Archive Page

Austria’s Lechner, Finland’s Siekkinen and Spain’s Ruiz lead the pack at 14.1 Championships

Francisco Sanchez-Ruiz (Erwin Dionisio)

Three of the 2019 American 14:1 Straight Pool Championships’ competitors made it through the event’s three-day Round Robin phase (Oct. 22-24) with undefeated (6-0) records. They were arguably not the names you might have expected from this particular field of 42 entrants, which included six former winners of the championship title – Mika Immonen (2007), Johnny Archer (2011), John Schmidt (2012), Thorsten Hohmann (2013), Darren Appleton (’14 & ’15), and Neils Feijen (2016). Two-time runner up Danny Barouty (to Ed Hodan in 2006 and Bob Maidhof in 2008) was competing, as were runner-ups Shaun Wilkie (to Danny Harriman in 2010), John Schmidt (to Archer, 2011), Archer (to Hohmann, 2013), Hohmann (to Schmidt in 2012, Darren Appleton in 2015 & Klenti Kaci in 2018), Immonen (to Feijen in 2016) and Dennis Orcollo (to Konrad Juszczyszyn in 2017).
 
Instead, Austria’s Max Lechner, Finland’s Jan Siekkinen and Spain’s Francisco Sanchez-Ruiz went undefeated through the Round Robin phase of the event and were awarded a bye in the 24-entrant single elimination phase which began today (Friday) and will continue through tomorrow (Saturday) at Q Master Billiards in Virginia Beach, VA. Lechner was paired in his seven-entrant round robin flight and won his six race-to-125 matches by an average of 102 balls. He gave up, in order, one to David Alcaide, 66 to Marc Vidal, 24 to Tom Walter, seven to Blair Levandowski and 41 to Don Polo
 
Siekkinen competed in what was arguably the event’s toughest group of seven and went through Thorsten Hohmann (43), Johnny Archer (81), Lee Van Corteza (59), Sean Morgan (21), Neil Gold (65) and Pascal Dufresne (44); an average of 52. Ruiz got by John Schmidt (66), Petri Makkonen (25), Bob Hunter (55), Mike Badsteubner (27), Reymart Lim (72) and Michael Frank (-1); average of 40.
 
The remaining five competitors to receive opening round byes into single elimination were all 5-1 in the round robin competition. Ruslan Chinakhov lost his opening round match to Neils Feijen, one of two matches that Feijen won by shutout, 125-0 (the other was against Bob Madenjian). Chinakhov went on to down Albin Ouschan, Ralph Eckert and deliver a second shutout to Madenjian, before defeating Holden Chin and Darren Frank. Dennis Orcollo lost his opening match to Darren Appleton in one of the round robin’s closest games, 125-116. Orcollo went on to meet and defeat Maksim Dudanets, Marco Teutscher, Danny Barouty, Earl Herring and Steve Matthieu.
 
Feijen was the only member of this year’s European Mosconi Cup team who competed in this event, and while he did chalk up two shutout victories, he did lose his opening match to Albin Ouschan 125-44. In addition to the shutouts, he defeated Ralph Eckert, Holden Chin and D. Frank. The sport’s acknowledged comedian, Alex Pagulayan opened the round robin proceedings against Mika Immonen, and together, they produced the round robin’s official closest game, won by The Lion 125-119. Pagulayan went on to defeat Max Eberle before losing his one match to Shaun Wilkie in another close match 125-104. He finished with victories over Michael Yednak, Steve Lillis and Jay McWorter.
  
As noted above, Immonen’s path to his 5-1 round robin record began with a defeat by Pagulayan. The Iceman would go on to down Eberle, Wilkie, Yednak, Lillis and McWorter.
 
Friday morning competition in the single elimination phase saw eight matches scheduled. Five of the 16 competitors had also logged 5-1 records in the round robin phase; tie breakers were head-to-head results and beyond that, total ball counts. John Schmidt was scheduled to face Maksim Dudanets, who finished the round robin phase with a 3-3 record. The marquee match was likely to be Albin Ouschan (5-1) against Johnny Archer (4-2), who closed out Thursday evening’s matches with a necessary win of Sean Morgan that gave him the record he needed to advance.
 
The Darren Appleton (5-1) and Shaun Wilkie (4-2) combination was garnering interest and was selected as the Billiard Sports Network’s Friday morning choice for live broadcast. Ralf Souquet, competing in the round robin flight with the 6-0 Lechner, advanced with his 5-1 match record to face Reymart Lim (3-3). Marco Teutscher (5-1) was scheduled to face Ralph Eckert (3-3). 
 
Remaining matches pitted Lee Van Corteza against Petri Makkonen, Thorsten Hohmann versus Marc Vidal, and David Alcaide squaring off against Max Eberle. 
 

