Onyx Stinson and Dylon Driver began recording their exploits in the AZBilliard database this past weekend (Sat., April 6). Competing at a stop on the PremierBilliards.com’s Q City 9-Ball Tour, the two finished ‘officially’ as the event winner (Stinson) and runner-up (Driver). In possession of the hot seat at the time they negotiated a split of the top two prizes, Stinson laid claim to his first cash finish and his first regional tour win.
Stinson and Driver allowed their double-hill hot seat match, won by Stinson, to stand as the defining match of the tournament. The $500-added event drew 42 entrants to Action Billiards in Inman, SC.
Stinson’s trip to the hot seat went through Bruce Cheatham 5-2 and Trent Wood 5-3, before he shut out Scott Green and drew Tommy Tran in one of the winners’ side semifinals. Driver, in the meantime, headed in the same direction with victories over Michael Burke 5-2, Dylan Barton 5-3, and Matt Lucas 5-2 to draw Andy Chung in the other winners’ side semifinal.
Driver defeated Chung 5-3 and advanced to the hot seat match, joined by Stinson, who’d sent Tran off to the loss-side races by the same 5-3 score. Stinson and Driver played their double-hill hot seat match, which sent Driver off to the semifinals and, in effect, ended the day for Stinson.
On the loss side, Tran picked up a rematch versus tour veteran (winner) Billy Fowler, whom he’d defeated in the event’s second round. Fowler won four straight on the loss side, including a shutout over Richard Ferguson and a ‘leapfrog’ forfeit over Matt Lucas to face Tran a second time. Chung drew Brian Ervin, who’d also lost to Tran, double hill, in a winners’ side quarterfinal match and then eliminated Steven Ellis 5-3 and, double hill, Scott Green.
Tran defeated Fowler a second time 5-8 (Fowler racing to 10) and advanced to the quarterfinals, where he was met by Ervin, who’d extended his loss-side winning streak with a double-hill victory over Chung.
Ervin took the quarterfinal match 5-2 over Tran to face Driver in what proved to be the event’s final match, the semifinals. Driver shut Ervin out and entered negotiations with Stinson to divvy up the top two prizes, which also gave Stinson his first recorded payout on a regional tour and his first win on a regional, albeit one with a ‘no-final-played’ asterisk.
Tour director Herman Parker thanked Scott and Lisa Green, along with their Action Billiards staff for their hospitality, as well as title sponsor PremierBilliards.com, BarPoolTables.net (Randy Tate), TKO Custom Cues and Realty One Group results (Kirk Overcash), Dirty South Grind Apparel (Angela Harlan-Parker), Federal Savings Bank (Alex Narod), CHC Underground (Chris Clary) and AZBilliards.
The next stop on the PremierBilliards.com’s Q City 9-Ball Tour, scheduled for this coming weekend (April 13-14), will be a $500-added event, hosted by Breaktime Billiards in Winston-Salem, NC.
It was one of those now-frequent battles between a junior competitor and an older opponent. David Strum, who was the Viking Cues’ Q City 9-Ball Tour’s champion eight years ago, has returned to the tables after an intermittent absence and faced 16-year-old junior competitor, Niko Konkel twice, in a winners’ side quarterfinal and the finals of this past weekend’s (Dec. 10-11) tour stop. As Strum was chalking up the victories that gave him the tour’s championship title in 2014, Niko Konkel was eight years old. The high school student won both of their matches to claim title to the event that drew 65 entrants to Gate City Billiards Club in Greensboro, NC.
“It was a great tournament,” said tour director, Herman Parker, “and a lot of junior players did really well.”
“We paid out eight spots,” he went on to say, “and four out of the eights spots went to junior players.”
It should be noted, as well, that two of those four payouts went to the same family, while a third, Bethany Tate (16), was eliminated outside of the ‘money.’ Joey Tate (17) finished in 4th place, while his younger sister, Noelle (13) just made it into the 7th/8th payout slot.
