by InsidePOOL Staff

Enjoying an undefeated run to the finals of the March 20 stop of the Tri-State Tour, Tony Ignomirello bested Raymond Romanski to take the title. The $1,000-added stop drew 34 players to Cue Nine Billiards in Levittown, NY, for A-D 9-ball action.

Enjoying an undefeated run to the finals of the March 20 stop of the Tri-State Tour, Tony Ignomirello bested Raymond Romanski to take the title.

Ignomirello and Romanski first met in the hot seat match after posting wins over Chuck Giallorenzo 6-5 and Nick Bouquet 7-3, respectively. Romanski put up a good fight, but Ignomirello was able to eke past him and win the hot seat 9-8.

On the one-loss side Bouquet fell to Wali Muhammad in a hill-hill nail-biter, but Giallorenzo triumphed over Steve Wade in another double-hill match 6-5. Giallorenzo and Muhammad moved on to face each other, with yet another hill-hill bout ensuing that ended up with Muhammad as the eventual 8-7 victor.

Romanski awaited Muhammad in the semifinal match, which he was able to dominate 7-3 to earn a rematch with Ignomirello. Ignomirello and Romanski split top honors with Ignomirello taking 60% and the win.

Results:
1st Tony Ignomirello $680
2nd Raymond Romanski $440
3rd Wali Muhammad $270
4th Chuck Giallorenzo $160
5th Nick Bouquet $100
Steve Wade
7th Stewart Warnock $80
Al Cacciola

by Alison M. Fischer, NYCgrind.com

Tony Liang recovered from a late loss to win the Second Annual Predator Tour Empire State Amateur Championships, while Frankie Hernandez took down the open division. The event was held February 26-27 at Raxx Pool Room in West Hempstead, NY, where 108 amateur players came out to compete for the coveted Empire State title, as well as a full field of 16 players for the open event Sunday.

Tony Liang recovered from a late loss to win the Second Annual Predator Tour Empire State Amateur Championships, while Frankie Hernandez took down the open division.

Clive Rose dominated the winners’ bracket, winning five matches to reach the hot seat match, where he defeated Liang 8-4. Liang then bounced back to defeat Naldo Troncoso in the semifinals 8-6. This event marked a strong performance for Troncoso, taking his highest finish on the tour to date. Naldo put on a display of heart to come back after an early loss to Gail Glazebrook. Stewart Warnock also had a great run, placing fourth after losing a tight hill-hill match to Troncoso.

After Liang eliminated Troncoso, he earned a rematch in the finals against Rose, where the tables were turned in his favor, as he won 10-6.

In the open/pro 10-ball event, Hernandez had a spectacular day, playing nearly flawless pool. His road to the finals included wins over Tony Robles 8-3, Chris Laz 8-3, and Oscar Bonilla 8-5 in the hot seat match.

After Robles’s early loss to Hernandez, he came back on the one-loss side to defeat Keith Larsen 8-5, George SanSouci 8-3, Mike Badstuebner 8-6, Joey Korsiak 8-6, George Rodriguez 8-5, and Oscar Bonilla 8-5. In the finals it was a match-up between two NY greats, and while Hernandez looked to run away with the set, Robles put up a good fight and battled back to keep it close. In the end it was Hernandez who came out on top 9-6.

Amateur Results:
1st Tony Liang $2,000
2nd Clive Davis $1,400
3rd Naldo Troncoso $900
4th Stewart Warnock $600
5th Gail Glazebrook $375
Amit Umadas
7th Andrew Kane $250
Mio Celaj
9th Frank Ramos $150
Omar Alli
Scott Bannon
Frank Cutrone
13th Rene Villalobos $100
Wilfredo Albay
Brian Hunter
Jack Smith

Open Results:
1st Frankie Hernandez $750
2nd Tony Robles $500
3rd Oscar Bonilla $230
4th George Rodriguez $140

by Jerry Tarantola, NYCgrind.com

Stewart Warnock and Shaun Wilkie took top honors in their respective divisions at the Ozone Billiards Predator Tour finale, held December 11-12. The $3,000-added event attracted 94 players to Raxx Pool Room in West Hempstead, NY, to participate in the two-day event that took place on the weekend of December 11-12, 2010.

