Pro9 - Europe's No.1 Pool Player Resource

The 2011 GB9 Southern Masters, Pro Cup IV, & Challenge Cup IV
Barcel� Daventry Hotel
Sedgemoor Way
Daventry
Northamptonshire
NN11 0SG
United Kingdom
www.gb9balltour.com
www.belleza-photography.co.uk - View more photos here!

Friday/Saturday/Sunday 2-4 September 2011

2011 GB9 SOUTHERN MASTERS, PRO CUP IV, CHALLENGE CUP IV

The penultimate event of the 2011 GB9 season has come to a conclusion with Kevin Uzzell, Daryl Peach and Eric Dockerty taking the gold home with them at the Southern Masters. Only 26 days after the players had left Daventry off of the back of the Northern Masters, they returned to the same venue to have another stab at those crucial ranking points that are fast running out as the season draws to a conclusion. Dozens of the country's top cueists gave it their all again, and the weekend saw more than one surprise gold medal winner.

Share this article on FaceBook

"Read More..." for the full details.

YOU CAN TELL - HE'S A CHAMPION, UZZELL

The season's penultimate Sunday night battle was contested between two players both with vastly varied experience in finals. Jayson Shaw qualified for his fifth GB9 final after falling just short in his fourth final in the Pro Cup the day before. Kevin Uzzell, however, came into the tournament as only the 24th seed and had yet to make a GB9 final of any kind in his four years on the tour.

Both players' campaigns began at the last 64 stage, with Shaw's first victim being London's Lionel Brown with a 9-5 victory. Martin Chapman was next to bite the bullet, and with a 9-2 hammering it might as well have been a bullet that shot right through him. The Wizard then cast a spell over the Paul Medati Trophy's shock semi-finalist Neil Margossian, booking his place in the quarter finals with another clinical 9-2 victory. Craig Waddingham, one of the best of the new faces on this season's tour, was the unfortunate soul in the quarter finals succumbing to a 9-3 victory. With just 12 racks conceded prior to the semi-finals and 6 break-and-runs made, Shaw had every right to be confident going into his clash with Scott Higgins. Higgins did give him a serious run for his money, but with Shaw coming through 9 racks to 6 it was he who was entering his second final of the weekend, his third of the season and fifth of his career.

Uzzell's quest for his maiden GB9 title began the way the Shaw's semi-final ended; a 9-6 victory against Mark Foster being the case. Knowing that he had a long way to go until the business end of the competition, you would have thought he'd pick his game up - to send him back home on his short trip from Daventry to Rugby. James Kay holds a rather unfortunate stat - no player in GB9 history has won more money without actually winning a competition. His quest for that elusive title will have to wait until at least November, with Uzzell taking him out 9-4 and going through to the quarter finals. Credit at this stage must go to Norwich's Shaun Chipperfield who, in eliminating both Mark Gray and Karl Boyes earlier in the competition, is proving to be arguably the best tour debutant of 2011. It was Uzzell who came out on top again, however, taking out the East Anglian hero 9 racks to 6 to line up a semi-final against GB9's Mr. Consistency, the one and only Maharaja Imran Majid. When two players of such methodical and calm-mannered pool come face to face, it's nigh on impossible to pick a winner. This time around it was Uzzell's turn to shine, making only his second final in 36 attempts in sending home Majid 9-7.

Everybody would have seen a mouth-watering final in their imagination - one of Great Britain's fastest and finest cueists in Jayson Shaw against the old guard of Kevin Uzzell, known for his composure and immaculately level-headed pool. In a rare instance, psychology for once very quickly got the better of Shaw, not once being ahead in the match and often conceding racks which would never have been deemed an easy run out in most circumstances. Uzzell offered words of support during the match to an evidently uncomfortable Shaw, but it wasn't enough to help his game. Uzzell ultimately sealed the match 11 racks to 4 and, at just 35 minutes, will go down as one of the fastest ever GB9 finals from any division.

At the tournament's conclusion, Uzzell confessed that a trip abroad was responsible for his majestic return to form. "Before this event I'd been playing in Thailand for 7 weeks playing competitions, money games and getting back to my A-game. When I needed to produce on Sunday I sort of went back into 'Thai mode', got my belief and focus back then when I needed to produce it was easy again". Kevin has at last won his first GB9 title, with it the champion�s gold medal, and rises to a commanding 7th in Britain. Ever the gentleman and sport whilst still showing his pride, he acknowledged that the road to victory wouldn't get any easier, saying "In GB9 events previous to this one I've played very inconsistently and never done myself justice, so I'm very proud to win this event when the standard is so exceptionally high nowadays".

A UNIQUE CHALLENGE CUP CLIMAX

The Challenge Cup saw two very different players reach the summit, with 9-ball stalwart 'The Omen' Damian Massey and recent English pool convert Eric 'Unique' Dockerty reaching the final of the year's fourth competition.

