"The Magician" Efren "Bata" Reyes wins $500,000 at the IPT World Open 8-Ball Championship with a magnificent 8:6 win over Hawaii's Rodney "The Rocket" Morris in Reno, Nevada.
Morris will take $150,000 for his efforts, but by all accounts it was a tense and nervous final, as Morris scratched in the side pocket on his break no less than THREE times, and Reyes MISSED two 8-balls.
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Posted By admin on Monday, September 11 2006 @ 09:54:12 UTC (3583 reads)
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Results for the EPT Qualifier's from Club 9 Saturday 9th September
A Fantastic array of top players from all over Ireland and from all backgrounds turned up for these increasingly popular and exciting events held and organised by Club 9,the superb prizes of flights,hotels and entry fee to Daryl Peach's ever growing and now becoming a household name amongst all the top pro's and players of all skill levels, the tour everyone is talking about the Empire Pool Tour.
Saturday morning doors opened and players of top quality walked into Club 9 Paddy McLaughlin,Gareth Deegan,Manny Byrne,Dean largley,Stephen Johnston and many more, in house players Sam Gibson,Billy Gorman,Paul Canavan Gerard Elliman were looking forward to the challenge,after a few practise sessions it was time to get into the zone and play for the top prizes.
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Posted By admin on Monday, September 11 2006 @ 01:21:58 UTC (3093 reads)
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PartyPoker.net World Cup of Pool - Day 6 Updates
Women’s 9-ball World Championship 2011 Tennis Hall of Training Base of Hunnan, Liaoning 32 Hunnan Mid Road Hunnan New District Shenyang 110168 China www.wpa-pool.com - Twitter
September 22nd, 2011 will be a day Allison Fisher would love to soon forget.
Fisher, one of the greatest women players of all time and a four time World 9-ball champion, crashed out of this year’s Women’s World 9-ball Championship just barely after the event had gotten underway in the northeastern city of Shenyang, China. The “Duchess of Doom,” who finished second last year in this event, lost twice in one day and will now have to watch the remainder of pool’s premiere women’s tournament from the stands.
Things began ominously for the Hall of Famer when she drew Taiwanese great Shin Mei Lui in her first match of the group stage in the 64 player event on Thursday. With six world titles between them, the two slugged it out right to the end, with Liu taking the win by a nose, 7-6.
This sent Fisher over to the losers side of her group where she faced a do or die battle against rising Korean talent Park Eun Ji in the last session of the evening. The match took on extra significance because it was played on the TV table in front of a packed house inside the Liaoning Hunnan Sports Training Base arena.
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Players invited to register for the Kremlin Cup 9-Ball Open
The Kremlin Cup has always been predominantly about the exacting game of Russian Pyramid - the exclusively Russian billiard game with ultra large white balls on the huge table with the toughest ball to pocket ratio of any cuesport, and it's impossible to stress enough how highly this event is regarded in Moscow, although the fact that it has been proudly called "the Wimbledon of Billiards" by one Russian pundit should give you an idea, and the first events were actually held inside the Kremlin Palace!
The Kremlin Cup was originally exclusive to invited Russian Pyramid players, but more recently the event has been opened up to international competitors, and although it's always been difficult to get results from this tournament, I do know that the 9-Ball event was won by Sandor Tot in 2005, and by Ruslan Chinakov in 2006 - and this year this televised event will feature participants from England, Holland, Germany, China, Italy, Sweden, Poland, the Philippines, Croatia and more!
Airport: Moscow Sheremetyevo - 30 km, Moscow Domodedovo - 50 km
Schedule: 07.12 -arrival day, till 7.00 p.m. accreditation in the arena 8.00 p.m. - draw 8.12 — 10.00 a.m. - start of matches 10.12 – final 11.12 – departure day
Mode: Entry-fee: €150 Total prize-money: 1400000 rub. (about € 35000) Max. No. of participants: 256 9-Ball, preliminary-rounds Double-KO, Last 32 Single-KO. All rounds races to 9, alternate breaks. Magic rack will be used. Three balls rule.
Dresscode: Solid long-sleeved shirts, long dress trousers of freely chosen colour (no jeans will be permitted), dark shoes and matching socks
Accommodation: Hotel “Bega” 125284. Begovaya alleya, 11, Moscow, Russia Room-rates: single / double room € 100,00 per night incl. Breakfast, Fitnes center, Wi-Fi and all taxes. When booking hotels online www.bega-hotel.ru special price- € 85,00 per night. Booking programs - Stay 4, pay for 3!
