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U.S. Open Primed for Big Weekend

VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. — Heading into the final two days of the 2012 U.S. Open 9-Ball Championships, it’s clear that the strong have survived. At the conclusion of play on the winners side on Thursday night, just eight players remained. And that octet packed plenty of star power.

Former champions Shane Van Boening, Alex Pagulayan and Johnny Archer are all chasing title No. 2. But in perhaps the most thrilling story of the U.S. Open to this point, 58-year-old Efren Reyes strung together five victories — including an electrifying 11-10 win over two-time defending champ Darren Appleton — to put himself in contention for the Open crown. He will square off against countryman Dennis Orcollo on Friday. Pagulayan and Archer will square off in the other match on that side of the bracket.

Scotland’s Jayson Shaw will face 63-year-old Jose Parica on the other side of the bracket. Parica, runner-up at the 2003 U.S. Open, advanced via a dominant victory over a resurgent Earl Strickland, 11-5. The winner of that set will then face the victor in Shane Van Boening’s match against Ronnie Alcano, a rematch of the 2007 U.S. Open won by the American.

While eight players have two bullets left in their revolvers, the left side is packed with championship-caliber talent. Most notably, late Thursday evening, Darren Appleton trailed American Oscar Dominguez. In search of his third-straight title, the Englishman was struggling to rally in the second match after his heart-breaking loss to Reyes.

Leading the charge on the one-loss side, Japan’s Yukio Akagariyama, China’s Li Hewen and Taiwan’s Chang Jung-Lin are major title winners seeking glory on American soil. Europe’s Albin Ouschan, brother of women’s star Jasmin and rising star on the EuroTour, joins England’s Chris Melling in the title hunt. American hopes settle on Corey Deuel, who dropped a Thursday night set to Jayson Shaw, and five-time titlist Strickland.

IPT World Open Preview: Talented Tots Wu and Ouschan to Debut

The big news in the first round of the International Pool Tour’s latest multi-million dollar 8-ball tournament will be the debuts of young superstars Chia-Ching Wu of Taiwan and Jasmin Ouschan of Austria, both looking for a big piece of the record-setting $3 million purse.

The eight-day 8-ball event — with a precedent-setting $500,000 first-place prize — kicks off Sunday, Sept. 3, at the Grand Sierra Resort and Casino in Reno, Nev.

Both 17-year-old Wu and 20-year-old Ouschan earned entry into the tournament through the IPT’s rugged qualifier process, and they’re expected to go deep. The precocious Wu is the current WPA world 9-ball and 8-ball champion, and Ouschan topped the star-studded field at the EnjoyPool.com 9-Ball Championship in May.

Otherwise, it looks like smooth sailing for most of the favorites in the first round of the International Pool Tour’s World 8-Ball Open Championship, as the just-released groupings reveal predominantly balanced matchups for the first two days of the event. Top-ranked players were seeded in the field.

Of course, a few players had cause for muttering under their breaths when the groups were announced early Friday. Of the best-known players, Hall-of-Famers and best buddies Ewa Laurance and Loree Jon Jones appear to have their work cut out for them. For that matter, the groupings did no favors for Ouschan, the only female player to have won a spot in an IPT field through the qualifier process.

Expect some surprises. As the players learned in the IPT’s first event of the 2006 season — the North American Open 8-Ball Championship in July — there are dozens of unheralded 8-ball whizzes out there waiting for their big shot, and the 200-player World field features 50 qualifiers who have already proved their mettle.

Look for surprising runs from several Asian qualifiers who now have their feet in the IPT’s door, including Wu from Taiwan (who was seeded 16th in the absence of Filipino Rodolfo Luat), and his countryman Hui-Kai Hsia, a two-time world juniors champion.

The first round will feature 40 groups of five players each. After round-robin play, the top three finishers in each group will proceed to the second round. Eliminated players from the first round will each receive a whopping $5,000.

The complete list of groupings is available at the IPT Web site: www.internationalpooltour.com.

