Arena Billiards in West Monroe, LA was the destination of choice this past weekend as owners Al Dahal and Subash Khadka presented the 7th Annual Scotty Townsend Memorial Pool Tournament.
Adding $12,000 to this event to be played on Diamond seven footers were sponsors Golden Corral, Agnew Sign & Awning, We Bye Used Cars, Denny’s, Silver Water Plumbing, TravelCenters of America, Billiard Buddy, Bailey’s Crispy Fried Chicken, Himalayan Cafe and Magic Grill in addition to Arena Billiards and PoolActionTV.com.
A few familiar faces roamed the room including last week’s Big Tyme Classic’s Nine Ball runner-up and current Music City Classic champ Jonathan (“Hennessee”) Pinegar, last year’s Big Tyme Classic Nine Ball champ Roberto Gomez, two-time winner on 2024’s DFW 9-Ball Tour Shane McMinn, current Skinny Bob’s and Big Tyme Classic’s Ladies 9-Ball champ Eylul Kibaroglu, Billiards Spotlight’s Jason Bowman and Jeffrey De Luna. Also spotted were legends “Country Calvin” Harcrow and Scotty Boggs hoping to catch a flashback.
The event kicked off on Friday night with a $1,000 added ten ball mini-tournament. Racing to seven, nineteen players anted up $125 to play in this single elimination event. After the auction, players meeting and draw, play began.
The $10,000 added Open 9 Ball began on Saturday morning with 49 players posting their $150 entry fees. The format in this event was double elimination and races to 9/7 with alternate breaks. After a players auction, meeting and draw, play ensued.
The top portion of the bracket was loaded with heavy hitters. De Luna and Hennessee met in the fourth round as did Gomez and Kibaroglu. Hennessee and Gomez took their matches – both scores were 9-6.
In the lower part of the chart, Adam Pendley and Boog Long duked it out – Pendley prevailed 9-5. Meanwhile, former junior champ McMinn cruised to victory over Carlos Mendoza with a 9-1 win.
Now down to four on the winners side, Hennessee vs. Gomez and Pendley vs. McMinn battled to get into the hot seat match. Gomez and McMinn advanced 9-5 and 9-4, respectively.
There were no surprises on the one loss side as Hennessee and De Luna defeated their opponents and met again. This time it was De Luna who exacted revenge as he eliminated Hennessee in a tight match – final score 7-5. He finished in fourth place and De Luna awaited the results of the hot seat match.
Fighting to see who’d get into the finals, it was neck and neck until Gomez pulled away at the end of the match and took it down 9-7.
Waiting for McMinn was De Luna who proved to be no contest as Shane smoked him 7-1 and just like that, returned to face Roberto for the title. De Luna finished in third place.
Since this was true double elimination, McMinn would have had to win two sets to claim the title. Gomez, however, took no prisoners and the finals were over in a flash – score 9-2!
The final event, the $1,000 added Women’s 9 Ball began on Sunday morning. Nine ladies paid $100 to play in this double elimination tournament. Races were 7/5 with alternate breaks. Play began immediately after the players auction, meeting and draw.
Monica Stillwell and Eylul Kibaroglu
To no one’s surprise, Turkish star Eylul Kibaroglu – after receiving a first round bye – raced through the field to arrive at the hot seat match where she met Natasha Green.
Also getting a first round bye, Natasha’s path included defeating Niki Nugent 7-5 and blitzing Karla Cox 7-0. Meeting Eylul for a chance to advance to the finals, she lost 7-2 and headed over to the one loss side to await an opponent.
Earlier in the day, Monica Stillwell had received a first round bye and then lost her next match to Lacey Suire 7-5. After arriving on the west side, she defeated Ashlee Robinson 5-1 and then edged out Karla Cox and Niki Nugent – both 5-4. Waiting for her was Natasha – both players battling to get to the finals. It was a close one but it was Green who was eliminated 5-3 and finished in third place.
As with the men’s finals, this one was over quickly as well. Monica’s hopes were dashed as Eylul won the match 7-1 and she added yet another title to her resume.
Tournament Director Ray Hansen and his assistant, Jason Hill, ran the various events and professional commentary was provided by Larry Schwartz and Ray Hansen.
PoolActionTV.com would like to thank owners Al Dahal and Subash Khadka as well as General Manager Denise Allen and her staff for taking such good care of all the players and fans. We look forward to returning next year!
This year’s event began on Wednesday night with the One Ball One Pocket mini. Fourteen players posted a $200 entry fee to play in this single elimination tournament with races to four and alternate breaks.
Using a sixteen man bracket, Billy Thorpe and Derek Pogirski received the coveted first round byes. Also advancing out of the first round were current Buffalo’s Pro One Pocket champ Evan Lunda, Danny Smith, Marty Sawinski, Sergio Rivas, Sam Campbell and Jeremy Seaman. Jeremy survived a 4-3 squeaker over the always tough Redgie Cutler.
Second round action saw Campbell eliminate Pogirski and Thorpe beat Sawinski. Smith and Lunda duked it out – final score in both matches was 4-3 with Evan and Sergio taking the win.
Thorpe edged out Lunda and Rivas defeated Campbell in the third round. Billy and Sergio met in the finals with Thorpe taking it down with a 4-0 blowout.
The main event kicked off on Thursday evening as 31 players paid a $300 entry to compete in this double elimination event. Format was alternate break and races to three on both sides with one extended race to five in the finals.
Play began immediately following the players auction, players meeting and draw.
