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The Pool Players Voice a magazine for the east coast pool players is no available online. Read about the Mosconi Cup, Tour Finales and more ...

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Page 1: Stroke Magazine January Issue 2010
Page 2: Stroke Magazine January Issue 2010

2 Stroke Magazine - January 2010

Looking for a Comprehensive Source for Pool News?

Check out www.OnTheBreakNews.comSend your pool news to [email protected]

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Page 3: Stroke Magazine January Issue 2010

January 2010 - Stroke Magazine 3

About Us at StrokeStroke is a monthly publication, dedicated to the advancement of the sport of pool and to promoting enthusiasm and encouragement among the players at all levels, regardless of their league affiliation, in addition to recognizing those businesses who support them all. Covering the Eastcoast and adjoining states. Look for Stroke by the 10th of each month.The opinions expressed are those of the author or advertiser and do not necessarily reflect the views of Rackem 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 be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without the written permission of the Publisher. © 2010 Stroke

DEADLINE: 30th of each Month - CALL IF LATE

StrokeP.O. Box 100Three Forks, MT 59752Phone 1-406-285-3099Fax 1-406-285-3098Email [email protected]

Contact us at:

Publisher/EditorDon “Cheese” Akerlow

Marketing DirectorMary Akerlow

Layouts & DesignWendy SwensonSunshine Ross

Don AkerlowMary AkerlowDistributionSheila Papke

The Pool Players Voice

January 2010Volume 2 Number 1

Read Stroke Online at:www.strokemagazine.net

AdvertisersArt of Billiards 10Atlas Billiard Supply 2Best Shot Billiards 13Mr 3 Cushion 6Crown Cues 13Cue & Case 16Lucasi Hybrid 11Mueller 3OTBnTV.com 3On The Break News 2Pool Cue Guru 9pooldawg 13sammspocket.com 7Sandcastle Billiards 10T J’s Billiards 5

ColumnistsBill Smith 6Bob Jewett 7Samm Diep 7

InformationOTBNews Group 14Pool On TV 3Tournament Trail 14

POOL ON TVAll times are Eastern time.

Watch it LIVE onwww.OTBnTV.com

Go To www.OTBnTV.com orustream.tv/channel/otbntv-live

for the OTBnTV ScheduleThe Leader in Live Streaming

Live Streaming Schedule

01-03-2010 10:00 am 1998 Wmn’s Tourn of Champs Finals01-03-2010 11:00 am Generationpool.com Women’s 9-Ball-Semi #1 01-10-2010 10:00 am 1999 BCA Championship Finals

These schedules have been provided by ESPN. These are tentative dates and are subject to change

01-10-2010 11:00 am Generationpool.com Women’s 9-Ball-Semi #201-24-2010 10:00 am 1999 Wmn’s Tourn of Champs Finals01-31-2010 10:00 am 2000 BCA Championship Finals

Help WantedSales Position:

Promote Pool in your city and state and earn money and more.

Send resume to: [email protected] line: JOB WANTED

Cover PhotoCourtesy ofMatchroom.com

Stroke Staff

Page 4: Stroke Magazine January Issue 2010

4 Stroke Magazine - January 2010

Toys for Tots Tourney

On Saturday, December 12th, Mazzy’s Sports Bar & Grill in Roswell, Georgia hosted their 3rd Annual Toys for Tots Blind Draw Scotch Doubles Tournament. Fourteen teams from the northern Georgia area contested for the $680 total prize fund in the Double Elimination 9-Ball Scotch Doubles event. Firman Widjaksono and David Holloway came out of the losers’ bracket to defeat Jerry Ray and Thomas Morgan twice to claim the championship. The final game, with both teams on the hill, was decided

with a 9-on-the-break by David Holloway. However, the real winners in this

tournament were the needy children in the greater Atlanta area. More than two

barrels of toys were collected in support of the U.S. Marine Corps Toys for Tots

campaign. Our thanks go out to George Arnett, owner of Mazzy’s Sports Bar & Grill, and Jimmy Potter, the tournament director for their efforts in support of this deserving cause. Everyone thoroughly enjoyed the event and we are all looking forward to the 4th annual tournament next December. Happy Holidays!