Appleton Looks Primed to Defend: Hohmann & Van Boening Collision Course at World 14.1

Corey Deuel eliminated last year’s semi-finalist Eberle in three innings. (Photo – Eli Ceballos)

New York City, NY –  Only the best of the best are left. Day 4 & 5 saw many champions laid to the wayside as the cream is quickly rising to the top at the Andy Cloth World Tournament of 14.1 . Van Boening crushed Danny Harriman while Appleton proved to Immonen his 14.1 prowess. A who's who of world class players are in attendance to etch their name into history's elite of the father of all pool games. Darren Appleton, Thorsten Hohmann, Stephan Cohen, Shane Van Boening, Johnny Archer, Earl Strickland, Mika Immonen, Tony Robles and many, many more. The main event will take place once more in New York City. As usual, a star studded field is expected this year at Steinway Billiards Cafe, who is once more hosting this world class event. The World Tournament Official Equipment include Viking Cue with all matches played on Andy Cloth. Event partners include Mr.Tom Gleich, Dr. Gregory Diehl, Mr. Greg Hunt of Amsterdam Billiards, & Mr. Jim Gottier of Greenleaf's Pool Room. Patron sponsors include Mr. Harold Siegel of Excelsior Graphics, Dr. James Heller, Mr. Charles Eames of Charles Eames Photography, Frank Scharbach of Frank's Billard Cafe, Focused Apparel and the National Amateur Pool League. 
 
The World Tournament will be live streamed on AZBTV , order by going to www.worldstraightpool.com . Official media partners are www.NYCGrind.com , Pool & Billiard Magazine, & tech support by Gotham City Technologies. 
 
Complete group schedule at www.worldstraightpool.com for all matches. Tickets to watch live in person sold on site.
 
Dennis Orcullo looked like the Asian to beat after his 152 & out high run record against Roberto Gomez in the final 32. And though Hohmann had struggled in the event with already one loss and a couple close calls, he looked more like himself in this match as he manhandled Orcullo 200-105. Harriman had done well in the event especially with a strong win over Cohen of France, but he was helpless against Van Boening after SVB took over with another 100+ ball run.
 
Shaun Wilkie was trying to shake off his series of 9th place finishes but a poor match from him and Wirsbitzki ended with Reiner on top 200-133 and Shaun having to wait another year. Strickland demolished Archer in the legends battle 200-43 after Earl ran a 126. Deuel gave Eberle no chances in a 200-31 rout which saw Deuel run 100 balls and 90 to win the match in 3 innings.
 
Kiamco played his weakest match thus far giving Lombardo chances that he couldn't take over. Kiamco wins 200-104 but a first time top 16 finish for Lombardo is encouraging. Filler of Germany destroyed Shaw of Scotland 200-80 in the battle of the young guns. Shaw had defeated Filler early in the event round robin. 
 
In the final marquee match, two world champions faced each other for the upteenth time. Mika took a lead early in the match with a 80 ball run, but it was not enough as Appleton came back with a 96 ball &out win. 
 
Kiamco makes his second quarters appearance while Hohmann makes his 5th.
Appleton will make his 4th consecutive quarter-finals appearance looking to be the first player to defend the World 14.1 crown since Steve Mizerak in the 1980's. 

Kiamco Blanks Hohmann: Fulcher Runs 103: Filler Creates Buzz at Andy Cloth World 14.1

17 year old European Junior Champion Joshua Filler and Tony Robles (Photo courtesy of Charles Eames)

New York City, NY –  In some dramatic matches, it was another record setting day of runs on Day 2 of the Andy Cloth 75th World Tournament of 14.1. 3 Times World 14.1 Champion Hohmann ran into a buzzsaw named Kiamco and USA favorite Danny Harriman held a good lead before Scotland's Jonni Fulcher ran a tournament high 103. And young German Joshua Filler is all the buzz with his fast paced offensive style taking down champions. A who's who of world class players are in attendance to etch their name into history's elite of the father of all pool games. Darren Appleton, Thorsten Hohmann, Stephan Cohen, Shane Van Boening, Johnny Archer, Earl Strickland, Mika Immonen, Tony Robles and many, many more. The main event will take place once more in New York City. As usual, a star studded field is expected this year at Steinway Billiards Cafe, who is once more hosting this world class event. The World Tournament Official Equipment include Viking Cue with all matches played on Andy Cloth. Event partners include Mr.Tom Gleich, Dr. Gregory Diehl, Mr. Greg Hunt of Amsterdam Billiards, & Mr. Jim Gottier of Greenleaf's Pool Room. Patron sponsors include Mr. Harold Siegel of Excelsior Graphics, Dr. James Heller, Mr. Charles Eames of Charles Eames Photography, Frank Scharbach of Frank's Billard Cafe, Focused Apparel and the National Amateur Pool League. 
 