Konkel and Strum met first in a winners’ side quarterfinal that sent Strum to the loss side 6-2. Konkel advanced to face another junior, 13-year-old Jas Makhani, in one of the winners’ side semifinals. Matt Lucas squared off against Runal Bhatt in the other one. Konkel moved on to the hot seat match 6-2 over Makhani and met up with Lucas, who’d defeated Bhatt 6-3. Konkel took the first of their two 6-2 and sat in the hot seat waiting for Strum to return for their rematch.
On the loss side, it was Bhatt picking up Strum, who’d followed his loss to Konkel with a victory over Jacob Blake 6-1 and in another veteran-versus-junior matchup, defeated Noelle Tate 6-1. Makhani had what turned out to be the misfortune of drawing Joey Tate, who’d eliminated Mark Bolton, double hill, and Orlando Marcus 9-3 to reach him.
Strum’s trip back to his rematch versus Konkel was almost derailed at the start when Bhatt battled him to double hill before giving way. Tate, in the meantime, shut out fellow junior competitor, Makhani, and joined Strum in the quarterfinals.
Strum eliminated the last of the Tate family 6-4 in those quarterfinals and then gave up only a single rack to Lucas in the semifinals. Strum would need to defeat Konkel twice to claim the title.
Konkel had already made 2022 his best earnings year of the two he’s recorded thus far by winning the first stop on the Junior International Championships’ series of events in January and placing 5th at both the Q City 9-Ball’s Winter Classic in February and the inaugural Shane Van Boening Junior Open in Las Vegas in October. He added $875 to his 2022 winnings with his first victory on the Viking Cues’ Q City 9-Ball Tour.
Tour director Herman Parker thanked the ownership and staff at Gate City Billiards Club, along with title sponsor Viking Cues, Breaktime Billiards (Winston-Salem, NC), BarPoolTables.net, Dirty South Grind Apparel Co., Realty One Group Results, Diamond Brat, AZBilliards.com, Ridge Back Rails, and Federal Savings Bank Mortgage Division.
This coming weekend will mark the tour’s 10th anniversary, a considerable feat in this come-and-go pool tour environment and while 10 years is not necessarily a long time in the annals of some of the country’s pool tours, it is a milestone that led Parker to articulate his pride in reaching it. The 10th year will conclude with its 10th Annual Bar Box Championships, scheduled for this weekend, Dec. 17-18. The $1,000-added event will be hosted by Rock House in Gastonia, NC.
As this appears on the page, Junior competitor Landon Hollingsworth is either on his way or at Pat Fleming’s International Open in Norfolk, VA to compete in the 18 & Under Boys’ championship event of the 2022 Junior International Championship (JIC) series. As a warm-up to the event this past weekend (Sat., Oct. 29), he travelled to Columbia, SC to compete in a stop on the Viking Cues’ Q City 9-Ball Tour at Overtime Billiards. He went undefeated through the $500-added event that drew 33 entrants and marked his sixth victory on the tour since 2020. It’s his second tour victory of this year (he won the last stop on the tour a month ago), to go along with finishing first in the JIC’s ProAm Division (which earned him a paid entry to Puerto Rico’s 10-Ball Open later this month), the Dynaspheres Cup’s Junior 9-Ball event (20 & Under) and a third place finish in Shane Van Boening’s Junior Open, held in conjunction with Matchroom Sport’s US Open last month.
The clearest sign of his progress since he first came on the scene is not just the visible improvement of his skills. On the Q City 9-Ball Tour (and elsewhere), his ranking, based on the number of games he has to win to complete a match has steadily increased.
“Four years ago,” noted Q City 9-Ball Tour director Herman Parker, “he came into our events as a ‘5.’ He’s a ‘10’ now.”
Hollingsworth and Hunter White (himself, a recently-former junior competitor, also a ‘10’ now) battled twice for this event title; hot seat and finals. Hollingsworth won them both.
They advanced through the field from opposite ends of the bracket with Hollingsworth facing Jason Blackwell in one winners’ side semifinal and White squaring off against Jesse Draper in the other. Hollingsworth fought a double hill battle before advancing to the hot seat match against Jason Blackwell. Hunter gave up only a single rack to Draper. Hollingsworth then gave White a taste of his own ‘winners’ side semifinal’ medicine, allowing him only a single rack to claim the hot seat.
