Germany 9-7 France

Germany are still on course for their second consecutive PartyPoker.net World Cup of Pool final as they labored to a 9-7 win over the French team of Francois Cottance and Stephan Cohen at Robinsons Place Mall in Manila.

China went into a 3-0 lead and the writing was on the wall but Indonesia fought hard and won the next three to level the match.

Ralf Souquet and Oliver Ortmann would have started as overwhelming favorites against France following highly impressive wins over Hong Kong and Russia but pool isn’t always like that as they struggled throughout as the dogged Frenchmen stayed with them.

In the end though they had a little bit too much going for them and they can now look forward to a semi-final match up against China tomorrow (Sunday). The Chinese looked superb in dismantling Indonesia and the Germans will have to pick up the pace if they are to succeed.

“It was a tough one. We win as a team and lose as a team. It’s doubles and I can’t win by myself and Oliver can’t win by himself – It’s a race to nine winner break but it felt like alternate break,” said Souquet.

“France were not the favorites against England but still won. I didn’t watch the match, just the last couple of racks but I heard from a lot of spectators that France v England was a really bad one but they still beat England who had two of the reigning World Team champions.

“It’s not as easy as it seems for outside spectators, once you’re in the arena and feel the heat. The French team might be a little under-estimated but Stephan Cohen won a 14.1 world title and Francois Cottance is very well known on the Euro Tour and a regular there.”

Ortmann added, “That was my worst match. I didn’t play that good and made a couple of mistakes. I’m glad I had a strong partner like Ralf and that’s why we won.”

“Part of being a team is getting confidence from the other player and that’s what helped this time. Ralf helped me a lot and that’s why we won. We knew France would play better than yesterday – they couldn’t play worse.

“We were the favorites but we know both players from the Euro Tour. Everyone expected us to win and it’s tough to be the favorites.”

Germany were always in the ascendancy and at 7-4 to the good, it looked to be a formality. However, Cohen and Cottance dug in, chipping away and at 7-8 down and breaking they looked to have a chance.

They didn’t take it though and when Cohen missed the pink 4 into the center pocket, it was game, set and match Germany.

Earlier, the Chinese duo of Fu Jianbo and Li Hewen looked the business in dismantling Ricky Yang and Mohammad Zulfikri of Indonesia and the 2007 champions will be hard to beat.

Both players have strong all round games plus plenty of bottle and both are capable of pulling out stunning shots when needed. Their biggest strength though is their ability to convert racks from the smallest of opportunities and the telepathic nature of their play.

Zulfikri and Yang are both quality players but they were on the rack from the off as the Chinese put them under severe pressure.

China went into a 3-0 lead and the writing was on the wall but Indonesia fought hard and won the next three to level the match. That was to be their last significant contribution to the contest as China came with all sorts of shots to win the next six games and seal victory.

“That was a great win for us and we are feeling good about our game,” said Fu.

With 32 teams representing 31 countries – home nation Philippines has two sides in the competition – the World Cup of Pool sees the gathering of some of the most decorated stars of the pool firmament. The event is taking place at Robinsons Place, in Ermita, Manila.

With a total purse of $250,000, the winning pair split $60,000 between them while first round losers are guaranteed $1,500 each. All the action will be carried live on Solar Sports in

The Philippines and other broadcasters across the region.

Souquet and Ortmann would have started as overwhelming favorites against France following highly impressive wins over Hong Kong and Russia but pool isn’t always like that as they struggled throughout as the dogged Frenchmen stayed with them.

Quarter Final Scores

China 9-3 Indonesia

Germany 9-7 France

Philippines B v Finland

Taiwan v Poland

Second Round Scores

Taiwan 8-2 Japan

Indonesia 8-6 Philippines A

Germany 8 -1 Russia

France 8-6 England

China 8-5 Italy

Finland 8-1 Holland

Poland 8-7 USA

Philippines B 8-4 Spain

First Round Scores

Russia 8–4 Canada

Indonesia 8-7 India

China 8–2 Belgium

Italy 8-6 Korea

Germany 8–4 Hong Kong

Philippines A 8-3 Thailand

England 8–7 Qatar

France 8-5 Australia

Japan 8–7 Slovenia

Poland 8-6 Malta

Taiwan 8–2 Malaysia

Philippines B 8-4 Croatia

Holland 8–3 Austria

Finland 8-2 Singapore

USA 8-7 Sweden

Spain 8-5 Vietnam

by Lea Andrews

It’s official: Either Donnie Mills or 2002 U.S. Open Champion Ralf Souquet—or both—will be racing to 13 in the finals of the 34th Annual U.S. Open 9-Ball Championships Saturday. The two men, who were part of the original field of 216 gathered at the Chesapeake Conference Center in Chesapeake, VA, October 18-24, will play for the hot seat tomorrow afternoon.

