Canadians Shocked as W.P.A Announces China will Host 2016 World 8 Ball Championships

By: Markus Noé

Canadian pool players and fans alike had to swallow a tough pill today as it has been announced that the World 8 Ball Championships have been granted to China. Just over a month ago the story broke that the World 8 Ball would be played at the Corner Bank pool hall in Toronto, Ontario. This was exciting news for North American players as they usually have to take a plane to the other side of the world to compete in a World Championship. There has not been a world title held on this continent since the 1990's and this was a real opportunity to grow the game here.

The word is that the China association after hearing about the Toronto announcement just simply outbid them. Once again we get to see how poorly pool is run even at the highest level, when saying that I mean the World Pool-Association. There has not been a World 8 Ball Championship in the last 4-5 years as pool has seen one if its biggest downturns in the last century. In Toronto a group came together stepped up, and put in the $275,000 needed for the prize fund and the W.P.A announced the first World 8 Ball in years, a good thing right?

This was announced as a firm bid but China countered with a long term deal and supposedly for the best interest of the sport the Toronto organizers stepped aside. The W.P.A like many associations is just a hollow organization who's sole ability is to give a rubber stamp sanction so you can call your promotion a World Championship. They do not organize any event, they sit back and wait for someone to come up with the minimum prize fund and a venue and then they take their cut of "administration fee's". This is the reason that we have had so much trouble getting the World 8 and 10 Ball played over the last decade. No one is putting up the money and the W.P.A is not doing anything to raise it so it simply does not happen.

This is what made the Toronto announcement so exciting. Someone is stepping up and doing a good thing for pool. You could say China is doing the same but why could they not wait until next year? Especially if there has not been a World 8 Ball in years. This is how it breaks down, China has guaranteed $300,000 prize pool for this years men's and women's events and have committed to invest $3,000,000 over the next 5 years. Overall this would be good news but it really speaks volumes to how the W.P.A is run, just based on integrity they should have postponed this announcement until next year. Let Canada enjoy a year of the World Championships and build the sport here then they can have it for the next 5 years that would have been perfectly acceptable.

The other thing that really burns for Canadian pool players is the timeline of this cancellation. I know many players personally who have signed up for the Canadian Championships next week in Québec City just so they have a shot to qualify for the World 8 Ball in Toronto. The commitment this takes financially and in terms of being away from work and family is significant and for this news to come out a week before the Canadians kick off is ridiculous. This did not happen overnight, the organizers must have had some advanced noticed and and should have shared this. Once again before a ball has been hit players going into the Canadian Championships players can only shake their head in disbelief.

 For now Canadians and all North American players just have to suck up another disappointment as many were looking forward to having a World Championship in their backyard. In the end hopefully this does not mean that people will cancel their plans to play in the Canadian Championships. The C.B.S.A is struggling and could really use the boost in participation which was happening this year with the new location and the announcement of the World 8 Ball.

 When a World Association in any sport announces a World Championship and location that's where it should be, this would never happen in any other sport. They are reporting this as the best move for pool which financially I guess could be argued for the players. For the W.P.A the reality is they are going to make more in fee's and hopefully strengthen the W.P.A. However I would compare this to a government program, sometimes more money does not mean the service will be better. As a Canadian pool fan I am severely disappointed in how this was handled and I think by making one announcement then changing their minds when a "better deal" comes through shows a lack of integrity.

Fortunately for Canadian pool fans their are rumors of another big event coming to Toronto around August nothing has been secured yet, so I will let you all speculate. Overall this does look like a good deal especially for the Women's side who get left out of a lot. But for myself and many others a bad taste has once again been left in our mouths.

www.cuesportnation.com 

Gold Crown Billiards: Deuel Wins 32 Player 9 Ball Invitational

Runner up Shawn Putnam and winner Corey Deuel

By: Erik Hjorleifson

This past weekend at Gold Crown Billiards in Erie, Pennsylvania the annual Tri-State open took place. Gold Crown billiards is a very impressive two level complex that contains a nice upscale restaurant at street level and a 20 table pool hall on the lower level. Although the pool room area is underground there is ground level windows that allow natural light into the playing area. I must say that this was one of the nicest pool rooms I have ever been in. You can tell that owner Paul Schofield takes a lot of pride in his business , which has been in operation for 37 years. The Gold crown 3 tables were newly clothed and the balls seemed brand new for this 32 player invitational.

