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Tuesday, 29 December 2015
FloridaBilliardsExpo.com Launched!
Wednesday, 9 December 2015
Mosconi Cup: Americans Trail 9-6 Going into Final Day
By: Markus Noé
The third day of the Mosconi Cup began this morning at 11:00 am local time at the Tropicana Casino in Las Vegas. Despite trailing 6-4 in the overall score the Americans came into the day with some momentum. This was due to the climatic finish in the last match on day 2 as Shane VanBoening made an amazing carom on the 9 to keep the Americans hopes alive.
That being said, in the first match of the day the duo of Justin Bergman/Corey Deuel came out flat. Their counterpart Albin Ouschan/Niels Feijen came out roaring playing near flawless. Once again in this match Deuel did not look comfortable and made a few mistakes that you would not likely see him make under normal circumstances. In the end Europe won this match with ease 5-1.
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| Deuel celebrating a great roll |
In a bit of a surprise Marc Wilson sent Deuel out to play back to back matches despite his self admitted struggles. This was a bit unnerving however the "pool gods" appeared ready to give him some of the rolls he has been looking for all week. He was up against Nick van den Berg who has not registered a single point for the Europeans thus far. The match was filled with errors and miracle shots, it really was perhaps the most exciting match of the day. There was one particular shot were Deuel and van den Berg were exchanging safeties and Deuel had a tough jump shot to make on the 2 ball. He made good contact and inadvertently caromed the 9 ball cross corner winning the rack.
It was inevitable that this match would go double hill. Deuel was the first player to get a really good chance to finish the set and he made a bad shot on the 5 ball and missed. Somehow the nerves must have gotten to van den Berg as well because despite having four open balls left on the table he too missed giving Deuel one more chance which he took full advantage of winning 5-4.
At this point the Americans were only down 7-5 to the heavily favored European team. Once again it was time for another doubles match with Mike Dechaine and Skyler Woodward up against Karl Boyes and Albin Ouschan. The Americans looked to finally be in the drivers seat going up 2-0 but that was short lived. The Europeans played well and roared back to go up 4-2. In the final rack of the set the Americans were in control. Woodward was straight in on his shot and was forced to play a stop shot leaving position for the 9 ball in the side. Dechaine was fully expected to make this shot, however he grazed the point of the pocket and rattled the shot. Ouschan stepped up to the table and slammed the winning 9 ball in, giving his team the 8-5 overall lead.
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| Feijen golden break. |
Going into the last match of the session the Americans were down 9-5 and desperately needed a win. This would not be easy as Justin Bergman was up against Darren Appleton. Bergman began the match by breaking and running his first three breaks, however he was only ahead 3-2. After a few errors from Appleton, Bergman went on to win 5-2. He did so while displaying tons of heart and an unwillingness to play safe as he was trying everything he could see, his style is made for T.V.
Play resumes at 2:00 pm eastern time tomorrow and it will be the final day of the 2015 Mosconi Cup. The live stream can be found here http://www.pool.livesport.tv/. If you are unable to watch make sure to check the Cue Sport Nation Facebook page as we will have updates of each match. Can the Americans do the unthinkable and win 5 matches before the Europeans win 2?
15 Billiard Student-Athletes Proudly Represented U.S. in Shanghai at World Junior Championships
By Billiard Education Foundation
Photo Courtesy of Alison Chang
December 8, 2015 (Denver, CO): Last month, 15 American billiard student-athletes traveled to Shanghai, China not for cash, not for scholarships and not for a free vacation. They flew across the world with their families for an opportunity to represent our nation and earn a medal at the 24th Annual WPA World Junior 9-Ball Championships.
That’s right. Just like the Olympics. These talented young players trained and performed in a venue alongside their international peers for a chance to bring home a medal and trophy which proves they are the best junior player in the world.
The Billiard Education Foundation (BEF) & Billiard Congress of America (BCA) through its membership with the World Pool-Billiard Association (WPA) have been qualifying these remarkable young athletes for the past two decades. It’s the only youth billiard event that is recognized all the way up to the International Olympic Committee (IOC). And if you’re an American, the only way to earn a spot at this prestigious event is by way of the BEF Junior National 9-Ball Championships.
This year’s group of 15 players all displayed tremendous heart and sportsmanship, and will all be nominated for the upcoming Atlantic Challenge Cup event. 18-year-old Christopher Robinson and 15-year-old April Larson were the two highest U.S. finishers at 9th place just shy of the redraw.
On behalf of the BEF and each of these players, we proudly recognize and thank this year’s premier sponsors/supporters of the U.S. Junior Team:
Ultimate Team Gear (UltimateTeamGear.com), for outfitting the team with a jersey enviable by all other nations.