Here are some of the more intriguing brackets from the first round:

Bracket 23 — BD Bloodbath Special: Spectators looking for an exciting bracket to follow should check out this group. No superstars, just tough and hungry veterans: Ivica Putnik (Croatia), Thomas Engert (Germany), Tony Chohan (USA), Tony Drago (Malta), and Zlatko Jakulj (Croatia)

Bracket 1: German sensation Thorsten Hohmann received the top seed by virtue of his $350,000 win at the North American Open, joined here by talented American Steve Moore, Filipino toughie Warren Kiamco, and Americans Jim Raney and Loree Jon Jones. Jones, who survived the first round at the North American Open, will have to bring her “A” game here.

Bracket 26: Austria’s Jasmin Ouschan must contend with Hall-of-Famer Earl Strickland, Swedish veteran Tom Storm, Aruba national champion Roland Acosta and American Pete Fusco. Ouschan regularly hones her skills against the best male players in Europe, so don’t expect her to be intimidated by Strickland, or anyone else in the field, for that matter,

Bracket 18: Hall-of-Famer Ewa Laurance will have her hands full with Australia’s Quinten Hann, the snooker bad boy who finished a surprising 18th at the North American Open; snooker ace Ronnie O’Sullivan from the U.K.; and Jeremy Jones (USA) and Jose Parica (Philippines), both experienced champions who met untimely exits at the North American Open. This bracket will be a dog fight.

Bracket 35: Future Hall-of-Famer Allison Fisher, who was undefeated in the first round of the North American Open, once again has a clean look at the second round. But watch out for qualifier Hui-Kai Hsia of Taiwan and surprising Frenchman Yannick Beaufils. Tough Americans Teddy Garrahan and John Ditoro round out the group, and neither will play patsy.

Bracket 10: Once again, 13-year-old Austin Murphy has a good shot at leaving the first round, this time sharing a bracket with 10th-ranked Darren Appleton (U.K.), Paul Potier (Canada), George San Souci (USA) and Ouahbi Amine (Morocco). Murphy missed the second round at the North American Open by a single rack, losing an 8-7 nailbiter to Danny Basavich. Let’s go, Austin.

And Then There Were Six: Heavy Favorites Make Beeline for Final IPT Round-Robin

The cream has risen to the top of the field at the IPT North American 8-Ball Open, and six well-known players look to get significantly richer in the next round.

After 12 hours of round-robin play on Friday, a half dozen players separated themselves from the pack of 18 remaining shooters, in some cases by mere inches on the table, or percentages point on the official stat sheet. Those deserving six stand to make a minimum of $40,000 in the next round, and a maximum of $350,000 for winning the title at Sunday’s final.

The players are: Efren Reyes, Marlon Manalo, and Dennis Orcollo of the Philippines; Thorsten Hohmann and Ralf Souquet of Germany; and Evgeny Stalev of Russia;

Stalev was probably the biggest surprise of the bunch. The 26-year-old from Litkarino, 20 miles outside of Moscow, rarely ventures outside his home country for pool events, beyond the U.S. Open 9-Ball Championships and Derby City Classic. But he’s a legend in Russia, having won nearly 100 titles in the cue sport of pyramid.

The reedy Stalev found himself in a must-win situation in the fifth and final match of the day, against plucky Englishman Darren Appleton. He took control of the match from the start, using his powerful break (with full-body extension) to gain control of the table, and his surgical-quality touch to pilot the cue ball.

With Stalev up 7-4, his close friend Fabrio Petroni of Italy began nudging fellow spectators in the stands, saying in a dramatic stage whisper, “That is my friend. I know him. He is a very good player!” Stalev closed the match at 8-4, leaving Appleton slumped in his chair for several minutes with his head in his hands.

“It was tough,” Stalev said. “Every opponent right now is tough. … I feel terrible. My back, my legs. The whole week, you wake up and play 10 hours a day.”

He quickly grabbed his cell phone and called his father back in Russia, and then his manager.

Meanwhile, Hohmann and Sweden’s Marcus Chamat were fighting on an adjoining table for the final spot in their bracket. Chamat led 7-5 and had three solids left on the table when he ended up straight-in on the 2. His only choice was to draw straight back on the shot, hooking himself on the 6. After a missed multi-rail Hail Mary, Hohmann took over the table and didn’t let go until he had the 8-7 victory.

