World 14.1 Into the Final 32

Mike Dechaine taken by Alison Fischer  NYC GRIND

The great play at Steinway Billiards continues today during the 14.1 World Tournament. They are into the double elimination final 32 bracket. The races today go to 150 as they play down to 16. Some great matches have been played with more yet to come later on today so make sure to go to worldstraightpool.com to purchase the stream.

As I had to work this morning, the first match I was able to see was Earl Strickland vs Thorsten Hohmann. Strickland got out to a roaring start winning the lag then running 70 balls. This match had a few turning points. The first one being a bad miss by Strickland at 104-3. This gave the 3 time 14.1 champion a chance to get back into this match which he took full advantage going on a 62 ball run. Another error by Strickland allowed Hohmann to close the gap completely at 125 a piece.

Hohmann was the victim of some unlucky scratches off the pack during his break shots. This happened to him twice before and the third and final time in this match at 138-139 Strickland.  From here "The Pearl" ran out the 11 balls he needed and celebrated with a fist pump and various hip gyrations as only Earl can do

On the the adjacent table we were occasionally treated with the Mike "Fireball" Dechaine and Mika "The Iceman" Immonen match. Dechaine was over 100 at one time with the Iceman only at 2. Mika went on a run however Dechaine ran out after his first mistake winning 150-74..There will be more matches tonight in the 5:00 and 7:30 time slots so make sure to purchase tonights stream. This tournament ends on Saturday with a packaged deal available at worldstraightpool.com . Also even if you know little about this game the commentating is very informative and whenever these players start stringing racks together it really is something to see.

Billard Feminin Tour Leader Given 1 Year Ban

By: Markus Noé

Yesterday morning as I opened up my laptop to begin the days updates I expected to see several emails and Facebook messages being that this was the first day back from an action packed long weekend. What I did not expect was the series of messages I received informing me of the one year suspension given to Hanna Kwon and Suzanne Peters from the Billard Feminin Tour .

Edwidge Cavanna is the founder and tour director of this newly formed circuit that is recognized by the WPBA (Women's Professional Billiard Association). With this recognition, Cavanna is able to advertise that the winner of this tour gets a spot at the Regional Tour Championship where they have a chance to play their way on to the Professional Tour.

The suspension sent shock-waves through social media between players and supporters of the tour. As Kwon is not only a huge supporter of the Billard Feminin Tour, but its current run away points leader. Kwon won both of the first two tournaments held in Brossard(QC) and Stoney Creek (Ont), losing only one set so far this season.

Hanna Kwon selfie after her second win. 

What has added to peoples outrage and curiosity is that both Kwon and Peters were never told why they were being suspended. Instead they were sent an email outlining a section of the WPBA code of conduct adopted by the Billard Feminin Tour. Below is the section Cavanna used to enforce this ban.

"Engaging in a course of vexatious comment or conduct against a player or anyone working for the tour, that is known or ought reasonably to be known to be unwelcome. Bullying, intimidating or offensive jokes or innuendos, displaying or circulating offensive pictures or materials, or offensive or intimidating phone calls and social network.   The player will be ban to play in any tournament during the year."

Something else that has sparked debate is that the first mention of the WPBA Code of Conduct on the Billard Feminin website or Facebook page came on August 3. With the suspension being handed down two days later, there was no specific incident cited to Kwon or Peters for why they are in violation of this code. Cavanna was approached and informed of this story; when asked if she would give a specific example for the suspension Cavanna replied, "By respect to the players and the tour, I won't make any comments. Thank you."

Kwon was willing to comment on her suspension and diplomatically stated, "I am oblivious as to the reasons surrounding the ban from the ladies tour. I am saddened by the news of the ban with no offered explanation, but will continue to pursue my goal of participating in the WPBA, as well as promoting cue sports and making contributions to the sport when able. I am hopeful of the Billard Feminin du Canada  tour growth Quebec as there is a lack of events available for female amateur player."

Peters, who is one of the owners of "On the Snap Billiard" which recently hosted the tour, was clearly upset by the lack of information on her suspension. As a result she stated she will no longer be a participant or supporter of this tour regardless when her ban ends. Peters has also decided to cancel the next Billard Feminin Tour stop, which she was suppose to host October 25th. Cavanna is welcomed to add her comments to this issue at anytime. Her next event will be held at Dooly's Neufchatel on August 23.