The format for this weekend is something that is rarely seen. Players would be eliminated in a quadruple elimination format until 8 players remained. From their it turned into single knockout bracket to determine the winner. Two players would advance undefeated, two with one loss, two with two losses and two with 3 losses. Players were seeded in the single elimination according to their performance in the quadruple elimination portion. For example players with no losses were drawn into players with 3 losses. In addition the tournament featured "No conflict" rules for racking and breaking. Breakers were not required to pocket a ball on the break, the goal on the break is to play position on the one and not have to worry about manipulating the rack to make a ball. Opponents also place the balls randomly in the rack and then the breaker racks their own balls. Might sound a little quirky but I can assure you that compared to the alternative traditional rules this is in my opinion a great way to play. The spirit of the rules is to have no conflict over racking and breaking and from what I saw there was none and for all the top players in the room this was nice to see.

The player auction drew a nice total of approximately $10 000, last years winner Dennis Hatch went off in the first blind, Mike Dechaine was second and John Morra third. Other notable players in the field included Corey Deuel, Billy Thorpe, Danny Smith, Shawn Putnam and Shane Winters. Gold Crown Billiards also generously added $5000 to the prize fund with the help of local sponsors. Play began Friday night and continued until about 6 pm on Saturday here are some of the notable matches fro the quadruple elimination portion.

Dennis Hatch over Corey Deuel

Mario Morra over Shawn Putnam

Shawn Putnam over Mike Dechaine

Erik Hjorleifson over Billy Thorpe

John Morra over Mario Morra

Mike Dechaine over Billy Thorpe

Here is the bracket for the final 8 re-draw

The key in this format was the break especially considering that the pockets were fairly generous. As expected Deuel excelled at this employing a cut break playing the 1 ball back down to the same corner he was breaking from. I chose to use the same break as did Thorpe, Putnam and Hatch. John Morra chose to hit the break square from the box also bringing the one back to the top corner pocket on the same track it takes playing ten ball, Danny Smith also used this strategy and Dechaine used a bit of both.

Match scores from the single elimination:

Quarter finals

Thorpe 8 Hjorleifson 7

Morra 8 Smith 7

Putnam 8 Dechaine 5

Deuel 8 Hatch 5

Semi Finals

Deuel 8 Morra 5

Putnam 8 Thorpe 5

Finals

Deuel 8 Putnam 6

Overall it was interesting to play in a tournament that didn't have a traditional format and I will definitely be back and plan to hopefully run some tournaments in the Toronto area with the same format. The main advantages of the quadruple elimination is that if you lose once it does not devastate you for the rest of the tournament, it also keeps players playing throughout the weekend and those entering to gain experience are able to get in a lot of play. It should also be mentioned that owner Paul Schofield has been running these tournaments for years and has perfected the scheduling and placement of players in the brackets.

Prize money

1st Corey Deuel $2500

2nd Shawn Putnam $1700

3rd/4th Billy Thorpe $1000

               John Morra

5th/8th Erik Hjorleifson $500

               Mike Dechaine

               Dennis Hatch

               Danny Smith

Player Auction

1st $4000

2nd $3000

3rd/4th 1400

Founder of the U.S Open Barry Behrman Passes Away.

Photo of Barry Behrman photo taken from Q-Master Billiards Facebook Page. 

By: Markus Noé

The pool world is reeling today as it lost one of its biggest figures over the past 40 years. Barry Behrman founder of the U.S Open 9 Ball Championship and owner of Q-Master Billiards, who turned 70 on April 1st has passed away today after a short battle with MRSA-based pneumonia, which caused septic shock. When it comes to prestige the U.S Open ranks as the second most important title to add for any Hall of Fame hopeful right after a World Championship.

Late last October Behrman celebrated the 40th anniversary of this coveted event. To think when it originated it was a 15 player invitational and has now grown into a 128 player field of the best players in the world. Behrman will be remembered as a very passionate promoter for pool, who would often take the mic during the U.S Open Championships to give various heartfelt speeches where he exuded energy and excitement for the sport.

Behrman was not without controversy as over the past few years the U.S Open was experiencing a bit of a decline. The prize fund was shrinking, the venues were not up to par and at times players were being paid out weeks after the tournament. When it is all said and done I think Behrman has left a gem for the world of 9 Ball with this event and I believe his legacy is intact.

