.vikingcue.com/ cue-of-the-month-giveaway/. Enter as many times as you wish and we will randomly choose the winner of the C-A376 at the end of the month. The Headquarters of Viking Cue is located in Middleton, WI and distributes internationally under the brands of Viking, ViKORE, eXact Shot, eXact Shot2, VCrush, VPro, VSpin, Crush, Punch and Valhalla. For more information, please contact Viking Cue at sales@vikingcue.com or call 1-800-397-0122. To find a Viking Dealer near you, visit our website at www.vikingcue.com. Custom Viking
Read Us in Print
Over 30,000 Readers each month
We Got You Covered!
Read Us Online
www.onthebreaknews.com 8 Years of Archived Issues OnTheBreakNews.com
www.facebook.com/onthebreaknews
Cues wit hout the Custom Prices.
FOLLOW US
www.twitter.com/onthebreaknews Over 6,000 Followers
We Got You Covered!
LIKE US
www.facebook.com/onthebreaknews Over 10,000 Likes Stroke
March 2017
31
Subscribe Today!
12 Issues of Stroke - 1 year y for $30 l n
O
Order all 3 Pool Magazines - 1 year 95 y l for $54. On
Order online at: http://www.onthebreaknews.com/Subscription.htm - Offer subject to change without notice 12 Issues of Stroke Pool Magazine for ONLY $30. All 3 Magazines for $54.95 Send Check or Money Order for $30 or $54.95 (U.S. Delivery Only) On The Break News - P O Box 1566 - Bozeman, MT 59771 Name Address City State Zip Or call 406.285.3099 to order by phone --- credit cards only
32
March 2017
Stroke
OnTheBreakNews.com
www.facebook.com/onthebreaknews
WEEKLY TOURNAMENTS
If you have any changes to your weekly pool tournaments EMAIL: billiards@OnTheBreakNews.com DATE CITY Mondays Astoria, NY Edison, NJ 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 Virginia Beach, VA Raleigh, NC Thursdays Edison, NJ Williamsville, NY Bowling Green, KY Lansing, MI Warren, MI Vernon, IN Parkersburg, WV Fridays Decatur, AL Hollywood, FL Greensboro, NC Raleigh, NC Lexington, SC Martins Ferry, OH Portland, ME Fairfield, OH 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 Virginia Beach, VA Jackson, MS Orlando, FL Syracuse, NY Portage, MI Livonia, MI Vernon, IN Dayton, OH Columbus, OH Fairfield, OH Mansfield, OH
LOCATION Steinway Billiards Sandcastle Billiards 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 Q-Master Billiards Buck’s Billiards Sandcastle Billiards Bison Billiards Cue Time Coaches Ultimate Sports Bar Phat Guy Birds League Room 6 Pockets Billiards Lucky 7 Billiards Gate City Billiards Club Brown’s Billiards Grady’s Pool Room Corner Pocket Union Station Billiards Michael’s 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 Q-Master Billiards Rack Clicks Billiards Premium Billiards Play Time Snookers Phat Guy Birds Airway Cushions Michael’s (every other Sun) Sundown
PHONE (718) 472-2124 (732) 632-9277 (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 757-499-8900 (919) 467-5411 (732) 632-9277 (716) 632-0281 (270) 782-2740 (517) 882-2013 (586) 751-2222 (812) 346-0870 304-893-9640 256-686-3171 (954) 239-8254 (336) 856-8800 (919) 878-9092 (803) 957-7665 (740) 738-0357 (207) 899-3693 (513) 860-0044 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 757-499-8900 (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 Wild 9-Ball $25 Call 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 Handicapped 9-Ball-Locals $15 Call 8 Ball-Sc Doubles-Max skill 12 $20 9-Ball - Handicapped Call 10-Ball Handicap-SE $15 Call 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 8-Ball Round Robin $15 $100 w/32 9-Ball Handicap $20 $200 w/16 8-Ball $15 Call 8 Ball - Race to 2 $8 Call 8-Ball $1 $5/player 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 Handicapped 9-Ball-Locals $15 Call 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 Call 7:30PM 7PM 7PM 8PM 7:30PM 7PM 7:30PM 7PM 8PM 8PM 8PM 8PM 8PM 7:30PM 8PM 7:30PM 8PM 8PM 7PM 7PM 7PM 7PM Call 6PM 6PM 1PM 7PM 3PM 6PM Noon Noon Call 8:30PM 2PM 7PM 4PM 2PM 7:30PM 7PM 8PM Call 5:30PM
