Pool Masters

2009 World Pool Masters set to return to Las Vegas

2009-03-03T23:26:00.001-08:00

The 2009 PartyPoker.net World Pool Masters returns to Las Vegas in May. Featuring 16 of the best players in the world, the event will be held at the historic Riviera Hotel and Casino following a successful staging in 2008, where Filipino Alex Pagulayan defeated Finn Mika Immonen in a thrilling final.

The competition will be staged over three days from Friday, May 8 to Sunday, May 10 -during the annual BCAPL National 8 Ball Championships.

Promoted by Matchroom Sport, the world leader in televised pool, the PartyPoker.net World Pool Masters will be running for the 17th consecutive year and its roll call of champions reads like an international who’s who of the sport.

Pagulayan will be back to defend his title, while Immonen (Finland), the reigning US Open champion, who won the Most Valuable Player award at the 2008 Mosconi Cup in December, will be aiming to go one step better than last year.

Immonen's Mosconi Cup team-mates, five-time Masters champion Ralf Souquet (Germany), Holland’s multi-titled Niels Feijen and Malta's Tony Drago will all be in the single-elimation tournament.

Other players in attendance include England's Darren Appleton, the current World 10 Ball Champion, and former world number one Dennis Orcollo of the Philippines.

The top two American ranked players on the BCA Men’s Point List - Shane Van Boening and Johnny Archer - will be representing the United States, while Montreal’s Dancing Bear, Alain Martel, will be flying the flag for Canada.

They will be joined by top ranked European stars Nick van den Berg of Holland, England’s Imran Majid, who beat Van Boening in this event last year, and teenage Russian sensation Ruslan Chinakhov, 17, who will be making his Masters debut.

Challenge of Champions winner and 2007 World Cup winner Fu Jian-bo will be making the trip from China and 2005 World Pool Masters victor Raj Hundal, now representing India, will return to the fray at the Riviera.

There is one female in the 2009 Masters line-up and that honour this year goes to the rising star of the women’s game, 21 year-old Korean Yu Ram Cha.

Once again, the Masters will be promoted in partnership with Mark Griffin’s BCA Pool Leagues and the opening first round matches take place on the evening of Friday, May 8, culminating in the championship match on Sunday, May 10.

Matchroom Sport Chairman Barry Hearn said: "The event was a big success for us last year at the Riviera and we’re looking to build on that in May.

"The crowds at the Masters were good and with the outstanding line-up we have assembled this year, I am sure that we will have bumper crowds.

" Speak to any of the players; this is the event they all want to win and looking at the field, anyone of them can emerge triumphant."

As always, the World Pool Masters will be televised throughout the world in 15 one-hour highlights programmes.

There will be a $66,000 prize fund, an increase of 6.5 per cent compared to 2008, with the winner collecting $20,000.

Tickets will be made available in March on the Playbca.com website.

BCAPL's Mark Griffin added: "BCA Pool League players love professional action. They're excited the World Pool Masters will return to the Riviera for 2009 and hope Matchroom will continue to honor our tournament with their participation for years to come.

"The finest amateur and professional players from around the globe gather every year at the Riviera for the greatest pool tournament in the world - and the tradition continues."

World Pool Masters

The Riviera Hotel and Casino, Las Vegas
Friday, May 8 to Sunday, May 10

1. Darren Appleton (England)
2. Johnny Archer (USA)
3. Ruslan Chinakhov (Russia)
4. Tony Drago (Malta)
5. Niels Feijen (Holland)
6. Fu Jian-bo (China)
7. Raj Hundal (India)
8. Mika Immonen (Finland)
9. Imran Majid (England)
10. Alain Martel (Canada)
11. Dennis Orcollo (Philippines)
12. Alex Pagulayan (Philippines)
13. Ralf Souquet (Germany)
14. Shane van Boening (USA)
15. Nick van den Berg (Holland)
16. Yu Ram-cha (Korea)

Alex Pagulayan Shoots for Second World Pool Title

2009-03-03T15:43:00.000-08:00

A major pool championship event is taking place on May 8-10 at the Riviera Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada featuring defending world pool champion Alex Pagulayan of the Philippines.

Filipino cue master Alex Pagulayan is set to defend his world pool title on May 8-10 at the Riviera Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Last year, Pagulayan won over Mika Imonen of Finland to capture the world pool championship title. He is the second Filipino to win the prestigious title after his friend Dyango Bustamante won the title in 1998.

‘It’s one of the tournaments I’m always looking forward to be part of. For me, winning this tournament is like is like winning the world championship’ said the 30 year old cue artist.

Another popular Filipino cue artist Dennis Orcollo will also compete in the event which offers a whopping $66,000 total cash prize including the champion’s purse of $20,000.00, according to a report by Manila Times.

The popular Filipino cue artist who is based in Canada is competing with the world’s top cue artists including Mika Imonen, Darren Appleton and Imran Majib of England, Tony Drago of Malta, Shane Van Boening and Johnny Archer of the United States. and Alain Martel of Canada.

Five-time champion Ralph Souquet of Germany is also seeing action along with Niles Feijen and Nick Van Den Berg of Netherlands, Ruslan Sukanov of Russia. Fu Jianbo of China, Raj Hundal of India and lone female bet Yu Ran Cha of Korea, the report added.

The Philippines is home to two other world-famous cue artists that include Efren Bata (The Magician) Reyes and Ronnie Alcano who were both once world champions.

Immonen Snares Predator Billiard Win

2009-03-03T15:28:00.000-08:00

Chicago, IL - The Ice Man finished off another undefeated night after facing Filipino Champion Bustamante and USA Champ Charlie Williams at the conclusion of a week of challenges in Chicago. Palace Billiards hosted the event which featured Mika Immonen of Finland, who dominated the three shows featuring the trio of champions with only taking one loss during the week. Immonen, considered to be the current #1 player in the world, is continuing his superb play that began in the fall of 2008 and taking his streak into 2009.

The event was able to draw some strong local media attention with CBS Chicago covering the event as well as VIA Times from the Filipino media.

The event began with a trickshot show with Bustamante, Immonen, and Williams performing several artistic shots. “We’re no Mike Massey, but we have definitely got the shots down better and more brave than the first show.” laughed Williams. Next the pros took on challengers who lined up to try their luck against the world class billiard stars.

All the fans received gifts from Poison Cues for attending the event. Prizes and gifts included Poison shirts, hats, patches, towels and posters. The pros all signed pictures and memoribilia afterwards, so no one left empty handed.

The Blatt Billiards Predator 9-ball Tour kicked off its second stop with an astonishing 108 players at Comet Billiards in Parsippany, NJ, the weekend of February 28-March 1. Of them all, it was 2008 Player of the Year Mika Immonen taking home top honors in the open division, with Christian Smith winning the amateur event.

Ignacio Chavez and Tony Robles were on a collision course for one another, as Chavez defeated Frankie Hernandez 9-6 to earn a spot for the hot seat and Robles won a hard-fought set against the legendary George “Ginky” Sansouci 9-6. In the match against Chavez, Robles took the lead 4-2 early in the match but scratched on three routine shots, which ultimately cost him the set 9-6. Now all Robles could do was wait for the winner of Immonen and Jorge Rodriguez.

Immonen was on a mission on day two and was determined to make it to the finals from the west side. He started the second day by defeating Sean Morgan 9-2, Al Lapena 9-7, Frankie Hernandez 9-0, and Jorge Rodriguez 9-3 for the right to meet Robles in the semifinals. His break and patterns were in perfect form against Robles as he quickly won the match 9-3.

Immonen continued to break and run with consistency in the finals, while Chavez struggled to make a ball on the break. The Finn came with his full arsenal and put on a clinic in shot-making, position play, kicking, banking, and defense to easily win the match by a score of 11-4.

The Predator 9-Ball Tour also hosted a second-day BCD event with 29 players. Christian Smith took care of business in the top of the chart to earn his spot for the hot seat, where he defeated Raphael DaBreo 5-3. Guy Ianuzzi won six matches in a row to earn a spot against DaBreo in the semifinals but ran out of steam and succumbed 5-3. In the final race to 7, Smith started strong, and though DaBreo put up a great fight, Smith triumphed 7-5.
After the dust settled, it was Mezz Cues player rep Mika "The Iceman" Immonen (pictured right) coming up with the victory. Ignacio Chavez (left) and Tony Robles share the moment.

Results:

1st Mika Immonen $1,400
2nd Ignacio Chavez $1,000
3rd Tony Robles $ 700
4th Jorge Rodriguez $ 500
5th George Sansouci $ 325
6th Frankie Hernandez $ 325
7th Oscar Bonilla $ 225
8th Al Lapena $ 225
9th Rob Saez $ 135
10th Lionel Rivera $ 135
11th Shaun Wilkie $ 135
12th Sean Morgan $ 135
13th Mhet Vergara $ 100
14th Junior Sanchez $ 100
15th Justin Muller $ 100
16th Marc Vidal $ 100

Pagulayan targets back-to-back Masters crown

2009-03-02T14:55:00.000-08:00

Former world champion Alex Pagulayan will try to become the first back-to-back champion of the PartyPoker.net World Pool Masters when the most prestigious invitational pool event holds its 17th edition on May 8 to 10 at the historic Riviera Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas , Nevada .

The 30-year-old Pagulayan ruled the event last year beating fellow former world titlist Mika Immonen of Finland in a pulsating final match.

“It’s one of the tournament I’m always looking forward to be part of," said Pagulayan, who is the only second Filipino to win the event after Francisco “Django" Bustamante in 1998 and 2001. “For me winning this tournament is like winning the world championship."

Pagulayan will be joined by compatriot and former world no.1 Dennis Orcollo in carrying the country’s flag in the competition that has a total of $66,000 at stake, including the champion’s purse of $20,000.

“It’s an honor to be chosen to play in that tournament, and I will do my best to win it and once again make our country proud," said Orcollo, who is coming off a solid year in 2008 when he won four major titles.

A total of 16 of the finest players from around the world will be competing in the event, which will be staged over three days during the annual BCAPL National 8 Ball Championships.

Besides Pagulayan and Orcollo, the other players seeing action are Immonen, World 10 Ball Champion Darren Appleton and Imran Majid of England, Tony Drago of Malta, Shane Van Boening and Johnny Archer of the United States and Alain Martel of Canada.

Also in the field are five-time champion Ralf Souquet of Germany, Niels Feijen and Nick van den Berg of the Netherlands , Ruslan Chinakov of Russia , Fu Jianbo of China , Raj Hundal of India and lone female bet Yu Ran Cha of Korea.

Pagulayan, Orcollo banner 2009 World Pool Masters field

2009-02-28T14:44:00.000-08:00

Former world 9-ball champion Alex “The Lion" Pagulayan and former World No. 1 Dennis Orcollo will banner the field in the 2009 PartyPoker.net World Pool Masters on May 8-10 in Las Vegas.

According to the event’s promoter, Matchroom Sport, the prestigious event will be held at the historic Riviera Hotel and Casino with 16 of the world’s top cuemasters vying for the $20,000 champion’s purse.

Pagulayan will seek to defend the Masters title which he won last year over another ex-world titlist, Mika Immonen of Finland.

Orcollo will try to sustain the top form he has shown in 2008 - a year highlighted by at least six months atop the rankings 1 on wins in four international competitions and a spate of other strong finishes - in the single-elimination tournament.

The Filipino pool stars will contend with the likes of Immonen, five-time Masters champion Ralf Souquet, reigning World 10 Ball Champion Darren Appleton, Challenge of Champions winner and 2007 World Cup titlist Fu Jian-bo of China and 2005 World Pool Masters victor Raj Hundal, now representing India.

Also in the roster are multi-titled Niels Feijen of Holland, Tony Drago of Malta, Nick van den Berg of Holland, Imran Majid of England, Shane Van Boening and Johnny Archer of the US, Alain Martel of Canada, the rising star of the women’s game, 21-year-old Yu Ram Cha of Korea, and teenage sensation Ruslan Chinakhov of Russia.

Pool hero Orcollo vows comeback in 2009

2009-02-22T20:49:00.001-08:00

Former world No. 1 player Dennis Orcollo, the major awardee for billiards in 2008 by the Philippine Sportswriters Association, is hell-bent on regaining his lofty ratings in 2009.

Honored during last Friday’s San Miguel Corp.-PSA Awards Night at the Manila Pavilion Hotel, the 30-year-old Orcollo said he was grateful to the association for recognizing his achievements last year and vowing to try his best in 2009.

“Being ranked No. 1 definitely added to my self-confidence,” once said Orcollo, a lightly regarded pool player from Bislig, Surigao del Norte, before he made the big league and joined a handful of true billiards greats.

Orcollo is not out of place with the likes of Hall of Famer Efren “Bata” Reyes, Ronnie Alcano, Francisco “Django” Bustamante and Alex Pagulayan. Undoubtedly one of the most dynamic shooters on the tour, Orcollo is a mainstay of the Negros Billiard Stable of sports patron Jonathan Sy.

Said Orcollo in an interview: “I know that people are watching me and I have to live up to my being world No. 1.”

In 2008, Orcollo won four international titles and finished remarkably well in several others. He started the year with a bang by winning the San Miguel Beer-Quezon City 9-Ball Championship. The following week, Orcollo beat some 200 world-class players in the Japan 9-Ball in Tokyo, including Japanese idol Ryoki Aoiki, whom he humbled in a one-sided finals, 9-2.

The Filipino hero later crushed veteran campaigner Niels Feijen of the Netherlands, 13-5, during their championship showdown at the inaugural Qatar World 9-Ball Open Championship in Doha. Orcollo capped the year by bagging a leg of the Guinness 9-Ball Tour in Guangzhou, China, last September.

However, Orcollo could only earn a semifinal berth in the Guinness Grand Finals held in Jakarta in October. The Grand Finals was won by Taiwan’s battle-scarred Yang Ching-shun.

During the 2008 Party Poker.net World Cup of Pool played in Rotterdam, Holland, Orcollo teamed up with veteran internationalist Francisco “Django” Bustamante and settled for a share of third place with the 2007 winners Fu Jian Bo and Li He Wen of China.

Earlier in the semifinals, the Orcollo-Bustamante tandem, considered by pool experts as the pre-tournament favorite, unexpectedly lost to the American pair of Rodney Morris of Hawaii and Shane “The South Dakota Kid” Van Boening, who eventually emerged champions.

But the soft-spoken Orcollo offered no excuse after the shock defeat. Instead, he showed true grit and character by blaming himself by saying, “I’m very disappointed that we weren’t able to fulfill our mission of winning the World Cup, and I blame myself for it.”

In gaining the nod of the PSA, Orcollo’s achievements in 2008 stood clearly above the rest. But other than that, it was a bleak year for the controversy-wracked Philippine billiards.

To illustrate. Philippine Olympic Committee president and former Tarlac Rep. Jose “Peping” Cojuangco recently directed the Billiards and Snooker Congress of the Philippines, headed by chair Yen Makabenta and president Ernesto Fajardo, to conduct their much delayed election.

Unhappy with the way their sport was being handled by BSCP officials, the country’s world-ranked players, led by Reyes, Pagulayan, Bustamante, Alcano and Orcollo, renounced their membership in the BSCP and formed the Billiards Managers and Players Association of the Philippines.

Members of the Philippine women’s team also complained against the unkind treatment they had suffered at the hands of billiards officials. They said they were unceremoniously removed from the national team and their allowance from the Philippine Sports Commission cut off despite giving honor to the country. They claimed they were being punished by the BSCP for joining tournaments organized by the breakaway BMPAP.

- Manolo Iñigo, Philippine Daily Inquirer

$25,000 Added Joss Tour’s Billiard Extravaganza won by Souquet

2009-02-22T14:58:00.000-08:00

Ralf Souquet Wins Joss Tour $25,000 Added Turning Stone Classic XII

The Joss NE 9-Ball Tour’s Turning Stone Classic XII started off with a full field of 128 players. Including noteable players from around the world such as Ralf Souquet, Mika “The Iceman” Immonen, Dennis Hatch, Shawn “Big Bubba” Putnam, Johnny Archer, Steve Moore, Karen Corr, Corey Deuel, Allison Fisher and Louis Ulrich just to name a few. It has been an action packed event as spectators watched some terrific matches among some of the greatest players in the sport of billiards as the face off for their chance at the $25,000 Added event prize fund.

Ralf Souquet sent anyone that stepped up to face him to the left side of the chart as he played to win his share of the $25,000 added prize fund. He begin his trek to the finals by defeating Pierre Sauve 9-0 in round one and proceeded to follow suit sending the following to the one loss side of the chart Ernesto Dominguez 9-3; Matt Krah 9-4; Jeremy Sossei 9-6 Louis Ulrich 9-6; Shane Van Boeining 9-4; Mika”The Iceman” Immonen 9-1. Souquet went undefeated to the finals where he matched up against Joss Tour Regular Dennis Hatch in the Finals. Souquet defeated Hatch 13-7 in the finals which was single elmination race to 13.

Hatch worked his way thru some tough competition to make his way to the finals he defeated Sean Martin 9-0; Jamie Mangini 9-3; Karen Corr 9-8; Pete Tascarella Sr. 9-5; before being sent to the one loss side by Shane Van Boening 9-7. Once on the one loss side Hatch defeated Steve Moore 9-3; Daryl Peach 9-2; Mario Morra 9-4; Shawn “Big Bubba” Putnam 9-8. Sending him to the semi finals where he would face Mika “The Iceman” Immonen. Hatch defeated Immonen 9-7.

Place

1st Ralf Souquet
2nd Dennis Hatch
3rd Mika Immonen
4th Shawn Putnam
5th Shane Van Boening
6th Mario Morra
7th Daryl Peach
8th Charlie Bryant
9th Louis Ulrich
10th Steve Moore
11th Thorten Hohmann
12th Oscar Dominguez
13th Allison Fisher
14th Matt Tetreault
15th Dave Fernandez
16th Johnny Archer

Snookering a double world champ

2009-02-20T09:58:00.000-08:00

Terrence Voon shoots pool table with Taiwan's double world champion.

Whilst interviewing Taiwan's double world champion Wu Chia-ching at Klassic Cuesports, someone thought it might be worth a laugh if I played a few rounds of 9-Ball with him.

He was right: It was funny pitting a casual pub player against one of the world's best. But the experience wasn't just humourous - it was humiliating.

Wu, for the record, was here in Singapore as a sparring partner for the national team, a move that has sparked considerable hysteria in Taiwan, where speculation is mounting that he may become the Republic's latest foreign import.

But while he may been frustrated by all the media hoopla back home, the 20-year-old remains a consummate professional on the table, even against a rank amateur like yours truly.

"Go easy on me," he joked, as he lined up to break the first rack.

Two minutes later, I was racking up again, without having gone to the table yet.

Wu was showing exactly why he is known as "The Little Genius" by his peers. His stroking movement was incredibly consistent and he reads the table in a flash, knowing quickly how best to untangle the puzzle of balls and numbers on the table.

His positioning is also impeccable, always within an inch or two of the desired 'sweet spot'.

If pool is all about physics then this man is a Nobel laureate.

When it was finally my turn to take to the table, I missed. But the cue ball spun behind the black, hiding from the pink that was a full table length away. A safety shot, albeit an unintended one.

No problem, said Wu. With just the right amount of top-spin, he promptly bounced the cue ball off two rails to hit the pink - and 'snookered' me in the process.

And when the centre pocket swallowed up my cue ball on the next shot, I knew that the gig was up.

The final score was 0-3 in favour of the world champion. No surprise there.

Maybe 8-Ball would be a better bet, I suggested.

Fat chance. Wu allowed me to break, and my response was to propel the cue ball out of the table, narrowly missing a member of the Singapore national team who had been smirking the entire time.

Wu politely retrieved the errant ball, and proceeded to clear the deck. 10 minutes and two games later, I had truly been beaten black, blue and yellow.

