 James Walden, Ryan (GM) and James Davis Sr. |
Eighty-five players converged on the high plains of West Texas for the third stop on the Fast Eddie's Olhausen 9 Ball Tour sponsored by Ray Schuler Custom Cues at the Fast Eddie's Billiards in Lubbock, TX.
Along with lots of new faces at the event, the event was brewing to be very competitive in the talent area with the likes of James Walden, Jui Lung Chen, Al Mason, James Davis Sr. and Jr., Shane Harvey, Jason Dutchover, Anna Kostanian and the Tafoya family armada from Albuquerque.
Finishing in the 13-16th placements were Jacob Pena, Emilio Maestas, Joel Nabia and Eric Aicinena. Nice job by all!
Finishing out in the 9-12th positions were Tommy Tokoph, Greg Archuleta, Casey Armor and James Davis Jr. All these gentlemen were not ready to stop but had a great weekend.
Filling out the 7-8th places were Lewis Jones, our Tour director, and Phil Bohanon of Lubbock. Both gentlemen have been putting extra time on the tables and it showed this weekend.
Nick Tafoya, the young gun from New Mexico, and Jui Lung Chen, the 2006 Tour Player of the Year, occupied the 5-6th spots. Both are always a threat to win any event!
Gordon Van der Veer of Dallas had a very respectable 4th place finish. Gordon is making a name for himself as a top flight contender with his “no quit” attitude. A great finish for a very nice gentleman.
Coming in third place, Al Mason of Austin has been a proven thoroughbred for years in tournament and heads up play. Al raced through the winner's bracket receiving his only loss from James Davis Sr. for the hot seat. It's great to see Al back on the tournament trail as he is always a real crowd pleaser.
James Walden of Oklahoma style of play can be described by Tracy Sanders as James was playing one of his early matches with the statement, “Does this guy ever miss?” James has a quiet demeanor but is a fierce competitor at the table. James started his run with victories over Daniel Tarpley, Phil Bohanon, Lewis Jones and Casey Armor before being derailed by James Davis Sr. in the semi-finals on the winner's side. From the left side of the brackets, he took out Nick Tafoya, Gordon Van der Veer and Al Mason to reach the finals.
James Davis Sr. aka “Bastrop”, multiple Tour event winner, went quietly to work to grab the hot seat with triumphs over Phillip Ormsby, Wilfred Maestas, Dustin Bishop, James Davis Jr., James Walden and Al Mason.
With Davis holding the hot seat and Walden coming off the one loss side, the final match was set. Davis jumped to an early lead and kept it with the final score of 9-5. Congratulations to both of these warriors for putting on a great show!
A great big thanks to Fast Eddie's Billiards, Big Lew, Darren, Ryan and your staff for hosting a great event! Fast Eddie's is always on the move with new locations. Be sure to check them out if you're ever in the area. Thanks to Olhausen Billiards and Ray Schuler Custom Cues for being there. You are the pillars that support the Tour and it just wouldn't happen without you!
Again, thanks to Jack and Elvie of Mystick Cues, Ron Geyer of The Custom Cue Connection, Robbie Tims and Jeff Riedell of Behind the 8 Ball Cue Sales and Service for supporting the event.
The next event is March 24-25 at the new Fast Eddie's in College Station. Come on up and join us in Aggieland. Until then, keep knocking the backs of those pockets out!
