The matchup looked like something right out of 1999, instead of 2019.
Earl Strickland and Ralf Souquet share a lot of common ground. Both have had long, decorated careers in pool that have resulted in multiple world championships as well as induction into the Billiard Congress of America Hall of Fame.
Tuesday afternoon, they shared center stage in the main arena of the Predator World 10-ball Championship in a winner’s side matchup, with Souquet taking advantage of a pair of late Strickland mistakes to wipe out a 6-4 deficit and win, 8-6, at the Rio All Suites Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas.
Both worked to overcome some rust in the early stages. Strickland built an early 2-0 lead when Souquet failed to pocket a ball on the break in the first game and then missed a 6-ball in the second rack. The German said he felt good after opening warm ups but struggled with coldness in his hands as well as the speed of the cloth when the match began.
“I couldn’t get comfortable with the whole situation,” Souquet said.
Strickland appeared poised to increase his lead in the third game but missed a table-length shot on the 9-ball. The German tied the match in the fourth game and the two competitors split the next four games until Strickland used a break and run and a Souquet scratch on the break to jump out ahead 6-4 in a standing room and very pro-Strickland audience.
Down the stretch, Souquet regained control of the match in the same way that Strickland had obtained it: maximization of opponent mistakes. The German narrowed the deficit to 6-5 when Strickland fouled in the 11th game after attempting a combination shot with the 2-ball and pocketed the wrong ball, then added a break-and-run to tie the score. Souquet took the lead when Strickland deposited the cue ball into the side pocket on the break in the 13th game.
“You have to hope for any chance that he gives you,” said Souquet. “He probably played a little better throughout the whole match. You just have to wait for a mistake. Maybe a scratch on the break or maybe he takes position for granted and you just have to go from there.”
Souquet saved his best break for last as he landed four balls – causing even Strickland to let out a “wow” from his chair. Souquet then closed out the rack and the match.
The German now advances to the final 16 on the winner’s side where he will face Alex Kazakis of Greece at 5:30 p.m. local time Wednesday.
Competition opened Tuesday with eight matches on the winner’s side of the bracket, including Chris Melling using some stellar shooting along with some breaking struggles by opponent Toru Kuribayashi to cruise to an 8-1 victory. After trading the first two racks, the Englishman used the next three racks to stifle Kuribayashi with safety play then run out after his opponent provided an opening. Meanwhile, Kuribayashi struggled with his break, failing to pocket balls three times.
“I played nearly perfect. I didn’t miss a ball,” said Melling after the match. “My only mistake was when I scratched on the break.”
Tuesday’s late afternoon and early evening was reserved for the one-loss side of the bracket, with two sets of win-or-go-home matches taking place.
One of those who survived was Raymund Faraon, who trailed throughout his match with Fan Yang except at the most important time: the end. Using a handful of tactical safeties and some clutch shot-making, the Filipino overcame a 6-3 deficit to defeat the 2015 World Chinese 8-ball champion, 8-7.
With 120,000 spectators watching online in his native China, Yang used his powerful break shot and a couple of mistakes by Faraon to build a commanding 6-3 lead in a race to eight. Faraon tacked on two games to cut the deficit to 6-5 after Yang came to the table in both games and failed to clear the racks. After the two players traded breaks-and-runs to push the score to 7-6, Yang had the break and a chance to finish the match in the 14th game. However, Yang lost a safety exchange on the 1-ball and Faraon tied the score at seven games each.
History would repeat itself in the deciding game, with Faraon breaking and failing to find an open shot on the 1-ball. The Filipino played safe, pushing the cue ball to the opposite end of the table of the 1-ball with the 3-ball blocking the path. Yang missed his attempt at a jump shot and left Faraon the opening he needed for the victory.
Russia’s Fedor Gorst also staved off elimination with a comeback of his own, capitalizing on a handful of unforced errors by opponent Matt Edwards of New Zealand to erase a 6-2 deficit and win, 8-6. Trailing 6-5, Gorst was given an opportunity to tie the score when his opponent fouled on a jump shot attempt. It appeared the young Russian’s comeback attempt might be halted in the 13th game when he pushed a 3-ball right of the corner pocket, but was given new life when Edwards missed the 8-ball. The New Zealander had an opportunity to run out and tie the score in the following game but missed the 2-ball in the corner pocket.