Toby Perry - President, Georgia ACS League Assn

TOP FINISHERS1st $300 Firman Widjaksono & David Holloway

2nd $220 Jerry Ray & Thomas Morgan

3rd $100 Toby Perry & Jack Reagin

4th $60 Todd James & Will Gallagher

Winners David Holloway and Firman Widjaksono

2nd Place: Jerry Ray and Thomas Morgan3rd Place: Toby Perry and Jack Reagin

The Predator 9-Ball Tour's 2009 season has come to a close. The Pro/Am Tour's finale event drew a total of 92 of the Northeast's strongest players along with World Class Professional Jose Parica, legendary hustler Danny Basavich, and Trick Shot World Champion Andy "Magic Man" Segal. Pool player and room owner Holden Chin rolled out the red carpet for the players, and mentioned that he was impressed by the turnout. Other big names such as Mark Vidal, Jose Parica, Mike Fingers, Frankie Hernandez, Al Lapena, Many Chau, Zion Zvi, Shaun Wilkie, Danny Basavich, Eddie Abraham, Scott Tollefson, "Ginky" George SanSouci, and Long Island's Joey Korsiak all came out for the Predator Tour Finale. Before the event began, tour founder Tony Robles held a Player of the Year award ceremony, and gave out awards to the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place finishers of each respective division.

Player of the Year Awards went to…Tony Robles - Pro DivisionOscar Bonilla - Open DivisionLionel Rivera - A DivisionWilliam Finnegan - B Division

Rene Villalobos - C DivisionGail Glazebrook - Ladies Division Players would also be treated to a surprise trick shot exhibition performed by World Trick Shot Champion, NY based professional pool player Andy Segal. "The Magic Man" as he is known in the Trick Shot world put on an amazing show to the delight of the knowledgeable NY area crowd who gave love for his amazing performance.

The tournament drew many emerging and veteran grinders, who came out to try to make a statement by capturing the coveted Predator Tour Finale title. Scott Tollefson and Al Lapena were in dead stroke and both had strong wins over several big names in the event. Both players deserve special mention for leaving it all on the table, earning them a 4th and 5th place finish. Veteran player Frankie Hernandez made a strong comeback to the pool scene with an impressive tournament. Frankie went through the winner's bracket en route to the finals, defeating Sean Keaton (8-6), Rick Sleeper (8-2), Jeff Smolen (8-7), Oscar Bonilla (8-4), Al Lapena (8-7), Mike Miller (9-5), and lastly George SanSouci (9-7). Shaun Wilkie's road to the finals started out with a "Hill-Hill" battle against longtime friend and road partner Matt Krah,

resulting with Shaun as the last man standing. "Get Some" then followed up with consecutive wins over Bill Dang (8-3), trick shot champion Andy Segal (8-4), Scott Tollefson (8-6), before losing to legendary NY player George "Ginky" Sansouci (9-4). Bouncing back from the one loss-side, Shaun topped Filipino grinder Al Lapena (9-6),

conintued on page 14

By Jerry Tarantola, NYCgrind.com

WILKIE GRINDS BACK TO WIN

Page 5: Stroke Magazine January Issue 2010

January 2010 - Stroke Magazine 5

The newly titled Kwikfire Tour held its second event at the Silver Dollar Saloon in Rock Hill, South Carolina this past weekend. Many local fans came to watch 29 players compete, including 10 APA players and 6 top WPBA professionals, including Allison Fisher, Kelly Fisher, Kim Shaw, Gerda Hofstatter, Monica Webb, and Line Kjorsvik. The biggest upset of the tournament was in the first round when Terry Faulk beat Monica Webb hill-hill. Terry said after the match that both she and Monica missed opportunities but she was happy with the way she played throughout the event. Sunday’s matches paired Allison vs. Line and Kelly vs. Kim on the winners side, with Monica vs. Val Finnie and Gerda vs. Lisa Davids on the one-loss side. Allison defeated Line 9-7 and Kelly defeated Kim 9-4, while Monica defeated Val 9-2 and Gerda defeated Lisa 9-4. With six players remaining, Allison and Kelly squared off in an exciting hotseat match with Allison winning 9-7. Kim played solid pool to win decisively over Monica, 9-3, while Gerda and Line played it close, as Line finished strong winning 9-7. Line continued playing well defeating Kim 9-4; however, she seemed to lose some momentum during her match with Kelly and lost 9-2. With Allison and Kelly in the final it was a repeat of the 1st event final. As always, both players produced the highest quality of play and at 6-7 there was nothing separating them – Allison made a 2-9 combo to make it 7-7. Kelly broke and made an easy 3-9 combo to reach the hill first. Allison played a solid rack to make it hill-hill, but Kelly broke the final rack, and after making the 7 ball on the break, cleared an open table to win the tournament. Patty Sutherland from Wilmington, South Carolina won the “Highest APA Finisher” with an impressive 9th place. Congratulations, Patty! Holly Sholes from Charlotte, North Carolina won her second, Second Chance tournament by defeating Katie Cowan in the finals, 7-5. A special thanks to Kevin and Melanie Shaw, the owners of Silver Dollar Saloon, Kwikfire Cues for their support, Charlotte Metro APA and Blue Moon for the beautiful custom trophies they provide.

