9 Club Entertainment
Jiebai New Yuanhua
177 Yan'an Road
Shangcheng District
Hangzhou
Zhejiang Province
China
www.DragonPromotions.com
www.DragonPromotions.co.kr
www.top147.com/news/Doubles
Download the double elimination draw 1.3Mb jpeg
30 November - 2 December 2011
Reyes & Amit celebrate hard fought victory at Taobao.com World Mixed Doubles
All photography courtesy of www.Top147.com
Fans Say "The Best Event in China"
Efren "The Magician" Reyes and Rubilen "Bing Bing" Amit beats the odds to successfully defend their championship title at the Taobao.com World Mixed Doubles. The Team Philippines duo dismantled Team USA's legendary Johnny Archer and world renown Jeanette Lee in the finals. The match took place at Jiebai Mall in Hangzhou,China in front of hundreds of fans in a packed arena.
Dragon Promotions has television covering the event internationally reaching nearly 30 countries worldwide. The World Mixed Doubles will be an exciting format which is unique in bringing women and men together on a side-by-side team, the only event of its kind. With the greatest professional players, the world's biggest billiard sponsors, the biggest billiards event producer Dragon Promotions now brings the biggest TV coverage in China.
Dragon Promotions in cooperation with 9 Club Entertainment will be producing the event on November 30- December 2, 2011. The tournament is sanctioned by the Chinese Billiards and Snooker Association. The event will pair the top men's and women's players together as a two-person team, with a total of 16 teams from around the world. The Taobao World Mixed Doubles is sponsored by Chamberlain Tables, Rikko Decoration www.rikko.cn, 9-Club Entertainment, Official Cue is Predator Cues & Poison Cues, Simonis Cloth, Master Chalk, and Aramith Balls
"The event this year is so hard with many good team!", said Reyes before the event started.
The final match started with lively music and a boisterous introduction from the MC Adam Zibly, an American fluent in Chinese working in China television. The fans were receptive as the lights twirled and the players walked into the arena. The emotions were high in the East vs West match.
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Packed audiences filled the colorful arena daily
Team Philippines took the early lead, and never relinquished it. USA mounted a comeback in the middle when Amit missed an easy 9-Ball but left Archer a awkward but makeable shot. If he makes the ball Lee would have an easy game win to tie the match at 6-6. But he missed and gave Amit/Reyes breathing room to go up 7-5. They would never be that close again as Reyes/Amit closed the match out with a 10-6 final win that ended with a carom shot on the 10-ball.
Players and sponsors raved about the success of the event:
"I have more fun at Dragon Promotions events than any other tournament in the world", said Amit. This was her second win at a DP event not including a bronze medal as well at the World 10-Ball.
Rubilen and Efren thoroughly enjoyed themselves
"Dragon Promotions seem to always have the finger on the pulse of pool and where it will be getting bigger next. They have done a wonderful job here in China, as they have already done in so many other countries", said Jeanette Lee.
"It is definitely the best event that has ever happened in China. As a lover of the sport, I am very happy!", said Liang Xiaolong , President of Top147.com and Pool Bond Magazine, China's top billiards site and magazine.
Jeanette and Efren share a laugh during the press conference
"I had so much fun at this event. I knew it was going to be good with Charlie and Cindy involved. I'm really glad that I came", said Johnny Archer.
"The World Mixed Doubles was better than what I've seen done thus far in China. Everything was great from the dress and fashion of the players, to the color of the arena, and the atmosphere Dragon Promotions created. The World Mixed Doubles was something completely different in China. They were able to duplicate their success in Philippines and other places to make it successful here in a new market", said Karim Belhaj, CEO of Predator Group.
The top 3 medal winners with the sponsors and government officials
"It was just amazing and fair play for Dragon Promotions to arrange in China. That was a masterstroke! I miss the place already and I didn't think I would ever say that. Congrats to Charlie Williams on such a wonderful tournament, it was one of the most enjoyable weeks of my pool playing career, so for that I cannot thank him enough", said Craig Osborne from England. he finished with the Bronze medal with partner Allison Fisher.