Warren Kiamco Wins 3rd Annual Steinway Classic

Photp by Alison Fischer 

By: Markus Noé

After two days of jam packed action at Steinway Billiards in Astoria New York, a winner has emerged from this star studded field. The Steinway Classic, in the short three years since its debut on the tournaments scene, has become a must stop for touring professionals around North America. With Earl Strickland being the house pro, combined with  support of the owners of Steinway who are known for giving a lot back to the pool community, it is understandable why this 64 player is poised to to grow to 128 maybe as soon as next year.

Canadian John  Morra was in town to play this event and after suffering a loss early on Morra heated up. On the stream which I purchased for 25$(a steal for how much content we got) for the weekend I was able to catch Morra on the stream Saturday night. His first match I witnessed was against tournament favourite Shane Van Boening. SVB as he so often does, came out in a flurry going up 3-0.

Despite this lead by "Mr. 10 Ball", Morra battled back and tied it up at 3. From there they exchanged games back and forth the rest of the set with Morra winning a crowd pleaser 9-8. Immediately after this match Morra was up against "The Scorpion" Johnny Archer. Once again he was down early in this set 5-2. Morra gained control of the table as a result of an error from Archer and put on a clinic from there winning 9-5 and eliminating another favourite from contention.

"Mr. Smooth", as Morra is sometimes referred to, came back the next day to play Nelson Oliviera who he won against. Then next was house pro Earl Strickland; Morra also knocked him out of the tournament with a 9-3 scoreline. Mike Davis ended Morra's hopes next, beating him 9-6 and knocking him out in a tie for 8th place. Leaving with only $400 for his troubles is a disappointment, however his high level of play was far from disappointing.

Dennis Hatch and Warren Kiamco were the two who survived the field to reach the final. They met originally on Saturday on the t.v table with Kiamco blowing Hatch out 9-2. From there Hatch went on a tear on the B side, winning 10 matches in a row to earn a second shot at Kiamco. This match was a lot closer this time however once again Kiamco was too much for Hatch, winning 13-11 and becoming the 3rd Annual Steinway Classic champion.


 Payouts

1st: Warren Kiamco – $4,000
2nd: Dennis Hatch – $2,500
3rd: Shaun Wilkie – $1,400
4th: Jorge Rodriguez – $900
5th/6th: Evgeny Stalev, Mike Davis – $600
7th/8th: John Morra, Mike Dechaine – $400
9th-12th: Mika Immonen, Tom D’Alfonso, Earl Strickland, Justin Bergman – $250
13th-16th: Nelson Oliviera, Jonathan Smith, Zion Zvi, Jayson Shaw – $125

China (2) Captures World Team Championships

Team China  Photos Courtesy Tai Chengzhe/China Foto Press & the WPA.

By: Markus Noé

The home team of China (2) avenged the loss of their counterpart China (1) in the semi-final against the same Filipino team. Yesterday the Filipinos came out flying, dominating the entire session and sending China (1) home with an embarrassing 4-0 defeat.

However as a country, China takes pool very seriously and the team of China (2) had no intentions of letting the Philippines embarrass their program twice. The Philippines, who survived a nail biter in the quarter-finals, then ran away with their semi-final match and came out less than sharp in the final .

The first match of the day was 8 ball, which pitted former World 8 ball Champion Denis Orcollo (PHI) up against Liu Haitao(CHN). Orcollo was the obvious favourite in this match, however Haito gained an early two game lead after an uncharacteristic mistake by Orcollo, which he never relinquished winning 6-4. At the same time Biado and Corteza were up against young Chinese stars Dang and Wang. This was an 8 ball doubles match in which the Filipino's lost again 6-2.

In a perfect world for the Filipino team, they would have been the ones up 2-0 after the first two matches or at least 1-1 banking on a win from Orcollo. However their inability to execute in the key moments early on proved fatal for their Championship hopes as they went on to lose 4-2 overall to China (2).

Dang Ching Hu  Photos Courtesy Tai Chengzhe/China Foto Press & the WPA.

This comes as a major disappointment for Orcollo as he stated before this match that he was  really hoping his team could pull this win out. He wanted this for more than just the money this time, as he has seen a decline in sponsorship support for tournaments in the Philippines. In his mind a win here could have gotten his country the attention they needed to lure these sponsors back to pool.

For the Chinese, this is a prestigious moment as this marks the countries biggest international win for "American" style pool. For the China (2) squad of Liu Haitao, Dang Ching Hu, Wang Can, Fu Xiaofang, and Liu Shasha they have become instant hero's in the Chinese pool community for this accomplishment.

Finally I would like to congratulate team China (2) on their immense win and I look forward to next year when we will hopefully get to sweat out some team Canada matches.

