Alex Lely has announced his decision to step down as European captain for the annual Mosconi Cup after an undefeated three years in the role.
Lely took over from predecessor Marcus Chamat almost three years ago following two successive wins for the American team, with the Dutchman restoring the European dominance during his tenure.
He has now taken the decision to step aside and allow someone else to take up the illustrious role, revealing his intentions to continue his coaching in the USA as well as commentary on both pool and snooker.
The 1999 World Pool Masters winner and former European champion posted on social media: “It’s been a great run, finished with an amazing edition in Las Vegas.
“The intensity I experienced in this one, I will probably never go through again. It was the best one for me. But it ends now. A three-year run is good I feel, the fans get to see a new face, the players get a new input.
“I am happy to have had this chance from Matchroom and feel honoured how these champions have trusted me with their technique and other challenges.”
A new captain will take over the helm for the 2023 edition held on home soil, with former vice-captain Karl Boyes and three-time MVP Niels Feijen amongst the rumoured candidates.
Alex Lely has been appointed as the new captain of Team EUROPE at the partypoker Mosconi Cup, with Karl Boyes as his vice-captain. Europe will be looking to regain the Cup at Alexandra Palace, London this December 1st-4th after suffering back-to-back defeats against USA.
Dutchman Lely returns to the helm having been European captain in 2008 and 2009. In his first Cup as captain he led Europe to an 11-5 victory in Malta before losing 11-7 to USA the following year.
“It is very exciting,” said Lely of his appointment. “It has been ten years since I was last the captain and that is a long time in the context of the Mosconi Cup. It has grown to be so big in that time and it is getting better every year. With USA winning it the last two years, the Mosconi Cup has sparks once again.
“We have a big pool of talent in Europe. We have two wildcards so together with Karl Boyes we will need to make the right choices to compliment the three players who qualify through the rankings. There will be a list of usual suspects and new contenders we have to consider. One new contender to consider would have to be Fedor Gorst, who came really close to making the team last year and is now World Champion.
“We need to get our act together. It is not just about making the balls, it is about acting as a team and it will be very important for the team to gel. Communication will be very important between the coaches and the players, and amongst players themselves. Playing at home, we want to bring it home.
“The past ten years, I have been coaching a lot, working with top players, and commentating a lot. So I have been very close to the Mosconi Cup and elite pool and I have learned a lot. I think ten years ago I was pretty green, a bit of a rookie. I wasn’t as experienced as a coach as I am now.
“Karl and I can complement each other very well. Boyes is boy-ish and can bring something to the team that I probably couldn’t. But he is very insightful; it isn’t just banter. He is very experienced in the Mosconi Cup and I am very happy to have him in my corner.”
Boyes is a four-time partypoker Mosconi Cup winner with Europe and since putting down his cue has become one of pool’s leading pundits.
“The campaign paid off,” said Boyes, who had been using social media to gather support for his bid for a role in the European setup. “It will be great to work alongside Alex, who has experience of the captaincy role and is a top coach and commentator. Alex is a very knowledgeable guy and I think we will gel very well together.
“The last couple of years I’ve seen a few things which we can improve on. I think the doubles needs to be worked on more where certain points have been lost because maybe the pairings haven’t been quite right. Certainly, last year Johan worked the schedule well and Shane Van Boening and Skyler Woodward played more times than say, Joshua Filler and Jayson Shaw.”
Lely takes the reigns as European captain from Marcus Chamat, who led the team from 2015 until 2019, lifting the cup three times. Matchroom Pool would like to thank Marcus for his hard work during his time as European captain.
A full list of the 2020 Team Europe qualifying events will be published later this month.
Tickets for the 2020 partypoker Mosconi Cup are on sale now at www.mosconicup.com. Tickets are priced at £25, £40 and £60 per day with Platinum VIP packages from £170 per day. Season tickets for all four days start at £90 with the Platinum VIP season ticket priced £600. Platinum VIP includes seating in the front three rows, a two-course buffet dinner, mid-session hot-food bowl, unlimited beer, wine and soft drinks from 6:30pm-10:30pm and much more.