From years of watching him on television and the Accu-Stats stream you can tell this man let his emotions hang on his sleeve. If he had a fault it was that he loved the sport of pool and its top players too much and perhaps over extended himself at times. It should be noted there has been no issues with payouts recently and this year with a full field, first prize is guaranteed to be $40,000 once again. Myself and Erik Hjorleifson would like to extend our condolences to the the Behrman family at this difficult time.

www.cuesportnation.com 

 

Morra Wins Diamond Open 10 Ball Pro Players Championship

Winner John Morra with girlfriend Kaitlin Bick. Photo credit: Erik D. Lynch

By: Markus Noé

April 14-17 the Greater Philadelphia Expo Center in Oaks, Pennsylvania hosted the 2016 Super Billiard Expo. This event is one to circle on the calendar for many die hard pool fans. It boasts several professional tournaments. Which are a Men's Pro 10 Ball, 1 Pocket and a Women's Professional 9 Ball. There is also an Open Amateur event to play which usually has around 1000 players. and there is the TAP leagues playing out their tournaments. All this and I  haven't even mentioned the dozens of billiard related exhibitors in attendance and the all night action pit where players can match up for a friendly wager.

I took a stab at the amateur event against Mike. Z, his last name is too difficult for me to even try to spell properly. But he plays out of Mike Dechaine's home room Snookers in Rhode Island. The format for this event was races to 5 alternate break best 2 out of 3 sets. We played three close sets with Mike edging me out for the win. Later on we matched up in the action pit for cheap sets with me edging him out by 1 set. In the end I made a new friend, something that the Expo is great for, as there are literally thousands of die hard pool junkies roaming around the convention center.

With so much going on I really did not have much time to play, in fact most of my focus was on the Pro 10 Ball event. Many of my personal favourite players such as Earl Strickland, John Morra, Mika Immonen, Shane VanBoening and Rodney Morris to name a few were all in attendance.
The first match I was present for was Morra vs Lee Brett. Some of you may remember Brett as he was the referee in the short lived Bonus Ball league. Morra won this match 10-4 and then met up with Donny Mills in the next round. In what I think would be classified as an upset Mills walked away with a 10-7 win.

I believe this tournament was seeded so for the first day of action most of the favourites did not meet up. Friday evening is when the tournament atmosphere kicked up a notch as there were some big matches on the winners side. I caught the end of the Dechaine/Deuel match which had a lot of peoples attention. When it comes to big breaks and run out power Dechaine is well known and if he gets rolling it is hard to keep up with him. Deuel, I am assuming, in his mind employed a breaking tactic that would give him an edge. In most tournaments there is a rule against soft breaking, this tournament did not employ this rule so Deuel was soft breaking often not making a ball and leaving a significant cluster. This seemed to play on Dechaine who was visibly disgusted with this tactic. In the end Deuel won 10-9 and moved on to play Shane VanBoening.

Deuel continued this tactic in his next set and had success early on leading 3-1. However a little bit of controversy arose, as in one break in particular it was unclear if at least 4 balls hit the rail for a legal break. So from that point on the tournament director had me recording each of his breaks and if there was a dispute I had a video review ready. There was one rack which was deemed a foul because of my recording and I must admit it was a bit nerve racking to be involved like that however Deuel just laughed it off with a wry smile. The crazy thing with this break is that the 8, 9 and 10 ball would remain frozen and needed to be broken out in each rack. However there was a pattern to the run out that SVB figured out and midway through the set he waited for the 7 ball which was always near the pack and used that to break them open and run out. In the end SVB sent him to the losers side 10-6 where Hohmann eliminated him. The video of the break is on the Cue Sport Nation Facebook Page and I will be uploading it to our YouTube page for easier access.

Next for SVB was Strickland who was having a good showing beating Michael Wong, Thorsten Hohmann, Vilmos Foldes and Sylvain Grenier. The final 8 session in both the men's and women's events were played simultaneously. Most players took issue with the format being single elimination with no redraw. Single elimination late in a tournament is a common tactic to speed tournaments up however with no redraw the players who were playing the best and favourites to win the event had to face in the final 4 winners side. Strickland who played well all week, ended up losing to SVB. I know I felt a little deprived myself being a Strickland fan as did others. SVB matched up with Alex Pagulayan in what would usually be the winners side final and eliminated him in the 3/4 place. It should be noted while the men were starting their 8th place matches the women banded together and demanded a redraw, which they did end up getting.

