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December 2017

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January STROKE 2018 Pool Magazine We recognize the players achievements, accomplishments and championships!

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FEATURE ARTICLES

16 World 9-Ball Results 18-23 Mosconi Cup 24 Captain’s Christmas 26-31 Year in Review COLUMNISTS

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Stroke is a monthly publication, dedicated to the advancement of the sport of pool. The opinions expressed are those of the author or advertiser and do not necessarily reflect the views of On The Break News or its staff. We reserve the right to edit or reject any material submitted for publication. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may Publisher be reproduced.

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January 2018

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New Years Eve at Bison Billiards

Bison Billiards in Williamsville, NY ushered in the new year with 16 shooters playing in an 8-Ball Bar Box single elimination tournament with a total purse of $670 cash. There was also a good turnout for our New Yearâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Eve Party with lots of good food, good friends and a pool tournament. It doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t greet much better than this. Next week will be the monthly 8-Ball Bar Box double elimination race to three tournament. Results 1st $125/$300 Jay Reed 2nd $60/$143 Shane Enderby 3/4th $20 each Derek Bauer, Nick Cappola OnTheBreakNews.com

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January 2018

Rhys Chen Goes Undefeated to Become 2017 Predator Pro Am Tour Champion

L-R Main Event Winners: Rhys Chen (1st), Brendan Traynor (3rd),Xavier Romero (2nd) and Jerry Almodovar (4th)

Rhys Chen and Xavier Romero battled twice in their effort to claim the 2017 Predator Pro Am Championship title. Held on the weekend of December 2-3, the $10,500-added Championship drew 89 entrants to the invitational event, hosted by Raxx Billiards in West Hempstead, NY. Chen won both battles to claim the event title. Two, $250-added Second Chance events for the lower and upper brackets (higher and lower-ranked players) were added to the proceedings, as well as a Third Chance event. All three entailed a double hill final. Jimmy Acosta took the 10-entrant, upper bracket Second Chance over Gene Hunt, while Danny Recinos downed Erik Carrasco to take the lower bracket prize. Acosta also won the Third Chance event, defeating Stephen Motilal in the finals. In the main event, Chen (an A player) advanced to a winners’ side semifinal against Annie Flores (B+ winner of the tour’s season finale last week), while Romero (B) faced Andrew Cleary, who was one of two C+ players among the event’s final 12. Chen downed Flores 7-2, while Romero sent Cleary to the loss side 7-3 (scores take handicap differentials into account). Chen claimed the hot seat 7-3 over Romero and waited for him to get back from what would prove to be a tricky semifinal against Brendan Traynor (A++). Traynor was on the loss side, in the midst of a six-

January 2018

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match run that began when Duc Lam had defeated him in the third round. He got by Eddie Kunz 8-5 and Mike Panzarella 7-4 (wins #2 and #3) to draw Flores. Cleary picked up Jay Almodovar, who’d gotten by Jose Kuilan 7-3 and Abel Rosario, double hill, to reach him. Traynor and Almodovar advanced to the quarterfinals; Almodovar 7-3 over Cleary, and Traynor in a double hill win over Flores. Traynor advanced one more step with a 10-7 win over Almodovar, and then locked up in a semifinal, double hill fight against Romero, which eventually ended his loss-side streak. Romero stepped right into a second, double hill match in the finals against Chen, which opened with Romero taking an early lead. Chen rallied and chalked up the racks he needed to complete his undefeated run and claim the 2017 Predator Pro Am Tour Championship title. In addition to the crowning of its Tour Champion, tour director Tony Robles announced Player of the Year awards in nine separate divisions, from A++ to D/D+ and a Female class. Amy Yu claimed the Female class award (with Suzzie Wong as runner-up), while Annie Flores took home the B+ Player of the Year Award. At the top of the rankings, Mike Salerno took home the A++ title, with Rob Pole as runner-up. Elvis Rodriguez won the A title, with Lidio Ramirez in

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second place. Max Watanabe was the A winner ahead of Brooke Meyer, while Dave Shlemperis was runnerup to Flores in the B+ division. Abel Rosario was the tour’s B-class Player of the Year, ahead of Eugene Ok. Ambi Estevez took home the C+ class award, with Tony Ignomirello as runner-up. Dave Callaghan won the C-class award, ahead of Matthias Gutzmann, while Juan Melendez claimed the D/D+ award in front of Carmine Andujar. Tour director Tony Robles thanked the ownership and staff at Raxx Billiards for hosting the final event of the Predator Pro Am Tour’s 2017 season. He extended best holiday wishes to all of the players, room owners, and tour fans, as well as all tour sponsors; Predator Cues, Ozone Billiards,PlayNAPL.com, The DeVito Team, PoolontheNet.com, Capelle Billiards Press, AZBilliards, Billiards Digest and Pool & Billiard Magazine. Article and photos courtesy of: Tony Robles - Predator Pro Am Tour

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L-R 2nd Chance Upper: Gene Hunt (2nd) and Jimmy Acosta (1st)

$7000 Rhys Chen $4000 Xavier Romero $2000 Brendan Traynor $1000 Jerry Almodovar $500 Andrew Cleary $500 Annie Flores $300 Mike Panzarella $300 Abel Rosario $200 Jose Kuilan $200 Thomas Schreiber $200 Duc Lam $200 Eddie Kunz $150 Miguel Laboy $150 Eugene OK $150 Chris Tiru $150 Ernesto Gomez $100 Pascal Dufrensne $100 Paul Carpenter $100 Lidio Ramirez $100 Corey Avallone $100 Tony Ignomerello $100 Yusuf Khan $100 Raphael Dabreo $100 Jimmy Acosta