Mills, who had to get by England’s Karl Boyes to reach the final four, had to get by 1996 U.S. Open champion “Rocket” Rodney Morris to reach the hot seat match—no easy task, especially after being down 8-4. “In the past, I would’ve given up when I was down 8-4,” Mills later admitted, “but one thing I’ve learned about pool by playing a lot is that I knew there was a good chance the momentum would shift my way, so that’s why I just stayed confident and focused. And luckily the momentum did come my way.” Mills took six straight racks to get on the hill, though he made nothing on the break in rack 19. Morris played safe on the 1 ball and was out with ball in hand, but he broke dry in rack 20, leaving a difficult but do-able layout for Mills, who pocketed ball after ball down to the 9, where he found himself nearly frozen to the rail. “I was literally going to take my break right then,” said Mills, who feared a miscue. “But I went ahead and went with it.” His decision earned him the match 11-9.

Meanwhile, Souquet, who’d gotten by Chris Bartram 11-8, was battling it out with Filipino Lee Van Corteza, whom he’s played several times but has never, to the best of his recollection, defeated. Throughout the match, though, during which he stayed ahead 6-1, 7-3, 9-4, and 10-6, and which he won 11-7, that fact wasn’t on his mind. “Obviously you don’t want to think about it, but here and there, you have people reminding you,” he said pointedly, though good-naturedly. Souquet explained that against Corteza in the past, he hadn’t played very well, but today, “Finally, I played a bit better. I still made a few mistakes here and there, but so did he, and I think it was a deserved win.”

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Either Mills or 2002 U.S. Open Champion Souquet—or both—will be racing to 13 in the finals of the 34th Annual U.S. Open 9-Ball Championships Saturday.

Corteza moved on to “California Kim” Davenport, who’d earlier edged out his own friend and business partner, recent Hall of Famer Johnny Archer, by snapping the 9 ball in off the break at hill-hill. Backing it up with a hill-hill victory over Karl Boyes, Davenport seemed more than ready for another win. But Corteza was ready himself, and though Davenport won the lag and the first rack with a break and run, it was his only lead. Corteza got ahead 6-1, 9-3, and 10-5, and though Davenport made a fantastic jump on the 2 ball with a full cue in rack 16 and finished off the table to make it 10-6, his break in rack 17 was his last chance at the table. Nothing fell, and Corteza was out. “I feel very happy,” said Corteza about his win. “I played well.”

Also returning tomorrow is returning champion Mika Immonen, who took care of Morris 11-9 immediately following Morris’ loss to Mills. Immonen, who played seven matches between midnight last night and tonight, had been feeling the fatigue in the early evening and opted for a professional massage in the vendor area outside the arena. “It helped a little. I had to do something to get my legs loose,” said Immonen, who noted that the most important thing was that his arm was loose. And it was. And how does it feel to reach the final day, to defend the crown? “Unbelievable,” he said.

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

Las Vegas, NV – Dragon Promotions is pleased to announce the 9th Annual Predator International 10-Ball Championship to be held at the Riviera Hotel & Casino on May 11-16, 2009. The BCA Pool League will play host to the event this year as the pro event will take place in conjunction with the BCAPL National 8-Ball Championships. This is the second straight year the event will be hosted by the BCAPL in Las Vegas and this year DP will be expanding the field from 96 players to 112.

“Predator Group and Dragon Promotions have been building this event up for years and we are really pleased at the level it has reached thus far. The players from around the world love this event and it’s become one of the premier titles in the world to win. The BCAPL has also been an excellent host and partner in the event, and we look forward to even bigger and better things in the future”, says Karim Belhaj, CEO of Predator Group.

Drago, who hails from Malta, captured the Predator International 10-Ball Championship title in 2008.

112 players from around the world will converge once again in Predator Cues premiere event. Countries represented will include Germany, India, Sweden, England, Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Philippines, Australia, Finland, Hong Kong, Norway, Pakistan, Mexico, Canada, Puerto Rico, Aruba, Curacao, Venezuela, Spain, Portugal, Russia, Austria, Hungary, Netherlands, Italy, Malta, and the USA. Last year’s event had a full 96 players with more than two thirds of the field from foreign lands with 28 countries represented.

“We’ve had such a big turnout the past two years with the ninety six player field filling up so quickly. We have had fifty to sixty players waiting on the alternate list and this year has been no different. We also wanted to include more women in the field this year, so these factors led us to expand to 112 players. If we had the room and time we would do more, but that’s something to think about for the future”, said Cindy Lee, CEO of Dragon Promotions.

