Stop #2 on the Tiger Florida Tour this past weekend (Feb. 18-19) edged Stephanie Mitchell up to #2 in the early 2023 season rankings, just below Kaylee McIntosh, whom she defeated in the finals of the event. Once the event moved from its double elimination origin to single elimination, the possibility of a mother/daughter (Debbie versus Kaylee) final loomed in a three-round distance that failed to materialize. The $1,000-added event drew 30 entrants to Stixx Billiards in Oldsmar, FL.
Mitchell’s visit to the loss side of the bracket didn’t last long. After an opening round bye, Mitchell downed Danielle Fee 7-5 and ran into the Pink Dagger, junior competitor Sofia Mast, who sent her to the loss side 7-5 for a single match from which she would return.
Mast, who’d defeated Sharlee Norq and Michell Monk before sending Mitchell to the loss side,was one of four who advanced to the single elimination bracket from the winners’ side. Joining Mast in her wait for the loss side to send its four finalists to single elimination were: Kimberly Housmann, who’d defeated Jeannie Seaver, Tiara Pfeife and another junior competitor, Gianna Fiore to advance; Debbie McIntosh, who’d gotten by Denise Reeve, Margie Soash and Jessica Barnes to move into single elimination and Kaylee McIntosh, who’d defeated Tiffany Culn, Miranda Oran and Kim Caso to join the winners’ side group.
On the loss side, Jessica Barnes played a single match, meeting up with Jeannie Seaver, who’d won two on the loss side, including her sister, Vanessa, to reach her. Barnes eliminated Jeannie 5-3 to join the single elimination bracket, facing Kaylee McIntosh. Monk, who’d given up only two racks in 11 loss-side games downed Gianna Fiore 5-3 to join the eight quarterfinalists and square off against Mast. Kim Caso defeated Deanna Laney, double hill, to join the quarterfinalists, and meet up with Debbie McIntosh. Mitchell became the last one, downing Mimi McAndrews 5-2 and facing Housman in the first single elimination round.
Mother and daughter proceeded to do their part in advancing the possibility of their potential match in the finals. Mom, Debbie, defeated Kim Caso, as daughter Kaylee eliminated Barnes, both 7-4. Mast moved into to the semifinals with a 7-2 victory over Monk, while Mitchell downed Housman 7-2.
Kaylee furthered the cause in the semifinals by eliminating the Pink Dagger 7-5. Mitchell spoiled the family finals festivities by defeating Debbie 7-3 in their semifinal matchup.
Mitchell then assured that mother and daughter would at least end up next to each other in 2nd and the two-way tie for 3rd place by defeating Kaylee in the finals 7-4. McIntosh maintained her position at the top of the tour standings, ahead of Mitchell, Jeannie Seaver, Kimberly Housman and Sofia Mast.
Tour director Mimi McAndrews thanked the ownership and staff at Stixx Billiards for their hospitality, along with title sponsor Tiger Products, Boynton Billiards, AZBilliards.com, Stitch It To Me Embroidery, Brutal Game Gear, Simonis Cloth, The Corner Pocket and Brewlands Billiards. Stop #3 on the Tiger Florida Tour, scheduled for Saturday, March 25, will be hosted by Brewlands North in Lakeland, FL.
Helene Caukin, Kaylee McIntosh, Stephanie Mitchell (room owner), ; Michell Monk and Jeannie Seaver
At the 14th Annual Cues for the Cure breast cancer awareness fundraiser, held under the auspices of the Tiger Florida Tour’s season finale this past weekend (Oct. 15-16), it was important to keep one’s eye on the ball, so to speak. While the event signaled the end of the tour season, with the determination of its Tour Champion and the marquee matchups on the modified double elimination bracket on the line, it was important to remember that the event had other benefits going on. It would provide benefits to the Florida chapter of the Susan G. Komen Foundation in its ongoing attempt to fund breast cancer research and services to communities all across the country. That was the ‘ball’ that the 36-entrant, all-female field at the event were keeping their eyes on as they spent their time trying to drop real balls into holes to win games, matches, tour rankings and a cash deposit into their Christmas shopping account. The $1,500-added event was hosted by Corner Pocket in Largo, FL, owned by one of the competitors, Stephanie Mitchell.
So before, during and after fund-raising activities that included raffles with themed mystery baskets (among other things) and an opportunity to guess at the number of M & Ms and Hershey’s Kisses in containers (both won by Dixie Sutton, who guessed the closest number of Kisses in a pumpkin jar and the exact number of M & Ms in a vase; 2,741), the ladies played some pool.
There was a possible scenario emerging from this Tiger Florida Tour’s season finale that would have seen Stephanie Mitchell crowned as the tour’s 2022 champion. It could have happened if Jeannie Seaver had not competed and Stephanie did, finishing among the event’s final eight. Neither of those two things happened. With both of them competing, Stephanie had to finish well ahead of Jeannie to pass her in ranking points. That didn’t happen either. What also didn’t happen was a repeat of the 2021 Cues for the Cure event in which a mother and daughter (Debbie and Kaylee McIntosh) competed in the finals. Both mother and daughter competed this year, with daughter defending her title.
What did happen was that Jeannie Seaver went undefeated to claim the 2022 tour champion title, downing Michell Monk in the finals. Stephanie Mitchell, who finished in the tie for 17th/24th at the event, finished second in the tour rankings, with Jeannie Seaver’s older sister, Vanessa (finishing 13th/16th) in third place and junior competitor, Sofia Mast, not in attendance, finishing in 4th place.
The modified double elimination bracket whittled the field of 36 down to four players on each side of the bracket and then, entered a single elimination phase of eight playing a single match to advance as far as they could. The younger Seaver’s path to the winners’ circle went through Jennifer Merritt 5-3 and then ran into big sister, Vanessa. A double hill, live version of sibling rivalry ensued, after which Jeannie moved on to defeat Sonya Chbeeb 5-1, advancing to become one of the winners’ side’s final four.
