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Jayson Shaw Wins Record Ninth Turning Stone Title

Connor and Jayson Shaw

With a much tougher field to battle with this time, Jayson Shaw still persevered to win a record 9th Turning Stone Classic as the Turning Stone Classic XXXVI in Verona, NY on January 5th – 8th. 

Shaw saw his route to a 9th title getting a bit tougher, early on the final day, after he dropped a 9-6 match to Skyler Woodward. While this match was going on, Jeremy Sossei was making quick work of Joss Tour regular Kevin West. Sossei would find himself on the wrong side of another quick match in the next round, dropping a 9-1 decision to Woodward for the hot-seat. 

Shaw got to work on the left side of the board, where he eliminated Japan’s Naoyuki Oi 9-6. It was in the next round that Shaw truly got into his usual dominating style at the table. He beat Fedor Gorst for the second time in the event, this time by a lopsided 9-2 scoreline. In the semi-final match, he handed Jeremy Sossei an identical 9-2 beating, to secure his rematch with Woodward in the finals. 

The finals were one race to thirteen and Woodward came out of the gate strong, and quickly held a 3-0 lead. A three rack lead is nothing to players of this level, and Shaw made up the 3 rack deficit to tie the match at 3-3. Woodward scratched on the break at 4-4 and Shaw made him pay for that mistake in a big way as he ran out to a 7-4 lead. Woodward played a great 3-9 combo in the twelfth rack, only to see the cue ball follow the 9-ball into the pocket. That mistake cost him two racks as Shaw extended the lead to 9-4. 

Woodward won two racks to claw back within three racks at 9-6, but a missed 2-ball by Shaw in the sixteenth rack led to another three racks for Shaw and he held the lead at 12-6. Woodward got one more opportunity when Shaw failed to get out in the nineteenth rack. He made the most of that opportunity as he ran that rack out for a 12-7 scoreline. Woodward then broke and ran the following rack. And the next. And the next. Before the fans in attendance, and watching the live stream online, knew it, the score was tied at 12-12, with Woodward breaking. Woodward would not be able to complete the comeback though, as he missed a touchy six-ball, leaving Shaw a relatively simple four balls to run for his third straight, and ninth overall, Turning Stone Classic title. 

Shaw celebrated with the $10,000 first place price, while Woodward settled for $6,500 in second place prize money, as well as a nice bump on the Nineball Rankings list. 

Sunday also included the second chance tournament, that saw Landon Hollingsworth defeat Dave Fernandez in the finals for first place. 

The Joss NE 9-Ball Tour will kick off the second half of the 2022/2023 with the Northeast 9-Ball Open at Sharpshooters Billiards in Amsterdam, NY on March 4th – 5th. The next Turning Stone Classic event is scheduled for August 31st – September 3rd, once again at the Turning Stone Resort and Casino in Verona, NY. 

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Turning Stone Classic XXXVI Day Three Underway

Naoyuki Oi

Day three dawns at the Turning Stone Classic XXXVI, with sixty four players still holding hopes of adding this event to their resume. 

Defending champion Jayson Shaw is still undefeated, and is joined by such notables as Fedor Gorst, Donny Mills, Skyler Woodward, Mika Immonen, Erik Hjorliefson, Vitaliy Patsura, Danny Hewitt, Billy Thorpe, Jeremy Sossei, Naoyuki Oi and Johnny Archer. 

Naoyuki Oi is earning a new set of fans here at Turning Stone, with his dominant play. Oi won his first two matches, over Ray Carey and Kristina Tkach, by a combined score of 18-0. Oi looked well on his way to keeping that record alive in this third match of the event, as he led John Morra 5-0 early in their match. Morra finally took advantage of an Oi miss and got back into the match, to eventually tie things at hill-hill before Oi pocketed the case ball for the 9-8 win. Oi will face the Ukraine’s Vitaliy Patsura at 2pm EST today. 

Johnny Archer ended his Friday play with a convincing 9-6 win over Poland’s Mieszko Fortunski to remain undefeated. Archer’s first action on Saturday will be a match with fellow American Skyler Woodward. 