Call to see how to list your weekly pool tournaments 406.285.3099 OnTheBreakNews.com
www.facebook.com/onthebreaknews
Stroke
March 2017
33
Call First - All Tournaments are subject to change without notice DATE Mar 3 Mar 4-5 Mar 4 Mar 4 Mar 4 Mar 5 Mar 5 Mar 9-11 Mar 9-11 Mar 11 Mar 11-12 Mar 12 Mar 18 Mar 18 Mar 18-19 Mar 19 Mar 25 Mar 25-26
CITY Tacoma, WA Tacoma, WA Williamsville, NY Virginia Beach, VA Greensboro, NC Edison, NJ Portland, ME Lincoln City, OR Lincoln City, OR Davenport, IA Virginia Beach, VA Edison, NJ Virginia Beach, VA Williamsville, NY Portland, ME Edison, NJ Norristown, PA Virginia Beach, VA
LOCATION Malarkey’s Malarkey’s Bison Billiards Q-Master Billiards Gate City Billiards Sandcastle Billiards Union Station Billiards Chinook Winds Open Chinook Winds Open Sharky’s Q-Master Billiards Sandcastle Billiards Q-Master Billiards Bison Billiards Union Station Billiards Sandcastle Billiards Markley Billiards Q-Master Billiards
PHONE 253-383-3301 253-383-3301 716-632-0281 757-499-8900 336-856-8800 732-632-9277 207-899-3693 360-703-4081 360-703-4081 563-359-RACK 757-499-8900 732-632-9277 757-499-8900 716-632-0281 207-899-3693 732-632-9277 610-278-1595 757-499-8900
EVENT / RULES Mini 10-Ball Benefit for Bella Bauer One Pocket Race 3/2 One Pocket Extravaganza Joy Qualifier-Limit 32 USB Series 8 Ball CWO 8-Ball Men CWO 8-Ball Women 9-Ball Shamrock & Shenanigans 9-Ball - Race to 6/7 WPS Qualifier One Pocket Race 3/2 8-Ball Bar Box - 6 & Under 9-Ball State of Maine US Straight Pool Qualifier PA 9-Ball Open 757 Pool Tour
Mar 25-26 Mar 25-26 Mar 25 Mar 25-26 Apr 1 Apr 5-8 Apr 8 Apr 8-9 Apr 15 Apr 16 Apr 22-23 Apr 21 Apr 21-23 Apr 22 Apr 22-23 Apr 28-30 Apr 28-30 Apr 30 Apr 28-30 Apr 28-30 Apr 29-30 May 6 May 13 May 27-29 Jun 3-4 Jun 21-25 Jun 22-25 Jun 22-25 Jun 24
Indianapolis, IN Edison, NJ Des Moines, IA Midwest City, OK Williamsville, NY Astoria, NY Davenport, IA Midwest City, OK Williamsville, NY Astoria, NY Virginia Beach, VA Lafayette, LA Lafayette, LA Davenport, IA Des Moines, IA Round Rock, TX Round Rock, TX Round Rock, TX Coon Rapids, MN Coon Rapids, MN Portland, ME Virginia Beach, VA Astoria, NY Astoria, NY Astoria, NY Des Moines, IA Des Moines, IA Des Moines, IA Des Moines, IA
Brickyard Billiards Sandcastle Billiards Big Dog Billiards Jamaica Joes Bison Billiards Steinway Billiards Sharky’s Jamaica Joe’s Bison Billiards Steinway Billiards Q-Master Billiards White Diamond White Diamond Sharky’s Big Dog Billiards Skinny Bob’s Skinny Bob’s Skinny Bob’s C R’s Sports Bar C R’s Sports Bar Union Station Billiards Q-Master Billiards Steinway Billiards Steinway Billiards Steinway Billiards Big Dog Billiards Big Dog Billiards Big Dog Billiards Big Dog Billiards
317-903-9844 732-632-9277 515-266-6100 405-736-0590 716-632-0281 718-472-2124 563-359-RACK 405-736-0590 716-632-0281 718-472-2124 757-499-8900 337-989-9889 337-989-9889 563-359-RACK 515-266-6100 512-733-1111 512-733-1111 512-733-1111 612-240-1018 612-240-1018 207-899-3693 757-499-8900 718-472-2124 718-472-2124 718-472-2124 515-266-6100 515-266-6100 515-266-6100 515-266-6100