The World Tournament will be live streamed on AZBTV , order by going to www.worldstraightpool.com . Official media partners are www.NYCGrind.com , Pool & Billiard Magazine, & tech support by Gotham City Technologies. 
 
Complete group schedule at www.worldstraightpool.com for all matches. Tickets to watch live in person sold on site.
 
In a feature match, Warren Kiamco (PHL) was up against Thorsten Hohmann (GER), for more than likely the decider on who would win the group and get a bye in the round of 24 next. For those who remember last year, Kiamco knocked Hohmann out in the final 16. And he didn't look like he was concerned with revenge when he ran a perfect 101 to skunk the 3x World Champion 100-0. Hohmann still looks good to qualify with the second spot in the group.
 
Dennis Orcullo hasn't broken a sweat yet with his win over Bob Jewett, and Roberto Gomez has cruised to undefeated matches. Actually, all three Filipinos who entered the event remain undefeated for a 15-0 record collectively. 
 
On the opposite side, Mika Immonen faces a challenge as he has dropped 2 losses already and will need to win both his final matches on Day 3 to qualify. He nearly spoiled his chances to even advance last night when Eisenberg of CA needed only a rack to finish off the Iceman, but Mika came back for a narrow 100-86 win.
 
Danny Harriman also escaped Frankie Hernandez's comeback and will need to win his remaining 2 matches to qualify.
 
Junior European champion Joshua Filler was wiped out on Day 1 by another fast shooter Jayson Shaw of Scotland, but today he showed his talent by defeating one of the event's darkhorse favorites Tony Robles 100 – 39. 
 
Down 53 to -3, Jonni Fulcher made an amazing comeback with a 103 ball run against Harriman and now carries the event high run. But with 4 days coming up with races to 150, 200, and 300, it's likely there will be bigger runs to come!
 
Germany's European Seniors champion Reiner Wirsbitzki also went to 5-0. 
 
Day 3 will conclude with 32 players eliminated from the field and remaining 24 players in the money, racing to 150 points, and in the hunt for the World 14.1 title.
 
Tonight 8pm Hall of Fame Banquet Live Streamed for FREE at www.Ustream.tv/channel/azbtv
 
Each of the three players will have to play 6 matches each in the first stage of the championship. If they qualify in their respective groups, they advance to a double elimination knockout stage. If they advance again, they qualify for the final stage of 16 players in a single knockout stage, but with longer match races. The finals will be a race to 300 balls made first, which could take as long as 6 hours.
 
In addition to the World Tournament will be the 5th Annual Straight Pool Hall of Fame. A gourmet banquet dinner along with speeches from celebrity guests will take place July 15th at 8pm at Steinway Billiards. A special video presentation of each inductee will be produced and presented by www.NYCGrind.com's Jerry Tarantola.  The HOF Live Streamed for FREE at www.Ustream.tv/channel/azbtv
 
Support straight pool and the 14.1 Hall of Fame by joining the World 141 Club & for a very inexpensive sponsorship, become one of the 141 special people joining the 141 Club which will fund this year's events. The list of benefits & gifts are huge. Goto http://worldstraightpool.com/tickets.html . Tickets will be sold at the door during the event. Sponsors and private contributors can still join this year's event. Final added money and fundraising for the 5th Annual Straight Pool Hall of Fame are still being generated. To help be a part of this treasured event, please contact Dragon Promotions and join the World 141 Club.
Get the latest news and complete results of all years at www.worldstraightpool.com and daily year round updates on  www.facebook.com/Worldstraightpool  . Follow Dragon Promotions news at  www.twitter.com/Dragonpromoter
 
Vendor spaces are also available, for more information on player registration, sponsorship, or if you would like to submit a comment, please email worldstraightpoolchampionships@gmail.com or contact Dragon Promotions at 1-407-782-4978. Full event info is atwww.dragonpromotions.com
 

 

Appleton, Hohmann, Gomez, Van Boening 3-0: Shaw Runs 99 & Out

Patron Sponsor Randy Goldwater with Thorsten Hohmann

In some savory showdowns on Day 1, UK's Appleton looked strong and ready to defend his title in his one sided wins, while Scotland's young gun Jayson Shaw ran a 99 to capture the high run of the event thus far. The Andy Cloth World Tournament of 14.1 . A who's who of world class players are in attendance to etch their name into history's elite of the father of all pool games. Darren Appleton, Thorsten Hohmann, Stephan Cohen, Shane Van Boening, Johnny Archer, Earl Strickland, Mika Immonen, Tony Robles and many, many more. The main event will take place once more in New York City. As usual, a star studded field is expected this year at Steinway Billiards Cafe, who is once more hosting this world class event. The World Tournament Official Equipment include Viking Cue with all matches played on Andy Cloth. Event partners include Mr.Tom Gleich, Dr. Gregory Diehl, Mr. Greg Hunt of Amsterdam Billiards, & Mr. Jim Gottier of Greenleaf's Pool Room. Patron sponsors include Mr. Harold Siegel of Excelsior Graphics, Dr. James Heller, Mr. Charles Eames of Charles Eames Photography, Frank Scharbach of Frank's Billard Cafe, Focused Apparel and the National Amateur Pool League. 
 