2ND CHANCE UPPER 1st 2nd

Jimmy Acosta Gene Hunt

2ND CHANCE LOWER

L-R 2nd Chance Lower: Dany Recinos (1st) Adrian Daniel (3/4th)

1st 2nd 3/4

Erick Carrasco (2nd) and Cristobal Tiru (3/4th)

RESULTS

COMPLETE PAYOUTS

1 2 3 4 5 5 7 7 9 9 9 9 13 13 13 13 17 17 17 17 17 17 17 17

Dany Recinos Erick Carrasco Adrian Daniel and Cristobal Tiru

3RD CHANCE FINISHERS 1st 2nd

Jimmy Acosta Stephen Motilal

SOUTH FLORIDA BCA POOL LEAGUE L-R 3rd Chance Mixed: Jimmy Acosta (1st) and Stephen Motilal (2nd)

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November 2017

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The Psychology of Pool SEE CHALLENGES INSTEAD OF FEAR! DR. CHRIS STANKOVICH Dr. Chris Stankovich, known as “The Sports Doc,” is a national expert in the field of sport & performance psychology and has been featured on ESPN for his work with elite athletes. His #1 best selling pool video “Mind of Steel: Mental Toughness for Pool Success” has been used by thousands of players to improve focus, increase confidence, and eliminate anxiety. You can learn more about Dr Stankovich and Mind of Steel by visiting drstankovich.com

Human perception is a really funny thing – what people “see” is really as individual as each person. In fact, have you ever heard the saying “one man’s garbage is another man’s treasure?” Think about that for a moment – what is essentially useless to one person is invaluable to another! EBay has become a worldwide institution based on this idea. So how does this apply to pool you ask? Very simply – what you “see” when you look at the lay of the balls on the table is a very unique, subjective human experience and will ultimately play a major role in whether you run the table – or choke on the first shot you attempt. More specifically, seasoned players will typically see challenges when they look at the table, whereas inexperienced players will tend to see overwhelming, fearful situations that they perceive to be more than they can handle. In reality, both players are actually looking at the same table, yet both players end up experiencing the situation in two completely different ways!

MIND OF STEEL MENTAL TOUGHNESS FOR POOL SUCCESS Eliminate nerves & anxiety, beat pressure, and DOMINATE THE COMPETITION!! Streaming in HD on any device 24/7/365

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Teaching yourself the importance of perception, especially how it plays such a major part in pool success, is vitally important for your self-improvement. When you look at a bed of roses, do you see the flowers or the thorns? Both are there, yet it is the individual who determines what to focus his or her attention toward. With pool, teaching yourself to interpret tricky situations as challenges will help you “play to win,” whereas allowing tough situations to scare you will consequently put your mindset in a “play to avoid losing” perception. When you perceive situations as challenges, your mind and body work in synchrony and confidence emerges. Research clearly shows that confidence is directly related to peak performances, and your perception is actually what helps you develop confidence!

On the other hand, when you perceive situations as catastrophes, your body will immediately respond with anxiety, which will in turn cause all kinds of problems with focus, concentration, and ultimately shot success. When you “choke,” more often than not you missed the shot not because you didn’t know what to do, but instead because you never really felt as though you were going to make the shot in the first place. Again, your initial perception of the situation probably played a major role in this situation. Next time you go out and play, think about the following tips for success: • Only YOU can determine whether a situation is a challenge or a threat. Remind yourself of this each time you approach the table! • If you begin to get nervous about a situation, try to reframe the problem. For example, if the table looks downright ugly and its only the first game of the match, remind yourself about how much time you have to still come out on top. • When you see a tough lay on the table, try to put all your focus into just your next shot. So many times, players look ahead a shot or two and end up blowing the first shot (and often the match) • There probably isn’t a shot on the table that hasn’t been made at some point, so remember to tell yourself that the next time you get down on a challenging shot. Try to put all your energy into positive self-talk and work hard to channel all your confidence into the shot you have at the moment and watch what happens. Pretty amazing, huh?! Dr. Chris Stankovich, known as “The Sports Doc,” is a national expert in the field of sport & performance psychology and has been featured on ESPN for his work with elite athletes. His #1 best-selling pool video “Mind of Steel: Mental Toughness for Pool Success” has been used by thousands of players to improve focus, increase confidence, and eliminate anxiety. You can learn more about Dr. Stankovich and Mind of Steel by visiting drstankovich.com.

I would like to hear from you. If you have a question for me please submit to: information@drstankovich.com

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January 2018

Master Instructor, National Billiard Academy, “Beat People With a Stick!”

Tom Simpson

January 2018

There are some players who play very consciously. They think about many details of stroke, form, alignment, aim, etc. They have elaborate pre-shot routines to help ensure their consistency. They are aware of a lot of body sensations. They use whatever physics grasp they have of the game to help them plan and execute their shots. They try to do everything on purpose. I call these Mechanical Players (MP’s). I’m somewhere on this end of the spectrum. The Feel Players (FP’s) are the opposite. They trust their body to do the right thing. They are not conscious of how they do what they do, and may not even be interested in knowing much about how things work or why. They appear to be looser and more fluid. Lots of really excellent players are in this category, and many pros. They get it done, but it looks easier when they do it. To generalize, I’d say the MP’s are probably held back by carefulness and too much “doing”, while the FP’s are held back by carelessness and too little knowledge. Ah, the middle road! As an MP, I’ve spent a lot of time and effort studying the FP Way. Those brief, shining moments when I’m really in the zone are much more FP than my usual game. I see this as a continuum. While you can become very good at either end, you need some of the good stuff from the other end to balance you out and really raise your game. MP’s that somehow break through and “give up” control of the details and trust their bodies to deliver, can rise to another level. My take on this process (MP’s can’t help but think this