Official Equipment: Table: Dynamiс 9Ft Olimpic, Cloth: Iwan Simonis 860, Ball: Aramith Super Pro TV,
Shuttle-Service: In case of arrival at 07.12.2011 and departure at 11.12.2011, a fee required shuttle-service is installed for both ways. The charge therefore will be around €30,00 per person. If you intend to use this service, please add the following to your booking confirmation: Airport’s name, date of arrival/departure and flight number. Shuttle service booking up to: 05 december 2011 – Lev Yaroslavtsev — e-mail: info@billiard.su
Visa: If anybody need a visa please contact the – info@billiard.su
2011 KREMLIN 9 BALL OPEN
MOSCOW - RUSSIA
THE PRIZE FUND
1st
€ 7,000-00
2nd
€ 4,200-00
3rd-4th
€ 2,500-00
5th-8th
€ 1,500-00
9th-16th
€ 800-00
17th-32nd
€ 400-00
TOTAL PRIZE FUND = € 35,000-00*Approx. Ruble to Euro exchange rate.
Ricardo Indyana Jones UK Mark Gray UK Longdi Zhou CZ ... Tomáš Onderek CZ Zdenda Vobořil CZ Pavel Němec CZ Karel Žaludek CZ Nikolas Szarkezi CZ Mario Szarkezi CZ Daniel Pokrývka CZ Pavel Zeman Michal Gavenčiak CZ Jaroslav Tichý CZ Pavel Šumbera CZ David Žalman CZ Filip Ondrejo CZ Vojtěch Daněk CZ Martin Kudláček CZ Marek Hajdovský CZ Al Tamimi Zaid CZ Vladimíra Venhodová CZ Eva Mašková CZ Radko Majerčík CZ Kristian Walach CZ Dávid Eros CZ Jozef Lisík SK Tomáš Krovina SK Vojtech Štofko SK Kubo Koniar SK Roman Michálik SK Dominik Zajac PL Piotr Kaminski PL Mariusz Roter PL Jacek Dmochowski PL Arivukkannan Balan Sandapriya IND
Well what a way to finish off a fantastic year for Total9ball, players were invited to attend our Christmas fun filled event. Kindly St Albans Hurricane Room offered us their facilities to use and also added a whopping £200 to the prize pot which enabled T9B to reduce our entry fees to encourage as many players as possible. It was decided the entry fee would be £5 for local members of the club and £10 for everyone else. We ended up with 22 players in attendance which is a good number considering it was a last minute event and only advertised for around a week and a half. There were a great mix of players from local talents Dan and Dave Lim to top amateurs with Courtney Symons and Ramesh Gokhul in attendance, as well as a top level professional Craig Osborne it was sure to be a fun day. Craig wasn't the only cue sport celebrity in the Hurricane Room though, we were very pleased to have Masato Hiraoka from Kamui not only at the venue but also showing that he himself is a very good 9ball player and Dave Knight, owner of Pro9, was there taking the photos and chatting to the players about all things pool from chalks to tips, cues to jump cues and displaying a fantastic range of Kamui products.
The format used was the trialled and tested Total9ball 2x format again with a twist. One side of the draw was handicapped race to 7 and the other a tense race to 3 shoot-out, matches began at around 11am with the races to 7 first up. Luke Rollison vs Courtney Symons was the pick of the first round ties with Luke seeming to be bang in form with a convincing 7v2 win, Craig Osborne was the highest ranked player in the event and was expected to be there or thereabouts at the end of the competition but with Craig having to start -3 against fearless Jaspal Bamotra it was an early exit from the first side of the draw for the Ipswich Professional. Finlay Laing's first match was against ever improving Wayne Rooke, Finlay played some top 9ball to take a big 6v1 lead but Wayne was in a battling mood to take it to hill-hill. Wayne had a chance in the final rack but in his words he chopped a ball and left the match there for Finlay. Masato drew one of Total9balls top amateur players in Ramesh Gokhul and was on the receiving end of a 7v3 result.
In the other half of the draw as mentioned earlier matches were race to 3 shoot-out style with shock results expected. Total9ball Amateur series event 4 winner beat Luke Rollison 3v0 with the aid of a golden break and local talent Dan Lim setup a battle of the brothers in round two by beating Finlay Laing 3v1. Phil Wildman achieved a 3v1 victory over Greg Jansz and Masato showed class, like his Kamui product, to advance 3v1 at the expense of Paul Summerfield.
It was at this point of the day when the fun began with a rebuy break dish comp. Players had to make a legal break and clear the balls 1 through to 9 to enter the winners circle. After 28 total attempts only 4 players succeeded and those players were Craig Osborne, Luke Rollison, Mark Parker and Phil Wildman. The 4 players continued until only one player broke dished, that player was Luke Rollison from Chichester and he collected the £56 pot which was a good prize as Luke only invested £2. The last special event of the day was speed pool and it was sure to get the players adrenaline going. This was run as a Knock-out competition, two tables at the same time, two players charging round trying to pot their balls before their opponent. So here were the rules both players break the 15 balls and matches began after a count of 3,2,1 go. Players could play shots while the balls were still moving, but a foul would give an immediate 5 second penalty. All players gathered around the tables and produced a brilliant and loud atmosphere. The speed pool event won ,believe it or not, by Heavyweight Phil Wildman, Phil's final ball was potted about a second before runner up Craig Osborne's.
