by InsidePOOL Staff

Easter Sunday will see the return of the top 18 players at the Ultimate 10-Ball Championships, held this week at the Embassy Suites Hotel in Frisco, TX. The $50,000-added tournament had both a women’s and a men’s division and hosted many of the top pros in pool.

In the one-loss side of the men’s division, two Southerners went head to head in Johnny Archer and Brandon Shuff. Archer fought hard, but it was Shuff who reached the hill first. After a brief exchange of safeties on the 2 ball, Shuff was able to find a window and run out to win 8-5.

Mike Davis went up against Raj “Hitman” Hundal, and Hundal took a quick 5-1 lead. The players traded the next couple of racks, but Hundal kept the momentum going and reached the hill 7-4. He played a clever safety on the 2 ball in the next, parking the cue ball behind the 2 when Davis was shooting the 2. Davis jumped and hit the 2 but left a fairly easy out for Hundal to win 8-4.

Mike Dechaine was the first to make it into the final 18 with his easy handling of Jesse Engel 8-3. Darren Appleton was the next with his 8-3 victory over Dennis Hatch. Jeremy Jones, continuing his hometown dominance, bested Brian Brekke 8-4 and will play Dechaine in the winners’ side final four. Playing Appleton in the other winners’ side match will be Jason Klatt, who bested Oscar Dominguez 8-5.

View the Ultimate 10-Ball Men’s tournament brackets (updated continuously)

View the Ultimate 10-Ball Women’s tournament brackets (updated continuously)

Angel Paglia unseated Vivian “The Texas Tornado” Villareal on her home turf in their winners’ side match, reaching the hill first 6-4. She turned the table over to Villareal, who came a game closer after an error by Paglia. A miscue by Paglia in the next gave the table to Villareal again, who had a long shot on the 7 ball that she fired at and missed. Paglia played safe behind the 8-10, and Villareal brought out her jump cue, but it turned out that she opened up the table for Paglia, who dished up to win 7-5.

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Allison Fisher came back from a huge 5-1 deficit to Kelly Fisher in the other winners’ side match to win it 7-6. A. Fisher will play Paglia in the hot seat match. In the one-loss side, Monica Webb will play K. Fisher, while Villareal will face Line Kjorsvik.

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by Lea Andrews

Ohio resident Lucas Hawkins was well rewarded for his troubles after he made the lengthy trip to Cornelius, NC, for the Great Southern Billiard Tour’s July 31-August 1 stop. The GSBT first-timer, who’s rebounding from a one-year hiatus from pool, went undefeated through the 46-player field that gathered at Kylie’s Sports Bar and Grill for the $1,500-added event, which was sponsored by Nick Varner Cues and Cases.

Ohio resident Lucas Hawkins was well rewarded for his troubles after he made the lengthy trip to Cornelius, NC, for the Great Southern Billiard Tour’s July 31-August 1 stop.

On the left side of the bracket, where the races were shortened by two games, last week’s winner, AA-ranked Brian White, ousted A-ranked Marty Free 9-2 and AA-ranked Sam Monday to face Russell. Meanwhile, A-ranked Ron Park took care of AA-ranked BJ Ussery 7-6 and A-ranked Alex Olinger 7-5 to meet up with Stewart. Park and White met up in the quarterfinals after putting Stewart and Russell into fifth 7-3 and 9-6, respectively, and it was Park who moved on to the semifinals after planting White in fourth 7-7 in the weighted race. Against Newman, Park continued his streak, advancing to the finals 7-4.

The true double-elimination final match was a battle of persistence, as neither player was able to really reach his comfort zone. But Hawkins was comfortable enough, and he ground out his first GSBT victory 9-5.

Results:
1st Lucas Hawkins $1,000
2nd Ron Park $500
3rd Josh Newman $250
4th Brian White $150
5th David Stewart $100
Glenn Russell
7th Alex Olinger $60
Sam Monday
9th Luis Tovar $35
B.J. Ussery
Darren Blitch
Marty Free

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.”

View the U.S. Open 9-Ball Final 8 Players Tournament Brackets

View the U.S. Open 9-Ball Double Elimination Tournament Brackets 1 (updated continuously)

View the U.S. Open 9-Ball Double Elimination Tournament Brackets 2 (updated continuously)

View the 2009 U.S. Open image gallery

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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.

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Charlie Williams dispatched Johnny Archer to claim the Lucasi Hybrid Classic title at Bankshot Billiards in Jacksonville, FL.

Player and promoter Charlie Williams has won the Lucasi Hybrid Classic hosted by Bankshot Billiards in Jacksonville, FL.  It’s been pretty rare lately for Shane Van Boening to be playing in the semi-finals and to not win the event. The “South Dakota Kid” was handed two close losses on his road to the finals. Van Boening stayed undefeated all the way to the semi-finals where he met up with Johnny “The Scorpion” Archer and in no time, found himself down 6-1.