Michell Monk earned her way to the winners’ side final four as well, winning three matches by an aggregate score of 15-1 against Kimberly Housman (0), Margie Soash (0) and Carrie Vetrono (1). Two of the three winners’ side matches Lisa Perez played to be among the final four went double hill; her opener against Danielle Marie Fee and the match against Helene Caukin that put her in the final four. Autumn French fell 5-3 in the middle. The last to join the winners’ side advancement was defending champion and junior competitor Kaylee McIntosh, who, like Monk, gave up only a single rack to one of her first three opponents; Lyn Remsen (0), Mimi McAndrews (1) and Jessica Barnes (0).
Two of the four people who’d failed to make the winners’ side list in the last deciding match on that side of the bracket came back from the loss side to join the cash-generating single elimination phase and have a second shot at claiming the title. Sonya Chbeeb faced and defeated her one loss-side opponent, Kim Caso, 5-3 and would face Kaylee McIntosh in the first single-elimination round. Helene Caukin moved over, eliminated Jessica Karamia Human 5-3 and came back for a second shot against Lisa Perez. Keeping aspirations for a second straight mother/daughter final alive, Debbie McIntosh, who’d lost her second match to Carrie Vetrono, won two on the loss side before downing Jessica Barnes 5-3 to be among the loss side’s final four.Jeri Bouvette, who’d been shut out by Barnes in the second round, won two on the loss side and then shut out Carrie Vetrono. Moving out of the frying pan into the fire, she faced Jeannie Seaver in the opening, single-elimination round.
Daughter advances to final four against Seaver, Mom falls to eventual runner-up, Michell Monk
Winners in the quarterfinals that followed advanced to the semifinals by an aggregate score of 20-5. Had the McIntosh family advanced together, they would not have faced each other in the semifinals and might have realized the potential for a second straight mother/daughter final. Daughter Kaylee downed Chbeeb 5-1 and advanced to the semifinals against Jeannie Seaver, who’d eliminated Bouvette 5-1. Mom Debbie fell 2-5 to Michell Monk, who advanced to take her spot in the semifinals versus Caukin, who’d won her rematch against Perez 5-2.
One match shy of her second straight appearance in the Cues for Cure final, Kaylee McIntosh was downed by Jeannie Seaver 5-3. Monk joined Seaver in the finals after eliminating Caukin 5-1. Seaver completed her undefeated run (the tour championship title already in her pocket), with a 5-3 victory over Monk in the finals.
With a request to direct your (the reader’s) attention to the ‘ball’ that was the cornerstone of this event, the Susan G. Komen Foundation, tour representatives hope that you’ll take time to read through this list of people who made it all possible. In addition to all of the players and spectators who came out in support of this event, tour representatives thanked Stephanie Mitchell and her Corner Pocket staff for their hospitality and continuing support of the Tiger Florida Tour and the Cues for the Cure event. They also thanked title sponsor Tiger Products and Tony Kalamdaryan, Larry Wood with Boynton Billiards for donations and continued support of the tour, Stitch It To Me (Nicolle Cuellar; for event t-shirts, and raffle gifts), Brutal Game Gear (Michell Monk; gift certificates), Dixie and Rick Sutton and Estates by Dixie (designer basket donation and pizza for all), Rob Charles for tech help, Texas Roadhouse Grill (St. Petersburg; gift buckets), Deanna Laney (raffle help), Josh Arnold (running a smooth tournament), Andy Cloth and AZBilliards.
Mike DeLawder, Trenton White and Ricardo Joel Rodriguez
Barnes goes undefeated to claim concurrently-run Ladies event
One did it the hard way, while the other opted for the shorter, arguably more difficult easy way. Ricardo Rodriguez, looking for his first win on the Sunshine State ProAm Tour in three years, lost his third winners’ side match at this past weekend’s (Oct. 8-9) tour stop He then won seven straight on the loss side before downing Trenton White in the finals to claim the event title. Jessica Barnes took the shorter route in the concurrently-run Ladies event, winning five in a row and downing Nicole Cuellar twice to claim the ladies’ title.
The $1,500 added main event drew 60 entrants to Brewlands Bar & Billiards North in Lakeland, FL. The $500-added Ladies event drew 16 entrants to the same location.
Rodriguez’ path took him past Marcos Bielostozky and George Saunders, both 7-5, before he ran into a double hill match versus Desi Derado that he lost. Mike DeLawder and Trenton White, in the meantime, worked their way forward toward their hot seat match; White advancing through Mike Xiarhos, Jr., Leon Micco, Dale Stanley and Konnor McFayden to arrive at a winners’ side semifinal against Robert Noon, while DeLawder sent Anthony Cruz, co-tour-director Bobby Garza, and both Manuel Montas and John Souders (both double hill) to the loss side to draw Ameet Kukadia in the other winners’ side semifinal.
DeLawder came within a game of being forced into his third straight double hill fight, but just did edge out in front near the end to defeat Kukadia 7-5. White joined him in the hot seat match after surviving his double hill struggle against Noon. White shut Delawder out to claim the hot seat.
On the loss side, it was Kukadia who drew the finals-bound Rodriguez, who’d just eliminated junior competitors Kaylee McIntosh 7-2 and Konnor McFayden 7-4. Noon picked up David Singleton, who’d defeated John Souders 7-3 and survived a double hill match versus Garza to reach him.
Rodriguez defeated Kukadia 7-5 and was joined in the quarterfinals by Noon, who’d put Singleton on the wrong side of his second straight double-hill match. Rodriguez took the quarterfinal match 7-5 over Noon and then, by the same score, denied DeLawder his second chance against White.
Rodriguez waste little time. He took the finals against White 9-5 to claim the event title
Nicole Cuellar, Sofia Mast and Jessica Barnes
Barnes gets into a 7-3 groove to the hot seat match
Jessica Barnes seemed to decide that since she had gotten herself into a groove of some kind that she should probably stick with it. She defeated her first three opponents on her way to the Ladies win by the same 7-3 score, defeating co-tour-director Janene Phillips, Erica Pennington and, in a winners’ side semifinal, the Pink Dagger (aka junior competitor Sofia Mast). Nicole Cuellar, in the meantime, got by Sandra Micco, Cami Becker and in her winners’ side semifinal, Margie Soash 7-1.