Aaron Toth drew the bye in the opening round and one notable match saw Rivas surviving 3-2 over Smith. All eyes in the second round were on the Tony Chohan-Evan Lunda match. Lunda took the win 3-1. Third round action saw identical 3-1 scores – Thorpe over Seaman, Issa Eadeh beat Marc Hosler, Lunda defeated Cutler and Rivas notched the win over Brian Butler.
Down to four on the winners side, Lunda skunked Rivas 3-0 and Thorpe edged out Eadeh 3-2. Lunda and Thorpe moved into the hot seat match with Lunda locking up his seat in the finals 3-1.
On the one loss side of the chart, Danny Smith went on a tear after losing a tough match in the first round. He eliminated Jason Minda 3-2, Toth 3-0 and Lawrence Everson, Cutler, Brian Butler and Eadeh – all with a 3-1 score.
On the lower portion of the bracket was Chohan who mowed through the field after losing his second round match. Down went Erik Beauchamp and Darin Ledbetter – both 3-1. Next to fall were Seaman and Mosler – both 3-0. Tony then faced Sergio and escaped with a 3-2 win.
No strangers to each other as both claim Buffalo’s in New Orleans as their home room, Chohan and Smith scratched and clawed their way through the next match. Chohan eliminated Smith with a score of 3-2 – Danny finished in fourth place.
Waiting for Chohan was Thorpe. They also duked it out and playing down to the last ball, Chohan knocked out Thorpe 3-2 and moved into the finals. Billy ended up in third place.
Red hot, Tony quickly won the first two games in the extended race to five. Evan won the next game to make it 2-1 but he always trailed – 3-2, 4-2 and 4-3 until Tony closed out the match 5-3 and took the title!
What an event! PoolActionTV.com would like to thank Issa Eadeh, his family and staff for rolling out the red carpet for both players and fans.
Thanks to Tournament Director Ray Hansen and his able assistant, Jason Hill, for an excellent job.
We’d also like to thank Larry Schwartz, Brian Butler, Frenchy Lunda and Ray Hansen for their topnotch commentary.
Special thanks to Joe Long who always contributes to one pocket prize funds all over the country! Much appreciated!
And, last but not least, thanks to all our fans and sponsors! Our sponsors include JB Cases, Hanshew Jump Cues, Lomax Custom Cues, Savage Billiards, Durbin Custom Cues, Diamond Billiard Products, Bull Carbon, Aramith, Simonis, the Action Palace of Dayton, OH and the Fort Worth Billiards Superstore of Fort Worth, TX.
Our next event is the Chohan vs Thorpe One Pocket Champions Challenge at Bayou Billiards in Baton Rouge, LA. Dates are April llth-13th – hope to see you there!
Room owners Kim and Tracy Sanders welcomed pool aficionados to Round Rock, TX for their inaugural $14,000 added Skinny Bob’s Nine Ball Classic.
It was noted that in addition to the Americans, the field had players from all over the world representing Canada, Poland, Bulgaria, Mexico, Germany, Ukraine, Russia, Venezuela, Switzerland, Japan, Indonesia, Iraq, the Philippines and Hong Kong.
Players and fans were treated to three main championships in addition to a banks ring game, a ladies ring nine ball game and an opening night nine ball mini. When the smoke cleared in the $500 added event, Fedor Gorst and Jeff de Luna chopped the cheese.
The event continued the following day with the $4,000 added One Pocket Tournament. Thirty seven players posted a $200 entry fee to compete – the format was double elimination with races to three.
Hot off claiming the Bayou State Classic One Pocket title, Roberto Gomez was still on fire. After receiving a first round bye and then dispatching Kristina Zlateva 3-0, Kash Keeton 3-0, Jerry (Alex) Calderon 3-2 and Roland Garcia 3-1, Roberto arrived at the hot seat match.
Meanwhile, Fedor Gorst was taking no prisoners as he tore through the bottom half of the chart. Mark Nanashee 3-0, Chip Compton 3-1, Billy Thorpe 3-0, Jeff de Luna 3-0 and Raed Shabib 3-0 were all sent west by the Russian.
The hot seat match was close but in the end, it was Gorst who edged out Gomez 3-2 to take his seat in the finals.
After being sent to the one loss side by Calderon 3-2, Roland Garcia eliminated de Luna 3-1 and Tommy Tokoph 3-2 to take on Roberto. Neck and neck, in the end it was Roland who won the match 3-2 and moved on to the finals.
Although he put up a good fight in the finals, Roland went down 3-0 and Fedor claimed another title!
Later that night, another $500 was added to the banks ring game and finalists Fedor Gorst and Blaine Barcus decided to split the cash.
The $300 added Ladies Ring Nine Ball game also began. Bulgaria’s Kristina Zlateva took top honors over Michelle Corteza with Jennifer Kraber and Kim Pierce taking third and fourth places.
The following day, the $7,000 added Open Nine Ball began. A full field of 128 players posted their $150 entry fee to play in this double elimination, winner breaks tournament – races were 7/7.
Although the field was packed with champions, it didn’t seem to matter to young Gabriel Martinez. He won his first match against Daniel Schneider 7-2 and barely survived against current Texas Open champ Vitaliy Patsura 7-6. Down went Steve Sheppard 7-5, Jon Demetand Joey Torres – both 7-2. Next was Blaine Barcus 7-4 – Gabe had arrived at the hot seat match.
