This years International Challenge of Champions at the Mohegan Sun Casino, saw four of the absolute top talents on the WPBA tour doing battle in a tough single elimination format for the $25,000 winner take all first prize.
Combatants in this event were Allison Fisher, Karen Corr, Xiao-Ting Pan and Ga-Young Kim. Corr faced off against Kim and Fisher faced Pan.
Fisher and Pan split the first two sets and were forced to play a sudden-death tie-breaker to determine who would move on. That player was Xiao-Ting Pan.
Pan's opponent in the finals was Karen Corr, who defeated Ga Young Kim.
The finals saw each player win one set, forcing another sudden death playoff to determine the winner.
In this "one game playoff" format, the lag is all important. And Pan won the lag to earn first shot at winning the final game. Pan was immediately confronted with a tough decision after the break. She could go for a tough 2-ball in the side or try for a long carom on the 9-ball down table. She opted to go for both shots and only succeeded in pocketing the 2-ball. Pan was left with a tough kick on the 3-ball which she managed to hit and pocket.
As the 3-ball was being pocketed, the 7-ball rolled towards the 9-ball and left an enticing combo on the 9-ball for the win. Pan's next obstacle though, was a difficult 4-ball in the side. That obstacle proved to be too much for her as she failed to pocket the 4-ball, leaving Corr a partially hidden 4-ball that would have to be either banked or played safe.
Corr went for the aggressive bank to the 7-combo and executed it perfectly. The 9-ball fell and so did Pan's hopes to return to the table.
Corr won the $25,000 first prize and Pan settled for a day of tough competition against her WPBA rivals.
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