The 2020 partypoker Mosconi Cup is partnered by Rasson Billiards who supplies the Official Table; the cloth is supplied by Iwan Simonis and Saluc is the Official Ball Provider. Predator is the Official Cue of the event, Kamui the Official Chalk and Tip and Ultimate Team Gear provide all partypoker Mosconi Cup apparel.
Follow the partypoker Mosconi Cup on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Instagram. For all the latest event news please visit www.mosconicup.com.
Team USA retained the partypoker Mosconi Cup with an 11-8 success over Team Europe on Thanksgiving at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino Convention Center, Las Vegas, live on Sky Sports and DAZN.
The American side, aiming to repeat their win in London last year, began the final day with an 8-7 lead and made an early statement of intent as Billy Thorpe beat Jayson Shaw, the decisive moment coming in the seventh as Shaw punched the 3-ball to the top pocket but saw it rattle the draw, allowing Thorpe to take the rack and run out for victory in the next.
Eklent Kaci hit back in style for Europe, defeating Tyler Styer 5-1. Momentum swung back to the home side when Shane van Boening defeated Alexander Kazakis 5-3, taking America to the partypoker Mosconi Cup hill at 10-8.
Next up was Joshua Filler for Europe, with many expecting him to narrow the deficit. But Skyler Woodward relished the occasion and was celebrating with the crowd on their feet before he had even played the 5/9 combination for a 5-3 victory which sealed the cup and his own second successive Most Valuable Player title.
“Today I came out focussed, ready to play and I had a feeling I would be playing Filler,” said Woodward, who earns an invite to March’s World Pool Masters as MVP. “From the beginning I said I wanted to play Filler.
“I wouldn’t rather have a different team. We lost eight in a row but we won two in a row. This is the best team we could have and we are all good friends. I wouldn’t rather have anybody else backing me up than these guys.”
Thorpe added: “I knew I was going up against one of their best players, Jayson like Josh has so much firepower. I knew I had to come out, stay swinging and not let up on my stroke. We will be ready next year to defend the trophy. We will all be ready to go overseas and make it three years in a row.”
Justin Bergman, who would have faced Niels Feijen had Europe won another point, said: “I was ready to play but I told the guys to finish them off. I didn’t think I was going to play because I believed in them but I was ready if I was needed. This is the best team I have ever been on so I had a good feeling all week.”
van Boening said: “It was 2009 the last time we won a Mosconi Cup at home, and without all the fans’ supporting we wouldn’t be here. This group is probably the best team I have ever played with. We have a great friendship, great chemistry and it is an unbelievable team.
Styer said: “This team has such a good balance, we all get along and there is no better group to do it than this. Johan has been getting us up early, doing everything together, and we are brothers now.
Coach Johan Ruijsink commented: “We had great support. Happy Thanksgiving! This was by far the hardest one to win. They had a great side, it is hard to be in America with all the pressure of winning last time. Last year was 9-6 on the last day but this time was 8-7 but we had a good line-up, came out strong and it was a good win.
“Last year was a bit of a surprise to Europe and we caught them off guard. This year they were prepared and we had extra pressure. This year was about handling the pressure, being in Vegas with all of its distractions and we came through. Every year will be a great fight every single year.
“I couldn’t have done this without Jeremy Jones. We are a great team. He is the perfect connection between me and the players and he has been in this arena as a player, which I haven’t.”
European captain Marcus Chamat said: “We came here to USA ten days ago. We have stuck together for the whole ten days, we came here as a team and we will leave here as a team. We stood beside each other the whole time and I am really proud of this team. Things weren’t going our way and Joshua put up some great performances. Without him it wouldn’t be 11-8.
“I want to thank all the fans, American and European fans, who have helped make this amazing event. The American players put in an amazing performance.”