Upstate Al is streaming selected matches on his Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/UpStateAL. Fans can follow all of the action online with our online brackets and real time scoring pages.

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Turning Stone Classic Day Three Underway

Earl Strickland

Saturday play at the Turning Stone Classic XXXV is underway and the field has been cut in half from 128 players down to just 64 remaining players. Saturday play will cut that field down to just eight players. 

Most of the usual suspects who were expected to excel at this event have lived up to their expectations so far. Players still on the winners side include Shane Van Boening, Jayson Shaw, Mika Immonen, Earl Strickland, Jeremy Sossei, Donny Mills, Bucky Souvanthong, Kevin West and Danny Hewitt. Those players are going to start running into each other today, with Van Boening facing Sossei and Shaw playing Strickland at 2pm ET.

Fans who can’t make it to Turning Stone can watch selected matches online as part of Upstate Al’s Free streaming coverage, and can watch online brackets and live scoring courtesy of AzBilliards and Digital Pool. 

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Turning Stone Classic XXXV Underway

The Turning Stone Classic XXXV is underway at the Turning Stone Casino and Resort in Verona, NY.

Jayson Shaw is back and looking to win a record 8th Turning Stone Classic title. He will have to get by Shane Van Boening, who is looking to match Shaw’s current record of seven Turning Stone titles. Other top players competing in this event include Earl Strickland, Mika Immonen, Jeremy Sossei, Donny Mills, Bucky Souvanthong, Danny Hewitt, Frankie Hernandez and Matt Krah.

Fan’s who can’t make it to Turning Stone can watch selected matches online as part of Upstate Al’s Free streaming coverage, and can watch online brackets and live scoring courtesy of AzBilliards and Digital Pool.

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Turning Stone XXXV On Tap for September 1st – 4th

Mike Zuglan‘s Joss Northeast 9-Ball Tour and Turning Stone Resort Casino are proud to present our 2021/2022 Season Finale, The $25,000 Added “Turning Stone Classic XXXV 9-Ball Open” on September 1-4, 2022. Turning Stone has once again invited us to compete in their beautiful and spacious Event Center which is most definitely one of the best arenas in the world. There is not a bad seat in the house and multiple matches can be viewed comfortably from everywhere. The intimate layout in this world class arena allows you to mingle with your favorite players and lets you feel like you are a part of the action as well. Turning Stone Resort Casino is a full service resort with everything needed for a relaxing, fun filled and enjoyable experience. Check them out and look for our ad notice at www.turningstone.com

Our 35th Turning Stone Classic will once again have a full roster of 128 players competing for the title. The field will include a wide range of talent from our regular tour players to some of the best in the game. Some of the notable players signed up to play include Jayson Shaw, Shane Van Boening, Johnny Morra, Mika Immonen, and our own regulars Jeremy Sossei and Bucky Souvanthong. These are just a few to be in attendance along with many other notable and not so notable but great players nonetheless. The complete player will be posted later at www.joss9balltour.com . Until then anyone can contact me and I will be glad to tell you if your favorite player(s) is in. mzjosstour@aol.com This promises to be yet another memorable event in our long running Turning Stone Classic series. Our $25,000 added “Turning Stone Classic XXXVI 9-Ball Open” is scheduled for January 5-8, 2023 and could possibly be a Mosconi Cup qualifying event once again. I will begin taking entries for that event at the September 1-4, 2022 TS event but not before. FYI, there is every reason to believe that the event will fill to capacity many months prior to the event, so seriously interested players need to sign up early to avoid being shut out as I am not able to wait for anyone. Also, I am raising the future TS entry fees as follows: $200 for current season members or $250 for all others. This will allow me to raise first place to $10,000 as well as raising some of the other pay outs. Please keep in mind that I am no longer in a position to give “free” seasonal memberships to those that prepay for a TS event. The only way to become a seasonal Joss Northeast 9-Ball Tour member is to come and play in any pool room event and pay the $40 seasonal fee. Our complete schedule can be found at www.joss9balltour.com

Once again at Turning Stone there will be a second chance tournament on Sunday September 4th at 10AM. This is an event for those Non Pro level players (I will decide) eliminated from the main event. The event format will be as follows: $60 Entry Fee – 32 Player Max – same rules as main event – Single Elimination – Races to 4, best 2 of 3 sets, with the deciding set being a single game sudden death. This means that if each player wins a race to 4, there will be a lag for the break and a 1 game playoff to determine the match winner. Entries will be taken for this tournament as players are eliminated from the main event and will be treated as first paid – first in until the event is full.