Cuellar knocked Barnes out of her 7-3 groove in the hot seat match, but it wasn’t enough. Barnes survived Cuellar’s double hill challenge to claim the hot seat.
On the loss side, Soash picked up and was defeated by Helen Caukin 5-1, as The Pink Dagger drew and eliminated Kaylee McIntosh by the same score. Mast defeated Caukin 5-2 in the quarterfinals, only to have her brief, loss-side run upset by Cuellar’s desire for a rematch against Barnes. Cuellar won that battle 5-1. Barnes downed Cuellar a second time, 9-5, to claim the Ladies title.
Tour directors Janene Phillips and Bobby Garza thanked Larry Wathall and his staff at Brewlands “for taking great care (them) all weekend,” as well as title sponsor Predator Cues, Kamui Brand, Diamond Billiard Products, Jamison Daniels, Stitch It To Me Embroidery, AZBilliards, Dr. V’s Custom Shop and Central Florida Pool League. ‘Shout outs’ were extended to Bobby Garza and Lights Out Streaming for providing great stream and commentary, along with Jimmy Antonietta, Rob McLaren, Mike D and George Saunders for their commentating andAdam Hanas for helping run the boards.
In light of the fact that the tour had a junior competitor among the final three in both of this past weekend’s events (Trenton White and Sofia Mast) and because, like so many others,who enjoy watching these young competitors succeed in their early pool careers, Phillips and Garza thanked Asia Cy for donating an entry fee to a junior lady, Leah Holler and wished to make mention of two local individuals who are “doing great things for the junior competitors’ –Danielle Fee with Shooting for the Stars and Eddie Altman with Junior Billiards Scholarship Fund. If you’d like to help support a junior program, reach out to either of these organizations.
The next and final stop of the year for the Sunshine State ProAm Tour, scheduled for the weekend of Nov. 26-27 and hosted by Racks Billiards in Sanford, FL will feature two events; a $1,000-added Open One Pocket event and a $2,500-added Open 9-Ball Bar Box Championship.
Michell Monk, Jeannie Seaver and Stephanie Mitchell
When the day started – Saturday, August 27 – Jeannie Seaver was atop the Tiger Florida Tour’s leaderboard, having competed in all four of its 2022 events and winning the tour’s previous stop (#4) in July. The four women immediately behind her in the standings were on hand for stop #5, at Diamond Billiards in Cape Coral, FL, as were 20 other entrants. The top five were separated by 110 points (dependent on attendance, usually around 200 points for a win), with two events to go; the one at hand and the season finale on October 15, the tour’s annual “Cues for the Cure” breast cancer awareness fundraiser, to be hosted by The Corner Pocket in Largo, FL.
The Corner Pocket’s owner, Stephanie Mitchell, was in 2nd place in the standings, only 40 points behind Seaver. The Pink Dagger (14-year-old Sofia Mast) was 20 points behind Mitchell and Jeannie Seaver’s sister, Vanessa, was 10 points behind Mast. Jessica Barnes was in fifth place, 40 points behind Vanessa. In the day ahead, almost anything could have happened. All five of the top five were capable of winning the event and whoever did so would have the proverbial ‘leg up’ on the tour championship title, which would go to the competitor at the top of the heap at the conclusion of the “Cues for the Cure” fundraiser, seven weeks away. The Stop #5 winner would also receive a qualifying spot in the WPBA’s Dr. Pool Classic in December.
Jeannie Seaver went undefeated, maintaining her position at the top of the tour standings. All four of the competitors behind her in those standings stayed right where they were; Mitchell, Mast, Vanessa Seaver and Barnes. ‘Almost anything could have happened’ turned into ‘nothing about the tour’s top five happened at all,’ except. . . the 110-point gap between 1st and 5th place in the standings, which went from 110 points to 250.
“It will be hard for anyone to catch her,” noted tour director Mimi McAndrews, “unless Jeannie doesn’t play in our “Cues for the Cure” event in October.”
Stop #5 began with a standard, double-elimination bracket. It was played down until there were two on each side, at which point, they redrew into a single elimination bracket.
Jeannie Seaver played two of the four women below her in the standings to be one of the two that advanced to single elimination from the winners’ side of the double elimination bracket. She opened with a 7-2 win over Jessica Barnes, shut out Say Xiong and then locked up in a double hill fight with the Pink Dagger; Seaver is likely one of only a handful of competitors who don’t underestimate the 14-year-old Sofia Mast at the tables. Seaver prevailed, though, and then defeated Dawn Logan 7-4 to earn her spot among the final four.
Michell Monk, who’d climb from #20 in the standings to #8 with her eventual runner-up finish, got by Denise Gugliotta 7-3 and then faced another junior competitor, 13-year-old Gianna “Banks” Fiore, who is currently 7th in the Junior International Championships’ 13U Girls division. Monk got by her 7-3 and after defeating Danielle Marie Fee 7-4 began a two-match set against Stephanie Mitchell. Monk’s 7-4 win in the first set earned her the second winners’ side slot in the single elimination phase.
Logan and Mitchell moved to the loss side of the initial bracket. Logan drew a re-match against Crystal McCormick, whom she’d sent to the loss side in what was McCormick’s first match. McCormick advanced through four loss-side matches including wins over Debbie Hake 5-2 and Danielle Marie Fee 5-3 for a second chance against Logan. Mitchell, another member of the Don’t Underestimate the Pink Dagger Club, drew Mast, who’d followed her double-hill loss to Jeannie Seaver with loss-side wins over Vanessa Seaver 5-3 and Kira Brown 5-1.