The final set of matches for the night were anticlimactic for three players: Reyes was undefeated at 4-0 and a sure thing to advance; and Souquet and Manalo could afford to lose their matches, knowing that at worst they would tie with their respective bracketmates and still advance on the basis of their superior games-won percentage.

Hallelujah: Winners Sing Out as IPT Field Narrows, Grows Richer

Jubilant shouts and the deep thud of cue butts slamming the floor echoed through the Venetian Hotel and Casino on Thursday night as 18 pool players took another step closer to the $350,000 top prize at the $2 million IPT North American 8-Ball Open – and another 18 saw their dreams cut short.

“Haalllloooooooo!” cried Efren Reyes, as he sank the winning 8 in a must-win hill-hill match against Mick Hill of the U.K., and pumped his fists to the ceiling. He punctuated his triumphant shout with a relieved chuckle, as he watched the cue ball come an inch from scratching in the corner.

“YES!” shouted Englishman Darren Appleton, upon hearing that bracket imate Cory Deuel had lost his last match of the day, leaving the door open for his own ascension into the next round.

“Thank you! Thank you! See you tomorrow, everybody! Yiiiii yiiiiiii!” shrieked Ronato Alcano of the Philippines, after his stats were posted on the official scoreboard and he saw that he beat America Dee Adkins for the third sport in his bracket by a percentage point.

After a 12-hour day of round-robin play, the field of 36 players in round four winnowed to 18, who were guaranteed $30,000 each by virtue of advancing to the fifth round of play. Their 18 eliminated compatriots pocketed a none-too-shabby $17,000.

The Filipino contingent continued its dominance and bettered it chances for claiming the championship, placing seven players in the last 18: Reyes, Alcano, Francisco Bustamante, Marlon Manalo, Dennis Orcollo, Alex Pagulayan and Rodolpho Luat.

The U.S. placed three players in the fifth round with Gabe Owen, Larry Nevel and David Matlock. The U.K. is two strong with Appleton and Daryl Peach. Germany’s last two hopes were Thorsten Hohmann and Ralf Souquet. The remaining four players were Evgeny Stalev of Russia, Australia’s Quentin Hann, and Sweden’s Marcus Chamat, and Rico Diks, representing the Netherlands

As the clock rounded 8 p.m., it was gut-check time for several players who had recorded records of 2-2 and needed a win in their final match for a shot at advancing. Players took their turns in front of the tournament’s billboard-sized scoreboard, nervously drawing numbers in the air as they tried to figure out the calculus of the bracket and how they would fare in different scenarios.

Players on the bubble with 2-2 records included Reyes, matched against Hill (1-3); Alex Pagulayan, playing against fellow Filipino Dennis Orcollo (3-1); and Deuel, set against Filipino Marlon Manalo (3-1). Matches that paired players with identical 2-2 records included Frenchman Yannick Beaufils vs. Niels Feijen of the Netherlands; American Earl Strickland vs. Alcano; and Francisco Bustamante vs. Santos Sambajon, both of the Philippines.

American Gabe Owen was stuck in a must-win position from the third match of the day. He faced fearsome Filipinos Bustamante and Sambajon in his first two matches and lost both of them. He needed to win the next three matches to have a hope of advancing.

“I just thought, screw it – just let it go. You only live once, just do it,” Owen said.

He proceeded to beat Reyes, 8-6; then Hill, 8-6; and in the longest match of the fifth set, Ivica Putnik of Croatia, 8-5. Sinking the last 8, he yelled and pumped his fist at jackhammer speed.

“My feet are killing me,” he said afterwards.

One of three Americans left in the field, Owen felt he had a shot at the title. “I feel like 8-ball is my best game, and I’m getting underrated here,” he said. “I’ve been practicing nothing but my 8-ball break for the last six months. Even in 9-ball tournaments, I’ve been breaking from the box. Screw $5,000 for winning a 9-ball tournament when you can win on the IPT.”

Stalev of Russia already knew what he would do with the $350,000. “I promised my friend [IPT member] Fabio Petroni that we would go on a vacation to Hawaii with five girls,” he said.

Stalev was one of the few players whose record was strong enough by early evening to count on advancing. Others were not as lucky.