Ducharme Wins W9BL Summer Shootout

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By Markus Noé

Last Sunday July 27th Bourbon Street Billiards  hosted the Winnipeg 9 Ball League(W9BL) Summer Shootout. It was a 30$ entry for league members and 50$ for non league members. The races were either to 4,5,6 depending on ones league handicap. For any players who were not a part of the league or an "unknown" they automatically raced to 6.

Winner Shannon Ducharme 

After 10 hours of play the eventual winner was well known local talent Shannon Ducharme. This win was especially rewarding for Ducharme as he recently had surgery to remove a cancerous tumour. Below is a video of the finals. If you are a local to Winnipeg and interested in joining this league or finding out more information about upcoming events contact Kevin Kornelsen .





Payouts
Shannon D-$250
Joey C-$175
Jim M-125
Les L-$100
Randy P-$75
Darcy G-$75

World Team Championship Semi-Final Results

Photos Courtesy Tai Chengzhe/China Foto Press & the WPA.

The World teams Championships is down to the final two teams. It will be China (2) vs Philippines in the final to see who gets to walk away as the World champions and of course the large $80,000 first place prize. Even though for most of this tournament there have been many blow outs, I found it surprising to find out these trends continued today in the final four.

The Filipino team of Denis Orcollo, Lee Vann Corteza, Carlo Biado and Rubilen Amit have been dominate this past week and continued this trend today. They blanked China (1) 4-0 in this 6 set format. The way that the Philippines won this match was not only shocking but makes them the favourties going in the final.

China (1) vs Philippines Match Results 
- Denis Orcollo vs. Wu JiaQing 8 Ball Singles, 6-3 (PHI)
- Biado and Corteza vs. Li He Wen and Chu Bing Chia 8 Ball doubles,  6-1 (PHI)
-Corteza vs. Li He Wen singles 9 ball, 8-3 (PHI)
-Rubilen Amit vs. Han Yu,8-3 (PHI)

China (2) vs Japan Match Results 

China (2) vs Japan did not fair the same way as this was a much tighter contested affair. This match ended up 4-2 in favour of China (2) and they will have a shot of redemption for Chinese hopes. For those that were are not aware, China was able to have two teams this year, as it is protocol for the host countries to get two teams in the WPA events. Both of these teams were funded by their government and not winning this event after having both teams in the final 4 would be a huge disappointment.

 Photos Courtesy Tai Chengzhe/China Foto Press & the WPA.

Hotshot Amateur Earns Legendary Status With $8K Break and Run

Jeremy Isard photo courtesy  of the  The Pool Scene

By: Erik Hjorleifson

Last week at Formac Billiards in Burlington Ontario, local  shooter Jeremy Isard to my knowledge won the biggest break and run pot in Canadian history and one of the largest ones in the history of similar competitions in North America. I can remember Jason Klatt informing me of a monster break and run pot in Wisconsin a few years back that was up to about $40,000. I never did hear who the eventual winner was. Personally I have won a few in my life, the biggest one being for about $700 but this definitely pales in comparison to the feat Jeremy accomplished last week running out a rack for $8000!!

I spoke to Isard and he gave some of the details and he informed me that this 9 ball break and run challenge had been running for over 3 years. One player is drawn per week and money is awarded on a per ball basis, if a player scratches then all his balls are void. Unfortunately this did happen to a player a few weeks back scratching on the 6 ball, a very expensive scratch to say the least. In this format the breaker does not have to make a ball on the break.

This was the key for Isard who is a highly competitive amateur player. He plays mostly in Ontario and has won numerous high level events on  404 K tour. Jeremy informed me that before the draw that night he was practicing a break where he was not concerned with making a ball, he focused more with the position he would get on the 1 ball. He noticed that although he usually breaks from the side rail he was able to control the 1 ball better by breaking from closer to the center of the table. After an hour of practicing just his break, he waited and hoped to be drawn for the chance at a huge payday.

He had never been drawn in the past but this day ended up being his lucky day. He stepped up to break and executed exactly what he has was practicing skillfully bringing the 1 ball back over the top corner just as he planned. He was off to the races and ended up being a little out of line on the 4 but made a beautiful carom off the 4 ball and got a shot on the 4. To finish the rack he moved the cue ball table length from the 8 and landed perfect on the 9 to take home the full $8000 prize.

Post by Jeremy Isard.

There is a certain kind of pressure that comes with these break and run challenges particularly when it is not per ball, there is only one option and that is to run out, there is no playing safe. Also there are no second chances its all or nothing. Jeremy would like to thank the directors of the C,P.A (Canadian Poolplayers Association) Mike Cumberland and Dennis MacDonald and we would like to extend a big congratulations to Isard on a job well done.