(l to r): Rick Scarlato & APT co-owner Tiger Baker
Ozzy Reynolds, former owner/tour director of the Action Pool Tour and current CEO of Cue Sports International traveled to Newport News, VA on the weekend of Oct. 13-14 to pass the Action Pool Tour ownership baton to its new owners, Kris Wylie and Tiger Baker. The idea was to assist the new owners with the logistics of their first tour stop at the APT helm. When the $270-added event, hosted by Peninsula Billiards in Newport News, drew a modest field of 20 entrants, Wylie and Baker asked Reynolds to join the field of entrants and compete. Without too much arm-twisting, Reynolds agreed and damn near won the thing.
As it turned out, Rick Scarlato, who’d been sent to the loss side by Reynolds and won five on that side of the bracket, earned himself a rematch against Reynolds, who’d advanced to the hot seat. But Reynolds was already gone, having agreed, due to the lateness of the hour and the impending closing time of the venue, to accept second place. This left Scarlato to face Greg Sabins, who’d been defeated by Reynolds in the hot seat match. With the venue set to close, the two agreed to a single-game final. Scarlato won that game to claim the first title under the auspices of the APT’s new management team.
Nothing like a smooth, standard first-time experience for new management. The event started out normally enough. Reynolds won a preliminary round over RAndy Davis, before meeting up with Scarlato and sending him on what proved to be his loss-side journey back to the finals. Reynolds moved on to defeat Jaime Gonzalez 8-2 to earn a winners’ side semifinal matchup against Tim Collins. Sabins, in the meantime, got by Jason Trigo (#2 on the APT’s Ranking List) 8-3 and James Miller 8-2 to draw Steve Fleming (#1 on the APT list) in the other winners’ side semifinal.
Reynolds downed Collins 8-2 as Sabins was busy sending Fleming to the loss side 8-5. Reynolds won his last match 8-5 over Sabins to claim the hot seat.
On the loss side, Scarlato got by Larry Phlegar 8-2, James Miller 8-6 and Jose Vega Hernandez 8-4 to draw Collins. Fleming picked up Jaime Gonzalez, who, after being sent to the loss side by Reynolds, had eliminated Trigo 8-4 and Randy Davis 8-3.
Scarlato advanced to the quarterfinals with an 8-4 victory over Collins and was joined by Fleming, who’d survived a double hill match against Gonzalez. Reynolds’ exit from the field turned the quarterfinals into the semifinals and Scarlato downed Fleming 8-5 to move into the single-game final. Scarlato won the single game over Sabins and claimed the title.
APT owners and tour directors Wylie and Baker thanked the ownership and staff at Peninsula Billiards for their hospitality, as well as sponsors Viking Cues, Predator Cues, Tiger Products, Diamond Billiard Products, Inc., Ozone Billiards, Simonis Cloth, Aramith Balls and George Hammerbacher Pool Instructor. The next stop on the Action Pool Tour, scheduled for the weekend of November 10-11, will be the VA State 8-Ball Championships, hosted by Diamond Billiards in Midlothian, VA.
With over 500 players, 112 teams and a venue that drew accolades from every attendee, the 2012 Lucasi Hybrid Cues ACS Midwest 8-Ball Championships at the Riverside Casino & Resort in Riverside, Iowa, January 19-22, enjoyed another attendance expansion in a warm environment amongst the winter plains of the Midwest The $10,400-added championships – produced by the American CueSports Alliance (ACS) – offered competition in six primary events and three secondary events: Men’s and Women’s Advanced 8-Ball Singles, Men’s and Women’s Open 8-Ball Singles, Men’s and Women’s four-person 8-Ball Teams, Scotch Doubles 8-Ball and separate handicapped Men’s and Women’s 9-Ball Singles.
In the 20-player Men’s Advanced 8-Ball Singles, young Chad Behnke (Farley, IA) followed up on his recent Iowa ACS Men’s Advanced title with a 6-0 thrashing of once-defeated Alan Schares (Independence, IA) in the finals to secure the ACS Midwest title.