The World Tournament will be live streamed on AZBTV , order by going to www.worldstraightpool.com . Official media partners are www.NYCGrind.com , Pool & Billiard Magazine, & tech support by Gotham City Technologies. 
 
Complete group schedule at www.worldstraightpool.com for all matches. Tickets to watch live in person sold on site.
 
The day started with last year's semi-finalist Max Eberle defeating strong Kevin Clark of PA 100-15.  Shaw looking really good with a 99 and out over Dobosenski of WI and alSo Shaw annilhilated junior European champion Joshua Filler 100-14. 
 
Roberto Gomez of the Philippines makes his debut in 14.1 and had an impressive win over Mika Immonen and also won three more matches making him the favorite to win his Group 7 and earn a first round bye the next stage.
 
Van Boening looked stout with his three wins including a marquee win over Danny Harriman. Harriman took the bronze in 2007 World 14.1. Van Boening also had a personal best 305 ball run during practice on Sunday night which was on the livestream.
 
In the final marquee match, Appleton was too much to handle as he gave Strickland no out in a 100-32 rout. Appleton had a 87 ball run earlier in another match.
 
Germany's Reiner Wirsbitzki also went 3-0 included an escape from Eberle in a 100-93 win when Eberle scratched with an open table needing only 8 balls.
 
Tues Day 2 July 14 TV Stream
 
10:30 AM  Joshua Filler GER vs Tony Robles USA
12:00 PM Corey Deuel USA vs Jim Gottier USA
1:30 PM Mika Immonen FIN vs Dieter Johns GER 
3:00 PM Shane Van Boening USA vs Tom Karabotsos USA
5:00 PM Tony Robles USA vs Jayson Shaw SCO
6:30 PM Thorsten Hohmann GER vs Warren Kiamco PHL
8:00 PM Johnny Archer USA vs Danny Barouty USA 
 
Wed Day 3 July 15 TV Stream
 
10:30 AM Johnny Archer USA vs Jude Rosenstock USA
12:00 PM Warren Kiamco PHL vs Ivica Putnik CRO
1:30 PM Darren Appleton ENG vs James Landrum USA
3:00 PM Dennis Orcullo PHL vs Corey Deuel USA
8pm Hall of Fame Banquet Live Streamed for FREE at www.Ustream.tv/channel/azbtv
 
Each of the three players will have to play 6 matches each in the first stage of the championship. If they qualify in their respective groups, they advance to a double elimination knockout stage. If they advance again, they qualify for the final stage of 16 players in a single knockout stage, but with longer match races. The finals will be a race to 300 balls made first, which could take as long as 6 hours.
 
In addition to the World Tournament will be the 5th Annual Straight Pool Hall of Fame. A gourmet banquet dinner along with speeches from celebrity guests will take place July 15th at 8pm at Steinway Billiards. A special video presentation of each inductee will be produced and presented by www.NYCGrind.com's Jerry Tarantola.  The HOF Live Streamed for FREE at www.Ustream.tv/channel/azbtv
 
Support straight pool and the 14.1 Hall of Fame by joining the World 141 Club & for a very inexpensive sponsorship, become one of the 141 special people joining the 141 Club which will fund this year's events. The list of benefits & gifts are huge. Goto http://worldstraightpool.com/tickets.html . Tickets will be sold at the door during the event. Sponsors and private contributors can still join this year's event. Final added money and fundraising for the 5th Annual Straight Pool Hall of Fame are still being generated. To help be a part of this treasured event, please contact Dragon Promotions and join the World 141 Club.
Get the latest news and complete results of all years at www.worldstraightpool.com and daily year round updates on  www.facebook.com/Worldstraightpool  . Follow Dragon Promotions news at  www.twitter.com/Dragonpromoter
 
Vendor spaces are also available, for more information on player registration, sponsorship, or if you would like to submit a comment, please email worldstraightpoolchampionships@gmail.com or contact Dragon Promotions at 1-407-782-4978. Full event info is atwww.dragonpromotions.com
 

 

 