On the loss side, in the first money round, Blackwell picked up Calvin Lee, who’d recently defeated Will Hammer and Josh Miller, both 6-4, which, versus Miller, was double hill. Draper drew Phil Stalls, who’d eliminated Stevie McClinton and Matt Lucas, both 6-3.
Draper advanced with a double hill win over Stalls. Blackwell did not, falling to Lee 6-3. Lee then defeated Draper 6-4 in the quarterfinals.
Lee almost made the semifinals ‘double hill’ interesting, but fell a game short, as Hunter White won 10-4 (Lee racing to 6). The likelihood of White falling to Hollingsworth a second time with only a single rack to show for it was slim. As had happened in the semifinals, the final match came within a game of double hill. Hollingsworth, though, completing what could only be described as good practice for this coming week on his schedule, completed his undefeated run through the field with a 10-8 victory for his sixth Q City 9-Ball Tour win.
Tour director Herman Parker thanked the ownership and staff at Overtime Billiards for their hospitality, as well as title sponsor Viking Cues, Breaktime Billiards (Winston-Salem, NC), BarPoolTables.net, Dirty South Grind Apparel Co., Realty One Group Results, Diamond Brat, AZBilliards.com, Ridge Back Rails, and Federal Savings Bank Mortgage Division. The next stop on the Viking Cues’ Q City 9-Ball Tour, scheduled for this weekend (Nov. 5-6) will be hosted by Janet Atwell’s Borderline Billiards in Bristol, TN.
It’s shaping up as a pretty busy month for junior competitor Landon Hollingsworth. As October moves on and rolls into November, he’ll compete in the Shane Van Boening Junior Open in Atlantic City (Oct.13-15), in the Junior International Championships (JIC) 18 & Under Boys Championship (Nov. 3-5) as part of Pat Fleming’s International Open in Norfolk, VA and a little later in the month, he’ll be competing in Puerto Rico’s 10-Ball Open, the entry to which he earned by being one of the top two competitors in the final rankings of the Junior International Championships’ ProAm division. On his way, sort of, to the first of these events, Landon Hollingsworth stopped off to get a little practice on the regional tour circuit. This past weekend (Oct. 8-9), he went undefeated on the Viking Cues’ Q City 9-Ball Tour, whose $1,000-added event drew 41 entrants to Action Billiards in Inman, SC.
It’s been kind of an up and down year for Hollingsworth, who finished among the top five in 10 events, including victories in the season-opening ProAm division of the JIC, and the Dynaspheres Cup Junior 9-Ball (20 & Under). Though he’s cashed now in four events on the Q City 9-Ball Tour this year, this past weekend marked his first 2022 win.
Hollingsworth and Matt Lucas battled twice for this most recent title. They advanced on their different ends of the bracket to arrive at the winners’ side semifinals, in which Hollingsworth faced Mike Parkins and Lucas squared off against Marc Rochester.
Hollingworth defeated Parkins 9-3, while Lucas was busy sending Rochester west 6-4. Hollingsworth made his intent clear with a shutout over Lucas in the hot seat match.
On the loss side, Parkins picked up Mani Suri, who’d recently survived a double hill battle against Steven Ellis and eliminated Brandon Brock 7-2. Rochester drew Steve Loftis, who, in his previous 11 games, racing to 5, had given up only a single rack; one to Chris Cody and none at all to Junior Gabriel.
In the first money round, in what must have seemed like a sudden deluge of ‘racks against,’ Loftis downed Marc Rochester, allowing him three racks. Parkins, in the meantime, gave up that many as well, downing Suri 6-3.
Loftis took the quarterfinals that followed, chalking up his five, while allowing Parkins (racing to 6) to chalk up five, as well. The ‘racks against’ caught up to him in the semifinals. Matt Lucas, looking for a rematch against Hollingsworth, earned it with a 6-2 victory over Loftis.
