Suzanne Smith, looking to punctuate her standing as the 2015 Northwest Women's Pool Association champion on the tour's final event of the season, made it all the way to the hot seat, before running into Kimberly Kirk in the finals. Kirk, playing in only her second event of the year, and looking for only her second win on the tour since 2002, won three matches on the loss side for the right to meet Smith, and then downed her in the finals. The $500-added event, streamed by Rail2Rail productions, drew 23 entrants to The Parlor in Bellevue, WA.
After giving up a total of only seven racks, over three matches (to Kim Toops, Kirsten Ferry, and Fran Johnson, Kirk was sent to the loss side in a double hill match, won by Patricia Tipton in a winners' side semifinal. Smith, in the meantime, defeated Liz Cole 7-3 in the other winners' side semifinal. Smith claimed the hot seat 7-4 over Tipton, and waited on the return of Kirk, or K2, as she was called throughout the Rail2Rail stream.
On the loss side, Kirk picked up Michelle Hughes, who'd won four matches on the loss side to reach her, including a double hill win over Jessica Aarhaus, and 6-3 victory over Mary Coffman. Cole drew Carissa Biggs, who'd defeated Cassie Francois 6-3 and survived a double hill fight versus Fran Johnson. Kirk downEd Hughes 6-3, as Cole was busy shutting out Biggs.
The closest that Kirk had come to victory on the tour since 2002 was a runner-up finish to Cole in 2011. She got her three-year-delayed vengeance against Cole in the quarterfinals, defeating her 6-3 and moving on for a re-match versus Tipton. She took care of that, too, defeating Tipton 6-3, for a shot at Smith.
Kirk stayed steady in the finals, while Smith showed some vulnerability. Kirk took full advantage, getting out in front, eventually by five, to win 9-4 and claim the event title.
Mary Coffman's been racking 'em up and showing up on WPBA payout lists for nearly 15 years now. Her first appearance in our database shows her finishing in 17th place at a WPBA Regional Tour Championship (RTC), a little less than two months after 9/11. In 2013, she chalked up two victories on the Northwest Women's Pool Association (NWPA) tour, and finished in the money in the other six stops. She also finished in the tie for seventh place at that year's RTC. Last year, she was runner-up to Sheila Clark in an NWPA tour stop. This year, after finishing in the money at the Chinook Winds Open 8-Ball Ladies Division and both the 8-Ball and 9-Ball US Bar Box Championships, she returned to the winners' circle with a come-from-the-loss-side victory at Tour Stop # 6 on the 2015 NWPA Tour. The $500-added event, held on the weekend of September 19-20, drew 20 entrants to Black Diamond Billiards in Spokane, WA.
Following victories over Alicia Kvasnicka and Kim Toops, Coffman faced Kimberly Kirk in a winners' side semifinal. Suzanne Smith, in the meantime, looking for her third win on the 2015 NWPA Tour, had defeated Sharon Bledsoe and Bev Ashton, and squared off against Toni Sakamoto. Kirk sent Coffman to the loss side, and in the hot seat match, faced Smith, who'd defeated Sakamoto. Smith sent Kirk to the semifinals 7-4, and waited in the hot seat for Coffman's return.
On the loss side, Sakamoto drew Phyllis Fernandez, who'd gotten by Tamre Rogers and Toops, both 6-3. Coffman picked up Ashton, who'd shut out Adrianne Beach, and eliminated Lan Phong 7-4 to reach her. The two winners' side semifinalists advanced; Sakamoto 6-2 over Fernandez, and Coffman, surviving a double hill battle versus Ashton.
Coffman downed Sakamoto in the quarterfinals 7-3, and earned herself a shot at Smith in the hot seat with a 7-5 re-match win over Kirk in the semifinals. She completed her trip to the winners' circle with a 9-6 victory over Smith in the finals.
In the end, it came down to dogged determination, rather than any dazzling display of superior skills. After a three-hour-plus final match, at the third stop on the Northwest Women's Pool Association Tour, on the weekend of May 16-17, Carissa Biggs, acting on an unforced error by her opponent, Natalie Seal, dropped the final 9-ball to chalk up an undefeated run that created a three-way tie for first place in the tour's rankings. The $500-added event, live-streamed throughout the weekend by Rail2Rail Productions, drew 26 entrants to Ballad Town Billiards in Salem, OR.