In what were the event’s quarterfinals, McCormick avenged her earlier loss, eliminating Logan 5-1 and drawing Jeannie Seaver in the semifinals. Not surprisingly, the tour’s #2 and #3 competitors, Mitchell and Mast, battled to double hill in the other quarterfinals. Mitchell eventually moving on to face Monk a second time.
Though on the hill, ahead by four (6-2) in the semifinals, Mitchell saw Monk rally back to knot things at double hill and then win it to advance to the finals. Seaver dropped McCormick into the tie for third place 7-2. Seaver completed her undefeated run with a 7-4 victory over Monk in the finals.
Seaver chose not to play the event for its qualifying spot in the December WPBA event, so that spot went to Monk. In addition to the cash prizes for the final six competitors, the tour awarded a $50 prize to the highest-finishing league player (APA 4-5 or equivalent). Brittany May, who’d had the misfortune of drawing Sofia Mast on the winners’ side of the early bracket, won two on the loss side before being eliminated by Danielle Marie Fee and finished in the tie for 9th/12th, took home that cash prize.
Tour representatives thanked all of the players who attended the event and Lisa Carroll for running the side-by-side Open event, which contributed to a “great day at Diamonds.” They also thanked GM Lisa Cobb and her Diamond Billiards’ staff for their hospitality, along with title sponsor Tony Kalamdaryan and Tiger Products for their continued support of the tour and players. Thanks, as well, went out to sponsors Boynton Billiards, Great Lakes Billiards, AZ Billiards, Stitch It To Me, Brutal Game Gear, Eastern Billiards, Andy Cloth and to Janis Sessions and the Florida Coast Ladies Tour for sponsoring the APA Prize.
Stephanie Mitchell, Jeannie Seaver, Sofia Mast and Jessica Barnes
Jeannie Seaver’s gotten off to a slow start this year. Following a year (2021) in which she won three tour titles – two on the Tiger Florida Tour and one on the Sunshine State Pro Am Tour – it wasn’t until this past weekend (July 16-17) that she claimed her first 2022 tour title. In her fourth appearance on the tour this year, the victory moved her ahead of Stephanie Mitchell to the top spot in the current Tiger Florida Tour standings. She did it at Stop #4, going undefeated through a modified double elimination bracket, downing six opponents, including, in the finals, the junior competitor known as “The Pink Dagger,” 14-year-old Sofia Mast (#3 in the standings). The event drew 34 entrants to Shooters Billiards in Port St. Lucie, FL.
Initially, in the double elimination phase of the event, its 34 competitors were racing to be among the final four standing on both sides of the bracket. Among the eight who advanced to the single elimination phase were the top six in tour standings when the event began. The four who advanced to single elimination without a loss were the top four; (in order) Stephanie Mitchell, Vanessa Seaver, Jeannie Seaver and Sofia Mast.
Mitchell, in a quest to maintain her position at the top of the standings, had to deal with an opening-round, double hill match against Xare Qualis. She survived that and then defeated Ivette Fernandez and Margie Soash, both 7-3 to earn her winners’ side slot in the final eight. Vanessa Seaver got by Erin O’Brien 7-4, Jessica Karamia Human, double hill and Katie Bowse 7-1 to advance. Sister Jeannie defeated Aalyssa Gonzalez 7-4, Roe Guarnero 7-3 and Jessica Barnes 7-3 to arrive, while The Pink Dagger (Mast) sent Chris Baumgart 7-4 and Crystal McCormick 7-3 to the loss side, before battling Kaylee McIntosh to double hill, eventually sending her over as well.
Two of the four who just missed advancement from the winners’ side came right back after winning their only loss-side match. Barnes moved over and survived a double hill fight versus Julia Spinella, returning to square off against Vanessa Seaver in the opening round of the single-elimination phase. McIntosh faced Guarnero on the loss side, defeated her 5-2 and was faced with Mitchell in the single-elimination group.
Joining those two from the loss side were Human, defeated by Vanessa Seaver on the winners’ side and then defeating Susan Damschroder 5-3, Sandy Cheng, double hill and Margie Soash 5-1 to face Mast in what amounted to the event’s quarterfinals. Rounding out the single-elimination field of 8 was Tracy Mullen, who followed her initial, first-round loss to Crystal McCormick with victories over Chris Baumgart 5-2, Ashley Jones 5-3, Kira Brown 5-2 and finally, in a double hill battle, Katie Bowse. Mullen picked up Jeannie Seaver in the event quarterfinals.
Due to time constraints, the quarterfinal and semifinal matches were reduced to races to 5. Three of the quarterfinals were decided by 5-2 scores; Jeannie Seaver over Mullen, Mast over Human and Barnes over Vanessa Seaver. Mitchell advanced over McIntosh 5-3. In the semifinals that followed, Mast and Barnes locked up in a double hill battle that eventually sent Mast to the finals. She was joined by Jeannie Seaver, who eliminated Mitchell 5-3.
After agreeing to a final race-to-3 (again, due to time constraints), Seaver and Mast opted to split the top two prizes and played the race-to-3 anyway. Seaver claimed the event title 3-1, moving her into the top spot in tour standings. Mitchell’s tie-for-third finish (with Barnes) dropped her into second place, while, as runner-up, The Pink Dagger moved up a notch, from fourth to third place in the standings.
Tour director Mimi McAndrews thanked Dave Citron and his Shooters Billiards staff for their “welcoming hospitality,” along with Josh Arnold and Stephanie Mitchell for their assistance with running a smooth event. She also thanked title sponsor Tiger Products, AZBilliards, Boynton Billiards, Andy Cloth, Eastern Billiards, Stitch-It-To-Me Embroidery and Brutal Game Gear. The next stop on the Tiger Florida Tour, scheduled for Saturday, August 28, will be hosted by Diamond Billiards in Cape Coral, FL.
