Sally Timko

Ice Man Defends Poison DP Pro Classic Title

Immonen wins the 10-Ball division and poses with his fellow pro competitors that he overcame to win and rooms owners Keith and Lisa Hulin provided by www.dragonpromotions.com.

Mika Immonen ended his long dry spell of winless tournaments by defeating Shane Van Boening to defend his title at the 3rd Annual DP Poison Pro Classic. In a strong field including names such as Archer, Morris, Williams, Putnam, Hohmann, and Van Boening, Mika was the last man standing in an undefeated run. Mika was a double winner at the Poison DP pro Classic as he and partner Rodney Morris earlier won the 8-Ball Doubles, ironically also over Shane Van Boening and his partner Archer. The Dragon Promotions produced pro events coincided with the 5th Annual Ozone Billiards US Amateur Open. All the events take place at the fantastic facilities of Emerald Billiards in New Iberia, Louisiana and are sponsored by Ozone Billiards www.ozonebilliards.com , Brunswick Billiards, Bonus Ball http://www.playbonusball.com/, Master Chalk, Simonis Cloth, APA Acadiana, and Aramith Balls.

Immonen started off with an easy win over Keith Fremin who had earlier won the Ozone BIlliards US Amateur Open 8-Ball crown. Then Immonen played a near flawless match against fellow pro and promoter of the event Charlie Williams 9-3. He was up 8-o and missed an easy 9-Ball that would have ended in a 9-0 whitewash, but Williams was able to put together a few more games. Next Immonen took down old foe Johnny Archer with relative ease before facing Shane.

Rodney Morris had a sub-par showing as he lost a tough 9-8 decider to Shawn Putnam, and then immediately lost to Jeff Beckley 9-4 in a weak performance.
“When I lost to Putnam, I just went into a coma and didn’t have anything left for Jeff”, Rocket Morris commented after.

Shawn Putnam had a great event with wins over Morris, Williams, and Archer. He took both losses in the event against Van Boening. Shane’s road to the finals included a 9-6 win over Hohmann, a 9-8 over Putnam, a 8-9 loss to Mika, and another 9-5 over Putnam. With Williams and Hohmann tied at 5th, Archer at 4th, and Putnam a 3rd place semi-finals appearance.

“The fans here are unbelievable. I’ve never been treated so well in a poolroom tournament. I’ll definitely be back”, commented Putnam.

“I’ve never played in the middle of a field. I thought it was pretty cool, and I was impressed by the location,” said 2x World Champion Thorsten Hohmann.

The finals pitted Mika and Shane for their 5th battle in their careers. They had played each other a previous 4 matches with each going to hill/hill , with both players splitting the wins.
But Immonen was playing careful and hungry and made very little errors and jumped to a 6-0 lead. Within less than an hour the match was over with Van Boening bowing out to Immonen 10-3.

“It feels really really good to win again. It’s been awhile, so I’m going to enjoy the feeling tonight and during this week. I have a great record at Dragon Promotions events, so I felt a good vibe coming here “, said Immonen.

The tournament was ran smoothly under the watchful eye of Director John Leyman of New York City.

Saco and Panzarella Split Tri-State Billirds Event
Tri-State Tour / East Rutherford, NJ

by InsidePOOL Staff

Rich Saco and Mike Panzarella decided to split top honors at the Tri-State Tour’s August 7 event. The A-D, $500-added event was hosted by Castle Billiards in East Rutherford, NJ, and attracted a field of 48 players.

On the winners’ side final four Saco faced down Annie Flores decisively 7-4, while Joe Varvaro routed Kyle Bubet 6-1. The hot seat match that followed was a close one, but Saco scraped by with a 7-5 victory, sending Varvaro to the one-loss side while he awaited a finals opponent.