When the tournament began, Suzanne Smith sat atop the tour rankings, with Liz Cole and Jing Liu behind her, separated by a total of 80 points (Liu was the top-ranked player in 2014, with Cole second). Biggs and Seal, who would become the event's finalists, were in fifth and 14th place, respectively. Smith and Liu finished in the tie for fifth, adding 80 points to their ranking totals, while Cole finished fourth, adding 100 points to hers. Biggs' victory added 200 points to her total, while Seal added 160 as the runner-up. This created a three-way tie among Smith, Biggs and Cole, with Smith retaining the official top spot by virtue of a larger cash total in winnings.
Biggs and Seal would meet twice; once in the hot seat and again, in the finals. Biggs advanced through Denice White, Adrianne Beach (who would be in the live stream broadcast booth at the end), and Tricia Heintz to meet Julie Valdez in one of the winners' side semifinals. Seal, winner over Juliana Goodman and Kim Toops (who'd just sent Liz Cole to the loss side), faced Jing Liu in the other. Seal survived a double hill battle over Liu, as Biggs defeated Valdez 6-4. Biggs claimed the hot seat 6-4.
On the loss side, Smith and Cole were working their way back for an eventual meeting against Valdez and Liu, both winning four to reach them. In the last two of those four, Smith had defeated Natasha Hook 6-4 and survived a double hill battle against Kim Toops to draw Valdez. Cole had gotten by Heintz and Melyssa Chasteen, both 6-1, to draw Liu. Smith's loss-side run came to an end at the hands of Valdez, double hill. Cole advanced 6-1 over Liu.
Valdez finished Cole's five-match, loss-side run with a 6-3 win in the quarterfinals. By the same score, her own three-match run on the loss side was stopped by Seal in the semifinals.
Displaying obvious signs of fatigue at this point, Biggs and Seal opened the final race-to-9 with a series of four games that made it clear it was going to be a long road to the winners' circle and left them tied at two games apiece. Seal was the first to break the back and forth pattern of the opening games, and won two in a row. Biggs, in a display of the aforementioned 'dogged determination,' then won four straight, which included the both of them attempting a 2-9 combination that eventually gave Briggs the game and tied the match at 4-4.
Biggs took her first lead in the match at 5-4 and got her own two-game lead at 6-4. Seal closed the gap by a single game that saw them both make multiple attempts at the 9-ball, shooting long. Seal was shooting at the 9-ball in the game that would have tied things up again, but found herself out of position. She missed her shot, and Biggs was up by two again.
Seal came back to close the gap yet again, but in game #14 at 7-6, Seal committed an unforced error, missing a straight-in shot at the 9-ball, and Biggs was on the hill. Seal came back to close the gap to within one again at 8-7. Biggs attempted a long jump shot in game #16 and gave Seal ball in hand, only to have it returned to her, when Seal scratched. Seal got another chance, but for the second game in a row, she missed her shot at the 9-ball, and Biggs closed it out at 9-7.
Kira North, Ford and Suzanne Smith (Photo courtesy of Sandro Menzel)
On March 21-22, 2015- the NWPA’s first tour stop of the 2015 season, the Washington State 9 Ball Championships, was hosted by Malarkey’s Pool & Brew in Tacoma, WA. The tournament was ran on 9 9-foot Gold Crowns with Rail2Rail Productions providing a free live stream all weekend. The NWPA tour standings and 2015 schedule are available at www.nwpatour.com and is sanctioned by the WPBA. All skill levels are welcome to play and players can accrue points towards their semiprofessional status while gaining experience playing some of the top women players in the northwest. The main event was $750 added, while a Second Chance tournament was available to ladies not making it to the second day. We would like to thank our sponsors Ozone Billiards for donating magic racks for the entire season and Volturi Cue Cases for donating three $500 vouchers for custom cases. Raffle tickets can be purchased for the vouchers through Suzanne Smith (suzos78@gmail.com), and are $10 each. Only 50 tickets will be sold for each voucher, winners will be announced at the conclusion of each voucher’s ticket sales.
Thirty ladies came out to compete Saturday morning. There were several new players to the tour including including Cindy Salcedo (Bozeman, MT), Claire Binci (Corvalis, OR), Brittany Marshall (Spanaway, WA), Andrea Dexter (Renton, WA), and Dara Koch (Portland, OR). The tournament was ran on 9 9-foot Brunswick Gold Crowns. The format was a race to 7, alternating break, 9 ball, with a race to 6 on the B side. There were several first round byes, but play sped right along, without any major upsets going through the early rounds.
