After having their 2016 Tour Championship tournament canceled when ice and snow, in a declared 'state of emergency,' descended upon Raleigh, NC in the first full weekend of 2017, the Viking Cues' Q City 9-Ball Tour had to start their 2017 season before they officially closed the books (with the Tour Championship) on 2016. So it was that on Saturday, January 14, 39 entrants showed up at The Clubhouse in Lynchburg, VA to launch the tour's 2017 season. Greg Taylor and Travis Guerra played three times to determine the event's winner. Taylor, a former VA State Bar Table 8-Ball champion (2014), who's been away from the tables for a couple of years, came back from a loss in the hot seat match to double dip Guerra in the finals, and win his first Viking Cues' Q City 9-Ball event.

 

With some history at the table(s), Taylor entered the tournament with a relatively high handicap (racing to 8), while Guerra was racing to 5. Taylor sent Stevie McClinton to the loss side 8-4 in one winners' side semifinal, as Guerra was busy sending Keith Arnold over 5-1. The handicap worked to Guerra's advantage in the hot seat match, as he claimed it 5-5 over Taylor.

 

On the loss side, there was some scrambling going on for advancement in the 9/12 matches, three of which went double hill. Among those advancing from that point was Aaron McClure, who, after being defeated by Guerra in a winners' side quarterfinal, went on a four-match, loss-side streak that took him to within one match of earning a re-match against Guerra. McClure downed Mike McPherson, double hill, and then Mike Hagood 6-3 to pick up McClinton. Arnold drew Zach Hampton, who'd eliminated Barry Lacy 9-4, and Brandon Lowe, double hill.

 

McClure and Hampton handed McClinton and Arnold their second straight loss; McClure 6-1 over McClinton, and Hampton 9-4 over Arnold. McClure took the resultant quarterfinal match over Hampton 6-3 (Hampton racing to 9), and turned to face the last obstacle to a hoped-for rematch against Guerra, Greg Taylor, in the semifinals.

 

Taylor ended McClure's loss-side run to earn his own rematch against Guerra. And took full advantage. Taylor won the double elimination opener 8-2, and then won the second match 8-3 to claim the event title. 

 

Tour director Herman Parker thanked Chris England and his staff at The Clubhouse for their hospitality, as well as title sponsor Viking Cues, Delta 13 Racks, Ruthless Billiards, GoPlayPool.com, AZBilliards and Professor Q Ball. The formerly cancelled, $1,000-added 2016 Tour Championships, which, according to Parker, has already confirmed 70 entrants, will be held on the weekend of January 21-22 at Brass Tap in Raleigh.

Shaun Wilkie picked up his second straight 2014 win on the Action Pool Tour, with a come-from-the-loss side performance on the weekend of March 8-9. Sent to the losers' bracket in the second round of play by Mike Hagood, Wilkie won seven on the loss side and came back to defeat Hagood in the finals. The Bar Box Bash at Clubhouse Billiards in Lynchburg, VA drew 32 entrants.

 

With Wilkie out of the way, at least temporarily, Hagood moved on to survive a double hill match versus Doug Carter, and then, in a winners' side semifinal, shut out James Bilderback.  In the hot seat match, Hagood faced Jeremy Perkins, who'd just sent Steve Fleming west 6-4. Hagood and Perkins battled to double hill, before Hagood prevailed to sit in the hot seat, waiting on the fateful return of Wilkie.

 

Through seven, race-to-5 matches and 43 games on the loss side, Wilkie gave up a total of only eight racks. He gave up one each to his first and second loss-side opponents (Neel Samanta and Jason Trigo) before allowing Collin Hall to chalk up three against him. He then shut out two in a row; Jason Clay and then, coming over from the winners' side semifinal, James Bilderback. 

 

Steve Fleming, in the meantime, drew Matthew Siple, who'd gotten by Doug Carter 5-2 and Raymond Walters 5-4. Like Wilkie had done with Bilderback, Fleming shut out Siple. Wilkie then eliminated Fleming 5-2 in the quarterfinals, and gave up only one rack defeating Perkins in the semifinals. Wilkie had earned his re-match against Hagood in the finals. 

 

When they'd met in the second round, Hagood had prevailed 6-4, thus chalking up more racks against Wilkie than any other single opponent all weekend and more than Wilkie's first five loss-side opponents combined. He wasn't as fortunate the second time around. Wilkie came out fast in the finals, chalking up the last of six matches in which he'd given up a rack or less, and claiming the event title 8-1.