Nicolle Cuellar, Vanessa Seaver and Jessica Barnes
Coming off of her best recorded earnings year (2021), Florida’s Nicolle Cuellar is getting a bit of a late start to better those earnings in 2022, although her undefeated run at the Tiger Florida Tour’s (TFT) third stop this past weekend (Sat. May 7) has started her off in the right direction. Her last recorded win on the TFT occurred last August. Cuellar has, in fact, had two good years at the tables, 2020 being her best recorded earnings years until the total figure improved in 2021. She’s been combining work on the TFT with appearances on the Sunshine State Pro Am Tour over the past few years, and earlier, dating back to when her efforts began notation here at AZBilliards 10 years ago, on the Flamingo Tour. The TFT’s $750-added event last weekend, Stop #3 on the 2022 tour, drew 36 entrants to Brewlands North in Lakeland, FL.
The event started out with a double elimination bracket, which, being a 64-entrant bracket, featured four matches in the opening round of play and 28 byes. Three rounds later, when the bracket had narrowed to eight players, four on each side of the bracket, it became a single-elimination race to the finals.
Cuellar’s path to the winners’ circle, after being awarded one of the 28 byes, went through Angel Kotewa (1), Kimberly Housman (3) and Stephanie Mitchell (3), at which point, she became one of the final eight. Joining her among the four to emerge from the winners’ side of the bracket were Lisa Perez, Jeri Bouvette and Jessica Barnes. Facing those four from the loss side of the bracket were Helene Caukin (facing Barnes), Jessica Karamia Human (facing Cuellar) and the Seaver sisters; Vanessa, squaring off against Bouvette and Jeannie facing Perez.
Human, who’d been sent to the loss side in the final winners’ side round by Barnes, played only one match on the loss side, surviving a double hill match versus Kaylee McIntosh to join the final eight. Cuellar stopped Human’s bid right there, downing her 7-3 and advancing to the semifinals against Barnes, who’d defeated Caukin, double hill.
Only one of the Seaver sisters survived the first single-elimination round and as it turned out, Lisa Perez faced them both. She faced Jeannie in that first round and battled her to double hill before advancing to meet Vanessa, who’d battled to double hill before defeating Bouvette to earn her spot in the semifinals against Perez.
Time constraints forced the semifinals and finals to be cut down to races to 5. Vanessa Seaver punched her ticket to the finals with a shutout over Perez. She was joined by Cuellar, who eliminated Barnes, double hill; a ‘heartbreaker,’ according to TD Mimi McAndrews, because in the deciding game, Barnes broke and hung the 9-ball in the teeth of the side pocket. Cuellar stepped to the table and though unable to work herself into shape for an easy combination on the 9-ball, ran the table to get it and advance to the finals.
Cuellar completed her undefeated run with a 5-2 win over Vanessa Seaver. Having not competed in the TFT season opener back in January and finishing in the tie for 8th on the February stop, Cuellar was way down in the tour standings when she began her title quest at the third stop. Her victory moved her among the tour’s top 10, into 9th place on the list that now has Stephanie Mitchell at the top. Vanessa Seaver’s runner-up finish moved her into second place with Carrie Metz, Kaylee McIntosh and Jeannie Seaver behind her. Cuellar’s victory also netted her paid qualifier spot for the WPBA’s Soaring Masters event in July.
Tour director Mimi McAndrews thanked Larry Walthall and his staff at Brewlands for their hospitality, along with title sponsor Tiger Products, AZBilliards, Boynton Billiards, Andy Cloth, Eastern Billiards, Stitch-It-To-Me Embroidery and Brutal Game Gear. She also extended thanks to Josh Arnold and Stephanie Mitchell for their assistance with running the event. The next stop on the Tiger Florida Tour, scheduled for Saturday, July 16, will be hosted by Shooter’s Billiards in Port St. Lucie, FL.
Fishers still alive in the WPBA 9-Ball Pro Players Championship.
He’d played twice already. On Friday night at 9:30, Earl Strickland stepped to the tables of the Super Billiards Expo’s arena in search of his second win in the Diamond Open 9-Ball Professional Players Championship. On Thursday, after a bye, he’d lost his opening match, double hill, to Alan Rolon Rosada and at 11:30 a.m. on Friday, downed Tyler Henninger 9-6. Both matches were very lightly attended. Modest crowds, dotting the three-level risers to either side of the 16 tables, laid end to end, side by side.
Friday night, though, was different. This was weekend-is-here Earl the Pearl time. And he got himself an audience. While there were certainly people in the crowd of some 200 or so spectators who were itching to see a show; not a pool show necessarily, but an Earl show, as only he can bring it. Instead, they got the professional ‘Earl’s here to win’ show, full of rock-solid shooting that saw him take control of a 2-2 match and win six in a row before some of the audience had even settled in. People (though not many) started leaving, like baseball fans leaving a stadium when the score is 12-0 in the seventh inning, wanting to get ahead of the traffic jam. Those who remained were switching their attention between what was left of Earl’s match and what was going on at the tables on either side of him (Shannelle Lorraine and Ada Lio were playing south of him, while Jesus Atencio and Mason Koch were battling it out north of him).
Gomez managed to chalk up three racks and the remaining crowd went wild. Very quietly and not for long.
Earl finished off Gomez, quickly, only giving up one more rack and moved to the lobby outside the arena where folks gathered around the hand-written brackets to see who was coming up against who in today’s (Saturday) matches. Earl was scheduled to play Bart Czapla at noon, in a match that will determine whether he advances to the 16-player, single elimination phase of the event. The first round of that phase will play out at 6 p.m.
Earl was among those looking to see what was coming up next, and he took the opportunity to play to the audience that had been relatively quiet during his win over Gomez. They were lined up two or three deep around him, cameras at the ready, as he gave them a genteel comedian to play with. Standing for one shot with a broad grin on his face, he said that the woman to his left was prettier than he was, riffing on this to talk about his sagging limbs and a “face that looked like a truck hit me and then backed up.” Manifestly not true, but it got a laugh. He embellished on that central joke for a while before moving on to chat with spectators who’d obviously been paying strict attention to his match as it played out; questions and comments about shot situations and potential solutions, back and forth.