Sunday morning, only eight players remained. A side match ups included Cindy Sliva vs. Liz Cole and Julie Valdez vs. Kira North. Cindy and Kira both advanced through their morning matches, 7-2 and 7-5. Cindy and Kira then squared off in the hot seat match. Kira advanced by the score 7-5 to earn her spot in the final. B side match ups included Carissa Biggs vs. Kirsten Fery and Suwanna Matarazzo vs. Suzanne Smith. Carissa and Suzanne advanced through their first round of play 6-1 and 6-4, earning a shot at Liz and Julie. Liz and Suzanne both advanced through the next round by the same score: 6-3. Liz then squared off against Suzanne. Liz led throughout the entire match; however, it was Suzanne who would sink the final 9 ball in their hill-hill match up. Suzanne then played Cindy and defeated her as well, 6-4.
Kira North path to final: Mary O (F), Kathy S (3), Kim T (5), Julie V (5), Cindy S (5)
Suzanne Smith path to final: Patricia T (0), loss to Natalie S (6), Elaine E (2), Tamre R (4), Rebecca S (2), Suwanna M (4), Julie V (3), Liz C (5), Cindy S (4)
The final was one race to 9, alternating break. During the early racks, both players tried to find their groove. At 3-2 Suzanne, Kira was at the table with a 2 ball out. Unfortunately, Kira missed the 9 and scratched giving Suzanne the 4-2 lead. From that point, Suzanne continued to shoot with confidence, increasing her lead to 5-2 in the next rack, then allowing Kira her final rack of the set to make the score 5-3. Suzanne took advantage of opportunities afforded by her opponent, running out three of the final four racks from the 4, 5 and 2. Congratulations to Suzanne, this was her first tour stop in win since 2009, and to Kira for making her second final appearance in only three events played.
Great tournament ladies! The NWPA’s next event is the 4th Annual Martha Hartsell Memorial and will be hosted at The Cue Ball in Salem, OR on April 25-26.
Eight ladies returned on Sunday for the $100 added Second Chance tournament. With a $10 entry, half the field made some money in the true double elimination tournament, race to 3 on the A side and race to 2 on the B side. Kim Toops ended up winning top prize, defeating Dara Koch in the finals. Good work ladies, nice shooting.
On August 9-10, 2014, the NWPA’s fifth tour stop of 2014 was hosted by The Parlor in Bellevue, Washington. The Parlor added $500 to the event and a Volturi custom case voucher raffle added another $350 to the prize fund ($250 to the main event and $100 to the Second Chance.) Some tickets remain on the raffle, so if you are interested please contact Suzanne Smith (suzos78@gmail.com).
The NWPA would like to thank our sponsor Ozone Billiards and Volturi for their support for the 2014 season. Please check out their websites and show them your appreciation at www.ozonebilliards.com and www.volturicases.com. The NWPA tour standings and 2014 schedule are available at www.nwpatour.wordpress.com and is sanctioned by the WPBA. All skill levels are welcome to play and players can accrue points towards their semiprofessional status while gaining experience playing some of the top women players in the northwest.
Thirty ladies came out to compete Saturday morning. Only one new player joined in for the fun, Kirsten Fery out of Portland, OR. The tournament was run on 11 9-foot Brunswick Gold Crowns with Rail2Rail Productions providing a free live stream all weekend. The format was a race to 7, alternating break, 9 ball, with a race to 6 on the B side. There were only two first round byes, but play moved along. As usual play finished early Saturday evening, many of the ladies were given complimentary comedy club tickets to The Parlor Live. Thanks to Parlor GM, Dave Lauer, for taking care of us!