However, in the other portion of the bracket, Fedor Gorst was on his way to the hot seat. He barely broke a sweat as he defeated Bart Czapla 7-4 and skunked Eric Aicinena and Roberto Gomez 7-0. Next was Naoyuki Oi who went down 7-2, Jesus Atencio 7-3 and Michael Schneider 7-1.
Gorst steamrolled Martinez 7-0, locked up his seat in the finals and sent Gabe west to await an opponent.
After being beaten by Gorst, Michael Schneider beatreigning Bayou State Classic 9 Ball champ, Roland Garcia and Blaine Barcus – both 7-4 – to face Martinez for the other slot in the finals.
Looking for a rematch with Fedor, Gabe eliminated Michael 7-3 and moved into the finals.
Since this was true double elimination, Gabe would have to win two matches to claim the title. Fedor was having none of that as he took the match & title 7-4.
Sakura Muramatsu
The final division of this event began on Saturday. A full field of thirty two players posted their $100 entry fees to play in the $2,500 added Ladies Nine Ball Championship. This was also double elimination with winner breaks and races to 7/5.
Known as “The Roadrunner,” young Savannah Easton shot out of the gate and without looking back, ended up in the hot seat match. On her way there, she defeated Crystal Jones 7-1, edged out Sakura Muramatsu 7-6, Kennedy Meyman 7-2 and Kim Sanders 7-4.
In the other portion of the bracket, Tara Williams survived two squeakers against Liz Galvan and Jennifer Kraber 7-6. She then spanked former Texas Open champ Ming Ng 7-2 and the always tough April Larson 7-4 on her way to the hot seat match.
The hot seat match was all Savannah as she cruised past Tara 7-3 and waited for a finals opponent.
Meanwhile, after losing her second match to Savannah, Sakura mowed down both Melissa Smith and Ada Lio 5-1, Ming 5-2, Angie Payne 5-1, Kim Sanders 5-0, Music City Open champ Tina Malm 5-3 and Tara 5-0 to reach the finals.
Since this was true double elimination, the current Texas Open 9 Ball champ would have to beat Savannah twice – and she did. Sakura won the first set 7-5 and the second one 5-1 to take the title!
And, as usual, thanks again to everyone at Skinny Bob’s for a first class event! Big thanks to the local sponsors – they included Austin Pro, Diamond Billiard Products, GAF, Hanshew Custom Cues, Sanders Roofing & Exteriors, ABC Supply Co, Inc., Simonis, Aramith, Savage Billiards and Mints Amusements.
Thanks to Tournament Director Jason Hill for doing an exemplary job juggling multiple events.
And, as always, we’d like to thank our fans and sponsors! They include JB Cases, Hanshew Jump Cues, Lomax Custom Cues, Aramith, Simonis, Diamond Billiard Products, Durbin Custom Cues, Savage Billiards, the Action Palace of Dayton, OH and the Fort Worth Billiards Superstore of Fort Worth, TX.
Our next event is the $12,000 added Midwest Open Billiards Championship III to be held at Michael’s Billiards in Fairfield, OH. Featuring six events – one pocket, 9 ball banks, open nine ball, a bank ring game, ladies 8 ball, a pro ten ball invitational and mini tournaments galore – Michael’s will also crown an all around champ! Dates are March 20th-26th – hope to see you there!
The legendary JOB Billiards Club in Madison, TN – a suburb of Nashville – presented the $7,000 added 35th Annual Music City Open this past week. Featuring multiple minis as well as the Open and Ladies Nine Ball events, there was action galore!
Joining JOB’s owner Ricky Gamble in special sponsorship was PoolActionTV.com as well as Aramith, Simonis and Diamond Billiard Products.
All events were played on seven foot Diamonds and play kicked off with on Wednesday evening with a single elimination race to seven nine ball mini tournament. The field was whittled down to Jesus Atencio & Mickey Krause – they split the pot. There was another mini tournament on Saturday night – these two split the pot again!
Players were back on Thursday night for the players auction, meeting & draw. A full field of 128 players entered this race to eleven winner breaks tournament.
Roberto Gomez began his march to the hot seat match after defeating Matt Moore (11-4), Jaime Mitchell (11-3), Rich McDonald (11-1), Johnathan (“Hennessee”) Pinegar (11-9), Jeffrey de Luna (11-9) and Billy Young (11-10).
The hot seat match was close but it was Gomez who locked up his seat in the finals 11-7. Mason would have to await an opponent on the one loss side.
Jeffrey de Luna edged out Mickey Krause (11-10) and then faced Koch to see who would advance to the finals. Jeff defeated Mason 11-4 and moved on to the finals. Mason finished in third place.
Since this was true double elimination, de Luna would have to defeat Gomez twice to win the tournament. However, it was not to be as Roberto won 11-9 to add the Music City Open title to his resume! Congratulations, Roberto! Good event, Jeff!
April Larson and Tina Malm
The Ladies Nine Ball division began on Friday night with 49 players playing in this race to seven winner breaks tournament.
Tina Malm advanced to the hot seat with wins over Casey Baldridge (7-4), Elizabeth Shilliam (7-2), Amanda Wilder (7-0), the always tough April Larson (7-5) and Janeen Lee (7-1).
The hot seat match was close but Malm closed it out with a 7-5 victory over Lovely. Liz headed west to await an opponent.
After losing a nailbiter to Heather Middleton in the fourth round 7-6, Kelly Isaac then edged out Amy Theriault (7-6) and beat Melissa Young (7-2) and Janeen Lee (7-0) until she was eliminated by April Larson (7-2). Kelly finished in fourth place.