Jayson Shaw, still on the winners’ side of the bracket, looking to advance to the final 16 today, as well (2:30 p.m. against Billy Thorpe), joined the throng gathered around him and it took about two seconds for them to launch into a discussion about the tables and how they ‘played’ in a given match.
“I hit this shot,” said Shaw at one point, “that went into the hole and bounced out. The cue ball jumped up onto the rail, travelled all the way down table, jumping over the side pocket and then went back on the table, giving me a straight shot at the 4-ball.”
Lives of the legends playing out in one of their homes away from home.
The two Fishers continue to play for advancement to the final 16 of the WPBA Pro Players event
Competition at the WPBA 9-Ball Pro Players Championship will dominate the afternoon schedule at the pro player arena. All 16 women who step to the tables at 2:30 p.m. today, haven’t played a match since Thursday; half of them on Thursday afternoon and the other half on Thursday night.
On Friday afternoon, the Fishers, Allison and Kelly, squared off in a game of 8-ball that was not part of the official proceedings and did not involve cue sticks, felt cloth or actual pockets. Instead, they settled into another kind of table to play an 8-Ball Pool Board Game that’s on display and being pre-sold (prior to publication) to attendees at the SBE from a vendor booth surrounded by cue manufacturers. Kelly is acting as the game’s Brand Ambassador and has been at the booth where it’s being demonstrated a number of times, playing against, among others, Darren Appleton, who reportedly broke and ran the first game of it he played.
While the game doesn’t employ any of pool’s tactile qualities with cues or aiming skills (there are basically no missed shots if you’ve lined up the cue and target properly), it does manage to offer a degree of strategy and tactics, very similar to the kinds of decision-making involved in the actual game of 8-ball. There are opportunities for bank shots (played out on strict horizontal/vertical target paths) safety play and you can scratch, for example, all of which plays out in ways unique to the board game.
Though new to the game, Allison won the single game against Kelly. They could play a real game of 9-ball against each other before the end of the women’s tournament, but only, for starters, if both of them advance to the event’s final 16. Kelly, who’s only played a single match so far, defeating Jessica Barnes on Thursday night, was to play Liz Taylor at 2:30 today and if successful, would play the winner of an Ashley Burrows/Emily Duddy match in the opening round of the single-elimination phase at 8:30 p.m. Allison, who played two women from the J. Pechauer Northeast Women’s Tour (JPNEWT) on Thursday (Judie Wilson and Kathy Friend) will be facing Angela Janic at 2:30 and if successful, will also play at 8:30, against the winner of a Monica Webb/Kim Newsome match (check the SBE Web site for streaming options).
Other competitors, still on the winners’ side of the bracket, looking for a slot among the final 16 women, include Emilyn Callado, Brittany Bryant, Caroline Pao and LoreeJon Brown. On the loss-side of the bracket, at noon today, also looking for advancement to the final 16, will be,among others, Janet Atwell, Jennifer Baretta, and both Kia Burwell and Judie Wilson, representing the JPNEWT. Matches at 6 p.m. on the loss-side of the bracket will determine the eight loss-side competitors among the Sweet 16.
Super Seniors get underway, as Amateur Ladies, Seniors continue, with Juniors in the wings
The original Super Seniors tournament, with long lines hoping for a waiting-list entry, gathered early this morning, while the 996-entrant Open Amateur event looked to enter its Final 16 phase at 1 p.m. today. The four-brackets of the Amateur Ladies event is still ongoing, as is the (plain, so to speak) Seniors tournament. Two junior competitions (17U & 12U) are set to begin today, as well.
“I WON!!!” she declared on her Facebook page, with all three exclamation points. “Now, I pass out.”
Thirteen-year-old Sofia Mast of Land ‘o Lakes, FL, fresh off her victory in the 13 & Under division of the Junior International Championships’ 2nd season opener, less than two weeks ago (Jan. 14-16), competed on the ladies’ Tiger Florida Tour this past weekend (Jan. 22-23). Not only did she come from the loss side to qualify for the eight-player, single elimination phase of the event, advance to the finals and then defeat WPBA veteran competitor Stephanie Mitchell, but in her first loss-side match, she defeated another WPBA tour veteran and the Florida Tiger Tour’s 2021 Tour Champion Jeannie Seaver. The $500-added, 2022 season opener of the Florida Tiger Tour drew 32 entrants to Brewlands South in Lakeland, FL.
Asked if there was anything about Mast’s performance that stood out in her mind, Eastern Billiards and Andy Cloth-sponsored runner-up, Stephanie Mitchell had to laugh.
“Mostly,” she said, “that if I missed, she didn’t.”
It was, of course, not Sofia Mast’s ‘first rodeo.’
“I went to my first Tiger Florida Tour (stop) when I was 11, back in October, 2019,” she wrote. “My Dad thought I could get better if I played competitively rather than playing in leagues.”
“My mom,” she added, “thought he was crazy to have a kid play against grown ladies and think I could win. I dreamt about one day winning the whole thing (and) my dream started to feel more real as I kept playing in many of their events and placing closer and closer to first.”
“My dream,” she went on to say, “is now a reality, (so) never give up on your dream!”
This past weekend, Michel Monk kind of rattled the cage of those dreams, briefly, when she earned the distinction of being the only competitor to defeat Mast in the second round of play 7-5. Undeterred by setbacks, large or small, Mast persevered to win two on the loss side; the 5-2 win over Jeannie Seaver and subsequent shutout of Erica Pennington, which put her (Mast) into the single elimination phase against, first, fellow junior competitor, Kaylee McIntosh.
Mitchell, in the meantime, had worked her way through her first three opponents during the double-elimination phase (Deborah Gerken, Kimberly Housman & Sonya Chbeeb) to arrive at her first opponent among the final eight, Helen Caukin. In the remaining two, single-elimination matches, Vanessa Seaver (Jeannie Seaver’s older sister) squared off against Jessica Barnes, while newcomer Xare Qualis faced Tracy Mullen.