Group Draw & Schedule of TV Matches at Andy Cloth World 14.1

Huge match-ups kickoff Day 1 of the historic Andy Cloth World Tournament of 14.1 . Some of the big marquee line-ups include a savory Van Boening vs Harriman at 6:30pm and a finale feature with defending champion Appleton vs Strickland! A who's who of world class players will be in attendance to etch their name into history's elite of the father of all pool games. Darren Appleton, Thorsten Hohmann, Stephan Cohen, Shane Van Boening, Johnny Archer, Earl Strickland, Mika Immonen, Tony Robles and many, many more. The main event will take place once more in New York City. As usual, a star studded field is expected this year at Steinway Billiards Cafe, who is once more hosting this world class event. The World Tournament Official Equipment include Viking Cue with all matches played on Andy Cloth. Event partners include Mr.Tom Gleich, Dr. Gregory Diehl, Mr. Greg Hunt of Amsterdam Billiards, & Mr. Jim Gottier of Greenleaf's Pool Room. Patron sponsors include Mr. Harold Siegel of Excelsior Graphics, Dr. James Heller, Mr. Charles Eames of Charles Eames Photography, Frank Scharbach of Frank's Billard Cafe, Focused Apparel and the National Amateur Pool League. 
 
The World Tournament will be live streamed on AZBTV , order by going to www.worldstraightpool.com . Official media partners are www.NYCGrind.com , Pool & Billiard Magazine, & tech support by Gotham City Technologies. 
 
Complete group schedule at www.worldstraightpool.com for all matches. Tickets to watch live in person sold on site.
 
Monday Day 1 July 13 *matches subject to change
 
10:30 AM Max Eberle USA vs Kevin Clark USA
12:00 PM Roberto Gomez PHL vs Wi Nei CHN
1:30 PM Jayson Shaw SCO vs Ronald Dobosenski USA
3:00 PM Mika Immonen FIN vs Roberto Gomez PHL
5:00 PM Stephan Cohen FRA vs Danny Barouty
6:30 PM Shane Van Boening USA vs Danny Harriman USA
8:00 PM Darren Appleton ENG vs Earl Strickland USA
 
Tues Day 2 July 14
 
10:30 AM  Joshua Filler GER vs Tony Robles USA
12:00 PM Corey Deuel USA vs Jim Gottier USA
1:30 PM Mika Immonen FIN vs Dieter Johns GER 
3:00 PM Shane Van Boening USA vs Tom Karabotsos USA
5:00 PM Tony Robles USA vs Jayson Shaw SCO
6:30 PM Thorsten Hohmann GER vs Warren Kiamco PHL
8:00 PM Johnny Archer USA vs Danny Barouty USA 
 
Wed Day 3 July 15
 
10:30 AM Johnny Archer USA vs Jude Rosenstock USA
12:00 PM Warren Kiamco PHL vs Ivica Putnik CRO
1:30 PM Darren Appleton ENG vs James Landrum USA
3:00 PM Dennis Orcullo PHL vs Corey Deuel USA
8pm Hall of Fame Banquet Live Streamed for FREE at www.Ustream.tv/channel/azbtv
 
Group 1
Darren Appleton ENG
Earl Strickland  USA
Steve Lipsky USA 
Tom Gleich  NC
James Landrum IA
James Heller   USA
Bob Cozzolino  IL
 
 
Group 2
Shane Van Boening USA
Jonni Fulcher  SCO
Danny Harriman USA
Frankie Hernandez USA 
Eugene Ok  NY
Jim Colling USA
Tom Karabotsos IL
 
Group 3
Max Eberle  USA
Reiner Wirsbitzki GER
Kevin Clark USA
Jonathan Smith NY
Alex Masucci NY
Sean Morgan NY
Eddie Kwok NY
 
 
 Group 4
Dennis Orcullo PHL
Corey Deuel  USA
Mike Davis USA
Hunter Lombardo FL
Jim Gottier VA
Frank Scharbach GER
Bob Jewett CA
 
 Group 5
Thorsten Hohmann   
Warren Kiamco PHL
Shaun Wilkie   USA
Bob Madenjian  USA
Ivica Putnik CRO
Charles Eames NY
Randy Hanson IA
 
Group 6
Stephan Cohen
Johnny Archer USA
Danny Barouty   USA 
Michael Yednak USA
Rhys Chen NY
Peter Hull IL
Holden Chin NY
 
 
 Group 7
Mika Immonen FIN
Dieter Johns GER
Roberto Gomez PHL 
Mark Finkelstein NY
Ed Culhane
Elliott Eisenberg CA
Wei Ni CHN
 
 
Group 8
Tony Robles USA
Jason Shaw  SCO
Joshua Filler  GER
Mark Kulungian USA 
Jeff Mohl IL 
Somphet Thongsouk IA
Ron Dobosenski  WI
 
 
Each of the three players will have to play 6 matches each in the first stage of the championship. If they qualify in their respective groups, they advance to a double elimination knockout stage. If they advance again, they qualify for the final stage of 16 players in a single knockout stage, but with longer match races. The finals will be a race to 300 balls made first, which could take as long as 6 hours.
 
