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Gorst Repeats as Arcadia Arizona Open Champion

A Pro9 - Europe's No.1 Pool Player Resource Article

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Date: Thursday, January 13 2022 @ 18:29:25 UTC
Topic: 9 Ball



Arcadia Arizona Open
Casino Del Sol - Tucson's Premiere Luxury Resort & Casino
5655 W Valencia Rd
Tucson
AZ 85757
United States
www.usprobilliardseries.com - billiardtv - youtube
www.casinodelsol.com

Wednesday 12 January 2022


Fedor Gorst

Gorst Repeats as Arcadia Arizona Open Champion

Reporter: Predator Group Press Release
Photographer: Predator Group Press Release


Last July, Fedor Gorst helped to kick off the first-ever Arcadia Arizona Open, the first of four events in the newly-created U.S. Pro Billiard Series, by posting an undefeated record and taking down eventual U.S. Pool champion Carlo Biado in the finals.

Six months later, the Arizona Open was back – kicking off the first of six tournaments being held in the United States by equipment manufacturer Predator Group and CueSports International in 2022 – and so was Gorst. The 21-year-old delivered a similar result as he did last summer, as he battled his way back from the one-loss side of the bracket to defend his title, holding off a fierce battle by Filipino Roland Garcia in straight sets, 4-3. 4-2.

With the victory, Gorst earned $25,000 and automatic entry into the 2023 World 10-Ball Championships in Las Vegas.

After his opening break shot of the championship match resulted in an effective spread of the balls, the young man from Moscow appeared positioned to draw first blood but missed a routine 7 ball in the corner pocket. He would tie the match at a game each when his opponent failed to pocket a ball on the break in the next game, then tacked on another rack when Garcia missed the 1 ball on a jump shot. The Filipino would claim two of the next three games thanks victorious safety exchanges and appeared to be in position to steal the first set but struggled with cue ball positioning down the stretch and missed the 8 ball, allowing Gorst to steal the set, 4-3.



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The second set tilted in Garcia’s favor early, after Gorst missed the 1 ball in the first game and the Filipino knocked in a combination on the 10 ball then broke and ran to build a 2-0 advantage. Momentum shifted in the third game when Garcia scratched on the break, allowing Gorst to climb onto the scoreboard and then tie the match when his opponent misplayed the 6 ball. The Russian then used a break-and-run to take his first lead but failed to pocket a ball on the break in the next rack. Looking to tie the match and send it to a sudden death shootout, Garcia attempted a table-length jump shot to pocket the 1 ball and missed, leaving a wide-open table for his opponent. Gorst calmly pocketed the remaining balls to repeat as Open champion.

Gorst, who opened his day with straight set victories against Ralf Souquet in the round of 16 and Kang Lee in the quarterfinals, needed to beat Mieszko Fortunski of Poland in the semifinals to secure a spot in the championship. Fortunski, who is routinely reaches the late stages of big events, was undefeated through the first three days and had already disposed of World Pool Champion Albin Ouschan in the quarterfinals. After the 29-year-old Fortunski swiped the first rack of the first set, Gorst rattled off three straight wins thanks to a dry break and a missed shot by his opponent. Fortunski won a safety exchange to cut the deficit to 3-2 but failed to pocket a ball on the break in the sixth game, handing Gorst the table and a combination shot on the 10 ball for the match-winner.

The second set was all Gorst, who took advantage of multiple misses by his opponent to build an early 2-0 advantage. The young Russian forfeited the table in the third game when he missed the 7 ball but his opponent would miss the ball as well, allowing Gorst to climb to within one game of another trip to the finals. The former World Pool champion capped off the set with a winning combination shot on the 10 ball, defeating Fortunski 4-2, 4-0.

The Russian earned the victory despite struggling with his breaking throughout the final day, failing to pocket a ball on the break three times against Fortunski and twice in the finals against Garcia.

The Russian suffered his lone defeat in the event to Spain’s Francisco Sanchez Ruiz, who finished tied for third after losing in a semifinal shootout to Garcia. The Filipino displayed complete control during in the opening set against the Spaniard, as he mixed in a couple of run outs along with a Sanchez Ruiz miss to pitch a 4-0 shutout.