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way) is that it comes down to INTENT. When you can develop real clarity of intent, trust that intent, and leave doubt and mind chatter behind, the zone opens. There is a martial arts maxim that says, “To defeat the sword, you must first master the sword.” This appeals to MP’s, because we’re happy to spend our time exploring all the details of the weapon, the proper footwork, balance, joint function, and on and on. But what it means at a deeper level is “Master the sword, and then give up your attachment to the details. Integrate the knowledge and then, when it’s time to execute, put your energy into your intent.” In pool talk, that’s “Shut up and bear down.” At a practical, day-to-day training level, what I do is follow the Mechanical Way in the never-ending quest to perfect my form and fill in gaps in my knowledge. In a way, this is like practicing the shots you’re already good at. Even though I know better, I indulge myself in mechanical stuff for a while, because this is my comfort zone, my fun. I know what I have to do to really get better, though, so I make forays into the Feel World. The best method I’ve found for this is to focus exclusively on the intended RESULT and shoot without hesitation – faster rhythm. It works, but my MP side doesn’t trust it. ;o) I think most MP’s envy the FP’s ease, confidence, and fluidity, but are afraid to give up their mechanicalness and “trust the force.” Meanwhile, FP’s secretly wish they knew more and had mechanical systems and procedures they could rely on, but they don’t want to be mechanical, and they try to convince themselves they don’t really need all that technical knowledge: “Hey, the ball goes in the hole, don’t it?” Let’s leave our comfort zones once in a while and learn from both extremes.

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Stefano’s Delayed Draw Shot STEFANO PELINGA stefanopelinga.com

Stefano Pelinga (born 1964) hails from Rome, Italy, where he has served since 1985 as a police officer for the Italian government (Polizia di Stato), until his retirement in 2011. He began to play pool at the age of 12, drawing inspiration from his favorite singer and actor, Dean Martin. Stefano, currently a 5-time World Champion in Pool Trick Shots, won several titles in Italy in straight pool and nine-ball throughout the late 1970s and 1980s. In 1990, he devoted himself entirely to “Artistic Pool,” commonly referred to in its practice as “Trick Shots.” Due to his outstanding achievements, Stefano is recognized worldwide as one of the greatest Trick Shot champions in the history of the sport, and has earned a spot in ESPN’s Trick Shot Magic Hall of Fame. Most importantly, on November 17, 2012, Stefano was inducted into the National Italian American Sports Hall of Fame. In the presence of approximately 500 VIP guests and many sports stars such as Tommy Lasorda, Mike Piazza, Tony Esposito and Ray “Boom Boom” Mancini, Stefano was awarded this honor, becoming a member of this group of legendary Italian Americans.

This month’s shot is a creation of mine which always granted me a point over my opponent, as no other player could pull this tough shot off within the two allotted attempts. Good artistic billiards players are quite familiar with this concept, which can enable you to delay the draw on the CB. Let’s start by placing the CB at a one-ball distance from the long rail and centered with the left tip of side pocket E. Then lay the first object ball in front of it at about 1.5-ball distance and in a straight line, with their line of centers aiming at the left tip of side pocket B (black dotted line). Place a bridge across the table, resting on the long rails, as shown. Then lay a rack with its apex X at about one ball from the head

spot. Finally place the second object ball by corner pocket D. I suggest to use a partly elevated close bridge, where only the middle, ring and pinky fingers of your bridge hand are touching the rail. Jack up your cue by about 30°. Aim the Yellow OB to make it into pocket B. Shoot down into the CB at its 5:30, using a tad of right English and 2 tips of draw and a 3-speed stroke. Do not poke the ball, even if you are jacked up. You can still use a smooth follow through. After hitting the OB, the airborne CB clears the bridge and lands on the other side. Since it continues to slightly bounce off the surface, the backspin does not grab right away so the CB keeps moving forward. Once full contact with the cloth is restored, the draw grabs and F the CB curves around the rack to then pocket the last OB into D. On a new cloth this shot is a little easier as the CB retains the spin longer. Don’t forget you can always email me your questions and may you all have a blessed 2018!

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January 2018

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PBIA certified instruction is available for all levels from beginners to instructor training.

SAFETY WORKOUT

Bob Jewett

I just got back from watching the 2017 Mosconi Cup (five-man teams, USA vs. Europe) in Las Vegas. On paper before the start of the tournament the strengths of the teams looked fairly even, but on the table team USA struggled and lost badly with a final score of only 4 match wins against Europe’s 11 wins. Every US player lost more games than he won in total for the 15 races to 5 at 9-Ball. A large part of deficit was due to poor safety play. How are your safes? When you see a situation coming up that’s going to take defense are you confident that you will come out on top or do you start worrying? If you want to improve your safety play, read on. More importantly, get to the table and use the suggestions below to practice the precise control of both balls that you need to play effective safeties. In the diagram is a typical situation that calls for defense. It could be from either 9-Ball or 8-Ball (if you have the solids). The play shown has five different positive points. You probably won’t achieve all of them, but if you get two out of five it will be a pretty good leave. The cue ball is left on a cushion, the object ball is left near the opposite cushion, the cue ball is hidden behind a blocker, the object ball is (maybe) behind a blocker, and the cue ball is left close enough to a blocker that a jump shot is impractical. About the only trick missed here is to block all possible kick shots to the next ball.

may have faster cushions or slicker cloth than my table, so which positions will work for a particular play will vary some. Try each position until you get a couple of leaves that you feel would win you the game. If you can’t find a way to get a good safe from a particular start, try a different path. One final thing you can spend a little time on is a double kiss on the frozen 7-Ball. Set the cue ball at about X and experiment with hitting the 7 nearly full. There are lots of combinations of left and right-side spin and draw and follow and fullness of hit. See if you can find a set of parameters that will give you a good leave fairly often. Remember that you need a cushion contact other than the 7 into the cushion it’s frozen to. Players often overlook double-kiss plays and that’s probably because they’ve never worked on them. If you would like to check out the Mosconi Cup matches for examples of good and bad safeties as well as some remarkable escapes, you can watch all 15 matches on YouTube on the Genipool14 channel. I plan to be at the 2018 MC in London next December. I hope Team USA figures out this safe stuff in the meantime.