RESULTS:1 Kelly Fisher 2 Allison Fisher 3 Line Kjorsvik 4 Kim Shaw 5/6 Gerda Hofstatter, Monica Webb 7/8 Val Finnie, Lisa Davids 9-12 Kim Jones, Patty Sutherland, Katie Cowan, Holly Sholes 13-16 Cheryl Pritchard, Lisa Cossette, Rachel Eliazar, Buffy Jolie

www.otbntv.comWatch it LIVE onwww.OTBnTV.com

By: Kim Shaw, CBT Promotions, LLC.

Kelly & Allison lagging for the final match.

Fisher Wins at Rock Hill

T J’s BilliardsMaine State

Straight Pool Championships January 23rd & 24th 2010

Maine State Nineball ChampionshipsFebruary 13th & 14th 2010

Both events streaming live @www.ustream.tv/channel/tjsbilliards14.1 Airport Rd Waterville, ME

207-877-POOL (7665)

Going into the final week the Sharks were in last place in the standings of the Tj's Classic Billiards in house eight ball league. Their only hope of making it into "money week" was to win the luck of the draw wild card, which they did. Money Week is is a test of the top three teams and the wild card team to make a four team play off. The Sharks, in their first season, were a big underdog going against veteran teams like The Cutters, Torpedoes and Scratch This. Players, Tim Michaud, TJ Lee, Jason Dennison, Louis Stillman, Paul Perry and Lee Rutledge pulled

Wild Card Takes the Trophytogether and emerged on top holding the cash and stars and stripes trophy. RESULTS: League MVP $100 Marc Roderick 1st $1,100 The Sharks 2nd $700 Scratch This 3rd $370 The Cutters4th $100 TJ’s Gift Certificates Torpedoes

Page 6: Stroke Magazine January Issue 2010

6 Stroke Magazine - January 2010

Going Thin, may Give You a WIN!By Bill Smith “Mr3Cushion”, Old School Pool.net

THIS IS THE era of increased aware¬ness of one's thickness around the mid¬dle; and billiards has its full-figure problems, too, when it comes to hitting too much ball when playing certain shots for position. During the heyday of 3-cushion bil¬liards, in the '30s, '40s and into the '50s, the game tended to be better-suit¬ed to players who hit the first ball fuller, and stroked the cue ball harder. There were

several reasons for that: ivory balls were used, the rail rubber was a natural material, and the all-wool nap cloths of that time had long and short rolls to them. Also, the com¬bined techniques of fuller hit and hard¬er stroke kept the ivory balls from rolling off as much, and allowed for the slower cushions and cloth. But in the last three decades, with the advent of phenolic billiard balls, com¬position rubber, wool/nylon blend non-directional high-speed cloth, and, of course, heated European tables, bil¬liards has become a very different game. It's elevated to a very high-tech, precision game, almost totally deter¬mined by the correct use of proper cue techniques, and, even more important, the correct speed of the cue ball and first-ball contact. In other words, it's not a matter of driving through the first ball anymore; it's a precise, controlled positioning of the first ball by the least amount of speed needed. And one way to accomplish this is to strike the first ball thin. When you do that, the path of that first object ball is much simpler

to determine. You can figure your cue ball path easily, too, because when you cut the first ball thin, the cue ball speeds up after contact; you therefore don't require as much force, which in turn leads to