Sanchez Ruiz found his bearings in the following frame, building a 2-0 advantage thanks to a much-needed break-and-run before scratching on the break in the third game. Garcia won three straight games thanks to a break-and-run and a missed cut shot on the 1 ball by his opponent in the fifth game. After Garcia executed tough cut shots on the 3 and 4 balls in the sixth rack, it appeared that his victory might be a foregone conclusion – until he missed the 5 ball in the corner pocket. Sanchez Ruiz cleared the remaining balls to tie the score at 3-3, then used a bank shot on the 1 ball in the seventh game to run out the rack, win the set, 4-3 and force a shootout.

As the crowd at Casino Del Sol gathered around the arena, the spot shot competition turned into two players who challenged each other to blink, with each pocketing four straight balls without a miss. When the cue ball was moved back a diamond and the format switched to sudden death, the balls continued falling into pockets as if almost routine. After Garcia had made his eighth straight shot, Sanchez Ruiz struck the cue ball and watched as the 10 ball rattled in the pocket’s jaws and then popped out, giving Garcia the victory.

Find the Final Arcadia Arizona Open draw on the Predator US Pro Billiard Series FargoRate's dedicated page

The Predator US Pro Billiard Series returns to action next month with the Apex Wisconsin Open, which will be held in conjunction with the CSI Wisconsin State Championships February 9-12 at Ho-Chunk Gaming in Wisconsin Dells.

The Arcadia Arizona Open was streamed for free all week on Billiard TV and the World Billiard TV YouTube channel.
Go to Billiard TV to watch 24/7 Billiard Videos on any device Follow @probilliardseries on social media for future events information, or visit probilliardseries.com to register.




Saturday 15 January 2022



Naoyuki Oi - Japan

Oi and Ouschan Survive Shootout at Arcadia Arizona Open

Reporter: Predator Group Press Release
Photographer: Predator Group Press Release


In recent months, Jonas Souto of Spain’s name has been popping up more and more on tournament flowcharts – especially in the later rounds.

With his aggressive stroke, demonstrative gestures and mop of blonde hair, Souto definitely makes an impression when he’s at the table. The Spaniard, who is the reigning U19 world 9-ball champion, turned in top 17 performances in last year’s International Open and World Pool Championship in England last year and also finished 49th at September’s United States Open Pool Championship.

All this said, when the young man matched up against reigning World Pool champion Albin Ouschan Friday night with a spot in the Arizona Open’s final 16 on the line most would have considered the Austrian a favorite to runaway with the match.

That is, however, until they started to play.

Ouschan cruised to an early advantage in the first set only to watch the young Spaniard battle back in the final frame, then match the Austrian move for move in the sudden death shootout before falling 7-6 at Casino Del Sol in Tucson. Ouschan, who robotically pocketed ball after ball in the spot shot shootout, now advances to the knockout phase of the event which is scheduled to begin Saturday at noon local time.

The Austrian appeared to be making quick work of his opponent in the early stages, taking advantage of a couple of Souto errors to build a 3-0 advantage. Ouschan had an opportunity to shut out his opponent in the opening set but missed a bank on the 8 ball into the side pocket. After Souto cleared the table and tacked on another rack to pull within 3-2, he pocketed the 10 ball on the break to tie the score. The Spaniard had a chance to claim the set after breaking the balls in the deciding seventh game but failed to pocket the 1 ball in the corner pocket, allowing Ouschan to regain control of the table and win the set, 4-3.

Souto jumped out to a 2-0 advantage in the second set before scratching in the third rack, allowing Ouschan to tack on two games to tie the score before adding a break-and-run to climb onto the hill, 3-2. Much like the first set, Ouschan had a chance to close out the match but missed a 1 ball in the sixth game to allow his opponent back to the table. Souto cleared the table and then added a break-and-run of his own to earn a 4-3 victory and send the match to a shootout.

Each player pocketed their first six shots – 12 total – before Souto missed in the seventh inning. As his opponent stared at the floor in disappointment, Ouschan coolly deposited the 10 ball into the corner pocket to earn the victory and advance to the final day of play.

When it comes to shootouts, nothing came close to the contest between Naoyuki Oi and Jesus Atencio, who seemed to pocket as many balls in the extra frame as they did in the entire match.