Note that if you are playing 8-Ball, it’s better to leave the 7 in front of the 9 as another possible blocker, while at 9-Ball, it’s better to leave the 7 behind the 9. How many of these can be achieved at the same time depends on exactly where the balls are sitting. If the cue ball is at the location shown and on the table I tried, there is a speed and spin that gets the 7 down by the 9 and the cue ball behind the 8 for a perfect safe. If the cue ball is at S there seems to be no good safe play that leaves the cue ball in back of the 8 and the 7 at the other end of the table. From that position, you may as well just play the cut up the rail or try the bank on the 7 and draw for position on the 8. At 8 ball, the bank would be a good two-way (safe and shape) shot. If the cue ball is moved to T, it is really hard to play the 7 along the same path as in the first position and still hide behind the 8. On my table, if I get the cue ball to the right spot, the 7 is left out in the open. For most opponents that would be sufficient. If I change the plan, it’s still possible to get both parts. By taking the cue ball off the left side cushion at T2 to kill some speed and then go behind the 8, I can get enough speed on the 7 to get it down by the 9. Now it’s time for you to try these shots and work on controlling both balls. Try to duplicate the three (or four) options discussed. Remember that your table

January 2018

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MOLDING YOUR JUNIOR PLAYER As a Master Instructor, I get the privilege of working with junior players of all ability levels. Some are among the best in the world and many are striving to become the best they can be.

Anthony Beeler is the 2017 Pool Instructor of the Year and is a former BCAPL National 9-Ball Champion. He has numerous top 25 national finishes and is one of only 8 ACS Master Instructors in the world. He is the primary author of the National Billiards Instructors Manual and has also authored the book Unstoppable! Positive Thinking for Pool Players. Anthony currently has the highest established Fargo Rating of any Master Instructor. He has won over 300 tournaments and has defeated numerous professional players in tournament competition.

Mental coaching for junior player is perhaps the most rewarding work I do. Teaching a young player how to develop a positive mindset and watching them grow in both ability and confidence is great! I not only help them become better players, but it will also help them in school and other sports. COACHING FOR YOUNG PLAYERS The feedback a junior receives from parents and others heavily influences them. I’ve seen first-hand how this can help or hinder, their development. Here are some of my insights from working with juniors and their parents and some suggestions for creating a healthy environment for the development of their game. BEGIN WITH POSITIVES After the completion of any match, when you start teaching it’s important to start with the positives and then move onto the areas of improvement. If you’d like your junior to think more positively when they’re on the table, then you need to provide an example by doing this yourself. All my students fill out a “Rate Yourself ” chart after each match. Students reflect on many positive things but also address things they could have done better. For the things that could have gone better, it’s important for the parent to remind the child that these are things they can work on during practice. FOCUS ON THE PROCESS, NOT THE RESULTS The results a junior gets will never be as important as what they are learning. When a parent reviews a junior’s performance, it’s important to reward the things they did that led to end result. By this, I mean the process (decision making, pre-shot routine, attitude).

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You wouldn’t want a junior to be thinking about the consequences of every shot during the match, so when reviewing their performance, the focus needs to be on the process and how they dealt with the challenges they faced. When juniors are praised for process and effort (which includes how hard they’ve been practicing), they will be inclined to work harder than those who are told they are naturally talented. If juniors are taught that any skill can be learned with hard work, it will encourage more persistence, more effort and lead to more tournament victories. DO NOT COMPARE THEM TO OTHER PLAYERS One of the traps that juniors fall into is thinking about how good they are compared to other players. This can cause them to start playing “Ego pool”, instead of focusing on the process. All too often there’s more value placed on “looking good”, instead of focusing on what they can truly learn. THE STRUGGLE Struggling should not be looked at as a negative. When juniors work to overcome challenges, they become stronger. Parents shouldn’t allow juniors to fear mistakes; rather, they should be taught that it is an important part of the learning process. KEEP EMOTIONS OUT OF IT Finally, juniors are always seeking approval from their parents. They care deeply about what their parents think of them and the emotional response they receive. For this reason, juniors are generally very good at being able to determine how their parents are feeling. Parents usually show it on their faces or with their body language. I’ve worked with plenty of juniors who, through this experience, ask their parents to not watch them compete. The relief of not worrying about how their play makes their dad or mom feel is very real. The lesson here is to be careful about how emotional you become and try to remain neutral. I hope this article you some helpful pointers on how to help you child play a better game of pool. If you’d like further guidance, feel free to visit www. poolteacher.com or give me a call to set up a free consultation.