Throughout the entire experience, he never even smiled once - that was how serious the guy took the game.

Mercifully though, it was soon time for me to go, with my proverbial tail firmly between my legs.

And as I turned to leave, Wu had already returned to the table, potting shot after shot with that same unsmiling look of intense concentration.

For this world champion, there is no such thing as playing pool 'for fun'.

Feijen Pulls a Double

2009-02-13T14:18:00.000-08:00

Niels Feijen has duplicated the feat accomplished last year by Ralf Souquet by winning two consecutive Eurotour events. He has followed up his win at the Spain Open with another victory at the French Open and, if our math is correct, now stands at the top of the Eurotour rankings. As great a story as this is (the consecutive wins) it was not even the biggest news of the event. Feijen was unfortunate enough to face a true youngster in the finals, and it is the performance of 15-year old Mario He that grabbed most of the attention this week.

Mario He is a young man to be watched. This week he defeated none other than Ralf Souquet (9-7), Jonni Fulcher (9-7), Christian Reimering (9-8) and Radoslaw Babica (9-2) before succumbing to Feiujen 9-4. Still, the week belongs to Feijen. And Feijen had his own tough road to ride. This week he took down Thomasz Kaplan (9-7), Mark Gray (9-4), Daryl Peach (9-7), and Markus Juva (9-6) on his way to the glory.

-AZB

Billiards Events Set for Vegas

2009-02-12T02:35:00.000-08:00

World Pool Masters and International 10-Ball Championships Set to Rock the Riviera

The BCA Pool League is proud to announce the return of two of the most prestigious professional events to the Riviera Hotel and Casino May 2009. The 17th Party Poker.net World Pool Masters and the 9th Annual Predator 10-Ball Championship will be in the Royale Pavilion once again along side the BCAPL National 8-Ball Championships.

The World Pool Masters, one of the most revered invitational events with a limited field of 16 players is produced by Matchroom Sport and will take center stage first at the Royale Pavilion May 8-10. A large supplier of sports programming worldwide, Matchroom Sport also produces other well regarded events such as the Mosconi Cup and the World Cup of Pool in addition to Darts, Fishing, Pokes, Snooker, Boxing, Tenpin and Bowls.

Equally exciting, the Predator 10-Ball Championship produced by Dragon Promotions will move into the pavilion May 11-16. The tournament boasts a roster of the top pool talent from across the globe. Last year’s winner Tony Drago of Malta, considered one of the fastest players in the world, will have an opportunity to defend his 2008 title. Once again he will have to face players such as Shane Van Boening, Mika Immonen, Johnny Archer, Francisco Bustamante, John Schmidt, Efren Reyes and the 2008 World Pool Masters winner Alex Pagulayan just to name a few of the illustrious names who will be in attendance. Watch for links on the BCA Pool League web site at Playbca.com for more information and tickets to the professional events. For more information about Matchroom Sport and the World Pool Masters please visit Matchroomsport.com and for the Predator 10-Ball Championship visit Dragonpromotions.com.
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World Pool Masters and International 10-Ball Championships Set to Rock the Riviera

2009-02-11T14:04:00.000-08:00

Storms Rock Derby City Billiard Event

2009-01-29T09:54:00.000-08:00

The 9-ball division of the Eleventh Annual Derby City Classic began Wednesday, boasting a field of 341 fine players from around the world. Defending champion Ralf Souquet has recovered from his runner-up finish last night in the Fatboy 10-Ball Challenge, while other players such as Johnny Archer, Mika Immonen, Marcus Chamat, Efren Reyes, Thorsten Hohmann, and Jeanette Lee are lining up to take his 2008 title.

The 9-ball matches were scheduled to begin at 12 p.m. but because of the inclement weather, this was postponed until 3:30 p.m. to allow for poor travel conditions.

In the one-pocket division, the field will be narrowed to approximately 20 players returning Thursday. Defending champion Gabe Owen has taken an early exit, and Efren Reyes, for the second year in a row, has not made it to the finals, having been defeated by David Vaughn and Jeremy Jones. Still alive are Johnathan Pinegar, Shane Van Boening, and Jones, among others. The one-pocket finals are scheduled for 9 p.m. Thursday.

There was a 16-player banks mini tournament Tuesday night that was won by Shannon Murphy of Cincinnati, OH. Kevin Nicholas of Louisville, KY, came in second, and third place was shared by Mark Jarvis of Northern Indiana and Butch Wolf of Cincinnati, OH.

The Accu-Stats Gameshow was held Wednesday evening. It was a single-elimination, 16-player race to 1. The format was 9-ball, with the incoming player following the break having the decision which player pushes. Accu-Stats added $2,000 to the pot, with the winner taking home the entire amount. Some of the big names invited to play were Efren Reyes, Shane Van Boening, Mika Immonen, and Ralf Souquet. In the semifinal matches, John Schmidt bested Francisco Bustamante while Jose Parica ousted Johnny Archer to meet in the finals. In an entertaining final game, Schmidt defeated Parica to take first place in this unique event.

In today’s Straight Pool Challenge update, today’s highs are as follows: Thorsten Hohmann, 100; Johnny Archer, 83; Yannick Beaufils, 71. The current leader board is as follows: John Schmidt, 154; Corey Deuel, 153; Huidji See, 114; Darren Appleton, 114; Danny Harriman, 114; Thorsten Hohmann, 100; Beau Runningen, 100; Charlie Williams, 85.

Philippines to host 2009 World Cup of Pool

2009-01-28T16:51:00.000-08:00

2009 World Cup of Pool will be staged in the Philippines for the first time in the tournament's history.

A press conference was held at the Sports Plus Cafe, Eastwood, Philippines, earlier this week to announce the event, which will now be in its fourth year.

The first competition was staged in Newport, Wales with the next two in Rotterdam, Holland, but this will be the first time it will have been held outside of Europe.

Featuring 32 two-player teams from around the globe, The World Cup of Pool, sponsored by PartyGaming, has become one of the most important dates in the sport's calendar and this year's version will be hosted from September 1 to 6 in Manila.

"We're really looking forward to a great tournament because the World Cup of Pool is a special event and to bring it here to the Philippines is really exciting," said Matchroom Sport Director Eddie Hearn.
"When Matchroom Sport wants to stage a major pool tournament the Philippines is always the first place we look to come. In terms of number one venues, this has to be our first choice.

"Obviously Las Vegas is a great place for pool as well with their heritage but the passion that the people have for the game in the Philippines, and the importance of what it means to everyone, always makes it a pleasure to come here."

The prestigious competition, which features 32 two-player teams from around the world, but two sides for the host nation, has never been won by the same country twice.

Filipino legends Efren Reyes and Francisco Bustamante won the inaugural tournament in 2006, China's He-wen Li and Jian-bo Fu claimed the trophy in 2007 before Americans Shane Van Boening and Rodney Morris triumphed last year.

Hearn hinted that, with the Philippines being given two teams as hosts, the successful pairing of Reyes and Bustamante could be reunited for 2009.

"The Filipino people would want to see Efren and Django play together and it's very important that we make the choice that makes the people happy," explained Hearn.

"Matchroom Sport and our Filipino partners Solar Sports are also eager to have one younger team representing the real new wave of players coming through in the Philippines at the moment.

"Due to the great number of qualified Filipino players, it's going to be tough when we select the teams because there are always people who feel they should be in.

"But our job is to select the right teams for the people and the right teams that are most likely to take the title for the Philippines.

"We have to make sure we have the biggest names and the biggest personalities playing while the best players as well. I'm really glad that the Philippines will have two teams as host nation because to have only had one team would have been very difficult to pick."

Solar Sports CEO Peter Chanliong added: "The World Cup of Pool has a format that's very exciting and we're hoping the Philippines will enjoy the home-court advantage and pull it off again to prove we're the best in the world."

The defending champions - Shane Van Boening and Rodney Morris - will make up the USA pairing but the rest of the sides will be selected nearer the competition.

There is a huge incentive for all teams as the champions win $60,000, the runners-up take home $30,000, the beaten semi-finalists collect $16,000 and the quarter finalists receive $10,000.

Each match will be filmed for television and then produced by Matchroom Sport into 31 1-hour programmes, which will then be broadcast on stations around the world.

Pool Player’s Novel Sets Love Story Against the World of Pool

2009-01-28T16:50:00.000-08:00

BILLERICA, Mass.– The novel, Right on Cue, by pool aficionado Thomas McGonagle, tells the story of Johnny Jordan and Flo Stevens, two young players struggling to make their name in the gritty world of high stakes pool.

In Right on Cue, by McGonagle, a young pool player named Johnny learns that his birth father is a professional pool player, and he sets out to find him with unexpected results. Along the way, Johnny meets up with a down-on-her-luck fellow player, and while helping her out financially, discovers that he is falling in love. But when Johnny meets his real father and discovers he’s a hustler, he wants no part of that kind of life. Things soon change, though, and as Johnny’s father begins to teach him the fine art of the game, Johnny could find himself a winner at pool—and at love.

McGonagle has spent 43 years playing pool and writing about the game, and he has designed his novel to have a real authenticity and behind-the-scenes feel. Right on Cue suggests that honesty is the best policy and that games are best played on the pool table and not in real life. McGonagle has filled Right on Cue with pool facts and lore, aiming for his novel to be as educational about pool as it is purely entertaining.

For more information or to request a free review copy, members of the press can contact the author at rmcgonagle@ut.edu. Right on Cue is available for sale online at Amazon.com, BookSurge.com, and through additional wholesale and retail channels worldwide.

Indian Pool Star Raj Hundal Joins Dragon Promotions

2009-01-05T09:51:00.000-08:00

Chicago, Illinois- Raj Hundal of India has signed on with global events producer Dragon Promotions to be exclusively represented as one of pool's rising stars. Hundal, known as The Hitman, has in a short time proven to the pool world he is a force to be reckoned with. He first turned heads in 2005 when he defeated #1 seed Yang Ching Shun of Taiwan at the World 9-Ball Championship, and then shocked the field as the dark horse winner of the 2005 World Pool Masters taking down veteran Rodney Morris (USA) in the finals. In 2008 Hundal played his first full year on the US Pro Tour circuit starting out the year unranked and ending the year ranked #6.

"Raj has an enormous amount of confidence in himself, and that's going to take him a long way in this game. He never gets down on himself and he has a smooth, fast paced game that fans enjoy watching." commented Charlie Williams. "Plus he has a ton of charm and witty sense of humor that makes people from all over root for him."

Dragon Promotions will be expanding into India in 2009 with events and goal of promoting the growth of billiards there. DP has been highly successful in other markets such as Korea and the United States in producing international billiard events, and has garnered the confidence of industry sponsors such as Brunswick who is investing substantially into India and Asia. Hundal is also confident of India's future and potential.

"Dragon Promotions is a great company that I would have loved to join regardless, but when I heard about the expansion into India it gave me a boost of electricity! My roots are in India and though I lived in London awhile, I've been to India enough to know the sport could become massive there. If anyone can do it, it's Dragon Promotions and I am looking forward to helping the sport grow there as much as I can." said Hundal.

"Raj by far is the most established and most successful Indian player in billards history. His credentials of wins against top players and international coverage is significant, and on top of that he works hard off the table as well. It was a no brainer to bring him on board with us." explained Cindy Lee, CEO of Dragon Promotions.

Hundal will join an elite group of selected players managed by DP that include Mika Immonen of Finland, Rodney Morris of USA, Yu Ram Cha of Korea, Shanelle Loraine of Guam, and top American stars Jeanette Lee, Mike Davis, and Charlie Williams.

Kelly Fisher is the AZB female Player of the Year!

2008-12-29T09:38:00.000-08:00

Kelly Fisher has been chosen the AZBilliards female Player of the Year for 2008. Ms. Fisher had a simply stellar 2008, claiming victories at both the WPBA US Open and the WPBA Pacific Coast Classic and runner-up honors at The WPBA Great Lakes Classic and the WPBA Nationals. In fact, Fisher was in the top ten at ALL of the WPBA events for 2008. In addition to the above-mentioned first and second-place finishes she also garnered two fifth-place finishes (GenerationPool.com and WPBA San Diego) and a 9th at the Carolina Classic.

Many fans had expected Fisher to earn this honor earlier than she did. When she came over from England in 2005 and became a WPBA pro she came with a lot of credentials. She was six times the World Snooker Champion and seven times the European Snooker Champion. This was the Fisher who was going to unseat the other Fisher, the Queen Allison who had so long dominated the WPBA winners list.

But while Kelly had her shining moments, even winning the West Coast Classic that first year, she fell short of the goals that many had put out for her. The next year she also enjoyed a single WPBA victory lap – again for the San Diego Classic. But 2007 became the year that she really blossomed. That year she won the Great Lakes event, the San Diego Classic (again) had two second-place WPBA finishes and a third. It was evident to all that she had begun to find her gear.

That gear drove her to the top in 2008 and she wears the crown well. In addition to her ‘table job’, she is also President of KwikFire Cues and is involved in the future of the game by sponsoring the KwikFire Kids, 13-year old Jonathan Castillo from New Jersey and 10-year old Taylor Reynolds from Maine. Ms. Fisher’s outgoing personality and willingness to promote the game led WPBA pro Sarah Rousey to comment: “ She’s one of the nicest, most approachable people you could ever meet. She is always willing to share her knowledge with everyone and help anyone out.” AZBilliards agrees with that assessment and we heartily congratulate Kelly Fisher for being our female Player of the Year for 2009!

- AZB

Ralf Souquet is the Player of the Year!

2008-12-29T09:34:00.000-08:00

Ralf Souquet has been chosen the AZBilliards male Player of the Year for 2008 and he completed quite a turnaround from 2007 in order to earn the honor. In 2007 he had only one win (the Mosconi Cup) during the entire calendar period and pocketed only $43,000. But in 2008 he won ten titles and cashed checks totaling more than $170,000 to literally walk away from the rest of the field on the money list and with nearly double the victories of our second-place choice, Mika Immonen.

Souquet began his year with a win in the tough 9-Ball division of the Derby City Classic. When we interviewed Ralf after that win he said he was looking forward to a great year. His personal life had been fulfilled with his marriage to Illy and he said he just felt very good about the way his year was shaping up. He was quite correct in his assessment.

Within 90 days of that interview Souquet had won three more events and a World Championship. He won the Weert Open 10-Ball, then the Paris Open and the Gema Open and followed these with his Damas World 8-Ball World Championship title that he took down in Fujairah, UAE.

Souquet also took the top slot at both the Interpool 9-Ball and 10-Ball events, the Eurotour Swiss Open, the Eurotour Netherlands Open and finished the year with an overwhelming 12-6 victory in the Mosconi Cup. Here he capped a fantastic year the same way that he began it, with a tribute to his wife. When the players gathered for an after-victory celebration they all spoke of their inspiration and motives for winning. Souquet gave a tearful soliloquy to Illy in which he said that it was her support that always lifted him to the top.

Consistency was the keyword for Souquet in 2008. Out of 27 events that he played in he had 24 top-ten finishes, a simply stunning 90% of all the events in which he held a cue. But there is more to Ralf than his wizardry with a pool cue. Ralf Souquet is a champion in every sense of the word. He is outwardly serene even when the rolls do not go his way. He is always the gentleman and sportsman. He trains for his sport both physically and mentally and he does not leave success to chance. In short, Souquet earns his way on this pool world and does not wait for anything to come his way. He creates his own opportunities and pursues the podium finish with every move that he makes. Souquet is a thinking man’s player.

Possibly one of the most impressive things about Ralf Souquet is that he was not a natural-baron talent. He had to work hard to attain and hone his skills. He was not a child prodigy who claimed World Championship as a lad. He has had years where the winner’s circle eluded his efforts. But his tenacity, his absolute refusal to ever give up, has always pulled him through. Ralf Souquet learned and earned his skills. He is proof positive that a firm work ethic can overcome all obstacles and, with Illy, a pleasant reminder that love can lead the heart and soul to new heights. No matter how much Ralf Souquet is to be admired as a player he is equally to be admired as a man. Souquet brings the total package to the table, no matter where in the world that table sits.

- AzB

Immonen's Secrets Revealed in Mastering Pool Instructional DVDs

2008-12-21T09:46:00.000-08:00

Peterborough, Canada - The world's hottest player Mika "Iceman" Immonen has unveiled his latest achievement, Mastering Pool. Intrinsic Media has teamed up with the current US Open and Mosconi Cup Champion to produce Mastering Pool, a 3-part pocket billiard instructional series. The DVD series is packed with tips, techniques and systems, 3D animated diagrams, and expert commentary by Immonen himself all of which easily making MASTERING POOL one of the most comprehensive billiards guides on the market today. Mastering Pool also has a comprehensive website with video samples of the DVDs at http://www.mastering-pool.com

"Mika's one of the greatest players I've ever seen. He has a great all around game and very versatile knowledge on the game. I definitely could not pick anyone better than him to come out with an instructional video." said fellow tour pro Rodney 'Rocket" Morris, current World Cup Champion and former US Open Champion.

"The guy breaks like King Kong, shoots like the Terminator, and kicks like Bruce Lee. And he's one of the most physically and mentally fit players alive. " says Raj Hundal, World Pool Masters Champion and the most winningest Indian player in history.

MASTERING POOL is divided into three DVDs starting with "beginner level", than "intermediate level", and finally "advance level". Each DVD has several special features with superior graphics and expert filming from several angles.

Immonen personally demonstrates all shots and scenarios so the viewer can see what a world class player would do in each situation. Immonen also commentates along with a narrator on his own personal thinking process during the shots.

"I've seen numerous tapes and DVDs of pool training, but Mastering Pool is by far the best production I've ever seen. It's definitely elevated the standard of quality and filming for instructional videos." commented Charlie Williams, renowned TV billiard producer and world class pro player.

MASTERING POOL is available online at http://www.mastering-pool.com/purchase.html and can be purchased at selected distributors such as www.seyberts.com

" Working with Intrinsic Media on MASTERING POOL was a terrific team effort. Intrinsic was very professional and the quality of the DVDs I feel are superb. I couldn't ask to be involved in anything better than this and my hopes of how it turned out were well surpassed. I feel very privileged to have been a part of MASTERING POOL"- said Mika Immonen.

Mika Immonen is one of the world's premier professional players. Immonen is known for his athletic rigourous training off the table as well as intense training on the table. Immonen made his big impact in the pool world in 2001 when he won the World 9-Ball Championship and has since been ranked in the top 5 in the world.

More recently in 2008, Immonen has won the US Open, Mosconi Cup, All Japan Championships, and Philippines vs The World . The Finnish Iceman who resides in New York City, is truly an international star with a wide array of foreign sponsors including Mezz Cues of Japan, Cafe Puro of Philippines, and Mastering Pool based in Canada. Immonen is managed by Dragon Promotions USA and Korea.

The Finnisher: Mika Triumphs in Osaka

2008-11-25T16:00:00.000-08:00

The Mika Immonen Redemption World Tour kept rolling along — this time at the All-Japan Championships in Osaka. Entering this year's event, Immonen had made the final match four times in ten years, walking away in second place each time.

But this year is different for the Finn. In October, Immonen dominated Ronnie Alcano in the final of the U.S. Open 9-Ball Championship, ridding himself of the memory of a 11-0 loss to Corey Deuel in the final of the 2001 Open.

This past weekend, Immonen conquered a talented 128-player field at the All-Japan Championships for his first win in five tries. On the final day, Immonen topped two of Japan's finest — Satoshi Kawabata and Naoyuki Oi — to book yet another trip to the final.

"Well, here we go again," Immonen cracked after his 11-3 win over Oi.

Meanwhile, his opponent in the U.S. Open final was charting his course through the other side of the bracket. Alcano topped Efren Reyes in the quarterfinals, then edged Antonio Gabica in a hill-hill semifinal, 11-10.

