Mikael Ogaard
When it was all over, the Norwegian official winner (Mikael Ogaard) and runner-up (Emil-Andre Gangflot) at this past weekend’s 7th Annual Barry Behrman Memorial in Virginia Beach, VA might have raised glasses of Aquavit (Norway’s most popular libation, derived from potatoes and grain), clinked them and hollered “Skål!!” They both earned their nation’s traditional Norwegian exclamation of ‘goodwill and friendship,’ along with its traditional drink at the end of a long day of pool competition. Ogaard went undefeated to the hot seat. Gangflot, having lost his 2nd round match, won 10 on the loss side before he and fellow countryman, Ogaard, opted out of a final match and split the top two prizes. The $2,000-added event, completed in a day (Sat., April 8) drew 42 entrants to Behrman’s formerly-owned room, Q Master Billiards in Virginia Beach.
Ogaard’s path to the winners’ circle went through Jimmy Bird (5), Michael Russell (1), Mike Page (0) and Garrett Vaughan (3) before coming up against Josh Roberts in one of the winners’ side semifinals. Roberts had been responsible for sending Gangflot to the loss-side in the 2nd round. Vietnam’s Tram Nguyen, in the meantime, had defeated Bill Mason III (5), Justin Choiniere (4), Matthias Arnold (6), and Mike Tomlich (7) to pick up Troy Miller in the other winners’ side semifinal.
Nguyen defeated Miller 9-2 and was joined in the hot seat match by Ogaard, who’d sent Josh Roberts to the loss side 9-7. Ogaard claimed the hot seat over Nguyen 9-3 in what would prove to be Ogaard’s last match.
On the loss side, it was Miller, picking up Gangflot, who had, at that point, won seven of his eventual 10 loss-side matches; most recently, shutting out Garrett Vaughan and eliminating Nathan Childress 8-4. Roberts drew Mike Davis, Jr., who’d lost his opening round match to long-time, Mid-Atlantic rival Brandon Shuff, who, a week earlier, had won the MD State 9-Ball Championships. Davis set out on a seven-match, loss-side winning streak that had recently sent RJ Carmona (8-4) and David Hairfield (8-3) home.
Davis defeated Roberts 8-4 and was joined in the quarterfinals by Gangflot, who’d dispatched Miller 8-3. Davis was looking for his 8th loss-side win, Gangflot was looking for his 9th. Gangflot prevailed 8-5 and then, chalked up his 10th win with an 8-2 victory over Nguyen in the semifinals.
The decision was reached by the two Norwegians to split the top two prizes, the congratulated each other (no report on the availability of aquavit or an instance of glass-clinking) on being the last competitors standing in the 7th Annual Barry Behrman memorial.
Co-tour directors Tiger Baker and Gary Ornoff thanked the ownership and staff at Q Master Billiards, along with Cheryl Pritchard, Upstate AL for streaming services, digitalpool.com, and Outsville for a set of custom-made, Behrman-Memorial-stamped template racks.
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