Never giving up, Van Boening ran the next four racks to stop the bleeding at 6-5 before missing a 10 ball to make it 6-6. A miscue here and some bad position there would send Van Boening to the B-side.

View the Ozone Billiard U.S. Amateur Open image gallery
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View the Lucasi Hybrid 10-Ball Tournament Brackets

There, he met up with Charlie “The Korean Dragon” Williams for an ultimate hill-hill showdown. Williams was up 6-3 when Van Boening pushed out to a jump shot in the middle of the table, jumped in the 1-8 combo as the crowd went crazy, only to leave himself jumping again at the 1 ball. This time, he jumped and banked the 1 into the 10 ball to win that game. A dry break by Van Boening came at the most inopportune time. A couple safeties on the 1 ball and Williams was at the table facing a tricky out that he strategically picked through. Williams would move on the take Archer in the finals.

The finals match against kicked off with Archer immediately ahead 3-1 before Williams ran away with the match. Williams was fast, loose, and confident. Up until this point, Williams was making announcements and helping to run the tournament between matches, but it didn’t seem to hurt him one bit. Williams was breaking great and pocketing balls on the break while Archer was not having much luck or opportunities. In the end a 10-5 victory would leave Williams the champion of his own promoted event.

1. Charlie Williams $4,000
2. Johnny Archer $2,000
3. Shane Van Boening $1,300
4. Tony Crosby $1,000
5. Mike Davis $800
6. Mika Immonen $800
7. Santos Sambajon, Jr. $600
8. Dennis Orcollo $600
9. Butch Croft $325
10. Thorsten Hohmann $325
11. David Broxson $325
12. David Grossman $325

The first thing you have to realize is that you can only make contact with the very top of the cue ball, which means you can do very little as far as position play goes. The most important thing is to make the shot you are going for, whether it is pocketing the ball or playing safe. The first thing to do is to make a steady bridge. The best bridge you can use is the rail because it is solid and will not move; therefore, we are going to make use of it. Lay the cue on the rail and then position your hand around the cue. This can be done two ways:

• Using an open-hand bridge with the fingertips of maybe two or three fingers pushing against the table. Even though the cue is resting on the rail, part of it will cross over the thumb and index finger where the “V” is created.

• Lay the cue down crossing the rail and then place your index finger over the cue and rest the other side of the cue against your middle finger and thumb. These two fingers will create a straight line for the cue. A good visual for this is to imagine an open-hand bridge with your thumb going underneath the fingers resting against the middle finger.

As far as the body position goes, the most important thing is to make sure that your back hand still falls at 90 degrees from the elbow. Obviously when we are bridging from the rail with the cue ball frozen, we cannot swing the cue back very far; therefore, we have to move our back hand farther up the cue to create a well-controlled swing. Whenever you move the bridge hand closer, you must also adjust the back hand so that you are always accelerating on the shot. The body position is a little closer to the table, and I like to keep my left arm bent.

The cue stick should remain as level as possible without creating a miscue. Remember, only part of the tip is contacting the ball on a shot like this, so naturally we have to raise the butt end slightly and make sure to chalk the cue tip. If you raise the butt too much and have slight left or right english on the ball, the cue ball will curve off in that direction. Make sure to really look at the contact point on the cue ball.

A good practice for this shot is to place balls around the rails and practice shooting them into different pockets. This will help you build up your confidence and develop a good stroke.

What weight of a cue do you shoot with?
I use an 18 ounce Cuetec cue. When I played snooker, I played with a 19 ounce cue, which was the average used by most players. I like an 18 ounce for pool, as I think I get more feeling with this weight. It really does not matter, as long as the weight is balanced in your hands and feels good. My break cue is also 18 ounces, which gives me more velocity when breaking. Because my break cue is also a jump cue, the lighter weight in my rear (right) hand also helps for jump shots.

Where are your eyes looking when you strike the cue ball?
That is a good question. When I strike the cue ball, my eyes are focused on the object ball at the point that I want the cue ball to make contact on the object ball. There are a few special situations, however, when my eyes look at the cue ball last. They are:

1. When I am bridging over a ball and looking down at the table from above
2. When I am breaking
3. When I am striking a ball on the rail
4. When I am jumping the cue ball over an impeding object ball

These times are the only times I change my routine, as my head position in relation to the shot is different, and it is very important to hit the center of the cue ball in order to avoid a miscue on certain shots.

When you play pool, how far in advance do you plan your shots?
After the break, I view the table and look for an obvious run out. If the answer is yes, I have an idea of where I want to be on each shot. When I am ready to start executing, I am planning three shots at a time, making sure I get to the correct side of balls and leave the right angles for my next shot. As I make one shot, I add the next shot on to continue my pattern of three shots ahead. For example, if I can see the 1, 2, and 3 balls, after I make the 1 ball I now look at where I want to be on the 3, 4, and 5 balls, as I am already positioned on the 2 ball. If the rack is not an easy run out, I look for the problem balls, and if I cannot break them out, maybe my best solution is a good safety.