Just like at the U.S. Open final, Immonen jumped out to an early lead, winning the first three racks. After gifting Alcano the fourth rack, he then went on an offensive tear, collecting racks until he made a mistake in the 12th game — with a 10-1 lead. Alcano missed the 8 in the next rack, and Immonen closed out the 11-2 win.

"I can't believe I got wins in both events I've wanted to win so long in the same year," Immonen said after the win.

In the women's division, Xiaoting Pan braved a 75-player field to win her third All-Japan title. She barely escaped her semifinal match against Chihiro Kawahara, recent winner of the Asia 10-Ball Championships. Kawahara miscued in the case game, giving Pan an open table for an 8-7 win.

Taiwan's Chieh Yu Chou awaited Pan in the final. Pan's international experience offered her a huge advantage, and the WPBA No. 3 coasted to a 9-2 win in the final.

- Billiard Digest

Mighty Mika Invincible at All Japan! Pan Wins for Third Time

2008-11-25T14:30:00.000-08:00

Osaka, Japan- Finland's mighty Mika Immonen has won the 41st All Japan Championships, prolonging a winning streak that started out in October and hasn't stopped yet. Asia has been considered, in the new millennium, the continent with the strongest players. At this year's event, the field was truly littered with Asia's best inicluding names such as Taiwan's World Champion Chia Ching Wu, Po Cheng Kuo, China's He-wen Li and Challenge of Champions Winner Jianbo Fu, Japan's former World 9-Ball Champion Kunihiko Takahashi, and Korean Champions Young Hwa Jeong and Seung Woo Ryu. Throw in western counterparts World 9-Ball and 14.1 Champ Thorsten Hohmann (GER), World 9-ball and 8-Ball Champ Ralf Souquet (GER), and USA top pros Rodney Morris, Charlie Williams, and Max Eberle. Then add in arguably the toughest country, the Phillippines, with Efren Reyes, Francisco Bustamente, Alex Pagualyan, Ronnie Alcano, Dennis Orcollo, Marlon Manalo, Antonio Gabica, Warren Kiamco, Ramil Gallego, Lee Van Corteza, and Antonio Lining. In this 128 man super elite field, even the hottest pool player in the world could easily settle for a top 10 finish and be happy. That is why Mika Immonen is the world's strongest player.

The Ice Man started the final day of the event with a close 11-9 win over Japan's #1 Satoshi Kawabata, whom was Japan's favorite for a win. Immonen won despite the crowd support for Kawabata. Next he took on Japan's last and final hope, Naoyuki Oi currently ranked #3. Oi had no answer for Mika's tremendous break and offense and succumbed 11-3 with a smile on his face and a shrug of helplessness. This put Mika in the finals waiting and fighting his own inner demons of finishing 2nd place a record four times at the All Japan.

Mika looked up with a smile and said aloud, "Well, here we are again!" referring to his 5th trip the finals at the All Japan in 10 years.

On the top brackets, Ronnie Alcano defeated fellow Filipino World Champion Efren Reyes while Antonio Gabica escaped 11-10 against Alex Pagulayan. The semi-finals with Alcano and Gabica saw the match see-saw as neither was able to gain a significant lead. Gabica reached the hill first at 10-9 and made a perfect break making two balls on the break but hooking himself with no shot on the 2-ball. He pushed to a kick which Alcano gave back. Gabica played a near perfect 2 rail kick and played the ball up table leaving Alcano a long off angle shot with cue ball near frozen to the rail. Alcano fired in the table length shot and then came short on the 3ball. With a possible bankshot or natural safe, the crowd gasped at a razor thin cut shot on the 3 ball that sent the cueball zigzagging 3 rails. Making the shot was hard, but now Alcano faced his third tricky shot with another backrail frozen cueball shot on the four ball. Again Alcano came with it! Then, he got too straight on the 6 ball and had to play it leaving a funny angled cut shot on the 7-ball, but Alcano didn't hesitate on the shot and ran out. At 10-10, Alcano made a ball on the break and started off again with a tough one ball cut shot which he made with extreme inside english creating position for the 3 ball. By the time he reached the 6 ball, which again was too straight, he again faced the same off angle cut shot on the 7ball with the cueball near the siderail. He again held his nerve with his smooth styled stroke but after making the 8-ball he drifted too far down and left himself a backward cut on the 9-ball which would naturally be a scratch in the side. Laughing aloud with a smile, he chalked his cue and smoothly finessed stroked the cueball and avoided the side pocket scratch with draw while the 9 ball slid into the back of the corner pocket for the win, ending with Alcano's heavy sigh of relief.

On the ladies side, Xiao Ting Pan cruised undefeated to the finals for her third time here. In a field of women that would rival the WPBA in talent and skill, the Taiwanese and Chinese were dominant in the 75 player field. Japan's Chihiro Kawahara , recent winner in Korea at the Asia 10-Ball Championships, was Japan's highest finishing female and in the semi-finals had given Pan a hard time with the score at 8-7. With an open table run, Kawahara miscued and fouled giving Pan a sigh of relief and the win without going through the headache of a hill hill match. The finals had Taiwan's Chieh Yu Chou against Pan. Pan's experience in winning this event, as well as international wins, was too much for the inexperienced #2 Taiwanese player and Pan crushed her 9-2 for her third All Japan Championship title. Taiwan's top bet Yuan Chun Lin, the reigning World 9-Ball Champ, was eliminated to 9th place by Korea's Yun Mi Lim.

The men's finals would be a re-match of the US Open Championship match, and also Alcano and Immonen's 3rd match against each other in 30 days. Alcano could easily be considered the hottest Filipino player with a multitude of consistent finishes including runner-up at the 2007 US Open, 2nd in 2008 World 8-Ball Championships, 2nd in 2008 US Open, and now again in the finals. Immonen of course is the definition of hot with wins at the US Open, IPT Challenge, 2nd in Asia 10-Ball Championships, and now the finals of the All Japan.

"I hope Mika wins. He's gotten 2nd place so many times here." answered one Japanese pro when asked who was the crowd pulling for.

Knowing the meaning of this title to Immonen, many people were more heart felt than usual in well wishing Immonen. Rodney Morris, Charlie Williams, and Yu Ram Cha , (Mika's fellow compatriots in Dragon Promotions) could all be seen giving fist bumps and words of encouragement before the match. His sponsor Kaz Miki of Mezz Cues gave Immonen a new break cue prototype that Immonen said he tried and gave him a boost of confidence.

Immonen jumped out to a 3-0 lead, looking strong and determined to overcome the close calls of the past. Then Immonen made his first error leaving Alcano an out to get on the board 3-1. Mika clearly looked irritated at his carelessness and could be seen reinforcing himself to bear down. Then Immonen went on an offensive tear giving Alcano no chance or open shots, with Mika breaking and running out and playing superb safeties. Almost as if he could sense the sweet taste of victory, Immonen finally made an error missing the 1 ball . By that time, Immonen had taken a 10-1 lead before Alcano had any real chance. Alcano made a great effort with a tricky out to add one more game and people wondered if there would be any real match. Alcano faced an easy 8-ball stop shot with the 9-ball sitting pretty next, but Alcano fired too hard and popped the 8-ball out. Immonen sensing the closeness of a finality to his goal, raised his eyebrows, seemingly to slowly realize this could be it. After making the final 9-ball, Immonen brought both hands together down in a pump, as if to forever push away the demons that haunted him in this event.

After a few moments, Immonen sat down in his chair and could be seen with his hands pinching away the tears from his eyes. After sitting frozen in his chair blocking the tears, Immonen gathered himself together to be embraced and congratulated by his friends and fans.

"I can't believe I got wins in both events I've wanted to win so long in the same year!" said the jubilant Immonen. When asked how did he prepare for the finals this time, Immonen answered, "I just went to my room and relaxed. I knew I was playing well and I shouldn't change anything. The key was just staying focused and not worry about anything else. At the very least i put myself in the best possible position to win by just getting to the finals."

"When Mika gets behind he knows how to come back. But when he gets out in front, he can whiz right by you better than anyone I ever seen." observed Rodney Morris.

"That guy (Mika) might be the greatest front runner ever. It's dangerous to let him lead, he shoots straighter than anyone I know." commented Alex Pagulayan.

Immonen will head next to Manila to participate in the Quezon City Invasion which will pit the World Team against Team Philippines. Immonen will partner up with Morris, Williams, Raj Hundal, and Thorsten Hohmann. The home team will consist of Reyes, Bustamante, Pagulayan, Orcullo, Alcano, Kiamco, Van Corteza, and Gomez. Immonen's hot streak will be a welcomed key force for the World Team. Immonen adds his win at the All Japan to his impressive list for 2008 including 2nd Place World Pool Masters, 5th Place World 10-Ball, 1st Place US Open, 1st Place IPT Challenge, 2nd Place Asia 10-Ball.

"Mika's playing his absolute best game right now. Even better than I've ever seen before, and as the level of play gets stronger, he still finds a way to rise up. I think it's safe to say right now he's the world's greatest player." said Charlie Williams.

Immonen Continues Fighting at All Japan: Cha, Morris, Williams Out

2008-11-24T15:51:00.000-08:00

Osaka, Japan- The All Japan Championships is drawing to an end with one day left out of the six total. Mika Immonen (FIN) is the last man standing out of the four pros Dragon Promotions sent. But as Immonen has proved in the past, one is all you need.

Rodney Morris (USA) suffered a first round loss and had came back with dominating wins over three Japanese pros with scores 9-1, 9-3 and 9-1. Then to enter the final 32 money rounds, he faced China's #1 Jian-Bo Fu. Morris rocketed to a 8-2 lead and then finally gave Fu an opening. Fu took more advantage of this chance then Morris would have liked as he strung that game plus five more racks. The format included no racks, just stickers that indicated where to place the balls with a circle indentures that made every ball frozen. This meant the corner ball would go in near 100% of the time. Incredibly at 8-8, Fu managed to not make a ball and Rodney ran the game out for the 9-8 win. Unfortunately Morris lost the next match to Marlon Manalo (PHI) with Manalo running 8 racks in a row to win 11-7 leaving The Rocket in 17th place tie.

Charlie Williams (USA) once again went the furthest out of the Americans finishing in the top 16. Williams on the winners side was 4-4 with Japan's Hayato Hijikata, and then a skidding 5 ball derailed him back to his chair and Hijikata would break and run out the rest of the set with Williams never leaving his chair. The Korean Dragon bounced back though with a commanding 9-3 win over Ando Masaka (JPN) to enter the final 32 man board. Then Williams proceeded with a 11-9 win over Taiwan's Po Cheng Kuo, runner up and 3rd place at the 2006 and 2007 World 9-Ball Championships. Williams was then defeated 11-7 by Japan's Satoshi Kawabata.

Yu Ram Cha and Xiao Ting Pan had a tough match with both players giving away easy games. Pan led early at 4-1, but Cha came back and tied at 5-5. Pan made a error that left Cha the 7,8, and 9 ball but a miscue on the 8 ball cost her the game and a missed 2 ball in the next rack ended Cha's run on the winners side. The losers side had Cha defeat Japan's Takahashi 7-3 but afterwards Cha faced Japan #1 Miyuki Fuke. Fuke led at 4-1 but Cha came back and soon the score was 5-4 favor of Fuke, but a near straight in 9 ball miss gave Kuo an easy combo. Fuke would win 7-5.

"I'm very disappointed in my play this week. I haven't been able to concentrate," said Cha.

Other notable defeats out of the event are Thorsten Hohmann (GER), Yuan Chun Lin (TPE), Francisco Bustamante (PHI), Dennis Orcullo (PHI), Max Eberle (USA) , Ga Young Kim (KOR), and Ralf Souquet(GER).

Mika Immonen is keeping his word thus far with a strong run undefeated. Mika defeated Marlon Manalo in the final match of the round and will advance into tomorrow's quarter finals against Satoshi Kawabata (JPN). Immonen has been in this spot many times and is now only 3 matches away from the title.

A sport where age is not a factor

2008-11-24T15:40:00.000-08:00

In my view, billiards is one sport where age does not matter in order for one to excel.

As a matter of fact, several former winners of the prestigious World 9-Ball Pool Championship, like Americans Earl Strickland and Johnny Archer, Chinese Taipei’s Chao Fong-pan, Germany’s Ralf Souquet and local idols Efren “Bata” Reyes, Alex Pagulayan and Ronnie Alcano, may be considered old for an athlete, yet they are good for some more years.

While it is true that there are other sports such as chess and marathon where age does not also matter, it is on record that a Filipino is yet to become a world champion in these sports. In billiards, the Philippines has already produced three world champions.

Hall of Famer Reyes was already 45 when he captured the world crown in Cardiff, Wales, in 1999. He is now 54.

Supported by brothers former Assemblyman Jose “Popit” Puyat and Aristeo “Putch” Puyat, the toothless “Magician” is an original member of the powerhouse Puyat Sports stable that includes the 58-year-old Jose “Amang” Parica, Francisco “Django” Bustamante, 44; and 50-year-old Rodolfo “Boy Samson” Luat, who topped the recent Sen. Manny Villar Cup in Bacolod City.

Pagulayan, the 2004 world champion and 2005 US Open winner, is the latest addition to the team.

“His (Reyes) style is so drastically different,” once said the legendary Nick Varner, a two-time Billiards Digest Player of the Year. “He attracts a lot of attention. And he has a big impact on the way we Americans play the game.”

On the other hand, double world champion Alcano, who bagged the 2006 world 9-ball crown and the 2007 world 8-ball title, is now 35. Pagulayan, who won the 2004 world 9-ball and 2005 US Open crowns, is pushing 29.

Veteran internationalist Strickland is now 47, but still going strong. He won the world 9-ball title three times, in 1990, 1991 and 2002. Archer, 40, captured the championships twice, in 1992 and 1997.

On the other hand, two-time champion Chao, a contemporary of Reyes, took the crown in 1993 and 2000, while Souquet won it in 1996. Both are nearing 60, yet they are still capable of punishing young talents with their arsenals of flawless breaks, silk-smooth runs and merciless safeties.

Mighty Morra Makes One Pocket Mark in NC

2008-11-22T15:25:00.000-08:00

Friday play at the Great Southern Billiard Tour's event at King Street Billiards in Fayetteville, NC was mostly dedicated to One Pocket as the $5000 added one pocket event was in full swing.

Canadian youngster John Morra was on a hot streak Friday with a 4-1 One Pocket win over Shane Van Boening, followed up by a 4-2 win over One Pocket heavyweight Tony Chohan. Morra remains unbeaten and will face either Wade Crane or Gabe Owen on Saturday.

Some of the other one pocket favorites found themselves on the wrong side of the board early Friday as Ronnie Wiseman was "three and out" after losses to Larry Nevel and Mark Haddad. Shannon Daulton won his first round match against Brandon Shuff but then lost to Nick Varner 4-3. Daulton remains in the running after a win over Jonathan Demet on the one loss side.

Daulton had a better time in the 10-ball event Friday as he remained undefeated with a 9-6 win over Shane Van Boening. Next up for Daulton will be Jonathan Pinegar for the hot-seat. Other favorites still alive in the 10-ball event include Charlie Bryant, Morra, Ronnie Wiseman, Leonardo Andam and Tony Chohan.

Steve Knoll wins All American Tour Stop

2008-11-19T15:27:00.001-08:00

The fourteenth stop of the 50-stop 2008/2009 Pechauer All American Tour (produced by the American CueSports Alliance – ACS) was hosted at Q’s Sports Bar & Girl in Port Charlotte, FL, on Saturday, November 15. The $500 added event featured 14 players in a double-elimination 8-ball format on 7-foot bar boxes. Trey Jankowski (North Port, FL) claimed the hot seat by outpointing Glenn Olson (Naples, FL) 7-3 in the A-side finals.

Previously in the A-side semifinals Jankowski clipped Randy Smith (Clearwater, FL) 7-5, while Olson dominated Buddy Folberth (St. Petersburg, FL) 7-1. But the eventual tourney winner emerged from the B-side bracket. Once-beaten Steve Knoll maintained his momentum by eliminating Ted Otakan (Port Charlotte, FL) 7-4 at 4th place, Glenn Olson 7-3 at 3rd place, and claiming the title by eclipsing Trey Jankowski 7-4, 7-3 in the finals!

By virtue of Steve Knoll being the highest-finishing ACS member in the event, he qualified for a free 9-Ball singles entry into the 2009 ACS Nationals in Las Vegas – courtesy of the ACS. The ACS wishes to thank sponsors J. Pechauer Custom Cues, Championship Billiard Fabric, Nick Varner Signature Cases and oZone Billiards for their support in donating “Value-In-Kind” product for this and all stops on the Pechauer All American Tour. Sponsorship opportunities are still available for the 2008/2009 All American Tour by contacting the ACS.

The Tour moves to Billiards on Main this Saturday, November 22 for a $500 added 8-Ball stop in Galesburg, IL (contact Mark Hammerl at 309-342-7665). Further information, entry details and schedules for the 2008/2009 Pechauer All American Tour are available at www.americancuesports.org.

Two World Championships Coming to Reno, Nevada This Month

2008-11-19T15:27:00.000-08:00

The WPA World Junior Championships and the WPA World Wheelchair Championships will be contested in Reno, Nevada, from December 1 thru 3, 2008. All events will be held at the Sand’s Regency Casino Hotel and are under the supervision of Tournament Organizer Tony Annigoni, the WPA and the BCA. Brackets, news and scoring for these events will be available on-line at www.wpa-tour.com.

A total of 52 young men and women will compete in their respective divisions in Reno. This is always an exciting competition and it is where many of the champions of today began their careers. Players from all over the globe will represent more than twenty countries in their quest for the World Champion’s gold.

Germany will be sending four youngsters to lead the charge for the European contingent. Other European representatives will come from Belgium, Austria, Russia and Luxembourg. North America will be very well represented with six boys and three girls from America and Canada sending three boys and a girl.

South America is sending players from Nicaragua, Netherlands Antilles and Venezuela while the Asian Pocket Billiard Union is delivering eleven hopefuls from Chinese Taipei, Japan, Hong Kong, Singapore, Japan and Indonesia.

According to Jeff Dolezal, President of the NWPA: “The 2008 WPA World 9 Ball Championship for Wheelchair Players will have a 32 player field full of the best wheelchair pool players in the world. Players will be competing from Austria, Belgium, Canada, Ireland, Japan, Slovenia, Sweden, the United Kingdom, and the USA. In the US, players are traveling from both coasts to be here. Henrik Larsson, the current reigning World Wheelchair 9-Ball Champion, will be defending his title. Larsson took that title after defeating Kurt DeKlerck of Belgium in the championship match. DeKlerck, who is a two-time U.S. National Champion, will also be in Reno. Other notable players who are competing in this event are: Danny Luton, Bronze Medalist - 2007 World 9-Ball Championship; Karl Read, 2007 U.S. National 9-Ball Champion; Fred Dinsmore, 2000 and 2005 World 9-Ball Champion; Aaron, 6-time U.S. National 9-Ball Champion; Robert Calderon, 1999 World 9-Ball Champion; Charlie Hans of Cincinnati, Ohio, 5-time U.S. Open 8 Ball Champion; and Bill Frisby, the current No.1 ranked US wheelchair pool player. The public is invited to come and watch the exciting world class play that will occur during this prestigious pool event.”

We wish to thank the following sponsors for this event: Paralyzed Veterans of America, Seyberts, Iwan Simonis, Mueller, Poison Cues, USPPA, Hustlin USA, Tonkin Custom Cues, APA, NWPA, Predator Cues and Viking Cues.

Yu Ram Cha Leads Dragon Promotions Pros in Bid for All Japan Championships

2008-11-19T15:25:00.000-08:00

Osaka, Japan - Yu Ram Cha of Korea will be vying for her first title in Japan at the 41st Annual All Japan Championships. The All Japan Championships is considered a world points ranking event and has a long history as one of the oldest and longest running events in the world. Cha is part of a team of players managed by Dragon Promotions who is one of the world's leading producers of billiard events and television programming. Dragon Promotions players Rodney Morris (USA), Charlie Williams (USA), and Mika Immonen (FIN) will also be competing for their first win in Osaka.

