In what shaped up to be only his second cash finish on the Viking Cues’ Q City 9-Ball Tour, Reid Vance, in agreement with BJ Ussery, opted out of a final match at the February 22-23 stop on the tour. It was Vance’s second finish as runner-up, having finished behind Ricky Bingham at a stop in September, 2018. Vance had gotten into the hot seat at that event, only to be double-dipped by Bingham in the true double elimination final. This time, around, at the same location – Borderline Billiards in Bristol, TN – it was BJ Ussery in the hot seat, with Vance coming from the loss side to challenge and ultimately, to negotiate an equitable split of the top two cash prizes. The event drew 68 entrants to Borderline Billiards.
They might have met in the hot seat match, had Joe Edmisten not defeated Vance in one of the winners’ side semifinals 5-4 (Vance racing to 6). Edmisten went on to face Ussery, who’d sent Hank Powell west 12-4 in the other winners’ side semifinal. Ussery and Edmisten fought to double hill (11-4) before Ussery prevailed in what proved to be his last match.
On the loss side, Vance began his three-match trip back to the finals against Anthony Mabe, who’d defeated Tyler Mayfield 7-3 and Jaiden Hess 7-1 to reach him. Hank Powell picked up a rematch against a former junior player, Anthony Adams, whom he’d defeated in the event’s second round. Adams embarked on a nine-match, loss side winning streak that had most recently included victories over Matt Shaw 6-3 and Brandon Helton 6-1.
Vance got into the quarterfinals with a 6-4 win over Mabe. He was joined by Adams, who’d battled in his Powell rematch to double hill before advancing to take on Vance. Though Adams would battle Vance to double hill as well in those quarterfinals, Vance prevailed in the end.
Vance made short work of Edmisten in the semifinals that followed. Vance’s 6-1 victory assured him at minimum, another runner-up finish on the tour. The agreement with Ussery to split made it official. As the undefeated occupant of the hot seat, Ussery claimed the official title.
Tour directors Herman and Angela Parker thanked Janet Atwell and her staff at Borderline Billiards, as well as title sponsor Viking Cues, Bar Pool Tables, Delta 13 Racks, AZ Billiards and Tickler Pool Ball Washing Machine. The next stop on the tour, scheduled for March 1-2, will be the 2020 NC State 9-Ball Open, a $500-added event, hosted by Randolph’s Billiards in Hickory, NC.
At his only other event victory on the 2019 Viking Cues’ Q City 9-Ball Tour (May 11-12), Billy Fowler faced Brian Bagwell three times, taking two out of the three to capture the event title. At the annual Tour Championships, the season finale of the tour’s 2019 season on the weekend of December 21-22, Fowler and Bagwell repeated that scene, with a minor alteration or two. In May, it was Fowler who grabbed the hot seat, and though Bagwell took the opening set of the true double elimination final, Fowler took the second set and claimed that title. On this most recent, just-before-Christmas weekend, it was Bagwell who claimed the hot seat, with Fowler winning his two, back to back, in the true double elimination final to grab the Tour Championship title. The $1,000-added event drew 63 entrants to Break and Run Billiards in Chesnee, SC.
They’d both gotten by their individual opponents in the winners’ side semifinals; Fowler 9-2 over Gary South and Bagwell over Ricky Baughman 7-4. Bagwell took the first of their three 7-6 (Fowler racing to 9) to claim the hot seat.
On the loss side, Baughman and South got right back into things with victories over their first opponents. Baughman faced Kelly Piercy, who’d been defeated by the tour’s Point Standings leader, BJ Ussery, in the opening round of play and then mounted a nine-match, loss-side winning streak that had most recently included victories over Tyler Mayfield 5-4 (Mayfield racing to 6) and a successful rematch against Ussery, which he won 5-8 (Ussery racing to 11). South drew Anthony Mabe, who’d eliminated Landon Hollingsworth 7-3 and Joe Upchurch 7-4.
Boughman ended Piercy’s nine-match streak 7-3 and in the quarterfinals, faced South who’d ended Mabe’s 2019 tour season 7-5. Baughman inched a match closer to a potential shot at the finals with a double hill win over South in those quarterfinals.
