by InsidePOOL Staff

Ralf “The Surgeon” Souquet collected a cool $20,000 for his first-place finish at the Diamond Open 10-Ball Professional Players Championship, defeating Robb Saez for the second time in the finals. The four-day event attracted a 72-player field to the Valley Forge Convention Center in King of Prussia, PA, which hosted the 19th Annual Super Billiards Expo.

Souquet collected a cool $20,000 for his first-place finish at the Diamond Open 10-Ball Professional Players Championship, defeating Saez for the second time in the finals.

The morning’s matches featured Shane Van Boening trying to defend his title from the one-loss side by playing Dennis Hatch, another former winner of this event. Hatch didn’t have much of a chance against Van Boening, though, who quickly eliminated him in fourth place 10-3 to advance to the semifinals.

View the Super Billiards Expo image gallery

Meeting him there was Saez, who had just suffered his first loss to Souquet in the hot seat match 10-7. Saez and Van Boening had played the night before in the winners’ side final four, with Saez edging past him 10-9. Saez took an early 5-1 lead but let “The South Dakota Kid” back in the match at that point as the score reached 7-all. A kick shot put Saez up 8-7 and then a break and run-out earned him the hill. However, Van Boening had other ideas and broke and ran out the next game and then tied things up on the hill when Saez badly missed the 4 ball. It was a safety scuffle in the last rack, and it looked over for Saez when he flubbed the 2 ball. But Van Boening returned the favor by rattling the 4 ball, and Saez took that opportunity to clear the rest of the balls to win 10-9.

View the Super Billiards Expo tournament brackets

The finals were an extended single race to 13, with Souquet drawing first blood and going up 4-1. Saez was able to take the next two racks to draw within one game, but Souquet lengthened his lead again by going up 7-4. The match was filled with defensive moves throughout, and the score slowly progressed to 10-7 Souquet. A break and run-out by the German followed, and in the next Saez left an easy 3 ball after executing a dicey jump shot on the 2 ball. Souquet cleared that table to claim the hill. After the safety battle over the 1 ball it looked like the next would go to Saez, but he got out of line on the 7 ball and missed badly, leaving a simple out for Souquet, who won 13-8.

The event was live streamed in HD for free by Inside POOL video and will be available on the Inside POOL Youtube Channel later this week.

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by Lea Andrews

On the penultimate day of the 34th Annual U.S. Open 9-Ball Championships, the final four on the winners’ side have come through, and on the one-loss side, Steve Moore came from behind two matches in a row to reach the final twelve. The remaining elite players are part of the original field of 216 who gathered October 18-24 at the Chesapeake Conference Center in Chesapeake, VA.

After falling to Ralf Souquet 11-4 on the winners’ side final eight, Moore faced Keith Bennett, who’d just edged out Kenichi Uchigaki 11-10. Bennett got to a 9-3 lead over Moore, who rallied to tie it up at 9, and the two traded off to make it hill-hill. In the final rack, Moore found himself sharked on the 5 ball by the red light on a spectator’s camera. “I got up and I got back down, and she did it again,” recalled Moore after the match. “I got up and I told her about it, but when I got back down, I was still thinking about it.” He missed. But he was back at the table after Bennett miscued on the 6, though he was looking at a kick. After Moore’s hit, Bennett was left with a shot, but his position was off on the 7 ball, and the cue ball found the side pocket. Moore was out, and his next match against Yukio Akagarivama was called nearly instantly.

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Once again Moore was down several games, then tied at 9 and at 10. After some safety play in the final rack, it was Akagarivama who had control, and he moved carefully through the rack. His shot on the 7 down the rail grazed the cushion, though, leaving the 7 hanging in the pocket and the crowd all gasping at once. Moore tapped it in for position on the 8 in the side, which he considered carefully before getting down on the shot. “There were so many options on the eight,” he explained afterwards. “And then I was like, ‘You know what? Just spin the ball in, three-rail it.’ It’s a pretty routine shot—I was just looking at all my options, and I hit it real well. I knew as soon as I hit it.” After getting perfect position on the 9, Moore dropped it in for the win and the right to face Imran Majid, who fell 11-7 to Lee Van Corteza on the winners’ side. About the rest of the tournament, Moore doesn’t care how the matches go—not exactly. “I don’t care if I’m behind and win or ahead and win—I just want to win. Whatever it takes.”