In addition to the World Tournament will be the 5th Annual Straight Pool Hall of Fame. A gourmet banquet dinner along with speeches from celebrity guests will take place July 15th at 8pm at Steinway Billiards. A special video presentation of each inductee will be produced and presented by www.NYCGrind.com's Jerry Tarantola.  The HOF Live Streamed for FREE at www.Ustream.tv/channel/azbtv
 
 
Support straight pool and the 14.1 Hall of Fame by joining the World 141 Club & for a very inexpensive sponsorship, become one of the 141 special people joining the 141 Club which will fund this year's events. The list of benefits & gifts are huge. Goto http://worldstraightpool.com/tickets.html . Tickets will be sold at the door during the event. Sponsors and private contributors can still join this year's event. Final added money and fundraising for the 5th Annual Straight Pool Hall of Fame are still being generated. To help be a part of this treasured event, please contact Dragon Promotions and join the World 141 Club.
 
Get the latest news and complete results of all years at www.worldstraightpool.com and daily year round updates on  www.facebook.com/Worldstraightpool  . Follow Dragon Promotions news at  www.twitter.com/Dragonpromoter
 
Vendor spaces are also available, for more information on player registration, sponsorship, or if you would like to submit a comment, please email worldstraightpoolchampionships@gmail.com or contact Dragon Promotions at 1-407-782-4978. Full event info is atwww.dragonpromotions.com

Players List & Qualifier Results for Andy Cloth World Tournament of 14.1

The stars will be shining during the historic Andy Cloth World Tournament of 14.1 . A who's who of world class players will be in attendance to etch their name into history's elite of the father of all pool games. Darren Appleton, Thorsten Hohmann, Stephan Cohen, Shane Van Boening, Johnny Archer, Earl Strickland, Mika Immonen, Tony Robles and many, many more. The main event will take place once more in New York City. As usual, a star studded field is expected this year at Steinway Billiards Cafe, who is once more hosting this world class event. The World Tournament Official Equipment include Viking Cue with all matches played on Andy Cloth. Event partners include Mr.Tom Gleich, Dr. Gregory Diehl, Mr. Greg Hunt of Amsterdam Billiards, & Mr. Jim Gottier of Greenleaf's Pool Room. Patron sponsors include Mr. Harold Siegel of Excelsior Graphics, Dr. James Heller, Mr. Charles Eames of Charles Eames Photography, Frank Scharbach of Frank's Billard Cafe, Focused Apparel and the National Amateur Pool League. 
 
The World Tournament will be live streamed on AZBTV , order by going to www.worldstraightpool.com . Official media partners are www.NYCGrind.com , Pool & Billiard Magazine, & tech support by Gotham City Technologies. 
 
Results of the final qualifiers for the World Tournament:
Amsterdam Billiards ,New York City : Jonathan Smith (NY) & Hunter Lombardo (FL)
Easy Street Billiards, California: Bob Jewett (CA) & Wei Ni (CHN)
Sandcastle Billiards, New Jersey: Holden Chin (NY), Dominic Noe (NJ)
NAPL Qualifier at Amsterdam Billiards : Eddie Kwok (NY)
 
 
Each of the three players will have to play 6 matches each in the first stage of the championship. If they qualify in their respective groups, they advance to a double elimination knockout stage. If they advance again, they qualify for the final stage of 16 players in a single knockout stage, but with longer match races. The finals will be a race to 300 balls made first, which could take as long as 6 hours.
 
2015 Players of the World Tournament of 14.1 
Darren Appleton ENG
James Heller NJ
Dennis Orcullo PHL
Shane Van Boening SD
Frankie Hernandez NY
Thorsten Hohmann GER 
Peter Hull USA
Johnny Archer GA
Charles Eames NY
Warren Kiamco PHL
Earl Strickland NY
Elliott Eisenberg CA
Mika Immonen FIN
Bob Jewett CA
Mike Dechaine ME
Kevin Clark PA
Max Eberle NV
Stephan Cohen FRA
Tom Gleich NC
Danny Barouty CA
Joshua Filler GER
Mark Kulungian CT
Corey Deuel FL 
Jonni Fulcher SCO
Jeff Mohl FL
Reiner Wirsbitzki GER
Eugene Oh NY
Jason Shaw SCO
James Landrum IA
Tony Robles NY
Mike Davis NC
Ed Culhane NJ
Roberto Gomez PHL
Rhys Chen NY
Frank Scharbach GER 
Sean Morgan NY
Bob Madenjian CT
Michael Yednak NY
Steve Lipsky NJ
Danny Harriman MO
Somphet Thongsouk IA
Shaun Wilkie DE
Eddie Kwok NY
Ron Dobosenski WI
Bob Cozzolino IL 
Holden Chin NY
Wei Ni CHN
Randy Hanson IA
Tom Karabotsos IL
Jonathan Smith NY
Hunter Lombardo FL 
Mark Finklestein NY
Jeff Mohl IL 
James Landrum IA
3 spots open. Contact Dragon Promotions at 407-782-4978
 
