by InsidePOOL Staff

In the featured match of the winners’ bracket in the evening rounds of the Turning Stone Classic XVIII, Dennis Hatch defeated Darren Appleton in a double-hill match to send the Brit to the one-loss side of the chart.

Hatch, who despite dominating the Joss Northeast 9-Ball Tour is still chasing the elusive Turning Stone title, was tied with the reigning U.S. Open champion at 4-all and then at 8-all when things went Hatch’s way, and he took the match 9-8. Appleton now must play at noon in the brutal bracket, while Hatch’s next opponent will be Mike “The Fireball” Dechaine, who earlier bested Jennifer Barretta 9-4.

In the featured match of the winners’ bracket in the evening rounds of the Turning Stone Classic XVIII, Hatch defeated Appleton in a double-hill match to send the Brit to the one-loss side of the chart.

Earl Strickland dealt a shocking 9-0 loss to Johnny Archer in the second round of the winners’ side matches and then also sent Mike Davis to the west side 9-4. Archer recovered to hand Jerry Crowe a donut in the following round. Shane Winters, who earlier defeated Dan Heidrich 9-3, will face off with Strickland in the next round.

View the Turning Stone tournament brackets (updated continuously)

The other remaining lady, former world junior champion Brittany Bryant, suffered her first loss against Stevie Moore 9-4. Bryant went west to face off against the winner between Oscar Dominguez and Jim Sinclair, while Moore has to play former Turning Stone champion Ralf Souquet, who just bested Ruben Bautista 9-5.

Elimination rounds begin in earnest Saturday. Visit InsidePOOL for the latest news in the sport of billiards and pool.

Top Five set for Vegas Show-down

With the 2011 PartyPoker.net Mosconi Cup set to kick off at 11am on Thursday 8th December, the team selected to represent America at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas will be Shane Van Boening, Shawn Putnam, Mike Dechaine, Johnny Archer and Rodney Morris.

These five have finished at the top of Matchroom Sports ranking system that comprised ten events across the USA over a 12 month period. With a total of 26 appearances in the transatlantic tussle between them, there is plenty of experience on hand, with Mike Dechaine being the sole debutant.

Following a career best finish at the weekend’s US Open in Chesapeake, Shawn Putnam, who was a member of the winning side in 2005, crashed the top three to guarantee an automatic spot. He ultimately displaced Johnny Archer, but “the Scorpion” and Rodney Morris garnered sufficiently high finishes at the Open to maintain their top five positions and hold off Dennis Hatch, who narrowly missed out.

With the top three in the ranking assured their spots, Matchroom Sport decided to go with the top five after an epic year-long battle among the top players in the USA, and named Morris and Archer as the “wild cards”. The team will now attempt to win back pool’s most prestigious team trophy after defeat in London last December.

The US Mosconi Cup Ranking consisted of 10 events throughout the United States, and culminated in the US Open. Points were allocated as per the BCA Points List and each event was weighted depending on total purse, size of field and number of top-ranked players competing.

Only players finishing in the last 32 of each event were allocated points and players were allowed to drop their worst finish of the ten event series. At the conclusion, after the 2011 US Open, the top three players were automatically granted entry to the Mosconi Cup side.

The 2011 PartyPoker.net Mosconi Cup set to kick off at 11am on Thursday 8th December, the team selected to represent America at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas will be Van Boening, Putnam, Dechaine, Archer and Morris.

The Final Ranking

1. Shane Van Boening – 673

2. Shawn Putnam – 591.5

3. Mike Dechaine – 541.5

4. Johnny Archer – 520.5

5. Rodney Morris – 479.5

6. Dennis Hatch – 469

7. Corey Deuel – 406.5

8. Charlie Williams – 379

9. Mike Davis – 368.5

10. Earl Strickland – 367

11. Hunter Lombardo – 354.5

12. Stevie Moore – 315.5

13. Oscar Dominguez – 297.5

14.Jeremy Sossei – 250.5

15 Robb Saez – 239

Tickets for the Mosconi Cup are priced at $35 per day or $120 for the four day season passes and booking charges will apply.