L-R Open/Pro 2nd Place, Manny Chau, 1st Place, Shaun Wilkie, 3rd Place, Earl Herring

“The Scottish Lion” went through the winners’ side in the open division undefeated, with wins over Steven Wright 7-3, Phil Davis 7-5, Tim Cahill 7-3, Brian Hunter 7-5, Derek Schwager 7-6, Barry Banks 7-4, and Tony Conzensa 7-5. Tony Conzensa also went through the winners’ side in impressive fashion. Tony defeated Mike Davie 7-2, Andrew Kane, 7-3, Henry Lau 7-3, Michael Hertz 7-6, and Troy Deocharran 7-6 before Warnock sent him west 7-5 in the hot seat match. Conzensa bounced back with a clutch 7-5 win over Cahill to earn a rematch against Warnock in the finals.

The final match was a close contest but in the end, after coming so close all year long, Warnock saved the best for last by defeating Conzensa 7-5 to earn his first win on the Predator Tour.

Alongside the amateur event, the pro/open Event also drew a gritty field of some of the toughest players in the region. Legendary straight pool player Earl Herring was impressive with standout wins, defeating Mike Miller 8-4, Bill Dunsmore 8-5, and Tony Robles 8-7 before Wilkie defeated him 8-3.

In a feature match, Tony Robles was lined up against regional standout Manny Chau. Robles had defeated Chau earlier 8-4, but Chau bounced back with wins over Zion Zvi 8-5, Joey Korsiak 8-3, and Jeremy Sossei 8-4. In their rematch, Chau controlled the set and bested Robles 8-5 to set up a semifinal match against Herring.

Chau was ahead 4-0 at the beginning, but the cool and confident Herring staged a comeback. However, Chau fought back and won the match 8-5. Wilkie, who won this event last year, was determined to defend his championship and came out swinging against Chau. In the end, “Get Some” defended his victory by a score of 9-7.

L-R ABCD 2nd Place, Tony Conzensa, 1st Place, Stewart Warnock

Open Results:
1st Stewart Warnock $1,400
2nd Tony Conzensa $900
3rd Tim Cahill $650
4th Harry Lau $500
5th Troy Deocharran $325
Barry Banks
7th Richard Ng $250
Rob Omen
9th Derek Schwager $175
Wilfredo Albay
Ricky Ragoonan
Michael Hertz
13th Borana Andoni $125
Mark Pantovic
Brian Hunter
Erin McManus

Pro/Open Results:
1st Shaun Wilkie $1,000
2nd Manny Chau $750
3rd Earl Herring $500
4th Tony Robles $325
5th Jeremy Sossei $100
Rob Pole

On September 11-12, Tony Robles spearheaded the $1,000, added 1st Annual Reverend Clarence Keaton Memorial Tournament, as the 14th stop on the Ozone Billiards Predator Tour 2010 season. Reverend Clarence Keaton, known as “The Rev” by many players, frequented Master Billiards (where the memorial event was held), along with many other New York pool rooms. Well-loved by many members of the pool community, Reverend Clarence Keaton lost his battle against cancer last year. Reverend Keaton was a close friend of tour founder Tony Robles, and would regularly drive to the US Open and The Super Billiards Expo with Tony and his son Shawn Keaton, who is one of New York’s top emerging talents.

On September 11-12, Robles spearheaded the $1,000, added 1st Annual Reverend Clarence Keaton Memorial Tournament, as the 14th stop on the Ozone Billiards Predator Tour 2010 season.

Along with Shawn, a number of other up-and-coming players competed in the A/B/C/D 9-ball event in this memorial, including John Alicea, Noel Bensurto, Daniel Dagatdot, Jerry Tarantola, Mike Panzerella, and Stewart Warnock. In total, 70 of New York’s top players came out to help memorialize “The Rev’s” presence and influence on pool in NYC.

The story of the Amateur event of the Ozone Billiards Predator Tour 9-ball championships was centered around the transition of Daniel Dagotdot from a B player to an A player. Daniel has been playing progressively stronger, and building confidence in his game and tournament play. This up-and-coming
Fil-Am pool player has been impressive in a combination of dominant and clutch wins, helping him pull all of the pieces of his game together in a way that is a threat to any pool player in the NY landscape.

