The first Tier I final in the newly formed Challenge Cup competition was also contested by two long time GB9 players in the form of Stewart Colclough and Damian Massey. With some of the UK’s top amateurs competing in this division, the competition was as hotly contested as people expected.
Colclough started his campaign against GB9 regular and World Snooker referee Martyn Royce, seeing out a comfortable 9-3 victory and leaving him to face Nottingham’s Dave Hopkin in the next round. Colclough found a ruthless streak here to dominate the match, four break and runs helping him whitewash Hopkin 9-0 and into the last 8. A terrific match against Mark Foster is what followed next, with a 9-7 win with a further three break and runs putting Colclough just nine more racks from another Challenge Cup final. Trying to stop him was 8-ball convert Neil Raybone, but his brave efforts proved futile in the end – Colclough wrapped up a 9 racks to 6 victory to put him in the final.
Massey’s opening match went the same way as Colclough’s opener against Royce, with a 9-3 victory over Michael McDonald seeing him through to the last 16 where he was to face Cornishman Robin Cripps. Both players brought their A games to the table, and two veterans of 9-ball in the south of England fought out a match that went all the way, with Massey edging into the quarter finals by 9 racks to 8. There he met Chris Hall, fresh from his victory in the main event, with both looking to continue their winning runs in the Challenge Cup going. Again, it was Massey who dumped the new Midlands Classic champion out of the event with a 9-8 win to set up a semi-final with Shaun Storry. Once again the match went the distance and, once again, it was the Dynamic Billard sponsored Massey whose experience told and saw him through 9-8 and into the final.
Nobody would have been surprised at the final going the distance, but it took 15 racks rather than 17 to decide the outcome. Massey once again held on to take the first Tier I Challenge Cup title of the season by 9 racks to 6.
GB9′s first event ever event in Essex has reached its conclusion with Daryl Peach beating Karl Boyes to win his first GB9 event in over 12 months at the 2013 Southern Masters at London Stansted airport.
This event was the first of its kind in GB9′s six year history, and the somewhat curious location ensured a truly cosmopolitan feel to a national tournament. Participants from Italy, Denmark and Spain all flew over to Great Britain to contest perhaps this season’s most anticipated competition yet. With places in a World Pool Masters qualifier at the conclusion of the event up for grabs, this was sure to be a hotly contested event and the immense quality of pool certainly didn’t disappoint. Peach who was down in tenth position in the rankings for the World Pool Masters qualifying spot prior to the start of play, had already done his maths and worked out that he needed nothing short of winning the main event in order to be in the running, a fact which brought immense pressure on each of his matches and that makes his win quite incredible.
Peach began his route to the final with a smooth 9-5 win against Spain’s Albert Casellas which put him through to a winners qualifying stage match with another Spaniard in the form of Juan Carlos Exposito. He ensured that Spain suffered a second consecutive defeat as a 9-4 win comfortably saw the 2007 World Champion into the last 32. Here he was to meet his first Brit in the form of Tom Staveley. Any complacency was left well and truly at the door as he hammered his compatriot 9-0 to advance to a last 16 match up with Imran Majid. A very high quality encounter followed with four break and runs helping Peach to a 9-7 win and a quarter final with another international figure in the form of Denmark’s Jan Keller. His third international opponent suffered the same fate as his first – 9-5 was the score in favour of Peach, and a semi-final with Dave Nelson awaited him. Special mention must go to Nelson at this point for a quite amazing run of his own to the semi-final. After qualifying for the single knockout last 32 with a comfortable 9-2 win over Martyn Royce, no less than THREE hill-hill encounters followed against Courtney Symons, Tommy Donlon and Kevin Simpson, all of which he managed to win 9 racks to 8 to meet Peach in the semi. His luck was to run out, however, and Peach saw off his Wakefield opponent 9-5 and secure a place in the final.
Boyes began his route to his second consecutive GB9 final in a similar manner to Peach: he defeated a Spaniard, this time round in the form of Hector Luna Iglesias. 9-2 was the scoreline against Iglesias and he went one better against his next opponent, Adam Collins, dispatching him 9-1 and reaching the last 32 stage. Boyes had so far only lost three racks in his first two matches and only lost another three here; he defeated Nathan James 9 racks to 3 and set up a last 16 clash with Sunderland’s Adam Benn Smith. His was a much sterner test, but Boyes saw his north-east opponent off 9-8 to reach the quarter finals. A fellow north-east potter in the form of Michael Rhodes was waiting for him, but with a 9-3 score-line Boyes saw himself into the final four. Fellow professional Mark Gray was sure to put up a stiff test with just one more win required for both to reach their second consecutive GB9 final. A repeat of the Northern Masters final ensured a quality battle ensued but it was Boyes heading to the final showdown with a 9 racks to 6 victory. The final was due to be a hotly contested battle with Peach looking to secure his place in the World Pool Masters qualifier which immediately followed the final and Boyes looking to become the first player since Daryl Peach in 2010 to win back to back main events on the GB 9 Ball Tour. It was Peach who took the spoils, however, with a solid 11-4 win securing his place alongside Boyes in the qualifier and taking home the £1700 winner’s purse.
In the Challenge event it was two more professionals who made their way to the final, with Raj Hundal and Chris Melling both making amends for their last 32 exits in the main event. Hundal made his way to the final with victories over Shaun Chipperfield 7-0, Phil Burford 7-6, Alvaro Canoniga 7-3 and Damian Massey 7-5. Melling joined him with a 7-4 defeat of Craig Osborne, before beating Bruno Muratore 7-2, Arfan Dad 7-3 and Benji Buckley 7-4. With a long journey home ahead of him Melling let Hundal take the title and settled himself with a well-earned runner-up position.
The GB 9 Ball Tour will return for the 2013 ‘Festival of Pool‘ at the end of November, beginning with the last tour event of the season, The GB9 British Grand Prix, followed on 2-3 December by the inaugural GB9 UK 9-Ball Open with a prize fund of £20,000 including £4,000 added. The week will conclude with the Universities Pool Council annual 9-Ball Championships. All three events will take place at the magnificent Park Inn by Radisson hotel, Telford, UK.
We are now taking applications for the new look 2014 GB9 season, entry to 10 events over 5 tour weekends is priced at just £399 for Challenge tour players, so playing on the UK’s official, professional 9-ball pool tour has never been so affordable. Just fill in the application form on our web site.
