The biggest story on the Joss NE 9-Ball Tour this season has been the dominant run by tour points leader Bucky Souvanthong. Souvanthong has four first place finishes this season and has competed in the finals of every tour stop that he has played in. While he kept his string of finals appearances intact at the Northeast 9-Ball Open XXXIII held at Sharp Shooters Billiards and Sports Pub in Amsterdam, NY on February 19th – 20th, first place went to Jeremy Sossei instead of Souvanthong.
Souvanthong and Sossei found themselves on the same side of the brackets in this 54 player event. Sossei had Saturday wins over Jason Collins, Jim Kearney, Tito Ortiz and Dawn Fox, while Souvanthong defeated Chris Tiru and Pat Fleming before being handed a lopsided 9-3 loss by Damon Sobers.
Souvanthong came back on Sunday and took out his vengeance on the left side of the board. Tom Acciavatti fell 7-2, Bud Robideau lost 7-0 and Bruce Carroll took a 7-0 loss to Souvanthong.
Back on the right side of the board, it was smooth sailing for Sossei with a 9-3 win over Sobers and then a 9-4 win over Marko Clarke for the hot-seat. Souvanthong had wins over Ron Casanzio and Clarke to earn his spot in the finals against Sossei but Sossei ended things before Souvanthong had any chance to get things going with a 9-2 win in the first (and only) set of the finals.
Sundays second chance event saw Jim Kearney face off against Greg Bombard three times before a winner was declared. Kearney had a 3-0 win over Bombard for the hot-seat, but after a hill-hill battle with Joe Wysocki in the semi-finals, Bombard came back and handed Kearney a 3-0 loss in the first set of the double elimination finals. The rubber match went to Kearney by that same 3-0 scoreline for first place.
The Joss NE 9-Ball Tour will take this weekend off and the come back on March 5th – 6th for the 12th N.E. Pool & Billiard Hall of Fame 9-Ball Open at Snookers Billiards Bar & Grill in Providence, Rhode Island.
Please do not reply to this email. Send all replies and inquiries to mzjosstour@aol.com or call Mike Zuglan at 518-356-7163.
Congratulations to stop 9 winners, Jeremy Sossei (Northeast 9-Ball Open XXXIII Champion, $1,100) & Jim Kearney (Second Chance Event, $300)
Snookers Billiards Sports Billiards Bar & Grill (Providence R.I.) and Mike Zuglan’s Joss Northeast 9-Ball Tour are proud to present the 12th Annual New England Pool & Billiards Hall Of Fame Ray Desell Memorial 9-Ball Open. Although there will not be any inductions this year, this is just one more way that our hosts Regina & Steve Goulding continue to show their devotion and generosity to our sport.
Snookers is also one of the best restaurants in the Providence area. Check them out at www.snookersri.com and thanks again to Steve & Regina for putting up the $3,000 added, and once again allowing us the use of their great room for our event. Trophies will be awarded to the top finishers in the main event. Also, Whether you come to play, or just watch, you will have the opportunity to win a gorgeous, custom, engraved Joss Cue, valued at $1,900, by participating in Snookers cue raffle. Anyone can participate and you don’t have to be present to win! The drawing will be just prior to the final match of the main event on Sunday Feb. 6th. So come on down and play and win, watch for free, have some great food and drink, and take a chance at a $1,900 Joss Cue.
Snookers has arranged a special rate of $149 + Tax at the Marriott Downtown (across the street), 1 Orms St, Providence RI 02904 401-272-2400. Use this link to book the Marriott,https://www.marriott.com/events/start.mi?id=1643152004897&key=GRP OR $89 + Tax (1 bed), $99 + Tax (2 beds) at Woodspring Suites, 181 Corliss St, Providence RI 02904, 401-519-9641.Mention Snookers to get these rates. All are strictly based on availability!
