Shane Van Boening double-dipped James Aranas of the Philippines to win the 8-Ball Division of the U.S. Bar Table Championship Saturday, locking up the All-Around title for the third time.
Van Boening won the 9-Ball Division and took second in the 10-Ball Division earlier this week. He also won the All-Around title in 2008 and 2010.
Van Boening came into the finals from the one-loss side of the bracket. He started the tournament with wins over: Ernesto Dominguez, 5-1; Dave Strachan, 5-0; Dennis Orcollo, 5-3; Max Eberle, 5-4; before losing to Jesse Engle, 4-5. On the B-Side of the bracket, he bested; Mitch Ellerman, 5-1; Skyler Woodward, 5-3; and Jesse Engel, 5-2 to make it to the finals. Van Boening met Aranas in the finals and beat him 5-1 in the first set, to force a second set in the true double-elimination tournament.
Aranas’ went into the finals undefeated, beating: Michael Tonsowny, 5-0; Andrew Wroblewski, 5-3; Marshall Hill, 5-2; Mitch Ellerman, 5-2; Skyler Woodward, 5-0; and Jesse Engel, 5-3. But he was unable to beat Van Boening in the finals.
[photo id=48388|align=right]In the Women’s Division, Arizona’s Bernie Store was undefeated to win the title of 2017 US Bar Table Women’s 8-Ball Champion.
Jessica Frideres, who won the 9-Ball Division, came through the one loss side to meet Store in the finals. Frideres won her first match of the tournament against Amanda Stevens, 4-0, before Store sent her to the losers bracket, 4-3. On the B-side, Frideres bested: Molly Oliver, 4-0; Karen Poitra, 4-2; Jennifer Shumaker, 4-1; Rachel Lang, 4-0; and Tian Tian, 4-2. But Frideres wouldn’t be able to overcome Store in the finals, where she lost 4-1.
Shane Van Boening of South Dakota added a fifth US Bar Table 9-Ball Championship to his resume Thursday at the Westgate Las Vegas Resort & Casino, beating James Aranas of the Philippines in the finals, 9-2.
Van Boening went into the finals undefeated, posting wins over: Abrin Schaad, 9-6; Ernesto Dominguez, 9-3; Oscar Dominguez, 9-7; Billy Stephan, 9-1 and Mitch Ellerman, 9-4. Van Boening beat Aranas to earn the hot seat, 9-7.
Aranas’ path to the finals included beating: Donald Weatherby II, 9-3; Jeremy Edwards, 9-7; Jason Klatt, 9-6; Sky Woodward, 9-8; and Amar Kang, 9-7. After losing the hot seat match, Aranas beat Jesse Engle, 9-2, to earn a place in the finals.
Van Boening kept control in the final match from the start, jumping out to a 4-2 lead. In the seventh rack, the players traded safeties until a kick by Van Boening left the one ball open for Aranas, who then uncharacteristically missed a six ball to let Van Boening back to the table. They traded safeties again until Aranas made a good hit on the seven ball and then scratched, giving Van Boening the game. Van Boening then broke and ran, to go up 6-2. Aranas scratched again in the next rack, giving up another game. Van Boening broke and ran again, then ran out the final rack after Aranas broke dry.
Van Boening, player representative for the USA Pool League, previously won the 9-Ball Division at the US Bar Table Championships in 2015, 2014, 2013 and 2010. On Tuesday, Van Boening earned second place in the 10-Ball Division.
In the Women’s Division, Jessica Frideres added the title of USBTC 9-Ball Division Champion to her resume, to complete a trifecta of USBTC titles. Frideres, of Fort Dodge, Iowa, won the USBTC 8-Ball Division in 2013, and the USBTC 10-Ball Division in 2016. Frideres’ went into the finals undefeated, having bested Molly Oliver, 7-3 and Rachel Lang, 7-5, before beating Heather Cortez for the hot seat.
Cortez’s path to the finals included wins over: Trinh Lu, 7-4; Amanda Stevens, 7-1; and Rhonda Moses, 7-1, before Frideres sent her to the B-side of the bracket. Cortez then beat Trinh Lu, 7-4, to earn her place in the finals.
But Cortez’s efforts in the finals weren’t enough to beat Frideres, who beat Cortez 7-3 to earn the title.