The 2020 partypoker Mosconi Cup will take place at Alexandra Palace, London from Tuesday, December 1st until Friday, December 4th next year, with tickets on sale to Matchroom Pool Club members from midday next Monday, December 2nd and will go on general sale at midday on Tuesday, December 3rd 2019.
The 2019 partypoker Mosconi Cup is partnered by Rasson Billiards who supplies the Official Table; the cloth is supplied by Iwan Simonis and Saluc is the Official Ball Provider. Predator is the Official Cue of the event, Kamui the Official Chalk and Tip and Ultimate Team Gear provide all partypoker Mosconi Cup apparel. CSI is the official sponsor of Team USA and Just Eat sponsor Team Europe.
Team USA lead the partypoker Mosconi Cup 8-7, setting it up for a dramatic Thanksgiving finale at the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino Convention Center, live on Sky Sports and DAZN.
The day began with the scores at 5-5 and USA extended that to 8-5, with Skyler Woodward involved in all three wins. A Joshua Filler inspired Europe fought back though as the German beat Shane van Boening 5-0 before Jayson Shaw and Niels Feijen won a hill-hill thriller against Justin Bergman and Billy Thorpe that had it all and sparked wild European celebrations.
USA Coach Johan Ruijsink had scheduled Woodward to play in each of the day’s opening three matches, starting with a doubles pairing alongside Van Boening, with Filler and Eklent Kaci in opposition.
The Albanian carried the adrenaline of the walk-on into his break and scratched to the middle pocket, handing early initiative to USA. Europe’s next shot was their break at 2-0 down, but they couldn’t capitalise, and the rack went to USA. Kaci and Feijen took the fourth but a poor Filler push out gave America control of the fifth and they duly moved to the hill.
Breaking for the match, Woodward had the 8 down but Van Boening was left unsighted on the 1. No problem, though, for the South Dakota Kid, who jumped the 3 to cut the 1 to the top corner and America were perfect from there to move 6-5 ahead.
Woodward remained at the table to face Feijen, who was yet to find his stroke this week. The Dutchman looked to be staring down a 3-0 deficit when Woodward missed an uncharacteristic 9-ball and Feijen was able to put a three-pack together for the lead. But if any confidence was being built by the four-time MVP, it wasn’t able to grow any further. Woodward ran the sixth rack and a dry break by Feijen in the seventh was his last shot of the match as the Kentucky Kid, who is fast becoming ‘Mr Mosconi’ for Team USA, cleared the table twice for a 5-3 win and a 7-5 US lead.
That heaped pressure onto European pair Kaci and Kazakis, who were out next in doubles against Woodward and Styer. The Euro duo were both losing debutants last year and Kazakis had struggled so far this week too.
An American break and run in the first rack served to increase the decibel level from the US audience, but Europe took the next two for the lead. A fluked 3-ball – an attempted Kaci jump to the bottom corner which clipped the draw and screwed diagonally to the top corner – set Europe on their way to 3-1.
They reached the hill with a three-rack advantage, but a dry Kaci break handed an opportunity to USA, and Styer and Woodward took two racks to close to 4-3. Another European dry break brought the US duo straight back to the table and they gave the crowd the second hill-hill match of the week.
When Styer missed a tough cut on the 1, things looked promising for Europe. Kaci left Kazakis a 3-ball which was straight, but with the cue ball against the side rail on the jaw of the middle pocket. It was the kind of shot you need to make to win Mosconi Cup’s, but what followed was a Kazakis miss which was symptomatic of his struggles at this competition over the last two years, and it meant Europe were 8-5 down. Woodward had the final 9 and before shooting it urged the Mandalay Bay crowd to its feet. To a man, they obeyed, and gave perhaps the week’s loudest raw as the new yellow and black Aramith 9 hit the bottom of the pocket.
“I said to Tyler, anything can happen – they won four in a row, so can we,” said Woodward, who was involved in all three US wins. “MVP would be nice but I don’t care about that as long as we win. I don’t care who is MVP, let’s just get the cash! It is a huge point. We will win the session before and it’s a big confidence booster for Shane coming in now.”