The equipment for our world class event will once again be 16 Diamond Pro Tables covered with 860 Simonis (“The Cloth Of Champions”) tournament blue cloth and Aramith balls. Once again only the best equipment in the world will be used at our event!

As always, fans coming to Turning Stone for our event will be treated to Free Admission, Free collectible posters while supplies last, and some of the best pool you will ever see. All of this is brought to you courtesy of Turning Stone Resort Casino and the Joss Northeast 9-Ball Tour!

Included in the Event Center at Turning Stone is a full service snack bar serving all of our favorite foods and adult beverages. There will be billiard product vendors and on site cue repairs available for all your needs. Mike Burton of www.josscues.com will have a wide range of Joss Cues and Joss Northeast 9-Ball Tour Shirts. Andrea Duvall, owner of Utica Billiards on The Boulevard, will be here with an extensive cue, case and supplies display. Mark Rosner will be on hand with his cues and expert on site cue repairs. Feng Zhao of www.lite-systems.com will be there with his custom LED billiard lighting and other billiard products and Victor Conte will be on site promoting his new game as well. I will also have a collection of Phil Capelle’s books for sale at 20% off the cover prices.

Dan, Debbie and Stephen Janes of Joss Cues, have once again upped the ante and provided us with two gorgeous, custom engraved Joss cues for raffle. These cues are valued at $1,900 each and will be raffled off on Saturday just before the 8 PM matches, and the second will go on Sunday immediately prior to the final match at approximately 7 PM. Dan, Debbie and Steve can’t be thanked enough for everything they have, and continue to do for all of us!!

We invite everyone to come to Turning Stone Resort & Casino September 1-4, 2022 for a great experience, and 4 full days of some of the best pool you will ever witness. If for some reason you are unable to make it, there will be free live scoring and a free live stream expertly provided by Alan Leon, aka Upstate Al and Mike Howerton at www.azbilliards.com , the Joss Northeast 9-Ball Tour and Turning Stone Resort Casino. Match times are as follows: Thursday at 4,6,8 & 10pm. Friday at 10am, noon, 2,4,6,8 & 10pm. Saturday at 10am, noon, 2,4,6,8 & 10pm. Sunday at 11am, 1,3,5 & the final match at 7pm. The second chance tournament on Sunday will begin at 10am and run continuously until completed.

I would like to ask all of you to please publicize our event through social media etc. so more people may be informed about this great and free event. And, as always, I remind all of you how important it is to please frequent your local billiard parlors and promote and utilize the fine products of our most generous sponsors listed below. They are the backbone of our sport!

I hope to see all of you at Turning Stone

Mike Zuglan

The Joss Northeast 9-Ball Tour Is Proudly Sponsored By;

Joss Cues – http://www.josscues.com
Turning Stone Resort Casino – http://www.turningstone.com 
Simonis Cloth – http://www.simoniscloth.com
Poolonthenet.com – http://www.poolonthenet.com
AzBilliards.com – http://www.azbilliards.com
Aramith – http://www.aramith.com
Billiards Press – http://www.billiardspress.com
World Class Cue Care – http://www.jnj-industries.com

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Gorst chalks up his 10th victory, 13th first- or second-place finish and 18th cash payout in 2022

John Morra and Fedor Gorst

Brendan Crockett Memorial draws 182 entrants to Hard Times Billiards in Sacramento.

Russia’s Fedor Gorst is about as close to a ‘sure bet’ at the tables that one has or is ever likely to see. This year alone, he has won or placed second in almost 75% (.7368) of the events in which he has cashed (19). It puts him at the top of the AZB Money Leaderboard, which would certainly make him the current ‘best bet’ of the year and while, as with all players, he doesn’t win them all, the chances of him finishing, as an example, 17th in an event are somewhere between remote/slim and none. That said, 17th is exactly how he finished at the Derby City’s 9-Ball tournament in January, so caveat emptor, as they say, when you consider a bet.