The third day of the Predator World 10-ball Championship begins at 10 a.m. local time on Wednesday. The live broadcast feed gets underway at 12:30 p.m. with Mario He taking on Liu Cheng Cheh. The 3 p.m. match will be determined by the winners of earlier matches and the 5:30 p.m. match will involve Chris Melling facing Jung-Lin Chang in a winner’s side matchup. The 8 p.m. broadcast pairing will also be announced later in the day.
The Predator World 10-ball Championship is a presentation of CueSports International and sponsored by Predator Group. Predator Group is an international billiard industry leader with a focus on high-performance cues and shafts as well as bringing constant innovation and game-improving equipment to billiard players worldwide. The event is being hosted by the Rio All-Suites Hotel and Casino and broadcast live on YouTube by CSI Media, a subsidiary of Cue Sports International. For more information, visit www.world10ball.com
CueSports International (CSI) is an international billiards organization which produces the United States Open 8-ball, 10-ball, one pocket, bank pool and straight pool championships. CSI, which also operates national amateur pool leagues, has three divisions: CSI leagues, CSI events and CSI media. CSI leagues manages the BCA Pool League and USA Pool League, the events division produces numerous amateur and professional events and the media department creates live video billiards content. For more information about CSI, visit www.playcsipool.com or find CueSports International on Facebook, YouTube, Instagram and Twitter.
The Predator World 10-ball Championships are sponsored by: Predator Cues, Diamond Billiard Products, Omega Billiards and Kamui Brand.
At many professional pocket billiards tournaments, the opening rounds sometimes have a bit of a perfunctory feel to them.
As the pros jockey early to either stay in stroke or get in stroke to avoid an early trip over to the one-loss side of the bracket, crowds are many times sparse until an event reaches the later stages.
This wasn’t the case when fellow Americans Billy Thorpe and Shane Van Boening squared off in the opening round of the Predator World 10-ball Championship Monday night. With the event being played right in the heart of the Billiard Congress of America Pool League championships, amateur players and fans began filling the arena more than an hour the match was scheduled to begin.
“I like a crowd myself,” said Thorpe. “It sparks a bit of a fire in me.”
The two competitors didn’t disappoint, combining for eight breaks and runs as Thorpe defeated his friend and roommate for the week, 8-4, at the Rio All-Suites Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas. The match was one of many tightly-contested pairings during the first act of this five-day, $100,000 added competition – with eight of the 32 first round matchups needing a deciding 15th game.
With two of the most decorated players in the United States squaring off, the matchup felt more like a quarterfinal or a semifinal match rather the beginning of the tournament. Van Boening and Thorpe split the first six games of the set, with each using two breaks-and-runs each along with effective safety play to maintain serve. The young man from Ohio edged ahead 4-3 when Van Boening left a 1-ball in the corner pocket’s jaws, then increased his lead to two games when he used a jump shot to run out in the eighth rack. The two competitors again traded breaks and runs for the next three games, with Thorpe maintaining a 6-5 lead.
“We broke well. I thought it might be different with the referees racking the balls with the template,” Thorpe said. “For a while I thought that it was going to be break and run the whole match.”
And it essentially was until the 12th game when Thorpe missed a 3-ball in the corner pocket.
“I really thought that I hit it good but the ball hopped on me,” Thorpe said.
Although Thorpe had left the window open for his friend, establishing position on the 4-ball would be a challenge thanks to two object balls providing cover. Van Boening pocketed the 3-ball then failed to land the 4-ball. Using a clutch jump shot, Thorpe pocketed the ball, cleared the table then added in one final break-and-run to clinch the victory.
Thorpe now heads to the second round where he will face Canadian John Morra Wednesday at 5:30 p.m. local time. Van Boening moves to the one-loss side where he will face Hunter Lombardo Tuesday at 7:30 p.m.
Also advancing to the winner’s side second round is current World Pool and Billiards Association 9-ball champion Joshua Filler of Germany, who survived a scare from Fan Yang, 8-5.