Both captains went strong with their next singles picks, giving the fans what they’d voted for on day two. The Fans’ Choice saw Filler win 5-1 on Tuesday and Europe were desperate for the repeat. In this match, it was America looking for revenge.
Filler, though, was in no mood for a US party. He won the lag and first rack and as he gained position on the 9 in the second, he turned to the home crowd and put his finger to his lips.
It was his performance, though, that would silence the American fans. The German lost control in the next rack but when Van Boening’s 3-ball cut missed the top corner, Filler was straight out of his seat, ran around the table and completed the rack in no time at all.
Van Boening’s next break was dry but Filler missed a 4-ball jump. The South Dakota Kid, though, left an easy 6 in trying to play safe. He’d intended to tie it up with the 9 on the bottom rail, but it didn’t hold and was left invitingly over the pocket. The rack was Filler’s and he was on the hill.
The fifth rack turned out to be the last one of the match and though it wasn’t without drama, it was what happened after the handshake that had America infuriated.
Van Boening left the arena, and Filler turned to his fans. At that moment he spotted his picture, complete with a crown on his head, on the big screen and turned back to the American side of the auditorium, asking ‘Who is the King, who is the King?’ USA Coach Johan Ruijsink urged him back to the European side, where captain Marcus Chamat lifted Filler into his chair to receive the adulation of the travelling support.
“The fans make this event so specially but when I am in the arena there is no time for respect,” said Filler. “I respect Shane as a player and everybody said he is the king but I had to show everybody that I am the King now.
“We were three points behind but now just two, and we are getting closer. The last match is so important for us if we can go to just one point behind. Tomorrow is all singles matches and I see us as having a big advantage in the singles.”
The final match of the night dished up one of the most dramatic finishes to a day’s play the partypoker Mosconi Cup has seen. From 3-0 and
4-2 down, Feijen and Shaw drew level with Thorpe and Bergman and the final rack was huge; 9-6 or 8-7 going into day 3. The break was USA’s and, hooked on the 6, Thorpe played a superb bank to the bottom corner. It was a great shot under pressure, but it left Bergman a tricky 7, which the Illinois man missed. With the 8 already down, Shaw and Feijen just had one ball each remaining and as the Dutchman sealed the point, European celebrations began.
“There was a tonne of pressure,” said Feijen. “I was struggling the first two days and every little thing that goes wrong you get punished severely. We didn’t do a lot wrong but we were down 3-0 so the heat was on right away but we stuck with it, played some really nice shots, quick wins and the crowd were unbelievable.
“This was a monster win. When Billy got hooked at 4-4, he made a tremendous bank but the shape was tough on the 7 and Justin had a lot of pressure on him.”
“It is a big win and we are only one point down now with all singles to play tomorrow. It’s game on,” added Shaw. “Last year we were three down going into the last day and we came back strong. One match changes everything and there is a lot of pressure out there now, so tomorrow the singles will be massive.”
The 2019 partypoker Mosconi Cup concludes on Thursday with a maximum of six singles matches. The first team to 11 will take home the trophy.
The 2019 partypoker Mosconi Cup is partnered by Rasson Billiards who supplies the Official Table; the cloth is supplied by Iwan Simonis and Saluc is the Official Ball Provider. Predator is the Official Cue of the event, Kamui the Official Chalk and Tip and Ultimate Team Gear provide all partypoker Mosconi Cup apparel. CSI is the official sponsor of Team USA and Just Eat sponsor Team EUROPE.
Players from both teams cranked up the war of words ahead of Sunday’s partypoker Mosconi Cup press conference, less than 24 hours before play begins at Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino Convention Center, Las Vegas, live on Sky Sports and DAZN.
The two team captains revealed their line-ups for day one at the press conference, before players from both sides stoked up the heat. It came two days after a fiery ‘Face Off’ between the two captains, in which USA Coach Johan Ruijsink challenged European Captain Marcus Chamat’s wildcard selections.