36th Midwest Bar Table Classic NJ State 10-Ball One Pocket Ironman-Limit 32 Midwest 9-Ball Tour Benefit for Bella Bauer World Pool Series #2 9-Ball April Pools 9-Ball 7 & Under-Limit 128 8-Ball Bar Box - 6 & Under A-B/C-D 9-Ball Barry Behrman Mem. 9-Ball Open Mini Super 9-Ball 8-Ball Take What You Make 8-Ball No Master-Limit 128 9-Ball 10-Ball-Limit 32 8-Ball-Single Elim. 8-Ball - Limit 16 - Race to 15 10-Ball - Limit 32 - Race to 7/9 9-Ball Pro/Am 9-Ball Q City Tour A-B/C-D 9-Ball Open 9-Ball Ginky Memorial A-B/C-D 9-Ball One Pocket--Limit 16 Bigfoot 10-Ball Challenge Open 9-Ball Banks Ring Game
ENTRY ADDED TIME $20 Call 7PM $75 incl fees $6,500 w/72 8AM $40 incl g.f. Call 10AM $30 Call Call $150-Limit 16 Call 1PM $100 Airfair to China Call $40 $250 11AM $200 incl g.f. $18,000 Noon $200 incl g.f. $6,000 Noon $40 incl g.f. $1,000 w/64 10AM Varies $$$ 11AM Call Call 11AM $30 Call Call $20 incl g.f. Call Noon $60 $500 Call Call Call Call $65 Call 10AM Call Call Call $100 $2,000 Call Call Call 11AM $50 incl g.f. $500 Guar 9AM $65/$50Ladies $2,500 11AM $40 incl g.f. Call 10AM $475+$50 g.f. $16,200 Guar Call $40 incl g.f. $1,000 w/64 10AM $45 $1,500 11:30AM $20 incl g.f. Call Noon Call $1,000 Call Call Call Call $20 Call 7:30PM $40 $1,000 w/128 9AM $65 incl g.f. $1,500 w/64 10AM $20 no g.f. $1,000 Guar 9AM $40+$1/game $3,500 w/128 7PM $250+fee $1,000 w/32 10PM $40+fee $500 w/64 1PM $1,000 $6,000 Guar Call $200 $2,000 Guar Call P$120/A$70 $1500/$500 Call Call Call Call Call $1,000 Call Call $4,000 Call Call $2,000 Call $2,000 $8,000 Guar 7PM $500-Limit 16 $1,000 Guar 7PM $20-Limit 256 $2,000 Guar 7PM $250-Limit 8 $1,000 Guar 8PM
Never miss a copy Follow us on Issuu.com /strokemagazine 34
March 2017
Stroke
OnTheBreakNews.com
www.facebook.com/onthebreaknews
NEW!
POWERBUYS MARCH C-A376 Custom Viking Cues without the Custom Cue Prices.
C-A376 March Viking Custom Cue with ViKORE American Performance Shaft CUSTOM emerald GREEN Stain CUSTOM Green and White Premium Pearl rings 24 CUSTOM Green and White Premium Pearl Inlays Double Pressed Irish Linen Wrap custom white pearl sleeve Viking Quick Release Joint ViKORE Performance Shaft Suggested MSRP $495
Customization Fee $125
March Sale Price $370 Viking Powerbuys Cue of the Month
Custom Viking Cues without the Custom Prices.
OnTheBreakNews.com
www.facebook.com/onthebreaknews
Stroke
35
VIKING CUE MANUFACTURING, LLC
June/July 2016 vikingcue.eqo
PERFORMANCE
MAKES ALL OF THE DIFFERENCE The most important factor in cue ball deflection is cue end mass. Katana shafts use a ferrule that is half the length with thinner walls to reduce the amount of cue ball “squirt” during play.
7 Responsive Top Layers The top 7 layers are medium density boar hide, tanned naturally up to 12 months to achieve maximum control and consistency.
3 Foundation Layers The bottom 3 layers are high density pig skin, selected for its premium durability and legendary feel.
KATXS1
TIP: 12.5mm Katana tip by Tiger FERRULE: 3/8” Long Thin Wall Fiber TAPER: Pro
KATXS2
TIP: 11.5mm Katana tip by Tiger FERRULE: 3/8” Long Thin Wall Fiber TAPER: Conical
KATANA PERFORMANCE SHAFT TECHNOLOGY 10-Piece Spliced Radial Construction The grain in a solid wooden shaft creates a natural spine which affects how the cue ball reacts to impact. Rotating the cue, even a quarter turn, will change how the shaft performs. By splitting the shaft into ten sections and alternating the direction of the grain, Katana removes natural variances and provides lower deflection and more consistent results.
QUALIFIED DEALERS WELCOME WWW.CUESTIX.COM | 800.645.9803 Manufactured by CueStix International