Hollingsworth, perhaps thinking about some of the expenses ahead of him in this very busy month, closed the door. He wasn’t able to shut Lucas out this time around, but Hollingsworth gave up only three racks in the final match and claimed his first 2022 Q City 9-Ball Title.
Tour director Herman Parker thanked the ownership and staff at Action Billiards, as well as title sponsor Viking Cues, Breaktime Billiards (Winston-Salem, NC), BarPoolTables.net, Dirty South Grind Apparel Co., Realty One Group Results, Diamond Brat, AZBilliards.com, Ridge Back Rails, and Federal Savings Bank Mortgage Division.
The Viking Cues’ Q City 9-Ball Tour will take off this week and be back in action the following weekend. It will return to Action Billiards, in Inman, SC on the weekend of Oct. 22-23 for a $750-added Scotch Doubles event.
It’s been a good year for Billy Fowler, his best since he entered our database in 2004, when he won a stop on the old Viking Cue 9-Ball Tour. On Saturday, blending into early Sunday this past weekend (Sept. 17), Fowler was in the hot seat, waiting for Antonio Belton to complete a nine-match, loss-side winning streak on the Viking Cues’ Q City 9-Ball Tour. Fowler went on to remain undefeated and claim his first 2022 title and seventh overall on the tour. The $250-added event brought 37 entrants to West End Billiards in Gastonia, NC.
With Belton already at work on the loss side of the bracket, having lost his opening match to Dustin Barkley, Fowler advanced to a winners’ side semifinal versus Kirk Hixon. Zach Martin, in the meantime, squared off against Matt Lucas.
Both matches to determine who’d play for the hot seat went double hill; Fowler over Hixon 10-5 (Hixon racing to 6) and Martin over Lucas 6-5. Fowler dominated the hot seat match 10-3, dispatching Martin to a semifinal versus Belton.
On the loss side, it was Lucas who drew Belton, six matches into his loss-side streak that had just eliminated Jonathan Ailstock and Katie Bischoff, both 5-3 (Bischoff had spoiled Belton’s opportunity for a rematch against Barkley by defeating him 5-3 in the previous round). Hixon picked up David Honeycutt, who’d defeated Trevor Stanley 6-3 and Matt Lowe, double hill, to reach him.
Hixon got back on the winning track with a 6-4 win over Honeycutt, while Belton handed Lucas his second straight loss with a double hill win. Belton then downed Hixon 5-2 in the quarterfinals.
With eight down and at most, three to go (he would have to defeat Fowler twice in a true double elimination final), Belton chalked up loss-side win #9, eliminating Martin 5-4 (Martin racing to 6).
Fowler apparently wanted no part in a drawn out final match (or two). He gave up only a single rack to Belton in the only set necessary to claim the event title.
Tour director Herman Parker thanked the ownership and staff at West End Billiards for their hospitality, along with title sponsor Viking Cues, Breaktime Billiards (Winston-Salem, NC), BarPoolTables.net, Dirty South Grind Apparel Co., Realty One Group Results, Diamond Brat, AZBilliards.com, Ridge Back Rails, and Federal Savings Bank Mortgage Division. The Viking Cues’ Q City 9-Ball Tour will travel to New Bern, NC this coming weekend, Sept. 24-25, for a $250-added event at Mickey Milligan’s.
At 4 a.m. on the Sunday morning of a Labor Day weekend pool tournament, a reduction in pay in exchange for going home immediately can look pretty good. So it was for Daniel Adams, Mark Bolton and Billy Fowler, who arrived at such a decision-making moment on Sunday morning, Sept. 4, at what became the end of a $500-added stop on the Viking Cues’ Q City 9-Ball Tour that drew 36 entrants to the Breaktime Billiards in Winston-Salem, NC. Adams, in the hot seat, became the official winner. Mark Bolton, whom he’d defeated in the hot seat match, moved to the loss side and was to compete against Fowler in the semifinals that didn’t happen.