Back to the main event and we will pick it up from where there were just eight players left across the two events all, of whom were now in the prize money. New player to T9B John Egan showed he was a good cueist beating probably Total9balls most improved player Tom Staveley 7v6 while Phil Wildman was clearly continuing his fine form from the T9B Grand Finals the previous weekend to run out a 7v3 winner against Ramesh Gokhul. The race to 3 side matches saw Craig Osborne prevail 3v1 against another new face with a talent Filip Krawczyk. Courtney Symons also won by the same score against Phil Wildman.
The Semi Final line up with results is below:-
Phil Wildman -2 7v4 John Egan Courtney Symons 3v2 Craig Osborne
It had been a very long day with all sorts of varieties of pool played. The finalists Courtney and Phil decided to chop up the prize money and both go home winners. The split worked out at £170 each which was a great reward for just a £10 entry fee. The semi finalists Craig and John picked up £40 each and the quarter finalists Filip Krawczyk, Phil Wildman, Ramesh Gokhul, and Tom Staveley collected £15 each.
This really was a great way to end a impressive year for T9B. It's clear that Total9ball had become a driving force in UK 9Ball and we seem to be getting bigger and bigger with each event. It's brilliant to see new faces regularly at T9B events and with the new National Series beginning in February 2013 the future really is looking bright for us and UK pool.
Thanks to St Albans Hurricane Rooms for all there continued support and to all the players who attend our events and to Nicole who helps the events to run smoothly on the day.
Nicole and myself would now like to take this time to wish everyone a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.
Finally... Come on Europe in the Mosconi Cup beginning on Monday get the job done guys.
Full Name - Ralf Souquet Date of Birth - 29 November 1968 Born - Eschweiler, Germany Lives - California, USA Titles/Achievements - Inducted into BCA Hall of Fame (2011) - WPA World Eight-ball Championship (2008 ) - Derby City Nine-ball Classic (2004, 2006, 2008 ) - All-Japan Pool Championship (2004) - BCA Open Nine-ball Championship (2003, 2006) - US Open Nine-ball Championship (2002) - US Open 14.1 Championship (2000) - WPA World Nine-ball Championship (1996) - International Challenge of Champions (1996) - World Pool Masters (1994, 1996, 2000, 2002, 2006)
Ralf "The Kaiser" Souquet talks to Pro9 about the Hall of Fame!
Ralf Souquet was born in Eschweiler, Germany on 29 November 1968. In the 9 ball pool world he is often known by the nick name: 'The Kaiser'. Souquet started playing billiards from the age of six mainly in his parents pub-restaurant and practised very hard in his early years winning his first German junior championship title at the age of 14 . In the year 1997, Ralph was awarded the 'Silver Laurel Leaf' which is the highest official award or distinction given to a sportsman or woman in Germany. This was presented to him by the German president no less.
Pro9 Ralf, you must have the most incredible "rags to riches" biography of all pool players, how old were you when you started playing pool. Why pool, and not some other game? Do you think you had a natural gift, or did you have some urgent need to compete and win, or did you just enjoy playing so much that you got so good?
Ralf "Xxxx x x x xxxx xxx xxxxxxxxxx x xxxx xxx xx xxxxx xxx x xxx x xxxxx. Xxxx x x x xxxx xxx xxxxxxxxxx x xxxx xxx xx xxxxx xxx x xxx x xxxxx. Xxxx x x x xxxx xxx xxxxxxxxxx x xxxx xxx xx xxxxx xxx x xxx x xxxxx. Xxxx x x x xxxx xxx xxxxxxxxxx x xxxx xxx xx xxxxx xxx x xxx x xxxxx. Xxxx x x x xxxx xxx xxxxxxxxxx x xxxx xxx xx xxxxx xxx x xxx x xxxxx."
"Read More..." for Pro9's exclusive interview with Robin Dodson.
A big Thank You from Pro9 to all our contributors in 2009!
WWW.CUESTIK.EU - the cue building parts supplier for Europe!
Pro9 learns a little more about one of our latest sponsors!
www.cuestik.eu seems to offer the perfect source for European cue makers to source all manner of high quality supplies, tools and equipment for the repair and manufacture of pool cues - from the more basic provisions including ferrule materials, tips and wraps, to the sophisticated requirements for assembling a variety of high-end cues including exotic hardwood stock, sophisticated joint inserts and weights bolt assemblies.