In addition to the World Tournament will be the 5th Annual Straight Pool Hall of Fame. A gourmet banquet dinner along with speeches from celebrity guests will take place July 15th at 8pm at Steinway Billiards. A special video presentation of each inductee will be produced and presented by www.NYCGrind.com's Jerry Tarantola
 
 
Support straight pool and the 14.1 Hall of Fame by joining the World 141 Club & for a very inexpensive sponsorship, become one of the 141 special people joining the 141 Club which will fund this year's events. The list of benefits & gifts are huge. Goto http://worldstraightpool.com/tickets.html . Tickets will be sold at the door during the event. Sponsors and private contributors can still join this year's event. Final added money and fundraising for the 5th Annual Straight Pool Hall of Fame are still being generated. To help be a part of this treasured event, please contact Dragon Promotions and join the World 141 Club.
Get the latest news and complete results of all years at www.worldstraightpool.com and daily year round updates on  www.facebook.com/Worldstraightpool  . Follow Dragon Promotions news at  www.twitter.com/Dragonpromoter
 
Vendor spaces are also available, for more information on player registration, sponsorship, or if you would like to submit a comment, please email worldstraightpoolchampionships@gmail.com or contact Dragon Promotions at 1-407-782-4978. Full event info is atwww.dragonpromotions.com

Derby City Classic Begins in Two Weeks

Francisco Bustamante, Master of the Table in 2013

It’s that time of year again. Time to pack up and head out to the Derby. The Harrah’s Casino on River Road in Elizabeth, IN, is once again the venue and it is just across the river from the Louisville airport, about 20-30 minutes away depending on traffic and weather. To make your plans you begin by reviewing the tournament page here at AZB and there are links there to take you to the Derby City page where you can reserve rooms at a discount and see more details, get contact info etc.

It is at the DCC where everyone can get in on the action as there is always someone who likes the other side of a match. And there are matches literally around the clock. Once the tournament room shuts down in the wee hours everyone just moves upstairs to the action room and the party grabs a second wind.

Official tournament action begins with the 9-Ball Bank competition beginning on January 24th. Francisco Bustamante will be defending his 2013 crown where he defeated Justin Hall in the finals. This is commonly called short-rack banks as instead of using 15 balls only 9 balls are used and they are racked in a diamond shape as in 9-Ball. Also on the 24th the annual Diamond Bigfoot Challenge begins with $16,000 in added money up for grabs. Dennis Orcullo won this event contested on 5' X 10' tables in 2013.

The One Pocket miracles begin on January 26th. Last year Corey Deuel defeated Francisco Bustamante in the finals to take this one down. But there have been quite a few One-Pocket specialists developed of late and the new kids on the block will be looking to upset the old established One-Holers like Scott Frost and, of course, Efren Reyes if he decides to make the trip over this year. The Straight Pool Challenge also begins on the 26th so we can expect pros such as John Schmidt, Thorsten Hohmann, Danny Harriman and Mika Immonen to be putting up yet another series of impressive numbers. If Mosconi’s high run is to be beaten in front of witnesses this is the likely venue for that to happen.

On January the 29th the DCC will begin the 9-Ball competition. Alex Pagulayan defeated Shawn Putnam in the finals of this event in 2013 and both players should return in 2014 along with scores of their friends looking to unseat them. The $3,000 added Banks Ring Game also is held on this day.

Everything raps up on Saturday, February 1st so everyone has that Sunday to get back to the real world. One thing to truly look forward to this year will be the new buffet. In past years we have had to suffer with the Paula Dean Buffet. But dear old Paula stuck her foot in it this year and was fired. So perhaps this year we will have a buffet where everything does not taste like a stick of butter. Our heartfelt thanks to Paula for getting herself canned.
 

Hohmann Makes it Happen at Accu-Stats 14.1 Invitational

Thorsten Hohmann

Talk about finishing with a BANG!
 
Thorsten Hohmann, with an exemplary 6 – 2 game win-loss ratio, captured the 2013 Accu-Stats "Make It Happen" Straight Pool Invitational. After winning the final game by running to the obligatory 75 points, he continued into bonus money territory and collared a blistering 122.
 
Thorsten was on fire. He had run the first four racks in around 19 minutes.
 