Morris admitted that he had a rather fortuitus set against Davenport.

On the other side of the bracket, 1996 U.S. Open champion “Rocket” Rodney Morris blew by Kim Davenport 11-2 on the TV table to reach the undefeated final four. Morris, who won his first match on the TV table 11-9 against Corey Deuel despite feeling nervous about the way it played, was prepared this time around. “My touch was better than his on the table, and it’s so lightning fast that it’s all touch,” he explained. “It’s easy to lose the cue ball on safeties, but mine were coming out perfect.” Morris faces Donnie Mills, who eased past Karl Boyes 11-3, while Souquet and Corteza round out the final four.

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by Lea Andrews

As day five of the 34th Annual U.S. Open 9-Ball Championships draws to a close, some former champions are saving their dreams of repeats for next year, while others continue their march towards the finish line and the green jacket and $40,000 that come with it. The field of 216 that arrived for the event, which is being held October 18-24 at the Chesapeake Conference Center in Chesapeake, VA, is growing steadily smaller as the end of the week draws near.

2002 winner Ralf Souquet is one such winner still marching on, having arrived in the winners’ side final eight following his victory over Steve Moore. After being tied up 4-4 with Moore, Souquet didn’t allow him to hit the string again. “Well,” acknowledged a modest Souquet, “he didn’t want to win it. Let’s put it that way,” he laughed. “He had some chances—he scratched twice, both times on the second-to-last ball. He could’ve won a lot more games. It could’ve been a much tighter game, because I didn’t play very well. I made several mistakes throughout the match. So did he,” conceded Souquet, “but I managed to get over my weak points and finish the match with quite a comfortable score of 11-4.”

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After his BCA Hall of Fame industion ceremony Archer was on fire and lit his next two opponents up as he moved into Friday's action.

1999 winner Johnny Archer had to go straight from his Hall of Fame induction ceremony to his west side match versus Stan Tourangeau, who managed to mark up two games only after Archer had already marked up nine, and Archer took the next two to close it out 11-2. “It felt good,” said Archer of his first win following his induction, which he called “a great experience.” About the remainder of the tournament, Archer is optimistic. “Just need a good couple of breaks and I think I could be right there at the end.” Also continuing through the left side of the bracket are former champions Shane Van Boening and Corey Deuel, while past champions now out of the competition include Nick Varner, Mike Lebron, and Gabe Owen.

Several players joining Souquet and Corteza in the final eight are “Rocket” Rodney Morris, who won 11-9 over British player Chris Melling; Kim Davenport, who defeated Mike Dechaine 11-8; Demetrius Jelatis, who sent Donnie Mills west 11-5; and Karl Boyes, who bested Jose Parica 11-4.

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by Lea Andrews

Niels Feijen, who fell in round one to Ramil Gallego 11-8, blew past Curtis Coleman 11-0 to face Raj Hundal in a tight elimination-round match on day four of the 34th Annual U.S. Open 9-Ball Championships. Feijen is one of the field of 216 that is gathered at the Chesapeake Conference Center in Chesapeake, VA, October 18-24, though that field is steadily dwindling.

Feijen opened up by getting ahead 3-0 over Hundal, but Hundal used some safety play to tie it up at three apiece. Feijen took rack seven, but his break, which is powerful and controlled, nevertheless did him no favors in the next three racks, though he was able to work around it with push-outs and safeties to make it 7-3. His break worked well for him in rack eleven, and he ran out to take a five-game lead. Rack twelve went to Feijen, but thirteen went to Hundal, and it was 9-4, at which point Hundal began putting the racks together. Three straight break and runs put Hundal on the path to a comeback 9-7, but he couldn’t see the 1 ball after the break in rack eighteen and chose a kick-safe, though it left Feijen a shot, which he pocketed and followed up with a safety on the 2 ball. Although Hundal managed to hit it, Feijen was out and on the hill, and a 9 ball that sailed into the head corner off of a ball sealed the match.