increased accuracy. You'll notice a common concept in three of the four examples I've selected: they have at least the first or second ball already in a prime position zone, sim-plifying your task. But even these sim¬ple position opportunities are often overlooked, by players using poor speed. Diagram 1 confronts us with he problem of landing on the scoring ball correctly to take full advantage of our position. You already know that we're striking the first ball thin in all of our examples; but here, we need to score on the third ball short — that is, as far away from the long rail- as we can — so as not to drive it away from the cor¬ner, besides defeating the purpose of leaving the first ball ahead near the long cushion. Use minimum 11 o'clock English; the reasons for that are to control the speed of the cue ball (the more English, the more quickly the ball rebounds off the cushions), and to lessen the risk of

driving the scored-upon ball farther, which added spin will do. Diagram 2 demonstrates a solution somewhat contrary to the first. Here we cut the first ball to the corner, to leave it there, and score again short on the third ball softly. Again, use very little 11 o'clock English, but for a dif¬ferent reason this time: your carom in this shot brings you very close to the corner, as shown. The cue ball devel¬ops more English and speed as a result of contacting those two rails almost simultaneously; keep that in mind when calculating your four examples, the cue ball and first ball to be contact¬ed have been close to one another, five or six inches, so the effect of the cue ball's swerving on the cloth in trying for a thin hit with English hasn't been a factor. In Diagram 3, we find our cue ball 3 to 4 four feet from the first ball, and it has to travel farther to the proper scoring zone than on the previous shots. To help keep the cue ball more on line, a short stroke serves better here — it results in less deflection and adds a little more speed to the first ball, which we need for this shot. Also, use 3 o'clock English to get a pure hit; since the third ball is close to the long rail, try to hit short on it to improve your position for the next shot. Diagram 4 is quite a bit different. It's a five rail position shot with little twist to it: you play six rails, not five, so as not to wind up behind the third ball. The main objective here is to bank the first ball cross table twice while the cue ball, with proper speed, travels to six cushions. Employ a rapid stroke and 2 o'clock English, and remember the

element of timing; there's a slight chance of a kiss between rails five and six. Hitting the shot as diagrammed will solve this problem too. Bear in mind that these shots repre¬sent

the simplest solutions to position opportunities. The final position of all three balls is fairly easy to visualize, because in most of the examples, the balls aren't traveling that far. But mas¬tery of these techniques should give you the confidence to examine tough situations this way too.

Page 7: Stroke Magazine January Issue 2010

Owning the Shot

January 2010 - Stroke Magazine 7

San Francisco Billiard Academywww.sfbilliards.com

Bob Jewett

San Francisco Billiard Academywww.sfbilliards.com

Bob Jewett

By: Bob Jewett

By Samm Diep, PoolTipJar.com © January 2010

Samm Diep

It’s not a Resolution. It’s a Movement.

Do you ever come up against a shot which is easy enough to make but you have no feel for how you’re going to get position? When that happens to you, it’s a great clue as to what you have topractice. Here’s an example.The 15 ball is one diamond from the side cushion and one diamond down the table from the side pocket.The cue ball is on a line such that your cue stick passes over the second diamond on the other side cushion as shown. The goal of each shot is to pocket the 15 in the side and take the cue ball to just touch the target ball. How close the cue ball is to the 15 is up to you -- move it farther away for more challenge, especially for draw shots.

First, try to park the cue ball by the one ball with plain draw. This is about at the limit for this angle of cut into the side, and will be impossible with

a heavy bar cue ball or if the cloth is old and sticky. Shot 2 is easier and should be possible under all conditions. On

each shot, you should try to get both the speed and direction just right. For the 3 and 4, go one rail off the side cushion. There are two ways to adjust the angle from the cushion -- draw or side spin. If I don’t know the table well, I’ll use a rolling cue ball and adjust the side spin to fix the angle. Draw position will be more affected by how new the cloth is. For shots 5, 6 and 7, you can get there two ways, as shown for the 6 ball. If you go two rails, get the 3 ball out of the way -- it’s not supposed to be a blocker on this drill. You can also get the last three balls with follow and one cushion. The 5 ball

continued on page 15

It’s that time of year again! It’s our chance to turn over a new leaf and start the year with a fresh, clean slate. Blah, blah, blah… Unfortunately, over 90% of New Year’s resolutions are not kept each year. This year will be no different. That’s why I’m not asking you to make a resolution. I’m pleading with you to start a movement. Let’s work together to rebuild our dying pool community, one player at a time, one pool room at a time. Will you please join me?