Chamat, however, responded at Sunday’s press conference and highlighted his record as European Captain since taking the reins in 2015.
“The Face Off was something different,” said Chamat. “I didn’t expect him to speak like this. This is my fifth year as a captain. In the first three years, it was 12 sessions to me, none to USA. Now it is 13 to me, three to USA. That speaks for something. You compare the teams? You cannot compare humans to lions.”
The tournament begins on Monday with five matches. The traditional team match will raise the curtain on the 26th annual partypoker Mosconi Cup. That will be followed by a doubles match which sees Shane Van Boening and Tyler Styer take on Eklent Kaci and Niels Feijen. Styer defeated Feijen in what many believe was a crucial singles win on day one of last year’s Cup, but the Dutchman isn’t reading too much into that.
“Everybody who thinks the win was over-hyped needs to watch the match again,” said Styer.
“He knows who his daddy is,” replied Feijen. “Over the years, the quality and shot making I have seen with this European team is frightening. The shots they go for and they make is intimidating as hell, it is pure quality. With my experience we have a great team.”
Monday’s third match will see Billy Thorpe take on World and US Open Champion Joshua Filler, before Skyler Woodward and Justin Bergman face Alex Kazakis and Jayson Shaw.
The day’s play will conclude with Bergman against Shaw. That means US No.1 Van Boening will only play one doubles and the team match on day one, with Coach Ruijsink perhaps saving him for a big day two.
“Winning last year was probably the best feeling ever,” said Van Boening. “You are trying to win for the team and everybody is depending on me to make that shot. It was the most pressure I have ever felt. We are trying to move forward from last year’s event and bring that into this year’s event.
“Who is their weakest player? I think all of them in my opinion. If we played race to 100, none of them would have a chance. They don’t mean anything to me at all.”
The 2019 partypoker Mosconi Cup will take place at Mandalay Bay Resort, Las Vegas this November 25-28, live on Sky Sports, DAZN and networks around the world. Tickets now sold out.
The 2019 partypoker Mosconi Cup is partnered by Rasson Billiards who supplies the Official Table; the cloth is supplied by Iwan Simonis and Saluc is the Official Ball Provider. Predator is the Official Cue of the event, Kamui the Official Chalk and Tip and Ultimate Team Gear provide all partypoker Mosconi Cup apparel. CSI is the official sponsor of Team USA and Just Eat sponsor Team Europe.
Niels Feijen (JP Parmentier – Matchroom Multi Sport)
Niels Feijen is the final player to join Team EUROPE for this year’s partypoker Mosconi Cup at Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino Convention Center, Las Vegas, this November 25-28, live on Sky Sports and DAZN.
It will be the 14th time the Dutchman has represented his continent at the partypoker Mosconi Cup and he’ll be looking for his ninth trophy lift. Feijen has been named MVP four times, more than any other player, and it’s that combination of experience and talent which saw captain Marcus Chamat hand his final wildcard to the 42-year-old.
“It boiled down to Niels or Albin,” said Chamat. “Both of them have done very well at the Mosconi Cup. If you look throughout the year, Niels has had the better year. Maybe last year, on the first day Niels wasn’t as good as he has always been, but he has four MVPs.
“Our team is very young, and you need that older, experienced player. He not only brings experience, he brings four MVPs to the table at the most pressured event in pool.
“It is always going to be a tough decision, because Europe has a lot of very good players and unfortunately you have to break somebody’s dream. That is part of the job and you have to make these selections. I have to look at how you did throughout the year, how you did in previous Mosconi Cups and how you fit into the team.
“What I really value for a wildcard is what they have done in the team, or in the Mosconi Cup in previous years. It was difficult. You look at a player like David Alcaide; he has done great, and Fedor Gorst has had a really great season but it was really difficult to bring in a rookie when we needed a seasoned player who has played the partypoker Mosconi Cup before.”