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Feijen, who fell in round one to Gallego 11-8, blew past Coleman 11-0 to face Hundal in a tight elimination-round match on day four of the 34th Annual U.S. Open 9-Ball Championships.

“It was nice,” said Feijen, who’d found himself in a similar situation in 2006 in the World Pool Masters against Hundal, though there situations were reversed—in 2006, it was Hundal on the hill. “It was the same nine ball break in the same corner, but his hit one more ball,” he explained. Feijen, who feels he’s getting more and more in stroke after getting some practice in the past couple of days, is ready to just “keep playing and keep enjoying it.” Hundal joins a growing list of those out of the running, including CJ Wiley, Jerry Calderon, and Shaun Wilkie, who fell 11-9 to Scott Tollefson after being up 9-8.

Upcoming winners’ side matches include Corey Deuel versus Rodney Morris, Roberto Gomez versus Kim Davenport, who sent Shawn Putnam west 11-8, Ralf Souquet versus Abdullah Alyousef, and Shane Van Boening versus Jose Parica.

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photo courtesy Rodney Andrews

by Edward Asistin

Everybody who wanted to know who was in and who was out had to wait until the very last match of the group stage of the Women’s World 10-Ball Championship was complete. The very last match was played between Yu Ram Cha (Korea) and Lyndall Hulley (Australia). Hulley needed to win her final match to advance into the single-elimination phase of the tournament and compete for a top prize of $20,000 USD.

11-year-old Gillian Go thrilled the crowd with her play to make it into the single elimination phase of the tournament.

Just minutes before the conclusion of the aforementioned match, 11-year-old Gillian Go (Philippines) won a hill-hill battle against Tina Meraglio (US) under the pressure of playing on the TV table to give Go a 3-2 record in her group. If Yu Ram Cha would have lost against Hulley, all three of them would have had a 3-2 record, and Go would have lost the tiebreaker to the other two by just one point. But in the end Yu Ram Cha defeated Hulley by a score of 5-3, making Go the big story of the tournament thus far.

There were several other matches played on day three that had significant meaning.

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THE HEARTBREAK
Qualifier Mary Ann Bassas (Philippines) just happen to be drawn into what evidently became the toughest group in the tournament. She had a 3-2 record in group play but just lost out in the tiebreaker by one point. She was the only player with a 3-2 record in the group stage not to advance into the single elimination bracket. Earlier in the day she had lost to reigning Amway World 9-Ball champion Chieh-Yu Chou by a score of 5-0. If she could have won a couple of games in that match instead of getting blanked, the Philippine crowd would have one more of their own to cheer for.

Though Loraine didn't make it to the single elimination round, she had a say in who did earn the top spot and receive the bye in round 1.

THE LUCK
Jeanette Lee (US) should be thanking Shanelle Loraine of Guam to the tune of at least $500 USD. Just after “The Black Widow” lost a hill-hill thriller to Veronika Hubrtova (CZE), Lorraine played Hubrtova and defeated her by a score of 5-3. Hubrtova was in the driver’s seat to claim the number-one seed in her group and earn a first-round bye in the single-elimination phase. All she had to do was win four games in the final match against Lorraine, but she failed to do so and surrendered the top seed in the group to Lee. They both had a 4-1 record, but before the head-to-head criteria was used as a tiebreaker, the number of games won was used first. Total games won was Lee at 24 and Hubrtova at 23, giving the first-round bye to “The Black Widow.”

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Karen Corr (IRE), Kelly Fisher (ENG), Allison Fisher (ENG), Hsiang-Lin Tan (TPE), and Miyuki Fuke (JAP) all went undefeated in group play and earned the top five seeds and a first-round bye in the order listed previous. Jeanette Lee, Shin-Mei Liu (TPE), and Akimi Kajitani (JAP) rounded out the top eight seeds, each with a 4-1 record but tops in their group and also receiving a bye into the second round of eliminations.