The 24th US Bar Table Championships kicked off Sunday at the Westgate Las Vegas Resort & Casino. The 8-Ball began Thursday and continues through Saturday, Dec. 16.
For more information, contact Mary Coffman, CSI Marketing Manager, at 702-719-7665 or by email at mary@playcsipool.com.
CueSports International, Henderson, NV (Aug. 27, 2016) — Rebecca Wagner of Las Vegas had the hometown advantage and made the most of it, earning the Women’s 8-Ball, Women’s 9-Ball and the All-Around Titles at the 2016 US Bar Table Championships at the Westgate Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas.
Not bad for a woman who has only played one tournament since having her son, Lincoln, in October.
"The only tourney I played was an AWB stop and I won that," she said.
In fact, Wagner was so unsure about playing the USBTC that she waited until the very last minute to enter. She was at work and asked a co-worker to cover for her so she could go to the bathroom and enter the tournament 18 minutes before entries closed.
"The (USBTC) is in my backyard, so I felt stupid not playing," she said, even though she was not prepared and hadn’t been practicing.
In 2015, Wagner won the Chinook Winds Open 10-Ball tourney, beating world champion Allison Fisher twice in the finals to win. She also posted three first place wins in Arizona Women’s Billiard Tour stops throughout the year. In 2013, Wagner was the USBTC 9-Ball Champion and took second place in the 8-Ball Division.
Wagner, who is sponsored by Tony Hargain, owner of Hustlin USA Clothing Co., used her experience on the table to send opponent after opponent to the loser’s bracket. She beat Heather Cortez in the first round, 4-1, and followed that win up with wins over Bo Bowman, 4-1; Kimberly Whitman, 4-2; Tina Larsen, 4-1; and finally beating Jessica Frideres in the hot seat match, 4-1.
Frideres beat Juliana Goodman, 4-0; Sierra Reams, 4-0; and Melinda Huang, 4-0; in the winner’s bracket before losing to Wagner, 1-4. In the loser’s bracket, Frideres beat Tina Larsen, 4-1, to earn her way back to the final’s arena.
In the true double-elimination tournament format, Frideres had to beat Wagner twice and she knew it, jumping out to capture the first set quickly and decisively, 0-4. But in the second set, Wagner played smart and careful, keeping Frideres from the table and an opening shot as often as possible. The strategy worked and Wagner finished Frideres off in the second set by a score of 4-2.
Wagner said her only regret in the tournament was not playing better in the 10-Ball Division, where she placed second to Frideres.
"I did not capitalize on the opportunities given to me in the 10-Ball," she said.
The $20,000-added 23rd Annual US Bar Table Championship concludes today with the finals of the Men’s 8-Ball Division. Sponsors include: OB Cues, the Official Cue; Kamui, the Official Tip; Diamond Billiard Products, Cyclop Balls, Simonis Cloth, BadBoys Billiard Productions, FargoRate, Magic Ball Rack and Matchroom Sport.
The 2016 US Bar Table Championships are produced by CueSports International, the parent company of the BCAPL and USAPL. CSI also produces independent events, such as the US Open 10-Ball Championship, the US Open 8-Ball Championship and much more. For more information, visit www.playcsipool.com or call 702-719-POOL.
CueSports International, Henderson, NV (Aug. 26, 2016) — With cool determination, Justin Bergman iced his opponents to win the 9-Ball Division of the US Bar Table Championship (USBTC) Friday at the Westgate Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, beating Shane McMinn in the finals by a score of 9-7.
It was a perfect follow up to his victory Wednesday when he won the 10-Ball. Bergman, aka, “Iceberg” pocketed $4,100 for the win and locked up the $1,500 All-Around Bonus, making it a $9,400 week for the 29-year-old from Fairview Heights, Ill.
Bergman faced a touch field in the 9-Ball Division, posting wins over Billy Thorpe, 9-6; Donny Branson, 9-6; Chris Stanfield, 9-8; Max Eberle 9-3; Ryan DeBerg, 9-2; and Edwin Garcia, 9-1, before sending Shane McMinn to the loser’s bracket after a 9-7 win to take the hot seat.
McMinn, a former Oklahoma State champion, beat Roberto Gomez Jr., 9-6; Josh Roberts, 9-5; Julio Burgos Torres, 9-5; and Mike DeWitt, 9-6, before losing to Bergman, 7-9. Then McMinn beat Jason Klatt to meet Bergman in the finals.