Playing in one of the opening matches of the tournament, Filler opened competition with a break-and-run then failed to capitalize on a Yang dry break the following game. Yang took the lead in the race-to-eight set after Filler fouled on the break. The young German used a break-and-run and a missed 2-ball to take a 3-2 lead but gave his opponent an opportunity when he missed an 8-ball in the following game. The two split the next four games before Filler used two breaks-and-runs and a Yang foul to pull away and close out the match.
With the competition now equally divided into 32 winners and losers, Tuesday’s schedule begins at noon local time with eight matches on the winner’s side of the bracket – including Chris Melling meeting Toru Kuribayashi on the live broadcast table. A second round of winner’s side matches will begin at 2:30 p.m. in a matchup of BCA Hall of Famers as Earl Strickland takes on Ralf Souquet. Other matches of note in this timeslot include Alex Kazakis meeting Skylar Woodward and Pin-Yi Ko matching up with Alex Pagulayan. The evening session broadcast schedule includes Fan Yang matching up against Raymund Faraon at 5 p.m. and Fedor Gorst going up against Matt Edwards at 7:30 p.m.
The Predator World 10-ball Championship is a presentation of CueSports International and sponsored by Predator Group, one of the world’s premier cue makers and billiards accessory manufacturers. The event is being hosted by the Rio All-Suites Hotel and Casino and broadcast live on YouTube by CSI Media, a subsidiary of Cue Sports International. The event is also sponsored by Diamond Billiards Products, Omega Billiards and Kamui Brand. For more information, visit www.world10ball.com
CueSports International (CSI) is an international billiards organization which produces the United States Open 8-ball, 10-ball, one pocket, bank pool and straight pool championships. CSI, which also operates national amateur pool leagues, has three divisions: CSI leagues, CSI events and CSI media. CSI leagues manages the BCA Pool League and USA Pool League, the events division produces numerous amateur and professional events and the media department creates live video billiards content. For more information about CSI, visit www.playcsipool.com or find CueSports International on Facebook, YouTube, Instagram and Twitter.
On February 2, 2015, Darren Appleton became the first WPA Chinese 8-Ball World Champion, beating many snooker stars and Chinese 8-Ball specialists on his way to the title. In the final match he faced current World Snooker champion Mark Selby in a race to 21, which he won 21-19. We interviewed the champion to learn more about this game, his feelings, and what his plans are for 2015.
AZBilliards: Congratulations Darren Appleton, last week you became the first WPA World Champion of Chinese 8-Ball. Tell us how you feel?
Darren Appleton: I can't believe I finally won a World 8-Ball title after all these years of disappointments. I'm so relieved, it is definitely the biggest win of my career… And the most emotional I've ever been.
AZB: A lot of us are not very familiar with Chinese 8-Ball. Can you tell our readers about this game?
D.A: The game is played on a 9ft snooker table with nap cloth playing regular 8-Ball with American pool balls. So obviously, the pockets become super tight and it's very challenging for the top players.
It is China's main cue sport game now, and with the promotion they've made the last few years it is also the most popular to the general public. It has got a lot of potential.
I Love this game and it looks like the game is going to grow in China.
Hopefully my win will open a couple of doors up for me getting a big sponsor in Asia and more invitations to promote the game.
AZB: So, it feels to us like it was a competition as well as an exhibition to promote the game. The promoters invited many stars from Snooker and Pool, to help put their event on the map… With this stellar field, what did you think of your chances?
D.A: This is why my expectations were not too high. There were around 40 Chinese players in the main draw (stage 2) and I can tell you, all of them can play! I think around 16 of them could have claimed the title. Then you had the Brits and snooker players so I knew it was going to be tough.
I just went there as a challenge because of the level of the field. So many local players play the game so well… Yang Fan, recent winner of the joy Masters is a machine and the best player they have. But besides him, so many of them play so good…
It's the best tournament I've ever played in just because the Arena was perfect, in a great venue with big crowds all the time (between 1,000 and 1,500 people). Playing conditions were perfect. Opening ceremony was amazing, we were treated like professionals. Practice facilities were amazing, as close as you can get to the match table.
Very well organized. Obviously, they spent millions on the tournament!
AZB: You already had a strong English pool resume, but in less than ten years in pool you became one of the most successful players in history. Winner of a 10-Ball and a 9-Ball WPA title, two US Opens, two Challenge of Champions, a World Pool Masters title, and in 2014 the World Games and the 14/1 World Tournament… Do you sometimes take time to look back on these accomplishments?