Stroke

January 2018

CARLO BIADO Defeats

Roland Garcia in All-Filipino Final MANILA, Philippines (UPDATED) - Reyes, Pagulayan, Alcano, Bustamante, and now Biado. Carlo Biado added his name among the greats of Filipino billiards by capturing the 2017 World 9-Ball Championship with a 13-5 victory over compatriot Roland Garcia, Thursday, December 14 at the Al Arabi Sports Club in Doha, Qatar. The 34-year-old Biado of La Union became the fifth Filipino to ever win the men’s title, and the first since Francisco Bustamante in 2010, finishing on top of a competition that saw 128 players from over 40 countries compete for the top prize.

d l r o W 7 1 0 2 s n i W hampionship 9-Ball C

“I’m so proud to be one of them. This is the best thing that could ever happen to me. I have worked very hard for many years and now my dream has come true,” said Biado in a press release from the World Pool Billiard Association. Biado raced out to a 7-0 lead before Garcia could get on the board, and the deficit was too much for the 36-yearold from Pampanga to make up. Garcia, now based out of Pattaya, Thailand, got to as close as 11-5 before Biado shut the door in under two hours. “It’s been a long time. I worked very hard, had many disappointments. And now finally I won the world title,” said Biado. “There was less pressure in the final because even if I don’t win, at least a Filipino will get the title. I was very comfortable, that’s why I played well. Also, the balls were always in an easy position after the break.” Biado says his experience in high pressure situations prepared him for this moment, and he didn’t let it slip by. “When I won the world games there was a lot of pressure, more than here because there were so many people watching. After I won in Poland against Jayson Shaw I just felt so good and so much more confident when I entered other events. That was a really big help to my confidence and I know it definitely helped me this week and today.”

The win earns Biado a $30,000 prize, nearly equal to all that he’d won throughout all of 2017, Garcia will receive $15,000 of a total prize fund totaling $200,000. – Rappler.com Photos courtesy of Photo from WPA and WPA

January 2018

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Bison Billiards

Sco tch

D ouble

ll a B 8 x o Ba r B y l h t n Mo

16 teams came to compete for $1225 in our monthly Scotch Doubles Bar Box 8-Ball tournament held on December 10, 2017 at Bison Billiards in Williamsville, NY.

1st 2nd 3rd 4th

$240/$525 $120/$260 $80 $40

Shane and Steve Cory and Eric Cheryl and Jay Ian and Chris

December 2017 Congrats to the â&#x20AC;&#x153;kidâ&#x20AC;? for winning our Monthly Bar Box 8-Ball double elimination tournament held on December 2, 2017 at Bison Billiards in Williamsville, NY. Chris Stawarski went undefeated through a very tough 21 player field to win it. 1st $235/$515 2nd $110/$275 3rd $70/$125 4th $50 5/6th $35

Chris Stawarski Nick Brucato Cory Welfare Eddie Ashman Tom Handley, Frank Rodriguez

9-Ball Results from the December 16, 2018 9-Ball tournament held at Bison Billiards in Williamsville, New York.

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Mosconi Cup Team USA Hoping to End 7 Year Mosconi Cup Drought Skyler Woodward Team USA TEAM EUROPE holds a comfortable 4-1 lead after the opening day of the 2017 PartyPoker Mosconi Cup after controlling most of the play in a session that had the distinct feel of one-way-traffic. Only Shane Van Boening’s win over Jayson Shaw in the final match saved the USA from a total white-wash as well as giving his side a glimmer of hope for tomorrow’s matches. Taking place at the Mandalay Bay Resort, there was genuine anticipation in the air with a packed 1,500 seat arena. Play started with the traditional team game, giving all players an opportunity to settle their nerves.

Dennis Hatch

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With the Rasson table spitting back plenty of balls, it was the most testing conditions at a Mosconi Cup in a long time. However, the Americans couldn’t take the few opportunities that came their way while their European counterparts pounced with clinical efficiency. Commented Euro skipper Marcus Chamat, “We had some tough games there – we were leading 4-0 in the first match and they came back 4-3 and it could have been 4-4 and then anything can happen. “If you look at the way the matches went 4-1 is more

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than I would have expected, but the reason we won a few tight games is that we ran out and didn’t make mistakes. We stuck together as a team – we were having group meetings in the middle of matches, if that is even possible.” As ever there was some controversy and Joshua Filler and Dennis Hatch failed to shake hands at the conclusion of their singles match as Hatch left the arena, which lead to booing from some sections of the crowd.

-EuropeTeam Europe Leads the Way After Day One a

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All photos courtesy of JP Parmentier – Matchroom Multi Sport

Jayson Shaw & David Alcaide with Nick Van den Berg looking on Chamat though was delighted with the 20-year-old German; “When we played the first team match and Filler ran out, I was in tears because I was happy. He is going to be a superstar, he has talent and his personality is out of this world – he can be the Ronnie O’Sullivan of pool. “I will take it one step at a time, sit down, have a meeting with the guys and later on I will tell them who is playing when. The first day is always tough and I feel we need to settle down a little bit now and then go through who is playing when tomorrow.” There had been genuine optimism in the air in the lead-in to the event and a belief that a new-look American side lead by Mosconi Cup expert Johan Ruijsink could end seven years of misery. As the session progressed though, that hope slowly evaporated as Team USA suffered a series of reversals. It was only Van Boening at the death who salvaged some hope.

Shane Van Boening

Van Boening said, “It was very important, especially against the No.1 pool player in the world right now. Jayson has been on fire the last couple of months and that was a big win for the whole team. “We are going to have a different plan tomorrow. We have to work on the break and have to avoid making easy mistakes. We have to re-group tomorrow.” Play continues with a scheduled five more games on Tuesday – three doubles and two singles matches. THE PARTYPOKER MOSCONI CUP has hit the halfway stage and it’s already looking all over as the Europeans home in on their eighth successive victory following another easy day on the table against a miss-firing American side. With the Euros leading 4-1 at the overnight stage anything other than US overall victory would be a huge setback and so it turned out as the European’s once again decimated their opponents 4-1 to carry an 8-2 lead into the third day.

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January 2018

Mosconi Cup - Day Two US Hopes in Tatters as Europe’s Hammer Falls - Eeks Out Only 1 Win David Alcaide

Dennis Hatch & Billy Thorpe In fact, Marcus Chamat’s Team Europe now need only three more wins to seal the deal with a maximum five matches scheduled for Wednesday. “The way the first match was, I was thinking if we could win two matches today I would be happy because we would still have the lead. Winning 4-1, I am way over the moon,” said a delighted Chamat.