How do you stay cool under pressure?
I don’t always! Of course there are times when we all get upset or annoyed with what happens at a pool table. The simple fact of the matter is that once it is gone, it is gone. We cannot bring it back, so why worry? I think the main thing is to be able to let go of a poor shot right away. This sounds easier than it is, but how are you going to play when you get back to the table with negative thoughts still in your mind? Be ready for anything, take it as it comes, and more than anything enjoy it because this is why we all play the game.

The American ladies surprised the Korean carom billiard fans by dominating the opening day or the Queen of Carom. Korean-Amercian Jeanette Lee crusied through Guam’s Shanelle Loraine 7-1 her opening match, avenging her loss to Loraine the day before in the World Pool Cup womens 9-Ball event. Tiffany Nelson, who has never played 3-Cushion, controlled Bo Ram Cha of Korea 7-4. Monica Webb played a superb match against Jasmin Ouschan with a 7-2 win running a 4,2 and 1 in 5 innings. Lee then kept her fire going with a dominant 7-2 win over Nelson to put her in the finals. Yu Ram Cha, favorite to win the event and coached by some of the top Korean coaches in carom, was upsetted 7-6 in a shocking match to Japan’s Miyuki Sakai . Sakai misplayed her shot at 6-6 and got a lucky kiss that sent her balls wild and accidentally made a 3 cushion carom to win 7-6. Later Sakai fell to Webb’s unexpected carom skills 7-2.
I love 3 cushion billiards. I practice it back home in Atlanta and I’m pretty decent. said Monica Webb, currently the #1 ranked USA player on the WPBA Tour. When Dragon Promotions asked if I was interested in playing carom in Korea, I jumped at the offer!
I never practiced one shot of 3 cushion until 5 minutes before my match. said the calm and cool Tiffany Nelson after her first round win over Korea’s Bo Ram Cha.
On the King of Carom side of the event, the Korean men took over as Sung Wook Choi defeated Mika Immonen 15-12. Immonen was down 11-3 but made a late charge and got the match to 12-11 before a costly miscue on an easy billiard would have tied the match.

At least I didn’t make a fool out of myself and showed I can play a little. said Immonen smiling. Immonen sometime frequents Carom Cafe in NY and plays often with top carom players.
Then Pil Hyun Cho upsetted #2 Japanese Carom player O Takeshima 15-12. The best played match of the day however belonged to Rodney Morris and Shin Young Park . Morris opened with a run of 4 off the break. Park answered with a 2. Morris then ran a 3, later another 3, and a 1 but Park traded back and forth with him with his own runs of 3,4, and later a 5. Morris smooth and quick style of play transitioned over to carom from pool quite naturaly. The match ended with the more experienced Park winning 15-11, but left the fans admiring Morris’ raw talent with the cue.
I’ve never played a game of 3 cushion in my life. But it’s been incredible watching some of these guys like Park and Sayginer. Makes me want to improve my kicking skills even further for 9-Ball. said Morris about his experience playing in the King of Carom.
Rodney’s a natural. I don’t think it matters what game he has to play, he’s going to do well and learn fast. I knew he would be fine because his rail knowledge is so strong in pool. said Charlie Williams on his invite to Morris for the event. Just imagine if he actually played a few games before the event!
Semih Sayginer, former 4 time 3 Cushion Player of the Year, demolished Danny Harriman 15-5. Harriman, a proficient 3Cushion player, couldn’t get anything going. To be honest, I was a little star struck playing this guy. He’s one of my heroes. commented Harriman. But I’d like to try him on a pool table!
In the semi-finals Koreans Park and Choi battled it out with Park coming on top 15-10. Cho of Korea gave Sayginer a scare as Cho led the match from beginning to near the end. They battled back and forth for the final points with Semih finally taking the lead at 14-11. Cho then made it 14-13 and was making the point to tie the match hill-hill when 12 inches before the final hit his ball was kissed out saving Semih and letting him make the final point 15-13.
This is a little dangerous format for me, but it’s good for TV and for attracting new audiences. It’s exciting! said Sayginer after his close call.
Sayginer and Jeanette Lee then performed a show with special TV celebrity guest Charce, a famous model and comedian. With Semih coaching him, Charce defeated Lee in a race to 5 points. Of course with the charismatic Lee, showman Semih, and comedian Charce, it made to be a very fun show.
The matches are aired on XTM, a total entertainment network covering movies, comedies, and sports.
Tomorrow will be the finals with Sayginer playing Park and then Lee versus Webb to determine the King and Queen of Carom.