D.A: Yes. It's hard to believe the success. Like you said it's hard to look back at times but when I do I think "wow, did I really do all that?"
Winning the Gold medal at the World Games might be the biggest title I won. I really don't know what to say… They're all special to me. But you know, winning the World 8-Ball was my dream when I first started playing pool. So, to win after so long, so many close misses, in a much bigger version of 8-Ball with a stronger field, great organization and massive prize money: it couldn't get any better.
With pool, there is no real "off-season", so I don't get much time to reflect, sit back and enjoy… It's a rollercoaster. One week I can be on top of the world, the next I lose and feel like I've hit rock bottom again. The good thing is, there is always next week. Pool is a very emotional and mental sport.
AZB: You're known for your work ethics, and mental approach. Did these help you overcome the new challenge of facing snooker stars as well as Chinese 8-Ball specialists?
D.A: Yes, absolutely. The most pleasing thing of the week was my temperament. My mistakes never affected me, and every match from the last 32 I had to break and run for the win. So, I'm really proud how I closed all these matches out.
Also, I had more break and runs than anybody else in the tournament. In seven matches I had around forty break and runs. From the last 16 I broke the best in the whole field. So that was a key to my success. It gave me a lot of confidence all the way.
AZB: You've won titles in all kind of games, and also came close to winning a major One-pocket title a couple of times; What does it say about the type of player you are?
D.A: It's so pleasing! I can win playing all disciplines… One-pocket, straight pool, 8-Ball, 9-Ball, 10-Ball, etc… I think that, to be looked at as one of the all-time greats it is important to have big titles in at least four disciplines. So many players are great at just one or two games. For me, improving my skills and knowledge will create longevity in my game. Learning all games was very important.
AZB: Besides being so successful individually, you also won the Mosconi Cup five times, the WPA Team Championship with England, and recently the World Cup of Pool with Karl Boyes, also playing for England. Do you have any preference, playing on your own or as part of a team? Do you have a different approach of team competitions?
D.A: I like both obviously. Individual is what we play most of year. Players are selfish and want all the success… But teams is a nice change, I enjoy the atmosphere and it's great working together and seeing other people's faces share that success. Also, you learn a lot about your team mates mentally and from your opponents so that helps for later when you're playing against them in singles events.
Playing individual or team puts a different kind of pressure and has different meanings. Doubles is a little different because you get to play every match. In teams you can be sitting and watching for hours so it's important to support the team and stay in the "team bubble", which is something I really enjoy… I've played pool in teams at the highest level in English 8-Ball and American pool for over 20 years and captained my country also at both games so I've got lot of experience and I know I'm a good team player and good for my team mates as I feel I love the team leader role and I always try and get the best out of my team mates.
Playing singles… You play for yourself, nobody else cares except your family and friends . In team play you've got a much wider audience and lot of people that you would let down if you don't perform so that adds more pressure for sure, especially in the big team tournaments. The good thing with team sports is that amateurs can relate to that feeling also. Teams are so much more fun and pressure packed!
But in the end, as a sportsman the individual titles are the ultimate career achievement, for sure. For personal pleasure and making money I prefer to rely on myself.
AZB: After winning a major title – and the $98,000 that goes with it – so early in the year. Is it possible to have goals after this? How do you see 2015?
D.A: I'm still hungry and want more world titles. I will work harder now that my life is so good on and off the table. Life is great at home, I'm happily settled into marriage with my wife Angie. She's amazing, supportive and allows me to be away from home for so long… I miss our dogs but I know they're fine and they keep her company.
I can really focus on pool this year. I will just play with confidence now and try to win more and improve my game as I have nothing to worry about. I'll try to get more titles and win as much money as possible. This win took a few days to really sink in, but I'm back to practicing this week and getting ready for the WPA World 10-Ball Championships coming soon.
AZB: Thank you for taking the time to answer our questions and we wish you all the best for the future!
D.A: Thank you. I would like to thank my sponsors Predator cues, Strachan cloth, Diamond billiards and Cheqio precision drink for their continued support. Also the CBSA and Star people for putting this great event together. And of course all my fans, friends and family who send me so many support messages on social media.