In the 7-player Women’s Advanced 8-Ball Singles, multi-time national champion and 2010 ACS Midwest champion Jessica Frideres (Ft. Dodge, IA) regained her crown after a runner-up finish to Chicago’s Amy Latzko in 2011, by outpointing Connie O’Heron (Wausau, WI) 5-2 in this 2012 finals.
In the 155-player Men’s Open 8-Ball Singles, Washington Iowa’s undefeated Mike Peiffer (Washington, IA) recovered from a final’s first-set 0-4 trouncing by 17-year old Anthony Asher (St. Joseph, MO) to regain the momentum in the deciding set to claim the title by a 4-2 margin.
In the 64-player Women’s Open 8-Ball Singles, Simone Huskey (Silvis, IL) dominated the division, capping off her title with a 3-0 final’s win over Georgia Countryman (Braidwood, IL).
In the Men’s 8-Ball Teams, undefeated “Freewheelers” (IL) [Dan Hayes (Captain-Advanced), Tony Sifuentez, Dave Reimer and John Stukel] captured the hot seat over the 80-team field despite having to race to 11 each match (teams with no “Advanced” player raced to 9). The finals against “Hot Shots” (IA) [Todd Davis (Captain-Open), Abe Palmer, Jerry Udelhofen and Laurence Henderson] proved a challenge for “Freewheelers,” as “Hot Shots” prevailed in the first set, 9-6. But “Freewheelers” avenged the loss in set #2 to gain the title by an 11-5 margin!
In the Women’s 8-Ball Teams, the team of “Empty Pockets” (IL) [Linda Cruz (Captain–Advanced), Joan Livingston, Kay Reimer and Sue Wiechec] spotted most teams two games to dispatch the 32-team field, including some narrow escapes; but the one-set finals against “Just The Tip” [Patty Anderson (Captain-Open), Stacy McNamara, Jolyn Cox and Debbie Melroy] was anti-climactic, as “Empty Pockets” dominated by a 9-3 score to claim the Championship!
The team of Dawn Spencer and Jerry Dietz (IA), captured the Scotch Doubles 8-Ball event over a field of eighteen teams by dispatching the team of Dawn Huser/Jason Miller (IL) in the finals 3-1. Open player Jim Gessay of Hartland, WI, outpointed a 128-player field in the Men’s 9-Ball Singles for the top spot, including taking advantage of a 2-game spot from Advanced player Ron Martin (E. Moline, IL) by a 4-4 margin in the finals for the crown! Sheree Houseman (Muscatine, IA) bested a field of 20 for the Women’s 9-Ball Singles honors – besting Shari Rice (Omaha, NE) in the finals 3-2. “Transformers” (IL) [Frank DeCastecker (Captain-Advanced), Jerry French, Mike Christopher and Ted Cole] captured the Men’s 2nd Chance Team division over “Krug’z Guerillas” (IA) [Jody McCormick (Captain), Jeff Nguyen (Advanced), Devin Barclay, James Miller and Marc Wells], while “No Balls Just Racks” (MO) [Paula Reeder (Captain-Advanced), Jennifer Fugman, Tawni Lewis, Courtney Cadwell, Pam Brown and Mindy Spiker] outpaced “Lucky Dawgs” (IL) [Kelly McBride (Captain-Open), Simone Huskey, Cathy Harness and Heidi French] in the finals of the Women’s 2nd Chance Team division.
The ACS would like to thank the title sponsor of the event – Lucasi Hybrid Cues, the Riverside Casino & Golf Resort for its support and outstanding hospitality, and other sponsors Iowa Sports Center apparel, Old Time Billiards and Diveney Custom Cues; and Nick Varner Signature Cues and Cases, whose multi-World Champion namesake took on all challengers throughout the event! The event was conducted by Gary & Shelly Benson and John Maestry under the auspices of High Country Promotions. Special thanks as well to ACS referees Cecil Messer, Robert Ball, James Reed and Tom Fankhauser, and to the equipment crew of Mike Peiffer, Chris Bringman, Shane Lee and Jeremy Bush.