Craig was over the moon playing with Allison
Allison and Craig embrace after an emotional victory against China
All photography courtesy of www.Top147.com
England Comeback! Fisher & Osborne Thrill in China at Taobao World Mixed Doubles
Team England's Allison Fisher and Craig Osborne fought their way from death to overcome pre-tournament favorite China en route to a semi-final birth at the Taobao.com World Mixed Doubles. England fell behind at the end of the match, but a crucial miss from China gave a small window of opportunity that led to a final game showdown. The victory from England gave them the momentum to win their next match and reach the semi-finals.
With the score at 7-5 in favor of China's #1 men's player Liu Haitao and his partner the 2010 World Champion Fu Xiaofang, England looked in dire straits. A missed ball by Liu gave UK a small chance which they took. At 7-6, Fu was closing the door with only 3 balls on the table and an easy 7Ball straight in. She inexplicably missed to the gasp of the Chinese fans watching. Fisher and Osborne took the rack to make the match goto the deciding game at 7-7. In the final game, there were many dramatic moments with great offenses and defense by both teams. On the 1Ball alone, there were 6 innings.
Finally England had ball in hand and took both their time extensions to decide on what to do. After only 2 made balls, Fisher was forced to play safe. Liu made a tremendous 2 rail kick and re-safed England. Osborne played safe again. Fu made an incredible long jump shot flying over 2 balls to play another safe. Eventually Osborne had a shot, but very tough, jacked up cutshot on the 4ball to the side pocket. He made it and the team looked home free. But Osborne went from the hero to villain when he missed position for Fisher on the 7ball with only 4 balls remaining.
Fisher was forced to play a safety instead of going for the win. Liu went for a jumpshot and the 7ball went straight to the corner pocket and bobbled at the last moment. Osborne was faced with a table length , long draw shot which would unnerve any player at first. With little time left on the shotclock, he screwed the cueball back successfully across the entire length after potting the 7ball. Allison made the 8ball but Osborne missed position on the final 10ball and left Fisher with an awkward cutshot which she could not reach. With no time out or extensions left, she called for the bridge and lined up the final 10-ball.
The referee counted aloud the finals seconds with a "5, 4, 3, ..." and Fisher fired off the shot with a second remaining and the 10-ball went straight into the pocket! Osborne and Fisher emotionally embraced after the shot to the cheer and applause of the entire audience.
Osborne says playing with Fisher is one of the biggest honors of his career
"That was such a huge match, I couldn't help getting emotional. I was thinking after the match, that was the same shot I missed with the bridge last year at the finals of the World 9-Ball in China. I'm glad I didn't think about that before the shot", said Allison. "Playing with Craig has been great. He really is a good partner and we really started to mesh well together. He doesn't have a big ego where he won't listen to me, and he also had some really good mental things he passed onto me. Our first match was shaky, but it's been a good partnership since then."
"Playing with Allison is absolutely amazing! I just feel like she is never going to miss. And my faith in her is absolute. But I really felt that I had to prove to her that she can trust me,too. That's why that match was so crucial. And, I know to ensure my invite next year I need to win this tournament!", said Craig.
Allison says Craig has been a wonderful partner and great at communicating
"I know Allison very well and what kind of person she is. And I got a good idea of the level of respect and admiration Craig already had of her before they started their first match. In an interview I predicted them to be one of the teams I thought would make the final four. I knew it was going to be a good partnership", said Charlie Williams, the event producer.
Both players went onto meet fellow United Kingdom players Kelly Fisher and Tommy Donlon who were undefeated. In a very close match at the start, the two teams stood at 5-5 before Osborne and Allison Fisher pulled away to win 9-6. The win put Craig and Allison into the semi-finals for their third TV match, this time against Team USA.