The 2019 partypoker Mosconi Cup will take place at Mandalay Bay Resort, Las Vegas this November 25-28, live on Sky Sports and DAZN. Tickets are available now at www.mosconicup.com. Prices start at $48 per day with silver season tickets at $161. Additional gold seating has now been released with day tickets at $70 and a season ticket available for $239.
VIP Platinum packages are available priced $225 per day or $950 for all four days and include a breakfast buffet, unlimited drinks, VIP seating in the front three rows and much more.
The 2019 partypoker Mosconi Cup is partnered by Rasson Billiards who supplies the Official Table; the cloth is supplied by Iwan Simonis and Saluc is the Official Ball Provider. Predator is the Official Cue of the event, Kamui the Official Chalk and Tip and Ultimate Team Gear provide all partypoker Mosconi Cup apparel.
Jayson Shaw (JP Parmentier – Matchroom Multi Sport)
Jayson Shaw has been selected by captain Marcus Chamat as the first Team EUROPE wildcard for this year’s partypoker Mosconi Cup, which will take place at Mandalay Bay Resort, Las Vegas this November 25-28, live on Sky Sports and DAZN.
Former US Open champion Shaw made his Mosconi debut in 2016 and has been ever-present since. The Scotsman is a clear fan favourite and after suffering defeat to USA in London last year, is desperate to reclaim the Cup for Europe.
“It’s feels amazing to be playing my fourth Mosconi,” said Shaw. “I could not thank the captain enough; he’s got trust in me and I’m really thankful of another opportunity.
“Last year was the first defeat I had experienced at the Mosconi and it was a learning curve for all involved. For me, I learnt that USA have become a better team and we have to regroup and come up with a new plan for November.
“Europe will be ready to battle. We have to do what we have done for years; really grind and feed off each other and hope we can get off to a good start and bring that Cup back to Europe. It’s not going be easy but we are ready to win.”
Captain Chamat said: “Jayson is a quality player, especially under the pressure that the partypoker Mosconi Cup brings.
“Jayson is not the typical European; he isn’t quiet like a Ralf, Niels or Albin. He stands out, his personality is a little like mine when I was playing; I always wore my heart on my sleeve. He reminds me a bit of me except I don’t think I played as well as he does!
“He stands out and the team need that kind of mix and his big game. I know a lot of Americans have respect for his game.”
The 2019 partypoker Mosconi Cup will take place at Mandalay Bay Resort, Las Vegas this November 25-28, live on Sky Sports and DAZN. Tickets are available now at www.mosconicup.com. Prices start at $48 per day with silver season tickets at $161. Additional gold seating has now been released with day tickets at $70 and a season ticket available for $239.
VIP Platinum packages are available priced $225 per day or $950 for all four days and include a breakfast buffet, unlimited drinks, VIP seating in the front three rows and much more.
The 2019 partypoker Mosconi Cup is partnered by Rasson Billiards who supplies the Official Table; the cloth is supplied by Iwan Simonis and Saluc is the Official Ball Provider. Predator is the Official Cue of the event, Kamui the Official Chalk and Tip and Ultimate Team Gear provide all partypoker Mosconi Cup apparel.
Eklent Kaci (JP Parmentier – Matchroom Multi Sport)
Eklent Kaci has promised Team EUROPE fans that they will reclaim the partypoker Mosconi Cup from Team USA when they travel to Mandalay Bay Resort, Las Vegas this November 25-28.
Europe’s eight-year winning streak was brought to an end by USA in London last year. Kaci made his Mosconi debut at Alexandra Palace and though he admits that he didn’t play to his best early on, he says he played perfectly once he’d got used to the unique atmosphere of the partypoker Mosconi Cup arena.
The Albanian finished second behind Joshua Filler on this year’s Team Europe rankings to automatically qualify for this year’s team, along with third-placed Alex Kazakis. Captain Marcus Chamat will name his two wildcard picks later this week.
“Playing the partypoker Mosconi Cup is my biggest goal of the year, and it feels great to be back; hard work pays off,” said Kaci.