Larson then defeated Lovely (7-4) to move into the finals. Liz finished in third place.
Again, since this was true double elimination, April had to defeat Tina twice to take the title. April won the first set 7-4 but Tina took the decider and the title with a 7- 4 win!Congratulations, Tina! Great effort, April!
PoolActionTV.com would like to thank Ricky Gamble and his staff for their exemplary efforts in taking care of all the players and fans.
We’d also like to thank Tournament Director Jason Hill for doing an excellent job in running all the different events.
PoolActionTV.com would also like to thank our sponsors and fans. Our sponsors include JB Cases, Hanshew Jump Cues, Simonis, Aramith, Lomax Custom Cues, Diamond Billiard Products, Durbin Custom Cues, Savage Billiards, the Action Palace of Dayton, OH and the Fort Worth Superstore of Fort Worth, TX.
And on to the Derby City Classic! Be sure to stop by our Aramith Action Room! The dates are January 20th-28th! Hope to see you there!
Last week, players made their way to the $8,000 added Space City Open X. Held at Big Tyme Billiards in Spring, TX – a suburb of Houston – owners Billy Sharp, Jim Henry, Mark Avery and Matthew McFarren and their staff laid out the red carpet for both players and fans.
The tournament kicked off on Thursday night with the $1,000 added 9 Ball Banks event. This single elimination race to four event saw a full field of 32 players post their $100 entry fees. After the players auction, meeting & draw, the action began.
After being scarce on the tournament trail since the birth of his daughter two years ago, Robb Saez made up for lost time as he rocketed through the bracket taking down Alan Poisel 4-1, JC Torres 4-0, Mark Nanashee 4-2 and Ernesto Bayaua 4-0. In the bottom portion of the chart, Alex Calderon squeaked by Jeff Sullivan 4-3 and then dusted off Leon Contreras 4-1 and Raed Shabib 4-0 before running into Roberto Gomez. The match was a good one but Alex prevailed 4-2.
That win put Calderon into the finals against the red hot Saez. Alex went down 4-1 – guess baby needed a new pair of shoes! Congratulations, Robb! Good job, Alex!
Starting on Friday night was the main event – the $3,500 added Open 9 Ball. Drawing a full field of 128 players, this double elimination event had a $75 entry fee and was played on seven foot tables. Races were to 9/7 with winner breaks.
Bogies was getting their money’s worth with their house pro and defending champ, Roberto Gomez, as he marched through the field. He was never seriously threatened as he defeated Timothy Lapointe 4-0, Richard Hughes 9-4, John Weeks 9-2, Javier Alienes 9-4, Ernesto Bayaua 9-1 and Blaine Barcus 9-3 to arrive at the hot seat match.
Another man slicing through the field was Oklahoma’s John Gabriel. He started with wins over Pedro Oviolo 9-2 and Calvin Chappell 9-3 before a tough one with young gun Lazaro Martinez. John barely survived that one 9-8 and then coasted past Cesar Arechiga 9-0. Next were Joey Torres and Ryan Robinson – they went down 9-6 and 9-3 and John also arrived at the hot seat match.
The hot seat match was all Roberto as he spanked John 9-3 and locked up his seat in the finals. John headed west to play Bayaua who had eliminated Saez 7-4. Robb finished in fourth place. Then, it was John who beat Ernesto by the same score – 7-4. He finished in third place.
Knowing he had to defeat Roberto twice to take the title, John put up a tough fight but when it was all over, Gomez had gotten his revenge for John knocking him out of the one pocket event and defended his title! He won the match 9-6. Congratulations, Roberto! Good event, John!
Lazaro Martinez III
Sunday was the start for both the $500 added Ladies 9 Ball and the $500 added Junior 9 Ball events. The players auction, meeting and draw for the juniors was first followed by the same for the ladies.
Twenty three boys and girls paid a $35 entry fee to play in the double elimination event played on the seven foot Diamonds. They raced to 7/5 with winner breaks.
Former BEF Junior National champ and defending champion Lazaro Martinez defeated Carlos Jinez 7-5, Mary Grigsby 7-1, Vania Davila 7-0 and Kailye Stevens 7-2 to arrive at the hot seat match.
Kyle Yi was the victor over Oscar Ruiz 7-2, Hunter Jackson 7-0, Tyler Miller 7-0 and Larissa Almendarez 7-5 to claim the other seat in the hot seat match.
Kyle then defeated Lazaro 7-3 to go on to the finals. Lazaro headed to the one loss side to face Carlos Jinez who had beaten Kailye Stevens 5-3. Kailye finished in fourth place.
Looking to get back into the finals, Lazaro made short work of Carlos 5-1 leaving him in third place.
Needing to defeat Kyle twice to both defend and claim the title, Lazaro won the first set 7-4. The final set was a battle but it was Lazaro that took the title 5-3. Congratulations, Lazaro! Good event, Kyle!
Thirty two ladies filled the field posting their $45 entry fees. They also raced to 7/5 with winner breaks on the seven footers.
April Larson made her trek to the hot seat by defeating Vivian Christopher and Bridget Parker by the same score – 7-1. She then beat Crystal Cisneros 7-4, the always tough Ming Ng 7-3 and awaited her opponent in the hot seat match.
The hot seat match began and both players fought hard but in the end, Ricki had edged out April 7-6! April headed west.
Waiting for her was Ming. She had just beaten Robyn – she finished in fourth place. The match began to see who’d be in the final match. April came out on top 5-3 leaving Ming in third place.