Allison offers a big hug to her man
Dragon Promotions will have television covering the event internationally reaching nearly 30 countries worldwide. The World Mixed Doubles will be an exciting format which is unique in bringing women and men together on a side-by-side team, the only event of its kind. With the greatest professional players, the world's biggest billiard sponsors, the biggest billiards event producer Dragon Promotions now brings the biggest TV coverage in China. Dragon Promotions in cooperation with 9 Club Entertainment will be producing the event on November 30- December 2, 2011. The tournament is sanctioned by the Chinese Billiards and Snooker Association. The event will pair the top men's and women's players together as a two-person team, with a total of 16 teams from around the world. The Taobao World Mixed Doubles is sponsored by Chamberlain Tables, Rikko Decoration www.rikko.cn, 9-Club Entertainment, Official Cue is Predator Cues & Poison Cues, Simonis Cloth, Master Chalk, and Aramith Balls . Official media partner is www.Top147.com. Link to the Official site for the Taobao World Mixed Doubles is www.top147.com/news/Doubles/
World #1 Siming Chen and her partner 2x World Cup winner Li Hewen
All photography courtesy of www.Top147.com
China's Deadly Duo Stopped: East vs West Dream Match Set for Finals
Hangzhou, China - World #1 Siming Chen and her partner 2x World Cup winner Li Hewen turned out to be China's strongest team. They had landslide victories over Germany, Japan, and a 9-0 re-match against Japan again in the quarter-finals. But they would be tested against the defending champions from Philippines, Reyes and Amit. And vice-versa for the Filipinos.
In a match that had everything and leads changing back and forth, China led early on. They relinquished control of the match at 6-6 when Hewen had a chance to take back the lead but failed. But China took back the lead at 8-7 only to see a dry break give Efren and Rubilen a final chance which they took. At 8-8, a Amit safety led to an opening for the Philippines to runout.
"Where did we go wrong to lose this match," said Li to Chen as they sat watching Philippines make the final 5 balls.
" Efren was missing and you can hear on the microphones, which I'm sure they forgot about, he was swearing at himself humorously. Meanwhile, Rubilen was just telling him over and over "it will be ok, don't worry". It was really funny!", said Ish Caparras, part of Dragon Promotions Filipino team that was brought over to China.
The Taobao World Mixed Doubles Arena was packed daily for the international matches
Afterwards, Team USA's Jeanette Lee and Johnny Archer dismantled the very strong British Team of Allison Fisher and Craig Osborne. Though the match was close, USA played too well together and broke and ran many racks not giving much opportunities to England. The final score stood 9-6 in favor of USA. This set-up a East vs West confrontation the fans wanted to see.
"With a European team, a USA team, a Filipino team, and a China team all in the final four, it was really too perfect for us. And having Asia against USA in the finals is a real bonus from a promoter perspective", said Cindy Lee, CEO of Dragon Promotions which produced the Taobao World Mixed Doubles.
England redeemed itself with the consolation of their 4th TV match, this time against China once more. Playing fluidly and confidently, Fisher and Osborne defeated Chen and Li 9-5 easily to claim the Bronze Medal for the event.
Team Philippines Reyes & Amit escaped two heart pounding 8-7 victories
All photography courtesy of www.Top147.com
Dramatic Moments at Taobao World Mixed Doubles - Reyes & Amit Escape
Efren Reyes and Rubilen Amit are en route to defend their World Mixed Doubles title as they eked out another 8-7 victory over the very strong Chinese Taipei Team of Pei Chen Tsai and Fong Pang Chao. This year's event is exponentially tougher than the one they won before.
"Efren looked at the tournament chart of what teams were here, and he said oh my goodness there are too many strong teams this time. It's much tougher than before", said Ish Capparas, part of the Dragon Promotions team running the event.
Efren offers a fist bump to his little power partner "Bing Bing" Amit
Meanwhile Team USA's Jeanette Lee and Johnny Archer continued their hot streak with another great performance over a tightly contested match bewteen Team China's favorites in Liu Haitao and Fu Xiaofang. With the score tied at 5-5, Lee and Archer pulled away for the 8-5 win.