With the knockout stages underway at the Women's World 9-ball Championship in Guilin, China, the pressure is already proving too much to bear for some players.
If you like your pool to resemble a roller coaster ride with plenty of hair raising twists and turns, then the next two days here at the Women’s World 9-ball Championship in Guilin in southern China will surely be everything you could have ever wanted.
This prediction is based on the drama that transpired today inside the Guilin gym, where Judgement Day jitters affected not only the wannabes, but even the sport’s biggest stars. Even straight in 9-balls normally made a thousand out of thousand times in practice were bobbling in the jaws under the intense pressure.
The first order of play today was to trim the field down to 32 where the players would switch to a single elimination knockout, race to 9. (If anyone had any doubts that Asia is the dominant region in pool, they were erased when eyeing who made it through to the Final 32: all but 5 players were from Asia.)
After the draw and a break for dinner, the first 8 matches in the last 32 commenced. As could be expected things didn’t get any easier as the surprises and missteps continued like a domino effect throughout the arena.
Korea’s Ga Young Kim, certainly one of the top five favorites to win here this week, escaped out of her group with narrow 7-6 win over former world champion Shin Mei Lu of Taiwan. In the single elimination round of 32, Kim came up against young and talented Chinese player Wang Xiao Tong. The multi-awarded Kim was a clear favorite, but this event is no ordinary tournament. When Kim found herself in her chair down 8-7 in the race to 9, and Wang shooting a very makeable 9-ball for the win, the Korean star must have known it was curtains. Incredibly Wang missed the easy 9-ball as the crowd gasped in horror. Kim won the rack and then won the decider to stumble into the last 16.
2012 champion Kelly Fisher had a day she won’t soon forget, although she’d probably prefer to get a case of amnesia about now. Up 6-4 in a race to 7 in the last match of her group, Fisher missed a 9-ball to qualify, then watched opponent Wu Jing of China storm back. With the match in hand, Wu missed a near straight in 9-ball for the win. Fisher escaped into the final 32.
There she met up with arch rival and 2010 World 9-ball Champion, Fu Xiao Fang. This match screamed “Marquee!” and was rightfully played on the TV table, and shown on China state television channel, CCTV, to an audience numbering in the millions.
With several miracle escapes behind her, Fisher freewheeled it and put on a brilliant show, holding a commanding 8-5 lead in the race to 9 match. Fu, however, clawed back to tie to force a pressure packed one rack decider. The Brit’s wild ride of a tournament finally came to an end as Fu grabbed the last rack and advanced as Fisher was sent packing.
Taiwan’s Kuo Azu Tinh is relatively new the scene but had the Philippines’ Rubilen Amit down 8-5 in their round of 32 match. But with one rack to go, Kuo looked like she was caught in one of those bad nightmares where the prize keeps getting further and further away. Up 8-7, Kuo had a straight in 9-ball for the win but, like others before her, the 9 bobbled in the jaws. Showing her mettle, however, Kuo broke and ran the final rack and advanced to the final 16.
It wasn’t all drama, tension and tragic near misses today. Defending champion Han Yu continued to show why she is still the favorite to win with two scorching performances. Han first beat fellow Chinese Gao Meng 7-1 to win her group. In the round of 32 , Han toyed with Singapore’s Hoe Sur Wah, winning 9-1.
Han, the world’s number one ranked player, doesn’t exude quite the amount of glamour that the more famous Chinese stars such as Pan Xiao ting and Fu Xiao Fang exhibit. But that seems to suit the low key red head just fine. Her play on the tables is downright clinical. After advancing to the round of 16 Han said that while she feels the pressure of the fans, she just sticks to what she knows best; practice, practice and more practice.
“There’s a lot of pressure on me but I just try and use the pressure to make me more active, to keep moving forward,” the 22 year old from Heibei province said through an interpreter. “I’m not really playing perfect at the moment and I can know I can play better.
“After the World 9-ball last year I didn’t play well for a few months but the national team coach, Mr. Chen, taught me how to keep my emotions under control and to try to be more stable and try to control myself. I don’t like to think too much. I just try to stay focused.