His 10th 2022 victory came at the $10,000-added, 4th Annual Brendan Crockett Memorial 10-Ball Open tournament this past weekend (July 30-31), where he and 181 of his fellow competitors gathered at Hard Times Billiards in Sacramento, CA to do battle. Gorst had to come from the loss side of the bracket, though not very far, to dislodge Canadian John Morra from the hot seat. Gorst, with a Fargo Rate of 827, faced nine opponents in 10 matches (Morra twice) with a combined Fargo Rate average of 690. Translated, in the winners’ side races to 9, his opponents had an average 2.5% chance of defeating him, although individually, the one opponent who did – Morra, with a 778 Fargo Rate – had a slightly higher than a one-in-four chance of doing so.

Gorst made it to his first matchup against Morra in one of the winners’ side semifinals, with an aggregate score of 35-5. The opponent he met in the hot seat, Oscar Dominguez, arrived at his winners’ side semifinal against Margaret Fefilova Styer with a 35-12 aggregate score.

Morra sent Gorst to the loss side 7-1. Dominguez sent Styer over 7-2. Morra played what would prove to be his last winning match, sending Dominguez to the semifinals 7-5 and claimed the hot seat.

On the loss side, Gorst picked up Max Eberle, who was working on a four-match, loss-side streak that had recently eliminated Jeremy Sossei in a shutout and Skip Nikakis, double hill. Styer drew Nick DeLeon, who had chalked up five on the loss side, including recent wins over Chris Gentile 7-3 and Spencer Ladin, double hill.

Gorst ended Eberle’s streak 7-3 and in the quarterfinals, faced DeLeon, who’d defeated Styer 7-4. Gorst ended DeLeon’s run 7-4 in those quarterfinals and then, in a manner of speaking, brushed aside Oscar Dominguez with a shutout in the semifinals.

Gorst/Morra parte deux did not begin or end well for Morra. Gorst jumped out to a 5-0 lead, at which Morra began to chip away (as generally recommended), one rack at a time. Morra got on the board with one, but Gorst re-established his five-rack lead with a win in game #7. Morra then took the next three, narrowing Gorst’s lead to two at 6-4. Gorst took games #11 and #12 to reach the hill first at 8-4. Morra took one more swing, winning rack #13, but Gorst walked it off with his ninth rack to claim the 4th Annual Brendan Crockett Memorial title. 

Event representatives thanked the ownership and staff at Hard Times, as well as all 181 competitors, who, through their participation, paid homage to the memory of Brendan Crockett and his brother, Jeff, who, travelling together, were killed in an automobile accident in 2016. An annual scholarship fund was created a year later to benefit a junior player who excelled in academics. 

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Two tour veterans, each seeking first Joss NE 9-Ball title, battle it out in finals of season finale

Pete Bowman, Mike Zuglan, Snookers manager Paul Troxell and Ray McNamara

Oldest player to win on tour,’ Bob Darigis, wins Second Chance event

He’d be the first to tell you that it’d been a long time coming. But it did show up. This past weekend (June 4-5), after 20 years of attempts, Ray McNamara (generally known on the tour as ‘Ray Mac’) claimed his first Joss NE 9-Ball Tour title, using the last regular season event of the tour’s 2021-2022 season to do so. In an effort that began (as far as we know) with a 7th place finish at a stop in Bristol, CT in October of 2002, McNamara went on to compete regularly on the Joss and other tours, and more recently, won the 364-entrant Amateur Senior event of the Super Billiards Expo this past April. The $1,500-added, 15th stop on the 2021-2022 Joss Northeast 9-Ball Tour drew 53 entrants to Snooker’s in Providence, RI.

In addition to crowning a first-time champion, the event played host to another event champion, whom tour director Mike Zuglan described as “the oldest person (he could) think of who won any of (their) events.”  A $500-added Second Chance tournament that drew 14 entrants was won by 71-year-old Bob Darigis.

“Ray Mac and Bob were both around in the days when me, Larry Lisciotti and Joe Tucker were still playing around,” said Zuglan.