Cha has just recently returned to Asia after her six month stay in the US. Cha's intensive training under the tutelage of top American pro Charlie Williams has skyrocketed Cha dramatically from unranked to #18 in her first year of the WPBA, earning her pro tour card. Cha also was the recipient of the WPBA's 2008 Most Improved Pro Player Award . She has not participated in Japan in the past three years and prior to that never finished in the top 16. Cha's last visit to Asia competing internationally resulted in a disappointing 5th Place Korea Pro Tour Championships and traumatizing last place finish at The Women's World 9-Ball Championship back in April.

"My last tournaments in Asia were an eye opening experience. Though at the time I felt horrible at my play, it was a good experience because it made me realize I needed to learn more and train harder. Coming to America and training under Dragon Promotions with Charlie Williams has changed my game. " explained the 21 year old Cha. "Now I'm nervous and excited about returning to Japan. It's an important title for me."

"Yu Ram has evolved alot in the past six months. Not just as a player, but as a person. She has a great work ethic and is a perfectionist. I think she is just beginning to grasp the kind of power she has in her game, and it's just a matter of time before she really gets going. Her successes so far is just a good start is what I tell her," says Williams. He further predicted, "For the All Japan Championships, I'd be surprised if she didn't at least reach the semi-finals. "

Efren Reyes, Francisco Bustamante, Ronnie Alcano, Lee Van Corteza, and Alex Pagualyan lead the strong Filipino contingent. Wu Chia Ching leads Taiwan while Ralf Souquet and recent Asia 10-Ball Champion Thorsten Hohmann will join to create a tougher field.

Mika Immonen also has a personal score to settle at this event. Immonen has finished a record 2nd Place four times in the past 10 years. Immonen just recently put to rest his demons by winning the US Open 9-Ball after coming close with a 3rd and 2nd place finish. Immonen playing the best pool in his career now may be peaking at the right time to kill two big events he's missing in his repertoire this year in 2008.

"Now that I've won the US Open, I have to win the All Japan. Four second place finishes is unacceptable." promises Immonen.

Rodney Morris, the current World Cup Champion, will be making his debut appearance at the event. Charlie Williams will be making his fourth appearance in Osaka after missing the past three years. Williams' best finish was 3rd place in 2003, the same year Immonen lost to Bustamante in the finals. While Williams is a legitimate contender for the title, he says he will be keeping a closer eye on his protege Cha during the event.

More info on the All Japan Championships can be found at www.onthehill.jp

Resurgent Luat richer by $15,000

2008-11-18T16:01:00.000-08:00

BACOLOD CITY—Rodolfo “Boy Samson” Luat pulled away early and then foiled hometown bet Ramil Gallego’s comeback bids to prevail, 13-10, and rule the First Senate President Manny Villar Cup Bacolod leg Sunday night at the Garden Royal function hall of Goldenfields Commercial Complex here.

Sustaining his fiery form, the 50-year-old Luat zoomed ahead, 6-0, and then showed steely nerves to end a two-year title-drought. He pocketed the $15,000 top purse of the island-hopping series presented by Villards: Tulong sa Pagsulong ng Philippine Sports.

Egged on by the big gallery, Gallego returned from a timeout with a 6-2 run to close the gap at 8-6. The 42-year-old from Barangay Estefania here further reduced the gap to 9-8, but let a chance to tie the count slip in the 18th rack when he missed his shot at the orange 5.

The two stalwarts of the Negros Billiard Stable of businessman Jonathan Sy split the next four frames, 11-10, before Gallego, winner of the inaugural Bulacan leg, broke dry in the 23rd.

Luat calmly cleaned it up to break his jinx in the series, in which he couldn’t go past the second round.

“I’m very happy with this victory, because I proved that I can still become a champion despite my failing eyesight,” Luat, whose last title came in the Taiwan leg of the San Miguel Asian 9-Ball Tour, said in Filipino.

Luat opened his bid by stunning reigning world No. 1 Dennis Orcollo, 11-6, and followed it up with an equally impressive 11-7 conquest of two-time world champion Ronnie Alcano.

Luat next toppled Cebu leg winner Gandy Valle, 11-9, to barge into the semifinals, where he bested unheralded Michael Feliciano, 11-8, his fourth straight Bugsy stable victim.

The 42-year-old Gallego advanced to the finals at the expense of pool maestro Efren “Bata” Reyes, 11-8.

Gallego, who regularly competes in the Japan tour, settled for the $5,000 runner-up purse in the four-day event organized by the Billiards Managers and Players Association of the Philippines in cooperation with the Bacolod city government led by Mayor Evelio Leonardia and supported by Camella Communities.

Reyes and Feliciano pocketed $2,500 each in the event that also lured eight foreign bidders, including former world champion Kenji Takahashi of Japan who went as far as the quarterfinals.

Meanwhile, William Millares topped the accompanying “Panersera-pababa” event at the expense of another NBS bet Jarry Pelayo, 9-6. Millares, a Manileño, bagged P50,000 while Pelayo settled for P25,000.

- by Roy Luarca, Philippine Daily Inquirer

Thorsten Hohmann is XTM Asia 10-Ball Champion: Kawahara Wins Ladies Division

2008-11-17T23:00:00.000-08:00

Seoul, Korea- The 5th Annual XTM Asia 10-Ball Championships has concluded with a new champion in the men's and women's division. Thorsten Hohmann of Germany has joined past champions of the event as the 5th different country to win it including 2004 Heoun Ho Kim (Charlie Williams) (KOR), 2005 Mika Immonen (FIN), 2006 Hisashi Kusano (JPN), 2007 Joven Bustamente (PHI). Chihiro Kawahara of Japan has become the 3rd Japanese woman to win joining 2004 Miyuki Sakai (JPN), 2005 Ohtani (JPN), 2006 Sung Hyun Jung (KOR), 2007 Hsiang Ling Tan (TPE).

The day started off with the first women's semi-finals with Korea's #1 seed and amateur champion Gui Young Lee against Japan's Kaori Ebe, the only player in japan sponsored by Sony Entertainment. Lee jumped out to a 2-0 lead after Ebe missed an easy 9-ball. The match was close, but Lee kept a comfortable 2 game lead the entire match to win 7-5 and put Korea into the finals of the event for the 5th consecutive year in a row.

The men's semi finals would put unknown Korean amateur Hwang Yhong against perhaps the hottest, most famous player in the world currently in Mika Immonen. Yhong facing his first career TV match seemed out of sorts and Immonen punished every mistake and missed shot. Immonen would win 8-1 leaving Yhong in an impressive 3rd place finish in his first pro event.

"It's going to take alot for Yhong to be able to come with a win against Mika. The pressure of TV for the first time and against the tour's hottest hand right now is going to be tremendous." predicted Charlie Williams before the match.

Women's semi #2 featured a re-match with Japanese roomies Junko Mitsuoka and Chihiro Kawahara. Mitsuoka defeated Kawahara earlier in the event 7-5, but this time the tide was completely turned as Kawahara dominated her friend 7-2 with little resistance.

Next came the second men's semi finals with Heoun Ho Kim (KOR Charlie Williams) versus Thorsten Hohmann. Hohmann started with a two game lead and then Kim bounced back with a break and run to make it 2-1. Hohmann missed an easy 3-Ball the 4th game and lucked it in and then ran out and then broke and ran the next to lead 4-1. The rolls seemed to get better for Hohmann and worse for Kim as Hohmann took advantage of each opportunity to steam roll to a 8-2 win. Kim would tie for 3rd place along with fellow Korean Yhong while Hohmann and Immonen would make an all European finals.

The women's finals was a two hour marathon, even with a 30 second shot clock. The very small pockets and tense nerves were huge factors on both players. Kawahara led the entire match by a two game margin and reached the hill first at 6-4. Lee showed tremendous heart and made two back to back amazing outs to tie the match at 6-6 to the Korean audience's delight and cheers. Kawahara looking nervous and feeling the pressure of losing the lead, made a tremendous effort on her final break. As the balls scattered around , somehow the 10-ball was kicked upward towards the side pocket and then kissed in by another ball as Kawahara shrieked out a triumphant and pleading yelp! Lee then got up and smiled to congratulate the new Asia 10-Ball Champion.

The men's finals was significantly shorter. Immonen seemed unstoppable the past month winning the US Open and IPT Challenge, and now entering his third finals in four weeks. Hohmann had been lackluster and titleless in 9-ball and 10-ball the past two years. Hohmann did have the advantage though record wise over Immonen with four wins and 1 loss, but Immonen having the win the last time they played 9-ball at the Florida Pro Tour Championships. Immonen looked confident on the tight equipment but even so missed several routine shots including a very easy 10-ball in game 3 while Hohmann looked sharp and hungry. Hohmann adding insult to injury also was the beneficiary of the rolls the entire match, continuing from his earlier match with Kim.

"I can't get one roll." muttered a dejected Immonen towards the middle of the match as he was trailing.

Hohmann taking advantage of every missed shot by Immonen and several key rolls, quickly thrusted himself into a 7-1 lead. Immonen had an easy out the 9th game and got perfectly straight in on a 18 inch shot on the 8-ball and missed it. That told the tale of the match as Hohmann ran down to the final 10-ball laying near deliciously perfect for the win. Hohmann despite having the win in hand, seemed cautious and asked the referee to remove a particle off the cueball. After which he re-composed himself and made the 10-ball for the win, raising his cue and hands in the air out of more a sigh of relief it seemed to get a monkey off his back.

"I don't care how I did it, I'm just glad I won!" said Hohmann minutes after the match to a few chuckles of his friends.

"A funny story is that these boots I'm wearing now,..well the last time I wore these was the European 9-Ball Championships that I won two years ago. Then someone broke the heel and I couldn't wear them anymore. I have not won a title in a rotation game since then. I got them fixed and here is the first tournament I wore them, and then I win!" explained The Hitman on the secret to his success. "I've always done poorly in Korea and not so well in Asia in general. So winning this is significant for me as it's my first win in Asia."

Hohmann will get to celebrate his $10,000 1st place while Immonen will have to console himself with $4000 that he will add onto a total of $52,000 in winnings in less than 30 days. Kawahara goes home with $3500 and her first major international title.

The XTM Asia 10-Ball Championships is produced by Dragon Promotions and played on Min Tables Professional Edition with Simonis Cloth and Aramith Balls. Official Cue is Poison Cues www.poisonbilliards.co.kr and Predator Cues www.predatorcues.co.kr . The event was also sponsored by Tony Moley Cosmetics and professional make-up and hair provided by Ra Beauty Salons. The final six matches will air on XTM and XPORTS.

Asia 10-Ball Crown New Champs

2008-11-17T16:03:00.000-08:00

The 5th Annual XTM Asia 10-Ball Championships — held Nov. 10-14 at the Hamilton Hotel in Seoul, South Korea — has crowned new champions in both the men's and women's divisions.

In the first semifinal in the women's division, Korean junior champion Gui Young Lee topped Japan's Kaori Ebe, 7-5. The other spot in the final was taken by Japan's Chihiro Kawahara, who dominated good friend Junko Mitsuoka, 7-2.

In the race-to-7 final, Kawahara held the advantage throughout, maintaining a two game lead on her way to the hill, 6-4. Lee managed to get out in tough situations in the next two games, meeting her opponent on the hill, 6-6.

But Kawahara made a tremendous effort on her final break. As the balls scattered around, somehow the 10-ball was kicked upward toward the side pocket and then kissed in by another ball. As the title-clincher rolled into the pocket, Kawahara let out a triumphant yell to celebrate the 7-6 victory, which was worth $3,500.

The first semifinal on the men's side featured arguable the hottest cueist in the world in Mika Immonen. The U.S. Open champion has been on a tear since his victory in Chesapeake, Va., including a win at the IPT Pro-Am just a week ago.

Immonen faced Korean amateur Hwang Yhong, who was making his television debut. Yhong's impressive run would end abruptly at the hands of Immonen, who repeatedly cleared open racks on his way to an easy 8-1 win.

The next semifinal matched good friends Thorsten Hohmann of Germany against Charlie Williams. Hohmann took control of the match early, jumping out to an early 4-1 lead. Williams couldn't get rolling, and the semifinal went to the German, 8-2.

In the race-to-8 final, Immonen looked to be the odds-on favorite against Hohmann. But the German 14.1 ace showed he is more than capable of catching a gear in rotation. Hohmann jumped to a 7-1 lead, then was gifted the final rack after Immonen missed a simple shot on the 8.

Raising his cue seemingly out of relief, Hohmann was glad to get a title under his belt.

"I don't care how I did it, I'm just glad I won," Hohmann said.

For the win, Hohmann collected $10,000, while Immonen pocketed $4,000 for second place.

- Billiards Digest

Adam Kielar Wins the 2008 Maryland State Open 8-Ball Championships

2008-11-17T15:26:00.000-08:00

FREDERICK, MD – November 17, 2008 – On Saturday, November 15th, All-Star Billiards of Frederick, MD hosted the 2008 Maryland State Open 8-Ball Championships. The original plan was to limit the field to 32 applicants, but due to the large turn-out, the tournament directors opened the field to 55 participants from Maryland and nearby states. The tournament was open to both professional and top level amateur players with BCA rules in effect, where every ball and pocket is called, not just the 8-ball.

In the race to seven game finals, Adam Kielar from Quakertown, Pa. defeated Matt Clatterbuck from Front Royal, Virginia 7 games to 5 to become the 2008 Maryland State Open 8-Ball Champion.

The final match was not without its share of controversy. In the final game, Kielar faced a shot where the cue ball was near the 2-ball at the head of the table and his object ball (the 6-ball) was clustered among Clatterbuck’s high balls at the opposite end. Kielar called the 6-ballin the far corner and the ball went in after glancing off of a high-ball. This left an open shot on the 2-ball in the corner and a routine shot on the 8-ball to clinch the match.

After the match was over, Clatterbuck approached Kielar and Larry Nicholson, the tournament director, and claimed that Kieler had nudged a high ball with his cue, clearing a path to the 2-ball which, if true, would be loss of turn and ball-in-hand for Clatterbuck. This started a debate among the crowd, with some people claiming they had seen a foul, while other people saying it was a clean shot. In the end, Nicholson said that he did not see a foul, so he ruled that Kieler had won and the match was over.

Larry Nicholson, tournament director said, “In a case like this, you have to call the foul as soon as you think it happened, not wait until after the entire match was over. So either way, it was a moot point. But I was sitting right by the table and I did not see a foul. Both Adam and Matt played extremely well. It was a great match.”

With a talented field that included nationally known players such as Shaun Wilkie, Brandon Shuff, Scot Tollefson, and Ryan “The Genie Man” McCreesh, getting to the finals was no easy task.

Throughout the day, Matt Clatterbuck looked nearly unstoppable, pocketing balls with ease and getting nearly perfect cue ball position for the next shot. Clatterbuck mowed his way through a talented field with quality wins over Joe Wright, Kevin West, Joey Ryan, Danny Nicholson and finally over Adam Kielar in the hot-seat match. After a long day, Clatterbuck relaxed and waited to see who would emerge as the winner from the one-loss side of the field.

Up to that point, Adam Kielar has beaten a number of players including Scott Tollefson, Brett Stottlemyer, and then after losing to Clatterbuck, faced Brandon Shuff in the semi-final match. In a race to three games in the losers-side finale, Kielar picked up a head of steam to beat Shuff 3 games to 1 and set himself up for the rematch with Clatterbuck in the finals.

Larry Nicholson, owner of All-Star Billiards and tournament director said, “We had a much larger than expected field at the 2008 Maryland State Open 8-Ball Championships, but we had committed to get it all done in one day and we accomplished that task. We are already looking forward to even bigger Maryland State 8-ball

Luat Wins Villar Cup

2008-11-17T15:23:00.000-08:00

BACOLOD CITY – Rodolfo “Boy Samson” Luat got off to a dazzling start and then held off hometown bet Ramil Gallego’s fierce rallies for a 13-10 win in the finals to crown himself champion of the First Senate President Manny Villar Cup Bacolod leg Sunday night at the Garden Royal Function Hall of Goldenfields Commercial Complex here.

It was a breakthrough feat for the 50-year-old veteran internationalist, who has not won a title in almost two years since winning the Taiwan leg of the 2006 San Miguel Asian 9-Ball Tour.

“I’m very happy with this victory” said Luat, who also earned the top prize of $15,000 for ruling this fifth stop of the prestigious island-hopping series presented by Villards: Tulong sa Pagsulong ng Philippine sports.

It was not easy sailing for Luat, who has not made it past the second round in the previous Villar Cup leg, in scoring this title conquest.

He opened his bid by upending reigning world no.1 Dennis Orcollo, 11-6, to earn a second round match against two-time world champion Ronnie Alcano, whom he defeated 11-7, to advance into the quarterfinals.

There, he had a heck of a battle with Cebu leg champion Gandy Valle before prevailing, 11-9, to move within two wins of the coveted crown at stake in this four-day competition organized by the Billiards Managers and Players Association of the Philippines in cooperation with the city government of Bacolod led by Mayor Evelio Leonardia and the Negros Billiards Stable (NBS) of businessman Jonathan Sy and sponsored by Camella Communities.

He met another Bugsy boy in Michael Feliciano, a qualifier, in the semifinals, and they engaged in another tough battle before his vast experience led him to an 11-7 win.

Then came the title-duel against Gallego, a Bacoleno billiards idol, who ruled the series’ Bulacan leg and who came into the match fresh from beating pool icon Efren “Bata” Reyes, 11-8, in the other Final Four match.

Despite playing before a huge partisan crown rooting against him, Luat did not flinch and instead raced to a 6-0 lead.

Gallego, not wanting to disappoint his townmates, returned from a timeout with a 6-2 run to close in at 8-6 and make it anybody’s game.

Luat’s lead was further reduced to one, 9-8, and Gallego had a chance to tie the count in the 18th rack but missed his shot on the orange-5 that instead gave the former a two-point advantage.

They then split the next four frames before Gallego broke dry in the 23rd racks, and Luat methodically cleaned it up to seal the win and became the fifth holder of the Villar Cup.

Gallego settled for the runner-up purse worth $5,000, while Reyes and Feliciano took home $2,500 each.

Meanwhile, William Millares subdued local bet Jarry Pelayo, 9-6, in the finals to bag the “Panersera-pababa” title and took the P50,000 cash prize in the side event that attracted a total of 178 players.

Luat breaks title drought with Villar Cup 9-ball championship

2008-11-17T11:31:00.000-08:00

MANILA, Philippines – Rodolfo Luat secured the championship of the Bacolod leg of the First Senate President Manny Villar Cup Sunday night, after he defeated Ramil Gallego 13-10.

It was Luat's first championship in more than two years.

On his way to the title, the 50-year-old veteran downed giants Dennis Orcollo and Ronnie Alcano in the first two rounds before he defeated former Villar Cup winner Gandy Valle and the qualifier Michael Feliciano in the last two.

Playing in front of Gallego's hometown, Luat didn't let the hostile crowd affect him as he raced to a 6-0 lead.

Gallego chipped away at the deficit and in the 17th game, made it 9-8. He could have tied the match in the 18th rack, but he missed a shot at the 5-ball to allow Luat back at the table and fall back 10-8.

In the the 23rd rack, Luat took advantage of a Gallego dry break to methodically clean up the table and seal the trophy.

Luat will take home $15,000 (P727,500), while Gallego, who defeated Efren "Bata" Reyes to advance to the finals, earned $5,000 (P242,500).