“The only time I go out in public is when we are doing things for the national team or for my sponsors. The rest of the time I mostly hide somewhere private so I can practice more. I haven’t really gotten used to this life, to being in the spotlight. I’m a very low key person. “
China seems to produce an endless stream of pool talent these days and one youngster has really made her mark this year. 14 year old Jiang Teng—yes that’s right, 14 years old– won two straight matches in her group to qualify. She then came out in the round of 32 and took down former world 9-ball champion Liu Shin Mei, 9-5.
2009 champion Liu Shasha also advanced to the round of 16, as did Japan’s Akimi Kajatani and Indonesia’s Angeline Magdalena Ticaolu.
The second set of 8 matches in the round of 32 will begin on Friday at 1pm(GMT +8.) The TV table match is sure to draw tens of millions of fans from around China as the Chinese sporting legend Pan Xiaoting takes on the USA’s Jeanette Lee.
After Friday’s play, the field will be down to the Final Four. The semis and final will be played on Saturday.
The winner of the 2014 Women’s World 9-ball Champion will received $40,000. The total prize fund is $300,000.
*The 2014 Women’s World 9-ball will be held in Guilin, China from October 13-18, and is sanctioned by the World Pool & Billiard Association(WPA), the world governing body of pool. 64 women players from across the globe will compete for the biggest prize in Women’s Pool.
The WPA will be on hand in Guilin throughout the week bringing you all the drama from the 2014 Women’s World 9-ball Championship. WPA Press Officer Ted Lerner will be reporting with daily articles containing insight and analysis, as well as photos. Ted will also be manning the WPA Facebook page and Twitter feed and responding to fans queries and comments. Fans can also follow all matches via the WPA live scoring platform.
Facing sudden elimination on Day 1, Great Britain's Kelly Fisher shows Austria's Jasmin Ouschan the door and survives to play another day at the Women's World 9-ball Championship
Kelly Fisher has been around professional pool long enough to know that sometimes in this sport, as in life, you have to go through hell to get to heaven.
Hell in this case for the 2012 World 9-ball Champion was losing her first round match on day 1 today at the Women’s World 9-ball Championship against hall of famer and pool’s most recognized personality, Jeanette Lee, 7-4. The Brit, who three months ago had open heart surgery to repair a congenital defect, had trouble with the lightning quick speed of the table. The match was even halfway, but Fisher gave away too many shots and the Black Widow waltzed. In the double elimination group stages, Fisher knew her back was suddenly against the wall.
“Now it’s cutthroat time,” she said while waiting for her next match which could see her go an embarrassing two-and-out. “There’s no second chances.”
If having to tangle with the likes of Lee wasn't enough, Fisher then had to step into the ring in a do or die match with none other than Austria’s Jasmin Ouschan, who had just lost a cliff hanger to Japan’s Chichiro Kawahara, 7-6. If you’re getting the idea that this is the proverbial “Group of Death,” you’re absolutely correct. All four of these players are capable of taking the world title.
With one of pool’s stars on the verge of taking a rapid road out of town, Fisher and Ouschan put on a splendid show. Ouschan stood in front of clear table down 6-5 but incredibly missed an easy 3-ball to hand Fisher the match, 7-5.
“Absolutely I’m relieved,” said the clearly delighted Brit afterward. “ I’m not out of the woods yet but I’m really happy to have won that match. I would’ve really really hated to go two and out, especially in my first world event back. It was a flip of the coin between me and Jasmin. I certainly got the rolls on the break, as I was on a shot every time and she wasn’t. It was very close. Every time I missed she punished me. Every time she missed, I punished her. It was a great match because so much was riding on it, so I expected a scrappy match.”
With a chance to move through to the final 32 single elimination knockout on Thursday, Fisher knew she had, for the moment , pulled the narrow escape. She was hoping the scare today would lead to something positive as, more often than not in pool, champions have had to go through death defying cliff hangers along the way before they move on to win.
Said Fisher: “When champions have won an event, it’s often through a tough route, something funky has happened. Fingers crossed that that is my destiny. But I have to take it just one match at a time. “
Day 1 at the 2014 WPA Women’s World 9-ball Championship opened up just after lunch at the Guilin Gym in this beautiful city with all 64 players seeing action. The field is as good as this event has ever seen in its 23 editions as all 25 of the WPA’s top 25 women are here. Combine this with the short races, and unpredictable table conditions and it was clear that anything could happen.