Pro9 The first thing I notice every time I visit the site is "Elforyn" - can you explain a little about this product - I understand it's an ivory substitute, but why do we need something like that? Is it very similar to ivory, what are the benefits, and are any special tools needed to work with it?
www.cuestik.eu "Xxxx x x x xxxx xxx xxxxxxxxxx x xxxx xxx xx xxxxx xxx x xxx x xxxxx. Xxxx x x x xxxx xxx xxxxxxxxxx x xxxx xxx xx xxxxx xxx x xxx x xxxxx. Xxxx x x x xxxx xxx xxxxxxxxxx x xxxx xxx xx xxxxx xxx x xxx x xxxxx. Xxxx x x x xxxx xxx xxxxxxxxxx x xxxx xxx xx xxxxx xxx x xxx x xxxxx. Xxxx x x x xxxx xxx xxxxxxxxxx x xxxx xxx xx xxxxx xxx x xxx x xxxxx."
"Read More..." for Pro9's exclusive interview with www.cuestik.eu
Pro9 In fact, I notice when I visit www.cuestik.eu I get redirected to another website - called www.elforyn.de - can you tell me why that happens?
www.cuestik.eu "Xxxx x x x xxxx xxx xxxxxxxxxx x xxxx xxx xx xxxxx xxx x xxx x xxxxx. Xxxx x x x xxxx xxx xxxxxxxxxx x xxxx xxx xx xxxxx xxx x xxx x xxxxx. Xxxx x x x xxxx xxx xxxxxxxxxx x xxxx xxx xx xxxxx xxx x xxx x xxxxx. Xxxx x x x xxxx xxx xxxxxxxxxx x xxxx xxx xx xxxxx xxx x xxx x xxxxx. Xxxx x x x xxxx xxx xxxxxxxxxx x xxxx xxx xx xxxxx xxx x xxx x xxxxx."
Pro9 I noticed that Predator featured Elforyn in their latest high-end offering, the Special Edition "Gordian Knot" - a classic ebony cue with a complex Elforyn inlay detailing the Alexander's mythical puzzle - has Elforyn featured in many other well know cue brands productions?
www.cuestik.eu "Xxxx x x x xxxx xxx xxxxxxxxxx x xxxx xxx xx xxxxx xxx x xxx x xxxxx. Xxxx x x x xxxx xxx xxxxxxxxxx x xxxx xxx xx xxxxx xxx x xxx x xxxxx. Xxxx x x x xxxx xxx xxxxxxxxxx x xxxx xxx xx xxxxx xxx x xxx x xxxxx. Xxxx x x x xxxx xxx xxxxxxxxxx x xxxx xxx xx xxxxx xxx x xxx x xxxxx. Xxxx x x x xxxx xxx xxxxxxxxxx x xxxx xxx xx xxxxx xxx x xxx x xxxxx."
Pro9 I see you also make a big thing about a product called "Juma" - can you tell me what that is, and what it is used for?
www.cuestik.eu "Xxxx x x x xxxx xxx xxxxxxxxxx x xxxx xxx xx xxxxx xxx x xxx x xxxxx. Xxxx x x x xxxx xxx xxxxxxxxxx x xxxx xxx xx xxxxx xxx x xxx x xxxxx. Xxxx x x x xxxx xxx xxxxxxxxxx x xxxx xxx xx xxxxx xxx x xxx x xxxxx. Xxxx x x x xxxx xxx xxxxxxxxxx x xxxx xxx xx xxxxx xxx x xxx x xxxxx. Xxxx x x x xxxx xxx xxxxxxxxxx x xxxx xxx xx xxxxx xxx x xxx x xxxxx."
Posted By admin on Sunday, September 10 2006 @ 10:44:50 UTC (4227 reads)
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Better late than never, and these are worth the wait, Pro9's newest reporter Mark Mills, has come up trumps with these photos from Reno. But to be fair Internet access was the main stumbling block and had to rely on the IPT computers which were very difficult at times to get on.
Click on "Read More..." for the details.
Posted By admin on Saturday, September 09 2006 @ 22:45:03 UTC (5263 reads)
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Unlocking the Safe - A series of articles by Blackjack David Sapolis
"Blackjack" David Sapolis Professional Pool Player, Instructor, Author Currently residing in El Paso, Texas He originally hails from: Live Oak Orlando Florida USA E-mail: blkjackds12@yahoo.com
9 September 2006
The second of a series of articles from instructor and author "Blackjack" David Sapolis. This excerpt, from his latest book, "Lessons in 9 Ball" is reprinted here with permission. Contact David directly for details of how to purchase his books.
Factors of Proper Execution
The safety is one of the most complex subjects in 9 ball. If you lack the ability to properly execute safeties, your game will surely suffer.
Many beginners fail to recognize the safety option, and tend to go for the shot at all costs in all situations. Just as there are factors to running the rack, there are factors that come up when you are faced with no shot options.
When faced with no option to pocket the object ball, we need an alternate solution that gives the table back to our opponent - but at the same time limits his options.
Click on "Read More..." for the details.