After Oi earned a 4-2 first set win, Atencio forced a deciding third set by gutting out the second frame, 4-3. As a crowd of spectators grew, the spot shot competition became a test of who would blink first, as the two players landed six consecutive shots. Then seven. Then eight. The crowd that gathered began getting louder and more animated, so much that Roberto Gomez Jr. began paying more attention to the shootout that his opponent, Fedor Gorst, who was putting the finishing touches on a straight set victory on the adjacent table.

Finally, Atencio blinked, missing a cut shot in the 14th inning after the two competitors combined for 27 consecutive shots pocketed. Oi deposited the game winner, surviving the match and advancing to Saturday’s day of play.

Qualifiers from the winner’s side of the bracket include two-time Mosconi Cup team member Chris Reinhold, Mieszko Fortunski, Joven Bustamante, Billiard Congress of America Hall of Famer Ralf Souquet and Francisco Sanchez Ruiz, who controlled his match with Gorst from start to finish, winning in straight sets 4-0. 4-1. Also advancing with undefeated records are Roland Garcia, World Pool Championship runner-up Omar Al Shaheen of Kuwait and Max Lechner of Austria. Competitors who earned entry from the one-loss side include Oi, Gorst, Ouschan, Kang Lee, Pijus Labutis, Michael Schnieder, Konrad Juszczyszyn of Poland and Denis Grabe of Estonia.

With the double-elimination portion of the tournament now completed, the event field will be redrawn and transition to single-elimination for the final day.

Find the updated draw on the Predator US Pro Billiard Series FargoRate's dedicated page

Live coverage of the Arcadia Arizona Open is streamed for free on any device with Billiard TV or the World Billiard TV YouTube channel throughout the week. Follow @probilliardseries on social media for up-to-date information, or visit probilliardseries.com for the latest results and live brackets.




Friday 14 January 2022



Max Lechner - Austria

Oi, Lechner Remain Undefeated at Arcadia Arizona Open

Reporter: Predator Group Press Release
Photographer: Predator Group Press Release


Thursday night at the Arcadia Arizona Open, Billiard Congress of America Hall of Famer Alex Pagulayan and World 10-Ball runner-up Naoyuki Oi battled back-and-forth in a match which felt like it could have been being held on the tournament’s final day instead of its second.

The crafty Filipino managed to take advantage of some early positional errors by his opponent to jump out to a commanding lead, then watched as Oi found his break in the second half of the match. The eccentric 39-year-old shut down Pagulayan down the stretch, then clinching the match in a shootout of a winner’s side match at Casino Del Sol in Tucson. Oi, who also finished third at last year’s United States Open Pool Championship, is one of 16 competitors who remain undefeated in the 64-player, double-elimination tournament.

After splitting the first two racks of the first set, Oi had a chance to regain the lead but overran position on the 6 ball then missed a jump shot. Pagulayan cleared the table and added another victory when his opponent scratched in the fourth game. Now leading 3-1, the Filipino had a chance to close out the set but failed to run out after a break shot which left balls clustered on half of the table. Oi attempted to execute a combination shot on the 10 ball to narrow the deficit but left the ball in the pocket’s jaws, handing Pagulayan an easy first set victory.

While the Filipino struggled with his break in the opening set, Oi found his in the second as he broke and ran the first rack of the frame. After Pagulayan tacked on two wins to grab a 2-1 advantage, Oi won a safety exchange on the 4 ball by sinking a game-winning combination shot to tie the score. The veteran from Japan again turned on his break shot, scattering the balls and running out in back-to-back games to secure a 4-2 victory and send the match to a shootout.

The two competitors each pocketed the first two shots of the extra frame but Pagulayan left his third shot in the pocket’s jaws. Oi would sink back-to-back balls after his opponent’s miss to secure the victory.

Oi will now face Kuwait’s Omar Al Shaheen Friday evening in a winner’s side match while Pagulayan moves to the one-loss side of the bracket to face Dimitris Loukatos Friday morning.

Also remaining undefeated is Austria’s Max Lechner, who battled through a handful of unforced errors to defeat Alex Kazakis, 4-3, 4-3.