Coming into the event as a clear favourite for promotion to next season�s Pro division, Massey began his quest for a third career Challenge Cup final berth with a 9-1 Victory over Norwich's Mark Bolton. He then removed Craig Waddingham by 9 racks to 6 in the last 32, needing the same score to take out Mark Lunn in the next round. Just when he thought he would need to up his game against the ever-present Arfan Dad in the quarter-finals, he actually breathed significantly easier with another 9-1 demolition job. He met Mat Lawrenson in his semi-final, with both players looking to make it into their second final of the season, but Massey repeated the 9-6 score line once again to book his place in the final.

Dockerty started one round further back than his final opponent, but comfortably ended Ian McCormick's campaign at the round of 96 with a 9-4 win. He followed that up when he removed Robin Cripps and August's champion Shaun Storry from the tournament each by 9-2 and 9-6 scores respectively. 9-6 was also the result in his last 16 defeat of Glenn Cooney. Like Massey in his quarter-final match, Dockerty actually could afford to take his foot off the gas from thereon in; he eliminated Jason Howard 9 racks to 4 before hammering Darryn Walker 9-1 to book his place in the final showdown.

Dockerty's ruthless attitude in the previous two rounds shone through in the final, emulating Shaun Storry's August final in storming to a 5-0 lead in no time at all. Unlike back then, however, Massey just had nowhere near enough fuel left in his tank to catch back up and, to the most rapturous cheers and applause heard this season, Dockerty pocketed the final 9-ball and wrapped up a 9-5 win which catapults him from a lowly 65th in the Challenge rankings to a very much commanding 17th. Congratulations must also go to Damian Massey - alongside Mat Lawrenson, they have become this season's first two players to be mathematically assured of a Pro Cup spot next season. The battle for the other six slots, however, will be a fascinating saga played out over just 24 hours in November.

ALL IS PEACHY IN THE PRO CUP

The Pro Cup final saw a repeat of the March event when Jayson Shaw and Daryl Peach clashed for the season's first gold rush. With both players commanding 2nd and 1st in the provisional Pro rankings coming into the event, both players had the pleasure of a bye through the opening round.

Peach's run into the final was one that, as any tournament draw would normally suggest, got progressively tougher the longer he stayed in. Matt Ford was his first victim by a score of 9 racks to 5, with Kevin Uzzell the next to fall to Peach's sword, going one rack better but still only taking a 9-6 defeat on his way. His semi-final opponent was none other than British number 1 Imran Majid, who managed to keep up his phenomenal record of semi-final appearances in all 2011 competitions with this being his sixth out of seven attempts. However, it was Peach who came out on top by 9 racks to 7 to book his place in the final showdown.

Shaw, on the other hand, had the rare claim of eliminating three of the previous season's promoted Challenge Cup players on his route to the final. His last 16 match saw the end of Shane Appleton's campaign with a 9-5 defeat of the Yorkshireman. Gary Bullocke was the next man unable to jump Shaw's hurdle, coming away with a 9-3 defeat. Scotland's finest then ended any hopes Stewart Colclough had of being the first man to win both a Pro and Challenge event, but only a brave final rack at hill-hill saw the Wizard through by 9 racks to 8. This was, almost predictably, the score in the final itself - something we as spectators have come to expect when seeing players of this caliber fighting it out for the major bragging rights.

In another nail-biting and clinical encounter, it was Peach who just about managed to scrape through 9-8. For his success he takes home the coveted gold medal and, most importantly to him, his first GB9 title for almost 10 months.

CORR INVADES THE GB 9 BALL TOUR

The GB 9 Ball Tour were also pleased to welcome WPBA Professional Karen Corr to the event after she accepted a Pro reserve spot that came available at the last minute.

In the main event �The Irish Invader� overcame Nathan James and Stuart Daff 9-5 and 9-2 respectively in the early rounds, before coming up against an in-form Jason Howard in the last 64 where she fell with a 9-2 scoreline. Her progression in the Pro cup was halted early with a 9-5 defeat to Matt Ford in the last 32 stage. Testiment to the strength in field in what many regard as �The Toughest National Tour on the Planet�.

The GB 9 Ball Tour will return to the Barcelo Daventry Hotel on the 18-20 November for the final event of the 2011 season � �The GB9 British Grand Prix�.

In 2011 GB9 is proudly sponsored by Barcel� Hotels, SAM Leisure, Simonis Cloth, Aramith Billiard Balls and CueClubInternational.com making the perfect combination of the very best equipment in the most outstanding venues.

Enjoy the article? Now try this...

View Pro9's front page!
Chat about this article in our forums.
Visit The Pro Shop to see new cues and gadgets.
Check out the Pro9.co.uk calendar for details of more events.

Comments