Commented Marcus Chamat, “I get goose bumps just talking about Joshua. When you see him play, you know he will run out and go around smiling. He makes the game look so easy. Once in a lifetime you get these players.” For American captain Johan Ruijsink, it was more misery after the experience of Monday; “We are not happy. We didn’t look confident today, we broke better, I really felt that we broke better but we missed balls that we shouldn’t have, and that is disappointing.

“The second match could have gone either way. The eight ball that Oscar missed, we might look back at a big swing in the event. It is far from over but that could be a big swing. This is sport and we saw today that one mistake can turn things around,” he added. Things started off so brightly for the USA as Dennis Hatch and Billy Thorpe squandered a 4-1 lead before hanging on in the deciding rack to record a 5-4 victory over Nick van den Berg and David Alcaide. That momentum didn’t last long as Oscar Dominguez lost a 3-2 lead to fall to veteran Ralf Souquet by 5-3. After that it was a total collapse as the USA managed to win just three racks in the final three matches as Joshua Filler ran rampant. The 20-year-old German looks set to be one of the game’s brightest stars his shotmaking and positional play look to be up there with the best. First, he teamed up with Jason Shaw to dispatch Van Boening and Dominguez 5-1 and then, alongside Nick Van den Berg, they crushed Van Boening and Thorpe 5-0.

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Day Three Europe One Away from VICTORY!

Firstly, the pairing of Hatch and Dominguez overcame all manner of nerves to edge past Ralf Souquet and Jayson Shaw and give the American fans a moment they had been waiting for. In the next clash, Billy Thorpe, who has looked excellent in his Mosconi Cup debut, got the better of Nick van den Berg for take the score to 8-4 and give the crowd some hope. The nervy Dutchman missed the 7-Ball with ball in hand and Thorpe took advantage. However, Van den Berg recovered well from his glaring error to take the match to hill-hill but the American prevailed. The big USA surge of momentum came to an end in the next as David Alcaide and Ralf Souquet put on a superb show to beat Dominguez and Woodward, who has yet to win a point. That made it 9-4 and set the stage for the final match of the session – Jayson Shaw v Shane Van Boening. An American win would leave the overnight score at 9-5 and offer a glimmer of hope, while a win for Europe would effectively leave the Americans dead and buried. Once again it came down to the final rack as both players struggled with the pressure and atmosphere. It was Van Boening who cracked, missing a simple 8 ball to hand the match to Shaw who celebrated wildly, aiming his joy at the American team. “Unbelievable, what a match - when I was down 4-2 I tried to dig deep and take my chances,” said a delighted Shaw. “I scratched on the first ball and Dennis Hatch is clapping, shouting good shot so that’s why I acted like that, to give it back to him.

Jayson Shaw & Josh Filler “It is hard to win if you get bad racks and in the last match we didn’t do much wrong but they played very good shots and broke well. We got a couple of terrible, difficult shots, which we didn’t make. “Even the 5-4 win was not confident – we should have beaten them 5-1, 5-2. We should have put our foot on the gas pedal but we didn’t and that stayed there for the whole day. “I truly felt that we broke better and if we had played as we did yesterday we would have got more points, but we didn’t. It is a learning curve and we will try to combine the better play from Monday and the break from today, but we cannot lose the day tomorrow – that is obvious.” Play continues on Wednesday – with two doubles and two singles matches. FOLLOWING A DAY of high tension, Europe is now just one win away from retaining the PartyPoker Mosconi Cup as they shared the session 2-2 with the Americans. That increased their lead to 10-4, with 11 points being the magic number. In front of a passionate crowd at the Mandalay Bay, Europe needed three wins to seal victory but after taking a pasting over the first two days, the American squad came out fighting.

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“This is crazy, you can’t hold yourself together but I couldn’t believe he missed that ball. One more match tomorrow, and we’ve got it. It has been a big day, they took the first two games 5-4 so the last two matches were real big,” he added. For European captain Marcus Chamat, the end is in sight after a strong showing this week, although like many others he was disbelieving of Van Boening’s error. “Everybody is still shocked; how do you see that from a player of his caliber? This is what this tournament does to you. Any other tournament, it doesn’t happen. “Between Shane and Jayson, they are under pressure. They are the top guns at the moment for both teams so it is pressure for them, but Jayson handled it better than Shane van Boening for sure. “I had good faith in Ralf and David because they play in the same league in Germany and they are good friends. I was so confident in that team and they played brilliantly. 10-4 instead of 9-5, we all know that is a huge different – if it is 9-5 and they win the first two tomorrow it would be 9-7 and it’s up in the air.” For American captain Johan Ruijsink, it was a different story, “We are 10-4 down. We made mistakes earlier in the Mosconi Cup but now everybody is in shock about a big mistake from Shane. It is a ball he would never miss again but that happens, even the best players in the world get the tension, something happens and they don’t make the ball. Mon - Thurs : 5pm - 1am Fri - Sat: Noon - 2am Sun: Noon - 1am