10 ways to make our billiard world a better place for everyone:

#10) Have a sense of humor. Miss a shot? Don’t get pissed off. Laugh it off. Have a better attitude for yourself and your peers. Believe me, if Efren can do it, so can you. No one wants to play with a whiner or a jerk. Work on having a more positive, productive outlook. You’ll be amazed at how it can attract better outcomes.#9) Introduce outside friends to pool. Our sport can only grow if the participation grows. We have the power to influence our friends and neighbors to also enjoy the game. Bring new people to your favorite pool room and make it a positive experience for them. Bonus points for every new friend that gets addicted!#8)Take up writing. If you don’t already have one, start a journal or a blog. Track your progress and measure your improvement. What better way to document your development? Blogs are free. You can pick up a small notebook and a pen for under a buck. It’s never too late to start and there’s no excuse not to.#7) Respect your opponent. Done shooting? Get out of the way. Miss position? Oh well, deal with it. The whole world doesn’t need to know where you meant to leave the cue ball. Lose a match? Shake your opponent’s hand and move on. It’s not necessary to tell them how lucky they got. None of that matters. The match is over. Now prepare for your next one. Win a match? Shake hands and go check the board. You don’t need to tell your opponent what they did wrong. I’m sure they already know. Stay in your seat when it’s not your turn and give the same respect that you would expect.

#6) Share your knowledge. Don’t keep it to yourself. If you learned something that worked for you, pass it on. You don’t need to be “that guy” that goes around telling everybody what they should do, but tell a story about how a change helped you improve. It may work for your friends too.#5) Take better care of the equipment. The next time you’re at the pool hall, set the chalk blue side up, don’t set food or drinks (or cigarettes in some towns) on the table, don’t sit on the pool table, do not shoot object balls with your cue (only the cue ball), treat the equipment as if it were your own. Room owners are reluctant to spend money maintaining equipment because they think pool players can’t respect it. Let’s show them we can. Be aware of your actions and don’t be afraid to remind others to do the same.#4) Pay it forward. I don’t care how cliché this phrase gets. I enjoyed the movie and I love the concept. Be a better person and be kind to others, not because you expect something in return but because we want to make the world a more pleasant place to live. Let’s start with our own pool world.#3) Spend money. Do your part to help replenish our struggling billiard economy. Support your local pool room. Practice for hours. Eat lunch there. Buy a drink or two. Tip your server. Find ways to cut corners without cutting out pool.#2) Improve your pool game. If you can’t afford to take a pool lesson, buy a book, borrow a video, surf the net. Billiard resources are becoming more widely available each and every day. There is absolutely no excuse for anyone to not be able to learn more and improve if they really want to. That’s the key, you must want it. Feel free to contact me personally if you need help locating free or close-to-free pool tips.#1) Remember why we’re here. Last, and definitely not least, we’re playing this game because we love it. Don’t ever let that slip your mind. Appreciate every single opportunity we have at the table. Make it a pleasant experience for you and for those around you. Have fun!

If you enjoyed this article, take it with you and share it with at least one other person. Let’s start a movement! Let’s work together to improve our pool community!

Page 8: Stroke Magazine January Issue 2010

8 Stroke Magazine - January 2010

What promised to be a very large turnout was reduced to 19 players, who braved a blizzard with a foot of snow, just to compete. just to mention a few, for their continuous support of our tour's events, sponsorship and, the sport. Dan's winning trail included matches with Ed Medina (8 - 6); Jerry Tarrantola (7 - 6); Paul Everton (7 - 6); Raul Reyes (9 - 8) for the Hot Seat and, a repeat match with Jerry Tarrantola in the Finals (9 - 8). Jerry, owner of NYCGIND, played outstanding all day with a 5 - 2 win/loss; however , after two grueling battles with Dan, only Dan remained standing. Congratulations to both these players for a strong showing and the rest of the players are to be applauded for their dedication to the game. Sponsors for the event were Ed Liddawi, owner of Sandcastle Billiards and Milliken SuperPro Pool Table Cloth distributed by Sterling-Gaming. Finally, the next A/D Special Format Tri-State event is scheduled to be at Castle Blliards on December 26th.

