Stewart Warnock has been either the winner or runner-up in at least one Predator or Tri-State Tour stop, every year over the past five years. To keep that streak intact, he chalked up his first 2015 Predator win on the weekend of January 17-18. Warnock came back from a defeat among the winners' side final four, and defeated hot seat occupant, Miguel Laboy in the Predator Tour's season opener. On the Open/Pro side, Jeffrey Ignacio and Earl Strickland battled twice, with Ignacio claiming the second, final match to claim that title. The $500-added Open/Pro event drew 22 entrants to Steinway Billiards in Astoria (Queens), NY. The $1,000-added Amateur event drew a record 110 entrants.

 

"Every year, we go up," said Tour Director Tony Robles. "Last year, we drew 105 for our season opener and the year before that, it was 90-something."

 

Robles won the season opener in 2014, coming back from a hot seat defeat, to meet and defeat Mike Dechaine in the finals. This year, Earl Strickland defeated Robles 7-4  in a winners' side semifinal, as the eventual winner, Ignacio, sent Frankie Hernandez to the losers' bracket 7-5. Strickland took the first of his two versus Ignacio 7-5, and waited for him to get back.

 

Both Hernandez and Robles would lose their second match immediately; Hernandez to Jorge Rodriguez 7-5 and Robles to Zion Zvi 7-4. Rodriguez defeated Zvi 7-5 in the quarterfinals, and was then himself defeated by Ignacio in the semifinals 7-3. Ignacio took full advantage of his re-match opportunity, defeating Strickland 11-5 to claim the Open/Pro title.

 

In the Amateur event, Laboy and Warnock met first in a winners' side semifinal, won by Laboy 7-4. Rene Villalobos, after surviving a double hill battle against Adrian Daniel, joined Laboy in the battle for the hot seat. Though Villalobos would draw within a game of double hill, Laboy won it to claim the hot seat.

 

On the loss side, Warnock drew Victor Nau, who'd gotten by Duc Lam and Al Zea, both 7-5. Daniel picked up Mike Figueroa, who'd defeated Chris Guariglia 7-5 and Chris Brooks 7-4. Warnock advanced to the quarterfinals on the heels of a double hill win over Nau. Figueroa eliminated Daniel 7-5 to join him.

 

Warnock then defeated Figueroa 9-7, and in the semifinals, Villalobos 8-7. Warnock claimed the event title, successfully wreaking vengeance for the earlier loss with a 9-6 win in the finals.

It had been on Tony Robles' mind for quite a while; the creation of a Northeast regional BCA Pool League tournament.

 

"I read all about their tournaments on-line," he said, "and I noticed that the BCA had regional tournaments in places like the Midwest and Texas, but nobody had ever done one in the Northeast.

 

"So I was all set to put one together," he added, "and Snookers ended up doing one last year."

 

Undaunted, Robles, operating under the auspices of his newly created Silent Assassin Productions,  with CSI sponsorship, created the five-event tournament, and while, thanks to Snookers, it wasn't the first BCA Regional Tournament in the Northeast, it was the first such regional tournament in New York City.

 

The event, held on the weekend of June 6-8, was separated into five separate tournaments. Robles combined some BCA Regional categories, reducing an original plan for eight events. The $2,000-added, 1st Annual NYC 8-Ball Championships were hosted by Steinway Billiards in Astoria, NY, and began on Friday evening, June 6 at 6 p.m. They concluded with the finals of the Men's Grand Masters event, very early on Monday morning, June 9.

 

In all, the tournament(s) played host to 83 entrants, the largest number of which (23) signed on for the Mixed Open event. The Men's Grand Masters event and the Women's Leisure event drew 16 each. The Men's Leisure event drew 15, while the Mixed Advanced event drew 13.

 

In the interest of space, and time, we'll tackle the event with the marquee names first – the Men's Grand Master event – and look to provide a later story on the other four events, either separately or together. 

 

In the planned-for, 16-entrant Men's Grand Master tournament, Jayson Shaw went undefeated,  downing Sean Morgan twice in the process. He faced Zion Zvi in a winners' side semifinal, while Morgan squared off against Chris Derewonski. Shaw sent Zvi to the losers' bracket 8-3, while Morgan was busy defeating Derewonski 8-4. Shaw and Morgan battled to double hill for possession of the hot seat, and with alternate breaks in play, Shaw broke rack #15 and won it.

 

On the loss side, Tony Robles, who'd defeated Jerry Tarantola and Jude Rosenstock, both 8-3,  was waiting for Zion Zvi. Michael Yednak, who'd gotten by Al Zea 8-6 and Jorge Rodriguez 8-3, drew Derewonski. Robles advanced to the quarterfinals 8-2 over Zvi and was met by Derewonski, who'd eliminated Yednak 8-4.

Derewonski and Robles battled to double hill in those quarterfinals, before Derewonski prevailed for a re-match versus Morgan in the semifinals. Though Derewonski would chalk up one more rack against Morgan than he had in the winners' side semifinal, Morgan defeated him a second time. Shaw, though, stepped up his pace in his second match against Morgan, defeating him in the finals 8-4 to claim the first Men's Grand Masters title in the first NYC 8-Ball Championships.

 

Promising "bigger and better events in the future," Robles and his Silent Assassin Productions team, which included John Leyman as tour director and referee for the event(s), thanked Steinway Billiards' owner, Manny Stamatakis and his staff, as well as sponsors Cue Sports International, Delta-13 Racks, Predator Cues, National Amateur Pool League (PlayNAPL.com), Gotham City Technologies, NYC Grind (Jerry and Alison Fischer), AZBilliards, Upstate AL, Joey Leon, and Bob Cmbwsu.