Sally Timko

Charity Billiards Event Organize To Benefit 3-Year-Old

A charity event has been organized to benefit Cooper, a 3-year-old boy who has been diagnosed with neuroblastoma—cancer. The charity event will be held at the Green Room in Tempe, TX on December 5, starting at 12 p.m. until close.

Cooper has been given a 30% chance to live, even after extensive chemotherapy treatments. His medical costs are an extremely heavy burden and his parents are in of need help paying for his medical care.

There will be a benefit pool tournament, a silent auction, raffles, and a Challenge the Pro table. The Women’s Professional Billiard Association (WPBA.com) players have kindly offered to donate billiards memorabilia, as well as the Predator Group (Predatorgroup.com).

The promoters are inviting players and companies to join them or to please send any donations. Donations can be made by mailing them to the following address:

The Green Room
c/o Sheryl Sofge, Owner
2313 South 57th Street
Temple, TX 76504

Immonen Wins World Ten Ball Championship
Jerry Forsyth, WPA Press Officer

There can be no doubt as to who the best player in the world is now. Mika Immonen of Finland has won the World Pool-Billiard Association (WPA) World Ten Ball Championship in Manila scant weeks after winning his second consecutive US Open and the Challenge of Champions. These wins push him over the $200,000 mark for the year and cement his place firmly in pool history.

Immonen entered the final day as one of four players left out of the 128 who started the week. His first victim for the day was Antonio Lining of the Philippines whom he beat 9-7. Just after this win the other semi-final between Lee Van Corteza of the Philippines and David Alcaide of Spain ended with Corteza earning the right to face Immonen 9-7.

Corteza began the final with a hot hand and led 2-0 after the first two racks. But from there Immonen found his game and slowly pulled away to take the title 11-6 in a convincing victory.

View the WPA World 10-Ball Championships Groups tournament brackets

View the WPA World 10-Ball Championships Single Elimnation tournament brackets

Congratulations go out to Raya Sports for their production of this year’s championship and the Republic of the Philippines for being such gracious hosts.

Morra Defeats Davis at DMIRO Billiard Stop
Team DMIRO 10-Ball Tour / Spring Hill, FL

by Mike Andrews

A star-studded field piled in to Capone’s Billiards in Spring Hill, FL, Thanksgiving weekend, with players like Donnie Mills, Mike Davis, John Morra, and Rafael Martinez showing up to compete in the Team DMIRO 10-Ball Tour stop. Since there were not enough open/pro players to fill two brackets, the field played in one bracket by random draw, with Canada’s John Morra taking home the first-place prize.

Sunday afternoon saw the final four players return to battle it out for the nearly $3,000 prize pool. Davis and Richeson collided on the winners’ side playing for the hot seat, while Morra and Mills met on the west side in the quarterfinal match. Morra had suffered a loss to Davis 7-4 earlier, while Mills was on the one-loss side courtesy of Tony Crosby.

After being tied at 4 apiece with Richeson for the hot seat, Davis was able to pull ahead 7-4 and finally won the set 9-7. On the left side of the chart, Morra was working his way back, first eliminating Mills 9-6 and then ousting Richeson 9-7.

The final match between Morra and Davis was a single race to 13. Davis grabbed an early lead of 3-0, but Morra came back to tie it 3-3. The two traded the next six racks to bring the score to 6 apiece. At that point Morra jumped ahead by running two racks in a row. A missed jump shot by Davis put Morra ahead even more, and soon Morra crossed the finish line with a 13-8 victory.

Results:
1st John Morra $1,035
2nd Mike Davis $740
3rd Richie Richeson $445
4th Donnie Mills $245
5th Tony Crosby $145
Bobby Livargo $145
7th Rafael Martinez $75
Shawn Miller

Everton Repeats on Tri-State Billiard Tour
Tri-State Tour / Edison, NJ

by InsidePOOL Staff

Paul Everton scored a repeat victory when he won the Thanksgiving weekend stop on the Tri-State Tour, winning two tournaments in a row. The B-D handicapped event was hosted by Sand Castle Billiards in Edison, NJ, and featured a plummy $750 prize purse that attracted 36 contestants.