The other players that have advanced into the single-elimination bracket are: Yun Mi Lim (KOR), Akio Ohtani (JAP), Yuan-Chun Lin (TPE), Chihiro Kawahara (JAP), Veronika Hubrtova (CZE), Tamara Rademakers (NED), Rubilen Amit (PHI), Julie Kelly (IRE), Yu Ram Cha (KOR), Gillian Go (PHI), Jasmin Ouschan (AUT), Angeline Ticoalu (IND), Ga Young Kim (KOR), Charlene Chai (SIN), Chieh-Yu Chou (TPE), and Apsra Punhoo (RSA).

Loraine will be appearing on Spike on February 9.

Since her debut in the pool world one year ago in Korea, she first made headlines by defeating Jeanette Lee live on national television at the Dragon Promotions Women’s World Pool Cup. People immediately begin to search for more info on this talented Guamanian beauty and Loraine became the most searched topic online in Korea for days. Soon after she finished second place only to Ga Young Kim in the MBC ESPN Women’s Ultimate Trick Shot Challenge, besting a field of players that included top players Miyuki Sakai, Yu Ram Cha, Isabelle Krafczyk, and Jeanette Lee.

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Of course she has obvious out of this world looks, almost like a cartoon character. But at the Korea vs The World she really impressed me. I captained the World Team and got to interact as a teammate. It was her first team event and she did an outstanding job of holding her nerves and made some crucial shots for us. says World Champion Mika Immonen, She is also one of the coolest most down to earth people I have ever met.

Don't let her looks deceive you. Loraine is a fierce competitor.

Poison Cues has made a tremendous impact since its unveiling less than one year ago. Sales have boomed not only in the US, but rocketed internationally as well making waves in China, Spain, Korea, Japan, and more.

“Predator invited me to their Christmas Party and a tour of their factory. It’s amazing the amount of engineering and work that goes into all their products. I fell in love with Poison’s sleek design and craftsmanship.” said Shanelle Loraine. All the people at Predator Group are not only professional, but so kind and cool to be around. I am so honored to be a part of their well respected company.

Shanelle plays with the Arsenic 6, and uses the VX 2.9 Jump Break Cue. She is currently coached by Charlie Williams and Wayne Catledge of Orlando, and has had instruction with legends such as Mike Massey, Mika Immonen, and the great 3 Cushion master Semih Sayginer. Shanelle trains in 9-Ball and 3-Cushion and is managed by Dragon Promotions.
Visit www.shanelleloraine.com

Poison is considered to be the most advanced engineered cue at its price range. That fact combined with unparalleled looks and design makes Poison the hottest cue on the market. Poison comes with Uni-Loc technology and makes it an easy transition for players to develop and later add Predator 314 and Z shaft advancements to their Poison. Poison is a division of The Predator Group. www.poisoncues.com

www.youtube.com/watch?v=YVcva48SGcs

www.youtube.com/watch?v=fN332ySsG64

Shanelle Loraine is a Poison Cues Rep and managed by Dragon Promotions.

by InsidePOOL Staff

Immonen got out to an early lead in the finals, but Alcano managed to play himself back into the match. In the end, Immonen won the U.S. Open billiard title.

A very determined Mika Immonen returned to the final arena at the 33rd Annual U.S. Open 9-Ball Championships for the final match Saturday evening, and he persevered to win his first title at that event. This makes eight years that a new champion has won this prestigious event.

It was a different Immonen who approached the table and played quickly and smoothly for the win. He took a very comfortable 6-0 lead in the extended race to 13 before giving his opponent in the finals, Ronato Alcano, something to shoot at by coming up empty on the break. Alcano cleared to get on the board and then took the next rack as well when Immonen undercut the 1 ball.

It was back to business after that, though, as Immonen went up another three racks to make it 10-2. And then Alcano made his own bid, playing superb defense and bringing the score to 10-5. At that point, Alcano switched from a soft break to a hard one, which helped him gain the next two racks. Alcano came up empty on his next break, but the Finn earned ball in hand after a sweet safety on the 3 ball, taking advantage of the 3-9 combo to go up 11-7. Immonen came up dry on his break, but Alcano scratched on the 1 ball, allowing Immonen to reach the hill.