It was Kazakis who struggled with errors early on, as Lechner built a 3-0 advantage thanks to his opponent missing shots in the first and third racks. The Greek fought back, taking advantage of a foul, missed shot and dry break to tie the match at 3-3. After Lechner scratched after missing a jump shot in the deciding game, Kazakis appeared to be on the verge closing out the set but misplayed position on the 6 ball, which the Austrian pocketed and cleared the table to earn the victory.

The two competitors continued to battle in the second set, with Kazakis generating a 2-1 advantage only to watch Lechner tack on back-to-back racks to regain the lead. Standing at the table with a chance to clinch the victory, Lechner missed a long shot on the 1 ball in the sixth rack. Kazakis cleared the table to tie the set, then failed to pocket a ball on the break in the deciding seventh game, which Lechner ran out to clinch the match.

A handful of notable competitors will be facing elimination on the one-loss side when competition begins Friday morning, including Estonia’s Denis Grabe and former World 9-Ball champion Thorsten Hohmann, who will meet up at 10 a.m. local time. Grabe lost in a shootout earlier in the tournament to Poland’s Mieszko Fortunski while Hohmann struggled to find his stroke against Corey Deuel, falling in straight sets.

There is also no shortage of heavyweight matchups on the winner’s side of the bracket, such as Fortunski facing American Tyler Styer. The three-time Mosconi Cup team member earned his way into the third round of the winner’s bracket with comfortable straight set victories against Steve Lillis and Blaine Barcus, winning 16 total racks against only two defeats.

Also competing on the winner’s side will be Poland’s Konrad Juszczyszyn, who will be squaring off against Joven Bustamante and Russia’s Fedor Gorst, who be matching up against Francisco Sanchez Ruiz of Spain. Both Gorst and Sanchez Ruiz have been in complete command in their early round matches, with each winning 16 total games over three days while losing only one rack each.

Live coverage of the Arcadia Arizona Open will be streamed for free on any device with Billiard TV or the World Billiard TV YouTube channel throughout the week. Follow @probilliardseries on social media for up-to-date information, or visit probilliardseries.com for the latest results and live brackets.


Thursday 13 January 2022



Big Names Shoot It Out on Arcadia Arizona Open’s Opening Day

Reporter: Predator Group Press Release
Photographer: Predator Group Press Release


Reigning World Pool Champion Albin Ouschan and FargoRate Ohio Open winner Mario He are definitely familiar with not only each other but each other’s game, with both calling Austria home as well as competing and traveling together for the last dozen or so years.

In Wednesday’s opening round of the Arcadia Arizona Open at Casino Del Sol Resort, the two acquaintances took turns taking advantage of missed shots and misplayed position as He came from behind to defeat Ouschan in a sudden death shootout, 5-4. The match was one of 11 during the opening day of play which required a spot shot shooting contest to determine the winner – with some notable names now on the one-loss side of the bracket after missing shots during the extra frame.

He took advantage of a couple of early mistakes by his opponent to build an early 2-0 lead in the race-to-four first set, but Ouschan gutted out a pair of racks to the match. After He claimed the fifth rack to regain the lead, Ouschan had a chance to tie the match again but struggled to control the cue ball and ultimately missed position on the 6 ball, allowing He to claim the first set. The tables turned in the following frame, with Ouschan building a 3-2 advantage while He controlled the table with a chance to tie the match. While attempting to pocket the 6 ball and secure position on the 7 on the opposite side of the table, He drew the cue ball backwards and watched as it rebounded off the rail and into the side pocket, allowing Ouschan to close out the set and send the match to a shootout.

Both players were flawless in the first portion of the extra frame, as each deposited the 10 ball into the corner pocket four consecutive times. When the format switched to sudden death and the cue ball was moved back a diamond, Ouschan missed his first attempt while He connected on his and earned the victory.


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Meanwhile, Michigan’s Jeremy Seaman is certainly not a stranger to the U.S. Pro Billiard Series, having battled his way into a fifth-place finish at October’s FargoRate Ohio Open. Wednesday afternoon, Seaman continued to show fearlessness and determination, battling back from a 4-3 first set defeat at the hands of former World Pool Masters winner David Alcaide to claim the second set and win his opening round match in a shootout. With the match tied at three games each, Seaman executed a sharp cut on the 2 ball followed by a cross-side bank shot into the side pocket on the 3 ball to help run out the rack and claim the set, 4-3.