Fowler put an end to Baughman’s thoughts of a spot in the finals. Fowler, as anxious as Boughman to face Bagwell, got his second shot at Bagwell with a 9-2 win in the semifinals.
Fowler took the opening set of the double elimination final 9-3. Bagwell chalked up two more racks in the second set, but Fowler chalked up his nine to claim the Tour Championship title.
Tour directors Herman and Angela Parker thanked the ownership and staff at Break and Run Billiards, as well as title sponsor Viking Cues, Bar Pool Tables, Delta 13 Racks, AZ Billiards and Professor Q-Ball. The season opener of the 2020 Viking Cues’ Q City 9-Ball Tour will be held on the weekend of January 4-5 at a site to be determined.
It is, for those keeping score, the exact same headline (with a name changed to reflect the difference) that was used to describe Raed Shabib’s last win on the Viking Cues’ Q City 9-Ball Tour in September, 2017. On the weekend of December 15-16 in 2018, Shabib, once again, navigated his way through a field of entrants to get into the hot seat, was defeated in the first set of a double elimination final, and came back to win the second set to claim the event title. The occasion this time was the annual Viking Cues’ Q City 9-Ball Invitational Tour Championships. The $1,000-added event drew 87 entrants to Borderline Billiards in Bristol, TN.
This victory took a little longer, given the 3-times-plus-a-little number of entrants that were on hand at Borderline Billiards. In the time it took Shabib to get about halfway through this one, he’d already won the 2017 event. Shabib worked his way through the field to arrive at a winners’ side semifinal match against Brian James. Lee O’Neal, in the meantime, met up with Brandon Stiltner.
Shabib downed James 8-3, as O’Neal was sending Stiltner west 5-4 (Stiltner racing to 6). Shabib then claimed the hot seat 8-4 over O’Neal and waited on his return.
On the loss side, Stiltner picked up Jason Potts, who’d recently defeated Matt Shaw 7-3 and Stevie Thomas 7-1. James drew Tyler Mayfield, who’d eliminated Stevie McClinton, double hill and Mike Clevinger 6-4. Potts defeated Stiltner 7-4 and in the quarterfinals, faced James, who’d sent Mayfield home 6-4.
James advanced another step, defeating Potts 6-4 in those quarterfinals, before O’Neal downed him in the semifinals 5-4 (James racing to 6). With Shabib racing to 8, O’Neal took the opening set of the true double elimination final 5-4. Shabib came back in the second set and allowed O’Neal only a single rack to claim the event title.
Tour directors Herman and Angela Parker thanked Janet Atwell and her Borderline Billiards staff for their hospitality, as well as title sponsor Viking Cues, Bar Pool Tables, Delta 13 Racks, AZ Billiards and Professor Q-Ball. The first stop on the 2019 Viking Cues’ Q City 9-Ball Tour will precede the New Year by nine days. Scheduled for this weekend, December 22-23, the $500-added event ($1,000, with 50 or more entrants) will be hosted by The Steakhorse Restaurant & Billiards in Spartanburg, SC.
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.
You’d have thought, given a 9-2 score in the hot seat match, that the finals between Jeff Jordan and Michael Chapman might have been a single, one-sided match. The occasion was a stop on the Viking Cues’ Q City 9-Ball Tour on the weekend of November 25-26; a $500-added event that drew 27 entrants to Cue Time in Spartanburg, SC. Jordan claimed the hot seat, and while Chapman came back from a win in the semifinals and took the opening set of the true double elimination finals, Jordan won the second set to claim the title. All of the event’s final three matches went double hill.
They got into their first of three after Jordan had sent Chad Vinesett to the loss side 9-2 in one winners’ side semifinal, and Chapman had defeated Justin Clark 7-3 in the other one. Jordan chalked up the aforementioned 9-2 win to claim the hot seat, and waited for Chapman to get back and engage him in a grueling, two-set final.