This event at Snookers will consist of a $2,500 added Saturday and Sunday Main Event (entry Fee $120 for pro level or $70 for non pro level) and a $500 added consolation 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 March 5 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
As of this writing there is still no word from Turning Stone regarding our season finale, the $25,000 Added Turning Stone Classic XXXV 9-Ball Open, scheduled for September 1-4, 2022. I will let everyone know of their decision as soon as I know.
Lastly, I can’t stress enough how important it is for 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. These are the ones who keep our sport alive. So get out and play!
Mike Zuglan
The Joss Northeast 9-Ball Tour Is Proudly Sponsored By;
Though he’d been among the top 10 finishers in 14 major events since January of 2016, an event victory had eluded Jorge Rodriguez since he won the season opener of the 2016 Predator Pro Am Tour. Rodriguez changed that at the second stop on the Joss Northeast 9-Ball Tour’s 2017-2018 season. Rodriguez went undefeated through a field of 59, on hand for the $1,500-added Hudson Valley Fall Classic, hosted by The Spot in Nanuet, NY on the weekend of September 30-October 1.
Rodriguez faced separate opponents in the hot seat and finals of the event. Following victories over Geovanni Hosang, and Ron Casanzio, Rodriguez gave up only one rack to his next two opponents, shutting out Thomas Haas, and giving up the single rack to Geoff Montgomery. This set Rodriguez up in a winners’ side semifinal against Matt Tetreault. In the meantime, Zion Zvi, who’d just sent Rodriguez’ eventual opponent in the finals, Jeremy Sossei to the loss side, squared off against Lee Van Corteza in the other winners’ side semifinal.
Rodriguez sent Matt Tetreault to the loss side 9-3, as Zvi downed Van Corteza 9-6. Rodriguez claimed the hot seat over Zvi 9-7 and waited for Sossei to complete a five-match, loss-side run that would put him into the finals.
Sossei opened his loss-side run with a 9-5 win over Jason Michas, and a 9-3 win over Carmen Lombardo, which set him up to face Tetreault. Van Corteza drew Rhys Chen, who was in the midst of his own six-match, loss-side run that had most recently included wins over Geoff Montgomery 9-5 and Olli Turkulainen 9-7.
Van Corteza ended Chen’s run in a double hill match, while Sossei was eliminating Tetreault 9-3. The Sossei/Van Corteza quarterfinal came within a game of going double hill, but Sossei advanced 9-7. The Sossei/Zvi semifinal rematch did go double hill, and when it was over, Sossei had earned himself a shot at Rodriguez in the hot seat.
Rodriguez completed his undefeated run with a 9-7 win over Sossei in the finals. The win put Rodriguez at the top of early tour rankings, alongside Nelson Oliveira who had won the season opener in September, but did not compete in Nanuet.
A $500-added, 19-entrant Second Chance event was won by Rob Pole, who defeated Mike Salerno in the finals. Scott Haas finished third, ahead of Jim Kearney. Brian Hunter and Ron Plontkowski finished in the tie for fifth.
The next stop on the Joss Northeast 9-Ball Tour, scheduled for the weekend of October 14-15, will be a $1,500-added event, hosted by Sharpshooter’s Billiards and Sports Pub in Amsterdam, NY. A week later (October 21-22), at the same location, the Joss Northeast 9-Ball Tour will hold its second annual Juniors Tournament, featuring separate divisional events for 18-and-under and 12-and-under competitors. The 12-and-under group will play on 7-foot Diamond tables, while the older group will face off on 9-foot Diamonds. Last year’s winner in the 18-and-under group was Lukas Fracasso-Verner, who defeated Peter Abatangelo in the finals. Ivo Linkin won the 12-and-under competition, downing Zach Hemendinger twice in a true double elimination final.
Tour director Mike Zuglan thanked the ownership and staff at The Spot for their hospitality and asked that players be reminded of the upcoming Turning Stone XXIX, scheduled for January 4-7 at the Turning Stone Resort and Casino in Verona, NY. Players interested in competing should touch base with Zuglan as soon as possible to secure a slot in the event.