Making his way through the west side of the chart, Panzarella fought off Pete Ziemak 7-2 to face off against Flores. He deposited her in fifth place 7-4, as Bubet dispatched Chuck Giallorenzo 6-3 to tie with Flores. In a hotly contested battle, Bubet and Panzarella met in the quarterfinal match, with Panzarella triumphing 9-7. Another close match ensued when Panzarella went on to face Varvaro in the semifinals. Their match went hill-hill, but Panzarella again pulled it out to advance to the finals. There he and Saco decided to split because of the lateness of the hour.

Results:
1st Rich Saco $525
Mike Panzarella
3rd Joe Varvaro $250
4th Kyle Bubet $150
5th Annie Flores $100
Chuck Giallorenzo
7th Pete Ziemak $75
Rick Shellhouse

Joey Testa vs Gabe Owen at the Super Billiards Expo

Tom Rossman vs Nick Nickolaidis at the Artistic Pool Masters

Saez Sweeps Tiger Tournament
Tiger Southeast Open 9-Ball Tour / Vero Beach, FL

by InsidePOOL Staff

Robb Saez took first place at the August 1 installment of the Tiger Southeast Open 9-Ball Tour, defeating Anthony Meglino for the title. The $500-added event was hosted by Cunningham’s Pool and Darts in Vero Beach, FL, and attracted a 30-player field.

Racing through the winners’ side of the chart, Meglino arrived at the final four to play Chris Gentile, whom he bested 7-4. The other winners’ side match saw Han Berber send Wyler Ball to the west side 7-3. In the ensuing hot seat match, Meglino easily dominated Berber 7-2 to await a finals opponent.

Ball went on to face Saez in the quarterfinal match, and Saez sent him rolling 7-4 to advance to the semifinals, where he eliminated Berber 7-3. In the final race to 9 against Meglino, it was touch and go, but at the end of it all, Saez stood in the winner’s circle, having won the match 9-8.

Results:
1st Robb Saez $450
2nd Anthony Meglino $340
3rd Han Berber $240
4th Wyley Ball $140
5th Jim Sandaler $75
Chris Gentile

Joss Northeast 9-Ball Tour / Amsterdam, NY

by InsidePOOL Staff

Dennis Hatch may not have won all of the Joss Northeast 9-Ball Tour’s events in the 2009-2010 season, but he came very close. In the tour’s season finale, “The Hatchetman” bested Lyn Wechsler to take yet another title. Main Street Billiards in Amsterdam, NY, hosted the $1,500-added event and the 33 players who took part in it.

Hatch went undefeated through the event, defeating Dwight Dixon in the winners’ side final four easily 9-4. He went on to face Wechsler for the first time in the hot seat after Wechsler advanced because of a forfeit by Spencer Auigbelle. The hot seat match was neck and neck until Hatch finally pulled away to win by a narrow 9-7 margin.

Once on the one-loss side of the chart, Auigbelle returned to defeat Jeremy Sossei and send him home in a fifth-place tie 9-6. Tied with Sossei was Ron Casanzio, who was eliminated by Dixon 9-3. The ensuing quarterfinal match saw Auigbelle matched up with Dixon, with Auigbelle sweeping aside his opponent 9-4. The semifinal match was a lopsided affair, with Wechsler routing Auigbelle 9-2 to earn another chance at Hatch. But Hatch took the lead in the final match and kept it all the way, and though Wechsler put six racks under his belt, it wasn’t enough to keep “The Hatchetman” from yet another Joss Tour title.

In the $500-added second chance event for non-pro-rated players, 20 players participated to try to earn their share of the $900 total prize purse. The event’s format was double elimination and a race to 3. Kevin Ketz went smoothly through the field unchallenged to earn first place over Jeff Smullen in the finals 3-2.