Daniel went through the field undefeated with wins over Tony Liang 7-5, Ed Culhane 7-4, John Alicea 7-4, Alex Gilvarg 7-4, Steve Wright 7-2, and ultimately Andrew Kane 7-4. Andrew Kane bounced back with a “W” over Arturo Reyes 7-5, giving him the re-match opportunity. In the final match, Daniel capped off an impressive tournament with a dominant performance, which led to a dominant 7-2 win for his first Ozone Billiards Predator Tour 9-ball win. In July’s tour stop at Amsterdam Billiards, Daniel had finished second
to John Alicea in the finals, and showed the field in this event that his close loss in the finals fueled him to take his game to the next level.

Other stand-out players in this event were Gail Glazebrook, who won a total of four matches, but lost one round before the money, along with Arturo Reyes and Steve Wright, who both showcased heart and explosive play.

Mariah Carey and Clarence Keaton.

Final Results
1st: Daniel Dagotdot $1,000
2nd: Andrew Kane $600
3rd: Arturo Reyes $400
4th: Steve Wright $300
5/6th: Patrick Meyers, Alex Gilvarg $200
7/8th: Luis Novas, Stewart Warnock $150
9-12th: Alberto Estevez
Willie Santiago, Mike Hertz, Juan Guzman $100

Kicking off late Saturday afternoon, the Open/Pro 10-ball event featured top-level talent such as Hunter Lombardo, Holden Chin, Jeremy Sossei, George Sansouci, Mike Miller, Sean Morgan and Zion Zvi. Top NY female player “Snooky” Diana Rojas showed a lot of heart to tangle with the big boys in
this event as well.

Top Florida pro player Hunter Lombardo stayed around NY long enough after the Seminole Empire State 10-Ball Championships to participate in this 10-ball event. Hunter opened with an impressive 8-3 win over Holden Chin, as well as a clutch hill-hill victory over Mhet Vergara, before losing to Tony
Robles 8-6 and Ginky 8-5.

Tony Robles brought his “A” game, and was determined to honor his late friend Clarence Keaton by showing the heart that “The Rev”, as he is known by his friends, always brought to the table. Tony defeated Phil Davis 8-5, Jeremy Sossei 8-6, Hunter Lombardo 8-6, and “Alaska” Sean Morgan 8-3… earning a spot in the finals undefeated. Meanwhile, Sean Morgan had been turning heads with gritty play, defeating Zion 8-4, Mike Wong 8-7, and Jerry Tarantola 8-6, before losing to Tony Robles 8-3, then Jeremy Sossei 8-7.

Robles brought his A game, and was determined to honor his late friend Clarence Keaton.

Young gun Jeremy Sossei opened up with an 8-6 win over Diana Rojas before losing to Tony Robles 8-6. However, Jeremy dug deep to grind back from the one-loss side to eventually meet Tony Robles in the finals for a rematch. Jeremy’s road to the finals led him through Zion Zvi 8-6, Mike Miller 8-2,
Jerry Tarantola 8-6 and Ginky 8-7. Jeremy followed the semifinal up with another hill-hill match in the finals to capture top honors in the 1st Annual Clarence Keaton Memorial.

Tony Robles and the Predator Tour would like to thank their sponsors:
Predator Cues, Poison Cues, Ozone Billiards, Delta-13 Racks, The Seminole Tribe of Florida, The Seminole Pro Tour, Poolonthenet.com, AZBilliards.com, www.pool.bz, Billiards Press, Cuetable.com, Master Chalk, RJH Custom Cues, Webb Custom Cues, Jim Murnak Cue Cases, Go4Pool.net, NYCgrind.com, Billiards Digest, Inside Pool Magazine, Pool & Billiards Magazine, Maxim Billiards & The Tournament Guide.

Open/Pro Final Results:
1st: Jeremy Sossei $800
2nd: Tony Robles $500
3rd: Sean Morgan $345
4th: George Sansouci $200

By Jerry Tarantola, NYCgrind.com

On June 26-27, 2010, the 10th tour stop of the Predator Tour season was hosted by Raxx Pool Room, Bar & Grill in West Hempstead, NY, where 70 players came out to compete in the $1,000 added Amateur A/B/C/D event and the Open/Pro 10-ball event.