While all this was happening Morra was charging through the losers side. He was playing poor for his standards and admitted this to me early on in the tournament. Even though he was winning on the losers side it was not up to his own standards. This continued in his match Friday night against Johnny Archer however he was able to find a way to win 10-9.  Things turned around for him against the very dangerous Billy Thorpe as it was like looking a different player on Saturday. He was breaking much better controlling the rack and took full advantage of his opportunities winning 10-2. Next up was the reigning Turning Stone Classic Champion Mika Immonen who he dispatched.

Going into Sunday Morra found himself in a position to keep his run going against a very dangerous Dechaine. He was breaking well and playing at a high level and won this match 13-8. Next up was Hohmann who he also beat by the same scoreline I believe. By winning the losers side of the bracket Morra earned himself a shot at SVB the 4 -time 10 ball Players Champion in the finals, who has been a nemesis of sorts in big spots as of late. SVB got off to the better start going up 3-1 then Morra tied it up at 3-3. The turning point in this match was after exchanging racks to 5-5. Morra capitalized on some dry breaks from SVB and went ahead 8-5. From here Morra showed great composure and went up 12-9. SVB secured his 10th rack and it felt like he was starting to come on but he missed a difficult 2 ball and gave Morra the opening he needed. He ran out the rack and secured his first major title since 2012 which was the 9 Ball Banks at the Derby City Classic. It was really an emotional win for Morra who has been on the scene so long that at 26 he is a seasoned veteran.

In the post match interview he was very candid about what it is like to be a pool player. He even admitted he wanted to quit pool on several occasions because of how result based this sport is. If you don't win you basically don't eat, which is a type of pressure that most athletes do not have to endure.  Imagine the 5th ranked player in the world in golf  worried about not finishing in top 4 in one the majors for fear of not profiting enough to cover basic expenses. The interview was done by Upstate Al and I am sure it will be released at some point.

I wanted to thank Allen Hopkins for the media pass this week and for allowing me everything to cover this event. Overall I would declare the entire event  a success especially considering how many tournaments that take place and the sheer numbers of people that are roaming around. As a fan the Pro arena seating was uncomfortable; it was metal roll-in benches something you would see at a high school football game and very tough on ones rear end. The lighting above the tables was too small for the 9 ft tables and the fluorescent lights hanging above made shadows on the table. All things that can be easily fixed and which would make for an even better event next year. Thank you to all who followed along here and on our Facebook page. I have noticed a few of our videos have been getting shared a lot so I will post the most popular ones on our YouTube page for easier access.

Below are the winners of the 1 Pocket and the Women's event, congratulations to Karen Corr and Darren Appleton. If this tournament taught me anything, it is that I am severely understaffed. I could easily use two or three more people updating. I did make some good contacts and it looks like through sponsorship I will be able to attend more events this year, Hopefully others' in the billiard industry catch on to the type of promotion Cue Sport Nation can bring to pool and we can continue to grow and feed pool fans around the world the information they crave. .

Women's 9 Ball Champion Karen Corr, Men's 10 Ball Champion John Morra, 1 Pocket Champion Darren Appleton. Photo Credit: Erik D.Lynch

10 Ball Pay Outs

John Morra $10,000

Shane VanBoening $5,000

Alex Pagulayan/Thorsten Hohmann $3200

Mike Dechaine/Tommy Kennedy/Warren Kiamco/Earl Strickland $2600

Mika Immonen, Eddie Abraham,Corey Deuel, Vilmos Foldes

Mike Davis, Billy Thorpe, Shauwn Wilkie,Donny Mills,$1700

www.cuesportnation.com 

Super Billiard Expo Day Two Update

Here is a quick video getting you up to date on the mens pro event. Coverage continuous tomorrow.

Super Billiard Expo:French Canadians Making Their Presence Felt

Francis Crevier

By: Markus Noé

The world famous Super Billiard Expo located just outside of Philadelphlia  in Oaks, PA kicked off today. For those unfamiliar with this event it is hosted by Allen Hopkins and it features dozens of exhibitors, thousands of amateur players and also a 64 player pro event with a $10,000 first prize.

Today in the pro tournament the French Canadians in the field made a stir. Most notably Francis Crevier who hails out of Quebec City got by two close matches. First beating Raj Hundal then following that up beating the young gun Sky Woodward 10-9. Sylvain Grenier another top pro from Québec also had an impressive day winning his first match then beating Rodney Morris 10-9 and will play Earl Strickland next. Martin Daigle did not have as much luck losing to Corey Deuel and Lee Brett.

