Jayson Shaw Breaks Through At Turning Stone

File Photo from Classique Du Applache by Mario Paradis

By: Markus Noé

The Turning Stone Classic had a triumphant return after taking a year off due to renovations. It was a full field as always, the only difference was with the World Cup of Pool a few days away some of the top players chose to sit this one out.  However with names like Boening, Stickland, See, Immonen , Archer and Dechaine this tournament was anything but a cake walk.

After an early loss to Alain Parent from St.Hubert Quebec, Shaw caught fire and crushed the losers side bracket . The 26 year old Scotland native  won 9 matches in a row before he met up with Mika Immonen in the final.

Alain Parent

Shaw has been a noticeable talent since his arrival on the scene  around 4 years ago. He has shown signs of brilliance with a 3rd place finish in the 2013 U.S. Open along with some strong finishes in tournaments filled with good players.

Mika Immonen

Shaw came out to an early lead in the final and just kept the ball rolling, easily winning his first major  9 ball title 13-6. This was also a break out tournament of sorts for Mika Immonen who played in his first major final since he won the 2013 Ultimate 10 ball championships.

Rodney Morris

 Earlier in the day Immonen defeated Earl Strickland 9-6 and then Rodney Morris in the winners side final 9-7. On the losers side Thorsten Hohmann won his first match against Archer then lost a close match to Dechaine 9-7. On the other side of the losers bracket Shaw started his run back to final with wins over Ernesto Dominguez, Earl Strickland and finally Dechaine before beating Rodney Morris in the losers side final. 

It is a real pleasure to see a player like Shaw snap off a big win like this. It is a testament to the youthful talent in the sport. Shaw has been one of the most entertaining players to watch these past few years because of his charisma around the table, and simply put his pace of play and shot making ability is unworldly. As this sport continuous to break back through to the mainstream, players such as Shaw will likely be a big part of that.