In the amateur event, strong performances were seen from Diana Rojas, Pam Ogarek, Stewart Warnock, Neslihan Gürel, Pete Ziemak, Christian Smith, Scott Murphy, John Hacsi, and Matthew Harricharan.

However, John Hacsi, one of the oldest players on the tour, would be the player to go through the winner’s bracket unscathed, grinding through several tough matches. John defeated Joe Morace 7-5, Gene Hartnell 7-1, Neslihan “Ness” Gürel 7-6, Meshak Daniel 7-2, and Christian Smith 7-4 to earn a spot in the hot seat.

Another strong showing was put on by “Queen B” Borana Andoni as she showed a lot of heart, with two big comebacks. Borana grinded back from trailing 6-3 in the first round against Sam Li, showing heart and grit in her game early on. “Queen B” then went on to defeat Carlos Alvardo 7-5 and Pam Ogarek 7-3, before losing to Meshak Daniel 7-5.

Borana then bounced back in her first one-loss side match from another 6-3 deficit, earning her a spot in the second day of the two-day event. On Sunday, Borana defeated Neslihan Gürel in a close hill-hill 7-6 nail biter. Ness had an opportunity to get out of the set to claim the win, but her display of focus, smart play, and willingness to bounce back only barely failed her. As Neslihan continues on her journey as an aspiring pro in the US, her solid foundation shows a promising future.

Following up her win against Ness, Borana avenged her winner’s side loss in dominant fashion, defeating Meshak Daniel 7-3 before losing to Stewart Warnock 7-5. This 4th place finish makes “Queen B” the highest finishing female in the tour history. This is also another very notable finish for Stewart Warnock, who currently holds the #1 position in the “A” Class on the Predator Tour.

After defeating Borana, Stewart Warnock moved onto the semifinal, where he would have to settle for third place after a 7-3 loss to Christian Smith. In the final match, John Hacsi soundly beat Christian Smith 7-4 to claim the win, undefeated. Had Christian made it to seven games first, the race would have been extended to nine games.

Congratulations to John Hacsi on his dominant win, taking home the $1,000 first prize, along with Christian Smith for a strong runner-up finish. John, who only recently made a return to the game after a 40 year hiatus, has been proving on the Predator Tour that he still has what it takes… he currently holds the #2 position in the points standings for the “C” class.

Despite having to deal with some pain during this event, John Hacsi pushed through the tournament undeterred. Also, if you noticed a renewed spring in John Hacsi’s step, it is because he has found a new love in his life in his baby grandaughter, Brooke who visited him during the tournament. And as John has mentioned, this joy has definitely been reflecting in his pool game.

Final Results:
1st: John Hacsi – $1,000
2nd: Christian Smith – $650
3rd: Stewart Warnock – $450
4th: Borana Andoni – $350
5th/6th: Tony Liang, Meshak Daniel – $250
7th/8th: Neslihan Gurel, Scott Murphy – $150
9th-12th: Chuck Giallorenzo, Thomas Wan, Matthew Harricharan, Pete Ziemak – $100

The Ozone Billiards Predator 9-Ball Tour also attracted top players from the NY area to participate in the Open/Pro event that ran along side the Amateur event. Top players such as Shaun “Get Some” Wilkie, George SanSouci, Zion Zvi, Tony Robles, Evan Broxmeyer, and reigning Empire State Amateur 9-Ball Champion Kevin Guimond filled up a strong field.

“Get Some” Shaun Wilkie, who just came off a great 2nd place finish at last weekend’s Maryland State 14.1 Championships, went through the winner’s bracket with wins over George “Ginky” SanSouci 8-4, Kevin Guimond 8-7, and Tony Robles 8-7, earning him a spot in the finals undefeated.

Ginky bounced back from his second-round loss to catch a major gear with a series of dominant wins. The top NY player rolled over Evan Broxmeyer 8-0, Raphael Dabreo 8-1, and Wali Muhammad 8-1 before losing to Zion Zvi 8-3. In the match between Ginky and Zion, Ginky jumped out to a 2-0 lead, and was in complete control… before an unlucky kiss led the cue ball to scratch. That would end up to be the turning point of the set, as Zion turned the tables and took control of the set to win 8-3.

