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THE 2012 GB9 BRITISH GRAND PRIX
Plus PRO CUP V & CHALLENGE CUP V
Puma Court Hotel
Sedgemoor Way
Daventry
Northamptonshire
NN11 0SG
United Kingdom
www.gb9balltour.com

Friday/Saturday/Sunday 9-11 November 2012

British Grand Prix Champion Imran Majid.
All photography courtesy & copyright of �Andrew Warden, GB 9 Ball Tour
THE 2012 GB9 BRITISH GRAND PRIX

The fifth season of GB9 competition has come to a close at this year�s British Grand Prix. Imran Majid, James Kay and Phil Burford have come away with the final prizes of the year on Britain�s official professional 9-ball pool tour as the curtain comes down on the tour�s two years at the Puma Court hotel in Daventry, Northamptonshire.

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GB9 British Grand Prix Main Event Winner Imran Majid.

MAHARAJA REIGNS SUPREME ONCE MORE
The final of this year�s British Grand Prix was contested by two of the most decorated players in GB9 history. Imran Majid, British number 1 in 2008 and 2011, came up against Mark Gray, British number 1 in 2009 and 2010. With both players having come back from Italy in the early hours in order to participate in the main event, doubts were raised at whether both players would be able to perform to their usually immaculate standard at such short notice. The punters weren�t let down as a day of tremendous pool began.

Majid began his campaign bright and early at 9am against long time tour player Paul Williams. By his own high standards he maybe came out of the blocks a little slow, but still dispatched Williams 9-5 to set up a last 32 clash with Daz Cooper. He stepped up a couple of gears in this round, winning through 9 racks to 2 and securing him a last 16 battle with Yorkshireman Dave Nelson. Majid managed a staggering 4 break and runs in the match but Nelson wasn�t going down lightly: he managed to score 6 racks of his own, but it wasn�t enough to stop Majid winning the 9 he needed to win through to the quarter finals.

His opponent here was Andy Worthington and, knowing he had to step his game up in the business end of the tournament, he pulled away swiftly to secure a 9-2 win and set up a semi-final against Michael Valentine. A typically methodical match ensued here and both tried to grind out a victory. It was Majid, however, that pulled away to win 9-5 and reach the British Grand Prix final for the second year in a row.

�Granite� Gray was coming up against Ealing�s Lionel Brown in his last 64, also starting at 9am on the Sunday morning. He overcame the threat of the Londoner 9-2 to send him through to meet Chichester�s Luke Rollison in the last 32. Gray took his foot off the gas a little, but still managed to keep the game up enough to win through 9 racks to 5. In the last 16 he came up against all round cueman from Derby, Jack Whelan. Gray managed to go one rack better than his previous match in winning through to the quarter finals, with 9-5 enough to see him through to a quarter final up against Chris Buckmaster. The Surrey shooter was looking to go one stage further than his quarter final showing in this year�s Midlands Classic, but Gray stopped him in his tracks with a 9-4 win to set up what turned out to be a thrilling semi-final against young hotshot Phil Burford. The match went the distance � all 17 racks � but a composed final rack saw Gray through to his first main event final since April 2010 with a tremendous 9-8 victory.

The final swung strongly in both directions. After a tame start from both players, Gray managed to break away into an 8-4 lead, just three racks away from victory. Majid, however, proved why he was last season�s British number 1 and why he wasn�t going to relinquish that title lightly this year. The Maharaja turned the match on its head, winning 7 of the final 9 racks to win the final main event of the season 11-9. With the victory, Imran Majid secured his title as Britain�s number 1 pool player for another 12 months, a title only ever held by Majid and his fellow finalist Mark Gray. Credit must go to Gray also in finishing as this season�s British number 2. He will look to try and dethrone Majid at the top of the rankings, along with dozens of other players from across the country looking to take their slice of glory on the world�s toughest national pool tour.

2012 GB9 British Grand Prix Masters Event Winner James Kay.

KAY BRINGS THE ROOF DOWN ON HALL IN PRO CUP
GB9′s final ever Pro Cup was contested by two of GB9′s longest serving players. Manchester�s James Kay, one of only a handful of players to have layer in every single GB9 event since the tour�s inception in 2008, came up against Wakefield�s Chris Hall, an ever present feature at the business end of competitions.