“Last year was my first Mosconi Cup and if I am honest, I did not play my best. But over the last two days I played perfect. I got used to the arena and played much better. I can’t wait to be back in that arena, and I’m very confident that I’ll show my game out there.
“Europe had won it eight times in a row but last year we lost, and we did feel that a lot, because we are used to winning now.
“I promise to everyone this year that we are going to win. The whole team is well prepared and ready for it. Playing in the partypoker Mosconi Cup is totally different from the other tournaments. It is just an unbelievable feeling. You are not playing just for yourself but also for the team for the fans, it is just amazing.”
The 2019 partypoker Mosconi Cup will take place at Mandalay Bay Resort, Las Vegas this November 25-28, live on Sky Sports and DAZN. Tickets are available now at www.mosconicup.com. Prices start at $48 per day with silver season tickets at $161. Additional gold seating has now been released with day tickets at $70 and a season ticket available for $239.
VIP Platinum packages are available priced $225 per day or $950 for all four days and include a breakfast buffet, unlimited drinks, VIP seating in the front three rows and much more.
The 2019 partypoker Mosconi Cup is partnered by Rasson Billiards who supplies the Official Table; the cloth is supplied by Iwan Simonis and Saluc is the Official Ball Provider. Predator is the Official Cue of the event, Kamui the Official Chalk and Tip and Ultimate Team Gear provide all partypoker Mosconi Cup apparel.
Alexander Kazakis says losing the partypoker Mosconi Cup to Team USA last year was the worst feeling of his career, but that defeat has motivated him to help Europe reclaim the Cup at Mandalay Bay Resort, Las Vegas, this November 25-28.
Kazakis won the weekend’s Klagenfurt Open in Austria and it was in winning his semi-final match against Mats B. Schjetne that he became the third player to qualify for the team, after Joshua Filler and Eklent Kaci. Captain Marcus Chamat’s two wildcard picks will be named later this week.
Kazakis made his partypoker Mosconi Cup debut at Alexandra Palace last year and was in the European chair when Shane Van Boening sealed the winning point for USA. But the Greek star reacted well after a tough week in London, taking the silver medal at the World 9-Ball Championship and finishing runner-up at the World Pool Masters in March.
At the Klagenfurt Open he negotiated a tough road to the final, beating the likes of David Alcaide, Kaci and Fedor Gorst, who was also fighting for the final qualification spot.
“I was working so hard this year to get in the team,” said Kazakis. “It was my number one goal of the year and the feeling to get in, I can’t describe it with words; you just have to see the video how I scream after the match I won to get in the team! I have never screamed like that for any tour I won in my life.
“It was the worst feeling of my career when I lose that final match. I thought I could handle the pressure but I didn't. I had my chances and didn't take them because of the high pressure. You have to take every bad experience and learn from it and get better. That's what I did. I'm so motivated this year that I'm going to play with all my heart.
“We have to stay together in bad and good belief to each other’s game and do our jobs, runout everything!
“To play the Mosconi Cup is the best feeling a pool player can have in his life. The emotions you get when playing in the Mosconi arena; it's from another planet. I cannot wait to get up there!”
The 2019 partypoker Mosconi Cup will take place at Mandalay Bay Resort, Las Vegas this November 25-28, live on Sky Sports and DAZN. Tickets are available now at www.mosconicup.com. Prices start at $48 per day with silver season tickets at $161. Additional gold seating has now been released with day tickets at $70 and a season ticket available for $239.
VIP Platinum packages are available priced $225 per day or $950 for all four days and include a breakfast buffet, unlimited drinks, VIP seating in the front three rows and much more.
The 2019 partypoker Mosconi Cup is partnered by Rasson Billiards who supplies the Official Table; the cloth is supplied by Iwan Simonis and Saluc is the Official Ball Provider. Predator is the Official Cue of the event, Kamui the Official Chalk and Tip and Ultimate Team Gear provide all partypoker Mosconi Cup apparel.
