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The 2010 GB9 Southern Masters
Barcel� Daventry Hotel
Sedgemoor Way
Daventry
Northamptonshire
NN11 0SG
United Kingdom
www.barcelo-hotels.co.uk
www.gb9balltour.com
www.ipoolmagazine.com
www.belleza-photography.co.uk

Friday/Saturday/Sunday 24-26 September 2010

All photos �Andrew Warden/Belleza Photography - used by Pro9 with express permission.
GB9 Southern Masters (Main event)

Imran Majid lifted his second trophy in two Tour Stops at the GB9 Southern Masters, edging out Scotland's young hot shot, Jayson Shaw, by eleven racks to nine in the final at the Barcelo Daventry Hotel, Northamptonshire. The match looked for all the world to be going to a hill-hill deciding rack until Shaw left too much of a pocket available for 'The Maharaja' to make a long 7 ball, the remaining two balls and the lion's share of the �6000 prize fund. �Jayson is a great cueist so I couldn't try and out-pot him because he probably would have won, I had to grind a few racks out. This win really shows I'm back!� Majid's victory in Daventry gave him his first British Main Event title since July 2008, the last title in his famous run of four consecutive tournament wins.

Despite a host of notable names being absent from the list owing to the China Open clashing with the Tour Stop, Majid overcame stern opposition throughout the day. Adam Benn Smith came closest, managing to take seven racks in their race-to-9 quarter-final clash, a careless scratch on a 7 Ball at the midway stage perhaps being the turning point for the Sunderland based star. Pro Cup finalist, Raj Hundal could only manage three racks in his semi-final encounter with his former sparring partner Majid. 9-6 and 9-3 wins over Matthew Ford and Andy Appleton in the earlier rounds put Majid on the path to success.

"Read More..." for further details!

Jayson Shaw's quest to become the first non-English winner of a GB9 Main Event may have fell at the final hurdle but he may well have a case to curse his luck. Although his breaks were complying to the '3-point rule' that is in place at all GB9 tournaments, 'The Wizard' seldom landed with shape on the lowest numbered ball during the day. Given this fact, the young Scot, a 9th place finisher at this year's World Pool Masters, can take pleasure in his composure and patience, leading to wins over Mark Hopgood 9 � 0; Jonny Cooper 9-2; Pro Cup winner 9-5 and in the semi-final, a thrilling comeback against 'Granite' Mark Gray rewarded him with a 9-8 victory.

The remaining 9th place finishers in Daventry were, Kevin Uzzell; Jason Howard; Stephen Capaldi; Glenn Cooney; James Kay and promising English 8 Ball convert, Jack Whelan. European number 9 Craig 'The Shotgun' Osborne and Challenge Cup record-breaker, Shane Appleton both left with 5th place standings.

One event remains of the GB 9 Ball Tour's third season; The GB9 Northern Masters at the Barcelo Blackpool Imperial Hotel over the weekend of Friday 26th to Sunday 28th November.
GB9 is proudly sponsored by Barcelo Hotels, SAM Leisure, Simonis Cloth, Aramith Billard Balls and Mezz Cues; making the perfect combination of the very best equipment in the most outstanding venues.

All photos �Andrew Warden/Belleza Photography - used by Pro9 with express permission.
Locomotive back on Track

After a lean season, Phil Burford produced a performance of maturity combined with flair to get one over on 'The Hitman', Raj Hundal. A superb display of the in vogue 'power cut-break' saw Burford to a convincing nine racks to four victory to claim the 2010 GB9 Daventry Pro Cup 2 at the Barcelo Daventry Hotel.

The 19 year old cueist from Darlington pockets �1000 for his efforts over Saturday 25th September, with stand-out victories including 9-5 over former European number one, Mark Gray and a 9-0 demolition over Scotland's Jayson Shaw. �Obviously it feels good to win, I've played well all day and I feel as though I've deserved it. I'm just happy to get back to how I was playing when the GB9 first started�. Burford made the first two Pro Cup finals in the GB 9 Ball Tour's inaugural year but fell at the final hurdle on both occasions. Damaged equipment and a subsequent loss of form halted 'The Locomotive's progress but the ability that first pointed to him being Great Britain's great, young hope looks to be back. �I've got to thank Stan Shuffet who's my girlfriend's father and a great pool coach, he's showed me certain aiming systems, he has replanned my game. He was watching from over in the States on Cuesport TV so I hope I put on a good show for him�.

