Justin Pena of Kyle, Texas, took down the Poison Lone Star Billiard Tour’s amateur 9-ball division, winning his first-ever, amateur title, while Manny Chau secured his fourth, open 9-ball division win this year. Pena went undefeated, overcoming Austin’s Floyd Smith in the final set, 5-4, while Chau also went unchallenged, ousting Alex Calderone in the first set of the true, double elimination final, 7-6.

 

On October 14th-15th, 2017, the Poison Lone Star Billiards Tour held its tenth stop of the year at Bogies West in Houston, Texas. The tour would like to thank Bogies West and staff, title sponsor Poison by Predator Cues PoisonBilliards.com, and sponsors Cyclop Pool Balls facebook@CyclopPoolBalls, Ozone Billiards OzoneBilliards.com, APA of North Harris County facebook@APANorthHarrisCounty, OutsvilleBilliards.com, and Realtor Jimmy Jenkins, for their continued support.

 

In the amateur division, Justin Pena took no prisoners on his way to the winners’ side final four. Pena hit Jeremy Byrd, 5-2, and Pete Charles, 5-2, while Bill Fuller tagged Brian Rosenbaum, 5-4, and Floyd Smith, 5-1. Will Felder chipped away, booking wins over Freeport’s Alan Myers, 5-1, Austin’s Mark Smith, 5-1, and Bobby Broussard, 5-1, while Chuck Adams overwhelmed Creed Aumaugher, 5-0, and Jimmy Jenkins, 5-2. On the west side, Smith secured five matches, including wins over Robbie Salinas, 5-1, and Charles, while Myers claimed an equal number of victories, eliminating Chris Ramoz, 5-3, Byrd, Jenkins, 5-1, and Rosenbaum, 5-1. Back on the east side, Fuller fell to Pena, 5-4, and Adams overcame Felder, 5-3. The hot seat match featured two, brand new participants, both vying for their first hot seat win, and a possible a tournament victory. Pena overpowered Adams, 5-3, earning himself a ticket to the finals, while Smith ended Felder, 5-0, and Myers depleted Fuller. Smith went on to extinguish Myers, 5-3, and Adams, 5-1, for a shot at Pena. In the final set, Pena powered through, sliding by Smith for the win, 5-4. Congratulations to Justin Pena on his first, amateur division title!

 

In the open 9-ball division, Manny Chau was on fire, securing wins over Jimmy Jenkins, 7-5, Alex Calderone, 7-5, and Kevin Guimond, 7-3. Marc Garza was also on his way to the winners’ side final four, ousting Alan Myers, 7-1, Thomas Madison, 7-2, and Jeremy Byrd, 7-3. Ernesto Bayaua bested Mark Smith, 7-2, Robbie Salinas, 7-5, and Shelby Green, 7-4, while Will Felder defeated Brian Humphrey, 7-1, and Austin’s Justin Espinosa, 7-5. On the west side, Calderone was on the comeback, eliminating Chuck Adams, 7-0, Brian Rosenbaum, 7-2, and Espinosa, 7-6, while Pete Charles took out Chris Ramoz, 7-6, Madison, and Green, 7-3. Guimond ended Bill Fuller, 7-5, while Tom Rehm reigned over Jenkins, 7-5, Salinas, 7-6, and Byrd. As the final four on the one loss side took form, east side action witnessed Chau defeat Garza, 7-4, and Bayaua blast Felder, 7-3. Chau overcame Bayaua, 7-4, for the hot seat win. On the opposite side of the bracket, Guimond rounded up Rehm, and followed up with Felder, 7-2, while Calderone canned Charles and Garza. Calderone went on to eliminate Guimond and Bayaua, marking up an impressive seven wins to meet Chau in the finals. In the final set, Chau ended Calderone’s run, 7-6. Congratulations to Manny Chau on clenching his fourth, open division title of 2017.

 

Long-time tour player and supporter, Chuck Adams, secured his highest finish to date at this event (third). Chuck began competing on tour just prior to its official start in 2009, making him one of the longest-running, tour competitors to date. The tour would like to congratulate Chuck, and recognize his years of dedication to the tour, and the sport of billiards.

 

The tour would like to thank each and every player for their participation, whether it’s one event, or every event year round. The final event of the 2017 season will be held October 28th-29th, at CK Billiards and Bar, 9247 Skillman, #105, Dallas, Texas, 75243. If you are unable to make the final stop of the year, we look forward to seeing you next year. The 2018 schedule, and details about next year’s 10th Anniversary Event, will be published at www.LoneStarBilliardsTour.com.   

Steve Lenz of Orange, Texas, went undefeated to capture the 45-player, amateur 9-ball division, while Chase Rudder ran through an elite, 42-player field, securing the open 9-ball division, at the ninth stop on the 2017 Poison Lone Star Billiards Tour. Lenz conquered Austin’s Floyd Smith in the final, 5-1, and Rudder came from behind, winning nine matches, and defeating Yousef Jalal (VEN) in the finals, 7-2, 7-4.  