Posted By admin on Saturday, September 09 2006 @ 16:19:58 UTC (3009 reads)
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Paddy Mc Laughlin (Down) the winner of the Dublin American 8Ball Open, pictured with Manny Byrne (Down) the runner-up.
Ireland Pool Players Involved In Feast Of American Pool Events
Last weekend saw a feast of high profile American Pool Events take place on Irish soil and on the world stage. The Irish events saw a host of top local Irish players, a good number of top Scottish players and a lot of other players representing other European Countries all making there way to TJ’s American Pool Club in Newry Co. Down for the staging of the two official ranking tournaments in American 8 and 9 ball categories on Ireland’s American 8 & 9 Ball Tour.
But it was a few days before that all Irish interest was on Paddy Mc Laughlin and Tommy Donlon when they were representing Ireland under the bright lights of the TV cameras in the 2006 World Cup of Pool which took place in Newport South Wales.
Click on "Read More..." for the details.
Posted By admin on Saturday, September 09 2006 @ 15:08:24 UTC (3125 reads)
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Article Preview!
GB 9 Ball Tour (GB9) - Event 2 Report
GB9 2025 Event 2
What an event we've had. 75 entries, with plenty of participants from the first event, a load of new faces trying out GB9 for the first time, and a few who have played in GB9 in the past, wanting to see what the new GB9 is about.
The main event was so full of quality with sterling performances throughout the comp, but it was Fraser "the Razor" Patrick who came through after a sustained challenge from Ramesh "Ramma Jamma" Gokhul, winning 11-7.
The Quarter Finalists alone were full of absolute beasts of players, and big names like Benji Buckley, Sunesh Garib, Mark Foster, Matthew Rigley, Phil Wildman, and Imran Majid weren't able to progress to the last 16. The quality on show was exceptional, but Fraser really is playing with huge confidence and rightly so. He was pushed hard by Stephen Ellis, Adrian Pollard, and Carlo Blasi, en route to the final, but he just had too much for all the challengers. Well done to Fraser, in his first ever GB9, and should point out that he's an incredible person to talk to. Zero arrogance, but 100% confident.
The Tiered Events were really competitive too. Tier 1 was won by Event 1's Main Event Champion, Stephen Ellis. By his own admission, Matthew Rigley had played better than him in the final, and would count himself lucky that Matthew didn't go on to win. Both finalists had extremely tough matches to get to the final, as Stephen had to win against Imran Majid and Mark Foster, whilst Matthew had to beat Phil Wildman, Adrian Pollard, and Ashik Nathwani. No such thing as an easy game.
Tier 2 Champion was James Lee who overcame Karl Williams in what proved to be an incredibly tense final where Karl had looked like he was in complete control. But James showed incredible resilience and took advantage of any mistakes Karl made.
We even ran a flyer on the final day, for anyone not scheduled to play on the final day. It was a great opportunity to keep people playing pool, no matter the standard, and a lot of fun was had. Fraser Patrick took it down, winning 5-4, but David Hine will feel gutted that he didn't win after leading 4-1.
Winner of the Mosconi VIP Tickets is Glen Bailey, and winner of free entry to Events 3 & 4 is Harry Harrison.
A huge thanks to Spots and Stripes for their support and hospitality. Their facilities really are top notch, and their staff clearly care about the game. Without Spots and Stripes, GB9 could not go ahead.
The officials, Andy, Dean and Julian. Whilst none of us have huge experience of organising these events, they do nothing but put every ounce of effort into making the competition run smoothly. After two events, we've done pretty ok, but we know we can improve. They're a small team too, but they've done so well.
Special mention to Julian for his constant monitoring of matches. He does over 20,000 steps a day, although it could be argued that his little legs are the equivalent of 12,000 steps of others, but he's like a Duracell bunny. So committed, full of energy, and on the lookout all of the time.
A massive thank you to the media team. Sam Jones puts on the best stream I've seen through TYP Live, and Ben Grady puts out the very best reels that gives everyone a flavour of each day, and takes loads of photos that have just been published. Both of these guys never stop working and the production that they're able to provide reflects what GB9 intends to do. To be the pinnacle of the game in the UK.
Also a huge thanks to Ben Taylor-Fuente for his amazing commentary skills throughout. And to Graeme Hamilton, Paul Taylor, Carlo Blasi and Dave Hopkin for their commentary during the various finals. What a great job they all did.
Not forgetting the incredible work that Andrew Phan does behind the scenes as our creative consultant and designer. He's done so much to ensure that we have a recognisable brand.
Rob Jones for being our incredible website developer, and with Dave Goldsmith helping, there will be some serious improvements and updates to the website and social media over the coming months.
Finally, to you the players. You're incredible, and you're investible. Your attitude at events is infectious, it's motivational, and it's a lot of fun. GB9 talks a lot about retaining GB9's integrity. Whether you're one of the top players or a Tier 2 player, you're all equal in our eyes, you're part of the community, and all we want is for you to enjoy the event and feel you've gotten value for money.