Sunday morning, eleven players remained. A side match ups included Jing Liu vs. Liz Cole (NWPA #1 and #2) and Shari Ross vs. Kim Benson. Liz and Kim both advanced through their morning matches, by the scores of 7-3 and 7-1, advancing them to the hot seat match. Liz and Kim battled it out for the hot seat, with Kim edging out Liz by the score of 7-4. On the B side, due to the early finish on Saturday, there were 3 matchups that needed to play before the money rounds. These matches include Rebecca Slyter vs. Sheila Clark, Stacy Eilts vs. Elizabeth Jensen, and Natalie Seal vs. Kim Toops. Rebecca, Elizabeth, and Natalie advanced into the money matches with the scores 6-4, 6-3, and 6-5 respectively. Following that round, the 7/8 matches were played, with Rebecca playing Suzanne Smith and Natalie playing Elizabeth. Suzanne and Elizabeth advanced by the scores of 6-1 and 6-3. Fired up from their morning losses Shari and Jing matched up next against Elizabeth and Suzanne. While Shari advanced by the score of 6-3, Jing went hill-hill against Suzanne. In the final game, Suzanne broke dry and Jing attempted to play a safety on the 1. Suzanne proceeded to run out the rack to advance by the slimmest of margins, 6-5. Shari then squared off against Suzanne. Suzanne picked up some steam and won that match 6-2. Suzanne then played Liz (fresh off the hot seat loss), and Suzanne continued with her strong shooting and defeated Liz 6-1 to earn her first final appearance of the 2014 season.
Kim Benson path to the final: Teri K (2), Patricia T (2), Suzanne S (2), Shari R (3), Liz C (4)
Suzanne Smith path to the final: Cassandra B (6), Melissa D (4), loss to Kim B (2), Jenny L (0), Rebecca S (1), Jing L (5), Shari R (2), Liz C (1)
The final was one race to 9, alternating break. Throughout the entire final, Kim’s stellar shot making and Suzanne’s missed safety opportunities would be the theme. Suzanne ended up down 5-2 before she would take her break. Kim expanded her lead steadily throughout the match, making fewer mistakes and maintaining her confidence throughout the set. Kim defeated Suzanne 9-4 to claim her second tour stop win on the NWPA, skyrocketing her to 3rd place in overall standings. Jing and Liz maintained their #1 and #2 spots, while Suzanne moved up to 4th with her finish. Should make for an exciting last two stops. Congratulations all the ladies for an excellent tournament.
The NWPA’s next event is back in Spokane WA at The Black Diamond on September 13-14, 2014.
Liz Cole's victory at the third stop on the Northwest Women's Pool Association Tour jumped her up six slots on the 2014 tour rankings, into second place. Jing Liu, who entered the tournament at the top of the rankings, maintained that position by chalking up 30 ranking points, in the tie for 17th place. Kim Toops, entering in the #3 slot, also finished in that tie, and dropped to fourth, when Cole moved ahead of her. Cole, winner of three stops on the NWPA Tour in 2013, picked up her first in 2014 at the May 3-4, $500-added event that drew 29 entrants to Ballad Town Billiards in Forest Grove, OR.
Cole's path to the finals made two initial stops on the winners' side of the bracket, with victories over Gretchen Sziebert, a shutout, and Stacy Eilts 6-2, before running into Mary Olson, who defeated her 6-4. The victory moved Olson into a winners' side semifinal against Kira North. Fran Johnson and Sheila Clark squared off in the other. North survived a double hill fight against Olson, as Clark downed Johnson 6-3. North claimed the hot seat 6-4 over Clark and waited on Cole.
Cole eliminated Johnson 6-1, earning herself a rematch in the quarterfinals against Olson, who'd defeated Matarazzo 6-3. Cole had the last say in a double hill contest, and then, defeated Clark 6-3 in the semifinals. In a single race-to-9 final, Cole defeated North 9-4 to claim the event title.
On April 19-20, 2014, the NWPA’s second tour stop of 2014 was hosted by The Cue Ball in Salem, OR. The Cue Ball has supported our tour from the very beginning and we would like to thank Jim Lebold for all that he does for women’s pool. Martha Hartsell was a fierce competitor whose life was cut short by cancer in 2010. Many of the women on tour were good friends with Martha and in her honor, continue to play the game that she loved, making lifelong friends and rivals along the way.
The NWPA would like to thank our sponsor Ozone Billiards for their support for the 2014 season. Please check out their website and show them your appreciation at www.ozonebilliards.com. The NWPA tour standings and 2014 schedule are available at www.nwpatour.wordpress.com and is sanctioned by the WPBA. All skill levels are welcome to play and players can accrue points towards their semiprofessional status while gaining experience playing some of the top women players in the northwest.