Raj Hundal smoothed-stroked his way to a final berth with victories over Kevin Uzzell and Craig Osborne, both 9-5, and in the semi-final, a master-class of safety and opportunism rewarded him with a 9-3 win over 'The Yeti', Michael Valentine. As always, Hundal was not lost for words after the final; �I've actually been in bed all week ill from travelling although it's not like I'm the biggest 'practiser' in the world anyway, not like when I was younger when I'd be down the pool hall all day...I used to get some action then too! Why aren't I practising as much now? Pool just happens to be something I'm good at, to be honest, sometimes I wish it wasn't�. Hundal says this with so little arrogance that, although unfathomable to the regular player, it's hard to doubt that Hundal is genuinely a reluctant hero in the sport. Not without appreciation for the better man on the day though, Hundal said, �I'm happy for Phil, he's a talented kid and I hope it takes him somewhere in the future. Obviously the breaking conditions suit him in these events because that's the first time he's ever beaten me.�

GB9 is proudly sponsored by Barcelo Hotels, SAM Leisure, Simonis Cloth, Aramith Billiard Balls and Mezz Cues; making the perfect combination of the very best equipment in the most outstanding venues.

Report for the GB9 Ball Tour by Ben Moore, iPool Magazine.

Third Time Lucky for Shane

'Straight-Shooter' Shane Appleton defeated close friend and fellow Pontefract resident Ben Finch by nine racks to five to claim the GB9 Cue Club International Challenge Cup in Daventry. Finch, who was looking for his second Challenge Cup title of the season, took an early 4-0 lead in the final only to see the consistency and determination of Appleton kick into gear to allow Finch just one more rack. It was Appleton's third consecutive final in the Challenge Cup, an unprecedented achievement in the GB 9 Ball Tour's three year history. After his win, Appleton said, �This is a big monkey off of my back! I came here thinking that I cant possibly make three finals on the trot but when I beat Luke Rollison in the quarters I knew I could go all the way. Ben shot off like a train but from 4-0 down I've played great�. Of his current consistency, Appleton commented, �It's all down to hard work and putting the hours in, Darren's help with safety and kicking has been key, along with confidence and enjoyment, right now I've got both in abundance�. A convincing 9-1 win over Stewart Colclough in the semi final was certainly the highlight of a good day's hard graft, wins over Louis Callaghan 9-1; Aslam Abubaker 9-5 and Luke Rollison 9-6 completes the story.

29 year old Finch, known as, 'The Finisher', proved once again that he is on the right road to a career in the American game with victories over Philip Morgan 9-6; Mark Hopgood 9-4; Andy Barnett 9-3 and Neil Margossian, appearing in his first GB9 semi-final, 9-5. When the draw threw out the Finch/Barnett quarter final, Finch knew it was a chance for instant closure on his 21-19 challenge match defeat to 'Barney Boi' last week. The pair are good friends off of the table yet each realise the importance of having a 'business head' whilst holding a cue; it was Finch on this occasion who had the pound signs in his eyes.

With just one event left of season three, players will no doubt be looking at the rankings to see if they are in with a shout of a top 8 berth to unlock the door to the coveted Pro Division. Both finalists at this event are already there and are sure to do some damage next season against the nation's elite. With the strength of next season's Challenge Division looking likely to increase yet again, with more and more English 8 Ball players sitting up and taking notice of the American game; a promotion to the Pro Division may actually be a blessing.

GB9 is proudly sponsored by Barcelo Hotels, SAM Leisure, Simonis Cloth, Aramith Billiard Balls and Mezz Cues; making the perfect combination of the very best equipment in the most outstanding venues. The GB9 Daventry Challenge Cup was sponsored by Cue Club International.

THE STATS

THE GB9 SOUTHERN MASTERS
THE MAIN TOURNAMENT
THE LAST 32
Mark Gray	9 : 3	Dominic Clemens
Kevin Uzzell	9 : 8	Gary Bullocke
Jason Howard	9 : 4	Philip Morgan
Craig Osborne	9 : 7	Luke Rollison
Jayson Shaw	9 : 0	Mark Hopgood
Jonny Cooper	9 : 7	Alan Coton
Stephen Capaldi	9 : 4	Damian Massey
Phil Burford	9 : 2	Mathew Lawrenson
Adam Benn Smith	9 : 2	Mike Rogers
Glenn Cooney	9 : 7	Chris Buckmaster
Imran Majid	9 : 3	Andrew Appleton
Matthew Ford	9 : 3	Mark Foster
James Kay	9 : 3	Mark Hughes
Raj Hundal	9 : 3	Paul Williams
Jack Whelan	9 : 7	Andy Barnett
Shane Appleton	9 : 4	Ben Finch

THE GB9 SOUTHERN MASTERS
THE MAIN TOURNAMENT
THE LAST 16
Mark Gray	9 : 3	Kevin Uzzell
Craig Osborne	9 : 0	Jason Howard
Jayson Shaw	9 : 2	Jonny Cooper
Phil Burford	9 : 5	Stephen Capaldi
Adam Benn Smith	9 : 5	Glenn Cooney
Imran Majid	9 : 6	Matthew Ford
Raj Hundal	9 : 3	James Kay
Shane Appleton	9 : 6	Jack Whelan