Mast advanced 7-5 over McIntosh, Mitchell got by Caukin 7-1, Seaver downed Barnes, double hill and Mullen eliminated Qualis 7-4. And then there were four; Mast and Vanessa Seaver, Mitchell and Mullen.
Mast shut the elder Seaver sister out and advanced to the finals. Mitchell joined her after dispatching Mullen 7-4.
Things did not go well for Mitchell in the early stages of the final race to 7, but she rallied in rack #9.
“She was (on the hill) at 6 and I was at 2,” said Mitchell, “and I won the next three.”
In her effort to force a double-hill, single-game showdown by winning the 12th rack, Mitchell made an unforced error in what proved to be the final rack and missed her shot at the 5-ball. Mast wasted little time stepping to the table and closing out her first victory on the Tiger Florida Tour.
“She had really good composure,” noted Mitchell of her opponent, adding that even in ‘safety play,’ Mast would “kick it and hit almost anything. She played a few safes back that worked for her and then she’d run out.”
“I played well,” said Mitchell of her own single-loss performance. “I made almost everything I shot at and I’m proud of my own performance.”
“At 1 a.m.,” she added, “I found a second gear, but it was a little too late.”
Mast posted her “I WON!!!” notice on Facebook at 1:52 a.m.
Tiger Florida Tour director, Mimi McAndrews, who’d noticed Mast’s “determination,” even back when she’d first begun to compete on the tour, had nothing but the highest praise for the junior competitors’ skills, as well as her general demeanor at the tables.
“She had a lot of focus, even back then,” said McAndrews. “A lot of concentration and a decent stroke. We were just impressed that she was coming out to play. She kept coming back and has gotten progressively better. Nobody expected that she’d get so good; not just in making balls, but in shape (for the next shot).”
“If you took a video without showing the player,” she added, “you’d never know that it was a child.”
They call her the “Pink Dagger,” which, even on the face of it, is an image that’s hard to wrap your head around. But it encapsulates the skills, determination, focus and an even more astounding ability to perform like an adult, while maintaining a grip on her childhood. This is no grim-faced teenager, so dedicated to the application of specific skills, that any semblance of a child has been lost. Sofia Mast, who is sponsored by Predator Cues, Jam Up Apparel and Dunnski Dungeon, is still a kid and enjoying every minute of it. So are those who are watching her mature. She’ll be competing in the 2nd stop on the JIC series next month (Feb. 11-13) at Diamond Billiards in Cape Coral, FL. You might want to consider getting there early.
Tiger Florida Tour director Mimi McAndrews thanked Larry Walthall, Mike Dauskart and their staff for hosting the event and their continued support of the tour. They also thanked the 32 players who came out to compete in the 2022 season opener and Jerry Sotelo and Josh Arnold for their invaluable help running the Florida Tiger Tour events. Thanks were also extended to Randi Allen, Director of Marketing and Events and to title sponsor Tony Kalamdaryan and Tiger Products, Brutal Game Gear, Stitch It To Me, Boynton Billiards, AZBilliards, and new sponsors Eastern Billiards and Andy Cloth for their support. Congratulations were extended to Jeannie Seaver for winning the tour championship for the third year in a row; the only player to have done so in the history of the tour since 2009.
The next stop on the Florida Tiger Tour, scheduled for February 26, and likely to feature another appearance by the “Pink Dagger,” will be hosted by Brewlands North in Lakeland, FL.
Jessica Barnes, Doug Barriger (Manager), Nicolle Cuellar and Sherie Hensley
Thirty-two women convened in central Florida at Brewlands Billiards North in Lakeland for the Tiger Florida Tour Stop #2 on Saturday where Jessica Barnes clinched the win, the money, the trophy and the paid entry to the WPBA Sledgehammer event!
Once again, the competition was tough with several new players joining the ranks of the Tiger Florida Tour women’s semi-pro 9-Ball tour for the first time. The women played a modified double-elimination format, where the final four from the one-loss side drew back into the final four from the winners’ side, onto a single-elimination Final Board. The one-loss final four saw Nicolle Cuellar draw Sonya Chbeeb; Michell Monk matched up against Jeannie Seaver; Lisa Cosette drew Jessica Barnes and newcomer Sherie Hensley drew Jeri Bouvette.
Barnes made it to the Final Board undefeated, then played two nail-biting matches edging out Lisa Cossette 7-6 in the quarterfinal and Nicolle Cuellar 7-6 in the semi-final to make it to the final match. Hensley, who played steady all day long, got past two top TFT players, Helene Caukin 7-5 and Michell Monk 7-5, before losing to Seaver 7-2. Hensley defeated Derek Folds 5-2 on the left side to advance to the Final Board. Once there, Hensley made it past Jeri Bouvette 7-4, and then matched up with Seaver again, this time knocking out Seaver in a hill-hill match after Seaver scratched in the side pocket, putting Hensley in the final match against Barnes. After a long day for both players, Barnes took the match 7-2 over Hensley.
Barnes won the paid entry to the Sledgehammer Open, courtesy of Janis Sessions and the Florida Coastal Ladies Tour. Stephanie Mitchell won the paid entry to the Super Billiards Expo Women’s Pro-9-Ball event, and Hensley won the paid entry to the Super Billiards Expo Women’s Amateur 9-Ball event.
Thanks to everyone who came out to the TFT event! A huge thanks to room owner Larry Walthall and Mike Dauskart for hosting our event again this year and their continued support of the TFT! Our appreciation to Manager Doug Barriger and staff, and Randi Allen, Director of Marketing & Events for helping our event go smoothly. Also, thanks to our title sponsor Tiger Products for their continued support of the tour/players; thanks also to Boynton Billiards, Great Lakes Billiards, AZ Billiards and Simonis Cloth for their continued support! And thanks again to Janis Sessions and the Florida Ladies Coastal Tour for sponsoring the entry to the Sledgehammer Open. Some of the matches can been seen on the Tiger Florida Tour Facebook page.