“The pressure … the pressure … the hunger … I’m so tired,” said the rail-thin Alcano after squeaking by Strickland, 8-7, in their 8 p.m. match. He tossed his cue in the air, caught it and then did a stiff jig as Strickland packed up his cue case and ignored repeated requests for an on-camera interview by IPT staff.

Even countryman Reyes, perhaps the best big-money player in history, felt the pressure and dogged several shots in his 8-7 win against Hill. He often appeared listless and confused, and several observers opined that the rugged, five-match-a-day schedule was getting to the 51-year-old Hall of Famer.

“I don’t feel tired, … I feel the pressure because I’m in danger,” he said. “My opponent played good. Every time he got a shot, he ran out. In the last game, it was too much pressure for me. I didn’t know what to do in the last game. That’s why I was just shoot, shoot, shoot.”

Groups for Round Five: The Final 18

Here they are, folks: the final 18 players at the $2 million IPT North American 8-Ball Open. Play in round six will start at 10 a.m. on the West Coast. The top two players in each bracket will advance to the next round, where the prize money will start at $40,000. The winner of the event will collect $350,000.

Group 1
Quentin Hann, Australia
Evgeny Stalev, Russia
Efren Reyes, Philippines
Larry Nevel, USA
Darren Appleton, U.K.
Rodolpho Luat, Philippines

Group 2
Francisco Bustamante, Philippines
David Matlock, USA
Daryl Peach, U.K.
Dennis Orcollo, Philippines
Ronato Alcano, Philippines
Ralf Souquet, Germany

Group 3
Marlon Manalo, Philippines
Alex Pagulayan, Philippines
Thorsten Hohmann, Germany
Marcus Chamat, Sweden
Gabe Owen, USA
Rico Diks, U.K.

IPT Round Three Complete

LAS VEGAS, Nev. – Despite some strong opposition from European players, including the surprising contingent of English 8-ballers, the always tough Filipinos are dominating the history-making IPT North American 8-Ball Open.

Virtually every Filipino competitor who started in the 200-player field has made it through to the 36-man fourth round of play – nine altogether, including three Pinoy hopefuls who needed to win qualifiers to gain entry to the $2 million tournament.

Leading the pack, as usual, was legendary Efren “Bata” Reyes, whose overall record stood at 12-1 after three days of round-robin play. No less impressive was the ball-control mastery of Filipino Marlon Manalo, who held an identical 12-1 record, along with Germany’s Ralf Souquet and Rafael Martinez of Mexico.

Third-round play began on Wednesday at the Venetian Hotel and Casino with the remaining 60 players divied into 12 groups of five. The top three in each group would advance to the fourth round on Thursday with a guarantee of at least $17,000 in prize money; the eliminated players would collect a still-impressive $10,000 each.

By 9:45 p.m., the lucky 36 were known. Their names follow, grouped by country, with their third-round records:

USA: Dee Adkins, 4-0; Jason Kirkwood, 3-1; Earl Strickland, 3-1; Cory Deuel, 4-0; Shawn Putnam, 3-1; Rodney Morris, 3-1; Larry Nevel, 3-1; Gabe Owen, 2-2; and David Matlock, 2-2.

Philippines: Efren Reyes, 4-0; Marlon Manalo, 4-0; Francisco Bustamante, 2-2; Dennis Orcollo, 3-1; Antonio Lining, 4-0; Rodolfo Luat, 2-2; Alex Pagulayan, 3-1; Santos Sambajon, 2-2; and Ronato Alcano, 2-2.

United Kingdom: Rico Diks, 2-2; Raj Hundal, 1-3; Daryl Peach, 2-2; Darren Appleton, 2-2; Mick Hill, 3-1.

Netherlands: Niels Feijen, 3-1; Alex Lely, 3-1; and Nick Van den Berg, 3-1.

Germany: Ralf Souquet, 4-0; and Thorsten Hohmann, 3-1.

Other countries: Quinten Hann (Australia), 2-2; Ivica Putnik (Croatia), 2-2; Mika Immonen (Finland), 3-1; Sandor Tot (Italy), 2-2; Yannick Beaufils (France), 2-2; Rafael Martinez (Mexico), 4-0; Evgeny Stalev (Russia), 2-2; and Marcus Chamat (Sweden), 3-1.