View the 2008 U.S. Open 9-Ball Championship tournament brackets

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In the final rack, Immonen had another dry break, and Alcano played a weak safety on the 1 ball. Immonen cleared to the 6 ball, for which he left himself tough and opted to play safe, putting the 6 behind the 8 and 9. Alcano kicked at and hit the 6, leaving a bank shot for Immonen. Immonen missed the bank but left the cue ball parked behind the 8, hiding the 6. Alcano kicked at the 6 again and hit it but left a simple out. Immonen considered it, addressed it, and ran out for the 11-7 victory.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZrZ02X-bUdo

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by InsidePOOL Staff

Immonen and Alcano are set for the finals of the U.S. Open 9-Ball Championships.

The finals of the 33rd Annual U.S. Open 9-Ball Championships are set, with Mika “Iceman” Immonen and Ronnie Alcano to return for their 7:30 p.m. match at the Chesapeake Conference Center in Chesapeake, VA.

Earlier in the day, Johnny Archer matched up with Warren Kiamco in the quarterfinal match, which ended up being one-sided in Kiamco’s favor. At 7-1 in Kiamco’s favor, Archer finally notched another rack and then switched from a head-on break to a cut break and jumped the cue ball off the table. Kiamco took that opportunity to three-foul Archer, going up 8-2. He then broke and ran two racks to reach the hill, at which point Archer made a bit of a run when Kiamco hung the 8. It was too little, too late, though, for Archer missed a jump shot on the 1 ball, and Kiamco won handily 11-4.

At the same time, the hot seat match between Immonen and Alcano was going on at the Accu-Stats table. They traded the first six racks, but then Alcano pulled ahead to 8-3, a large margin he created by excellent defensive play. Immonen rallied a bit, winning the next rack after Alcano overcut the 8 ball and then breaking and running the following rack. He came up empty on his next break, though, and Alcano ran out; however, Alcano made nothing on his next break, and Immonen cleared the table to make it 9-6. A missed jump shot on the 2 ball by Immonen gave Alcano the hill, and then when Alcano pocketed a ball on his last break, he was able to clear the table to win 11-6.

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Kiamco moved over to the Accu-Stats table for the semifinal match against Immonen, and they traded the lead in the first few racks with the score seesawing to 4-all. At that point, Kiamco came up empty on his break, and Immonen cleaned up that rack and then broke and ran the next to take the first two-rack lead of the match so far. Immonen maintained the lead because he started making balls on the break, but he gave Kiamco an open door when he missed a tricky 3 ball. Kiamco won that rack and then took the next three to knot the score at 9-all. Kiamco made a ball on the break but, in trying to get shape for the 3 ball, hit the 2 ball too hard and rattled it. Immonen ran out for the hill and then made a ball on his final break. After pocketing the 4 ball, he shouted, “Yes!” for the remainder of the balls were simple for him to pocket to win 11-9.

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by InsidePOOL Staff

Nevel ousted defending champion Van Boening in a tight match at the U.S. Open Championship.

The evening rounds have wound down at the 33rd Annual U.S. Open 9-Ball Championships in Chesapeake, VA, leaving eight players in the winners’-side bracket and eight in the one-loss bracket.

Defending champion Shane Van Boening was eliminated early in the 11 p.m. round by Larry “The Truth” Nevel. Nevel reached the hill but scratched on the 6 ball to give Van Boening another chance at it. “The South Dakota Kid” collected the next two racks to make it 10-9, but he had to jack up on the 7 ball to miss the scratch in the side pocket. Instead, he scratched off the 9 in the corner, and Nevel took the 11-9 victory.

Another elimination match featured Northeastern player Brandon Shuff versus Tyler Edey of Canada. The players traded racks through the first eight games, and then Edey went up to 7-4. Shuff took a quick break and came back to string three racks together. Dry breaks or scratches on the break plagued both of them, bringing the score to 9-all. Edey reached the hill first, and in the final rack, both players traded jump shots on the 4 ball, but Edey prevailed to win 11-9.