- GMANews.TV

Luat ends dry spell, wins Villar Cup in Bacolod

2008-11-17T11:28:00.000-08:00

Rodolfo “Boy Samson” Luat got off to a dazzling start and then staved off hometown bet Ramil Gallego’s fierce rallies for a 13-10 win to crown himself champion of the First Senate President Manny Villar Cup Bacolod leg Sunday night at the Garden Royal Function Hall of Goldenfields Commercial Complex in Bacolod City.

It was a breakthrough feat for the 50-year-old veteran internationalist who has not won a title in almost two years—or since winning the Taiwan leg of the 2006 San Miguel Asian 9-Ball Tour.

“I’m very happy with this victory, dahil napatunayan ko na kaya ko pa palang mag-champion kahit medyo lumalabo na ang aking mata,” said Luat, who also earned the top prize of $15,000 for ruling this fifth stop of the prestigious island-hopping series presented by Villards: Tulong sa Pagsulong ng Philippine sports.

It was not an easy sailing though for Luat, who has not made past the second round in the previous Villar Cup leg.

He opened his bid by upending reigning world No.1 Dennis Orcollo, 11-6, to earn a second-round match against two-time world champion Ronnie Alcano, whom he defeated, 11-7, to advance into the quarterfinals.

There, he had a heck of a battle with Cebu leg champion Gandy Valle before prevailing, 11-9, to move within two wins of the coveted crown at stake in this four-day competition organized by the Billiards Managers and Players Association of the Philippines, in cooperation with the city government of Bacolod, led by Mayor Evelio Leonardia, and the Negros Billiards Stable of businessman Jonathan Sy and sponsored by Camella Communities.

He met another Bugsy boy in Michael Feliciano, a qualifier, in the semifinals, and they engaged in another tough battle before his vast experience led him to an 11-7 win.

Then came the title duel against Gallego, a Bacolodnon billiards idol who ruled the series’ Bulacan leg and who came into the match fresh from beating pool icon Efren “Bata” Reyes, 11-8, in the other Final Four match.

Despite playing before a huge partisan crown rooting for his rival, Luat did not flinch and instead raced to a 6-0 lead.

Gallego, not wanting to disappoint his townmates, returned from a time-out with a 6-2 run to close in at 8-6 and make it anybody’s game.

Luat’s lead was further reduced to 9-8 and Gallego had a chance to tie the count in the 18th rack but missed the orange-5 that instead gave the former a two-point advantage.

They then split the next four frames before Gallego broke dry in the 23rd rack, and Luat methodically cleaned up the table to seal the win and become the fifth holder of the Villar Cup.

Gallego settled for the runner-up purse worth $5,000, while Reyes and Feliciano took home $2,500 each.

- Business Mirror

Reyes Enters Final Four With Blazing Eight Rack Run

2008-11-16T22:51:00.000-08:00

Efren “Bata” Reyes, showing flashes of the brilliance of old, recovered from a sluggish start against another former world pool champion Kunihiko Takahashi of Japan to finish with a blazing eight-rack run to enter the Final Four in the Bacolod Leg of the 1st Senate President Manny Villar Cup.

The 54 year old Reyes playing before a huge crowd of supporters at the Garden Royal Function Hall of Goldfields Commercial Complex missed three comparatively easy shots in a poor start that saw Takahashi, the 1998 World Pool Champion grab a 4-3 lead.

Reyes who is known in the world of pool as “The Magician” then dug deep into his bag of tricks with a long, acutely-angled bank shot of the red 3 in the eighth frame and tied the match, before a scintillating stretch of break and run-outs that delighted the fans at the fifth stop of the prestigious island-hopping series presented by Villards: Tulong sa Pagsulong ng Philippine sports.

With the triumph Reyes moved to within two wins of pocketing the top prize of $15,000 and breaking a long dry spell in the four day tournament organized by the Billiards Managers and Players Association of the Philippines in cooperation with the Bacolod City government headed by Mayor Evelio Leonardia and the Negros Billiards Stable of businessman Jonathan Sy and sponsored by Camella Communities.

Reyes faces hometown favorite Ramil Gallego who earlier ousted Joven Bustamante 11-7 in the quarter finals while in the other semi final showdown veteran Rodolfo “Boy Samson” Luat who has had a fine run faces unheralded Michael Feliciano.

The 50 year old Luat who is known for his tendency to falter in close end-games proved he is still a threat when he beat Cebu leg winner Gandy Valle 11-7 after he got rid of former Asian Games gold medal winner Antonio Lining and 2006 World Pool Champion and 8-Ball king Ronnie Alcano.

The 24 year old Feliciano who belongs to the star-studded stable of Bugsy Promotions passionate pool enthusiast Perry Mariano made the semis by routing fellow qualifier Ronnie Aying 11-1 in a match where Feliciano opened with seben consecutive breaks and run-outs.

All four semi finalists are guaranteed $2,500 each.

Monica Webb wins WPBA Championship

2008-11-16T14:51:00.000-08:00

Monica Webb is the new WPBA Tour Champion.

Webb had more than her fair share of close calls all week, but she always came through when she had to. Webb started the event with lopsided wins over Val Finnie and Ewa Laurance, but then had close matches with both Jeanette Lee and Anna Kostanian. Her combined margin of victory in those two matches was three games.

The first TV match for Webb saw her face off against Karen Corr. Webb trailed the match at 1-0, but took control and raced to a 4-1 lead on the way to a 7-4 win.

Next up for Webb was Vivian Villarreal, and Webb controlled this match from the opening lag. Webb led the match 3-1 and then stretched that lead to 5-1. Villarreal clawed back to 5-4 down, but that was as close as Villarreal would get as Webb won the match 7-5.

This left only #1 ranked Kelly Fisher in Monica's way. The match started out tied 1-1, and Fisher was the first to take a lead of more than one rack at 3-1. Webb came back to tie the match at 3-3, but Fisher took advantage of ball in hand from Webb in game seven to retake the lead at 4-3. Webb one again tied the match at 4-4, and finally pulled ahead for her first lead at 5-4. Webb then won a safety battle with Fisher in game ten to get to the hill at 6-4. Monica stayed aggressive and went on to win the next game for the 7-4 win and her first WPBA title.

Stevie Moore wins Steve Mizerak Championship

2008-11-16T14:33:00.000-08:00

Gabe Owen might have come out ahead of Stevie Moore for the hot-seat at the Seminole Pro Tour's Steve Mizerak championship, but it was Moore who had the last laugh after a 9-2 win over Owen in the finals.

Moore has played some of his best pool on the Seminole Tour all year, and he had back-to-back tour wins in June and July earlier this year. Both of those wins combined were not as big for Moore as the $10,000 win this week.

Moore had wins over Ron Park and Mark Haddad on his way to the match with Owen for the hot-seat, but fell short of the hot-seat after losing to Owen 8-5.

An 8-7 win over Shane Van Boening earned Moore another shot against Owen in the finals, and he took full advantage as he cruised to the 9-2 win.

Moore pocketed $10,000 for first, while Owen took home $6000 for second.

Reyes enters Villar Cup quarterfinals

2008-11-16T11:43:00.000-08:00

Pool legend Efren “Bata” Reyes advanced into the quarterfinals of the First Senate President Manny Villar Cup Bacolod leg after beating teenage prodigy Johann Chua, 11-6, at the Garden Royal Function Hall of Goldenfields Commercial Complex Saturday.

A report posted on AZBilliards.com said the “Magician” had to work extra hard to storm back from a 0-4 deficit to beat Chua.

The 54-year-old Reyes cleaned up the next five racks to take the lead 5-4.

The 16-year-old Chua had a break, taking two of the next three racks to tie the scores at 6-all.

Reyes, however, wiped out the succeeding five racks to earn his ticket to the quarters.

The “Magician” was coming off an easy 11-5 win over upstart Mike Takayama, prior to his match against Chua.

Chua, meanwhile, came into the match fresh from winning an 11-6 upset against Davao leg winner Roberto Gomez.

Reyes’ next opponent will be former world champion Kunihiko Takahashi, who ruled the World 9-Ball Championship in 1998.

Other players who fought it out in the quarterfinals late Saturday were Gandy Valle who will face Rodolfo Luat; Ramil Gallego against Joven Bustamante; and Michael Feliciano opposite Ronnie Aying.

The semifinals and the finals are both scheduled Sunday.

At stake in tournament are the coveted Villar Cup and the $15,000 top prize that goes with it.

Orcollo Seeks to Reinforce His No. 1 World Standing

2008-11-11T12:52:00.000-08:00

Dennis Orcollo will try to reinforce his standing as the No. 1 player in the world when he competes in the Bacolod leg of the 1st Senate President Manny Villar Cup which begins Wednesday at the Garden Royal Function Hall of Goldenfields Commercial Complex.

The 29-year-old Orcollo has already won four major tournaments this year, but fell short of winning a title in his last two events. Partnering veteran pool legend Francisco “Django” Bustamante in the World Cup of Pool, the Filipinos were beaten in the semi finals by the US pair of “The South Dakota Kid” Shane Van Boening and Rodney “The Rocket” Morris who went on to win the crown.

Orcollo also faltered in the semi finals of the Guinness 9-Ball Grand Finals last month in Jakarta .

Orcollo said he was hoping he “could resume my winning ways. I want to do it here in the Villar Cup.” Orcollo, who ruled the Quezon City 9-Ball Championship, the All-Japan Open, the Qatar International 9-Ball Open and the Guinness Tour Guangzhou has emerged as one of the most successful pool players in 2008. He is a superstar in the star-studded

Bugsy Promotions roster of passionate pool supporter Perry Mariano.

Orcollo remarked “Actually, nothing changed in my shot making but I did get a good break in my past two tournaments. So I’m still confident that I can continue winning more tournaments.”

It certainly will not be easy for the World No.1 as he is expected to face stiff competition in the fifth edition of the island-hopping series presented by Villards: Tulong sa Pagsulong ng Philippine Sports.

Unlike the four previous stagings, Orcollo will not only take on his already tough countrymen, but also have to contend with top-class foreign contenders led by former World Cup of Pool winner Fu Jianbo of China .

Orcollo who was runner-up to Gandy Valle in the Cebu leg said “its much harder now but I am very confident and I really want to be champion in the Villar Cup because this is the most prestigious tournament now..”

Besides the foreign players Orcollo will have to contend with a formidable roster of his countrymen including former world champions Efren “Bata” Reyes, Alex Pagulayan and Ronnie Alcano, Francisco "Django" Bustamante, Lee Van Corteza, and previous Villar Cup leg winners Kiamco (Alabang), Gandy Valle ( Cebu ), Ramil Gallego (Bulacan) and Roberto Gomez ( Davao ).

There is also a group of rising stars led by Carlo Biado, Ricky Zerna, Mike Takayama and Michael Feliciano that Orcollo will have to contend with since they out to make a name for themselves and win the $15,000 top purse at stake in this four day meet organized by the Billiards Managers and Players Association of the Philippines (BMPAP) in cooperation with the city government of Bacolod led by Mayor Evelio Leonardia and the Negros Billiards Stable (NBS) of businessman Jonathan Sy, and sponsored by Camella Communities.

The rest of the 32-man main draw is still being disputed by dozens of aspiring players through a series of qualifying tournaments being held at the Celebrity Billiards and Bar in Bacolod City.

Besides the international invitational division, there will also be the Executive Class and Amateur divisions for both men and women, where almost half-a-million pesos cash prize is at stake.

Moreover, the event will also have a series of side activities like street parties, concerts and exhibits as the event is also dubbed as “the Bacolod International VILLARDS Festival.”

RP & Taiwan now even-Steven

2008-10-31T20:58:00.000-07:00

Filipino cue artists are finding the Taiwanese such a pain in the necks. In the recent grand finals of the 2008 Guinness 9-Ball Tour, the Taiwanese booted out the likes of Dennis Orcullo and Alex Pagulayan in the semifinals.

Current world No. 1 Dennis Orcullo, the Guanzhou leg champion, fell apart after the 13th rack to bow out of contention, beaten by Yan Ching Shun, 5-9. Pagulayan, who dominated the Singapore leg, fell 1-4 early in the game, worked his way to make it 6-8 but succumbed to 2004 World Pool champion Wu Chia Ching, 6-9.

This must have been a bitter loss for Orcullo as he vowed to make up after the stinging semis loss, he and Django Bustamante, suffered to eventual champs the US in the 2008 Party Pooker World Cup of Pool.

Yang ultimately won the grand finals, beating Wu, 11-9. With Yang’s triumph, the Philippines and Taiwan are now even-steven, 13-13, in titles won since the Guinness 9-Ball tournament started in 2003.

Orcullo and Pagulayan were in breathing fire in the quarterfinals as they routed their respective rivals. In between laying out my pages, I would peek and looked at the scores, and they were miles apart.

It was fast shaping up to be an All-Filipino finale but the Taiwanese spoiled the party. What I couldn’t understand is the sudden change in the games of Orcullo and Pagulayan - from almost perfect to mediocre. Or is billiards that unpredictable?

Orcullo and Pagulayan weren’t alone. Over at the US 9-Ball Open, Ronnie Alcano had his misfortunes as well. Alcano cruised into the finals, undefeated, and was the favorite to wrap up the crown until he lost to Finland’s Mika Immonen, 13-7.

Immonen came from the loser’s bracket, having absorbed an 11-6 beating from Alcano in the semis. On his way to the final, he beat another Filipino Warren Kiamco. The Finn more than made up for his earlier defeat by beating Alcano in the most important game, relegating Alcano to his second runner-up finish in the US Open.

All of a sudden, I’m missing the Magician. The last time I heard, Efren “Bata” Reyes has to skip the US 9-Ball Open due to health reasons. Let’s hope that he gets well soon and back in harness again.

American Mosconi Cup Team Complete

2008-10-31T20:49:00.000-07:00

Matchroom Sport has announced that Jeremy Jones and Earl Strickland have been chosen to fill the final two spots in the American line-up at the 2008 PartyCasino.com Mosconi Cup.

The pair will join Shane Van Boening, Johnny Archer and Rodney Morris on the American side, which was upset by the Europeans last year in Las Vegas. The only change from 2007 team is the substitution of Jones for Corey Deuel.

The American team not be lacking in experience, with Strickland making his 13th appearance and Archer his 12th. All in all, the five Americans have a total of 35 appearances at the yearly Ryder Cup-style event.

Van Boening is by far the greenest member of Team USA, though he may also be the most feared. In his Mosconi Cup debut last year, the 25-year-old South Dakotan won three of his five matches.

Though Strickland has struggled in international singles events, he has always been a force at the Mosconi Cup. Of the 61 player to compete in the event, Strickland has the best record, winning a staggering 37 of his 56 matches.

“I’m a more intelligent player than most of these guys. I’m working hard and I think I’m close to being back to my very best," he said. "The Mosconi Cup is my kind of tournament, and I’m looking forward to doing my best for the U.S.A. in Malta.”

Looking to win a second straight Cup for the first time in the event's 15th year, Team Europe will consist of Ralf Souquet, Mark Gray, Tony Drago, Niels Feijen and Mika Immonen.

Stickland and Jones fill out Team USA

2008-10-31T20:38:00.000-07:00

Matchroom Sport can announce that the final two spots on the American side for the forthcoming PartyCasino.com Mosconi Cup will be filled by South Carolina’s Earl Strickland and Jeremy Jones (Texas).

Both players line up in an American team that is hoping to win the Mosconi Cup outright for the first time since 2005. Taking place at the Hilton Hotel, Portomaso, St Julians, Malta from December 11 – 14, the event features two five-man teams playing a series of singles and doubles matches over four days.

Strickland, 47, is playing in his 13th consecutive Mosconi Cup, a record for the event, and has won a fantastic 37 points from 56 matches. ‘The Pearl’ insists that he will be back to his imperious best come December, having put the health issues that dogged him a few years ago very much behind him.

“I’m not just a pool player, I’m an athlete,” said an ebullient Strickland.

“I’m running four miles every morning and doing 500 sit ups a day and I’m practicing seven to eight hours a day.

“I’m a more intelligent player than most of these guys, I’m working hard and I think I’m close to being back to my very best.

“The Mosconi Cup is my kind of tournament and I’m looking forward to doing my best for the USA in Malta.”

Despite his well-documented bust-ups at the Mosconi Cup, Strickland’s record in the event is the best of the 61 players who have participated in the competition in its 14 year history.

Joining Strickland, Archer, Van Boening and Morris will be Jeremy Jones, who at 36 will be making his seventh Mosconi Cup appearance. ‘Double J’ sports an impressive 16 wins from 28 starts and made his debut back in 1999 when the USA won 12-7 at the York Hall in London.

Jones has enjoyed a revival this year with a third place finish at the Predator International 10 Ball Championship back in May. Then in June, he followed that up with a long-awaited victory in the Generationpool.com Open in Charlotte.

These results and others were enough to propel the likable Texan up to fourth in the BCA Points List and secure his Mosconi Cup spot.

Matchroom Sport Chairman Barry Hearn said, “In all the sports that I have promoted over the years, aside from the boxer Chris Eubank, there has been no other sportsman who has got the public going more than Earl Strickland.

“Some love him, plenty hate him but he is one of the greatest players to have ever held a cue stick and when it comes to entertainment, he has few rivals.

“The Mosconi Cup has always been Earl’s playground – he won MVP honours in Las Vegas in 2005 – and when he’s on form, the Europeans will know all about it.

“Jeremy Jones has a great record in the event and it is gratifying to see him play his way back into contention. He completes a very strong looking American side and I am expecting a fierce battle in December.”

This year will see the 15th running of pool’s answer to the Ryder Cup and the current score stands at 10 ½ - 3 ½ to the Americans.

The official sponsors of the 2008 Mosconi Cup are PartyCasino.com, Brunswick Tables, Simonis Cloth, Super Aramith Pro Balls and Predator Cues.

A range of superb value hotel and ticket packages are available from the Official Mosconi Cup Travel Agents www.alleventsmalta.com

Karen Corr wins Challenge of Champions

2008-10-30T15:29:00.000-07:00

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.

'Bata' still top Pinoy in AZBilliards list, two others in top 10

2008-10-30T12:34:00.000-07:00

He may not be as rich as his compatriots in terms of winnings this year but Efren "Bata" Reyes has proven that he is still king Pinoy cue master as far as AZBilliards.com rankings are concerned.

Reyes, also dubbed as "The Magician", remained in sixth place in the weekly standings that saw Shane Van Boening jumping a notch at number one. Reyes has so far earned $5,500 in international tournaments, with the last one being the Qatar International Open in July.

Bustamante, meanwhile, trailed Reyes closely at seventh, dropping three notches from last week's rankings. His last tournament was the US 9-Ball Championships in Chesapeake, Virginia, where he finished ninth earlier this month.

Orcollo, on the other hand, shed four places to finish the week at No. 9. He landed third in the US 9-Ball Open after finishing first in the Guangzhou, China leg of the Guinness 9-Ball Tour in September.

In terms of earnings, Orcollo came first with $91,400, so far, followed by Francisco Bustamante with $80,903.

Another Filipino champ, Alex "The Lion" Pagulayan, fell short of a slot as he landed 11th for the week. He has so far earned $61,203.

Jose "Amang" Parica, meanwhile, jumped 12 steps after last week's 51st placing. His 2008 winnings are now pegged at $20,190, with the latest addition coming from the US Open 9-Ball where he shared ninth place with Bustamante.

Ronnie "The Volcano" Alcano, on the other hand, was at the bottom of the 50-man list as he dropped 21 places from last week's 29th spot. He now has $41,200 in winnings after adding $20,000 as first runner-up prize in the US 9-Ball Open.

Feijen and Immonen Added to European Mosconi Cup Team

2008-10-29T21:00:00.000-07:00

Matchroom Sport are pleased to announce that Finland’s Mika Immonen and Niels Feijen (Holland) are the final two players to make up the European team for this year’s 15th annual Mosconi Cup which takes place at the Hilton Hotel, Portomaso, St Julians, Malta from December 11 – 14.