On the loss side, Vinesett picked up Tyler Mayfield, who’d recently defeated Dalton Messer 7-4 and Matt Lucas 7-5 to reach him. Clark drew Jennifer Polik, who’d gotten by Josh Crow 5-1 and Brian Pyle, double hill.
Mayfield and Clark advanced to the quarterfinals; Mayfield 7-4 over Vinesett and Clark 7-2 over Polik. Clark took the quarterfinal match 7-4 over Mayfield, and then engaged Chapman in his first of three double hill matches. Chapman won the first one, over Clark, to earn himself a second and third shot against Jordan in the hot seat.
With Jordan racing to 9, and Chapman racing to 7, Chapman took the first set of the finals 7-8, which forced a second set. It went double hill a third time for Chapman, but Jordan won it to claim the event title.
Tour directors Herman and Angela Parker thanked the ownership and staff at Cue Time for their hospitality, as well as title sponsor Viking Cues, Delta 13 Racks, AZBilliards and Professor Q Ball. The next stop on the Viking Cues’ Q City 9-Ball Tour, scheduled for this weekend (December 2-3), will be hosted by Gate City Billiards Club in Greensboro, NC.
Tyler Mayfield, whose last recorded tour win was his first on the Great Southern Billiard Tour, three years ago, chalked up his first win on the Viking Cues' Q City 9-Ball Tour on the weekend of May 20-21. On both occasions, he claimed the title by coming from the loss side to double dip the hot seat occupant. Three years ago, he won five on the loss side. In this most recent event, he won three to get himself into the finals against Bo Blakely. The event drew 49 entrants to the Gate City Billiard Club in Greensboro, NC.
Mayfield advanced to a winners' side semifinal against Travis Guerra. Blakely and Josh Padron (2016's Q City tour champion) squared off in the other one. Both matches went double hill, with Blakely and Guerra advancing to the hot seat match. In a straight-up race to 5, Blakely claimed the hot seat 5-3.
On the loss side, Mayfield began his trek back to the finals against James Blackburn, who'd defeated Cody Jones 9-2 and shut out Jeff Young to reach him. Padron drew a 'young gun,' 17-year-old Hunter White, who'd eliminated Jerry Varnado 8-4 and Josh Williams 8-3. White downed Padron 8-4, as Mayfield got by Blackburn 6-3.
Mayfield took the quarterfinal match against White 6-2, and then, locked up in a second double hill rematch fight against Guerra in the semifinals. Mayfield dropped the last ball in the 10th game to win it 6-4.
Mayfield took the first set of the double elimination final over Blakely 6-3. He completed his run with a 6-2 win in the second set to claim the event title.
Tour director Herman Parker thanked the ownership and staff at Gate City Billiards Club, as well as title sponsor Viking Cues, Delta 13 Racks, AZBilliards and Professor Q Ball. The next stop on the Viking Cues' Q City 9-Ball Tour, scheduled for May 27-28, will be hosted by Janet Atwell's Borderline Billiards in Bristol, TN.
They played against each other only once. Josh Williams was in the hot seat at the January 28 stop on the Viking Cues' Q City 9-Ball Tour, and Rocky Hawks came from the three wins on the loss side to meet him in the finals. Hawks took the double elimination opening set before they both decided to call it a 'one-loss draw' and split the top two prizes. The event drew 31 entrants to Gate City Billiards in Greensboro, NC.
They missed an earlier meeting, when Travis Duncan defeated Hawks in a double hill (4-6, Hawks racing to 7), winners' side semifinal, moving Duncan into the hot seat match against Williams, who'd just defeated Morgan Sutherland 5-3. Williams claimed the hot seat (and what proved to be his last win) 5-1 over Duncan.
On the loss side, Hawkes began his trip back to the finals with a 7-1 victory over Tim Nelson, who'd previously shut out Michael Fogelman and survived a double hill battle against Tyler Mayfield to reach him. Sutherland drew Bo Blakely, who'd gotten by Travis Guerra, double hill, and Randall Bowman 5-3. Sutherland eliminated Blakely 5-3 to join Hawks in the quarterfinals.