Due to the late hour, the ladies decided to split the honors. Congratulations to both players!
The $1,000 added One Pocket event also started on Friday night. Having a full field of 32 who paid $100 to enter, the format was again single elimination with races to four. Following the players auction, meeting & draw, the matches began.
Still on fire from his runner-up finish in the banks event, Alex Calderon tore through the top half of the bracket skunking both Sonny Bosshamer and Raed Shabib but had rougher matches against Ernesto Bayaua and Marvin Diaz. He won both matches 4-2 and landed in the finals.
Quietly making his way through the bottom portion of the bracket was Oklahoma’s John Gabriel. He won his first match over Joey Barnes 4-2 and continued with wins over Ryan Baselman and Ryan Robinson – both 4-1. Down went Superman as John defeated Roberto Gomez 4-2 to get to the finals.
The final match started late and went long into the early morning hours and at the end, it was John taking top honors 4-2. Great tournament, John! Good showing, Alex!
John Gabriel
Congratulations to this year’s champions and to Roberto Gomez for taking down the $1,500 All Around Bonus!
PoolActionTV.com would again like to thank owners Billy Sharp, Jim Henry, Mark Avery and Matthew McFarren and their staff as well the event sponsors. They are Outsville, Diamond Billiard Products, Brutal Game Gear, Poison by Predator, Jerry Olivier Custom Cues, Simonis, Aramith, Predator, Immediate Smiles Dentures & Dentistry of Spring, TX, Alamo Billiards of Houston, TX, and Fort Worth Billliards Superstore of Fort Worth, TX.
We’d also like to thank Tournament Director Teresa Garland and her assistant, Jason Hill, for juggling all the various events.
PoolActionTV.com would also like to thank our fans and sponsors. Our sponsors include JB Cases, Hanshew Jump Cues, Diamond Billiard Products, Durbin Custom Cues, Savage Billiard Apparel, Immediate Smiles Dentures & Dentistry of Spring, TX, Action Palace of Dayton, OH and Fort Worth Billiards Superstore of Fort Worth, TX.
Our next event is the 35th Annual Music City Open Nine Ball Championships at JOB Billiard Club in Madison, TN – a suburb of Nashville. Dates are January 11th-15th – hope to see you there!
And, here’s wishing everyone happy holidays and a healthy and prosperous new year!
Bobby Jack Conner welcomed players and fans to his room, Peyton’s Place in Knoxville, TN, for the 4th Annual Big Boi Classic.
The $7,500 added event was nine ball played on seven foot Diamonds. Seventy three players put up their $125 entry fees to compete in this double elimination event. The format was alternate breaks with races to 9/7.
Presented by Peyton’s Place and PoolActionTV.com, additional sponsors were Outsville and Rosner Cue Repair as well as special sponsor Formby Painting and Wallcovering.
The event kicked off on Friday night with the players auction, players meeting and draw.
With most players drawing first round byes, Jon (“Hennessee”) Pinegar and Robbie Langford weren’t so lucky – Hennessee pounded Robbie 9-3. His next match was a little tougher but after a battle, David Givens went down 9-7. He blew through his next three opponents – Ricky Chitwood, Chris Gentile and Ryan Williams – all 9-2.
Young gun, Eric Roberts, had also marched through the bracket. After drawing a first round bye, he defeated Arron Kinnunen 9-3 and notched a forfeit over Kenneth Stewart. Next match proved to be tougher but he prevailed over Germany’s Can Salim 9-4. Eric followed this with a victory over Michael Rudd 9-3. Next match was Hennessee – it was a close match but Eric lost 9-7 and headed over to the one loss side while Pinegar moved on to the hot seat match.
BJ started his tear through the bracket with a win over Jason Floore 9-2 and then defeated Shane McMinn, Daniel Autrey, Kelly Green and Adam Pendley – all 9-5.
Josh and BJ then vied for a berth in the hot seat match – BJ took the match 9-7 and Josh headed west.
Meanwhile, after losing his second match to Ussery, McMinn put his head down and barreled through David Head 7-5, Ricky Chitwood 7-6, Robert Wilkerson 7-5, Matt Shaw 7-4, Shannon Murphy 7-5, Michael Rudd 7-0, Ryan Williams 7-0, Josh Roberts 7-4 and Can Salim 7-4. Shane then cooled his heels and awaited the results of the hot seat match.
The hot seat match was a good one but it was Hennessee who took the win 9-5. Ussery then played McMinn to see who would face Jon in the finals. Shane was finally defeated 7-4 and finished with a well-earned third place.
Since this was true double elimination, BJ would have to defeat Hennessee twice to win the tournament but it was not to be. Hennessee won the match 9-5 to claim the title!
PoolActionTV.com would like to thank Bobby Jack Conner and his staff for laying out the red carpet for all the players and fans. Tournament Director Jason Hill had a team of volunteers helping him out – they included Steve McDonald, Ricky Chitwood and Aaron Kinnunen.
In addition, PoolActionTV.com would like to thank our fans and sponsors. Our sponsors include JB Cases, Hanshew Jump Cues, Durbin Custom Cues, Simonis, Aramith, Lomax Custom Cues, Diamond Billiard Products, Formby Painting and Wallcovering, Savage Billiard Apparel, the Action Palace of Dayton, OH and Fort Worth Billiards Superstore of Fort Worth, TX.