Many thanks again and remember that Event 3 runs from 12-14th September. Registrations will open in around two weeks time. We strong recommend looking at accommodation booking as early as possible.
P.S. I'm not in the office until Wednesday, but will prioritise payouts on Wednesday. I will follow up with a report and player survey shortly after so we can make Event 3 bigger and better.
IT'S THE THRILL OF VICTORY AND THE AGONY OF DEFEAT AS JUDGEMENT DAY TAKES ITS TOLL AT THE CHINA OPEN 9-BALL
There’s nothing quite like Judgement Day in the world of professional pool. Otherwise known as the Day of Reckoning, it’s when dozens upon dozens of matches take place in the group stages, all trying to determine who will still be around for the money rounds, and who will be sent packing without a dime to spend on even a soft drink. Yes, pool can be a cruel sport, but it’s also the reason those who follow it love the action. Sometimes whole careers ride on the smallest turn of the ball.
And so it was on Day 2 of the 2013 China Open in rainy Shanghai. Inside the cavernous and chilly Shanghai Pudong Yuanshen Stadium arena, the emotions were running on overdrive with the world’s best men and women pool players each desperately trying to reach the single elimination knockout stage of their respective tournaments which begin in earnest Saturday.
For the men, their field began with 64 players on day 1 and has now been whittled down to 32. For the women, the field started with 48 players and is now down to the final 16.
Few were immune to the drama today. World 9-ball Champion and world number 3 Darren Appleton thought he was cruising through to the knockout stage as he was up 7-3 in a race to 9 on the TV table against China’s 19 year up and comer Wang Can. But Can, who has spent some time playing pool in the US, turned the tables on the Brit and stormed back and grabbed an 8-7 lead. Appleton went from counting his chickens, to realizing he might have to play again later to stave off a shock elimination. But if anyone can play with their back against the wall it’s Appleton, and the 9-ball king grit his teeth and pulled out the win to advance.
Appleton was clearly ecstatic afterwards and said he was nearly overwhelmed by the magnitude of the moment.
“I was under serious pressure at the end,” he said. “It was like a semi-final at the world championship.”
Appleton has few if any weaknesses in his stellar game, but he revealed that he sometimes lets his attention lapse when he gets a big lead.
“In every major tournament I’ve won I never make it easy. I consider myself a bulldog, a fierce player. I like to scrap, sort of like a counter puncher in boxing. But when I have a big lead I tend to lose that intensity. I need that scrap. My mindset was when I was 8-7 down that I will probably dog the shot, so I might as well go for it. I need to sort out my attitude when I get a big lead.”
While Appleton went off to breath easy, Cam had to do it all over again, this time against Dutch star Niels Feijen. Feijen had lost his first match yesterday against the former two time world champion Wu Jiaqing(formerly Wu Chia Ching) who now lives and plays out of Shenzen, China. Feijen had earlier beat his good friend and countryman Nick Van Den Berg in a do or die match, 9-7. Against Can, Feijen was up 8-5, but Can fought his way back to tie it at 8 for a one rack decider. Feijen pulled it out to advance while Can was left to wonder what might have been.
The pressure matches kept popping up around the arena. Greece’s Nick Ekonomopolous, who had earlier lost to Wu, went hill-hill with Venezuela’s Jalal Yousef, who was sure he was about to claim one of his biggest scalps. But a fluked 4-ball off a jump propelled the burly Greek into the knockout stages, while Yousef stormed out of the arena in disgust.
Germany’s Thorsten Hohmann advanced but not without some heart palpitations, as he won two straight hill-hill matches. Hohmann’s countryman, Hall of Famer Ralf Souquet, had to battle back from the losers side and barely got by China’s Liu Haitao in a do or die match, 9-8.
The Philippines’ two biggest stars played drama free as defending champion Dennis Orcollo advanced to the final 32 with an airtight 9 – 7 win over Austria’s young gun Albin Ouschan 9-7. Lee Van Corteza also advanced with his second straight, a 9-6 win over Vietnam’s Do The Kien.
The Philippines’ Jeffrey De Luna will surely be trying to forget Judgement Day. De Luna flew to China without a place in the tournament and won one of the brutally tough qualifiers earlier in the week. Yesterday De Luna was millimetres away from a spot in the money rounds, only to lose on the last ball. Then today, playing against fellow Pinoy Carlo Biado, De Luna squandered his fortune again losing 9-8 after up being 8-7. Biado advance and De Luna hit the road.
The Philippines’ fourth player in the final 32 has turned quite a few heads in the last few days and is definitely worth a mention. Johann Chua, who originally hails from Bacolod City but has resided in Manila for the last ten years, is one of those gems that periodically emerges from the Philippines bustling pool halls. Chua’s aggressive, confident style and dead eyed stroke had even the partisan Chinese fans talking.