The negotiated settlement between the players is a private matter. The player who occupied the hot seat at the time becomes the event’s official winner and has officially earned the event’s top cash prize. So, too, with the runner-up and third-place finisher. How they split those three cash amounts up is their business. An even, three-way split would have given each of them a little over $515, although there’s no way of knowing if that was the ‘deal’ they worked out. In any case, the amount that went to Adams turned 2022 into his best recorded earnings year to date. Any amount over $100 would have done it. According to our records, it was Adams’ second 2022 win on the tour, his fourth overall since he chalked up his first win in what, before this past weekend, had been his best earnings year, 2017.
Adams, Bolton and Fowler were three of the four competitors who advanced through the field to compete in the event’s two winners’ side semifinals. Adams faced the fourth, Jamie Bowen, while Bolton and Fowler squared off against each other.
Adams downed Bowen 6-1, as Bolton was working on sending Fowler to the loss side 8-4. In what was, in effect, the title match, Adams defeated Bolton 6-3 to claim the hot seat.
When Bowen and Fowler arrived on the loss side, they competed in what was the first money round and two of the event’s last three matches. Bowen picked up Matt Lucas, who’d eliminated Stevie McLinton and the room owner’s junior-competitor son, Jas Makhani, both 6-1. Fowler drew Josh Heeter, who’d survived two straight double-hill matches to reach him; the first, against Brian Overman (10-5) and the second, against Jayce Little (10-4).
Bowen sent Lucas home 6-3. Heeter followed him out the door (so to speak) at the conclusion of Fowler’s 9-2 victory over him. Fowler won the event’s final match, the quarterfinals, 9-2 over Bowen. The three-way split was negotiated and the combatants retreated to neutral corners to enjoy the remaining two days of their Labor Day weekend.
Tour director Herman Parker thanked Sundeep Makhani and his Breaktime Billiards staff for their hospitality, as well as title sponsor Viking Cues, Breaktime Billiards (Winston-Salem, NC), BarPoolTables.net, Dirty South Grind Apparel Co., Realty One Group Results, Diamond Brat, AZBilliards.com, Ridge Back Rails, and Federal Savings Bank Mortgage Division. The next stop on the Viking Cues’ Q City 9-Ball Tour, scheduled for this weekend (Sept. 10-11), will be a $500-added event, hosted by The Clubhouse in Lynchburg, VA.
In what proved to be his best recorded earnings year at the tables (2021), Mike Gann won a stop on the Viking Cues’ Q City 9-Ball Tour and finished as runner-up to Daniel Autrey in another, both at the same location; Peyton’s Place in Knoxville, TN. He shifted his Tennessee location to Hummy’s Bar (formerly, JAC’s All-American) in Newport, TN this past weekend (Sat., March 26) to chalk up a second win on the tour, taking two out of three versus Adam Pendley to claim the title. The $250-added event drew 31 entrants to Hummy’s Bar.
Gann and Pendley both had to deal with venue owner, Brady Brazell, before facing each other in the finals. Gann picked Brazell up in a winners’ side semifinal, while Pendley was battling another room owner, Josh Newman of West End Billiards in Gastonia, NC, in the other one.
Pendley sent Newman to the loss side 9-7 and was joined in the hot seat match by Gann, who’d defeated Brazell 10-4. Gann and Pendley battled to double hill, before Gann prevailed (10-8) to claim the hot seat.
Brazell and Stiltner locked up in a double hill fight that eventually sent Brazell to the quarterfinals. He was joined by Newman, who’d downed Messer 10-4.
Brazell took the room owner vs. room owner quarterfinals 7-5, and then, it was Adam Pendley’s turn to face him in the semifinals. Pendley ended Brazell’s run 9-3 for a necessary double shot at Gann in the hot seat.
With Gann racing to 10, Pendley took the opening set of the true double elimination final 9-4. In the early hours of Sunday, they repeated the five-point differential in the second set, but it was Gann who came out on top 10-5 to clinch the event title.