Ray Mac’s trip to the winners’ circle had to go through another Joss NE 9-Ball veteran, also looking for his first (recorded with us) win on the tour, Pete Bowman. They met twice; hot seat match and finals. Mac had gotten by Nick Coppola, Lida Mullendore, Clyde Matta and Ryan Cullen to arrive at a winners’ side semifinal match against Bob Madenjian, who, it should be noted, finished in the four-way tie for 5th place behind McNamara in the SBE’s Amateur Senior tournament in April and would end up in the same position at this event. Peter Bowman sent Aro Majumber and Brandon Coley to the loss side before encountering the later-to-be winner of the Second Chance event, Bob Darigis, who battled him tooth and nail to double hill before he sent him over, as well. Bowman then downed Darren Jevons to pick up Kerry McAuliffe in the other winners’ side semifinal.

Mac sent Madenjian west 9-2, while Bowman was defeating McAuliffe 9-3. McNamara claimed the hot seat 9-5, which was, as far as we know, his first.

On the loss side, McAuliffe picked up Steve Mack, who’d lost a winners’ side quarterfinal to Madenjian and jumped onto the loss-side wagon with victories over Rich Kravetz 7-5 and Dan Sharlow 7-3. Madenjian picked up Francisco Salas, who’d also lost to Madenjian on the winners’ side (3rd round) and was working on a seven-match, loss-side streak that would take him as far as the semifinals and include the double-hill elimination of Jeremy Sossei, followed by wins over Darren Jevons 7-2 and Frankie Hernandez 7-3.

Mack did his part to secure a rematch versus Madenjian with a 7-4 win over McAuliffe, but Salas took Madenjian out 7-5 and then eliminated Mack 7-3 in the quarterfinals. 

Bowman closed out Salas’ run with a 7-3 win in the semifinals to earn his second shot at Ray Mac, waiting for him in the hot seat. Though Salas would chalk up three more racks against Ray Mac in the finals than he had in the hot seat, Ray Mac prevailed 9-5 to claim his first Joss Northeast 9-Ball title, closing the ‘long time coming’ door behind him.

The final standings in tour points were headed up by Bucky Souvanthong, who appeared in nine of the season’s 15 events, winning five of them. Ron Casanzio finished in 2nd place, based on 10 appearances, with a single win. Jeremy Sossei was in 3rd place, having won three of his five appearances. Len Gianfrate placed fourth, just ahead of Aaron Greenwood. Rounding out the top 10 on the 2021-2022 tour were Jamie Garrett, Dan Sharlow, Frank Hernandez, Mhet Vergara and Bruce Carroll. 

Tour director Mike Zuglan thanked Regina and Steve Goulding and their Snookers’ staff for their hospitality, as well as title sponsor Joss Cues, Turning Stone Resort Casino, Simonis Cloth, Poolonthenet.com, AZBilliards, Aramith, Billiards Press and World Class Cue Care. The next event, the tour’s season finale, scheduled for Sept. 1-4, will be the $25,000-added Turning Stone Classic XXXV 9-Ball Open, hosted by the Turning Stone Resort Casino in Verona, NY

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Joss NE 9-Ball Tour at Snookers in Providence on June 4th – 5th

Players & Fans,

Congratulations to Stop # 14 event winners at Raxx, Jeremy Sossei ($1,050 main event), Holden Chin ($300 second chance) & $1,900 Joss Cue raffle winner, Jeremy Sossei

Stop # 15, our final regular season event of the Joss Northeast 9-Ball Tour, will take place on June 4 & 5 at Snookers Billiards Sports Billiards Bar & Grill in Providence RI. This will once again be our third event at Snookers this season and we all owe owners Regina & Steve Goulding many thanks for their continued generous support. With this $2,000 added they have again added a total of $10,000 to our events this season. Thanks again from all of us! All that remains of the current season is our finale, The $25,000 Added, Turning Stone Classic XXXV 9-Ball Open, September 1-4 2022. Make sure to come see us at Turning Stone for this world class event with free spectator admission as always!