Currently the Mosconi Cup is sold through Ticketmaster (1-800-745-3000) or MGM Resorts Contact Center (1-866-740-7711).

Visit www.ticketmaster.com and search $B!F(BMosconi Cup$B!G(B

by InsidePOOL Staff

Darren Appleton joined an elite group the eve of October 22—a group of only three 9-ball players, in fact. The players who have pulled off consecutive wins at the prestigious U.S. Open 9-Ball Championships now include Nick Varner (1989, 1990), Mika Immonen (2008, 2009) and now Appleton (2010, 2011).

At 1 p.m. Appleton faced off with the other undefeated player, Alex Pagulayan, in the hot seat match. Pagulayan, who won the Open in 2005 and was in the finals in 2002, staved off Appleton and held the lead at 6-4. But Appleton’s break was working, and so were his defensive moves. Though he had his chances, Pagulayan never won another rack in that match, as Appleton steamrolled through to an 11-6 win.

In the concurrent quarterfinal match, Dennis Hatch, who had played and won six matches Friday on the one-loss side to reach Saturday alive, and Shawn Putnam went up against each other. “Big Bubba” opened up the set with a four-pack and kept Hatch in his chair for most of the match. Finally Hatch won the eighth rack and raised his arms in the air to celebrate. Putnam took the next two and only allowed “The Hatchetman” one more game before breezing past him 11-2.

The Diamond Open 10-Ball Professional Players Championship kicked off Thursday morning with a field that was expanded to 72 players.

Putnam went on to meet Pagulayan in the semifinal match, where the score remained even for the first few games, but it didn’t take long for Pagulayan’s little mistakes to catch up to him. Putnam reached a 6-2 lead, but Pagulayan fought back to 6-4. A scratch by “The Lion” gave Putnam the next rack, and then he broke and ran the following one. However, Pagulayan wasn’t done—he took the next four racks to knot the score at 8.

Live real time scoring and tournament brackets were provided by Propool.com at Inside POOL TV.

An empty break, though, spelled doom for him as Putnam was gifted a 4-9 combo to go up one and then employed his jump cue to win the next rack to reach the hill 10-8. The last rack was pure heartbreak for Pagulayan fans: A safety battle led to Pagulayan kicking in the 3 ball and hanging the 9 at the same time. He got out of line for the 6 and even worse position on the 8, which he and Jimmy Wych attributed to the balls skidding. A long sharp cut shot on the 8 ball was missed, giving Putnam the table with two balls left and the match 11-8.

The final match was a reversal for Putnam and his match with Hatch, as Appleton raced to a 6-0 lead in the extended race to 13. His break was dialed in, and Putnam really wasn’t allowed to the table too often. In the seventh rack Appleton scratched on the 4, and Putnam got on the board and won the next two as well. But when Putnam scratched on his next break, Appleton cleared that table and then broke and ran the next … and the next, with a long-rail bank on the 9 to top things off and bring the score to 9-3 in his favor.

They traded the next four racks, with a great deal of defensive play occurring. Appleton made three balls on his next break, and though they both missed the 3 ball, Putnam lucked in the 7 ball and ran out. But again, his problems with the break came up again and he scratched, and Appleton cleared the table to reach the hill 12-6. In the last rack, Appleton made one ball on the break—but it was all he needed. He broke apart the 2-8 cluster when he shot the 2, and as sparkling wine corks popped in the background, he coolly pocketed the remaining balls to take his second U.S. Open 9-Ball Championship in a row.

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

by InsidePOOL Staff

Many fine players were eliminated from the 36th U.S. Open 9-Ball Championships Friday, with only the top 6 returning Saturday to collect their piece of the $175,000 prize purse. Defending champion Darren Appleton will face off with former champ Alex Pagulayan in the hot seat at 1 p.m., while Shawn Putnam and Dennis Hatch will go head to head in the quarterfinal match.