Here are some highlights from the round:

* The biggest eye-opener for many established players at the Open has been the success of the top competitors on the English 8-ball circuit, including perennial champions Mick Hill and Darren Appleton. Both will compete in the round-of-36.

“Us lads have come to play the top players from around the world, and I feel that we haven’t been given a chance,” said 26-year-old Hill. “The point that us English lads want to get across to everyone, including our own back home, is that we’re playing 8-ball, not 9-ball or straight-pool. … A lot of people don’t realize that the English players play 8-ball.”

Among their strengths are excellent cue ball control and solid stroke mechanics, said observers.

“Those guys shoot very straight, and I can respect that,” said IPT member Ike Runnels.

* Fifteen women started the competition on Sunday, and only former snooker stars Allison Fisher and Karen Corr were given much of a chance to advance. One woman was able to infiltrate the third round, and she was a U.K. native, but no one you might expect.

“I sort of in a way proved a point,” said Sarah Ellerby, who collected dozens of 8-ball titles in England before coming to the U.S. to compete on the WPBA Classic Tour. “…There wasn’t as much attention on me as on the other girls, and that’s fine.

“I’m sure that some of the guys were like, ‘The women won’t do well here,’” Ellerby said. “If I could break better, I feel like I could really make more of a dent. I think the women are capable enough to come here and do well.”

Unfortunately, Ellerby fell into a tough bracket in the third round and finished with a 1-3 record. Knowing she wouldn’t advance, Ellerby immediately left for the Las Vegas airport to catch an 11:30 p.m. United Airlines flight to Chicago. There, she would catch a limo for a two-hour drive to Peoria, the site of the WPBA Midwest Classic, which was starting play Thursday morning.

“I’m going to be very tired,” she said.

* Staying on the English for another moment, sharp observers might note that Raj Hundal advanced with a 1-3 record. It’s no misprint. Hundal was in a bracket with players who posted 4-0 and 3-1 records (Reyes and Strickland), leaving the other three players with 1-3 tallies. Of the three, Hundal had the highest games-won percentage (56.49 percent, just over American Gary Abood’s 55.09 percent), which pushed him into the next round. That 1.4 percent difference was worth at least $7,000.

“I’m in! I’m in!” the burly Hundal screamed upon hearing the results. “I’m freewheeling tomorrow! … I’m the luckiest [expletive] in the world!”

* Another surprise at the end of the day was how many players who were forced to qualify for the event ended up in the round-of-36. The 200-player field offered 50 qualifiers, and no fewer than nine made it into the fourth round. They included Filipinos Luat, Sambajon and Alcano.

* Most of the favorites remained in the running for the fourth round, with one major exception. American Johnny Archer faded in his bracket, finishing with a 1-3 record.

IPT Open Kicks Off: U.K. Sizzles, U.S. Stumbles, Qualifiers Thrive

The overwhelming success of shooters from the United Kingdom and several strong qualifiers are the big surprises from the first day of the history-making IPT North American 8-ball Open, now underway at the Venetian in Las Vegas.

Meanwhile, conventional-wisdom favorites such as Jose Parica, Mike Davis, Max Eberle, and Tony Robles were headed back to the drawing board, or at least a practice table, to ponder their early exits from the $2 million tournament.

But the biggest shocker was how incredibly well the contingent from the U.K. performed. Compatriots on the English 8-ball circuit (and relative unknowns elsewhere) Michael Hill, Darren Appleton and Carl Morris each went a perfect 4-0 in the first round of round-robin play, which featured 20 groups of five players each.

The second 100 competitors in the 200-player field will wage war today in their first-round matches. The top three players in each of the 40 groups advance to the next round; the eliminated players settle for a modest $2,000 each.

Here’s a brief wrap-up of the first day’s highlights:

• Of the 100 competitors in play Sunday, 13 finished with perfect 4-0 records, representing a wide array of nations: Michael Hill, Darren Appleton and Carl Morris of the U.K.; Americans Dennis Hatch, Steve Moore, Marco Marquez, and John Schmidt; Hungary’s Vilmos Foldes; Ralf Souquet of Germany; Canadian Luc Salvas; Nick Van den Berg of the Netherlands; Filipino Antonio Lining; and Mexico’s Rafael Martinez.