Everton went unscathed to the final match, defeating Christian Smith 7-5 to reach the hot seat match. There he was faced with Eric Tang, who was just off a strong hill-hill win over Rajesh Vannala. The hot seat match was little contest, as Everton was able to send Tang packing to the one-loss side with a 7-3 win.

Smith exhibited more than a little determination in working his way through the west side of the chart. He survived a hill-hill bout against Tom McCloud, depositing McCloud in fifth place, and then went on to play Vannala in the quarterfinal match. A smooth 7-3 victory later, Smith advanced to the semifinals to face Tang, over from the hot seat match. Smith eliminated Tang 7-4 to earn his rematch with Everton in the finals. But Everton, though he had just undergone surgery four weeks prior, was unstoppable, surging ahead to win the final match 7-4.

Results:
1st Paul Everton $790
2nd Christian Smith $430
3rd Eric Tang $250
4th Rajesh Vannala $140
5th Tom McCloud $85
Robert Hanna
7th Dave Fitzpatrick $65
Scott Abramowitz

Down to Four at Word Pool-Billiard Association World Ten Ball Championship
Jerry Forsyth, WPA Press Officer

The first order of business today at the World Pool-Billiard Association (WPA) World Ten Ball Championship was to winnow the field of 32 down to the Sweet Sixteen. Comebacks seemed to be the order of the day as Lee Van Corteza, who had trailed Yu Lung Chang 7-2, roared back with a display of break and runs to win the match 9-8. Daryl Peach had trailed Satoshi Kawabata 5-1 but turned that around and won 9-7 after denying any control of the table to Kawabata in the second half of the match. Finally Dennis Orcullo came back from a 7-2 deficit to Hayato Hijikata to win that match 9-8.

Mika Immonen and Marlon Manalo had a much closer run. They were tied at 6 games each before Mika hit that gear of his to take over and win 9-6. His usual nemesis, Ralf Souquet, had a terrible 41st birthday today as he was eliminated 9-6 by He Wen Li.

Other matches of note found Warren Kiamco besting Thorsten Hohmann 9-5, Antonio Lining beating Naoyuki Ooi 9-7, Nick Van Dne Berg overcoming Jonni Fulcher 9-4, Thomas Engert dominating Imran Majid 9-2, David Alcaide making it look easy against former World Champion Chao Fong-Pang 9-5 and our defending champion Darren Appleton crushing Stephan Cohen 9-5.

The next round would create the Great Eight. Warren Kiamco stayed sharp and eliminated Daryl Peach 9-7. Antonio Lining cruised past Jomar De Ocampo 9-2 while Mika Immonen continued his threat with a 9-7 victory over Nick Van Den Berg. New World Junior Champion Ruslan Chinokhov overcame Elvis Calasang 9-6 and Lee Van Corteza came out ahead in a nip and tuck battle with Thomas Engert 9-7. Chinese superstar He Wen Li eliminated his countryman Wang Ming 9-8, defending champion Darren Appleton overcame a 4-game deficit against Marcus Chamat to progress 9-7 and David Alcaide kept his campaign going by defeating Dennis Orcullo 9-6.

View the WPA World 10-Ball Championships Groups tournament brackets

View the WPA World 10-Ball Championships Single Elimnation tournament brackets

The day was not over. We still had to determine the final four that would return on Monday for the grand glory of a World Championship. First to go out in this round was our defending Champion, Darren Appleton. Appleton lost out 9-6 to the super-strong David Alcaide. Mika Immonen continued his invincible play against Ruslan Chinakhov and moved in to the final group easily 9-6. Antonio Lining had to go all the way to double-hill to win over Warren Kiamco 9-8 and Lee Van Corteza placed the second Filipino into the final four with his 9-7 win over He Win Li.

Our semifinals on Monday will find Corteza facing Alcaide and Lining going up against Immonen. The locals are hoping for an all-Filipino final, but there is a lot of work to be done to accomplish that.

Field Cut in Half at World Ten Ball Championship
Jerry Forsyth, WPA Press Officer

After three hard days of play the final field of 64 has now been determined. Thirty-two of these players are thus far undefeated and will be seeded into the final brackets according to their performance up to this point. The other 32 players are subjected to a blind draw to determine whom they will face in the matches tomorrow.