Results:
1st Dennis Hatch $100
2nd Lyn Wechsler $700
3rd Spencer Auigbelle $550
4th Dwight Dixon $400
5th Ron Casanzio $250
Jeremy Sossei
7th Kevin Guimond $100
Geoff Montgomery

Second Chance Results:
1st Kevin Ketz $340
2nd Jeff Smullen $220
3rd Brent Boemmels $140
4th Bruce Carroll $100
5th Tim Parisian $50
Walter Szydlowski

Kim Repeats as U.S. Open 9-Ball Champion
WPBA U.S. Open / Norman, OK

by InsidePOOL Staff

Ga Young Kim successfully defended her title against all comers during the Women’s Professional Billiards Association (WPBA) U.S. Open 9-Ball this past weekend, ultimately fighting off Karen Corr in the finals. The four-day event was hosted by Riverwind Casino in Norman, OK, and featured a 64-player field.

Both Kim and Corr went undefeated through the field until the end. Corr had bested Dana Aft 9-3, Tamara Rademakers 9-3, and Nicole Keeney 9-5 to reach the final 16. There she had a close match with Iris Ranola of the Philippines 9-7. With only eight players left the races were shortened to 7. Corr eliminated Kim Shaw 7-5 and advanced to meet Vivian Villareal, whom she whitewashed 7-0.

Kim’s journey included victories over Veronique Menard 9-2, Dawn Hopkins 9-5, and Monica Webb 9-4. She edged past Webb again in the round of 16 after their hill-hill bout and went on to face Gerda “G-Force” Hofstatter, whom she defeated 7-3. A quick 7-2 drubbing of Julie Kelly put Kim in the finals against “The Irish Invader.”

View the Women’s U.S. Open 9-Ball tournament brackets

The final match went all the way to the hilt, with neither player giving up an inch. Finally, though, Kim broke the last rack and, though she left herself tough on the 9 ball, she dug deep to pocket it and claim her U.S. Open title for the second year in a row.

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

Brunswick Billiards to Sponsor Event

Brunswick Billiards will be the official table of the 3rd Annual Poison Dragon Promotions Pro Classic events and the 5th Annual Ozone Billiards US Amateur Open. The Draon Promotions produced pro events will take place on August 5-8,2010 at Emerald Billiards which will host the pros on ten brand new Brunswick Gold Crown V, the flagship model of the 160 year old company.

“I own several businesses in the area and I do everything on a first class standard. That’s why I bought brand new top of the line Brunswick Gold Crown Vs. It’s the best table money can buy” said Keith Hulin, owner of Emerald Billiards, a 36 table room and restaurant.

The events are also sponsored by Ozone Billiards, Bonus Ball, Master Chalk, Simonis Cloth, and Aramith Balls.

The local American Poolplayers Association, APA Acadiana, will also be sponsoring the event with a good portion of the field in the amateur divisions coming from that league. The APA Acadiana is in the top 10 largest APA leagues in the US, with over 4000 players. The Ozone Billiards US Amateur Open is open to any amateur class player that is not a semi-pro or has any national amateur titles. The events are 8-Ball and 9-Ball with women, seniors, and open divisions.

“Most of our players here have never seen a real life pro in action before, so this is a real special treat for them. We know our fans will treat the pros right and hope they all come back”, said Preston Granger, League Operator of APA Acadiana.

#2 USA ranked Rodney Morris came one day early and played challenge matches with fans during one of the APA league nights. Fans crowded around to watch the former US Open Champion run out rack after rack to the cheers of the fans. Rodney spent hours with the fans talking and signing autographs and pictures.

“Brunswicks are my favorite table. I can really play my top game on pristine equipment like this. These fans will be in for a treat this week watching all the pros being able to perform at their best on great equipment”, said Morris, who had won most of his big titles such as the US Open, World Pool Cup on Brunswicks.

For more than 160 years, Brunswick Billiards has been the leader in designing the highest quality pool tables and game room furnishings with a standard of superior craftsmanship and preferred by experts around the world. Based in Bristol, Wis., the billiards division of Brunswick Corporation (NYSE: BC), has more than 300 retail dealer locations across the United States and international distributors in more than 40 countries. For more information about Brunswick Billiards and its product line, visit www.brunswickbilliards.com.