Immonen, 35, became only the second ever European player to win the prestigious US Open at the weekend when he dispatched 2006 World Pool Champion Ronnie Alcano of the Philippines 13-7 in the final.

The American-based Finn was a member of the successful European Mosconi Cup side in 2002 and will be desperate to make amends for 2006 when he was two balls away from winning the Mosconi Cup for Europe.

“It’s amazing to be back in the team again. It was one of the driving forces that kept me fighting for the US Open title,” he said.

“I said to my friends before the Open that I am going to win this one and earn my spot back on the Mosconi Cup team. It’s the only way and it’s the right way. I simply had to show why I think I should be on that team.

Immonen who will be making his 12th Mosconi Cup appearance and has recorded 27 wins from 55 matches added, “I am looking forward to it all and I will fight just as hard on the team so we can retain the title.”

For Feijen, the 31 year-old from The Hague, it has been a culmination of a highly successful year that saw him claim the WPA World Straight Pool Championship in August.

“It’s been a great year for me and I think I deserve to be in the team again. Of the five major events out there, I’ve finished in the top three in three of them including being runner up at the Qatar International Open and third place at the recent World Ten Ball Championship.

Feijen was one of the back bones of the European side that won so well in Las Vegas last year and overall, sports a 10 wins from 17 starts record in the event.

Immonen and Feijen now join Germany’s Ralf Souquet, Tony Drago (Malta) and Mark Gray of England to make up what looks to be one of the strongest European teams in recent years.

Commented Matchroom Sport Chairman Barry Hearn, “It was always going to be a very tough decision and someone was going to be disappointed but that is a testament to the current strength in depth of European pool.

“Mika and Niels have played in a total of 15 Mosconi Cups between them and have both experienced victory in the event so they know all about what is required.

“Their achievements this year have been exceptional and I am sure they will be as keen as anyone to be a member of the first European team to successfully defend the Mosconi Cup.”

The final two players for the American team will be announced on Friday 31st October.

This year will see the 15th running of pool’s answer to the Ryder Cup and the current score stands at 10 ½ - 3 ½ to the Americans.

The official sponsors of the 2008 Mosconi Cup are PartyCasino.com, Brunswick Tables, Simonis Cloth, Super Aramith Pro Balls and Predator Cues.

Falling short... again: Alcano loses to Immonen in US Open 9-ball final

2008-10-26T20:59:00.000-07:00

Mika Immonen of Finland bucked a late loss and two Filipino challengers to win the US Open 9-Ball Championships Saturday in Chesapeake, Virginia.

It looked like the finals would see an all-Filipino cast featuring former World 9-ball champion Ronnie Alcano and miracle man Warren Kiamco.

But Immonen had other things in mind.

Immonen defeated Kiamco 11-9 in the last losers' bracket match, then defeated Alcano 13-7 in the final to become only the second European to win the top-tier event.

In a complicated format that gives the losers a chance to get back in contention via "the losers' bracket", Immonen took advantage of the second life.

He, Alcano and Americans Rodney Morris and Johnny Archer ended up as the top placers in their respective "winners' brackets", the players who emerged without a loss in four preliminary-round groups.

Immonen beat Archer 11-7, and Alcano won over Morris by the same score as the winners set up a duel to determine the first finalist.

Alcano booked the first finals berth with an 11-6 win and in the process, sent Immonen to the losers' bracket where the Finn would meet Kiamco in a match to decide the second finalist.

Immonen got back on the winning groove versus Kiamco and avenged his earlier defeat to Alcano to give Europe its first US Open crown since Ralf Souquet of Germany won in 2002.

Immonen is New U.S. Open 9-Ball Champion

2008-10-25T21:04:00.000-07:00

A very determined Mika Immonen returned to the final arena at the 33rd Annual U.S. Open 9-Ball Championships for the final match Saturday evening, and he persevered to win his first title at that event. This makes eight years that a new champion has won this prestigious event.

It was a different Immonen who approached the table and played quickly and smoothly for the win. He took a very comfortable 6-0 lead in the extended race to 13 before giving his opponent in the finals, Ronato Alcano, something to shoot at by coming up empty on the break. Alcano cleared to get on the board and then took the next rack as well when Immonen undercut the 1 ball.

It was back to business after that, though, as Immonen went up another three racks to make it 10-2. And then Alcano made his own bid, playing superb defense and bringing the score to 10-5. At that point, Alcano switched from a soft break to a hard one, which helped him gain the next two racks. Alcano came up empty on his next break, but the Finn earned ball in hand after a sweet safety on the 3 ball, taking advantage of the 3-9 combo to go up 11-7. Immonen came up dry on his break, but Alcano scratched on the 1 ball, allowing Immonen to reach the hill.

In the final rack, Immonen had another dry break, and Alcano played a weak safety on the 1 ball. Immonen cleared to the 6 ball, for which he left himself tough and opted to play safe, putting the 6 behind the 8 and 9. Alcano kicked at and hit the 6, leaving a bank shot for Immonen. Immonen missed the bank but left the cue ball parked behind the 8, hiding the 6. Alcano kicked at the 6 again and hit it but left a simple out. Immonen considered it, addressed it, and ran out for the 11-7 victory.

Eight Billiard Players Return for U.S. Open

2008-10-24T04:17:00.000-07:00

Only eight players are still alive at the 33rd Annual U.S. Open 9-Ball Championships, held this week in Chesapeake, VA.

Friday’s elimination rounds began with Lee Van Corteza sending 22-year-old Oscar Dominguez home 11-6, while fellow countryman Warren Kiamco ousted Tony Chohan 11-3. Also, Donnie Mills continued his winning ways, eliminating Canada’s Tyler Edey 11-8, with Corey “Cash Money” Deuel defeating Larry Nevel 11-7.

The 1 p.m. round featured winners’-bracket matches. Reigning 9-ball champion Daryl Peach went up against Johnny Archer in one of the event’s lengthiest matches, 4 hours and 40 minutes. It was close throughout, going to 9-all. Peach almost scratched on the break, but Archer cleared that table to take the hill. Archer jumped the cue ball off the table on his next break, but Peach hooked himself on the 4 ball and was forced to jump, almost making the 9. With only five balls left on the table, Archer cleared the table easily for the 11-9 win.

Rodney Morris had a tight match against Thorsten Hohmann. The score went all the way to 10-9 in Morris’ favor when he scratched on the break and screamed. Hohmann cleared to make it hill-hill and then engaged Morris in a lengthy safety battle on the 1 ball. Finally Hohmann left Morris a shot, and Morris jacked up and fired in the 1 ball to clear the remainder of the balls for the 11-10 win.

Mika Immonen grabbed an early lead in his match against Jose Parica and never relinquished it, winning 11-8. In the last winners’-side match, Francisco Bustamante never seemed to show up in his match against Ronnie Alcano. At one point he was down 9-4 but managed to take two racks before Alcano won their match 11-6.

In the 3 p.m. elimination rounds, Corey Deuel demonstrated serious prowess over Francisco Bustamante. Though Bustamante had few errors, they were important ones, while Deuel didn’t always make his position but made some excellent shots to win 11-7.

Hohmann finally ended Donnie Mills’ run at the title after defeating him 11-9, while Corteza sent fellow Filipino Parica home 11-5. Additionally, Kiamco dealt Peach an 11-3 defeat in their elimination match.

In the evening rounds, winners’-bracket matches will be Johnny Archer versus Mika Immonen, and Rodney Morris versus Ronnie Alcano. In the one-loss side, Thorsten Hohmann will play Corey Deuel, while Warren Kiamco plays Lee Van Corteza.

Daulton, Shuff, Immonen Notch Wins at U.S. Open

2008-10-22T21:08:00.000-07:00

In the 7 p.m. winners’-bracket round, strong Northeast player Brandon Shuff took on Ryan Stone in a tight match that almost went double-hill. Shuff took an early lead but Stone tied it up and then took a 4-2 lead with the 9 ball going in on the snap. The score seesawed to 6-all when Shuff took the reins and won the next three racks in a row. A dry break put Stone one rack nearer, but Stone had no shot on the 1 ball after his next break, and Shuff cleared to reach the hill. He scratched on his following break, though, and Stone got another game under his belt to make it 10-8. A foul by Shuff gave Stone ball in hand, and Stone ran out. However, Stone didn’t come up with a playable shot after his last break, and he tried to play safe but left a shot for Shuff, who ran out for the 11-9 win.

Mika Immonen is making a strong bid for the winner’s circle. He was matched up with Florida’s Donnie Mills and took a commanding lead, running the first four racks. Mills started fighting back when his break started working and brought the score to 10-8. In the last game, Immonen played a formidable safety on the 2, and Mills was forced to attempt a jump shot, which he missed. With ball in hand, Immonen cleared the last rack to win 11-8.

Defending champion Shane Van Boening took on Ernesto Dominguez on the Accu-Stats table, with neither player giving up an inch. Filled with defensive play galore, the match finally arrived at 8-7 in Van Boening’s favor. At that point, Van Boening sped ahead, winning the next three racks in a row.

Texas’ Sylver Ochoa, who finished ninth in 2005’s event, stayed even throughout his match with Sweden’s Marcus Chamat until the score reached 8 apiece. Ochoa missed a safety on the 4 ball, and to his surprise, Chamat cleared that rack and ran the next two to win the match 11-8.

In the 9 p.m. rounds, Josh Lewis of Daytona, FL, came back from a 6-0 start against Filipino straight-shooter Warren Kiamco. His breaks started working well for him, and once he was able to get a shot after the break, he came back to defeat Kiamco 11-9.

Darren Appleton, newly crowned 10-ball world champion, took down Ismael “Morro” Paez. Appleton had an early lead throughout and, leading 4-1, played a safe on the 4. Paez elected to bank the 4 cross-corner and the cue ball ended up caroming in the 9 to draw within two racks. A couple of misses by Paez brought the score to 6-3 in Appleton’s favor. Paez won another game after Appleton played won a safety match on the 4 ball, but it was not enough, as Appleton took the next five racks in a row to win the match 11-4.

Favorite Filipino Francisco Bustamante had an early lead against Imran Majid, who has been dominating the Great Britain 9-Ball Tour. With Bustamante up 8-6 in the race to 11, Majid was undaunted and came back to run the next four racks to reach the hill 10-8. Bustamante was faced with playing a safety on the 2, and he received ball in hand to run the table. Another safety battle saw Majid reach the hill, but after trading defensive moves on the 2 ball, Bustamante cleared to win their match 11-10.

Former world champion Ronnie Alcano matched up with U.S. Bar Table champion Mitch Ellerman in a fairly even match. At hill-hill, Ellerman played a two-way bank shot on the 1 ball, hooking Alcano. After some consideration, Alcano played a masse, coming two rails between the 3 and 4 for perfect shape on the 2 ball, which he made to run out for the 11-10 win.

Shannon “The Cannon” Daulton came through in fine fashion in his evening match, racing to a 10-0 lead against Beau Runningen. He came up with a dry break in the eleventh rack, and Daulton scratched on the 6 ball, giving Runningen ball in hand and the rack. Although Runningen was able to win another game, it was not enough to withstand “The Cannon,” as he took the match 11-2.

In the featured match-up at 11 p.m., CJ Wiley and Jeremy Jones matched up on the televised table. It was touch and go from the start to the finish. In the last rack at hill-hill, Jones had poor position on the 6 ball and still made it but left himself tough on the 7-8 combo. He made the combo and then had a tough shot on the 7 ball and had to go uptable to get position on the 9, which wasn’t a “give-me” but he still made it to advance.

Immonen Bests World Billiard Champion Varner

2008-10-21T21:09:00.000-07:00

In the headlining match for the 9 p.m. rounds at the 33rd Annual U.S. Open 9-Ball Championships, Mika “Iceman” Immonen met former world U.S. Open champ Nick Varner on the Accu-Stats table. Though Immonen seemed tentative during his warm-up routine, he quickly took a 4-0 lead. Looking smooth and fearless, Immonen went up 8-1, but Varner countered to take the next two racks. A 5-9 combo put Immonen one rack closer to the finish line, and then he came up empty on his next break, giving Varner another rack. A missed 4 ball by the Finn handed Varner one more game, but Immonen got ball in hand in the final rack after a safety on the 1 and ran out for the 11-6 win.

Shane Van Boening is still working on defending his U.S. Open title. In his match against Charlie Williams, he held an early lead and never relinquished it, going up 6-3. In the tenth rack, Van Boening played a vicious safety to further extend his lead to 7-3. Each player exchanged the next few racks, with Van Boening remaining in the lead in order to reach the hill 10-6. Though Williams had a chance in the final game, he couldn’t get out, and Van Boening won 11-6.

Johnny “The Scorpion” Archer matched up with Tony Robles as well in the winners’ bracket, with Archer taking an early 7-3 lead. Robles won the next two out of three racks and then some fancy shooting put him at 8-6 Archer. A missed safety on the 1 ball by Archer gave Robles ball in hand and the next game, and then a golden break allowed Robles to knot the score at 8. Archer won the safety battle in the next rack and then broke and ran to reach the hill; the final game was a lengthy one, but he ran out win 11-8.

Brandon Shuff dominated his match against Tom D’Alfonso, though both players exhibited a strong break. D’Alfonso had several misses on relatively easy outs, which put Shuff in the lead 10-4. Shuff came up empty on his next break, and D’Alfonso cleared to make a last-ditch effort to catch Shuff, but missed an early ball in the final rack, leaving Shuff with an easy out 11-5.

A lengthy match ensued between reigning 9-ball champion Daryl Peach and Steve Moore in the 9 o’clock rounds. The first rack lasted 30 minutes, with Peach finally ending the safety battle. The match stayed close at the beginning, with Peach maintaining a slight lead throughout until it reached 5-4 in his favor. At that point, Moore missed simply position for the 9 ball and scratched, which seemed to jar him, for Peach won the next five racks in a row to reach the hill. Peach missed a jump shot on the 1 ball in the next rack, and Moore capitalized to take the next two games. Moore came up dry on his following break and left an easy out for Peach to win the match 11-7.

Niels Feijen suffered an upset in the 11 p.m. elimination rounds, being ousted by Floridian Justin Hall. The match went back and forth the entire way, seesawing to 9-all. At that point Feijen missed a key 7 ball, handing Hall a simple out to reach the hill. Once there, however, Hall scratched on the 1 in an attempt to play safe. The 1 hung in the corner but was blocked by the 2. After several exchanges, Feijen came through with a tough run-out to make it hill-hill. He broke dry on his final break, and Hall, with the help of a tremendous jump shot on the 1, ran out for the 11-10 win.

Rodolfo “Boy Samson” Luat held an early lead in his match against Dan Louie, but it was worn down with some handy safety play to knot the score at 9-9. Luat reached the hill first, but Louie played a sweet safe on the 2 ball and Luat sold out, so that brought the score to double-hill. Louie broke and hangs the 9 in the corner pocket. He was straight in on the 1 and ran out to the 4-9 combo for the win.

Donnie Mills of Clearwater, FL, and Eric Moore, Virginia State 9-Ball champion, traded racks in their match until the score reached 7-all. Moore broke dry on the next rack, and Mills cleared that table and then, with the help of a sweet cut break, ran out the last three to win 11-7.

Souquet Sent West at U.S. Billiards Championship

2008-10-21T20:51:00.000-07:00

In the 7 p.m. round, Ralf Souquet survived a 48-hour stretch without sleeping to only arrive in Chesapeake and get 7 hours of sleep before his match against Northeastern regional player Manny Chau. Souquet was flying in from Switzerland, where he just won back-to-back EuroTour events, something that has not been accomplished in years. Though he suffered from a headache and general malaise Monday evening, he experienced few troubles sending Chau west 11-3.

However, his next match against Chris Szuter did not go so well for “The Surgeon.” Leading 5-3, Souquet faltered and allowed Szuter to catch up. The Canton, OH, room owner not only caught up, he put the screws to Souquet, taking over and reaching the hill 10-6. He missed the 3 ball badly, but Souquet failed to get shape on the 5 with ball in hand and gave control back to Szuter, who won the match 11-6.

Steve Moore matched up with John Kutcher, who owns the poolroom Sharks in Las Vegas. With his break in full gear, Moore dominated the match from the beginning, going from a 5-2 lead up to a 9-4 lead before closing things out at 11-4.

Action Heats Up at U.S. Open

2008-10-21T20:46:00.000-07:00

Putting the term "open" in the title of a major sporting event implies that anybody has a chance of lining up next to the world's finest. On Day 2 of the U.S. Open 9-Ball Championship, three former champs were knocked out of the winners bracket by a trio of unheralded opponents.

2002 Open winner Ralf Souquet was bounced leftward by Chris Szuter. Souquet, who won the EuroTour's stop in Switzerland on Saturday, was never a serious threat to Szuter, whose best finish of '08 was 13th at August's Turning Stone event. The unheralded American easily finished off his upset over Souquet, 11-6.

Jeremy Jones and John Schmidt were also victims of the annual round of early upsets at the Open. Jones dropped a second-round hill-hill match to Mike Badsteubner after leading by as many as four games. Schmidt fell by an 11-6 score to Beau Runningen.

While former U.S. Open winners struggled, some reigning champions advanced without incident into the third round. Last year's winner Shane Van Boening topped Troy Miller, 11-7. Reigning 9-ball world champ Daryl Peach and recently crowned World 10-Ball titlist Darren Appleton also won their second-round matches.

Alcano Leads RP Campaign in US Open

2008-10-18T15:39:00.001-07:00

Former double world champion Ronnie Alcano leaves for the United States today to compete in the 33rd Annual U.S. Open 9-Ball Championship that starts Sunday at the Chesapeake Conference Center in Chesapeake, Virginia.

Alcano, a stalwart of the star-studded Bugsy Promotions of businessman Perry Mariano, will lead a lean Filipino squad in vying in one of the toughest pool tournament in world.

He will be joined by former world no.1 Francisco “Django” Bustamante, Ramil Gallego, Lee Van Corteza, Warren Kiamco, Rodolfo Luat, Jose “Amang” Parica and Joven Alba in mixing up with the field of close to 300 players from all over the world for the guaranteed total prize of $250,000, including the champion purse of $40,000.

The other top Filipino cue artists did not join in the event for various reasons. Efren “Bata”Reyes is undergoing medical checkup, while current world no.1 Dennis Orcollo and former world champion Alex Pagulayan are set to compete in the Grand Finals of the Guinness 9-Ball Tour in Jakarta, Indonesia, which is slated on October 24.

Alcano, who was a runner-up to American Shane Van Boening last year, is hoping to become the third Filipino to win the prestigious event after Reyes (1994) and Pagulayan (2005).

“I’ll do my best to go all the way this time." said Alcano, who is searching for his first major title since winning the 2007 World 8-Ball Championship.

Meanwhile, the Quezon City Council has passed a resolution commending Orcollo for his recent string of triumph in the international and local arena.

Led by Majority Floor Leader Ariel Inton, the councilors, with the concurrence of Mayor Sonny Belmonte and Vice-Mayor Herbert Bautista, cited the 29-year-old Orcollo for his title conquest in the 2008 Quezon City 9-Ball Champion, the All-Japan Open, the Qatar International 9-Ball Open, the Guinness 9-Ball Tour leg in Guangzhou, China, and just recently, his and Bustamante’s third-place finish in the PartyPoker.net World Cup of Pool.

“Orcollo’s string of triumphs only proved that the Philippines is still considered as the powerhouse when it comes to billiards because of the achievement of the Filipinos in different prestigious billiards competitions here and abroad,” the resolution states.

“Whereas, he is one of the Outstanding Citizens of Quezon City and a true Quezon City pride, is worthy of emulation and an inspiration for the Quezon City aspiring athletes who will join in all international competition.”

The resolution will be presented to Orcollo today during the SCOOP Forum at Kamayan Restaurant in Ermita, Manila.