Defending Champion Tony Drago of Malta will return to retain his title this time against a field stacked with world class champions. This year’s awesome line up include Dennis Orcullo (PHI), Johnny Archer (USA), Daryl Peach (ENG) , Mika Immonen (FIN), Ralf Souquet (GER), Rodney Morris (USA), Niels Feijen (NED), Raj Hundal (IND),Tony Robles (USA), Imran Majid (PAK), Hayato Hijikata (JPN), Mike Davis (USA), Manuel Gama (POR), Charlie Williams (USA), John Morra (CAN), Shane Van Boening and many more!

“The BCAPL is committed to our members and we want to put on the greatest pool show on Earth,” says Mark Griffin, CEO of the BCA Pool League. “Each year we have brought the best players in the world and the nation’s best amateurs under one roof, and that’s a winning combination that we believe will never change.”

Other top sponsors include Ozone Billiards, Diamond Billiard Products, and Simonis Cloth.

Fans can purchase tickets online at www.dragonpromotions.com for advances sales. There are only 40 VIP seats available. Any remaining tickets can be purchased on site at the tickets sales counter near the pro arena.

Predator Group, an international billiards industry leader, is focused on bringing constant innovation and game-improving equipment to billiards players worldwide. Headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida, USA, Predator Group’s core brands include Predator Cues – high-end (professional level) cues with revolutionary technology to enhance performance, Poison Billiards – recreational cues with cutting-edge designs and Predator engineering for best-in-class playability, and Uni-Loc® – precision billiards equipment manufacturer. For more information regarding Predator Group’s products, visit www.predatorgroup.com.

Dragon Promotions is one of the leading producers of billiard programming in the world today. Dragon produces over 40 events a year airing on networks in the Philippines, USA, Korea, India, and Europe such as ESPN, MBC ESPN, XTM, XPORTS, ABS-CBN,ESPN STAR, and Euro Sport. Events include The Women’s World 10-Ball Championship, The World 14.1 Championship, The Predator International 10-Ball Championship, King & Queen of Carom, Empress Cup, Pro Pool Schools, Women’s Trickshot Challenge, World Junior 10-Ball Championships, Korea vs USA, and many more. Dragon also manages some of the world’s best players including Mika Immonen, Jeanette Lee, Shanelle Loraine, Mike Davis, Yu Ram Cha, Raj Hundal, , Rodney Morris, Charlie Williams, and many more.
Visit www.dragonpromotions.com or www.dragonpromotions.co.kr
The BCA Pool League started in 1978 and today has nearly 60,000 members sanctioned through 444 leagues in 45 states and 6 foreign countries. The BCA National 8-Ball Championships brings together over 7,000 pool players on 240 Diamond Smart Tables for the ultimate test in amateur competition. With a total of 25 amateur and 3 pro events, every pool player in the world has a place to play during 9 days in May at the Riviera. www.playbca.com

But the whole point is that when you are focused you don’t notice anything going on around you. You don’t notice the audience, the cameraman, even the noise or lack of it! When you are not focused on the game, you notice everything, and it bothers you. What you really need to work on is a way to block out any outside interference and focus only on you. Some players do this by having a good routine that keeps themoccupied, and some go through affirmations so that no negative thoughts get inside their minds.

I personally, along with other snooker players, have worked on creating a strong routine from the moment I step up to the table throughout the whole delivery of the stroke and the finish. I keep mentioning this in my articles for many different questions because it always comes back down to the fundamentals. They are the foundation for a solid game. If you have a good routine, then your confidence grows along with your focus. Good luck.

Six women will join the predominantly male 96 player invited field at the Predator World 10-Ball Championship May 23-27,2007 in Jacksonville, FL. Included in this female team are WPBA pros Gerda Hofstatter of Austria, Kim Shaw of England, and Anna Kostanian of New Mexico. Three junior talents will also join the Big Boys with Yu Ram Cha and Bo Ram Cha of Korea and Amalia Matas of Spain.

It is rare for women to be included in major men’s pro events and especially world title events and here’s what some of the ladies had to say of the opportunity.

I’ve been playing with Predator for many years now and I’m very happy to be invited by them to participate against the world’s best players. I know I can beat any of the men at any given time so I hope they’re ready! warned the soft spoken Austrain Gerda Hofstatter, currently ranked #9 on the Womens Pro Tour.

I am excited to be able to play in the men’s World Championship. It will be a great challenge and I will practice and try very hard. said 19 year old Yu Ram Cha of Korea, currently #1 Woman’s Player in Korea.

Events will start off at 7pm with a Challenge the Pro Night benefitting the Boys and Girls Club of Jacksonville, FL. Fans can come watch for free and play the pros for a donation to the charity.

For more info on event and tickets call Bankshot Billiards at 1-904.998.2100.