Allison Fisher, for her incredible efforts to raise over $1,500 in donations and continued support throughout the year.
Diamond Billiard Products, for offering a 9’ Diamond Pro-Am table to be drawn during the 2016 Junior Nationals and allowing the players to raise funds through ticket sales for this drawing.
Pechauer Custom Cue, for their long-time support of youth billiards and for donating their annually cue to be drawn which the players were able to sell tickets for.
Cyclop, for donating ball sets for each of the players to practice with.
There were of course many other contributors who have helped these budding young stars along the way and we are grateful for each of them. Congratulations again to the 15 players who proudly represented our nation at the 2015 World Junior Championships. It was an amazing journey and we can’t wait for next year!
1. Chris Robinson, age 17 (Ventura, CA)
2. Joshua Franklin, age 17 (Creve Coeur, IL)
3. Zachary Gurganus, age 18 (Marietta, GA)
4. Nickolas Kline, age 17 (Prescott Valley, AZ)
5. Jacob Watson, age 17 (Tyler TX)
6. April Larson, age 15 (Bloomington, MN)
7. Emily Herpel, age 15 (Freehold, NY)
8. Hannah Hohn, age 17 (Ethan SD)
9. Michelle Jiang, age 15 (Harvard, MA)
10. Hailey Fullerton, age 15 (Lake Park, MN)
11. Ashley Fullerton, age 14 (Lake Park, MN)
12. Nathan Childress, age 14 (N. Chesterfield, VA)
13. Kaiden Hunkins, age 13 (Waukesha, WI)
14. Lukas Fracasso-Verner, age 15 (Wallingford, CT)
15. Daniel Sardoncillo, age 14 (Puyallup, WA)
For more information on how to qualify for the 2016 World Junior Championships or more on how you can get involved, contact the BEF office at (303) 926-1039 or info@billiardeducation.org.
About the Billiard Education Foundation (BEF)
The BEF was formed in 1993 as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit charity committed to promoting a lifelong love of pool and building the next generation of players through youth programs and academic scholarships. Visit billiardeducation.org or call (303) 926-1039 to learn more about junior billiard programs in your area.
Tuesday, 8 December 2015
Mosconi Cup: America Narrowly Escapes Disaster in Final Match
By: Markus Noé
Marc Wilson team captain for the American side, showed his confidence in the "Young Guns", putting them out first. Woodward has looked the sharpest out of the lot for the Americans and Justin Bergman who is a top talent and plays with a lot of heart came out and did what they needed to do in this match. They won 5-3 and tied the overall score 3-3 while the chant of "MVP" for Woodward came from the crowd.
Next up was a singles match between Mike Dechaine who has not been sharp thus far and Albin Ouschan. This was a very intense match as Ouschan would describe in the post match interview. Overall it was played at a high level but Dechaine was a little unfortunate and had too many breaks without making a ball. In the end Ouschan went on to win 5-3 and Europe regained the lead 4-3 overall.
It was the next match where things got weird for the Americans as Corey Deuel/Shane VanBoening were up against Darren Appleton/Karl Boyes. The story line thus far really has not been Europe's domination which has been the case in the past, it has been missed opportunities by the Americans. That being said in the very first rack Corey Deuel who has also been struggling in this event, missed a 9 ball that realistically any average player would have buried. It cannot be said enough how much pressure is on these players but that being said Deuel just looks a bit lost in these pressure packed situations.
He missed several more balls in the match and one 7 ball which he tried to cut so much he missed it and kicked it up table from behind. SVB did not play strong in this match either but that is the challenge in scotch doubles, to maintain your game when perhaps your teammate is not playing well. Deuel's final shot of this set really underlined the whole match for him as he finally pots a very difficult 7 ball then proceeds to scratch and leaves ball in hand with two balls left on the table. Europe won this match 5-2 but the score is deceiving because Darren Appleton who is usually a rock in these situations looked pedestrian today.
The rookie Sky Woodward was now in a tough position, with his team down 5-3 he really needed to come with it against Karl Boyes. As he has been doing the entire event Woodward came out strong winning the first rack and keeping a lead until 3-3. From there some incredible shot-making by Boyes and a few good rolls allowed him to win 5-3.
Now things were really getting desperate for the Americas being down 6-3 with one match left to play in the session. The general consensus was that the Americans needed to win this match otherwise their hopes in this race to 11 would be shattered. Shane VanBoening and Mike Dechaine who have been struggling were up against Darren Appleton and Nick van den Berg. Once again the Americans made errors early on and were down 2-0 but were able to tie the match at 2-2. It remained close for the rest of the match with the Europeans going up 4-3 however SVB and Dechaine were able to run out the rack to go 4-4.