Defending champion Han Yu survived a scare from fellow Chinese player Chen Xue, barely winning, 7-6. The rest of China’s stars all won today, including 2007 World Champion and superstar Pan Xiaoting, 2009 World Champion Liu Shasha, 2010 Champion Fu Xiao Fang, and the player everyone is expecting will soon win, Chen Siming.
Taiwan brought its usual high powered contingent across the Strait and, based on today’s results, you can almost guarantee at least one Taiwanese player will appear in Saturday’s semi-finals. Chou Chieh Yu, Tsai Pei Chen and Tan Ho Yun all won their first rounds matches. The biggest surprise for Taiwan was the quick exit of last year’s runner up Lin Yuan-Chun, who lost two straight.
Hall of Famers Karen Corr and Allison Fisher won easily, as did the Philippines Rubilen Amit. The Philippines Iris Ranola was sent home after losing two straight. But the Philippines still has two players left with the addition of 15 year old Chezka Centeno. Centeno came to Guilin with her mom and dad and entered one of the qualifiers, which she won. She lost her first match today, but rebounded with a solid 7-4 over Poland’s Katarzyna Wesolowska, to get one more chance on Thursday.
Korea’s Yu Ram Cha, who is treated like a movie star in China and is followed by camera toting fans everywhere she goes, got taken to school by Corr but easily won her losers side match to survive. Fellow Korean Ga Young Kim, one of the favorites to take the title here this week, also won.
In all, 12 players have already been handed their pink slips. By the end of Thursday’s play, the field will be down to the final 32, who will then play single elimination knockout, race to 9, alternate break. The semi-finals and final will be played Saturday.
With so many great women players from all over the globe doing battle on the cloth pitch, there is bound to be plenty of heartbreak, tension and near misses to come. Nobody ever waltzes to the winners circle in pool. In fact, a trip to hell is par for the course in this sport. After her first round win over Fisher today, Jeanette Lee called it perfectly, noting that pressure and tension is something all players, including the eventual champion, have to take to heart.
“There’s a lot of first round jitters,” Lee said. “It’s the same for everyone I know. You always hope to have an easy match your first round. But I never want to win a tournament without having to play all the best. I don’t want to win a tournament because I got a good draw. I want to have to battle beast after beast. I want to play them all, maybe just not in the first round, maybe in the second round. Once you know that your back is against the wall, this is the way it is, you better learn to like it.”
*The 2014 Women’s World 9-ball will be held in Guilin, China from October 13-18, and is sanctioned by the World Pool & Billiard Association(WPA), the world governing body of pool. 64 women players from across the globe will compete for the biggest prize in Women’s Pool.
The WPA will be on hand in Guilin throughout the week bringing you all the drama from the 2014 Women’s World 9-ball Championship. WPA Press Officer Ted Lerner will be reporting with daily articles containing insight and analysis, as well as photos. Ted will also be manning the WPA Facebook page and Twitter feed and responding to fans queries and comments. Fans can also follow all matches via the WPA live scoring platform.
(Shanghai)–You don’t come to the China Open with the gall thinking you are going to win this tournament. You just hope to survive long enough, say to the semi-finals, where you then have as good a chance as anyone to pull off a career defining victory.
It’s not only the stacked field comprised of most of the world’s best male and female pool players that makes the odds so long. It’s the conditions. Lightning quick tables, generous pockets, template racking which practically guarantees one, two and sometimes even three balls on the break. The result is the ultimate equalizer, a wide open shootout with the world’s best gunslingers letting it all hang out.
Welcome to the Wild West of professional pool.
“It’s really hard to say what’s good and what’s bad out here because it’s so easy to pot balls,” said 2011 China Open champion Chris Melling, after he staved off elimination on day 1 with a losers side win over American Oscar Dominguez. “The pockets are so big and the cloth is so fast. Everyone’s making two and three balls on the break. It makes the whole tournament level. I think we’re going to have a surprise winner here.”
Maybe or maybe not. Things may look topsy turvey at the beginning, but the pressure that is unique to professional pool at this level tends to favor the best and the bravest. And pool generally follows the tenets of that famous phrase, “the crème always rises to the top.”