There will be many exciting matches on Saturday. Filipino hotshot Jericho Banares will play Thorsten Hohmann on the first TV match of the day. Other TV matches will feature Lee Van Corteza against Konsatantin Stepanov and Oscar Dominguez will do battle with Dennis Orcullo.

The outside tables will find, among others, Corey Deuel squared off with Antonio Lining, Niels Feijen facing Mika Immonen in a match between two giants of the game who know one another well, Imran Majid versus Ronnie Alcano, Ralf Souquet against Ignacio Chavez, Marcus Chamat will play Kuo Po-Cheng and David Alcaide will have to fade Antonio Gabica.

View the WPA World 10-Ball Championships tournament brackets

We are now down to the single-elimination stages so every match is do or die. Fans will be watching to see which players are able to remain in their pace and which will succumb to the nerves of the moment. Pick your favorites now. In three short days we will have a new Champion of the World!

Day Two at the World Ten Ball Championships
Jerry Forsyth, WPA Press Officer

This was the first day that any players could be eliminated from competition by going two and out. Perhaps the biggest surprise was the early exit by American player Shane Van Boening. Van Boeing lost today to young Russian superstar Konsatntin Stepanov 9-6. Martin Kempter of Austria also left the room today after dropping his match on the hill to Tey Choon Kat of Singapore. Another disappointment to the crowd came when local hero Demosthenes Pulpul faced off against Ronnie Alcano in a match that had to eliminate one Filipino. That would be Pulpul as Alcano prevailed 9-5.

There were smiling faces on the other end of the charts as many players have now won two matches and thus qualified for the final round of 64. Names here include Dennis Orcullo (PHI), Kuo Po-Cheng (TPE), defending champion Darren Appleton (GBR), Niles Feijen (NED), Ernesto Dominguez (USA), Lee Van Corteza (PHI), Alain Martel (CAN), Thorsten Hohmann (GER), and the British duo of Karl Boyes and Imran Majid.

Many players are now left on tenterhooks as they must live or die on a single match tomorrow. The names treading on this shaky ground include Johnny Archer (USA), Ralf Souquet (GER), Nick Van Den Berg (NED), Mika Immonen (FIN) , Oliver Ortmann (GER), Tyler Edey (CAN), Jeff De Luna and Ronnie Alcano of the Philippines and Daryl Peach of Great Britain.

Friday will set the stage for the draw into the final bracket of 64 players. Then every match will mean either progression or dismissal and the tension will only increase and the competition toughen with each round.

Today also found the press corps on a side trip over to Star Paper, home of the Star Billiards Center where the top names in Filipino pool gather to train. This 40-table room offers them free table time, free food, wireless internet access and a café with dining area. But perhaps the most striking part of the room is its mascot. Tiger, as he is aptly named, is a six-month-old Siberian tiger that has the roam of the room. Playful and beautiful, Tiger gets whatever Tiger wants, including his daily fill of chicken. No one wants Tiger walking around hungry!

Russell Rules Viking’s Rocky Mount Stop
Viking Cue 9-Ball Tour / Rocky Mount, NC

by InsidePOOL Staff

The Viking Cue Amateur 9-Ball Tour took center stage at Dot’s Cue Club in Rocky Mount, NC, as amateur players from around the region filled the room for a weekend packed with action November 21-22. The tour attracted 63 entries for the weekend and paid out over $4,500 in prize monies. Glenn Russell took home the lion’s share when he won over Younger Chapman in the finals.

The kicked off on Friday night with a mini tournament. Jeff Tabet made his way north from Atlanta and defeated local player DJ Outlaw to take home first place. Sunday saw more action at the second chance mini tournament. The event was won by Vernon Rogers, who made his way to the hot seat undefeated and claimed first place by defeating Mike Janis 5-4.

The $1,500-added amateur event kicked off Saturday and pitted some of the toughest players in the region against each other. Eddie Little found himself sent to the one-loss side of the chart in the second round by Linwood Whitehead. He fought his way back to take home third place after a loss in the semifinals to Younger Chapman, who had been sent west by Russell after their hot seat match. Chapman earned his rematch with Russell, but it was Russell who took home the win in the first set 9-1.

