UPA Player of the Year – Shane Van Boening

Phoenix, AZ (February 5, 2008) - The United States Professional Poolplayers Association (the "UPA") has officially declared its 2007 Player of the Year. The tour would like to congratulate Shane Van Boening for his accomplishments within the course of this past year and for representing the tour with such professionalism.

Van Boening has brought to the table an exceptional skill/talent and vast determination for perfecting the game. Along the road to success in 2007, he picked up many coveted titles and/or placed exceptionally high in many exclusive events both nationally and internationally. Included in this list of events are the following:

UPA Pro Tour Championship - 7th place
Enjoypool.com 9-Ball Championship - 2nd place
Predator World 10-Ball Championship - 1st place
World Summit of Pool - 2nd
2007 U.S. Open Championship - 1st place
2007 World Pool Championship - 17th place
Mosconi Cup Team Member - 2nd place

Upon receiving the news of this award, Van Boening commented that "This title is an honor for me. All of the players are tough on tour. I am thankful for the UPA's help and encouragement."

The UPA sends its best wishes to its newest Player of the Year and looks forward to watching Shane advance his career in the future. If you would like to read more about this player, look for him as the feature article in our upcoming UPA Magazine release.