Sally Timko

Dennis and Scarborough Fare Well on KF Cue Tour

KF Cue Tour / Orlando, FL

by Lea Andrews

The amateurs took control of both the amateur and open divisions of the January 30-31 KF Cue Tour Stop, with Dan Dennis topping Saturday’s amateur division, and Joe Scarborough taking control of Sunday’s open division, which drew big names like Mike Davis, Tommy Kennedy, and tour director Tony “The Sniper” Crosby. The $1,000-added amateur event brought 67 players to Corner Pocket in Orlando, FL, while the $1,000-added open event drew 44.

Though Scarborough went undefeated in the open division, he took a late loss to Dennis in the amateur division, putting Dennis in the hot seat match against Eddie Wheat, who’d gotten past Ernie Medina. Wheat couldn’t get past Dennis, though, and he moved west 7-5. On the one-loss side, Scarborough moved past Brian McBride to reach the quarterfinals against Medina, who’d arrived via Todd Anderson. Wanting another crack at Wheat, Medina put Scarborough in fourth, but the second time against Wheat wasn’t the charm, and Medina landed in third, pitting Wheat back up against Dennis. Wheat’s rematch in the single race-to-8 final match was looking good for him at the start as he jumped to a 4-0 and 5-1 lead, but Dennis came back strong and tied it up at five apiece. Wheat got in front again, reaching the hill first 7-5, but he couldn’t close out the win, leaving Dennis to finish off his first KF Cue Tour win with three straight racks 8-7.

On Sunday, it was Scarborough’s turn to shine. He made it to the winners’-side final four with a string of strong wins (including a 7-0 revenge match over Dennis), capping it off with a 7-2 victory over Josh Degler to reach the hot seat match against Glen Olson. Another shutout win put Scarborough in the hot seat and Olson on the west side looking for a rematch. On the left side of the bracket, Crosby, who’d earlier ousted Mike Davis 6-1, faced Degler, the man responsible for giving him his first loss 7-6. Earning his revenge 6-3, Crosby moved on to the quarterfinals against last stop’s winner Tommy Kennedy, who’d just put Butch Croft in fifth. Edging out Crosby 6-5, the 1992 US Open Champion moved on to the semifinals against Olson, taking care of him 6-2 to face Scarborough in the finals. In the single race-to-9 final match, Kennedy and Scarborough stayed close, trading games to tie it up at six games apiece. Kennedy took the next two to reach the hill first 8-6, but Scarborough rallied, tying it hill-hill. In the final rack, it looked like Kennedy was going to claim his second win in a row, his third this season, but he came up short on the 9 ball, and his bank attempt left the 9 hanging for Scarborough, who earned his first KF Cue Tour win 9-8.

Eddie Wheat and Dan Dennis

Amateur Results:

1st Dan Dennis $650
2nd Eddie Wheat $500
3rd Ernie Medina $390
4th Joe Scarborough $250
5th Todd Anderson $150
Brian McBride
7th Lincoln Seifert $90
Shawn Miller
9th Sean Leason $65
George Saunders
Jeff Mabry
Prescott Buckwold
13th James Adams $50
Tony Vicari
David Boyd
Brian Valentine

2nd Kennedy, Room Owner Tesh Patel, 1st Joe Scarborough

Open Results:

1st Joe Scarborough $650
2nd Tommy Kennedy $450
3rd Glen Olson $300
4th Tony Crosby $200
5th Butch Croft $130
Josh Degler
7th Carlos Torres $80
Mark Coats

Paulowske Pulls It Off
Billiard Congress of Wisconsin Open 9-Ball Tour / Kenosha, WI

by Jonathan Demet

Eighteen players made their way from various parts of Wisconsin and Illinois to compete in the January 30 installment of the Billiard Congress of Wisconsin Open 9-Ball Tour. Hosted by Claw’s Billiards in Kenosha, WI, this $400-added event was won by Tommy Paukowske.

In the final four of the winners’ side bracket, Paulowske sent Claudio Parrone to the one-loss side 8-3, while Jonathan Demet bested Jason Barnhill 8-3. In the following hot seat match between Paulowske and Demet, Paulowske finished well, winning the final two games he needed to defeat Demet in a hill-hill nail-biter.

Once on the west side, Parrone rebounded against “Big Jay” and won their match 6-3. Jay tied for fifth place with Barnhill, who was eliminated by Gil Hernandez 6-2. Hernandez went on to win twice as many games as Parrone in the quarterfinals, winning 6-3. In the semifinal match, Hernandez steamrolled Demet 6-1 to advance to the finals. After a long wait, Paulowske played well to best Hernandez 8-3, taking home first place.

Champion Tommy Paulowske

Results:
1st Tommy Paulowske $430
2nd Gil Hernandez $240
3rd Jonathan Demet $175
4th Claudio Parrone $101

Chavez and Testa Split Mezz Tour Honors
Mezz Pro-Am Tour / Drexel Hill, PA

by Jose Burgos

The Mezz Pro-Am Tour’s first stop went off with a bang, hosted by Drexeline Billiards in Drexel Hill, PA, January 31. A strong field of 53 players came out, including Eddie Abraham, Shaun Wilkie, and Matt Krah, but Ignacio Chavez and Joey Testa took home top honors.

Chavez led the top half of the bracket with wins over Caroline Pao 7-2, Abraham 7-3, Josh Brothers 7-4, Wilkie 7-1, and Adam Kielar 7-4. Leading the bottom half of the bracket was Testa, with wins over Sharon O’Hanlon 7-1, John Graziano 7-0, Gregg McAndrews 7-2, and Victor Nau 7-3.

Testa and Chavez matched up in the hot seat match, with Testa pulling away late to win 7-4. Waiting for Chavez on the one-loss side was Nau, coming fresh from a win over Brothers. But Nau’s momentum wasn’t enough to carry him through to the finals, as it was all Chavez, who easily won 7-2.

In the true double-elimination finals, it was Testa versus Chavez. In order for Chavez to win the event, he would have to best Testa twice. However, both players decided to be co-champions and split first place.

The Mezz Pro-Am Tour’s first stop went off with a bang, hosted by Drexeline Billiards in Drexel Hill, PA, January 31.

Results:
1st Joey Testa $1,200
Ignacio Chavez
3rd Victor Nau $600
4th Josh Brothers $330
5th Matt Krah $250
Adam Kielar
7th Shaun Wilkie $150
Joe Hong
9th Keith Christman $75
Gregg McAndrews
Bill Wilson
John Graziano