Alcano Leads RP Campaign in US Open

2008-10-18T15:39:00.000-07:00

Alcano, a stalwart of the star-studded Bugsy Promotions of businessman Perry Mariano, will lead a lean Filipino squad in vying in one of the toughest pool tournament in world.

Alcano, who was a runner-up to American Shane Van Boening last year, is hoping to become the third Filipino to win the prestigious event after Reyes (1994) and Pagulayan (2005).

“I’ll do my best to go all the way this time." said Alcano, who is searching for his first major title since winning the 2007 World 8-Ball Championship.

Meanwhile, the Quezon City Council has passed a resolution commending Orcollo for his recent string of triumph in the international and local arena.

The resolution will be presented to Orcollo today during the SCOOP Forum at Kamayan Restaurant in Ermita, Manila.

2nd Billiards Stars Search set Nov. 5-9

2008-10-16T20:55:00.000-07:00

FILIPINO billiards enthusiasts gather anew to compete for top honors in the second leg of the Billiards Stars Search which gets underway on Nov. 5 to 9 at the famous Star Billiards Center in Grace Village, Quezon City.

Defending champion Elvis Calasang lead the cast along with reigning national champion Marlon Manalo, Antonio Gabica, Jeffrey de Luna, Mario Tolentino, Victor Arpilleda, Edgar Acaba, Leonardo Didal and reigning RP Junior champion Jerico Banares in Division A.

The four (A, B, C and D) division event is organized by the Billiards and Snooker Congress of the Philippines in close cooperation with Raya Sports, Philippines Billiards Foundation and Star Billiards Center.

The game is a Ten Ball WPA rules using the winner's break format. Entry fee is P400. Prizes include cash, trophies and in kind. Cash prizes will depend on the number of entries.

Interested parties may register at Star Billiards Center, tel. No. 364-6041, 0917-888-8888, Rizal Memorial Center, tel. No. 0928-744-1740, or Raya Sports, tel. No. 895-2021.

Orcollo Vows To Bounce Back From Failed World Cup Bid

2008-10-15T15:36:00.001-07:00

After failing in his mission to bring the World Cup of Pool back to the Philippines and taking much of the blame for it, world no.1 Dennis Orcollo vowed to bounce back and resume his winning ways to reap more honors for the country.

His next target: the 2008 Guinness 9-Ball Tour Grand Finals on October 24 to 26 in Jakarta, Indonesia.

“I’m very disappointed that we weren’t able to fulfill our mission of winning the World Cup, and I blame myself for it,” said Orcollo, who made a couple of unforced errors that doomed his and teammate Francisco “Django” Bustamante’s bid as they succumbed to a 9-6 defeat against the eventual champion American pair of Shane Van Boening and Rodney Morris in the semifinals of the event held in Rotterdam, Holland.

“With that, I promise to improve my game even more and I’ll do my best to win more titles for our country,” added the 29-year-old stalwart of the star-studded Bugsy Promotions of businessman Perry Mariano.

Orcollo has so far won four major titles this year – the 2008 Quezon City 9-Ball Championship, the All-Japan Open, the Qatar International 9-Ball Open and the Guinness Tour leg in Guangzhou, China – to more than validate his tag as the world’s best cue artist today.

After the Guinness finale, he will join forces with seven other top Filipinos pool masters in going up against a group of topnotch international players in the Q.C. Invasion: Quezon City-Philippines vs the World Grand Billiards Showdown slated on December 2 to 4 at the Trinoma Mall.

There, he and Bustamante will have a chance to exact revenge against their World Cup tormentor, in particular, Morris who is part of the Team World in the event organized by Quezon City Council Majority Leader Ariel Inton and supported by the Quezon City government led by Mayor Sonny Belmonte and Senate President Manny Villar’s Villards: Tulong sa Pagsulong ng Philippine Sports.

Besides Orcollo and Bustamante, the other members of the Team Quezon-City Philippines are former world champions Efren “Bata” Reyes, Alex Pagulayan and Ronnie Alcano, as well as 2007 World Pool runner-up Roberto Gomez, and former Southeast Asian Games multi-gold medalists Lee Van Corteza and Warren Kiamco.

Also bannering the international selection are former world champions Mika Immonen of Finland and Thorsten Hohmann of Germany.

The Q.C. Invasion is also supported by the Billiards Managers and Players Association of the Philippines (BMPAP), the Quezon City Tourism Council, Puyat Sports, Bugsy Promotions and the Negros Billiards Stable.

Orcollo Vows To Bounce Back From Failed World Cup Bid

2008-10-15T15:36:00.000-07:00

His next target: the 2008 Guinness 9-Ball Tour Grand Finals on October 24 to 26 in Jakarta, Indonesia.

Also bannering the international selection are former world champions Mika Immonen of Finland and Thorsten Hohmann of Germany.

Bustamante and Abraham Co-Champions at Blaze Stop

2008-09-24T12:47:00.000-07:00

One Shot Billiards hosted Blaze 9 Ball Tour Sunday August 31, 2008. A strong field came out player’s like Francisco Bustamante, Matt Krah, Eddie Abraham, and Mike Fingers to name a few.

Leading the top half of the bracket was Matt Krah with wins over Ben Sadowski 7-4, Jose Burgos 7-0, and Noel Bensurto 7-2. Leading the bottom half of the bracket was Francisco Bustamante with wins over Mike Seas 7-2, Eddie Abraham 7-4 Playing for the hot seat was Mat Krah Vs Francisco Bustamante this was a great match that went to the hill when it was all said and done it was Francisco Bustamante winning the match 7-6 and sending Matt Krah to the one lost side. Waiting for Matt Krah on the one lost side was Eddie Abraham, this too was a great match that went to the hill but it was Eddie Abraham with the win 7-6.

Playing in the finals was Eddie Abraham Vs Francisco Bustamante both players are co-champions of the tournament.

Asia 10-Ball Championships in Seoul, Korea

2008-09-23T12:49:00.000-07:00

Seoul, Korea- Dragon Promotions is pleased to announce The 5th Annual Asia 10-Ball Championships which will take place November 10-14, 2008 at the Hamilton Hotel, Seoul Korea. The event will be broadcasted on XTM and XPORTS, two of the top channels in South Korea.

Top names in the field so far include Mika Immonen FIN, Rodney Morris USA, Thorsten Hohmann GER, Raj Hundal IND, Lee Chenman HK, and Young Hwa Jeong KOR. The event will pay a guaranteed $10,000 to the winner of the men's division and $3500 to the winner of the women's division.

All players from all countries are welcomed to come join the event and should contact Dragon Promotions at koreaprotour@yahoo.com for information on Stage 2 of the event beginning November 11. All other players are welcome to join Stage 1 with 4 qualifying rounds on November 10.

Players wishing to visit and compete in Asia in November will find it convenient as there are three back to back events including The All Japan Championships November 19-24 and Puyat Sports Bacolod Open November 27-30 in the Philippines.

Dragon Promotions is one of the leading producers of billiard programming in the world today. Dragon produces over 40 events a year airing on networks in USA, Korea, India, and Europe such as ESPN, MBC ESPN, XTM, XPORTS, and Euro Sport. Events include The World 14.1 Championship, The Predator International 10-Ball Championship, King & Queen of Carom, Empress Cup, Pro Pool Schools, Women's Trickshot Challenge, World Junior 10-Ball Championships, Korea vs USA, and many more. Dragon also manages some of the world's best players including Rodney Morris, Mika Immonen, Shanelle Loraine, Charlie Williams, Jeanette Lee, Mike Davis, Yu Ram Cha, Raj Hundal and many more.

Orcollo Takes Guangzhou Guinness Title

2008-09-22T14:31:00.000-07:00

After Taiwan's cueists dominated the Guinness 9-Ball Tour for a year and a half, the balance of power appears to have swung back towards the Philippines. Alex Pagulayan won July's Singapore leg of the Asian professional tour, and Dennis Orcollo snapped off last weekend's stop in Guangzhou, China.

Before Pagulayan's win, Taiwan had captured all six titles of 2007 and the first three of this season. Chang Jung Lin has collected six titles in that time.

But the all-Filipino final between Orcollo and Pagulayan at the Singapore stop has changed the momentum on tour.

At this past weekend's event in Guangzhou, Orcollo breezed into the final. He won his two group matches, then posted 9-1 victories in his quarterfinal and semifinal matches.

Taiwan's Wang Hung Hsiang, meanwhile, was shaking up the other side of the bracket. He sent Chang home with a 9-4 in in the quarterfinal round, then edged Pagulayan in a hill-hill semifinal.

On the hill in the final, 10-7, Orcollo failed to pocket the 3 on a seemingly easy attempt, allowing Wang to win the rack.

The Filipino ace then committed another foul in the 19th rack and his Taiwanese foe converted on a 1-9 combination to narrow the gap to 10–9.

Wang was tripped up in the next rack, missing the 2 ball, leaving Orcollo to clean the table for his first win on the Guinness Tour.

Check Listings: Fox Sports to Air World Pool Masters

2008-09-02T12:52:00.000-07:00

Fox Sports Network will air matches from the 2008 World Pool Masters — won in dramatic, come-from-behind fashion by Alex Pagulayan of the Philippines — every week during the month of September.

FSN is divided into regional networks across the U.S. (such as FSN Midwest and FSN Rocky Mountain), so you need to check your local listings for airdates and times. A lion’s share of the networks are slating the programming for either 11 a.m. or 3 p.m.

The airings come as part of the continuing relationship between FSN for U.K.-based Matchroom Sport, producer of the World Pool Masters as well as such highly regarded fare as the Mosconi Cup and World Pool Championship. Matchroom has been providing FSN with pool programming steadily since 2003.

The World Pool Masters took place in May at the Riviera Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas. In the final against Mika Immonen, Pagulayan fell behind, 6-3, before winning five consecutive racks for the title-clinching victory.

Comcast New England and Comcast Philadelphia also will air programming from the World Pool Masters.

More Top Players Fall at Predator Straight Pool

2008-08-29T14:10:00.000-07:00

As play continued at the Predator World Straight Pool Championship in East Brunswick, NJ, several top players were eliminated including Johnny Archer, Tony Robles, Mike Davis and Charlie Williams. The tournament has seen several upsets and surprises thus far, but with some of the pre-tournment favorites and round robin monsters out of contention, it seems like anybody’s tournament after these early extis.

Inside POOL Magazine would like to apologize for the misinformation that was passed along to our readers. We originally reported that the top 32 players, the top four players from each grouping of the round robin stages, would advance into a single elimination bracket to continue the remainder of the tournament. This information was incorrect as the top 32 players advance into a double elminiation bracket.

The European contingent is living up to expectations, continuing to dominate and lay all comers to waste. Nick Van Den Berg, Mika Immonen, Thorsten Hohmann, Niels Feijen, Thomas Engert, Oliver Ortmann, and young phenom Dominic Jentsch all are still alive and on the right side of the brackets. One slight shocker was Raj Hundal defeating round robin killer Johnny Archer in the first round.

Eberle Wins Unusual Billiards Event

2008-08-25T19:23:00.000-07:00

Some of the finest players in Southern California assembled at Danny K’s Billiards in Orange, CA, the weekend of August 23-24 to play in the second rotation continuous double-elimination pool tournament. Even though only 32 players entered, the field hosted some local and national pros, like Jose Parica, Ernesto Dominguez, Tang Hoa, David Hemmah, Oscar Dominguez, and ultimate winner Max Eberle.

The entry fee was $50, with $2,000 added to the prize money.

The format was a race to 100 point on the winners’ side and 75 points on the one-loss side. Rotation continuous is played like rotation, with each ball counting a point and with each player coming to the table with cue ball in hand. Safeties are not allowed, and if the shooter makes a ball on the break, he or she takes cue ball in hand,

On Sunday, Eberle played Parica in the winners’-bracket semifinals. Tied at 75 points, Eberle scratched on the break. Parica had the option to give the shot back to Eberle and did so because the 1 ball was tied up on the spot with other balls. Eberle banked the one in the side, breaking up any clusters and ran the table.

Parica then went to the one-loss side, where he played Hoa. At 74 points, Parica got out of line on his out ball and rattled it in the corner. Hoa had 56 points when this happened and mounted a charge, running 11 balls. However, he got out of line on the 8 ball and missed position on his next ball. Hoa missed, and Parica won 75-66. Parica then had to play Nick Spano from Victorville. Spano showed a lot of heart but lost 75-55. Meanwhile, Eberle and Dominguez were battling it out for the hot seat. The audience witnessed some great pool, with Eberle winning 100-40.

Dominguez then had to face Parica in the semifinal match. Dominguez displayed great cue ball control in winning 75-54. In the finals, a single race to 100, Eberle displayed near-perfect cue ball control, running 28 balls and then 22 later in the match, while Dominguez seemed to have a difficult time making a ball on the break. Ultimately Eberle won the match 100-54 and the tournament, stating, “Rotation continuous may just be my new favorite game. I’ve always loved rotation and this is a great way to bring it into an exciting and highly playable format. It’s an awesome test of skill and focus, and this may well be the game of the future.”

2008 Predator World 14.1 Championship Group Pairings

2008-08-24T13:33:00.000-07:00

East Brunswick, New Jersey- Dragon Promotions announces the official group pairings for the 2008 Predator World Straight Pool Championship. The round robin stage will be held Aug 25-27, with the field narrowed to 32 in the double elimination stage races to 150 on Aug 28, and the last sixteen playing race to 200 points on Aug 29-30.

There may be last minute changes and substitutions in the schedule and the event if a player is not able to attend.
Official Group Pairings of the 2008 Predator World 14.1 Championship. Round Robin Races to 100 Points.

Group 1

Oliver Ortmann GER
Allen Hopkins USA
Yu Ram Cha KOR
Mike Dechaine USA
Bernie Pettipiece USA
Bob Chamberlain USA
Bill Maropolous USA
Peter Burrows USA

Group 2

Thorsten Hohmann GER
Mike Sigel USA
Jonathan Fulcher SCO
Charlie Williams USA
Stevie Moore USA
Jim Gottier USA
Devon Cataldi USA
Allan Cornia USA

Group 3

Huidji See NED
John Schmidt USA
Dominic Jentsch GER
Shaun Wilkie USA
Mark Vidal SPN
Jimmy Mendoza USA
Dan Heidrich USA USA
David Daya USA

Group 4

Danny Harriman USA
Niels Feijen NED
Danny Barouty USA
Gerda Hofstatter AUT
Bob Maidhof USA
Chris Lynch USA
Mark Snodgrass USA
Stefan Cohen FRA

Group 5

Martin Kempter AUT
Ralf Souquet GER
Tony Robles USA
Francisco Bustamante PHI
Vincent Facquet FRA
Dan Wallace USA
Dennis Hatch USA
Jonathan Smith USA

Group 6

Thomas Engert GER
Raj Hundal IND
Corey Deuel USA
Nick Van Denberg NED
Sebastian Staab GER
Liz Ford USA
Tom Parisian USA
Shin Young Park KOR

Group 7

Mika Immonen FIN
Bobby Hunter USA
Konstantin Stepanov RUS
Mike Davis USA
Ed Deska USA
Mark Ritter USA
Michael Yednak USA
Bob M. Cozzolino USA

Group 8

Johnny Archer USA
Jasmin Ouschan AUT
Radoslaw Babica POL
Tony Rodriguez USA
Calvin Coker USA
Mohammed Hakim NED
Steve Lipsky USA
Steve Lillis USA

Fans and players can still reserve rooms at Hilton East Brunswick at 1-732-828-2000. The room code for the event is "POL" There are still limited amount of rooms available. Tickets can be purchased in advanced at www.dragonpromotions.com or in person at the event, or at Amsterdam Billiards in NYC or Comet Billiards in NJ.

The 2008 Predator World Straight Pool Championship is proudly sponsored by Dr.Michael Fedak of NYC, Joel Schapiro of NYC, The Predator Group, Diamond Billiard Products, Aramith Balls, and Simonis Cloth. For more information on player registration, sponsorship, or if you would like to submit a comment, please email, worldstraightpoolchampionships@gmail.com or contact Dragon Promotions at 1-407-782-4978.

Andy "The Magic Man" Segal won the 2008 Trick Shot Magic and International Speed Pool Challenge

2008-08-23T19:19:00.000-07:00

The premier special events in professional billiards will be hosted by ESPN Zone in Las Vegas on October 1-2. The Semifinal matches and the Championship match of both events will be telecast by ESPN beginning in November.

International Speed Pool Challenge will feature four top players from an international roster competing for a purse of winner-take-all $40,000. Bobby McGrath, the 2007 International Speed Pool Champion, will return to defend his title. Dave Pearson, the 2007 International Speed Pool Runnerup holds a Guinness Book of World Records Speed Pool listing. Nick Nikolaidis, one of the sport’s top Speed Pool shooters, also holds a Guinness Book of World Records Speed Pool listing. Tan Chin Seng, winner of the 2008 Asian Speed Pool Tournament, will compete in America for the first time.

The winner will claim the title of International Speed Pool Champion on October 1. The game is all action and offense, with players competing against the clock to run racks in the fastest possible time. A match consists of two sets, the first set a variation of Straight Pool and the second set regulation 8-Ball. Players routinely run a rack of fifteen balls in one-minute-fifteen-seconds or less. Tied sets result in a blistering one rack Sudden Death.

Trick Shot Magic will present eight international stars of the sport contending for a purse of $40,000 on October 1-2. Stefano Pelinga, the 2007 Trick Shot Magic Champion. Tom Rossman, the 2006 World Artistic Pool Champion. Andy Segal, the 2007 Masters Artistic Pool Champion. Mike Massey, the 2006 Trick Shot Magic Champion. Luke Szywala, the 2007 World Cup of Trick Shots Champion. Sebastian Giumelli, the 2008 South American Trick Shot Champion. Mark Dimick, the 2008 World Artistic Pool Ranked #3. Eric Yow, the 2008 World Artistic Pool Ranked #4.

The Trick Shot Magic winner will claim the crown on October 2. Format for the tournament consists of twenty artistic show shots in each match. Players will execute a challenge shot of their choice, and their opponents are required to duplicate the shot or lose a point. The players alternate shots in two-man head-to-head matches, performing intricate trick shots meant to stymie their opponents. A sudden death tiebreaker to decide a match will require an eight rail bank shot onto the face of a $100 bill. In the eight year history of the event, the Championship has twice been decided by a sudden death tiebreaker.

ESPN will telecast three 1-hour programs each on Trick Shot Magic and International Speed Pool Challenge. ESPN Zone will make the events Admission Free for spectators. ESPN Zone is a 50,000-square-foot sports-themed dining and entertainment complex located at the New York New York Hotel Casino in Las Vegas (phone: 702-933-3776). The tournaments are sponsored by Aramith Super Pro Balls, Simonis Cloth, L.E.A.N.I. Slate, Original Italian Slate, AcCue Shot Training Device, Executive Billiards Delta 13 Rack and Silver Cup Chalk. The tournaments will be produced by Billiards International, Ltd.

Ample free parking is available at the New York New York Hotel Casino. The INTERNATIONAL SPEED POOL CHALLENGE Semifinals and Championship Finals will begin at 4 PM on October 1. The TRICK SHOT MAGIC Semifinals and Championship Finals will begin at 4 PM on October 2. Admission is free and those attending should plan to arrive early. For more information call: 860-379-8414.

Pool Players Welcome NBL

2008-08-17T14:21:00.000-07:00

The soon-to-be-launched National Billiards League (NBL) has received an overwhelming support from the local pool community, particularly the players who are all excited to begin what they call “the new era of Philippine billiards.”

“We’re all very happy with this development as we know that having this professional league will really lift (Philippine) billiards to new heights, and this will be the start of a new era of Philippine billiards,” said former world champion Alex Pagulayan.