Both players made the first two shots during the extra-frame shootout before each missed in their third try. After Alcaide failed to pocket the ball for a second time, the American came to the table and tumbled the 10 ball into the corner pocket to secure the victory, 3-2.

In other notable matches, U.S. Open Pool champion Carlo Biado took advantage of a handful of errors by opponent Jesus Atencio to win in straight sets, 4-2, 4-1 and former U.S. Open Pool champion Corey Deuel breezed by BCA Hall of Famer Thorsten Hohmann, 4-1, 4-1. Two-time United States Mosconi Cup member Chris Reinhold survived a scare from Mickey Krouse of the Netherlands, bouncing back from a 4-2 first round loss to win the second set, 4-3 and win a shootout, 3-1. Reinhold then defeated Roberto Gomez Jr in straight sets 4-1, 4-2 to earn a spot in Friday’s third round of play.

Competition resumes today at 10 a.m. local time, with notable matches including He facing BCA Hall of Famer Ralf Souquet, Japan’s Naoyuki Oi matching up against Filipino Alex Pagulayan and World Pool Masters champion Alex Kazakis squaring off against Max Lechner.

Live coverage of the Arcadia Arizona Open will be streamed for free on any device with Billiard TV or the World Billiard TV YouTube channel throughout the week. Follow @probilliardseries on social media for up-to-date information, or visit probilliardseries.com for the latest results and live brackets.


Wednesday 12 January 2022



Gorst Back to Defend Title at Arcadia Arizona Open

Playing in last year’s inaugural Arcadia Arizona Open in July, no one probably got a more scenic route of event’s unique format than Fedor Gorst.

In a tournament that foregoes longer races for two shorter sets and settles tied matches with spot shot shootouts, the young man from Moscow pretty much did it all. He opened competition by surviving a sudden-death shootout against American Michael Yednak, then followed up a second-set comeback in the championship match against Filipino Carlo Biado by executing perfect precision in the shootout, pocketing four straight balls to secure the title. This earned Gorst $12,000 for four days work and, equally important, automatic entry into this year’s Predator World 10-Ball Championships in Las Vegas.

“That made my life easier,” said Gorst with a laugh. “I don’t have to worry about being invited to the event, which is great.”

This weekend, the Russian is back in Tucson to defend his title at the second annual Open, which begins today at Casino Del Sol Resort and runs through Saturday evening. This 64-competitor, double-elimination event offers a roster of players which bring a smorgasbord of titles and experience – from rising young stars like the former world champion Gorst, World Pool Masters winner Alex Kazakis and reigning Kremlin Cup champion Tyler Styer to BCA Hall of Famers Ralf Souquet, Thorsten Hohmann and Mika Immonen, who has been experiencing a bit of a resurgence of late. The former U.S. Open 9-Ball champion capped off the 2021 season with a runner-up finish at the International Open’s bigfoot challenge and a top-five performance in the 9-ball event. He opened this season with a fourth-place finish at the Turning Stone Classic in New York.

“I pretty much proved to the pool world that I’m not some washed up ex-professional,” said Immonen at the International after being eliminated by Albin Ouschan. “I’m here and I still have a lot of motivation and a lot that I want to prove. I want to have another era of stuff like this.”


Ouschan will also be competing in Arizona this week, after the Austrian turned in one of the most decorated and lucrative seasons of his career last year. The 31-year-old started off 2021 battling bad rolls and even worse emotions to earn top honors at the inaugural Championship League Pool event in England, then returned to the island two months later to win his second World Pool Championship, coming from behind to defeat Kuwait’s Omar Al Shaheen in the finals. The Austrian finished off the year by turning in his best performance ever on American soil, winning the International Open over Dennis Orcollo.

Fellow countryman Mario He also finished 2021 strong, winning the inaugural FargoRate Ohio Open in October. After opening his fall with a top-10 finish at the U.S. Open Pool Championship in Atlantic City in September, He hopped in a car with fellow competitors Denis Grabe and Alex Kazakis and barnstormed the country, playing in tournaments and matches throughout the east coast. He turned in a top-three finish at the CSI Michigan Open and then landed in the final four of the Diamond Open in South Carolina before earning the Ohio title.