Wilkie, who just came off a great 2nd place finish at last weekend's Maryland State 14.1 Championships, went through the winner's bracket with wins over SanSouci 8-4, Guimond 8-7, and Robles 8-7, earning him a spot in the finals undefeated.

Final Results:
1st: Shaun Wilkie - $800
2nd: Zion Zvi – $500
3rd: Tony Robles - $210

by Jerry Tarantola, NYCgrind.com

Thomas Wan and Tony Robles won their respective divisions on the Ozone Billiards Predator Tour’s June 5-6 stop, taking first place in the amateur and open/pro events, respectively. The tour’s ninth stop of the season was hosted by Master Billiards in Queens, NY, where 66 of the strongest players in the tri-state area came out to compete at the $1,000-added event to show they have the grit to fight through the tough field.

Dinko Busanich showed a lot of heart in the amateur division, going through several gritty matches as he fought through the winners’ bracket to earn a spot in the finals. Busanich went through Carl Yusef Khan 7-3, Mike Panzarella 7-6, Jerry Tarantola 7-6, Daniel Dagotdot 7-5, Thomas Wan 7-4, and Mike Hertz 7-5 to reach the finals.

On the one-loss side, there were a lot of warriors battling for the chance to come from behind to make a statement. While there were stand-out performances by Raphael DaBreo, John Hacsi, Dave Shlemperis, Arturo Reyes, Lionel Rivera, Michael Hertz, and Daniel Dagotdot, only one player reached the finals unscathed. Long-time tour player Wan was impressive by defeating Mike Wong 7-3, Rivera 7-5, Stewart Warnock 7-6, Rivera again 7-5, Shlemperis, and Hertz 7-4 to get a shot at Busanich in the finals. There Wan was dominant by putting up a solid 9-5 score to capture his first Ozone Billiards Predator Tour win.

Early on in the open/pro 10-ball event, Master Billiards house pro George “Ginky” Sansouci made a big statement by playing nearly flawless pool in a dominant 8-2 victory over reigning U.S. Open champion Mika “Iceman” Immonen. Immonen won his next match 8-6 against a game Arturo Reyes before getting bumped out of the event by Marc “Spain” Vidal.

On the lower half of the bracket Tony “The Silent Assassin” Robles was silently taking down his competition, going through Ron Mason, Zion Zvi, Marc Vidal, and then an impressive 8-4 win over Jeremy Sossei to reach the hot seat. Sossei bounced back from the loss to Robles by defeating visiting player Marco Tschudi of Switzerland 8-3 to set up a rematch with Robles. Tschudi was turning heads with his fast-paced game with wins over Mike Miller 8-4, Zvi 8-5, Sansouci 8-3, and Vidal 8-6 before Sossei eliminated him. In the finals, the Ozone Billiards Predator Tour founder and battle-tested veteran Robles defeated Sossei 8-4 for his second win of the season.

The tour’s ninth stop of the season was hosted by Master Billiards in Queens, NY, where 66 of the strongest players in the tri-state area came out to compete at the $1,000-added event to show they have the grit to fight through the tough field.

Robles and Sossei

by Alison M. Fischer, NYCGrind

George Sansouci and Raphael DaBreo took home top finishes from the May 29-30 stop of the Ozone Billiards Predator 9-Ball Tour. The $1,000-added event brought a crew of 64 players to Master Billiards in Sunnyside, NY.

With the bracket for the amateur event being divided with A-B class players on the top half of the bracket and C/D level players on the bottom, one player from each grouping would meet in the winners’ side finals. DaBreo solidly defeated Stewart “The Lion” Warnock 7-4 in the A-B half of the bracket. On the bottom half, Asif Mostafa sent Arturo Reyes packing to the one-loss side 7-5. In the hot seat match, Mostafa claimed the hill-hill battle 7-6.

The quarterfinal match between Warnock and Sam Li was another close set, with Warnock pulling ahead to close it out 7-5 and move on to the semifinals. He and DaBreo went toe to toe, where DaBreo finished out the hill-hill game to win 7-6. In the single race-to-9 finals, the undefeated Mostafa and DaBreo went all in, fighting through to the very last game, with DaBreo coming out victorious.