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January 2018

Europe Crushes USA More Mosconi Glory for Europe

MVP Josh Filler MVP Joshua Filler

“Tomorrow we will take it one by one and every match we survive we will be happy. I was proud of how the guys came out and fought and we won two hill-hill matches. Then Souquet played really good, really solid, and that was hard. “In the end, it was the second time Shane could have beaten the guy everybody considers to be the best in the world but it didn’t happen and it is 10-4. “We have lost the Mosconi Cup already, obviously. We are absolutely not likely to win this one. It is like in basketball being 40 points behind and three minutes to play – it is impossible for everybody. However, we will play six singles tomorrow, six times an American guy against a European guy and if we show our A-game we can prolong it. We are very unlikely to win this one but we will try to win every single match from now on.” Play continues with singles matches on Thursday. IT WAS MVP JOSH FILLER who delivered the final blow as Team Europe wrapped up a comfortable 11-4 win to retain the PartyPoker Mosconi Cup for a record-breaking seventh time. Needing just one point after dominating the opening two days of the tournament, it was 20-year-old Filler who beat rival Dennis Hatch to seal the deal for Europe. Despite an ominous feel about the arena, the fans turned out in their droves to the Mandalay Bay Convention Centre to witness a glorious celebration as the European team reveled in their magnificent victory. For European captain Marcus Chamat it was win No.3 after taking the helm in 2015 and he seems to have the magic touch. “I am overwhelmed! The way we played, the way we came as a team and stood beside each other from the beginning,” said an emotional Chamat.

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Now 8 in a Row Daily Recap Day One: EUROPE 4 – 1 USA TEAM EUROPE 5-3 Team USA SHAW/ALCAIDE 5-3 Woodward /Thorpe JOSHUA FILLER 5-4 Dennis Hatch SOUQUET/VAN DEN BERG 5-3 Dominguez /Van Boening Jayson Shaw 1-5 SHANE VAN BOENING Day Two: EUROPE 8 – 2 USA Van den Berg/Alcaide 4 - 5 HATCH/THORPE RALF SOUQUET 5 - 3 Oscar Dominguez FILLER/SHAW 5 - 1 Van Boening/Woodward DAVID ALCAIDE 5 - 1 Skyler Woodward VAN DEN BERG/FILLER 5 - 0 SVB/Thorpe Day Three: EUROPE 10 – 4 USA Souquet/Shaw 4 – 5 DOMINGUEZ/HATCH Nick van den Berg 4 – 5 BILLY THORPE SOUQUET/ALCAIDE 5 – 2 Woodward/Dominguez JAYSON SHAW 5 – 4 Shane Van Boening Day Four: EUROPE 11 – 4 USA JOSH FILLER 5 – 3 Dennis Hatch

Follow the PartyPoker Mosconi Cup on www. mosconicup.com and @mosconicup across social media. 2017 PartyPoker Mosconi Cup is also sponsored by Rasson Billiards who supplies the Official Table; the cloth is supplied by Iwan Simonis and the Official Balls are Super Aramith by Saluc. Predator is the Official Cue of the event and Ultimate Team Gear provide all Mosconi Cup apparel. APA are the Official Team Sponsor of Team USA. For More Information: Luke Riches, Matchroom Sport: luke.riches@ matchroom.com Nick Teale, Matchroom Sport: nick.teale@ matchroom.com About Matchroom Sport:

Matchroom Sport are one of the world’s leading producers of televised sport and are responsible for over 1,000 hours of original programming across a range of sports. Based in the UK and chaired by charismatic founder Barry Hearn, the Mosconi Cup is one of a stable of pool events that include the World Cup of Pool and the World Pool Masters.

Press Release MOSCONI CUP RETURNS TO ALEXANDRA PALACE IN 2018 — Europe vs. USA set for another record-breaking year in London The Mosconi Cup will return to Alexandra Palace for its 25th anniversary in 2018. Mosconi Cup XXV will take place from Tuesday, December 4 – Friday, December 7 when it returns to European soil next year in front of what is expected to be another record crowd for 9-ball’s biggest event. The tournament made its Ally Pally debut in 2016 as a record 2,000 strong daily crowd witnessed the Europeans defeat USA 11-3. The 24th PartyPoker Mosconi Cup is currently taking place at Mandalay Bay Resort, Las Vegas. Matchroom Sport chairman Barry Hearn said: “We’re very exciting to be returning to Alexandra Palace next year, where we witnessed sell-out crowds in 2016. To meet demand, we have extended our capacity even further for 2018, but fans will have to be quick to secure their seats for the most anticipated event of the pool calendar. “The Mosconi Cup is the biggest event in the world of pool and tickets will sell out quickly once again. “Europe vs. USA is a great sporting battle, and the Mosconi Cup is undisputedly the biggest and best tournament in pool. We’ll be celebrating 25 years of the Mosconi Cup in 2018, and we’ll be doing it at a fantastic venue in front of yet another record-breaking crowd.” Tickets for the 2018 Mosconi Cup XXV will be on sale shortly, with standard, premium and VIP Hospitality packages available. Full ticket details will be announced shortly.

“The American team tried hard and did good. It was a battle and things could have gone the other way in the middle of yesterday. “In the end, hard work pays off – successful people work hard and that is what these guys did.” For Joshua Filler, it was a dream end to a dream debut as his captain presented him with the Most Valuable Player Award. Filler, who ran undefeated through the tournament, winning two doubles and two singles matches, was delighted; “It couldn’t get better than this. This is the best team with the best team spirit. I am lucky I have this team, they are always supporting me and without these guys we wouldn’t win the Mosconi Cup eight times in a row.” For the American side, it was another humbling defeat. Captain Johan Ruijsink it was a bitter blow after putting in so much preparation with the team over the preceding months.

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21st Annual Captain’s Christmas Tournament Union Station Billiards in Portland, ME hosted its 21st Annual Captain’s Christmas Tournament on December 9-10, 2017. The format was 8-Ball Scotch Doubles. Congratulations to the winners of the 21st Annual Captains Christmas Tournament, Stan and Josh Rupard! Also, congratulations to our runners up, Scott Haskell and Jerry Burnham, who won their way through the loser’s bracket to finish 2nd. Great job everyone who played.