The finals of the 9-Ball Division, which had an alternating break format, started with each of the players breaking and running a rack. In the third rack, McMinn, who had won the lag, jawed the seven ball, giving Bergman the rack and an advantage that McMinn was unable to overcome.
Bergman is also still undefeated in the 8-Ball Division, which began Friday, so he has the opportunity to win the USBTC’s Triple Crown, a feat that has never been accomplished by any player.
In addition, he’ll receive Mosconi Cup points for his wins — a fact that is very important to him. Before the start of the USBTC, Bergman was 14th on the Mosconi Cup rankings.
“I want to make the Mosconi Cup (team) so bad,” said Bergman, who represented the USA as part of the Mosconi Cup team in 2015 and 2014. “So that’s my main goal this year.”
[photo id=45218|align=right|width=200]
Rebecca Wagner of Las Vegas (photo at right), who placed second in the Women’s 10-Ball Division, found her way to another finals and was able to capture the 2016 USBTC Women’s 9-Ball Champion title early Friday, beating Susan Williams of Chandler, Ariz. in the finals posted wins against Mary Coffman, 7-4; Debra Aarens, 7-1; and Tina Larsen, 7-1. She beat Williams in the hot seat match, 7-4 on Thursday and repeated that feat in the finals.
Williams tournament included wins over Sierra Reams, 7-5; Grace Nakamura, 7-6; Anne Carmona, 7-5; and 10-Ball Champion Jessica Frideres, 7-5, before being sent to the B side of the bracket by Wagner. Then Williams beat Frideres again, 7-3, to secure her spot in the finals.
The US Bar Table Championships continues through Sunday with the 8-Ball divisions in full swing. The Open 8-Ball Division has 101 players and there are 26 players in the Women’s Division.
Players who place in the top 32 of each open division receive Mosconi Cup USA Team points on a sliding scale. The top three American players with the most points at the end of the year will be selected for the USA Mosconi Cup Team.
Sponsors of the $20,000-added tournament include: OB Cues, the Official Cue; Kamui, the Official Tip; Diamond Billiard Products, Cyclop Balls, Simonis Cloth, BadBoys Billiard Productions, FargoRate, Magic Ball Rack and Matchroom Sport.
The 2016 US Bar Table Championships are produced by CueSports International, the parent company of the BCAPL and USAPL. CSI also produces independent events, such as the US Open 10-Ball Championship, the US Open 8-Ball Championship and much more. For more information, visit www.playcsipool.com or call 702-719-POOL.
CueSports International, Henderson, NV (Aug. 25, 2016) — The 93-player field in the Open 9-Ball division at the 23rd Annual US Bar Table Championships was trimmed to just six players Thursday at the Westgate Las Vegas Resort & Casino. On the winner’s side of the bracket, Shane McMinn of Ponca, Okla. faces Justin “Iceberg” Bergman of Fairview, Ill. in the hot seat match at 2:30 p.m. Friday.
On the B-Side of the bracket, Billy “Thorpedo” Thorpe will play Jason Klatt at 4 p.m.The winner of that match will play the loser of the hot seat match in the semi-finals. The finals are scheduled for 7 p.m. and will be live-streamed. For live-streaming information, go to http://www.playcsipool.com/live-streaming.html.
To get to the hot seat match, McMinn (photo below right), a former Oklahoma State champion, beat Roberto Gomez Jr., 9-6; Josh Roberts, 9-5; Julio Burgos Torres, 9-5; and Mike DeWitt, 9-6.
[photo id=45214|align=right|width=200]
Bergman, who won the 10-Ball division on Wednesday, posted wins over Billy Thorpe, 9-6; Donny Branson, 9-6; Chris Stanfield, 9-8; Max Eberly, 9-3; Ryan DeBerg, 9-2; and Edwin Garcia, 9-1.
In the Women’s Division, Rebecca Wagner of Las Vegas, who placed second in the Women’s 10-Ball Division will play Susan Williams of Chandler, Az. in the finals match at 11:30 a.m. Friday. Wagner posted wins against Mary Coffman, 7-4; Debra Aarens, 7-1; and Tina Larsen, 7-1. She beat Williams in the hot seat match, 7-4 on Thursday.