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Adam “GQ” Smith went head to head with Warren Kiamco in another one-loss side match. A dispute about Kiamco’s “soft break” marred the beginning, but the score was soon tied at 4-all. Then Smith missed a combo shot, leaving Kiamco an out, which he took advantage of to win the next five racks. Smith collected one more game before Kiamco ran out the set 11-5.

On the Accu-Stats table, Raj Hundal and Donnie Mills matched up. Mills took a commanding 9-4 lead, never leaving Hundal a shot. Mills broke and ran out to reach the hill and then played safe on the 1 ball after his next break. Hundal pocketed the 1 and 2 balls but missed a 3-9 combination and scratched. Mills had little trouble clearing the table to win 11-4.

Tony Chohan went up against former champion Ralf Souquet in the winners’ side, with Souquet taking a strong 6-2 lead. However, Chohan fought back to bring the score to 10-9 Souquet. Chohan pocketed a 2-9 combo to make it hill-hill. He almost scratched on the 1 ball in the final game but pulled it off with a 11-10 win.

Friday’s matches on the winners’ side will feature Filipinos Ronnie Alcano versus Francisco Bustamante, Thorsten Hohmann versus Rodney Morris, Daryl Peach versus Johnny Archer, and Mika Immonen versus Jose Parica. In the one-loss side, Corey Deuel will play Larry Nevel, Donnie Mills plays Tyler Edey, Tony Chohan plays Warren Kiamco, and Ralf Souquet plays Oscar Dominguez.

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by InsidePOOL Staff

Alcano defeated the always-tough Corteza on the Accu-Stats table at the U.S. Open 9-Ball Championship.

In the featured match of the 9 p.m. rounds, two Filipinos matched up when former world champion Ronnie Alcano and Lee Van Corteza met on the Accu-Stats table. Their match started off shaky at first, but the score remained even throughout until it reached 7-all. Corteza scratched on the 5 ball, and Alcano made a 5-9 combo and then broke and ran the next rack to go up 9-7. To make matters tougher on Corteza, Alcano then snapped in the 9 ball on his next break to reach the hill. Corteza scored a 4-9 combo in the following game and then took the next rack to make it 10-9. Corteza had another chance in the last rack, as Alcano scratched while attempting a two-rail kick, but Corteza missed the 7 in the side, leaving three balls for Alcano to win 11-9.

“Rocket” Rodney Morris took charge of his winners’-bracket match against Adam “GQ” Smith out of Detroit. Though Morris showed troubles getting a clean break and run-out, he used excellent defensive play to stay ahead early and reached a 6-0 lead before Smith got on the board. They exchanged racks for the remainder of the set, but a missed 2 ball in the final rack by Smith cost him the set 11-4.

In a winners’-bracket match utterly dominated by Francisco Bustamante, he reached a 6-0 lead over young Oscar Dominguez before Dominguez got on the board after a dry break by Bustamante. Through a combination of missed shape by Dominguez and strong play by Bustamante, it wasn’t long before “Django” took the match 11-1.

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In another lopsided match on the winners’ side, former world 9-ball champ Thorsten Hohmann and Petri Markonen played. Markonen took the first rack, but Hohmann countered by winning the next eight in a row with several break and run-outs. Several exchanges over the next 9 ball led to Markonen getting another game on the wire, but it was not enough, for Hohmann finished out the 11-2 victor.

There was another near wipeout in the elimination rounds when Ralf Souquet and Toru Kuribayashi. Souquet exhibited some problems with getting a shot after his break and didn’t break and run until the sixth game to make it 6-0. Kuribayashi had opportunities throughout the match but did not manage to capitalize on them. In the final game with the score 10-1, Kuribayashi came up empty on his break, and Souquet closed out the set 11-1.

There was a close match in the elimination rounds between Warren Kiamco of the Philippines and the UK’s Imran Majid. Though Majid began by taking the first game and then breaking and running two more racks, Kiamco got on the board after Majid scratched on the 7 ball, making it 3-1 Majid. The score went all the way to 8-all when Kiamco surged ahead to reach the hill. Majid had another shot to bring it back, but he scratched on the 9 ball in the final rack, making Kiamco the 11-8 winner.

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