Brandon Shuff won five straight on the loss side to meet and defeat Tour Director Ozzy Reynolds twice in the finals of the Action Pool Tour stop on the weekend of April 14-15. The event, streamed live via The Big Truck Show, drew 40 entrants to Break Time in Salisbury, MD.

Shuff was challenged immediately at this event, surviving a double hill battle versus Chris Garrett in the opening round of play. He went on to defeat Mike Mcnaughton 9-5, and then got caught up in a second double hill battle; this time, against Brett Stottlemyer. At double hill, Stottlemyer actually sunk the 9-ball, but the cue ball traveled multiple rails, and hung in a pocket, before dropping in to essentially give Shuff the victory. Shuff then ran right into Brian Deska and a third straight double hill match that sent him to the loss side.

Deska moved on to face Reynolds among the winners’ side final four. Joining them were Fred Scott and Danny Bell. Reynolds downed Deska 9-7, and moved into the hot seat match against Bell, who’d defeated Scott 9-6. Reynolds survived a double hill match against Bell, and for the first time since April of 2011 on the Great Southern Billiard Tour, he was in the hot seat.

Deska moved over to face Kevin West, who’d defeated Jeremy Perkins 9-6 and Paul Helms 9-2. Scott picked up Shuff, who, following his defeat at the hands of Deska, had defeated Josh Brothers 9-3 and Derek Schwager 9-1. Shuff downed Scott 9-5 and was denied a quarterfinal re-match against Deska, when West defeated him 9-3. Shuff defeated West 9-7 in those quarterfinals, and followed that with a 9-6 win over Bell in the semifinals.

In the opening set of the true double elimination finals, Reynolds appeared to be on his way to a single set victory. Shuff took the opening game, but Reynolds ran four straight, including two break and runs to take an early 4-1 lead. They traded racks to 6-3, and Reynolds added another to stretch his lead to four games at 7-3. Shuff won two in a row to narrow that lead to two games, and Reynolds won the 13th rack to reach the hill first. Shuff came back to win four straight and force a second set.

Reynolds opened the second set with a win, but Shuff came back to break and run the second rack and add five more for a commanding 6-1 lead. Reynolds took the next game, but it proved to be his last. Shuff won three in a row to win the second set.

Cheryl Sporleder claimed the 8-entrant Second Chance Tournament title on Sunday, defeating her husband, Sean Sporleder twice to do it. He’d defeated her in the hot seat match 5-2, and she’d gone on to shut out Paul Oh in the semifinals. She returned to double dip him in the finals.  

They’d fought to double hill in the battle for the hot seat, so when they met again in the finals of the Action Pool Tour stop on the weekend of November 12-13, Brandon Shuff, Brett Stottlemyer, and those assembled to watch were expecting a second tight battle. It didn’t happen. Shuff denied Stottlemyer so much as a single rack in the event finals to complete his undefeated weekend. The event drew 59 entrants to Big Daddy’s Billiards, in Glen Burnie, MD. 

Shuff got into the hot seat match against Stottlemyer, having given up only six racks through five rounds of play (for a record of 40-6, including two he gave up versus Mike Davis in the fourth round). Advancing among the winners’ side final four, Shuff met and defeated Andy Lincoln 8-1, as Stottlemyer was engaged sending Shaun Wilkie west 8-4. Shuff gave up more racks in his hot seat battle versus Stottlemyer than he’d given up in his previous five rounds, total. He persevered 8-7 to gain the hot seat, and give up his last rack to an opponent. 

Lincoln moved to the loss-side and met up with Brian Deska, who’d defeated Alan Duty and R.J. Carmona, both 6-3. Wilkie drew Mike Davis, who, after being downed by Shuff 8-2 earlier, went on to defeat Fred Scott 6-2 and Rafael Reyes 6-3. Davis and Deska advanced to the quarterfinals; Davis with a 6-3 win over Wilkie and Deska surviving a double hill match over Lincoln. 

It was Deska who advanced to meet Stottlemyer in the semifinals, after a 6-2 win over Davis in the quarterfinals. Stottlemyer chalked up his last victory and in fact, last rack of the event with a 6-3 victory over Deska. Shuff took command, early and often, to complete his undefeated weekend with an 8-0 finals victory that left him with an overall 56-13 record (81%).