Results:
1st Glenn Russell $1,250
2nd Younger Chapman $750
3rd Eddie Little $500
4th DJ Outlaw $250
5th Ray Vines $120
Mike Yingling $120
7th Mike Frowein $70
Linwood Whitehead

Day One of the World 10-Ball Championships
by Jerry Forsyth, WPA Press Officer

Some big names have hit the bricks at the World Pool-Billiard Association (WPA) World 10-Ball Championships in Manila. Ralf Souquet of Germany is now on the one-loss side after dropping his first match 9-6 to Thomasz Kaplan of Poland. He is joined there by Shane Van Boening of the USA, Jeff De Luna of the Philippines, and Ronnie Alcano of the Philippines. Van Boening lost 9-8 to Nguyen Anh Tuan of Viet Nam, and Alcano lost 9-7 to Dang Jin-Hu of China.

While some of our names have met with early misfortune, others have dominated their opponents. Kuo Po-Cheng (CHN) rolled over Matjaz Erculj (SLO) 9-4, Nick Van Den Berg (NED) slaughtered Kim Woong Dae (KOR) 9-1, Niels Feijen (NED) did the same 9-1 cruelty to Scott Higgins (GBR), and Chang Pei-Wei (TPE) busted Elvis Calasang (PHI) 9-3.

Vincent Facquet did well for France by trouncing Christoph Reintjes of Germany 9-3, Olvier Ortmann of Germany easily handled Ibrahim Bun Amir of Malaysia 9-1 and Mika Immonen of Finland continued his dominance of everyone he faces by bombing Basher Hussain of Qatar 9-1.

View the WPA World 10-Ball Championships tournament brackets

The results above are all from the afternoon rounds. Play continued at the World Trade Center well into the night as many matches are extending beyond their two-hour expected time frame. The evening rounds found the crowds focused on the local players. They roared their approval when Marlon Manalo (PHI) bested Steve Moore (USA) 9-4. There was more to celebrate when Antonio Gabica (PHI) destroyed Ralf Mund (GER) 9-2, Carlo Blado (PHI) creamed Liu Haitao (CHN) 9-4 and Warren Kiamco (PHI) exhibited disdain over Chi Dung Lung (CHN) 9-4.

No one is as yet out of the running for the title. All who fell today have another bullet left and will not be eliminated until they have again tasted defeat. This story is just in the first chapter.

Visit InsidePOOL for the latest news in the sport of billiards and pool.

Predator’s 2nd Stop for the 10 Ball World Tour in Lloret de Mar, Spain

With much success at the first stop of the Predator World Tour in Anadia, Portugal in September, Predator will be hosting their second stop of the tour in Lloret de Mar, Spain on January 6-9 and it promises to be the first hot event of the New Year. David Alcaide won the most recent event in Anadia, Portugal and took home $14,000 in prize money. He appears to be the early favorite for Lloret De Mar but, with challengers coming from Europe, Asia, America and elsewhere, it is unlikely that “El Matador” will have an easy time of it, especially with the list of top pros in attendance.

The event is sanctioned by the European Pocket Billiard Federation and WPA rules will govern all matches. Players can earn up to 945 points against the EPBF rankings. Assuming 64 or more entrants, players will compete for a guaranteed prize fund of 50,000 euros (more than $70,000).

Predator’s tour web site, www.Predator10Ball.com, will stream live video, offer a video magazine and provide real-time scoring. As with the Anadia event last September, ESPN Star and Eurosport will cover the finals and semifinals in Barcelona. The final from Portugal will be presented separately on November 27 at 23:00 on Eurosport (Eurosport France will offer a different schedule). Please stay tuned for additional information.

The Lloret de Mar, Spain stop is sure to be an extraordinary event with sponsors such as Aramith, Atlas, Bilhares Carrinho, Kozoom, Poison, Predator Products, QKS Cases, Simonis Cloth, Tiger Products, and Uni-Loc; the event is being promoted by Masterpool.

“This is a seminal event and we’re excited to see it take off,” says Karim Belhaj, CEO of Predator Group. “We’re committed to promoting our sport, increasing interest in the game and making billiards more of a household word. This tour represents a giant step in that direction.”

Stay tuned to www.Predator10Ball.com for additional news and live-play coverage. If you would like to register to play in the event or receive information, please send an email to Predator10Ball@masterpool.es