Also competing in this weekend’s Open is Naoyuki Oi, who for years has built a reputation for giving eccentric interviews but in recent months has been letting his cue stick do most of the talking. Oi finished second in the World 10-Ball Championships last fall and third at the U.S. Open Pool Championships the following week. The young man from Japan, who also notched top-10 finishes at the World Pool Masters and World Pool Championships, earned a career-high $59,890 in prize money last season.

With the event taking place on U.S. soil, there will not be a shortage of American talent competing in Tucson, with Mosconi Cup teammates Styer and Chris Reinhold scheduled to play as well as former U.S. Open 9-Ball champion Corey Deuel. Additionally, a strong contingent of Filipino players will be making the trip, including reigning U.S. Open Pool champion Carlo Biado, BCA Hall of Fame member Alex Pagulayan and Roberto Gomez Jr, who placed in the top three in four U.S. Pro Billiard Series events last year.

Live coverage of the Arcadia Arizona Open will be streamed for free on any device with Billiard TV or the World Billiard TV YouTube channel throughout the week. Follow @probilliardseries on social media for up-to-date information, or visit probilliardseries.com for the latest results and live brackets.


About the Predator US Pro Billiard Series, presented by CSI

This year’s field of players will be playing for a larger prize fund, as Pro Billiard Series co-creators Predator Group and CueSports International announced last month that the total added money for this year’s six events has grown to nearly a half-million dollars – including $52,500 for this year’s Arizona Open, more than double last year’s total. Each of this year’s events will have more than $52,000 added which will upgrade these tournaments all to World Pool-Billiard Association (WPA) Category 3 sanctioned events, securing the exclusive dates on the WPA calendar and allowing players to earn more WPA ranking points from each event.

The winner of each 2022 event will receive a guaranteed spot in the 2023 Predator World 10-Ball Championship, which will be held February 27 through March 3 in Las Vegas. Additionally, a minimum of the top 12 players in the Predator US Pro Billiard Series rankings who are not otherwise invited by the WPA, a WPA continental federation or a promoter wild card, will also earn spots in the 2023 Predator World 10-Ball Championship.

The Predator Pro Billiard Series is a series of open, professional events held around the world to provide more opportunities for professional and aspiring pool players to compete in high-quality events, earn more income, sharpen their skills, and earn their way into the Predator World 10-Ball Championship held in Las Vegas each year as part of the CueSports International Expo.

The Predator U.S. Pro Billiard Series by CSI feature six open professional events during the calendar year. Created by league operator CueSports International together with the Predator Group, these tournaments will run in tandem alongside of CSI league events being held throughout the country. The winner of each competition receives a guaranteed spot in the following year Predator World 10-Ball Championship, which will be held during the annual CueSports International Expo in Las Vegas at the Rio Hotel and Casino.

These events are played on Predator Apex professionnal tables covered with Predator Arcadia Reserve Performance Cloth, with Predator Arcos II balls, and under the Predator Arena billiard lights.

CueSports International (CSI) is an international pool league and event leader and is currently comprised of three divisions: CSI Leagues, CSI Events and CSI Media. CSI Leagues manages the BCA Pool League and USA Pool League, CSI Events produces numerous amateur and professional events around the globe and CSI Media creates live streaming and digital content. Through its vision and strategic alliances, CSI is “shaping the future of pool.” For more information about CSI or any of its divisions, visit www.playcsipool.com.

Predator’s mission is to inspire billiard fans by providing innovative experiences and products that deliver high-performance, with unsurpassed class and style. Predator, Poison and Uni-Loc are Predator Group brands that focus on performance pool tables, cues, billiard accessories, and precision components. For more information regarding Predator Group’s products, visit www.predatorcues.com, www.poisoncues.com and www.uni-loc.com.

FargoRate computes pocket-billiard player ratings that rate pool players worldwide. FargoRate currently has over 19.1 million games played by nearly a quarter million players from 130 countries in its massive data set. Coupling game win/loss data across local leagues, regions, countries, and continents ensures players everywhere are rated on the same scale. Its mission is to usher in a new era for pocket billiards in which all players everywhere are interconnected and rated by objective performance. For more information about FargoRate, visit www.fargorate.com.



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