Tour director Herman Parker thanked Brady Brazell and his Hummy’s Bar staff for their hospitality, as well as title sponsor Viking Cues, BarPoolTables.net, Break Time Billiards of Winston-Salem, NC, Dirty South Grind Apparel Co., Realty One Group Results, Diamond Brat, AZBilliards.com, Ridge Back Rails, and Federal Savings Bank Mortgage Division. The next stop on the Viking Cues’ Q City 9-Ball Tour, scheduled for this weekend (April 2-3), will be a $500-added event, hosted by the League Room in Parkersburg, WV.
Over the years, we’ve reported on any number of individuals who’ve won their first event on any given or multiple numbers of regional tours. We’ve also reported on competitors who’ve returned from long absences away from the tables and chalked up their first win since however long it may have been, most notably in these last two years. According to Herman Parker, tour director of the Viking Cues’ Q City 9-Ball Tour, Clay Davis’ official* (did not complete finals) win on last weekend’s (Feb. 26-27) tour stop marked his first win in almost eight years, predating the tour’s reporting to us about their events. He’d been competing all along, with his cash payouts on the tour being reported to us as far back as 2016. Ten of them altogether, but no tour wins.
“He’s the player who’s gone the longest time between wins on our tour,” said Parker.
Davis and Paul Johnson met only that once, in the first set of the tournament’s true double elimination finals. The $500-added event drew a hefty 62 entrants to Rock House Billiards in Gastonia, NC.
They were both a part of the two winners’ side semifinals. As Davis was battling Trent Talbert to double hill before prevailing, Johnson was being outdone by Rory Dover 6-3. Davis claimed the hot seat over Dover in a shutout.
On the loss side, Johnson picked up Runal Bhatt, who’d defeated Zach Martin 7-2 and Matt Lucas 7-4 to reach him. Talbert drew Cole Lewis, who’d recently eliminated Hunter White 8-5 (White racing to 10) and Andrew “Tiger” Carlisle 8-3.
Johnson downed Bhatt 6-5 (Bhatt racing to 7), as Lewis was busy shutting out Talbert. Johnson eliminated Lewis 6-4 in the quarterfinals that followed.
The semifinal between Dover and Johnson was a straight-up, race-to-6 rematch of their winners’ side semifinal. This time, they battled to double hill, before Johnson finished it, in what was probably an unwitting attempt to face and prevent Davis from chalking up that first tour win in eight years.
Johnson continued that attempt in the opening set of the true double elimination final. With one ‘bead on the wire’ in a race to 7, Johnson won that first set 6-2, at which point, the two of them negotiated a split. As the occupant of the hot seat at the time, Davis claimed the official event title, chalking up that first (albeit, with an asterisk) title in eight years.
Tour director Parker thanked the ownership and staff at Rock House Grill and Billiards, as well as title sponsor Viking Cues, BarPoolTables.net, Break Time Billiards of Winston-Salem, NC, Dirty South Grind Apparel Co., Realty One Group Results, Diamond Brat, AZBilliards.com, Ridge Back Rails, and Federal Savings Bank Mortgage Division. The next stop on the Viking Cues’ Q City 9-Ball Tour, scheduled for this weekend (March 5-6), will be a $500-added event, hosted by The Clubhouse in Lynchburg, VA.
Brian Francis was looking for his first major win on a regional tour. Matt Lucas was looking for his first win on the tour since before the time that the tour began reporting results to AZBilliards, approximately nine years ago. They both found what they were looking for. Sort of.
This past weekend (Nov. 13-14), they both signed on to compete at a stop on the Viking Cues’ Q City 9-Ball Tour and both were to appear in a final match. They opted out, leaving Lucas, the undefeated hot seat occupant at the time, as the event’s official winner, while Francis settled for his second shared-win since he did so with Mackie Lowery, a little over three years ago at a stop in Hickory, NC. This past weekend’s $500-added event drew 51 entrants to Breaktime Billiards in Winston-Salem, NC.
Their first meetup, battling for the hot seat, followed Lucas’ double hill victory over Mike Tutt and Francis’ 6-4 win over Don Lilly. In what would prove to be the deciding match between them, Lucas claimed the hot seat 5-3.