Snookers, in case you already didn’t know, is one of the premier rooms in the United States and TWICE named the #1 room in the country by Billiards Digest Magazine! Snookers comes complete with 15 Gold Crowns covered in 860 Simonis (The Cloth Of Champions), is a world class sports bar, and has some of the best food in RI which is evident by the usual large crowds. So why not come to Snookers to play or watch, have a great meal and show your support to those who most generously keep supporting us. You might even win a custom engraved Joss Cue valued at $1,900 in Snookers cue raffle. The cue drawing will take place immediately before the final match on Sunday and, as always, you do not have to be present to win!!

This event at Snookers will consist of a $1500 added Saturday and Sunday Main Event (entry Fee $120 for pro level or $70 for non pro level) and a $500 added second chance event on Sunday ($20 Entry Fee) for those non pro players eliminated from the main event on Saturday.

If in need of accommodations, the Woodsprings Suites Providence at 181 Corliss St, Providence RI 02904 is offering 10% off your lowest rate. Call them at 401-519-9691 and mention Snookers.

For those of you coming to play, please arrive on Saturday June 4, BEFORE 11:00 AM, and in proper dress please. Yes, jeans and sneakers are permitted in our billiard parlor events. But please, no T-shirts, tanks, shorts or sweats. Complete tour info can be found on our site www.joss9balltour.com

I am currently scheduling events for our 2022 – 2023 (Our 26th!) season. So if you know of, or own a billiard parlor here in the Northeast that may like to hold one of our events, Please contact me NOW at 518-356-7163. Potential sponsors who would like to be a part of our tour are also urged to do the same. I will be finalizing the schedule soon so it is important to contact me now.

Once again I ask all of you to please frequent your local billiard parlors and utilize the services of our most generous sponsors who are the backbone of our sport. Thank You & I hope to see all of you Snookers.

Mike Zuglan

The Joss Northeast 9-Ball Tour Is Proudly Sponsored By;

Joss Cues – http://www.josscues.com
Turning Stone Resort Casino – http://www.turningstone.com 
Simonis Cloth – http://www.simoniscloth.com
Poolonthenet.com – http://www.poolonthenet.com
AzBilliards.com – http://www.azbilliards.com
Aramith – http://www.aramith.com
Billiards Press – http://www.billiardspress.com
World Class Cue Care – http://www.jnj-industries.com

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Sossei takes two out of three over Kiamco to win Joss NE 9-Ball Tour stop on Long Island

Warren Kiamco, Raxx Owner Holden Chin and Jeremy Sossei

It was Jeremy Sossei’s third, and second straight, win in four attempts on the 2021-22 Joss Northeast 9-Ball Tour this past weekend (May 14-15). It was Warren Kiamco’s first appearance on the tour this year, and with it being a long way from the man’s ‘first rodeo,’ he got as close to winning it as possible; facing Sossei three times, battling to double hill twice, but winning only the first set of the true double elimination final. The $1,500-added event drew 42 entrants to Raxx Pool Room, Sports Bar & Grill in West Hempstead, NY.

Going into Stop #14, Bucky Souvanthong and Ron Casanzio were the tour’s top two points leaders (#1 & #2), way out in front of the field, based on the number of times they’ve competed in the 2021-22 season and on their finish positions each time they did so. They didn’t compete in Stop #14, which left a door open for Sossei, who obligingly walked in, won his second straight stop on the tour and promptly moved himself into third place in the tour-point standings. Kiamco was probably a ‘wild card’ that Sossei had not expected in the deck.

Sossei ran into some immediate trouble when he opened his run in a double hill battle against Ron Piontkowski. Once over that hurdle, he downed Chuck Allie 9-5 and shut out Chris Lazaravitch, before facing Mhet Vergara in a match that came within a game of double hill. He survived that to draw John Francisco in one of the winners’ side semifinals. Kiamco drew a bye in his opening round and went on to send Troy Deocharran (4), Alex Osipov (2) and Ray Lee (2) to the loss side, picking up Mike Renshaw in the other winners’ side semifinal.

Kiamco got into the hot seat match with a shutout over Renshaw, while Sossei sent Francisco to the loss side 9-4. In his first of three versus Kiamco and the first of two straight double hill matches, Sossei claimed the hot seat.