Incredibly, Martinez, Moore and Marquez were among the 50 qualifiers for the event, beyond the 150 regular IPT members. And Foldes earned his spot in the event as Buddy Hall’s replacement, after the Hall-of-Famer bowed out of the Open.

• Some folks have to go, and there were several flame-outs from well-regarded American players: Robles (U.S.), 1-3; 2006 Derby City Classic Master of the Table winner Jason Miller (U.S.), 1-3; Max Eberle (U.S.), 1-3; Robb Saez (U.S.), 1-3; Tony Crosby (U.S.), 0-4; and Tommy Kennedy (U.S.), 2-2.

Filipinos are expected to perform well at the Open, but expatriate Parica struggled to a 1-3 record and an early exit.

• Snooker superstar and 8-ball neophyte Ronnie O’Sullivan (U.K.) squeaked into the next round with a 2-2 record.

• After losing his first two matches, Shawn “Bubba the Love Sponge” Putnam (U.S.) gutted out two victories to advance.

• Long-ago road player Michael Zimmerman (U.S.) emerged to win his group — a toughie that included Filipino Warren Kiamco and Keith McCready of the U.S. It was not clear initially whether McCready or Kiamco would advance, since both held 2-2 records and an identical games-won percentage.

BCA Pool League Bolsters Fierce Eight-Ball Competition

The Riviera Hotel and Casino in fabulous Las Vegas, Nev., was filled with 227 bright blue, brand new Diamond tables and some 7,000 amateurs ranging in skill from recreational to Grand Master, and coming from as far as Tonga to compete in the 30th annual BCA Pool League National 8-Ball Championships, May 12-20.

Teams “Slightly Competitive” and “Strategeary” did Denver, Colo. proud, taking home their division titles. “Slightly Competitive” topped the 17-team field in the Women’s Master division, toppling the California CueTees in the final for the second year in a row. Slightly Competitive consisted of Bonnie Plowman, Julie Schultz, Samm Diep, Katrina Games and Chris Honeman. Team “Strategeary” outlasted all of the 695 five-man teams in the Men’s Open division, made up of Billiard Digest’s own Tom Ross, Scott Tollefson, Bob Winters, Bob Keller, and Chizolm Woodson.

In the most formidable field of the tournament, the Men’s Master Team division saw the Young Guns of St. Louis, Miss. take top honors, after besting the British dream team, Team Manston, made up of Men’s Master Singles winner, Michael Hill, and Men’s Grand Master Singles champion, Darren Appleton. All six members are highly decorated in their homeland game of British “reds and yellows.” The Young Guns have ample trophy cases as well, with four-time Missouri State champion Andy Quinn, Ozark Mountain champion Joe Woolford, two-time NCAA chamption Lars Varderman, Chuck Ralston, and the young gun of Young Guns, 18-year-old Justin Bergman, a former Junior National champion.

The Women’s Open champions, the Las Vegas CueTees, didn’t have to travel far to set forth on their undefeated streak through the 119-team field. Members Norma Deitz, Summer Anderson, Karen Arthur, Pam Fletcher and Sarah Chatterjee credit their team mascots, “Spot” the turtle and “Aces” the river rat, for their win.

In the singles tournaments, Lauren Ward of Los Angeles won the Women’s Open, beating Caroline Pao, who went on to win the Open Scotch Doubles tournament with partner William Rueben. In the Women’s Master Division, Rebecca Wagner, who has recently moved from Chicago to Las Vegas, beat her teammate and Chicago native Amy Latzko, who took first in the Master Scotch Doubles with partner Ike Runnels. In the Women’s Grand Master division, Tammy Jones of Dallas, Tex. defeated a familiar opponent in the final, Pamela Patton of Milwaukee, Wisc.

While friends and Englishmen Hill and Appleton swept the Grand Master and Master divisions for the men, Derek Cumm, a mailman in Buelah, Ariz., delivered in the Men’s Open final against Bergman, winning, 5-1.

In this, the 30th year of the BCA Pool Leage National Championships, over 7,100 players entered, and took home $92,250 more in prize money than the previous year.