On the loss side, Tutt drew David Strum, who’d defeated Orlando Marcus and Thomas Sansone, both 6-4, to reach him. Lilly picked up Montez Lloyd, who’d recently eliminated Jason Rogers 6-5 (Rogers racing to 8) and Dale Lloyd 6-2.
Lilly got by Montez Lloyd 7-3. He was joined in the quarterfinals by Strum, who’d defeated Tutt 6-1. Lilly and Strum then battled to double hill in those quarterfinals, before Lilly ended it.
Even without the handicap, which gave Brian Francis a single ‘bead on the wire’ at the start of his semifinal race-to-7 match against Lilly, Francis would have won. That 6-2 win over Lilly gave Francis a second shot against Lucas in the hot seat, which, by mutual agreement, he did not take.
Tour director Herman Parker thanked the ownership and staff at Breaktime Billiards, as well as title sponsor Viking Cues, BarPoolTables.net, Dirty South Grind Apparel Co., Realty One Group Results, Diamond Brat, AZBilliards.com, and Federal Savings Bank Mortgage Division. The next stop on the Viking Cues’ Q City 9-Ball Tour, scheduled for this weekend (Nov. 20-21), will be hosted by Gate City Billiards in Greensboro, NC.
Since he began 2020 with a 5th/6th place finish (tied with John Gabriel) behind Sky Woodward, Dennis Orcollo, Jeffrey DeLuna and Josh Roberts at the Music City Classic’s Open event in January, BJ Ussery has been on a roll, albeit one that’s stumbled a bit thanks to the pandemic. Though he would finish as runner-up in a Viking Cues’ Q City 9-Ball event in early February, winning the opening set of a true double elimination final to Billy Walker, but dropping the title-winning second set, Ussery went on to win his next three; the VA State 10-Ball Championships, and two stops on the Viking Cues’ Q City 9-Ball Tour, including last week’s (June 13-14) 1st Annual Brian James Memorial. He made it four in a row with a second straight ‘asterisk’ victory this past weekend (June 20-21). Ussery and Mike Bumgarner (who’d won the June 6-7 stop on the tour at the same location) opted out of a final match and split the top two prizes. As the undefeated occupant of the hot seat, Ussery claimed the official win. The event drew 39 entrants to Randolph’s Billiards in Hickory, NC.
Their first and only encounter, battling for the hot seat, followed a 7-1 victory for Bumgarner over Sammy Manley and a 12-5 win for Ussery versus Graham Swinson. Ussery took what proved to be the title match 12-2 over Bumgarner and sat in the hot seat.
In the first money round, battling for 5th/6th, Manley and Swinson got right back to work and advanced to the quarterfinals; Manley, with a double hill win (5-6) over Harrell and Swinson 7-3 over Zayas. Swinson then downed Manley 7-2 in those quarterfinals.
In what was the final match of the day on Sunday (an Open event, which was scheduled for Sunday, did not materialize), Bumgarner foiled Swinson’s hope for a rematch against Ussery with a 7-5 victory in the semifinals. Ussery and Bumgarner negotiated their split of the top two prizes, with Ussery claiming the official event title.
Tour directors Herman and Angela Parker thanked the ownership and staff at Randolph Billiards, as well as title sponsor Viking Cues, Bar Pool Tables, Delta 13 Racks, AZBilliards, and Tickler Pool Ball Washing Machine, Skyline Construction, Federal Savings Bank Mortgage Division and Dirty South Grind Apparel Co. The next stop on the Viking Cues’ Q City 9-Ball Tour, scheduled for this weekend (June 27-28) will be hosted by Pal’s Billiards in Piedmont, SC.
Onyx Stinson and Dylon Driver began recording their exploits in the AZBilliard database this past weekend (Sat., April 6). Competing at a stop on the PremierBilliards.com’s Q City 9-Ball Tour, the two finished ‘officially’ as the event winner (Stinson) and runner-up (Driver). In possession of the hot seat at the time they negotiated a split of the top two prizes, Stinson laid claim to his first cash finish and his first regional tour win.