To give you an idea of his confidence, Chua, like De Luna, came to China without a spot in the tournament and won a qualifier to earn a place in the main event.
After easily beating Chinese Zeng Zhaodong 9-3 on day 1, Chua tangled with WPA world number 6 Ko Pin Yi of Taiwan. Despite the fact that Ko had much more world class experienc, Chua played and acted to Ko’s equal and, indeed, he took the match to a one rack decider before falling 9-8.
Not to be deterred, Chua then came right back and booked his spot in the final 32 with a resounding 9-1 pounding of the strong Albanian, Nick Malaj.
Afterward Chua revealed that he’s been playing pool for ten years, mostly gambling in Manila’s hard core money-game scene and entering tournaments when he can. In November, 2012 he took 3rd place in the prestigious All Japan Open. What’s great about Chua is that he plays and thinks aggressively, and clearly has the game to back it up.
“I’m an aggressive player because you have to be aggressive here, there are a lot of good players. Pool is my life. I love pool.”
Chua's biggest test to date comes right out of the gates on Saturday. He plays defending champion and fellow Pinoy Orcollo in the round of 32.
Perhaps the strongest looking contingent so far have been the players from Taiwan, who bring seven players into the final 32, all of them extremely capable. It would be surprising not to see a player from Taiwan in the semi-finals.
On the women’s side, the script went nearly to plan as most of the sport’s biggest stars have booked their spot in the final 16. Defending champion Kelly Fisher was down 4-1 to the legend Pan Xiaoting in front of a packed house on the TV table. Fisher, though, caught one of her now famous gears and ran Pan off the table, 7-4.
Pan then went to the losers side and lost to Japan’s Chichiro Kawahara to exit stage left from the building, much to the disappointment of her legions of fanatical fans. Another marquee matchup then took place on the TV table as Hall of Famer Allison Fisher went to the brink with World 10-ball champion Ga Young Kim. Fisher took the match 7 – 6, sending Kim out of the tournament.
Austria’s Jasmin Ouschan looks the goods as she easily advanced to the final 16 with two straight wins.
Both the women’s and men’s single elimination knockout stages begin on Saturday at 1:30pm Shanghai time(GMT +. The men are playing race to 11 alternate break, while the women are playing race to 9, alternate break.
The women’s final will be played on Sunday with $30,000 going to the winner. The men’s semi-finals and finals will be played on Sunday as well with $40,000 going to the winner. The total prize fund is $301,000.
TWO TIME WORLD CHAMPION WU JIAQING (FORMERLY WU CHIA CHING) MAKES SURPRISE SPLASH IN ACTION PACKED DAY 1 AT 2013 CHINA OPEN
You don’t come to the China Open with the gall thinking you are going to win this tournament. You just hope to survive long enough, say to the semi-finals, where you then have as good a chance as anyone to pull off a career defining victory.
It’s not only the stacked field comprised of most of the world’s best male and female pool players that makes the odds so long. It’s the conditions. Lightning quick tables, generous pockets, template racking which practically guarantees one, two and sometimes even three balls on the break. The result is the ultimate equalizer, a wide open shootout with the world’s best gunslingers letting it all hang out.
Welcome to the Wild West of professional pool.
“It’s really hard to say what’s good and what’s bad out here because it’s so easy to pot balls,” said 2011 China Open champion Chris Melling, after he staved off elimination on day 1 with a losers side win over American Oscar Dominguez. “The pockets are so big and the cloth is so fast. Everyone’s making two and three balls on the break. It makes the whole tournament level. I think we’re going to have a surprise winner here.”
Maybe or maybe not. Things may look topsy turvey at the beginning, but the pressure that is unique to professional pool at this level tends to favor the best and the bravest. And pool generally follows the tenets of that famous phrase, “the crème always rises to the top.”
Indeed day one of the 2013 China Open 9-ball inside the Shanghai Pudong Yuanshen Stadium arena in Shanghai produced plenty of nail biting, down- to-the-wire drama, but few shockers.
Leading the pack in the men’s event, which features 64 players divided into 8 groups of eight playing double elimination, was the defending champion Dennis Orcollo of the Philippines. Orcollo had no time to get loose as he immediately found himself in a dog fight with unknown Taiwanese Ahen Yuxuan. Yuxuan had the race to 9 match tied at 7 but succumbed to the pressure late and handed Orcollo a 9-7 win.
China’s number one player Li Hewen, who came within one rack of winning the 2012 World 9-ball Championship in Qatar, came from behind in a TV table match against Orcollo’s talented countryman, Carlo Biado, and won 9-8. Later on, Li laid down his marker when he easily beat Canada’s John Morra to advance to the knockout stage of 32. Biado, who is due to go far in a major tournament, later got his feet back under himself with a 9-1 drubbing on the losers side over China’s Zhou Long.