Williams (photo below right) tournament included wins over Sierra Reams, 7-5; Grace Nakamura, 7-6; Anne Carmona, 7-5; and 10-Ball Champion Jessica Frideres, 7-5, before being sent to the B side of the bracket by Wagner. Then Williams beat Frideres again, 7-3, to secure her spot in the finals.
[photo id=45215|align=right|width=200]
The US Bar Table Championships continue through Aug. 28, with the 9-Ball Division concluding Friday, as the 8-Ball Division begins. The 8-Ball Open Division has 100 players and 20 players in the Women’s Division.
Players who place in the top 32 of each open division receive Mosconi Cup USA Team points on a sliding scale. The top three American players with the most points at the end of the year will be selected for the USA Mosconi Cup Team.
Sponsors of the $20,000-added tournament include: OB Cues, the Official Cue; Kamui, the Official Tip; Diamond Billiard Products, Cyclop Balls, Simonis Cloth, BadBoys Billiard Productions, FargoRate, Magic Ball Rack and Matchroom Sport.
The 2016 US Bar Table Championships are produced by CueSports International, the parent company of the BCAPL and USAPL. CSI also produces independent events, such as the US Open 10-Ball Championship, the US Open 8-Ball Championship and much more. For more information, visit www.playcsipool.com or call 702-719-POOL.
The opening day of the 23rd Annual US Bar Table Championships began with a field of 74 players at the Westgate Las Vegas Resort & Casino. And by the time the first day’s matches concluded, just three remained on the winner’s side of the bracket: Sky Woodward, Justin Bergman and Billy Thorpe — all among a growing group of strong, young players.
Woodward and Bergman will face off at Noon Tuesday and the winner of the match will play Thorpe for the hot seat.
Bergman also play strong all day, with sound wins over Miguel Batista, 7-6; Jason Klatt, 7-1; Jesse Piercey, 7-4; Dale Stanley, 7-2; and Vilmos Foldes.
But there are plenty of solid players on the B-side of the bracket hoping to take home the $3,800 first prize, including Manny Perez, who plays Rodrigo Geronimo at 9 a.m. and Mike Massey, who plays Dale Stanley. Others still on the one-loss side include Van Boening, Sal Butera, Bret Huth, James Adams, Jamie Bruce, Salim, Shane McMinn, Foldes, Piercey, Hattan, McDaniel, Belobradie, Nevel and Josh Roberts.
On the one-loss side, Nakamura takes on Whitney at 9 a.m. and Kimberly Kirk plays Deb Aarens, also at 9 a.m. The winners of those matches play Pelletier and Coffman.
The US Bar Table Championships take play through Aug. 28 and offer 8-ball, 9-ball and 10-ball divisions, as well as a Master of the Table bonus for both the open and women’s divisions.
In addition, players who place in the top 32 of each open division receive Mosconi Cup USA Team points on a sliding scale. The top three American players with the most points at the end of the year will be selected for the USA Mosconi Cup Team.
Sponsors include: OB Cues, the Official Cue; Kamui, the Official Tip; Diamond Billiard Products, Cyclop Balls, Simonis Cloth, BadBoys Billiard Productions, FargoRate, Magic Ball Rack and Matchroom Sport.
10-Ball Divisions Aug. 22-24
Open 10-Ball: Race to 7/$5,000 added
Women’s 10-Ball; Race to 5/ $1,000 added
9-Ball Divisions: Aug. 24-26
Open 9-Ball: Race to 9/$5,000 added
Women’s 9-Ball; Race to 7/ $1,000 added
8-ball Divisions: Aug. 26-28
Open 10-Ball: Race to 5/$5,000 added
Women’s 10-Ball; Race to 4/ $1,000 added
Master of the Table Bonuses*
Open Divisions: $1,500/Women’s Divisions: $500
*Players must compete in all three divisions to be eligible for the bonus.
The first champions of the 40th BCAPL National Championships were crowedThursday as the 9-ball singles divisions at “The Greatest Pool Tournament in the World” came to a close.