Appleton sent Johnny Archer west in a tight 11-9 match and then went on to face down Putnam 11-7 to reach the hot seat match. In the bottom bracket, Pagulayan breezed through reigning 10-ball champion Huidji See of the Netherlands 11-3 to face Larry “The Truth” Nevel, who had just bested Japan’s Kenichi Uchigaki 11-9. Pagulayan held the lead in his match with Nevel, who, down 9-5, missed a bank shot on the 6 ball and stabbed the floor with his cue, smashing the shaft. Pagulayan reached the hill after that rack, and though Nevel put another couple racks under his belt, after a failed attempt at a bank in the last rack, Pagulayan ran out for the 11-7 win.

Joss Northeast 9-Ball Tour regular Hatch was taking care of business on the west side of the chart, routing Johnny Archer and sending him home in ninth place. Their score was tied 4-all when Archer allowed Hatch to the table and never saw it again, as Hatch ran the set out to win 11-4. Hatch then turned Filipino champ Warren Kiamco’s lights out in the following round, eliminating him 11-5.

Live real time scoring is being provided by ProPool.com and are being displayed at Inside POOL TV.

Many fine players were eliminated from the 36th U.S. Open 9-Ball Championships Friday, with only the top 6 returning Saturday to collect their piece of the $175,000 prize purse.

After his winners’ side match loss, Nevel went on to face Hatch, with “The Hatchetman” dominating completely. Up 9-3, Hatch pushed out after his break, and Nevel took a swing at the 1 ball and scratched, handing Hatch the hill and then forfeiting the next rack to hand the match to Hatch 11-3.

2011 U.S. Open 9-Ball Final 8 Player Tournament Brackets
2011 U.S. Open 9-Ball Tournament Brackets
Day 1 Results
Day 2 Results
Day 3 Results
Day 4 Results
Day 5 Results

Putnam defeated reigning world 9-ball champion Yukio Akagariyama 11-9 only to be sent west by Appleton 11-7. From there he held a 10-4 lead over See, who attempted a comeback and won the next four racks, but Putnam shut him down 11-7 to return Saturday.

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by InsidePOOL Staff

It was a heart-breaking evening for some in the winners’ bracket at the 36th U.S. Open 9-Ball Championships, as the undefeated side was halved from 64 to 32.

Legends of One-Pocket champion Shannon Daulton went up against fellow Kentuckian Nick Varner, a two-time winner of the U.S. Open, and held a 5-3 lead before Varner was able to knot the score at 6-all. Unfazed, Daulton steadily climbed to the hill, but then he scratched on a rail shot on the 2 ball and never made it back to the table—Varner cleared that rack and then put a four-pack on “The Cannon” to escape with the 11-10 win.

Another tough winners’ side match saw Filipino Warren Kiamco, who took fourth place in last year’s event, go up against frequent Joss Northeast 9-Ball Tour winner Dennis Hatch. The match seesawed to double-hill with Hatch in control of the table, but he missed the 8 ball, and Kiamco dished up to advance unscathed.

Two more hill-hill matches on the winners’ side occurred: Indiana’s Dennis Haar bested Northeast force Jeremy Sossei 11-10, while Bill Anderson moved past Mike Fuller 11-10. India’s Raj Hundal held an early lead over 2007 champ Shane Van Boening but was passed up as “The North Dakota Kid” surged to an 11-9 victory. Los Angeles’ Oscar Dominguez triumphed over Holland’s Niels Feijen in a close match that saw “The Big O” move on 11-9.

It was a heart-breaking evening for some in the winners’ bracket at the 36th U.S. Open 9-Ball Championships, as the undefeated side was halved from 64 to 32.

Live real time scoring of the entire 2011 U.S.Open 9-Ball Championships is being provided by ProPool.com and can be viewed at Inside POOL TV. The live real time scoring of the event also has chat so that visitors can visit with other fans.