In the round of the last 32 players single elimination of the Dynamic Billard Klagenfurt Open 2019, all remaining three Austrian players have been eliminated,
Albin Ouschan (AUT) was up against young Wiktor Zielinski (POL). The Polish youth player has demonstrated last year when he won the Euro-Tour in Treviso, Italy, how strong he can perform. That also happened tonight. he succeeded in playing his A-game, using his chances and keeping Ouschan always at a distance. After 2:2, Zielinski dominated the match and did not allow Ouschan to get back into it. He made no mistakes while the Austrian struggled and could not find a recipe to break Zielinski’s run. 9:6 was the clear result in favour of Zielinski which leaves a 17th rank finish for Ouschan.
Ouschan’s teammates Mario He and Max Lechner had even worse experiences in the same round. Both of them lost with 1:9. Mario He fell against Eklent Kaci (ALB) while Lechner was overpowered by Ruslan Chinakhov. Having three top class players in the round of the last 32 players with all of them losing more or less clearly is definitely not the result that the Austrian organiser would have wished to see at the end of this day.
Loser’s Round 2
The day started with most matches displaying „business as usual“. Ruslan Chinakhov (RUS) seemed to be back on track and eliminated Adam Stankiewicz (POL) 9:4. Wiktor Zielinski (POL) handed a doughnut to Marco Schmitt (GER) winning his match 9:0. The first small upset was provided by Pierfrancesco Garzia (ITA) when he ousted teammate Fabio Petroni (ITA) surprisingly with 9:5. Another interesting result was Marcus Chamat (SWE), the captain of the European Mosconi Cup Team, winning with 9:5 over Imran Majid (GBR). The next round however brought a huge surprise. Ralf Souquet (GER), multiple World, European and Euro-Tour Champion, was kicked out by Michael Huetter (AUT), local player from Austria. That exit came completely unexpected for Souquet and does also not help him to advance in the rankings. While Souquet was out, other high profile players on the loser’s side such as Tomasz Kaplan (POL), Thorsten Hohmann (GER) and Darren Appleton (GBR) continued their quest through the loser’s rounds.
Loser’s Round 3
The next capital casualties were recorded in loser’s round 3. Thorsten Hohmann fell to the sharp blade of Alex Montpellier (FRA) with 7:9. The same round saw Pijus Labutis (LTU) fall to Nikos Ekonomopoulos (GRE) with 0:9. Francesco Candela (ITA), dark horse from Italy ended Darren Appleton’s journey here at the Dynamic Billard Klagenfurt Open 2019 with an impressive 9:7 victory over the former World Games Gold Medallist.
Loser’s Round 4
This round saw the end of Europe’s Mosconi Cup captain Marcus „Napoleon“ Chamat (SWE) who was defeated by Konstantinos Koukiadakis (GRE) with 9:8. Karol Skowerski (POL) took down „The Terminator“ Niels Feijen (NED) with 9:6 in the same round.
Tomorrow, the Dynamic Billard Klagenfurt Open 2019 will continue at 10:00 CET with matches from the round of the last 16 players single elimination. The final match is scheduled for 18:00 local time.
Every day, up to two matches will be streamed LIVE over the EPBF Facebook page and on the EPBF YouTube channel. Check for updates and announcements.
The Dynamic Billard Klagenfurt Open are played in the Sportpark Klagenfurt Arena in Klagenfurt, Austria, on up to 20 tables which are all streamed LIVE throughout the whole event. In order to be able to follow all the action LIVE, premium membership can be obtained at www.kozoom.com. Once a premium membership is held, all events for the respective period of time can be viewed LIVE. Additionally, a huge video gallery is contained in the website.
The event is hosted by the European Governing Body for Pool, the European Pocket Billiard Federation (EPBF) and organized by International Billiard Promotion (IBP). For further information and reference please go to the federation website www.eurotouronline.com or visit us on Facebook for regular news clips or contact our press office press@epbf.com.
