The final six competitors at the Sept. 26-27 stop on the Viking Cues’ Q City 9-Ball Tour included the Jordan brothers (Randy and Jeff) and Josh Roberts, all looking to get back on some semblance of a winning track after a long, ominously quiet spring, summer and (now) autumn. Gone at the point (among others) were BJ Ussery, Betty Sessions and the tour’s most prolific winner over the past year, Landon Hollingsworth.
Josh Roberts had been the busiest of the final six in 2020, having cashed in seven events, including the Music City Classic’s Open Division (4th), three events at the Derby City Classic (9-Ball Banks; 14th, One Pocket; 25th, 9-Ball; 11th) and a runner-up finish (to James Aranas) in the 2020 Scotty Townsend Memorial 9-Ball Tournament in March in Louisiana. The Jordan brothers came to the tables on the heels of a long drought for them. Randy Jordan had chalked up his last win at the 2018 Florida State Open 10-Ball Championship, while brother Jeff was looking at a three-year layoff since winning a stop on the Viking Cues’ Q City 9-Ball and Sunshine State Pro Am Tours in the final months of 2017.
This mutual ‘drought’ for the finalists contributed to the decision to start a double elimination final at 7 a.m. on Sunday, September 27 and conclude it at 8:45 a.m. The combatants were Randy Jordan and Josh Roberts. Roberts was in the hot seat and Randy Jordan was coming off a five-match, loss-side winning streak that his brother Jeff had sent him on after a winners’ side quarterfinal match. Jordan won both sets of the final to claim the title over Roberts. The $800-added event drew 50 entrants to another new venue for the Viking Cues’ Q City 9-Ball Tour – Tara Billiards in Jonesboro, GA.
After sending his brother to the loss side, Jeff Jordan ran into Josh Roberts in a winners’ side semifinal. Toby Bell, in the meantime, squared off against Eric Roberts in the other one. With Eric Roberts racing to 9, Toby Bell got into the hot seat match with a 6-6 win over him. Josh Roberts joined him, once he’d sent Jeff Jordan to the loss side 12-3 (Jordan racing to 9). Josh Roberts did not give up a rack in his 12-0 hot seat victory.
Randy Jordan opened his loss-side trip to the finals with two straight double hill wins; over Derek Fountain (10-7) and junior competitor Joey Tate (10-6) to draw Eric Roberts. Randy’s brother, Jeff, picked up Marcio Smith, who’d eliminated Reggie Thomas and Mike Byars, both 7-3, to reach him.
Randy downed Eric Roberts 10-5. Smith spoiled any thoughts of a brotherly quarterfinal with a 7-7 win over Jeff (racing to 9). Randy Jordan completed his march to the final by winning nearly 70% of the games he played over the next two matches. He defeated Marcio Smith 10-4 in the quarterfinal and Toby Bell 10-5 in the semifinal to earn his shot against Roberts in the hot seat.
It was 7 o’clock in the morning and tour director Herman Parker fully expected the two finalists to opt out of a potential two-set final and agree to a split. It didn’t happen. They embarked on the final two matches. With momentum on his side, Randy Jordan took the opening set 10-5 (Roberts racing to 12). The second set proved to be a little trickier, as they fought to double hill, just ahead of 9 a.m. Jordan finished it at 10-11 to claim the event title.
Tour director Herman Parker thanked Nathan McBurnett and his Tara Billiards staff for their hospitality, as well as title sponsor Viking Cues, Bar Pool Tables, Delta 13 Racks, AZBilliards, Tickler Pool Ball Washing Machine, Skyline Construction, Federal Savings Bank Mortgage Division and Dirty South Grind Apparel Co. The Viking Cues’ Q City 9-Ball Tour will add another new venue to its growing list as it visits VFW Post #9811 in Kings Mountain, NC this coming weekend (Oct. 3-4) for a $500-added event.
When Brandon Brock showed up at the Steakhorse Restaurant and Billiards in Spartanburg, SC last weekend (April 13-14) to compete in a stop on the Viking Cues’ Q City 9-Ball Tour, he arrived without a cue stick. Not exactly a way to enter a tournament looking for your first major win. He bought one, though (a stick, not the win); a Viking cue as it turned out and used it to go undefeated through a field of 59 entrants at the $1,000-added event and claim his first event title.
Brock faced Marcio Smith twice in this event. Both, according to our records, were looking to chalk up their first major win. Brock defeated Jeff Abernathy 6-4 in one of the winners’ side semifinals, as Smith was busy sending Rob Hart to the loss side 7-5. They met first in the battle for the hot seat, won by Brock 6-6 (Smith racing to 7).
On the loss side, Abernathy and Hart ran right into their second straight loss. Abernathy picked up Chris Gentile, who’d defeated Jason Blackwell 8-4 and survived a double hill (8-10) battle versus BJ Ussery. Hart drew Dakota Harris, who’d eliminated Steven Ellis 6-4 and Hunter White, double hill (6-8).
Gentile downed Abernathy 8-4 and in the quarterfinals, faced Harris, who’d ended Hart’s weekend 6-4. Gentile then downed Harris 8-3 to meet Smith in the semifinals.
A double hill fight ensued, eventually won by Smith (7-7). With Smith racing to 7 in the finals, Brock completed his undefeated run with a 6-5 win over Smith.