Indeed day one of the 2013 China Open 9-ball inside the Shanghai Pudong Yuanshen Stadium arena in Shanghai produced plenty of nail biting, down- to-the-wire drama, but few shockers.
Leading the pack in the men’s event, which features 64 players divided into 8 groups of eight playing double elimination, was the defending champion Dennis Orcollo of the Philippines. Orcollo had no time to get loose as he immediately found himself in a dog fight with unknown Taiwanese Ahen Yuxuan. Yuxuan had the race to 9 match tied at 7 but succumbed to the pressure late and handed Orcollo a 9-7 win.
China’s number one player Li Hewen, who came within one rack of winning the 2012 World 9-ball Championship in Qatar, came from behind in a TV table match against Orcollo’s talented countryman, Carlo Biado, and won 9-8. Later on, Li laid down his marker when he easily beat Canada’s John Morra to advance to the knockout stage of 32. Biado, who is due to go far in a major tournament, later got his feet back under himself with a 9-1 drubbing on the losers side over China’s Zhou Long.
Taiwan looks set to put its usual dent in the proceedings as world number 1 Chang Jung Lin, along with Ko Pin Yi and Fu Chei Wei all won handily with Fu already advancing. In all, Taiwanese players won 8 out of 11 matches today.
As befitting a major tournament, there were some high quality matches straight out of the gates that could have easily been contested as finals. Former World 9-ball champion Alex Pagulayan went up against former World 8-ball champion Karl Boyes in the first round. Pagulayan took advantage of just a few mistakes by Boyes and won 9-5.
European Mosconi Cup teammates Nick Van Den Berg of Holland and Nick Ekonomopolous of Greece took their match to a one rack decider with the Nick the Greek squeaking by, 9-8.
One of the most intriguing matches of the day pitted Hollands talented Niel’s Feijen against two time former world champion Wu Jiaqing(formerly known as Wu Chia Ching.) Wu, who made pool history back in 2005 when he won the World 9-ball championship when he was just 16 years old, and then went on to win the World 8-ball championship just five months later, only recently completed a 16 month stint in the Taiwan military. And this was on the back of four straight years of personal drama and intrigue which has left the sport without one of its biggest stars. In the military Wu was forced to mop floors and clean windows for the entire time and he never once touched a cue stick. In addition, in August of last year, Wu was diagnosed with Lukemia. Fortunately doctors caught the blood disease in its very early stages and Wu says it can be controlled with medication.
Having only practiced for one month since being discharged from the military, Wu came into the match against Feijen with no expectations. Wu, however, looked like the boy wonder of old as he thumped the Dutchman 9-4.
“I’m happy with the way I played today,” Wu, who now resides in China, said afterwards through an interpreter, “but to be honest I have no confidence that I can win the tournament. “ Of course nobody who knows pool believes that.
On the women’s side, which features 48 player divided into 8 groups of six, defending champion Kelly Fisher kept the express train barrelling down the tracks with a 7-0 win over China’s Liu Jia. The match took an incredible 20 minutes to complete.
Hall of Famer Allison Fisher won her first match, then had to face old rival Ga Young Kim of Korea in a marquee affair. Kim won 7-4.
Chinese stars Fu Xiaofang, Pan Xiaoting and Chen Siming all won their opening matches.
The group stages continue on Friday in Shanghai. After completion of play on day 2, the men’s field will be down to 32 players and the women’s field will be down to 16. Both tournaments will then be single elimination knockout through to the finals on Sunday.
*The 2013 China Open will be held in Shanghai, China from May 12-19 and is sanctioned by the World Pool & Billiard Association(WPA). 64 men and 48 women will compete in separate 9-ball events. The China Open is a WPA ranking event. The main event will begin on May 16 and run through May 19.
The WPA will be providing full coverage of the 2013 China Open via its website at www.wpapool.com, and through Facebook at www.facebook.com/WpaChinaOpen. The WPA will be providing live scoring of all matches, daily articles and analysis from WPA Press Officer Ted Lerner, and photographs. Fans can also follow the event through Twitter; @poolwpa.
The 2013 China Open will be streamed online through several Chinese websites. The WPA will be providing the links through our Facebook page as we receive them.