Archer and Lee are staying in their groove with a lot of banter and chatter
Team Korea with Eunji Erica Park playing with her Korean American partner
and coach Charlie Williams
The Korean American duo of Charlie Williams and his student Eunji Erica Park played another near flawless match as they defeated the tough Taiwan Team of 2x World Champ Fong Pang Chao and Pei Chen Tsai, silver medalist at the Women's World 10-Ball Championship. The Korean team had no missed shot errors in the entire match and closed the match out with a tough 10-ball bank shot made by Park. This put them against Team USA in the semi-finals. Unfortunately for them, Archer/Lee were too strong in their rhythm and partnership as they cruised over Williams/Park 9-2.
"Johnny and Jeanette play really great together. I think Johnny plays better with Jeanette than some top men pros I've seen him paired up with at Mosconi Cup", said Williams.
"Me and Jeanette just feel real comfortable out there together. I agree with Charlie that I play better with her than some of the male partners I've had", said Archer.
Taiwan legend Chao and Tsai had a good time even though they didn't win
Max Eberle and Shanelle Loraine made for an exotic looking pair.
"I would definitely play with her again", said Max.
Fu and Liu color coordinated in modern fashion in China. Liu said,
"I really felt like at many points, she and I played as if we were one person."
Team USA's Archer and Lee looked strong
along with great performances by Japan and China.
Taobao World Mixed Doubles Day 1: Archer & Lee Fit Well
Defending champions Efren Reyes and Rubilen Amit struggled with a 8-7 narrow victory over Indonesia. But many blowouts on Day 1 of the Taobao World Mixed Doubles.
USA's Archer and Lee looked super solid as they took down a strong match over China's Zhou Dou Dou and Wang Can. The teenage duo played well with only 2 missed shots, but USA won 8-6.
"We played really well together. The Chinese team played great and only missed a couple shots. But we didn't miss any", said Archer.
The best match of the day had Team Japan's Uchigaki and Li Jia play a near flawless match over Korea with a 8-2 drubbing. They broke and ran 5 racks out of the 8 racks won.
"They played near perfect. We should've won the first game, but they punished us with many break and runs after", said Charlie Williams, a Korean American pro player.
Team England's Allison Fisher and Craig Osborne struggled against Philippines Ranola and Corteza. They lost 8-4.
"We really could have won that match. I missed a easy 6ball and later Craig missed a 2ball. I played alot of bad safeties", said Fisher. "It's alright. We are still in it to win", assured Osborne.
Fisher and Osborne played together for the first time.
Finland coaching one another
Iceman's Finland Has Rough Day
Mika Immonen had a rough day as she and his partner Marika Poikijoki missed a narrow comeback against Team China's Liu Haitao and Fu Xiaofang. They trailed 6-1 but mounted a strong comeback to trail by only 1 game at 7-6. And with ball in hand for Marika, it looked possible to tie the match at hill hill until shockingly Marika missed the first shot. Liu and Fu then took full advantage and ran the table including a clutch bank on the 6ball.
"We didn't get good breaks" said Immonen.
"When I lose the way we did because of the miss....I just don't feel like talking for hours", said Marika.
Team Germany Thorsten Hohmann and Neslihan Gurel also had a rough one. First they were beaten 8-4 against China's strong Chen Siming and Li Hewen. Then they came on right away and had to play again to Korea and lost a 8-4 again.
"They played very well together. Almost made no mistakes", said Hohmann. "We went two and out. Charlie must buy me dinner"
Dragon Promotions will have television covering the event internationally reaching nearly 30 countries worldwide. The World Mixed Doubles will be an exciting format which is unique in bringing women and men together on a side-by-side team, the only event of its kind. With the greatest professional players, the world's biggest billiard sponsors, the biggest billiards event producer Dragon Promotions now brings the biggest TV coverage in China. Dragon Promotions in cooperation with 9 Club Entertainment will be producing the event on November 30- December 2, 2011. The tournament is sanctioned by the Chinese Billiards and Snooker Association. The event will pair the top men's and women's players together as a two-person team, with a total of 16 teams from around the world. The Taobao World Mixed Doubles is sponsored by Chamberlain Tables, Rikko Decoration www.rikko.cn, 9-Club Entertainment, Official Cue is Predator Cues & Poison Cues, Simonis Cloth, Master Chalk, and Aramith Balls . Official media partner is www.Top147.com.
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