In the final rack SVB was forced to play a very hard 2-9 carom with the cue ball being near the back rail and 2-9 from near center table. It was the only shot he had and it really was do or die for the match and the entire event. Finally SVB came through like we all know he can and buried this shot which I have dubbed "The shot that saved America." The crowd erupted with cheer when SVB made this shot and the entire team took a big sigh of relief. There is a video on our Facebook page which demonstrates the entire experience; I invite you all there to watch for yourself as I have never seen SVB or Dechaine celebrate like this. The Americans really need to get their best player going and this shot could have done exactly that.
As a Canadian I don't really have a stake in the outcome but being of German descendant I have cheered for Europe in the past. However with the domination that we have seen over the past several years as a pool fan I just want to see a competitive event. I will admit I do find myself rooting a bit more for the Americans but I have always favored the underdogs. Being the top professionals that they are I expect Deuel and Dechaine to put any bad memories of today behind them and for the Americans to come right at team Europe tomorrow. Play begins at 2:00 pm eastern, to watch the stream go to http://www.pool.livesport.tv/. Visit www.cuesportnation.com daily for a full recap of the day and if you would like to follow along while at work visit our Facebook page for updates of each match.
Monday, 7 December 2015
Mosconi Cup: Europe Wins First Session 3-2
By: Markus Noé
At 11:00 am local time live from the Tropicana Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada the 2015 edition of the Mosconi Cup got underway. The Americans struggles in this event recently have been well documented and it was important for them to get off to a good start.
The First event in each Mosconi Cup is the five man team match. This is played similar to scotch doubles with the exception that the full roster from both teams are in play. On paper with the addition of Mike Dechaine and Skyler Woodward, this American team looks to be the strongest it has been in sometime. They did not disappoint coming out on top with a thrilling 5-4 win in the first match.
Scotch doubles was to be the second match of the day and this featured Mike Dechaine/Corey Deuel vs Nick van den Berg/Karl Boyes. The Americans came out firing on all cylinders carrying the momentum from their earlier win and gained a 4-2 lead. Boyes looked to be particularly uncomfortable in this match early on but came back with some solid shot making in the end to allow the Europeans a chance to steal the match. While only needing one more rack to secure the 2-0 lead overall the Americans had ball in hand with 4 balls left. It was an uncharacteristic miss on the 7 ball by Dechaine that killed all the momentum they built and allowed the Europeans to come all the way back to win 5-4.
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| Niels Feijen |
When the scoreline was 4-2 for Europe, Bergman looked to be on a bit of a charge after winning the last rack then once again the 7 ball gave him trouble. He needed to use topspin to roll up for the 8 on the top rail and unfortunately the ball skidded on him resulting in a devastating miss. To add insult to injury Bergman did not exactly give away the rack as the cue ball rested near the corner pocket and the 7 landed midway up the side rail. Feijen had already used his one extension for this rack and with time running out on the shot clock he bent down and fired at the cross side. He hit the horn of the side pocket and it went directly to the opposite corner pocket with the cue ball landing perfectly for the run out.
The following scotch doubles match featured two Mosconi Cup rookies against one another, Sky Woodward and Albin Ouschan. Woodward played with Shane VanBoening while Ouschan played with Darren Appleton. The Americans got off to a flawless start going up 4-0 in this race to 5 alternate break format. The Europeans were able to win one rack but that was it, as it was tied a 2-2 after four matches. It should be noted that Woodward looked the most confident out of the American players today and was fantastic in his debut. At only 22 years old Woodward is the youngest player ever to make a Mosconi Cup team.
Darren Appleton vs Shane VanBoening was the final match of the day, with the winner providing their team the overnight lead. These two are no strangers to one another meeting up late in tournaments all the time, however Appleton has been dominate against the American # 1 in the Mosconi Cup over the years. I credit Europe's team captain Macus Chamat for a smart pick here knowing full well that American team captain Marc Wilson will send out SVB in the final match of the day and who better to counter that with than Appleton.
SVB made an incredible 1-9 bank combo in the first rack but was unlucky to scratch, leaving an open table. From there Appleton appeared to thrive while SVB appeared a bit rattled missing an 8 ball a few racks later. Europe went on to win 5-1 and lead 3-2 overall going into day 2. Play resumes tomorrow at 2:00 pm eastern, the stream can be found at http://www.pool.livesport.tv/
Check back at www.cuesportnation.com for daily updates.
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