His opponent, Ralf Souquet, always a gentleman, after enduring the 75 – 1 point loss, remained in his seat and was the first to congratulate him on his century plus accomplishment. (His sponsors, Lucasi and Kamui, will salute him by text message)
 
But that's not all: Had Thorsten lost that game with his fellow countryman, their win-loss record would have been tied at 5-3 in the Round-Robin format.
 
That would have forced a Play-Off. Thorsten did not want that. The audience in the Aramith/Simonis Arena at Sandcastle Billiards did. And, they wanted to see Thorsten break his 404 ball record created in 2000: Anything, so that the balls don't stop rolling.
 
These guys are die-hard pool fans, many of them contributing the $300 for the Accu-Stats "Make It Happen" package that assured them of ringside seats, a DVD package of all 20 matches, a group photograph autographed by all 5 competitors, an "I Made It Happen" T-Shirt or coffee mug, and Phil Capelle's best selling, "Break Shot Patterns."
 
Ralf wanted that Play-Off, too. And he wasn't alone. Earlier in the day, Mika, who was also at 5-3, was in the mix. Sadly, his game against Oliver went awry when he jawed a long shot left from Ortmann's break. (These Pro Cut pockets on the, industry standard, Diamond PRO AM table are tight)
 
Oliver leapt to the table. At 70 balls, he stumbled. Immonen was out of his seat, MEZZ in hand, and finished off the remainder of the rack.
 
Curiously, Mika, who normally attacked the Aramith Tournament Balls, lightened up on the break shot. His spotted cue ball got glued in the rack ending his play-off aspirations. it also allowed Oliver back at an open table and the 5 balls that eluded him in his last inning.
 
Oliver retired at 4 and 4; Mika, and Ralf, too.
 
The fifth player in the round-robin was Danny Harriman. Danny loves 14.1– as is manifested by his high run of around 350. You don't get a high run like that unless you've hit a lot of balls. Don't forget, he had also snagged the Diamond Derby City Classic Straight Pool Challenge in 2009.
 
This year, his 2 and 6 record was a surprise to all, especially, himself. The good news is that after dropping six in a row, much to rousing audience delight, he got on a roll. He won his 7th while allowing Ortmann only 8, and in his 8th game, running 39 and out on Ralf who sat stuck at 55.
 
The High Run was captured by Mika at 123. He also shot a 113. Thorsten had a 122, 117, and 105. Ralf had a 112. Not bad stats: 30% of the 20 match Accu-Stats DVD set will offer century-plus runs. Add that to the other runs in the 50s to the 80s, compounded by the very learned Billy Incardona, Danny Diliberto, and emcee Ken Shuman in the "instruction" booth and with some practice, you, too, might "make it happen."
 
Accu-Stats thanks its sponsors. Aramith Tournament Balls, Simonis 860 Cloth, Samsara Cues, OB Cues, Lucasi Cues, Mezz Cues, The Billiard Press, and Diamond Billiard Products.

Make It Happen 14.1 Enters Final Day

The penultimate day for the Accu-Stats Make It Happen Straight Pool continued to show great strength from Thorsten Hohamann but Ralf Souquet is now in position to challenge for the title.

In the first match of the day Mika Immonen came out strong to post an opening run of 57. It was not enough. Ralf Souquet stepped up and ran a 75 to win the match 75-57. Hohmann then claimed his fifth straight win in the contest with a 75-39 victory over Danny Harriman who suffered his fifth consecutive loss.

In a tactical match, Ralf Souquet outlasted Oliver Ortmann 75-33. Then Hohmann lost his first match of the week to Mika Immonen at 75-26. Finally, Harriman won his first match of the week by over-running an unsharp Oliver Ortmann 75-30.

The last day's action begins at noon today. Go to www.Accu-stats.com to take in the games.

Standings after day three:

Hohmann 5-1
Souquet 4-2
Immonen 3-3
Oretmann 2-4
Harriman 1-5

Make It Happen 14.1 Day Two

Souquet and Hohmann

Mika Immonen, who had suffered two losses on Saturday due to two scratches, redeemed himself on Sunday with an impressive 113 ball run and a 75-1 win over Oliver Ortmann.

The next match was back and forth for a while but eventually Ralf Souquet prevailed over Danny Harriman 75-55. In the next match Thorsten Hohmann continued his dominance of the entire event with a 75-1 trashing of Oliver Ortmann.

Then Mika Immonen continued his run on the bonus money with a 123 ball run against Danny Harriman and Hohmann finished the day with a run of 105 to defeat Ralf Souquet 75-7.

After two days the standings are:

Thorsten Hohmann 4-0
Mika Immonnen  2-2
Oliver Ortmann 2-2
Ralf Souquet 2-2
Danny Harriman 0-4

Play continues today at www.accu-stats.com