John Morra won his first match against Brett 10-4 then lost to Donnie Mills 10-8, he will play another surprising early loser Johnny Archer at 2:00 PM. As for favourites to win this tournament, there were not too many more upsets to report today. The third round of the winners side bracket will start at 11:30 am. The stream can be purchased at http://www.superbilliardsexpo.com/streaming.html

Some of the first matches of the day will be Mike Dechaine vs Corey Deuel, Shane VanBoening vs Shauwn Wilkie, Earl Strickland vs Sylvain Grenier. For updates on matches and brackets please visit Cue Sport Nation Facebook Page. There is no Wifi on location so I will be updating the best I can throughout the day.

The Rocket Wins 5th Andy Cloth Wyoming Open

The Rocket Wins 5th Andy Cloth Wyoming Open Title Saratoga, Wyoming at the Platte Valley Community Center View this email in your browser

The Rocket Wins 5th Andy Cloth Wyoming Open Title    The pros and amateurs are treated well like VIPs in Saratoga. Above were the drink specials of the town courtesy of Bella's Bistro. Below pic: Rodney Morris looking dapper on the new Rasson Table as he once again dominates in WYoming! Saratoga, Wyoming- Hawaiian born Rodney Morris showed his dominance in Wyoming once more as he claimed another WY title winning the Masters 10-Ball division once again defeating fellow US Open champion Corey Deuel in the finals. The full field of 32 pro class and semi-pro class players competed in a single elimination format which were to be the first of 3 pro open events. In it's 9th straight year, the 2016 AndyClothUSA.com Wyoming Open is a 3 day Rocky Mountain pool extravaganza taking place on April 1-3, 2016.  The event is sponsored by widely popular Andy Cloth with local partners include Duke's Bar & Grill, the Hotel Wolf & Restaurant, and the Riviera Lodge with all events coordinated by Shively Hardware. In addition, the livestream table will be Rasson Billiards premiere in the Rocky Mountains. Deuel looked hot as he defeated USA #1 Shane Van Boening en route to the finals and also defeated Marc Vidal, who in turn eliminated India's Raj Hundal. Morris also had a tough road having to defeat 4x World Champion Johnny Archer. In the end, Morris was too strong for Deuel and Corey had to settle for 2nd place. Deuel also finished runner-up in 2 events at last year's Wyoming Open. There are still 2 pro events left in the Saratoga and 8-Ball Masters. "It's great to see all the fields including the Master's divisions all filled. I'm most pleased with the Expert division that we started 2 years ago doubling in size now. That division didn't exist before, but now we created a successful model for the players that are very advanced, but not yet ready for the pros and semi-pros", said Mayor Ed Glode who has organized the event for 9 straight years.  ​ ​    The Wyoming Open is organized and promoted by Shively Hardware & Dragon Promotions. Order Andy Cloth today by calling 307-710-1447   and Like Andy at www.facebook.com/andypoolcloth   . Official Products used during the Wyoming Open For more info and to follow the WY Open goto www.facebook.com/wyomingopen visit www.wyomingopen.com The Wyoming Open is the only event in the Rocky Mountains where fans and players in the region can rub shoulders with the biggest stars of the game Past champions of the event include some stellar names. Visit wyomingopen.com to see the complete list.   The event is majorly supported by the town's own businesses which include : Hotel Wolf, Duke's Bar & Grill, Riviera Lodge, Red Sage Spa, Pik Ranch, Carbon County, Bella's Bistro, Lollypops, and Shively Hardware. For more info or to play in the Wyoming Open contact wyomingopen@gmail.com or call 307-329-8924 Andy Cloth was founded in 1973 and has become one of the premier professional playing cloths in the world today. AndyCloth USA is based in Saratoga, Wyoming and has quickly impressed critics and professional players worldwide. Andy Cloth is used exclusively in major international events such as The Queens Cup, Women’s World 9-Ball Championship, USA’s 103 year old World Tournament of 14.1 , The China Open,The BeijingOpen,  the International 10-Ball Championships in Philippines, the Wyoming Open, the High Desert Shootout, the Women’s International Pool Championship, and many more. Andy Pro Tour Cloth is specially designed for the American pool player market. It is engineered for weather conditions, longevity, ball reaction, and speed. It is the most superior professional performance playing surface on Earth. Visit www.andyclothusa.com