After finding a television partner – Solar Sports – that would broadcast the games for the league’s inaugural season, NBL’s main proponents Philippine billiards godfather Aristeo “Putch” Puyat and fellow managers Perry Mariano and Jonathan Sy are now negotiating with several companies for sponsorship to the teams to be formed.

Last Saturday, they met with the players from the Billiards Managers and Players Association of the Philippines (BMPAP) to formally inform them of the development and invite them to join the league. They also introduced the newly-appointed NBL commissioner in businessman Martin Misa.

“We’re formally inviting you to join the NBL, a dream that we all share for a long time, which is now coming into reality,” said Puyat during the gathering attended by the country top cue artists, led by Efren “Bata” Reyes, as well as the sport’s up-and-coming stars.

“NBL will be exclusive for you BMPAP members, who have been with us in our crusade to put out sport in the right direction,” added Puyat.

The NBL is slated to start late this year with eight teams of six players each in the fold.

Meanwhile, the players present in the meeting reiterated their stand of not joining any event “that has anything to do with Mr. Yen Makabenta” and his Raya Sports, including the planned World 10-Ball Championship, until all the issues that caused them to break away from the groups affiliated with him are resolved.

“The main reason why BMPAP bolted away from the groups affiliated with Mr. Makabenta is because of his dual role as chairman of the Billiards and Snooker Congress of the Philippines (BSCP) and President of Raya Sports, which clearly constitutes conflict of interest,” the players said in a statement.

Besides Reyes and Pagulayan, also in the meeting were former double world champion Ronnie Alcano, 2007 World Pool runner-up Roberto Gomez, Warren Kiamco, Rodolfo Luat and Joven Bustamante, among others. Reigning world no.1 Dennis Orcollo and Francisco “Django” Bustamante, who are campaigning in the United States, sent their representatives.

They said that having nothing against BSCP and they are willing to reestablish their ties with the association “if all the issues are resolved.

Saez Survives Late Surge to Win Q-Master Billiards Tourney

2008-08-03T01:22:00.000-07:00

Robb Saez survived a late-game surge in a final race to 11 versus Josh Brothers to take first place in the Q-Master Billiards 9-ball tournament in Virginia Beach the weekend of August 2-3. Hosted by Q-Master Billiards, the $2000-added plus entry fee to the U.S. Open 9-Ball Championships event drew 45 entrants.

Saez and Brothers met first in the hot seat match, after defeating Eric Moore and Chris Futrell, respectively. Saez sent Brothers to the semifinals with a 9-5 victory in that match.

On the one-loss side, Manny Chau and Alejandro Calderon picked up Futrell and Moore after dropping Eddie Abraham and Brandon Pureza into a tie for fifth place. Calderon advanced to the quarterfinals with a hill-hill victory over Futrell, but Chau fell to Moore in another hill-hill match. Moore advanced to the semifinals with a 9-7 victory over Calderon but finished in third place on the heels of a 9-7 defeat at the hands of Brothers.

In the race-to-11 finals, Saez took an early 2-1 lead before Brothers responded with four straight racks to go ahead 5-2. Saez came back with five racks of his own, including two in which the 9 ball dropped on his break. Behind 7-5, Brothers fought back to an 8-8 and then 9-9 tie before Saez reached hill first. Saez scratched on the subsequent break, and Brothers ran the rack to knot it at hill-hill. Brothers broke the final rack, making the 1 ball, but failed at a safety on the 2. Saez picked it up and ran the final rack to finish it.

Results:
1st Robb Saez
2nd Josh Brothers
3rd Eric Moore
4th Alejandro Calderon
5th Chris Futrell
6thManny Chau
7th Eddie Abraham
8thBrandon Pureza
9th Mike Fuller
10thMatt Clatterbuck
11thShaun Wilkie
12thDave Alley
13th Dave Bollman
14thRob Tole
15thWillie Simpson
16thMatt Krah

Raj “The Hitman” Hundal

2008-08-02T19:15:00.000-07:00

“I live life in the fast lane, that’s the truth,” smiled Raj Hundal. “I think I live every day like it’s my last, almost. Try to get the most out of it, that’s my mentality. That’s why when I’m behind in matches, I’m not scared at that point.” Hailing from Hounslow in the United Kingdom, Hundal was six when he began playing on his cousin’s snooker table. When his father saw Raj beating not only his cousins but his uncles as well, he took his son to the snooker room.

“I was way too short to play, so I used to have a beer crate about a foot high,” remembered Hundal. “I used to play a shot, drag the beer crate around, and jump up on it and play another shot. I had a real passion for the game, to play snooker. I was crazy as a kid.”

From there, he began playing in handicapped events at 10 and had his first “century break” when he was 13. Hundal became of the UK’s top junior snooker players and made the natural progression into 9-ball when he sighted a poster for an upcoming event. Playing with a snooker cue and a house stick, he ended up taking third place.

His game steadily improved, and it wasn’t long before he made a name for himself as one of the top 9-ballers in Britain. Off to the World Pool Championships in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, he was matched up with one of the toughest players in the world, Chin-Shun Yang, in Yang’s hometown, and won.

“There were five hundred guys in the audience rooting for him, and three guys rooting for me. That was a big win for me, I thought that the whole world was against me, but I really love that. I got a big buzz off of it.” He was eliminated by Rodney Morris from that event but got his revenge a couple of months later when he bested the Hawaiian in the finals of the World Pool Masters.

“Everyone’s as good as each other. On their own day, anyone can be the greatest,” Hundal averred. “I think that as professional athletes and sportsmen that the world actually looks up to, we should set an example.”

Thorsten Hohmann

2008-08-02T19:13:00.000-07:00

Thorsten “The Hitman” Hohmann currently resides in Fulda, Germany. Hohmann is regarded as one of the greatest sportsman in billiards and is the epitomy of what a professional pool player should be. Already a remarkable career at his young age, Hohmann went through the proper ranks from junior champion to World Champion. One of the few players coached and trained from his first time at the table by nationally reknowned coaches, Hohmann gives students insight on why the Europeans are so consistent and successful on the world scene in billiards.

Titles Accomplishments:

World 9-Ball Champion
World 14.1 Champion
BCA Open Champion
North American 8-Ball Open Champion
European Junior Champion

Sponsored by Lucasi Universal Smartshaft
Managed by Dragon Promotions

Tony Robles

2008-08-02T19:07:00.000-07:00

Tony Robles, known as The Silent Assassin , currently resides in New York City. He is considered one of the greatest billiards instructors and players in the world by his peers. He is beloved by fans and players alike for his soft spoke manner and honest approach to life.

Robles is one of the instructors in the world who executes what he preaches as he is still a force to be reckon with on the pro scene. Robles in past surveys by Pro Pool School Student polls has always come out to be their favorite instructor. He also has taken time to create the Predator 9-Ball tour which plays events thoughtout the northeastern U.S.

Titles Accomplishments:

BCA Open Champion
NJ 14.1 Champion
Mosconi Cup Team USA Winner

Sponsored by Predator Cues Excelsior Graphics

Abraham Cracks Egg Harbor Billiards Event

2008-07-29T13:04:00.000-07:00

Eddie Abraham earned first place at the July 27 stop of the Blaze 9-Ball Tour, defeating Adam Kielar in the finals. Atlantic City Billiard Club in Egg Harbor, NJ, hosted the one-day event, which garnered 45 top pool players from the Northeast.

Abraham went undefeated to the finals, taking victories over Joey Testa 7-5, Danko Campese 7-3, Matt Krah 7-6, and Allen Hopkins 7-2. Leading the bottom half of the bracket was Dawn Hopkins, notching wins over Lloyd Price 7-1, Mel Free 7-2, Rob Palm 7-4, Christine Liotti 7-2, and Evan Bostron 7-1.

Hopkins and Abraham met up in the winners’-side finals. In this lopsided match, Abraham handled Hopkins easily, sending her to the semifinals with a 7-2 victory. Waiting there for her was Kielar, who pulled away to win the match 6-3 and reach the finals.

Kielar had to best Abraham twice in the finals to win the tournament. The first set went hill-hill, with Kielar winning 7-6. In the second set, Abraham won easily 6-3.

Results:
1st Eddie Abraham
2nd Adam Kielar
3rd Dawn Hopkins
4th Joey Testa
5th Evan Boston
Allen Hopkins
7th Matt Krah
8th Mike Miller

Bata-Led Team Begins Qatar World Open 9-Ball Campaign

2008-06-23T12:54:00.000-07:00

PUERTO PRINCESA CITY - Filipino pool maestro Efren "Bata" Reyes will lead the assault of a strong Philippine contingent as the tough Qatar Open 9-Ball tournament gets going on June 29-July 5 at the Qatar Billiards and Snooker Federation, Al Muntazah Road , Doha , Qatar.

Fondly called "The Magician" in the pool arena, the pride of Angeles City, Pampanga is aching to bounce back from the embarrassment he suffered in the first Senate President Manny Villar Cup in Cebu against a virtually unknown Rodrigo Geronimo, 9-1.

"I hope to perform well in Qatar World 9-Ball Open after my sub-par performance in Cebu Open ," said Reyes. " But what ever happen, I wish a Filipino can win the championship's trophy in Qatar," added Reyes, who is the first Filipino World Pool Champion in 1999.

Other notable Filipino bets competing here are Francisco "Django" Bustamante, world No.1 Dennis Orcollo, reigning national champion Lee Van Corteza and Warren Kiamco.

Former Asian snooker champion Marlon Manalo, 2007 Manny Pacquiao International 9-ball Open titlist Jeffrey De Luna and 2006 Doha Asian Games gold medalist Antonio Gabica will also see action in this event that offers $40,000 to the winner. They will take a short rest after grueling battles in the Puerto Princesa Cup, second leg of the Philippine Pool Tour before heading to Qatar.

Billiards and Snooker Congress of the Philippines (BSCP) president Ernesto Fajardo expressed optimism on the Filipinos' chances in this tournament despite a tiring schedule they encountered. "We have a good chance in this event," said Fajardo. "Our players are coming off from separate tournaments. These tournaments might sharpen them a bit for the Qatar tournament."

Taiwanese ace Chia-Ching Wu, who ruled the second leg of the RP Pool Tour, will also join the event along with compatriot Pin-Yi Ko, the reigning world junior champion. A formidable cast of foreign participants from Europe and the United States will also compete. Ralf Souquet and Thorsten Hohmann of Germany and Johnny Archer and Shane Van Boening of the US are also the favorites in the tournament. All these players are already seeded in the tournament proper of this $150,000 event.

Cebu leg champion Gandy Valle, Ramil Gallego and snooker specialist Benjie Guevarra will participate in the stage one elimination on June 27. However, if another slot opens in the main draw, the Japan-based Gallego is the top priority according to Fajardo because his superb performance in the past.

Around 96 players will see action in this event. They will be divided into eight groups with 12 players each. They will play in a double elimination, alternate break, race-to-nine format.

Pagulayan is World Pool Masters champ

2008-05-13T01:19:00.000-07:00

Fil-Canadian Alex Pagulayan came from behind to turn back former world champion Mika Immonen, 8-6, in the finals to be crowned champion of the 2008 PartyPoker.net World Pool Masters Monday at the Riviera Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA.

The Cabagan, Isabela native was down, 3-6, but the match turned Pagulayan’s way after Immonen’s illegal break, wherein he pocketed a ball but failed to carry two other balls past the headstring.

From there, Pagulayan cleared the table to gain the momentum he needed for a comeback.

The win awarded Pagulayan the $20,000 top purse, and more importantly, gave the flamboyant 28-year-old Filipino his first title of the year.

“This was like winning the World Championship for me. I’ve always wanted it but I’ve finally broken the ice,” said a jubilant Pagulayan, a stalwart of Puyat Sports and member of the Billiards Managers and Players Association of the Philippines (BMPAP).

Pagulayan had to beat stablemate and former world No.1 Francisco "Django" Bustamante, 8-4, in the semifinals to arrange a showdown with Immonen.

Immonen, meanwhile, won over WPA World Junior Champion Ko Pin-yi of Taiwan, 8-4, in the other semis pairing.

Immonen settled for the runner-up purse of $10,000, while Bustamante, who won the tournament in 1998 and 2001, took home $5,000, the same amount received by Ko.

Pagulayan and Bustamante will be joined by Efren “Bata” Reyes as they compete in the Predator International 10-Ball Championship starting Tuesday also in Las Vegas.

2008 World Pool Masters Site Starts Today

2008-04-28T15:39:00.000-07:00

Matchroom Sport is delighted to announce that www.worldpoolmasters.com , the Official Online Home of the PartyPoker.net World Pool Masters, is now live.

With the tournament being held for the first time ever in Las Vegas, the site will be your first port of call for news, player profiles, results, stories and pictures of what promises to be a hugely exciting event featuring some of the world’s top players.

Four World 9-ball Champions – Daryl Peach, Mika Immonen, Ralf Souquet, Alex Pagulayan – will be taking part in the event as well as some of the biggest names in the game, including Shane Van Boening, Francisco Bustamante, Niels Feijen and Corey Deuel.

All will be vying for the $20,000 top prize.

The World Pool Masters will be taking place at the Riviera Hotel and Casino from Thursday 9th to Sunday 11th May with afternoon and evening sessions daily, concluding with the final scheduled to commence around 9.15pm on Sunday evening.

www.worldpoolmasters.com will feature exclusive interviews with the stars who make up the field as well as comments and predictions from the big names of world pool.

Bookmark www.worldpoolmasters.com today for full details and information about the 16th annual running of one of pool’s most prestigious events.

Final Names added to 2008 World Pool Masters Line-up

2008-04-26T15:37:00.000-07:00

The final names have been added to the players’ roster for the forthcoming 2008 PartyPoker.net World Pool Masters which takes place at the Riviera Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas from May 9 to May 11.

Filipino superstars Francisco Bustamante and Alex Pagulayan have confirmed their attendance as well as top-rated Europeans Ralf Souquet (Germany) and Niels Feijen of Holland.

With 16 players in the field competing for a $62,000 prize fund, event promoters Matchroom Sport believe they have assembled the strongest line-up yet in the 16 year history of the event.

“With four World 9 Ball Champions, six US Open Champions and a host of other title-holders in the field, I believe that this will be the toughest ever World Pool Masters,” said Matchroom Sport Chairman Barry Hearn.

“With winner breaks, race to eight matches on the toughest equipment it will take a series of fantastic performances over the three days to lift this prestigious trophy,” he added.

Other recent confirmations include 2001 US Open Champion Corey Deuel and a quartet of stars recently qualified from the Euro Tour.

They are the latest English 9 Ball sensation Mark Gray, Germany’s dangerous Christian Reimering, up-and-coming Italian player Bruno Muratore and 2006 Mosconi Cup player Imran Majid (England).

World Junior Champion, the 18 year-old Ko Pin-Yi of Taiwan cemented his credentials to a Masters spot at the weekend by coming from 14-4 down to beat Dennis Orcollo 15-14 and lift the Brunswick Thailand 9 Ball Open.

Elsewhere, 2003 Masters Champion Tony Drago won the Paris Open at the weekend, his first Euro Tour title, after three losing finals.

2008 World Pool Masters Field:

Daryl Peach (England)
Thomas Engert (Germany)
Mika Immonen (Finland)
Tony Drago (Malta)
Shane Van Boening (USA)
Rodney Morris (USA)
Francisco Bustamante (Philippine)
Alex Pagulayan (Philippines)
Ko Pin-ye (Chinese Taipei)
Niels Feijen (Netherlands)
Ralf Souquet (Germany)
Corey Deuel (USA)
Mark Gray (England)
Christian Reimering (Germany)
Bruno Moratore (Italy)
Imran Majid (England)

Stickland and Jones fill out Team USA

2008-01-31T20:38:00.000-08:00

Feijen, Wu and Engert All Through At World Pool Masters

2007-06-09T13:42:00.000-07:00

Niels Feijen produced a stunning fight back to defeat Imran Majid and move into the last eight of the 2007 PartyPoker.net World Pool Masters.

Feijen, who was backed by a large home crowd at the Hotel Zuiderduin, Egmond aan Zee, trailed 3-0 in the early stages of the match but recovered to win 8-5.

"I started like a granny," admitted Feijen. "Imran then let me off the hook so I could've been 4-1 down. The big swing came when he missed a seven-ball and I played really well from the middle to the end.

"I have been struggling with my pace the whole week so this was a big relief for me. Let's keep it going."

Majid looked in control in the early stages as he moved around the table comfortably but the match turned at four racks all when Imran had no shot on the opening ball and pushed out. He failed to make his intentions plain to referee Michaela Tabb and resulted in ball-in-hand for Feijen, who grabbed the opportunity to take the lead for the first time at 5-4.

Looking confident, Feijen coasted through the next to increase his lead with his English opponent against it. Majid though, held himself together to run out the next but the momentum was with Feijen.

Looking a different player from his early tentative endeavours, he completed another easy run out to get to the hill at 7-5.

Feijen got to the table in the next but could do nothing with the situation and Majid was forced to play safe. The Dutchman though, took on a great table length bank on the 5 ball which proved to be a match winner as it set up the run out for a tremendous come-from-behind victory for Feijen.

In the next first round match, Taiwan’s former double World Champion Wu Chia-ching fired out a warning shot as he made light work of Canadian Tyler Edey, winning 8-1.

In the final match of the afternoon, Thomas Engert (Germany) and Malta’s Tony Drago completed their third Masters first round match and this time it was Engert, the 2004 champion, who got the better of it winning 8-4.

It was a tight match until Engert got the better of the safety exchanges to close out Drago and secure a quarter final berth.

Full Results:

Niels Feijen (Ned) 8 – 6 Imran Majid (Eng)
Wu Chia-ching (TPE) 8 – 1 Tyler Edey (CAN)
Thomas Engert (GER) 8 - 4 Tony Drago (MLT)

Pinoy Alcano Aware of Taiwanese Wu in World Pool Masters

2007-06-08T13:45:00.000-07:00

World Champion Ronato Alcano believes Chia-ching Wu is his biggest threat in the 2007 PartyPoker.net World Pool Masters. The Paranaque based Alcano reached the pinnacle of the sport in November when he defeated German Ralf Souquet in the final of the 2006 World Pool Championships. That victory elevated 34-year-old Alcano to legend status in his pool-mad home country as he became an overnight celebrity.

One of the other benefits of winning the world title has seen him be selected as one of 16 players in this year's Masters, which begins Friday at the Hotel Zuiderduin, Egmond aan Zee, Holland. It will be Alcano's debut in the competition and he will be aiming to maintain his good form and collect the $20,000 top prize.

Alcano, bested compatriot Dennis Orcollo in the finals of the World 8-ball in Fujairah, United Arab Emirates last February to follow the foot step of Chia-ching Wu and countryman Efren "Bata" Reyes, the former double world champion (WPA 9-ball and WPA 8-ball).

He faces Italian Fabio Petroni in the opening round on Friday night and, if successful, will then meet either Nick van den Berg (Holland) or female star Jasmin Ouschan (Austria) in the quarter-finals.

However, if he reaches the semi-finals he could meet 2005 World Champion Chia-ching Wu ( Taiwan) in what would be a mouth-watering encounter. "This is a hard tournament to win because there are a lot of good players," said Alcano. "It is hard to say if I will be the winner as there are too many top players but I will try my best and maybe I will get lucky. I think Chia-ching Wu is a very good player and will be difficult to beat."

Alcano and Chia-ching Wu will both be getting some match practice ahead of the main tournament as they played in the Challenge the Champions last Thursday. This knockout tournament features a number of professional players competing against local club players and will be an interesting indication of who is in form and who is not.

In other marquee matches in the first round of World Pool Masters: Naoyuki Oi of Japan vs Oliver Ortmann of Germany; Li He-wen of China vs Pat Holtz of Scotland; Imran Majid of England vs Niels Feijen of the Netherlands; Wu Chia-ching of Chinese-Taipei vs Tyler Edey of Canada and Tony Drago of Malta vs Thomas Engert of Germany.