On the loss side, Francisco drew a rematch against Yesid Garibello, whom he’d sent to the loss side in a third-round, double hill fight. Garibello moved over to engage in a four-match winning streak that had recently eliminated Lazaravitch 7-2 and Caroline Pao, double hill. Renshaw drew Mhet Vergara, who’d followed his winners’ side quarterfinal loss to Sossei with wins over Jay Plonski and Mike Salerno, both 7-4.

Garibello wreaked his vengeance on Francisco 7-5, while Vergara was eliminating Renshaw by the same score, and, as it turned out, by the same score that Vergara eliminated Garibello in the subsequent quarterfinals.

Vergara was one step away from a rematch against Sossei, who’d sent him to the loss side, five matches ago. Unfortunately, for him, it was Warren Kiamco who was in his way in the semifinals that followed. Kiamco was the one who earned the rematch, downing Vergara 7-4.

For the second time, Sossei and Kiamco locked themselves up in a double hill fight, in the opening set of the true double elimination final. This time, though, it was Kiamco who won. The ‘wild card’ was on the table and very much in play. Sossei, though, had his own hand to play and did so in the second set, defeating Kiamco 7-3 to claim title to the 14th stop on the 2021-22 Joss NE 9-Ball Tour.

A $500-added Second Chance tournament drew eight entrants and was won by Raxx Pool Room, Sports Bar & Grill’s owner, Holden Chin. Chin shut out Sly Vachiro in the hot seat match and in the true double-elimination final, faced Mike Callaghan, who’d lost his opening match to Vachiro, won two straight double hill matches to begin his four-match trip back to the finals and then shut out Vachiro in their semifinal rematch. He then took the opening set of the true double elimination final, before Chin came back to shut him out in the second set. 

The next stop on the Joss NE 9-Ball Tour, scheduled for the weekend of June 4-5, will be a $1,500-added event, hosted by Snookers Sports Billiards, Bar & Grill in Providence, RI. The season finale of the 2021-22 season – Turning Stone Classic XXXV 9-Ball Open – is scheduled for September 1-4 at the Turning Stone Resort Casino in Verona, NY.

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Joss NE 9-Ball Tour at Raxx in West Hempstead May 14th – 15th

Congratulations to Stop # 13 winners Jeremy Sossei ($1,100 main event), Ryan Cullen ($300 second chance) & our $1,900 Joss Cue raffle winner Crystal Atkinson.

Stop # 14 of my Joss Northeast 9-Ball Tour will take place on May 14 & 15 at Raxx Pool Room Sports Bar & Grill in West Hempstead NY. Raxx is one the Northeast’s largest rooms complete with a huge 50 foot bar, Great food, 21 9ft tables & 6 7ft tables making for a fun time for everyone. Our good friend and owner Holden Chin, deserves much credit and thanks for being so generous in allowing us the use of his beautiful facility and adding $2,000 for this free spectator event. Much more info about Raxx can be found on Face Book & their web site raxxpoolroom.com  So why not come down and show Holden your appreciation and support by playing in, or just to watch, yet another great event with some of the games top players. While there, you could even win a gorgeous custom engraved Joss Cue valued at $1,900 in their cue raffle. Anyone can enter and you Do Not need to be present to win! The cue drawing will be immediatelyprior to the final match of the main event.

This event at Raxx will consist of a $1500 added Saturday and Sunday Main Event (entry Fee $120 for pro level or $70 for non pro level) and a $500 added second chance event on Sunday ($20 Entry Fee) for those non pro players eliminated from the main event on Saturday.

For those of you coming to play, please arrive on Saturday May 14, Before 11:00 AM, and in proper dress please. Yes, jeans and sneakers are permitted in our billiard parlor events. But please, NO T-SHIRTS, TANKS, SHORTS OR SWEATS. Complete tour info can be found on our site www.joss9balltour.com

Please remember to spread the word to frequent your local billiard parlors and utilize and promote the world class products of our most generous sponsors. They are the backbone of our sport and deserve our support now more than ever!!

Thanks, and I hope to see you all at Raxx.

Mike Zuglan

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