Tour directors Herman and Angela Parker thanked Dayne Miller and his Steakhorse staff for their hospitality, as well as title sponsor Viking Cues, Bar Pool Tables, Delta 13 Racks, AZ Billiards and Professor Q-Ball. The next stop on the Viking Cues’ Q City 9-Ball Tour, scheduled for this weekend (April 20-21) will be hosted by Randolph Billiards in Hickory, NC.
It’s been a long time since BJ Ussery sported a pool resume that could be contained on a single page. Available records indicate that it’s been 19 years now, and while there have been some lean years (2017, for example, when his only reported cash prize came with a 5th place finish at that year’s NC State 10-Ball Open), there have been some really good ones, like 2005 and 2011, his first and second-best earnings year, to date. His 2005 reported earnings were $5 better than his 2011 earnings. On the weekend of February 23-24, Ussery added an undefeated run on the Viking Cues’ Q City 9-Ball Tour to his multi-page resume. It was his first win on the tour since August of last year. The event, the first Chris Walsh Memorial Tournament, held to commemorate the loss of a member of the tour who passed away recently, drew 67 entrants to Walsh’s home room, Randolph’s Billiards in Hickory, NC. The event raised $600 for the Walsh family.
Ussery faced separate opponents in the hot seat and finals. After an 11-3 victory over Matt Harrell in a winners’ side semifinal, Ussery squared off against Stevie McClinton, who had just defeated teenager Casey Cork 7-1. Ussery claimed the hot seat 11-4 over McClinton and waited on the return of Filippino competitor Francisco Felicilda.
On the loss side, Felicilda worked his way closer to his eventual matchup against Ussery by downing Dalton Messer 11-3 and Matt Lucas, double hill (11-4 with Lucas racing to 5). This set Felicilda up to face Harrell. Cork, in the meantime, met up with Brian Francis, who’d defeated Marcio Smith 6-2 and another Filippino competitor, Raymund Faraon 6-1 (Faraon racing to 12).
Felicilda eliminated Harrell 11-2 and was joined in the quarterfinals by Francis, who’d downed Cork 6-1. After giving up only four racks over his last three matches, Francis had the tables turned on him by Felicilda, who shut him out to advance to the semifinals.
Felicilda completed a fairly impressive run over five loss-side matches with an 11-2 victory over McClinton in the semifinals. He entered the finals against Ussery having won 85% of his games (64-11) over the past six matches. He proved to be no match for Ussery, however, who completed his undefeated run with an 11-5 win; his first of 2019.
Tour directors Herman and Angela Parker thanked the ownership and staff at Randolph Billiards for hosting the 1st Chris Walsh Memorial, as well as title sponsor Viking Cues, Bar Pool Tables, Delta 13 Racks, AZ Billiards and Professor Q-Ball. The next stop on the Viking Cues’ Q City 9-Ball Tour, scheduled for this weekend (March 2-3), will be hosted by The Clubhouse in Lynchburg, VA.
Junior National Champion Tate wins nine on the loss side to finish as runner-up
When Jason Brown (known as Jaybird) finished in the tie for 7th place at a March 2004 stop on the Joss Northeast 9-Ball Tour, and entered the AZBilliards database for the first time, the player he faced in the finals of the August 25-26 stop on the 2018 Viking Cues’ Q City 9-Ball Tour hadn’t been born yet. Brown went undefeated through a field of 82, on-hand for the $1,500-added event, hosted by Steakhorse Restaurant & Billiards in Spartanburg, SC. His opponent in the finals was 13-year-old, two-time BEF Junior National Champion, and member of this year’s Atlantic Cup Challenge team, Joey Tate, who’d lost a match in the third round of play and won nine on the loss side to earn a shot against him in the finals. Tate was one of six juniors who competed in the event.
As Tate was toiling away on the loss side, Brown advanced to a winners’ side semifinal against Marcio Smith. Trey Frank and Tyler Mayfield squared off in the other winners’ side semifinal. Brown got into the hot seat match with an 11-3 victory over Smith, and was joined by Frank, who’d sent Mayfield to the loss side 6-4. Brown claimed the hot seat 11-3 over Frank, and waited on the return of the reigning 14 & Under Junior National Champion.
Tate, in the meantime, was mowing ‘em down on the loss side. Four matches into his loss-side winning streak, he defeated Scott Roberts, and then, Jeff Jordan, both 6-3, to draw Smith. Mayfield picked up Jeff Jordan’s brother, Randy, who’d recently defeated Dustin Brown and Matt Lucas, both 10-1.
Tate and Smith battled to double hill before Tate advanced to the quarterfinals (6-6; Smith racing to 7). He was joined by Randy Jordan, who’d eliminated Mayfield 10-3. Tate had allowed Randy’s brother, Jeff, three racks in their earlier matchup, but shut brother Randy out to advance to the semifinals.
In a straight-up race to 6 in those semifinals, Tate completed his loss-side run 6-2 for a shot at Brown in the hot seat. Tate would have needed to defeat Brown twice in the finals to claim the title, but Brown completed his undefeated run with an 11-4 victory over Tate, who presumably went home to prepare for school the next morning.
Tour directors Herman and Angela Parker thanked Dayne Miller and his staff at Steakhorse Billiards for their hospitality, along with title sponsor Viking Cues, Delta 13 Racks, AZ Billiards and Professor Q-Ball. The next stop on the Viking Cues’ Q City 9-Ball Tour, scheduled for this weekend (Sept. 1-2), will be a $500-added event, hosted by Speak Eazy Billiards in Sanford, NC.