2011 U.S. Open 9-Ball Tournament Brackets
Day 1 Results
Day 2 Results
Day 3 Results
Day 4 Results

The elimination rounds will continue all throughout Thursday, with the winners’ side rounding out the night at 7:00 p.m., 9:00 p.m., and 11:00 p.m.

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

by InsidePOOL Staff

“Rocket” Rodney Morris and Shawn Putnam are the final two undefeated players at the Turning Stone Classic XVII and will face off in the hot seat match this afternoon, while four other players remain in the west side of the chart. The $25,000-added event is held this weekend at Turning Stone Casino in Verona, NY, and attracted a full field of 128.

After dispatching tour promoter Mike Zuglan 9-4 to the one-loss side, Morris went on to face down Larry “The Truth” Nevel and dealt him a 9-3 loss. A 9-5 victory over Charlie Williams put Morris in the final four undefeated, where he bested Jose Parica 9-5 to reach the hot seat match.

Putnam escaped a double-hill match Fiddlestix Billiards Café owner Chris Szuter 9-8 to defeat Jeremy Sossei 9-4. Another 9-4 victory, this time over Josh Ulrich, saw Putnam meet up with Morris.

Morris and Putnam are the final two undefeated players at the Turning Stone Classic XVII and will face off in the hot seat match this afternoon, while four other players remain in the west side of the chart.

View the Turning Stone Classic tournament brackets

Much like Pagulayan, Johnny Archer, winner of the Turning Stone Classic XV and XIV, also lost his second-round match, which was against Sossei, and has been able to stay alive. Archer’s victories in the one-loss side include wins over Jennifer Barretta, Williams, and Greg Antonakos.

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

by InsidePOOL Staff

The Turning Stone Classic has returned to the Turning Stone Casino in Verona, NY, for its twenty-seventh installment, with a full field of 128 billiards players seeking their share of the $25,000-added prize purse. The event is held September 8-11 and is produced by Mike Zuglan of the Joss Northeast 9-Ball Tour.

Several mishaps occurred in the first couple of rounds. Defending champion Corey Deuel is not at the event, but Turning Stone XIV and XV champion Johnny “The Scorpion” Archer suffered a second-round loss to Jeremy Sossei 9-4 and will have to reclaim his title from the west side of the chart. So far he has eliminated Ron Casanzio and Billy Biasin, both 9-4.

Alex Pagulayan has had his ups and downs so far. His first match with Angelos Inness he won 9-6 but then advanced to face recent Seminole Pro Tour stop winner Rodney Morris, who had just bested Pete Sever 9-5. Morris was able to send Pagulayan to the one-loss side 9-6 and then follow that up with a 9-4 defeat of Zuglan, who had just bested Dennis Hatch in a thrilling double-hill match 9-8. In the next round, Pagulayan whitewashed Hatch 9-0 to advance, thwarting “The Hatchetman” in his attempt to claim the title.

The Turning Stone Classic has returned to the Turning Stone Casino in Verona, NY, for its twenty-seventh installment, with a full field of 128 billiards players seeking their share of the $25,000-added prize purse.

View the Turning Stone Classic tournament brackets

Jose Parica, who was just crowned Empire State champion at last weekend’s Predator 9-Ball Tour stop, blew through Shaun “Get Some” Wilkie 9-4 in the first round and then bested Angelina Paglia by the same score in the second. In the third round he delivered Los Angeles’ Ernesto Dominguez to the left side 9-6.

Oscar, the younger Dominguez, won his first two matches but was then stopped by Bucky Souvanthong 9-3. Souvanthong was also responsible for the first-round defeat of Shane Van Boening 9-6. Both Dominguez and Van Boening are still alive as yet.

Three ladies participated in the event this time. Liz Ford won one of three matches, being ousted by Hatch 9-1. After her second-round loss to Parica, Paglia was then ousted in the fourth round by Chris Orme 9-4. And Jennifer Barretta, who had a first-round loss to Ivaylo Petrov 9-5, has rebounded on the one-loss side to win her last three matches.

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