In the open/pro 10-ball division, Sansouci was on point, defeating Carl Yusef Khan 8-2 and Oscar Bonilla 8-5 to meet with Frankie Hernandez for the hot seat, whom he also sent to the one-loss side.

Bonilla was also showing dominance in this event, having defeated Tony Robles 8-6 before his loss to “Ginky.” Following that loss, Bonilla bested Shaun Wilkie 8-6 and then Robles 8-4 before eliminating Hernandez in the semifinals 8-2.

Although Bonilla did not pose that much of a threat to Sansouci earlier on in the winners’ bracket, he came back with a vengeance in the finals. However, he came up short, with Sansouci winning the hill-hill game to close out the event with an undefeated victory.

George Sansouci and Raphael DaBreo took home top finishes from the May 29-30 stop of the Ozone Billiards Predator 9-Ball Tour.

Pro/Open Results:
1st George Sansouci $600
2nd Oscar Bonilla $400
3rd Frankie Hernandez $160

by Lea Andrews

Zion Zvi may have entered Raxx Pool Room in West Hempstead, NY, on May 22 without a Joss Northeast 9-Ball Tour win on the record, but it was there when he left undefeated on May 23. As the last man standing out of the original field of 31, Zvi pocketed the biggest chunk of the $1,500-added purse.

Zvi took care of tour regular Kevin Guimond 9-7 to reach the hot seat match against Mhet Vergara, who’d just notched a strong 9-4 win over George “Ginky” Sansouci. Zvi earned the hot seat with a breezy 9-2 victory over Vergara, who moved into the semifinals for another chance at the finals.

On the left side of the bracket, Brian Veska squeezed past Mike Wong 9-8 before marking up a 9-2 win over George Rodriguez, who’d just ousted Jarrod Clowery 9-4. Meanwhile, Scott Tollefson held Stu Warnock to six games to face Chance Chin, who’d blown past Ray Romanski 9-3. Chin found himself at the wrong end of another 9-3 match against Tollefson, though, to finish in seventh, and Tollefson followed him soon after running into Guimond, who advanced to the quarterfinals 9-6. There Guimond met up with Veska, who’d continued his winning streak 9-4 over San Souci, and while Veska fought hard to keep it going even further, he came up one game shy, landing in fourth 9-8. In the semifinals, Zvi’s two most recent victims went head to head to try to face him again, and Guimond rose well above 9-5 for one last shot at Zvi.

Zion Zvi may have entered Raxx Pool Room in West Hempstead, NY, on May 22 without a Joss Northeast 9-Ball Tour win on the record, but it was there when he left undefeated on May 23.

by InsidePOOL Staff

Stewart “The Scottish Lion” Warnock came back from a hill-hill defeat in the final four of the winners’ side to win the April 17 installment of the Tri-State Tour. This $750-added event attracted 39 players to Sandcastle Billiards in Edison, NJ.

Warnock was tripped up in the winners’ side final four when he faced off against Randy Schwager, who sent Warnock to the one-loss side of the chart after their hill-hill match. Meeting Schwager in the hot seat match was George Osipovitch, who had just bested William Zazor 7-4. It was a long battle, but Schwager went on to a 9-6 victory.

2nd place - Randy Schwager, 1st place - Stewart Warnock, 3rd place - George Osipovitch

From the west side, Warnock rallied, eliminating his next opponent, Serrafin Serrano, 7-5. Ron Mason tied with Serrano after he was ousted by Zazor 7-5. In the quarterfinal match, Warnock delivered a sound 8-5 defeat to Mason, sending him home in fourth place. Warnock seemed to pick up speed as he went, and sailed through his semifinal match against Osipovitch 8-5. In the finals, a rematch between Schwager and Warnock, both players traded rack for rack until the score reached 6-all. At that point, Warnock surged ahead and took the next three racks to win 9-6.

Results:
1st Stewart Warnock $660
2nd Randy Schwager $430
3rd George Osipovitch $265
4th Ron Mason $160
5th Serrafin Serrano $100
William Zazor
7th John Alicea $80
Scott Abramowitz