As most of the GB9 professional players were away at the European Open in Italy at the start of this event, this left the Pro Cup field unusually depleted � nonetheless, an enthralling campaign was undertaken by Kay and Hall en route to the final. The two players actually met one another in the opening round with Kay coming away victorious 9 racks to 7. This sent Hall through to the losers bracket where he eventually came up against Scotland�s Michael Valentine. He brushed Valentine to one side with an emphatic 9-1 victory to secure his place in the last 8. His next challenge came against Wolverhampton�s Darryn Walker, but he had no trouble in keeping the upper hand and ran out a 9-6 winner. In the semi-finals he faced another long time face on GB9 in the form of Bournemouth�s Damian Massey. It went down to the wire, but Hall was on the right side of the hill here, winning through 9-8 to qualify for his very first Pro Cup final.

Kay, through to the winners qualifying round, got further into his stride in overcoming Colchester�s Shaun Storry 9 racks to 4 to secure his place in the quarter finals. Here he also met Scottish opposition in the form of Andrew Morris, but managed to step up the necessary gears to see out a 9-6 win and meet Shaun Storry once again. The score was the same as his previous match and the winner was the same as his earlier match with Storry � Kay victorious 9-6 and making his way into the last ever GB9 Pro Cup final alongside Hall. The final was only one rack different to their opening match � a scrappy yet thrilling match which saw James Kay take the title 9 racks to 8 and bring down the curtain on the five years of Pro Cup competition.

GB9 British Grand Prix Challenge Cup Winner Phil Burford.

UNSTOPPABLE LOCOMOTIVE STEAMS TO SECOND 2012 CHALLENGE TITLE
The final Challenge Cup to be played in a divisional format was contested by Darlington�s �Locomotive� Phil Burford and �Smuuci� Courtney Symons, both of whom were contesting their second Challenge final of the year. Little but pride and prize money were up for grabs at this event as the Challenge competition changes format for the 2013 season.

Burford�s route to the final began against Brighton�s Tom Staveley. A 9-4 was enough to take Burford through to the last 32 where he met Mark Foster. 9-3 was the scoreline in that match, and a last 16 encounter against Chris Buckmaster awaited him in the last 16. The Surrey shooter gave it his all, but it wasn�t enough to stop Burford winning through 9 racks to 6 and set up an all north-east shootout against Sunderland�s Adam Benn Smith. He lived up to his Locomotive nickname in this round, powering home to a 9-2 victory against his local rival and putting himself one match away from his second final in the space of three events. Standing in his way, however, was the ever present force of Craig Waddingham. A tantalising match ensued with Burford winning through 9 racks to 7.

Symons started his campaign in a continental fashion, opening his account against Spain�s Javi Lopez. A 9-5 victory took him through to a last 32 match against Daz Cooper, and he made it two wins from two with a 9-4 victory. Another 9-4 win was soon to follow in his next match � this time his victim was Jamie Yates, and this took him through to his second consecutive quarter final in the Challenge Cup. Waiting for him was Norwich�s Mark Bolton who offered a sterner challenge than his previous matches. He eventually saw off Bolton�s efforts 9-6, before coming up against Jack Whelan in his semi-final. His passage to the final was complete with a 9 racks to 3 victory over Whelan where he met Burford.

Burford appeared to have the edge on Symons from the word go in the final. After taking an early lead Symons did manage to peg it back to 4-4, but Burford had another gear to go up to. In winning 5 of the next 6 racks he wrapped up the final Challenge Cup of 2012 with a 9-5 victory, seeing himself finish top of the final Challenge rankings � an excellent achievement for one of the world�s hottest young talents. Symons himself can be proud also of a 2nd place finish � an apt end to the season in the final Challenge Cup.

FAREWELL TO ANOTHER SEASON, AND FAREWELL TO DAVENTRY�
Just when we feel we�ve only just brought the curtain down on the previous season, the current one has ended as well. Countless thousands of racks have been contested in 2012 by players from across Great Britain alongside a growing contingent from continental Europe. Every single player has played their part on another unforgettable season on the GB 9 Ball Tour and all will be hard at work in the off-season trying to hone their game ready for the 6th season of GB9 competition starting in February 2013. Until then, the Tour would like to extend their thanks to all the players, officials and fans who make GB9 possible. An extended thanks must also go to the Puma Court Hotel in Daventry having hosted its 12th GB9 event. The hotel has been an immaculate and invaluable venue to host GB9 competitions in the last three seasons and countless memories will be taken from the venue. We wish you all the best for the new year and new season, and look forward to meeting faces both old and new in three months� time in Telford.

GB9 will return in 2013: Tour Stop 1 � Telford � 22 February 2013

In 2012 GB9 was proudly sponsored by Puma Hotels, SAM Leisure, Simonis Cloth, Aramith Billiard Balls, OB Cues and Power Bridge making the perfect combination of the very best equipment in the most outstanding venues.

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