THE GB9 SOUTHERN MASTERS
THE MAIN TOURNAMENT
THE QUARTER FINALS
Mark Gray	9 : 0	Craig Osborne
Jayson Shaw	9 : 5	Phil Burford
Imran Majid	9 : 7	Adam Benn Smith
Raj Hundal	9 : 3	Shane Appleton

THE GB9 SOUTHERN MASTERS
THE MAIN TOURNAMENT
THE SEMI FINALS
Jayson Shaw	9 : 8	Mark Gray
Imran Majid	9 : 3	Raj Hundal

THE GB9 SOUTHERN MASTERS
THE MAIN TOURNAMENT
THE FINAL
Imran Majid	11 : 9	Jayson Shaw

---

THE GB9 SOUTHERN MASTERS
THE CHALLENGE CUP
THE LAST 32
Andrew Morris	9 : 5	Neil Cummins
Andy Barnett	9 : 6	Matthew Lawrenson
Mark Hopgood	9 : 7	Morray Dolan
Ben Finch	9 : 6	Philip Morgan
Louis Clarke	9 : 8	Stephen Capaldi
Adam Shaw	9 : 3	Robin Cripps
Neil Margossian	9 : 7	Lee Hersey
Mark Singleton	9 : 6	Johnny Cooper
Mike Rogers	9 : 8	Craig Dixon
Gary Anderson	9 : 4	Chris Cowie
Stewart Colclough	9 : 3	Chun Hao Man
Mark Foster	9 : 3	Colin Rennison
Shane Appleton	9 : 1	Louis Callaghan
Aslam Abubaker	9 : 5	Chris Stocker
Andrew Worthington	9 : 7	Gary Bullocke
Luke Rollison	9 : 7	Ben Moore

THE GB9 SOUTHERN MASTERS
THE CHALLENGE CUP
THE LAST 16
Andy Barnett	9 : 6	Andrew Morris
Ben Finch	9 : 4	Mark Hopgood
Louis Clarke	9 : 5	Adam Shaw
Neil Margossian	9 : 6	Mark Singleton
Gary Anderson	9 : 5	Mike Rogers
Stewart Colclough	9 : 4	Mark Foster
Shane Appleton	9 : 5	Aslam Abubaker
Luke Rollison	9 : 8	Andrew Worthington

THE GB9 SOUTHERN MASTERS
THE CHALLENGE CUP
THE QUARTER FINALS
Ben Finch	9 : 3	Andy Barnet
Neil Margossian	9 : 1	Louis Clarke
Stewart Colclough	9 : 2	Gary Anderson
Shane Appleton	9 : 6	Luke Rollison

THE GB9 SOUTHERN MASTERS
THE CHALLENGE CUP
THE SEMI FINALS
Ben Finch	9 : 5	Neil Margossian
Shane Appleton	9 : 1	Stewart Colclough

THE GB9 SOUTHERN MASTERS
THE CHALLENGE CUP
THE FINAL
Shane Appleton	9 : 5	Ben Finch

---

THE GB9 SOUTHERN MASTERS
THE PRO CUP
THE LAST 32
Adam Benn Smith	9 : 2	So Shaw
Damian Massey	9 : 7	Jonathan Mathers
Alan Coton	9 : 7	David Carter
Dave Nelson	9 : 7	Paul Williams
Dominic Clemens	9 : 6	Matthew Ford

THE GB9 SOUTHERN MASTERS
THE PRO CUP
THE LAST 16
Mark Gray	9 : 3	Adam Benn Smith
Damian Massey	9 : 6	James Kay
Jayson Shaw	9 : 2	Mark Collins
Imran Majid	9 : 2	Alan Coton
Michael Valentine	9 : 7	Dave Nelson
Raj Hundal	9 : 5	Kevin Uzzell
Craig Osborne	9 : 2	Dominic Clemens

THE GB9 SOUTHERN MASTERS
THE PRO CUP
THE QUARTER FINALS
Phil Burford	9 : 5	Mark Gray
Jayson Shaw	9 : 4	Damian Massey
Michael Valentine	9 : 8	Imran Majid
Raj Hundal	9 : 5	Craig Osborne

THE GB9 SOUTHERN MASTERS
THE PRO CUP
THE SEMI FINALS
Phil Burford	9 : 0	Jayson Shaw
Raj Hundal	9 : 3	Michael Valentine

THE GB9 SOUTHERN MASTERS
THE PRO CUP
THE FINAL
Phil Burford	9 : 4	Raj Hundal

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