Taiwan looks set to put its usual dent in the proceedings as world number 1 Chang Jung Lin, along with Ko Pin Yi and Fu Chei Wei all won handily with Fu already advancing. In all, Taiwanese players won 8 out of 11 matches today.
As befitting a major tournament, there were some high quality matches straight out of the gates that could have easily been contested as finals. Former World 9-ball champion Alex Pagulayan went up against former World 8-ball champion Karl Boyes in the first round. Pagulayan took advantage of just a few mistakes by Boyes and won 9-5.
European Mosconi Cup teammates Nick Van Den Berg of Holland and Nick Ekonomopolous of Greece took their match to a one rack decider with the Nick the Greek squeaking by, 9-8.
One of the most intriguing matches of the day pitted Hollands talented Niel’s Feijen against two time former world champion Wu Jiaqing(formerly known as Wu Chia Ching.) Wu, who made pool history back in 2005 when he won the World 9-ball championship when he was just 16 years old, and then went on to win the World 8-ball championship just five months later, only recently completed a 16 month stint in the Taiwan military. And this was on the back of four straight years of personal drama and intrigue which has left the sport without one of its biggest stars. In the military Wu was forced to mop floors and clean windows for the entire time and he never once touched a cue stick. In addition, in August of last year, Wu was diagnosed with Lukemia. Fortunately doctors caught the blood disease in its very early stages and Wu says it can be controlled with medication.
Having only practiced for one month since being discharged from the military, Wu came into the match against Feijen with no expectations. Wu, however, looked like the boy wonder of old as he thumped the Dutchman 9-4.
“I’m happy with the way I played today,” Wu, who now resides in China, said afterwards through an interpreter, “but to be honest I have no confidence that I can win the tournament. “ Of course nobody who knows pool believes that.
On the women’s side, which features 48 player divided into 8 groups of six, defending champion Kelly Fisher kept the express train barrelling down the tracks with a 7-0 win over China’s Liu Jia. The match took an incredible 20 minutes to complete.
Hall of Famer Allison Fisher won her first match, then had to face old rival Ga Young Kim of Korea in a marquee affair. Kim won 7-4.
Chinese stars Fu Xiaofang, Pan Xiaoting and Chen Siming all won their opening matches.
The group stages continue on Friday in Shanghai. After completion of play on day 2, the men’s field will be down to 32 players and the women’s field will be down to 16. Both tournaments will then be single elimination knockout through to the finals on Sunday.
THE 2013 CHINA 9 BALL OPEN - MEN
SHANGHAI - CHINA
THE GROUPS
GROUP A 1. ChangJung Lin (TPE) 2. So Shaw (IRA) 3. Zhu Hongming (TPE) 4. Al Shaheen Omar (KUW) 5. Han Haoxiang (CHN) 6. Zhu Xihe (CHN) 7. Xu Kailun (TPE) 8. Oi Naoyuki (JPN)
GROUP B 1. Yukio Akagariyama (JPN) 2. Nguyen Ann Tuan (VIE) 3. Salaheldeen Hussein (UAE) 4. M. Ahmad Al-Bin Ali (QAT) 5. Phil Burford (GBR) 6. Seungwoo Ryu (KOR) 7. Ke Bign Zhong (TPE) 8. Thorsten Hohmann (GER)
GROUP C 1. Fu Che Wei (TPE) 2. Sharik Aslam Sayed (SIN) 3. Dang Jinhu (CHN) 4. Fu Jianbo (CHN) 5. Kenny Kwok (HKG) 6. Rafath Habib (IND) 7. Alex Pagulayan (CAN) 8. Karl Boyes (GBR)
GROUP D 1. Li Hewen (CHN) 2. Carlo Biado (PHL) 3. John Morra (CAN) 4. Zhou Long (CHN) 5. Oscar Dominguez (USA) 6. Afrinneza Isral Nasution (IND) 7. Jeffrey De Luna (PHL) 8. Chris Melling (GBR)
GROUP E 1. Darren Appleton (GBR) 2. Jalal Yousef (VEN) 3. Cristian Tuvi (URU) 4. Wang Can (CHN) 5. Niels Feijen (NED) 6. Wu Jiaqing (CHN) 7. Nick Ekonomopoulos (GRE) 8. Nick Van Den Berg (NED)
GROUP F 1. Ko Pin Yi (TPE) 2. Chu Bingjie (CHN) 3. Zeng Zhaodong (CHN) 4. Johann Chua (PHL) 5. Tursaikhan Amarjargal 6. Nick Malai (ALB) 7. Lee Van Corteza (PHL) 8. Do The Kien (VIE)
Bruce: 4 hours, 6 minutes ago ICEMAN-2021: 7 hours, 9 minutes ago
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. The men are playing race to 11 alternate break, while the women are playing race to 9, alternate break.