Hawks then defeated Sutherland 7-3 to earn his re-match against Duncan in the semifinals. Hawks balanced the earlier, double hill defeat, with a sound 7-2 win over Duncan that gave him a shot against Williams.
Hawks took the opening set of the double elimination final 7-4, and that, as they say, was all she wrote. They opted out of a second, deciding match, choosing to lower the potential winners' prize ($550) by $100 and raising the potential losers' prize ($350) by the same amount; they split the $900.
Tour director Herman Parker thanked the ownership of Gate City Billiards and staff for their hospitality as well as title sponsor Viking Cues, Delta 13 Racks, Ruthless Billiards, GoPlayPool.com, AZBilliards and Professor Q Ball. The next stop on the Viking Cues' Q City 9-Ball Tour, scheduled for the weekend of February 4-5, will be hosted by Randolph's in Hickory, NC.
Tyler Mayfield came back from a loss in the winners' side quarterfinals of the June 14-15 stop on the Great Southern Billiard Tour, to meet and twice defeat hot seat occupant, Wendell Thompkins. It was Mayfield's first win on the tour. The $750-added event drew 28 entrants to Shore Thing Billiards in Myrtle Beach, SC.
It was Mike Slaughter who sent Mayfield west 7-3, during the winners' side quarterfinals. Slaughter moved on to face David Small, as Thompkins met up with Dan Woods. Slaughter sent Small over to follow Mayfield 7-4, as Thompkins downed Woods 9-2. Thompkins shut Slaughter out in the hot seat match, little knowing that the shutout would be his last win.
Mayfield opened his loss-side campaign with a 6-5 win over B.J. Hucks, and followed it with a 6-3 win over Mitchell Floyd, which set him up to face Woods. Small picked up Mickey Hucks, who'd gotten by Matt Collins 6-5 and Joey Stevens 6-2 (prior to being eliminated himself, Stevens had eliminated his wife, Kathy, 5-2).
Mayfield and Hucks handed Small and Woods their second-straight loss; Mayfield, 6-1 over Woods and Hucks, 6-5 over Small. Mayfield downed Hucks 6-3 in the quarterfinals, earning himself a re-match against Slaughter in the semifinals. He exacted his revenge 6-4 and then defeated Thompkins twice in the double elimination final – 6-5 and 6-6 – to claim his first GSBT title.
It was two Double-A battles between B.J. Ussery and Sam Monday on the Great Southern Billiard Tour’s August 13-14 stop in Raleigh, NC, and it was two victories for Ussery, as he completed an undefeated weekend. The $1,500-added event drew 58 entrants to Brown’s Billiards in Raleigh.
Ussery got into the hot seat match with a commanding 7-1 victory over Mike Fuller, as Monday was sending Norris Brady to the west bracket 11-6. In their first of two, battling for the hot seat, Ussery and Monday fought back and forth to double hill before Ussery prevailed, and waited in the hot seat for the re-match.
Fuller and Crawford got their re-match in the quarterfinals, after Fuller had downed Cook 11-4 and Crawford had squeaked by Brady 9-8. Crawford wreaked his vengeance on Fuller with a second squeaker, a 9-10 victory (Fuller going to 11). Crawford’s four-match winning streak came to an end in the semifinals, at the hands of Monday who, after an 11-8 victory, went on to his own re-match against Ussery.
In a straight-up race to 11, Ussery took the opening set of the true double elimination final against Monday 11-8 to complete his undefeated weekend. It was Ussery’s first win on the GSBT in his second 2011 appearance (he’d finished second in March at Speak Eazy Billiards in Sanford, NC). This most recent victory marked the 10th time since January that Ussery has finished either first or second on either the GSBT or the Jacoby Custom Cue Carolina Tour.
Though not included in site payouts registering dollar amounts, Chris Vollmar, Larry Faulk, Ronny Park, and Ray Floyd received free entries for their 9th place finish. Tour director Shannon Daulton thanked David Huffman and his staff at Brown’s Billiards, as well as sponsors Andy Gilbert Custom Cues, Nick Varner Cues and Cases, Mike Davis Exterminating, Tiger Products, and Delta-13 Racks.