Twenty-five ladies came out to compete Saturday morning, and with very few of the region’s top players in attendance (only four of the top twelve from the season opener), it really was an event where anyone could win. There were several new players to the tour including Patricia Tipton, Cassandra Bryant, Dyamelle Castilleja, and Sherri Denke. The tournament was run on 22 9-foot Brunswick Anniversary tables with Rail2Rail Productions providing a free live stream all weekend. The format was a race to 7, alternating break, 9 ball, with a race to 6 on the B side. There were several first round byes, but play sped right along. Tour players spent the remainder of their Saturday at Jake’s Bar, just down the road for ribeyes and bartable action, an annual tradition for this event.
Sunday morning, only eight players remained. A side match ups included Rebecca Slyter vs. Kathy Stanley and Kim Toops vs. Suwanna Matarazzo. Rebecca and Kim both advanced through their morning matches, by the same score of 7-2, solidifying their top tour finishes to date by squaring off for the hot seat. The birthday girl, Kim, continued her stellar play in the hot seat match, defeating Rebecca 7-2 to earn her first final appearance in tour history. B side match ups included Carissa Biggs vs. tour veteran Julie Valdez and Jing Liu vs. Sheila Clark. Carissa and Jing both advanced through their morning matches by the score of 6-2 and 6-5. Momentum stayed with Carissa and Jing as they marched through their next round as well, by the same score of 6-2. Carissa then squared off against Jing. Carissa maintained a lead throughout the match and advanced by the score 6-3. Carissa then played Rebecca, who had been sitting for some time and defeated her handily, not allowing a single rack win (6-0).
Kim Toops path to the final: Sarah M (2), Jing L (3), Julie V (4), Suwanna M (2), Rebecca S (2)
Carissa Biggs path to the final: Bye, Sheila C (1), loss to Suwanna (3), Dyamelle C (2), Julie V (2), Kathy S (2), Jing L (3), Rebecca S (0)
The final was one race to 9, alternating break. Throughout the entire final, Kim shot with the confidence she had possessed all weekend, capitalizing on Carissa’s mistakes as the match proceeded. Kim expanded her lead steadily throughout the match, allowing her opponent only three racks by the time she reached the hill. But Carissa Biggs had not an ounce of give up. She battled through each of the following games with such resolve; you could just sense a hill-hill match was in the making. Carissa did it; she fought hard and tied up the match at 8-8, one game for all the cheese.
The Final Game- Kim broke and pocketed the 7 in the side pocket. She made a cut on the 1 ball leaving herself a 2-9 carom for the win. She missed the carom, but ended up banking the 2 ball in the opposite corner. She then pocketed the 3 ball and left herself a draw cut shot on the 4 to get back up table for the 5 ball. She missed the 4 ball entirely, but kicked it towards the opposite corner, where it rattled. Carissa was hooked by the 8 ball, so she attempted to jump. Unfortunately, Carissa couldn’t clear the 8 ball, but she did end up pocketing the 4. With ball in hand and only four balls on the table, it looked like Kim would spoil Carissa’s come back. Kim pocketed the 5 and 6, but then rattled the 8 ball. Carissa stepped to the table and pocketed the 8, but left herself shooting a cut on the 9 to the side pocket. With her cue ball just barely off the side rail, she ended up overcutting the 9 leaving a fairly manageable cut for Kim. Kim then missed that 9 ball too, but left Carissa a bank shot. Carissa attempted the bank, but hit both points, and went to the center of the table, leaving Kim a back cut on the 9. Kim beared down on the ball, measured her line, and fired. The ball rattled and sat right in front of the pocket, with the cue ball about 4 inches from it in a straight line to the pocket. Kim’s disappointment was clear as she slapped her knee, knowing the opportunity to win was no longer hers. Carissa stepped to the table with bridge in hand and made the final 9 ball for the win. Both ladies shook hands as conclusion to the event. Later on, Carissa spoke to the memory of Martha “Winning this event here at The Cue Ball sponsored by Jim Lebold in memory of Martha Hartsell is very special to me. Martha was a great competitor and sportswoman whose life was cut way too short. Don't take one moment for granted!”
With Carissa’s win, she moved up to second in overall standings, while Kim moved up to 3rd. Great tournament ladies! The NWPA’s next event is at Ballad Town Billiards in Forest Grove, OR on May 3-4.