Our next event is the $8,000 added Space City Open X at Big Tyme Billiards in Spring, TX! Featuring 9 Ball Banks, One Pocket, Open 9 Ball, Ladies 9 Ball, Junior 9 Ball as well as an All Around Bonus, the place will be hopping! Hope to see you there!
The Brass Tap & Billiards of Raleigh, NC has a long history of hosting tournaments and this year was no exception. After a layoff since 2019 due to the pandemic, owner Richard Kuntz welcomed players and fans back to the $15,000 added Beasley Open.
Presented by Doug Beasley of Beasley Custom Cues and special sponsors PoolActionTV.com and Brass Tap & Billiards, this year’s tournament had two events – One Pocket and Open 9 Ball.
Posting their $200 entry fees, the $5,000 added double elimination One Pocket division drew 48 players. Played on Diamond tables and racing to three, the finals would be one extended race to four. After the players auction and draw, the matches began.
With twelve players receiving a first round bye, Josh Roberts and Can Salim were not so fortunate. Josh survived that match 3-1 and went on to defeat Asad Khan 3-0, Justin Hall 3-1 and Brandon Shuff 3-2. On a similar path, John Morra had wins over Francesco Candela 3-1, Larry Pierce 3-2, Hunter White 3-1 and Corey Sykes 3-0. Then, in a hard fought match to reach the hot seat, Morra prevailed over Roberts 3-2.
Meanwhile, in the other portion of the bracket, Alex Pagulayan and Tony Chohan were on the march to the hot seat. After drawing a first round bye, Alex defeated Carlo Biado 3-2, Tony Pete 3-0 and Shane Wolford 3-1. Tony was the victor over Jesse Gilbert 3-2 and then skunked Robbie House 3-0, Brady Norris 3-0 and Omar Al Shaheen 3-0. He then received his own 3-0 thumping by Alex!
The hot seat match was all Pagulayan as he beat back Morra – also 3-0. John headed west and Alex moved to the finals.
Morra watched as Chohan edged out Biado 3-2 only to be relegated to third place 3-0. Looking for revenge, Tony went to the finals.
Still on a tear, Tony sliced through Alex in under an hour winning four gamesstraight to claim the title. Congratulations, Tony! Good tournament, Alex!
Johann Chua and Bader Al Awadhi
The $10,000 added Nine Ball Open began on Friday night following the players auction and draw. Ninety six players posted their $150 entry fees to play. The format was alternate breaks, rack your own with the nine on the spot and the two in the back, no soft breaks and races to 9/7.
Racing across the top half of the bracket was Johann Chua and Chia-Chen Hsieh. Playing to get to the hot seat match, Chua spanked Hsieh 9-1. The bottom portion of the bracket saw Bader Alawadhi win over John Morra 9-5.
Hot seat action again was all Chua as he locked up his seat in the finals 9-1. Bader went to the one loss side to await an opponent. Morra defeated Roberts 7-5 and then was eliminated by the same score leaving John with another third place finish.
The finals were one extended race to thirteen. Chua rocketed out to a 7-1 lead until Alawadhi caught a gear and tied the match at eight games each! Johann finally won the next two games to reach 10-8. Bader fought back to win a couple more until his opponent pulled away to win the match 13-10. Congratulations, Johann! Good shooting, Bader!
PoolActionTV.com would like to thank Richard Kuntz and his staff for another fantastic event.
In addition, we’d like to thank our fans and sponsors. Our sponsors include JB Cases, Hanshew Jump Cues, Diamond Billiard Products, Lomax Custom Cues, Simonis, Aramith, Durbin Custom Cues, Savage Billiard Apparel, Fort Worth Billiards Superstore of Fort Worth, TX and the Action Palace of Dayton, OH.
Our next event is the 4th Annual $7,500 added Big Boi Classic at Peyton’s Place in Knoxville, TN. The dates are November 18th-20th – hope to see you there!
The Action Palace in Huber Heights, OH – a suburb of Dayton – hosted eight of the best one pocket players in the world to compete in the High Stakes One Pocket Championship.
Held this past weekend and presented by PoolActionTV.com and the Action Palace, owner Alex Olinger welcomed the red hot Roberto Gomez who is just coming off his Texas Open One Pocket title as well as the victor in the recent Champions One Pocket Challenge over Corey Deuel. Roberto is also the current International Open One Pocket champ. Alex Pagulayan, BCA and One Pocket Hall of Famer and the holder of many one pocket titles as well as the current Scotty Townsend Memorial One Pocket title, was looking to add another notch to his belt.
Also in this star-studded field was Tony Chohan.He is a two-time US Open One Pocket champ and the winner of this year’s Southeastern Triple Crown One Pocket Championship, Buffalo’s Pro One Pocket Championship and the Midwest Open One Pocket title.
Looking for his first major one pocket title of the year and the winner of the 2021 Southeastern Triple Crown One Pocket Championship was John Morra as well as the 2013 Derby City Classic One Pocket champ and the 2019 Derby City Classic runner-up, Corey Deuel.
The winner of the 2021 Racks On The Rocks Classic One Pocket Championship in West Peoria, IL and this year’s Champions One Pocket Challenge over Josh Roberts, Evan Lunda, has consistently finished high in most of this year’s one pocket events. Earlier this year, Chip Compton was the winner over Justin Hall of the One Pocket Challenge Match at the Cajun Coast Classic in Morgan City, LA.
Rounding out the field was veteran Dee Adkins. Dee was the 2000 Derby City Classic Master of the Table – need I say more!
These players each paid a $5,000 entry fee to compete in this $10,000 added event. The format was double elimination – races to seven. After the players auction, the draw was completed and the brackets posted.
