Ron Casanzio went undefeated in a single elimination 10-ball event, while Marco Kam came from the loss side to win a concurrently-run triple elimination 8-ball tournament, under the auspices of the Western New York Tour. It all happened on Saturday, December 12, at Eastridge Billiards in Rochester, NY. With some duplication, the 10-ball event drew 12 entrants, while the 8-ball tournament drew 19.
In the 8-ball, triple elimination tournament, which has more twists and turns-of-event than your average fun house of mirrors, Jose Mirabel worked his way into the hot seat. He had defeated tour director Nick Brucato 3-2, as Jerry Sullivan downed Ron Casanzio 3-1 in the winners' side semifinals. Mirabel claimed the hot seat 3-2 over Sullivan, and waited on what turned out to be the fateful return of Marco Kam.
On the loss side, which, in a triple elimination format, sees players who lose, move to a third bracket to potentially re-appear in the second (normal) loss-side bracket, Sullivan and Brucato ended up battling in what amounted to the third bracket final; a single game, won by Sullivan, who advanced to the semifinals against Kam.
Kam defeated Sullivan 2-1, in what was a more or less normal losers' side final, and got a shot at Mirabel in the hot seat. He took full advantage, downing Mirabel in the final race-to-6, 6-3.
In the single elimination 10-ball event, a single round of play, with four byes, resulted in four matchups, moving toward a final. Casanzio downed Dave Grau 8-4. Dan Veinot defeated Andy Gibson 8-5. Nick Brucato avenged his loss in the 8-ball event by defeating Sullivan 8-3 in 10-ball. Marco Kam rounded out the tournament's reduction to four players with an 8-4 victory over Chris Braiman, owner of Eastridge Billiards.
Casanzio then defeated Veinot 8-4, as Brucato advanced to the finals with an 8-5 victory over Kam. Casanzio claimed the 10-ball title with an 8-5 win over Brucato in the finals.
The next stop on the Western New York Tour, scheduled for January 23, 2016, will again be hosted by Eastridge Billiards in Rochester.
Ron Casanzio went undefeated, while Mike Wishwanick came from the loss side, and benefited from a forfeit in the finals of a two-event stop on the Western New York Tour, held on Saturday, August 8. Casanzio's victory was in a 9-Ball Open-Pro event that drew 14 entrants, while Wishwanick competed in an 8-Ball Amateur event that drew 15, both to Eastridge Billiards in Rochester, NY.
Casanzio's five-match march to the Open-Pro 9-Ball winners' circle went through Tour Director Nick Brucato twice. They met first in the hot seat match. Casanzio had sent Dave Dreidel to the loss side 6-2, while Brucato defeated Wishwanick 6-1. Casanzio and Brucato locked up in a double hill battle that eventually sent Brucato to the loss side, leaving Casanzio in the hot seat.
On the loss side, every match played from the 9/12 slots to the semifinals finished with a 4-2 score. Dreidel joined up in the 5/6 slots and picked up Kyle Bova, recent winner over Dan Veinot and Dave Johnson. Wishwanick drew Jerry Sullivan, who'd eliminated Tracy Rothe and Ro Kam. Wishwanick took the quarterfinals over Dreidel (they would later be finalists in the 8-Ball event), but was eliminated by Brucato in the semifinals.
Fortunes were reversed somewhat in the finals. Casanzio and Brucato had fought a double hill, hot seat match, but the finals were a bit of a rout. Casanzio gave up only a single rack to complete his undefeated day and claim the 9-Ball Open-Pro title.
In the 8-Ball event, the eventual winner (Wishwanick) was sent to the loss side in the opening round by Jerry Sullivan, who advanced to a winners' side semifinal against Dreidel. Ro Kam, in the meantime, squared off against Andrew Bellimeo. Dreidel downed Sullivan 3-1 and in the hot seat match, squared off against Kam, who'd defeated Bellimeo 3-2. Dreidel's final match of the dual tournaments saw him claim the hot seat from Kam 3-1. An injury to his teenage daughter (reportedly serious, but not life threatening) forced him to leave the tournament early, which would eventually lead to Wishwanick's claiming of the event title.
On the loss side, Wishwanick was on a six-match winning streak that would eventually earn him that title. He shut out Dave Johnson and gave up just a single rack to Tom Cronin, which set him up for a re-match against Sullivan. Bellimeo drew Fran Imburgia, who'd eliminated Shane Longest and Charlie Kelly, both 3-1.
Wishwanick succesfully navigated his re-match against Sullivan, winning it 3-1, as Imburgia downed Bellimeo 3-2. Wishwanick finished Imburgia 3-1 in the quarterfinals, and in what proved to be his last hurdle, defeated Kam in the semifinals 3-1. Dreidel had left at that point, and the event title went to Wishwanick.