Jacque Smith of Amarillo, Texas, was the champion of the Women’s 9-Ball Singles Gold Division. Smith, who has been playing pool for 13 years, posted wins over Jan Burton, Bev Inman and Janna Nelson, before losing to Julie Cooper, who went on to captured the division’s hot seat. Smith double-dipped Cooper, of Cincinnati, Ohio, in the finals to capture the title. Cooper got second place in the event and Robin Verner, of Henderson, Nev., placed third in the event, which had 58 players.
In the Women’s 9-Ball Singles Platinum Division, seasoned women’s professional Vivian Villarreal, of San Antonio, Tex., went undefeated through a small but talented field of 26 players. Villarreal beat Jing Liu, Jessica Frideres, Taylor Hansen, and Ricki Casper, before send Tina Larsen to the B-side of the bracket in the hot seat match in a hill-hill match. Larsen, of Valparaiso, Ind., was determined to have another chance to play Villarreal, and beat Ricki Casper, of Houston, Tex., who took third in the event, in another exciting hill-hill match. The finals saw another hill-hill finish, with Villarreal sneaking past Larsen again.
Tenadore “Ten” Lee, of Glendale, Ariz., had a much longer route in a 226-man field to win the Mixed 9-Ball Singles Gold Division. Lee fought through the crowd, beating Paul Mekeel, Brian Wallace, Andy Benefiel, Floyd Smith, before being sent to the loser’s side of the bracket by Tommy Campbell. Then Lee beat Sang Oh, John Fazakas, and found revenge against Campbell, leaving Campbell to take third place, while Lee moved on to the finals against Hermie Dy of Toronto, Ont. Lee double-dipped Dy with scores of 5-2 and 5-2 to win the division and earn the title.
In the Mixed 9-Ball Singles Platinum Division, Carlos Barbosa, of Edmonton, Alberta, Can. faced a field of 89 players. Barbosa beat Gary Andrews Jr., Eric Vargas, Tracy Sanders, Chris Stanfield, Russ Cearley and Justin Martin, of Nakina, N.C. to earn the hot seat position. Martin, who is just 17 years old, beat Cearley, of Springfield, Ore., to earn a rematch in the finals against Barbosa. But again, Barbosa beat the talented teen in a score of 6-4 in the finals to win the division. Cearley placed third.
Professional players Rodney Morris and Sky Woodward presented the BCAPL player champions with their trophies.
The 40th BCAPL National Championships started July 20 at The Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino and resume through July 30. The event features more than 5,000 amateur players representing 47 states, nine Canadian provinces and 11 countries, competing in approximately 40 divisions, on 300 Diamond pool tables. The annual tournament also includes about 50 exhibitors.
The Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino is the official host venue. Other sponsors include Viking, Kamui, Omega Billiards, Cyclop, Diamond, Simonis, and Predator.
In the photo you see where Sky Woodward presented Jacque Smith, of Amarillo, Tex. with her trophy after Smith won the Women’s 9-Ball Singles Gold Division at the 40thBCAPL National Championships. Other winners in the 9-Ball singles divisions included Vivian Villarreal, Tenadore Lee and Carlos Barbosa.
For more information, photos, or to set up interviews, contact Mary Coffman, CSI Marketing Manager at 509-308-9814 (cell); or by email atmaryc@playcsipool.com.
CSI is the parent company of the BCA Pool League and the USA Pool League. CSI also produces independent events like the US Bar Table Championships, US Open 10-Ball Championship, US Open 8-Ball Championship, and much more. For more information, visit www.playcsipool.com or call CSI at p702-719-POOL.
Liz Lovely rallied from an opening set defeat at the hands of Jessica Frideres in the finals of the Midwest 9-Ball Tour's $700-added Ladies event, held on the weekend of July 8-10, to win the second set and claim the ladies' title. The event, held in conjunction with a One Pocket and Open event (separate stories) drew 24 entrants to Shooter's in Olathe, KS.
They met first in a winners' side semifinal, as Kathleen Morast and Karen Lincoln met in the other one. Lovely sent Frideres to the loss side 7-2, and in the hot seat match, faced Morast, who'd defeated Lincoln 7-5. Lovely claimed the hot seat 7-4 over Lincoln and waited on Frideres.
On the loss side, Frideres picked up Amy Boulware, who'd defeated Monica Dibben, double hill, to reach her. Morast drew Rhea Brooks, who'd gotten by Alisha Ropes 7-4. Frideres shut out Boulware, and in the quarterfinals, faced Morast, who'd eliminated Ropes, double hill.