Winners: Stan and Josh Rupard

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Union Station Annual Christmas Tournament 32 players came to Union Station Billiards in Portland, ME on December 16-17, 2017 to play in a $1000 added 9-Ball tournament. Thank you all for joining us for our Annual Christmas Tournament!!

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Talahassee, FL

Zingales

Feb 10-11

Ft. Walton Beach, FL Starcade Billiards

Feb 16-18

Atlanta, GA

Mr Cues II

770-454-7665

Feb 23

Shreveport, LA

Sidepockets

318-425-8112

Feb 24-25

Shreveport, LA

Sidepockets

318-425-8112

Feb 24

Parkersburg, WV

The League Room

304-983-9640

Mar 3-4

Talahassee, FL

Zingales

Florida State Amateur 8-Ball

Call

Mar 31

Parkersburg, WV

The League Room

304-983-9640

8-Ball

$30 incl g.f.

$150 min.

2PM

Apr 7-8

Greensboro, NC

Gate City Billiards

336-856-8800

9-Ball Shootout

$75-Limit 28

$500 w/64

Call

Apr 28

Parkersburg, WV

The League Room

304-983-9640

8-Ball

$30 incl g.f.

$150 min.

2PM

Jan 13-14

Houston, TX

Bogies Billiards

281-821-4544

Open 8-Ball-Limit 64

$35 $1,000 11AM

Jan 13-14 Jan 20

Houston, TX Temple, TX

Bogies Billiards Charlies Cuez

281-821-4544 254-770-3000

Amateur 8-Ball-Limit 64 $25 Call 11AM 9-Ball Open - Limit 48 $65 incl g.f. $500 w/48 11AM

Feb 2-4

Round Rock, TX

Skinny Bob’s

512-733-1111

Texas Open 10-Ball Tune Up

$50-Limit 64

Call

7:30PM Fri

Feb 2-4

Round Rock, TX

Skinny Bob’s

512-733-1111

Texas Open 10-Ball Tune Up Wmn $35-Limit 32

Call

7:30PM Fri

Feb 15

Round Rock, TX

Skinny Bob’s

512-733-1111

Jack & Jill Sc Dbls

$125+$25 g.f. $500

11AM

Feb 15

Round Rock, TX

Skinny Bob’s

512-733-1111

Open Bank Rails Game

$100 no g.f.

Call

7PM

Feb 15

Round Rock, TX

Skinny Bob’s

512-733-1111

Open 10-Ball-Single Elimination

$25

Call

8PM

Feb 16

Round Rock, TX

Skinny Bob’s

512-733-1111

Open 10-Ball Ring Game

$100+$5 g.f.

Call

2PM

Feb 16

Round Rock, TX

Skinny Bob’s

512-733-1111

Ladies10-Ball Ring Game

$30+$5 g.f.

Call

2PM

Feb 17-19

Round Rock, TX

Skinny Bob’s

512-733-1111

Texas Open 10-Ball

$125+$25 g.f. $4,000

8:30 PM Fri.

Feb 17-19

Round Rock, TX

Skinny Bob’s

512-733-1111

Texas Open 10-Ball Ladies Div

$40

6PM Sat.

850-244-2349

$135 bio $75

TIME 6PM

Florida State Amateur 9-Ball

Call

9-Ball

$65

$2,000 w/128

11AM

One Pocket Classic

$200

$1,000 to first

10-Ball Ring Game

$100-Limit 16 Call

8PM

Open 9-Ball-Limit 128

$75 incl g.f.

$2,000 Guar

Call

8-Ball

$30 incl g.f.

$150 min.

2PM

MIDWEST TOURNAMENTS

$500

4PM

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January 2018

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MORE THAN 50 YEARS OF AMERICAN MADE

INNOVATION MEETS

SimpleElegance

The Viking Experience. More than 50 years of industry leading innovation comes together with simple, elegant design to give you the best playing cue money can buy. Period. The feel of the wood on wood joint and finger joined construction, the convenience of the Viking Precision Weight Bolt System and nearly unbreakable SuperFerrule and the added value of the standard Viking Quick Release are features built into every Viking at every price point. With looks as good as they play and made in America since 1965, it’s easy to see why Viking continues to be… A682 A912 $775 MSRP $1200 MSRP

...The Player’s Choice

Viking Cue Manufacturing, LLC. 2228 Pleasant View Road Middleton, WI 53562 1.800.397.0122

vikingcue.com LIFETIME WARRANTY MADE IN THE USA

PERFORMANCE

MAKES ALL OF THE DIFFERENCE The most important factor in cue ball deﬂection is cue end mass. Katana shafts use a ferrule that is half the length with thinner walls to reduce the amount of cue ball “squirt” during play.

7 Responsive Top Layers The top 7 layers are medium density boar hide, tanned naturally up to 12 months to achieve maximum control and consistency.

3 Foundation Layers The bottom 3 layers are high density pig skin, selected for its premium durability and legendary feel.

KATXS1

TIP: 12.5mm Katana tip by Tiger FERRULE: 3/8” Long Thin Wall Fiber TAPER: Pro

KATXS2

TIP: 11.5mm Katana tip by Tiger FERRULE: 3/8” Long Thin Wall Fiber TAPER: Conical

KATANA PERFORMANCE SHAFT TECHNOLOGY 10-Piece Spliced Radial Construction The grain in a solid wooden shaft creates a natural spine which affects how the cue ball reacts to impact. Rotating the cue, even a quarter turn, will change how the shaft performs. By splitting the shaft into ten sections and alternating the direction of the grain, Katana removes natural variances and provides lower deﬂection and more consistent results.

QUALIFIED DEALERS WELCOME WWW.CUESTIX.COM | 800.645.9803 Manufactured by CueStix International