Pepin wins 11 on the loss side to meet him in the finals

 

Tyler Boudreau picked the 2019 New England 9-Ball Series Tour Championships to chalk up his first singles win on the tour. On any tour, according to our records. He and Tom D’Alfonso shared first-place honors during the tour’s 20th stop in May, a partners tournament and placed 4th in another partners event in August. Boudreau finished in 3rd place, behind Cullen Ryan and Lukas Fracasso-Verner at the tour’s Players’ Championship in March. Boudreau finished in 9th place in what was his only cash-earning appearance on the 2018 tour. He went undefeated at the $10,000-added event that drew 112 entrants to Bo’s Billiards in Warwick, RI on the weekend of September 7-8.

 

Boudreau, who, Fargo rated at 445, was the lowest ranked competitor among the event’s final 12, faced a total of eight opponents, with an average Fargo Rate of 522 (+). He faced a lower Fargo rated player only once; Don Roy (435) in the opening round of play. He faced separate much higher-rated opponents in the hot seat and finals – Kevin Bauccio (607) and Kyle Pepin (655).

 

Boudreau got by Don Roy, Josh Edmonds, James Stonkus, Josh Staples and Casey Olivieri to draw Justin Myers in one of the winners’ side semifinals. Kevin Bauccio, in the meantime, after victories over Rick Gatta, Tom D’Alfonso, Ricardo Diaz, Joe Dupuis (last year’s Tour Champion), and Ross Webster faced Cody Porter in the other winners’ side semifinal. Kyle Pepin, who’d opened his campaign with a 7-3 win over Rich Senna, fell to Mike Nicoloro 6-4 I the second round and embarked on an 11-match, loss-side winning streak that would take him into the finals against Boudreau.

 

In a straight-up race to 7, Bauccio defeatEd Porter 7-4. He was joined in the battle for the hot seat by Boudreau, who, in a straight-up race to 6, had defeated  Myers 6-3. With Bauccio racing to 9 in the hot seat match, Boudreau gave up only three racks to him and claimed the hot seat 4-3.

 

Over on the loss side, Pepin was working his way through the field. He was six matches into his winning streak that had included two double hill wins (over Tom D’Alfonso and Chad Bazinet) when he ran into his third double hill win (over Gene Hunt) and then, eliminated Lukas Fracasso-Verner 6-4 to draw Cody Porter. Justin Myers picked up James Stonkus, who’d eliminated Casey Olivieri 5-2 and Josh Caesar 5-3.

 

Pepin advanced to the quarterfinals, chalking up his fourth double hill win over Porter. He was joined by Myers, who’d defeated Stonkus 5-2.

 

Pepin’s fifth and final double hill win of 11 loss-side matches came in those quarterfinals as he eliminated Myers. He then defeated Bauccio 7-4 for a shot at Boudreau in the hot seat.

 

With Pepin racing to 10, Boudreau completed his undefeated run with a first set 4-4 victory that earned him his first major regional tour win.

 

Tour director Marc Dionne thanked the ownership and staff at Bo’s Billiards, as well as sponsors Predator Cues, USAPL New England, BCA Pool League, Fargo Rate, Bert Kinister, AZBilliards, Inside English, Professor Q-Ball’s National Pool and 3-Cushion News, Delta 13 racks, MJS Construction, Bob Campbell with Lease Fundings, Master Billiards and OTLVISE Billiard Mechanics of America. The 2019-2020 season of the New England 9-Ball Series (Stop #1) will commence on Sunday, Sept. 22 and will be hosted by Crow’s Nest in Plaistow, NH.

According to our records, while Gene Hunt has been competing at the tables for about a decade now, he hasn’t had a payout at a regional tournament since May of 2016, when he finished 9th at a stop on the Predator Pro Am Tour. Those same records now indicate that on Saturday, June 1, Hunt chalked up an undefeated win on the New England 9-Ball Series, downing Gabriel Kirshnitz twice to claim the event title. The event (stop #21) drew 56 entrants to Crow’s Nest Pub and Grill in Plaistow, NH.

 

On his way to his first meetup versus Kirshnitz in the hot seat match, Hunt, working in the event’s upper bracket, dispatched Phil Russo and Javier Fantauzzi to the loss side, before facing one of the event’s two highest Fargo-rated players, Kerry McAuliffe (648). The highest Fargo-rated player at this event was Ryan Cullen (673), who’d show up later on the loss side. Hunt (559) battled McAuliffe to double hill before sending him to the loss side 5-6. He then defeated Soel Quinones 6-2 to arrive at a winners’ side semifinal match against Steve Sutton.

 

Kirshnitz (488), in the meantime, working in the lower bracket got by Don Roy, Kim Orr, Mark Pulsifer and shut out Chris Richard to draw George Palmer in the other winners’ side semifinal.