Tour Stop #3 is May 2, 2020 at Stix Billiards in Oldsmar! See you there!
The Tiger Florida Tour is a NAPT-recognized Division II Women’s Regional Tour. Visit www.tigerfloridatour.com for more information.
Kelly Fisher came to Rothschild, WI on the long weekend of November 20-24 in search of her first 2019 win and knew almost immediately that she might need to defeat some adversaries she’d faced before. There were, at the WPBA’s Aramith/DR Pool Classic, the usual array of suspects in that regard; Allison Fisher, Jasmine Ouschan, Jennifer Baretta, LoreeJon Hasson, Janet Atwell and Line Kjorsvik, to name just a few. And though she wouldn’t have to face China’s Siming Chen, who did not compete and who’d defeated her in the finals of the WPBA Masters last February in Michigan, she knew she might have to face Chinese Taipei’s Tzu-Chien Wei, whom she’d defeated in the semifinals of that WPBA Masters and then, been defeated by in the semifinals of August’s Sondheim Diamond Invitational in Iowa. She did face Wei this time around, twice as it turned out, losing the first, but coming back from the loss side to win the second and claim the event title. The $20,000-added event drew 48 entrants to the Central Wisconsin Convention and Expo Center in Rothschild.
The importance of chalking up her first win of the year at this event was not lost on Fisher. As a professional, she’s not inclined to dwell on a given event’s individual importance, lest it interfere with the game(s) at hand, but having been on the mend since surgeries sidelined her for a few years, she was getting a little antsy.
“I was getting a worried for a moment there,” she said. “I’d had numerous semifinal wins (since last May; 3, to be exact), so I’m very pleased to have gotten this title.”
“I’m finally feeling that my game is back to where it was a few years ago,” she added.
Fisher was one of 16 seeded competitors who were awarded opening round byes, as the other 32 squared off against each other. Fisher drew Shanelle Loraine out of that original 32, defeated her and joined 12 other players who’d been awarded opening round byes in advancement to the third round. Only Gerda Gregerson, Melissa Little, Line Kjorsvik and Jenna Bishoff from that group of 16 seeded, went to the loss side, sent by (in order) Jeannie Seaver, Dawn Hopkins, Jasmin Ouschan and Teruko Cucculleli.
Fisher went on to defeat Monica Webb 8-1and then survived a double hill battle versus Jennifer Baretta to draw Tzu-Chien Wei in one of the winners’ side semifinals. Jasmin Oushchan, in the meantime, got by Joanne Ashton 8-1, survived her own double hill battle versus Kjorsvik, and downed Dawn Hopkins 8-2 to pick up Jia Li.
Wei defeated Fisher 8-5 and in the hot seat, faced Ouschan, who’d sent Li to the loss side 8-4. A double hill battle ensued for possession of the hot seat. Wei prevailed, sending Ouschan off to a second straight, double hill semifinal matchup against Fisher.
Over on the loss side, there were some top-notch matches brewing as the tournament’s elites moved toward picking up Fisher and Jia Li, coming over from the winners’ side semifinal. After losing to Jeannie Seaver in the second round, Gerda Gregerson embarked on a six-match, loss-side streak that saw her eliminate Eugenia Gyftopoulos, Catherine Tschumper and, moving into the early money rounds, Caroline Pao and Emily Duddy. She went on to down Brittany Bryant 8-5 and young Atlantic Cup Challenge competitor, April Larson 8-4 to draw Li.
Fisher drew Tamara Peeters, who was working on a six-match, loss-side winning streak of her own and fresh off something of an 8-1 upset over Teruko Cucculleli. Cucculleli had defeated Allison Fisher on the winners’ side, before being sent over by Jia Li in a winners’ side quarterfinal. She proceeded to eliminate Jessica Barnes, Beth Fondell and jumped into the money pool with an 8-4 win over Loree Jon Hasson. She downed Gail Eaton and Dawn Hopkins, both 8-6 and then, eliminated Cucculleli to reach Fisher.
Fisher gave up only a single rack to Peeters in advancing to the quarterfinals. She was joined by Jia Li, who’d sent Gregerson home 8-6. Fisher won a second straight 8-1 match, eliminating Li 8-1.
That little 16-2 run wasn’t destined to last, as Fisher squared off against Jasmin Ouschan in the semifinals. It was Ouschan’s second straight double hill match, and proved to be the second one in a row that she lost.
With lingering echoes of previous matchups and a nagging little voice that kept telling her that since she’d earned herself a second chance against Tzu-Chien Wei, she’d damn well better take advantage of it, Fisher launched into the finals, in search of her first 2019 win. There are, she noted, generalities about such endeavors, and specifics, related to particular opponents. You have to play ‘your game,’ regardless of opponent, while awareness of specific opponents can inform decisions about approach.
“My main thing,” said Fisher, “is to come out of the gate strong, to keep control of the table.”
“Looking back at previous matches against Wei,” she added, “it was about not allowing her to come back. She’s capable of coming back from behind, so I knew once I had (the lead), I had to keep it.”
As noted in a Biblical proverb – “The heart of Man (Woman) plans his/her way, but the Lord establishes his/her steps.” Fisher lost the opening four racks and immediately switched roles to become the person “capable of coming back from behind.” She allowed Wei only one more rack, before she chalked up 10 to claim that first 2019 title.
“I’ve been practicing quite hard,” she said a few days later from her home in Scotland. “It came down to being patient. I knew I was close (to getting back into previous form), and that there was room to grow.
“I want to win the big ones,” she added, “and it really is just a matter of practice.”
She’ll spend a few days at home, more than likely find time to do some of that practice and then head for China and competition in the 2019 Women’s World 9-Ball Championships, to be held from December 13-20.
WPBA representatives thanked the ownership and staff at the Central Wisconsin Convention and Expo Center for their hospitality, as well as sponsors Diamond Billiards Products, Aramith, Outsville and Simonis Cloth.