 

Cliff Joyner, Josh Roberts, and Tommy Tokoph, were among the 79 competing on September 30th-October 1st, 2017, at Bogies Billiards and Sports Bar in Houston, Texas. Tour title sponsor Poison by Predator Cues PoisonBilliards.com, and sponsors Cyclop Pool Balls facebook@CyclopPoolBalls,  Ozone Billiards OzoneBilliards.com, APA of North Harris County facebook@APANorthHarrisCounty,  OutsvilleBilliards.com, and Jimmy Jenkins Realty , facilitated another successful  event that paid out over $6,500 in prize money, to the top eight finishers in each division.

 

In the amateur 9-ball division, Ricky Hughes ousted Lee Clark, Robyn Haak, 5-4, Danny Schauer, 5-0, and Pete Charles, 5-2, while Steve Lenz powered through Brian Rosenbaum, 5-1, newcomer Jose Marroquin, 5-1, and Chuck Adams, 5-1. J.C. Torres handled Carlos Sanchez, 5-2, Jonathan Poon, 5-4, C.J. Escalera, 5-1, and Floyd Smith, 5-3, while Jeff Chauncey overcame Jason Breland, 5-2, Matt Cash, 5-1, and Kevin Frauenberger, 5-2. On the one loss side, Breland won five matches, eliminating Karol Hughes, 5-4, Brian Humphrey, 5-4, Nick Chavira, 5-1, Bob Guzik, 5-3, and Frauenberger, 5-0. Poon eliminated Tyler Partin, 5-1, but fell to Smith, 5-2. Cash finished off Sanchez, 5-4, Mark Smith, 5-4, and Adams, 5-1. Paul Alderete secured wins over Charles Williams, 5-2, Haak, 5-3, Escalera, 5-3, and Chris Ramoz, 5-0, until he was stopped short by Charles.  On the winners’ side, Lenz squeaked by Hughes, 5-4, while Torres bested Chauncey, 5-3. Lenz made quick work of Torres in the hot seat match, 5-2. On the one loss side, Smith overcame Breland, 5-2, and Hughes, 5-3, while Charles defeated Cash and Chauncey, by the same score, 5-1. Smith was on a roll, besting Charles and Torres, by the same score, 5-4, capturing five matches to meet Lenz in the finals. Lenz was ready, and came out firing. Smith was overpowered, and fell to Lenz in the first set, 5-1. Congratulations to Steve Lenz on his new, amateur division title.

 

In the open 9-ball division, Tommy Tokoph began his trek to the final four on the winners’ side with victories over Paul Alderete, 7-3, Bob Guzik, 7-3, and Cliff Joyner, 7-1. Yousef Jalal made his tour debut, ousting Will Felder, 7-5, Daniel Forster, 7-4, and Mark Smith, 7-5. Jason “Jaybird” Breland defeated J.C. Torres, 7-6, Nick Chavira, 7-5, and Kevin Frauenberger, 7-1, while Josh Roberts overwhelmed Brian Humphrey, 7-1, Karol Hughes, 7-2, Ernesto Bayaua, 7-0, and Steve Lenz, 7-5. The east-side, final four was set, and the one loss side was underway. Manny Chau was upset in the second round by Jeff Chauncey, 7-6, and came back to win 5 matches, eliminating tour newcomer Sam Abusalem, 7-2, Mark Smith, 7-1, and Lenz, 7-2. Joyner made his way, eliminating Chris Ramoz, 7-3, Floyd Smith, 7-2, and Frauenberger, 7-4. Following an early loss to Lenz, 7-3, Rudder ousted Adam Cooper, Bayaua, 7-4, and Chauncey, 7-5. Jeremy Byrd lost his first match to Rudder, 7-1, and plowed through the one loss side with wins over Chuck Adams, 7-4, Nick Chavira, 7-4, Bob Guzik, 7-0, and Danny Schauer, Jr., 7-1, before falling to Ricky Hughes, 7-3. The final eight players returned on Sunday, in the money. On the winners’ side, Tokoph fell to Jalal, 7-5, while Breland overcame Roberts, 7-3. On the west side, Chau dusted off Joyner, 7-2, and Tokoph, 7-3, while Rudder endEd Hughes and Roberts by the same score, 7-3. Meanwhile, two, first-time tour players, teed off for the open division hot seat. Jalal pulled ahead of Breland, securing the set, 7-4. On the west side, Rudder eliminated Chau, then Breland, by the same score, 7-1. After 7 match wins, it was undeniable; Rudder was on fire. In the first set against Jalal, Rudder was down, 2-1, then broke and ran six racks, ending the set, 7-2. In overtime, Jalal made a valiant effort to salvage the title, but it was too little too late. Rudder took the second set, 7-4. Congratulations to Chase Rudder on a well-deserved victory. 

 

Serving pool players, pool rooms, and sponsors since 2009, the Poison Lone Star Billiards Tour celebrates its 10th Anniversary in 2018 as the longest-running billiards tour in the south. A special 10th Anniversary Event will be held for players who compete in at least two events between now, and January 1st, 2018. There are only two events remaining this year, and players are strongly encouraged to meet the eligibility requirements, in order to gain entrance into this one-of-a-kind tournament. The next tour stop will be held on October 14th-15th, at Bogies West, 9638 Jones Road, Houston, Texas. This will be the last stop in Houston for the 2017 season. The final stop will be October 28th-29th, at CK Billiards in Dallas, Texas. For more information, please visit www.LoneStarBilliardsTour.com.