Both John Morra and Roberto Gomez won two matches to play for the hot seat. John edged out Chip in the opening round 7-6 and then defeated Corey 7-3. Roberto thumped both Dee and Alex – 7-2 and 7-1, respectively. Gomez had a bit of a tougher time with Morra but he locked up his seat in the finals 7-4.
Over on the B-side of the chart, Tony and Dee went two and out, Alex smoked Chip 7-1 and Evan handily defeated Corey 7-3. The following match saw Evan rocket ahead of Alex 5-2 and then the wheels came off. Missing several makeable balls let Pagulayan back into the match and he squeaked out a win 7-6.
Patiently waiting for Alex was John. He, unfortunately, was no match for Alex as he was dusted 7-2. Morra’s consolation was third place prize and auction money while Pagulayan moved to the finals.
As this was true double elimination, Alex would have to defeat Roberto two sets to take top honors. The first set saw the two scratching and clawing their way to a 6-6 tie. With an opening shot and the remaining balls on the table, Roberto had his chance to end it right there but missed! Alex came to the table & methodically ran out the balls to force a second set.
The second set was the same as the first – neck and neck to five apiece. Gomez won the next game – on the hill – 6-5. Pagulayan battled but Roberto took the final game and the title! Congratulations, Roberto! Great effort, Alex!
PoolActionTV.com would again like to think Alex Olinger and his staff for rolling out the red carpet. We’d also like to thank our Tournament Director, Jason Hill, for a great job!
We’d also like to thank Jeremy Jones, Tony Chohan and Ray Hansen for their topnotch commentary.
In addition, we’d like to thank our viewers and sponsors. They include JB Cases, Hanshew Jump Cues, Aramith, Lomax Custom Cues, Diamond Billiard Products, Diveney Cues, Simonis Cloth, Durbin Custom Cues, Fort Worth Billiards Superstore of Fort Worth, TX and the Action Palace of Dayton, OH.
Our next event is the Seventh Annual $3,000 added Senior One Pocket Championship to be held at Bogies Billiards in Houston, TX. The dates are September 29th– October 2nd.Hope to see you there!!!
Over the past weekend, the grand finale of the 49th Annual Texas Open 9 Ball Championships took place. Hosted by owners Kim and Tracy Sanders, Skinny Bob’s Billiards in Round Rock, TX was the place to be!
The $20,000 added 9 Ball Open had an entry fee of $200. The double elimination event was races to nine and winner breaks. Using a template rack, the nine was racked on the spot with three point rule in effect.
After the players auction, the brackets were posted and play began.
Using eighteen Diamond tables, the 128 player field was whittled down by Sunday to the final 32. A second players auction was held and when it was over, the action resumed.
Two players battled their way through the very tough field to the hot seat match – Ukraine’s Vitaliy Patsura and BCA Hall of Famer Alex Pagulayan.
In the bottom portion of the bracket, Pagulayan defeated Clint Palaci 9-5, Brian Sanders 9-5, skunked Gordon Vanderveer 9-0, blistered fellow Filipino and day’s old Texas Open One Pocket champ Roberto Gomez 9-2 and Robert Frost 9-3. He then sent Josh Roberts to the one loss side with a score of 9-5.
In dead punch, the hot seat match saw Patsura claim his seat in the finals with a 9-5 victory over Pagulayan.Alex headed to west to await an opponent.
Over on the one loss side, Josh Roberts kept Jesus Atencio in his chair with a 9-4 win. John Morra eliminated the always tough Naoyuki Oi 9-5. Both Atencio and Oi finished 5th-6th.
Morra was ahead with a 5-3 lead until Roberts stepped on the gas. Tied at seven apiece, Josh won the last two games and took the win 9-7. John finished in fourth place.
The Alex Pagulayan-Josh Roberts match began – each player looking to get into the finals. Alex leaped out to a 5-1 advantage but here came Josh! He tied it up at five games each!
Alex won the next three games to reach the hill 8-5. But then, here came Josh again to take the next two games! Alex decided to finish it right there and took the match 9-7. He moved on to the finals leaving Josh in third place.
As this event was true double elimination, Pagulayan would have to defeat Patsura twice to win the tournament.
Alex won the first game and Vitaliy won the next three. Then he started to really pull ahead – 5-2, 6-2, 7-3 and to the hill he went. Alex managed to win one more game and then Vitaliy ran out to claim the title!!!
While the main event was going on, Sky Woodward took the $500 added Banks Ring Game mini over Raed Shabib and Sakura Muramatsu defeated Jennifer Kraber to win the Ladies Ring 9 Ball Game! Congratulations to both!
Sakura Muramatsu
The $3,500 added Ladies 9 Ball Division had a full field of 32 players with races to seven.
After several matches, room owner Kim Sanders and last year’s third place finisher Sakura Muramatsu battled for the hot seat. Sakura cruised to a 7-3 win to claim her spot in the finals.
Kim was sent to the west side to await the victor of the Jennifer Kraber-Michelle Cortez match. Michelle prevailed 7-5 leaving Jennifer in fourth place.
Cooling her heels waiting for an opponent didn’t seem to faze Sanders any as she took the match over Cortez 7-4. Michelle finished in third place.
As this was also true double elimination, Sanders would have to defeat Muramatsu twice to win the tournament but it was not to be – Sakura won the final match 7-3.
Congratulations to Vitaliy and Sakura for becoming the 2022 Texas Open 9 Ball Champions! Great tournament, Alex and Kim!