 

Both of the winners’ side semifinals went double hill with Hunt, in a straight-up race to 6, downing Sutton and Kirshnitz, in a straight-up race to 5, sending Palmer to the loss side. The battle for the hot seat went double hill, as well. With Hunt racing to 6 and Kirshnitz to 5, Hunt claimed the hot seat 6-4.

 

On the loss side, it was Sutton who drew the event’s top Fargo-rated player, Cullen, who was in the midst of a six-match, loss-side winning streak that was about to end. He’d recently shut out Quinones and picked up a forfeit win from Eric Lim. George Palmer drew Mark Small, who, like Cullen, was in the midst of a six-match, loss-side winning streak that was about to end. He’d most recently defeated Chris Richards, double hill and shut out Catherine Ong. Small’s elimination of Ong and Cullen’s forfeit over Lim sent Ong and Lim, who are married, home at the same time, with the same $80 payout for the two-way tie for 7th place.

 

Sutton and Palmer got right back to work. Sutton downed Cullen 4-4 (Cullen racing to 6) and Palmer eliminated Small, double hill (4-3). With Sutton racing to 5, Palmer then defeated him 4-2 in the quarterfinals.

 

In a straight-up race to 4 in the semifinals, Kirshnitz earned himself a second shot at Hunt in the hot seat with a 4-1 victory over Palmer. In a repeat of their hot seat match, Hunt and Kirshnitz battled to double hill a second time, with the same result. Hunt claimed his first NE 9-Ball Series title.

 

Tour director Marc Dionne thanked the ownership and staff at Crow’s Nest for their hospitality, as well as sponsors Predator Cues, USAPL New England, Fargo Rate, Bert Kinister, AZBilliards, Inside English, Professor Q-ball’s National Pool and 3-Cushion News, Delta 13 Racks, MJS Construction, Bob Campbell with Lease Fundings, Master Billiards and OTLVISE Billiard Mechanics of America. The next stop on the New England 9-Ball Series (#22), scheduled for July 14, will find the tour back at Crow’s Nest in Plaistow, NH.

In the final event of the 2017 portion of the New England 9-Ball Series tour (Stop # 10), Sammy Khiev navigated his way undefeated through a field of 33 to capture the event title. He was challenged in the finals by Eddie Bissonnette, who won seven on the loss side, including three straight, double hill wins, for the right to meet him. The $500-added event, the annual Robert Marcotte Memorial, was held on Saturday, December 16, and hosted by Buster’s Billiards in Somersworth, NH.

 

As the event wound down to its final 12 players, all but one of them was ranked as a B, B+, C or C+ player on the tour. Joan Fraser, a D player, was the only exception. Khiev was the only B player to advance to a winners’ side semifinal, where he faced C+ player Warren Basch. Kassie Lam and Don Roy, both C players, squared off in the other winners’ side semifinal. Khiev got into the hot seat match with a 6-3 win over Basch. Lam joined him, following her 5-3 win over Roy. Khiev gave up only a single rack to Roy in the hot seat match that followed (a 7-5 race), and waited for Bissonnette to finish his loss-side run.

 

It was Roy who drew Bissonnette on the loss side; Bissonnette having allowed only a single rack to be scored against him in loss-side wins #3 and #4. He’d shut out Eli Davenport and gave up the one rack to Joan Fraser. Basch picked up Geoff James, who’d recently eliminated John Edgar 5-1 and Ben Benson 5-2.

 

Bissonnette and Roy locked up in a double hill fight that eventually sent Bissonnette to the quarterfinals. He was joined by James, who’d shut out Basch.

 

Bissonnette chalked up his second straight double hill win in the quarterfinals against James, downing him 4-5 (James racing to 6). He chalked up his third double hill win in the re-match against Lam in the semifinals. With Lam (C) racing to 4, Bissonnette (C+) moved into the finals with a 5-3 win.

 

Those finals came within a game of being Bissonnette’s fourth straight double hill match. Khiev, though, pulled out in front at the end to win it 6-3 (Bissonnette racing to 4) and claim the event title.

 

Tour director Marc Dionne thanked the ownership and staff at Buster’s Billiards, as well as sponsors Ozone Billiards, Molinari, Bert Kinister, AZBilliards, Inside English, Professor Q-balls National Pool and 3-Cushion News, Delta 13 Racks, MJS Construction, Bob Campbell, Championship Cloth, and OTLVISE Billiard Mechanics of America. The next stop on the New England 9-Ball Series (#11), scheduled for the weekend of January 6-7, 2018, will be the $1,500-added Robert Dionne Memorial Tournament, to be hosted by Crow’s Nest in Plaistow, NH.