Frideres took the quarterfinal match over Morast 7-3, and then eliminated Lincoln 7-4 in the semifinals. With a bit of momentum on her side, Frideres took the opening set of the true double elimination final 7-2. Lovely came back to take the second set 7-5 and claim the event title.
CSI is pleased to announce that the 2015 US Bar Table Championships 8-Ball Division matches have been released on the CSI YouTube channel. Twenty-One (21) matches featuring some of the best players in the world can be viewed in their entirety absolutely free!
The 2015 US Bar Table Championships were held February 16-22, 2015 at the Grand Sierra Resort & Casino in Reno, NV. The matches were recorded in “The Kamui Arena” with high definition equipment and full-time commentary by Ken Shuman and other special guests. CSI would like to extend a huge THANK YOU to our primary sponsors:
Kamui: “The Official Tip of the 22nd US Bar Table Championships!”
OB: “The Official Cue of the 22nd US Bar Table Championships!”
Billy Thorpe, D.J. Wolrab (Room Owner) and Tyler Styer
It was, for Amanda Kuhl and her husband, Dan Kuhl, a family affair. The two competed in the October 11-12 stop on the Midwest 9-Ball Tour; he, in the $2,000-added Open event that drew 54 entrants, and she, in the $500-added Ladies event that drew 16. Both events were hosted by the Second Avenue Corner Pocket in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Dan went home with $200 for finishing in the tie for 5th place in the Open event, while Amanda won the $500, first-place prize in the Ladies event, her first on the Midwest 9-Ball Tour.
How Kuhl was that? One wondered whether, under the circumstances, she bought dinner.
"No," said Dan, "but she paid for the hotel."
The two travelled from Ankeny, Iowa, north of Des Moines and about an hour and a half from Cedar Rapids. Amanda's parents agreed to care for their two children, aged 5 and 4, while they were away. They had met in a pool room, years ago, and once they started dating, she began to join him in traveling to tournaments.
"We enjoy playing together," said Dan, "it's something we get to share."
They were both supportive of the results that the other achieved, but according to Dan, Amanda isn't likely to let him forget who won, anytime soon.
"In fact, she was the first female to ever beat me in a tournament," he said, "and she doesn't let me forget that, either. We were joking about in the car, and I tried to put a positive spin (on my results) by noting that I was the highest finishing married man in the event."
Amanda's win almost got derailed, twice. Jen Roling fought her to double hill in the winners' side final, before Amanda prevailed to sit in the hot seat. On the loss side, her eventual finals opponent, Karla Chorny, was in the midst of a six-match, loss-side winning streak, defeating Jessica Frideres, double hill, in the quarterfinals, and then Roling, 7-1 in the semifinals. Chorny also took the opening set of the true double elimination final 7-1, but Kuhl fought back to win the second set, double hill, and claim her first Midwest 9-Ball title.
Two teenagers, both 18, ended up battling in the finals of the Open event. Billy Thorpe shrugged off a loss in a winners' side quarterfinal, won five on the loss side and then, double dipped hot seat occupant, Tyler Styer, to capture the Open title.
With Thorpe at work on the loss side (eventually winning three double hill matches of five played), Styer had moved on to face Dan Kuhl in a winners' side semifinal, while the man who'd sent Thorpe over, Jimmy Nosadan, met up with Alex Olinger. Nosadan defeated Olinger 9-3, as Styer was busy sending Kuhl to the loss side 9-4. Styer claimed the hot seat 9-3.
Thorpe's return to the finals began with a shutout over Tim Kindl, and was followed by a double hill win over Mike Bennett, which set Thorpe up to face Kuhl. Olinger drew Jamie Fenton, who'd gotten by Jeremy Schroeder 9-7 and Timothy Krouse 9-3.
Thorpe ended Kuhl's day 9-5 (a mixed blessing, as he was able, then, to watch his wife win her first title), as Olinger downed Fenton by the same score. Thorpe then won two straight double hill matches, defeating Olinger in the quarterfinals and successfully wreaking his vengeance on Nosadan in the semifinals.
Thorpe dominated the opening set of the finals 9-1, and though Styer would stay close in the second set, coming to within a game of double hill, Thorpe hung on to win it 9-7.