And, thanks again to everyone at Skinny Bob’s for a first class event! Big thanks to the local sponsors – they included Diamond Billiard Products, GAF, Hanshew Custom Cues, Sanders Roofing & Exteriors, ABC Supply, Sionis, Aramith and Mints Amusements.
Thanks to Tournament Director Jason Hill for an exemplary job juggling multiple events.
And, as always, PoolActionTV would like to thank our fans and sponsors! They include JB Cases, Hanshew Jump Cues, EnviroAssessments, Lomax Custom Cues, Aramith, Simonis, Diveney Cues, Diamond Billiard Products, Durbin Custom Cues, the Action Palace of Dayton, OH and the Fort Worth Billiards Superstore of Fort Worth, TX.
Our next event is the Ten Ball Champions Challenge featuring Roberto Gomez and John Morra! Held at Railyard Billiards & Sports Pub in Louisville, KY, this is going to be great! Dates are September 9th-11th! Hope to see you there!!!
Players from all over the planet hightailed it to Skinny Bob’s in Round Rock, TX for the 49th Annual Texas Open – all trying to get a piece of this $40,000 added event!
Owners Kim and Tracy Sanders and their local sponsors welcomed all the players and fans to one of the most beautiful rooms in the country. Sponsors included GAF, ABC Supply Co. Inc., Hanshew Custom Cues, Sanders Roofing & Exteriors, LLC, Aramith and Mints Amusements.
The event featured four divisions – one pocket, scotch doubles, open nine ball and ladies nine ball as well as three minis – a banks ring game, a nine ball mini and a ladies ring game! Nonstop pool action!
Waiting in the wings and featuring a stellar field of 26 players, the $13,000 added One Pocket division began on Monday evening. It had a $1,000 entry with races to 5/4 with alternate breaks – double elimination.
Following a rousing player’s auction and the draw, play began.
Hot off his victory of Chip Compton earlier this month in the One Pocket Challenge, Fedor Gorst defeated veteran Scott Kitto and the always tough John Morra battled One Pocket Hall of Famer Jeremy Jones. Both matches had a 5-3 score.
Two-time Derby City One Pocket champ, Billy Thorpe, won his match over former Senior One Pocket champ James Davis Sr. 5-2 as did the current Iron City One Pocket Champ Josh Roberts over Filipino star Roland Garcia by the same score.
In a rerun of last month’s Big Dog one pocket final match, Sky Woodward got his revenge over Tony Chohan and the 2022 Scotty Townsend Memorial One Pocket champ Alex Pagulayan beat Evan Lunda – the victor in July’s One Pocket Champions Challenge with Josh Roberts. Morra also took down One Pocket Hall of Famer Scott Frost. The score in these matches was 5-2.
Scotch Doubles Champions Kristina Tkach and Fedor Gorst
Second round action also saw Alex Calderon and Tommy Tokoph duking it out. It went down to the wire but Alex edged out the win 5-4.
After drawing a first round bye, Roberto Gomez battled Josh Roberts and took the win 5-3 as did Billy Thorpe over young gun Lazaro Martinez III by the same score.
Third round pitted Woodward against Pagulayan. Sky took the win as did Calderon over Morra and Gomez over Thorpe. All scores 5-4!
After winning his first match, Gorst was quietly making his way through the field with victories over Jacob Pennison 5-1 and Nicholas De Leon 5-2. In dead punch, he smoked Woodward 5-2 and moved into the hot seat match. At the bottom of the bracket, Gomez made quick work of Calderon to lock up the other berth – also 5-2.
The hot seat match began and was close until Gomez pulled away to send Gorst west with a 5-3 score.
Meanwhile, after having lost his first match, Garcia clawed and fought his way through the one loss side with wins over Pennison, Robert Frost, Morra, Chohan and Woodward until finally succumbing to Calderon 4-2. Roland finished in fourth place.
Cooling his heels and looking to get back into the finals against Gomez, Gorst had to get past Calderon. It wasn’t in the cards as Fedor was eliminated 4-2.
It was an all Houston final as Calderon took on Gomez for the title. Since it was true double elimination, Alex would have to defeat Roberto twice to take it down. Gomez wasn’t having any of that – he took the match 5-3! Congratulations, Roberto! Good tournament, Alex!
Naoyuki Oi and Skyler Woodward
The $500 added Nine Ball Mini took place after the one pocket finals. When the smoke cleared it was Japan’s Naoyuki Oi over Sky Woodward. Great shooting, guys!!!
PoolActionTV.com would again like to thank Kim and Tracy Sanders and their staff for taking great care of all the players and fans.
Thanks to Tournament Director Jason Hill for doing a great job!
We’d also like to thank Scott Rabon, Jeremy Jones, Robert Frost and Alex Pagulayan for their topnotch commentary.
And, we’d also like to thank our fans and sponsors. They include JB Cases, Hanshew Jump Cues, EnviroAssessments, Lomax Custom Cues, Aramith, Simonis, Diveney Cues, Diamond Billiard Products, Durbin Custom Cues, the Action Palace of Dayton, OH and the Fort Worth Billiards Superstore of Fort Worth, TX.
Stay tuned for the rest of the results of the Texas Open – the $20,000 added Nine Ball Open, the $3,500 added Ladies Nine Ball, the $500 added Banks Ring Game and the $500 added Ladies Ring Game!
And if you haven’t already, get your pass at PoolActionTV.com and come sweat it with us!!!