Accu-Stats Online Catalog of Billiards Videos Soars into Top 20 Issuu Magazine Downloads with 40,000 Views in July

ISSUU, perhaps the world’s most visited website to view magazines in a page turning format, has the calculated the Accu-Stats Catalog at a new high of #17 in most popular downloads.

Who would have thought that there are so many web surfers interested in watching pro pool tournaments on DVD…in July??? Shouldn’t they be out skateboarding or, surfing or…getting their bling on?

With thousands of magazines at ISSUU to choose from, fashion being #1, followed by X game activity, Accu-Stats is knocked out, or bowled over (pun intended), to find that pro pool is so popular.

“And, we’re #2 in their SPORTS category,” proclaimed Accu-Stats owner and BCA Hall of Famer, Pat Fleming. “It all started with our massive “LIVE from the SIMONIS ARENA” marketing campaign. Our streaming 8, 9, and 10 Ball Game Shows with thousands in jackpots, 3 nights a week, are really attracting viewers. And, then, with one click they are viewing the catalog.”

Accu-Stats sponsors are happy too. With another click on the sponsors’ imagery, the viewer is transported to their website, too.

“it’s an all win situation.” enthused Fleming, “And, we’re delighted that others can share in our success.”

View the Accu-Stats Online Catalog.

The rise in Accu-Stats Catalog viewership is truly astonishing. 4 years ago, in PDF form, there were around 10,000 downloads. In 2008, ISSUU was added and they reached 36,000; Last year, 70,000; In the first 7 months of this year, with near 200,000 and growing, the sky’s the limit.

And, you can be assured that there will be much more activity when accu-stats.com broadcasts, LIVE, the upcoming Predator World Straight Pool Championship and the US Open 9-Ball Championship.

Visit accu-stats.com for more.

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Rocket and Ice Man Team-up for Victory

Hawaii and Helsinki may seem strange bedfellows, but Rodney Morris and Mika Immonen seemed to make a fitting match as they landed on the better side of a 10-9 thriller over Johnny Archer and Shane Van Boening to win the 8-Ball Doubles of the 3rd Annual DP Poison Pro Classic. Archer and Van Boening were the only undefeated team as they won all four of their matches in the round robin but slightly faltered in the finals. The Dragon Promotions produced pro events coincided with the 5th Annual Ozone Billiards US Amateur Open. All the events take place at the fantastic facilities of Emerald Billiards in New Iberia, Louisiana and are sponsored by Ozone Billiards www.ozonebilliards.com , Brunswick Billiards, Bonus Ball http://www.playbonusball.com/, Master Chalk, Simonis Cloth, APA Acadiana, and Aramith Balls.

Jeff Beckley and Shawn Putnam finished 3rd with impressive wins over Immonen/Morris, Hohmann/Williams.

First Morris and Immonen had to avenge themselves against Putnam/Beckley in the semi-finals re-match. This time they did it by a close 8-6 margin. This set up the finals where Shane and Johnny were waiting .

The finals had Morris/Immonen making a statement off the bat taking a commanding 5-1 lead. But Archer/Van Boening clawed their way back to 7-7 and now the players had a real match. Rodney and Mika got to the hill first at 9-8, but a rattled stripe from Morris left Archer and Shane an opening that they took full advantage of to runout for a 9-9 ending.

Morris was breaking though in the alternate break format, and this time he redeemed himself with a ball on the break while the cueball crept to the side pocket, hit the point and managed to stay up. The Mika/Rodney duo then proceeded to take turns shooting and ran out for the win.

“You feed off each other’s positive and negative energies in doubles. We definitely had our moments when we were weak.But you have to make sure there is more good than bad. And that’s exactly how we ended it”, said Immonen. He added, “I haven’t won any events in awhile, so definitely it’s nice to get the monkey off my back! “