PRIZE PAYOUT 1st $635 Dan Cintron2nd $240 Jerry Tarrantola3rd $120 Raul Reyes4th $70 Richard Ng

Cintron Wins at Sandcastle

From left to right: 2nd place Troy Deocharran; Dave Ascolese; and winner Raphael DaBreo

After a layoff from the game, Raphael went undefeated in Master Billiards' 10 Ball Ti-State Tour event. Amazingly, he is finding his form only playing a few times a month. In route to his victory, DaBreo blazed a trail defeating: Mike Harrington 7 - 5; Dave Shlemperis 7 - 4; Troy Deocharran 7 - 5; "Devil Dave" Ascolese; and successfully defended himself against Deocharran's attempt to avenge his earlier loss to Raphael with a 7 - 6 win for the crown. Troy Deocharran's win/loss record 5 & 2. Devil Dave's win/loss record 6 & 2. Also making a strong showing was up and coming Justin Muller with an impressive 6 & 2 record.

DABREO GETTING BACK IN STROKE

Barbara Returns to Hot Seat After a long hiatus, returning tri-state player Rob Barbara went to the hot seat without too much trouble. The action was on the one loss side with Scott Bannon winning 5 in a row to get a shot at the title. Meanwhile, Sandie Paterino, after losing her 1st match, won 7 in a row only to lose to Bannon in the quarter finals. after going down 4-1 in the extended race finals, Bannon only gave up 1 more rack to win 9-5.RESULTS: 1st $600 Scott Bannon2nd $400 Rob Barbara3rd $250 Jake Schwartz4th $150 Sandie Paterino5th - 6th $85 Scott Simonetti, Sam Vitellaro7th - 8th $65 Ted Lapadula, Tony Eglesias

The United States Snooker Association (USSA), established in 1991 in Chicago, Illinois, is the non-profit governing body for the sport of snooker in the USA as recognized by the world snooker governing body, the International Billiard & Snooker Federation (IBSF). Now headquartered in California, the USSA is pleased to announce the second Tour year of the popular “2010 USSA National Snooker Tour.” Each event is open to any individual except professional snooker players. For details, please contact the USSA representative assigned to each respective event (listed below). A $25 annual membership to the USSA is not required, but requested, of entries. The 2010 USSA National Snooker Tour is proud to be sponsored by two of the heavyweights in the snooker industry – Aramith Snooker Balls and Strachan snooker cloth! The USSA recently sent two members (National champion Ahmed Aly El Sayed and national runner-up Ajeya Prabhakar) to the IBSF World Snooker Championships in Hyderabad, India, November 15 – 25. Both had qualified through the 2009 USSA National Championships, the 2010 version of which will be determined in the near future by the USSA board of directors. The top finishers from each Nationals also become qualified for Team USA in the annual Can-Am Snooker Challenge conducted at the site of the 2010 USSA Nationals. If your establishment contains two or more 6 x 12 snooker tables and would like to host a stop on future USSA National Tours, or you would like any information on the USSA, please call 1-888-662-1705, email [email protected], or visit the USSA website at www.snookerusa.com. Details for each event will be posted on the USSA website in December, 2009.

2010 USSA National Snooker Tour

Page 9: Stroke Magazine January Issue 2010

Ultimate Billiards in Ft Pierce, FL, was the latest room to host the KF Cue Tour. This room always has a strong field and this event was no different with 52 players turning out for the $1000 Added Amateur event. Jeff Mabry who has a good record in this room was showing why by going undefeated to take the hotseat with strong wins over Jeff Stratton 7-5, Angel Rivera 7-2, Doug Young 7-6, Chris Gentile 7-5, Jason Sheerman 7-1 which would bring him back Sunday to Face Anthony Meglino for the hotseat. Meglino kicked off with a hard fought 7-6 win over Raymond Linares and followed it up with wins over Robert Cosenza 7-6, Mark Shenandoah 7-0, Prescott Buckwold 7-4 and then a 7-2 win over Danny Satinoff to make his way back to Sunday. The final four players making there way back Sunday would see Jeff Mabry v Anthony Meglino on the winner’s side and Prescott Buckwold v Danny Satinoff on the one loss side. Jeff Mabry would take the hotseat match with 7-4 and Prescott Buckwold would beat Satinoff 5-4 on the one loss side. The semi final match would see Meglino beat Buckwold 5-4 to get a rematch with Mabry for the amateur title. The final was a single race to 8 and Meglino came out playing great pool to take his first amateur title with an impressive 8-2 win.

The $1000 added open event kicked off with 47 players, 28 of these players were amateurs taking advantage of reduced entry of $40 if they had played in the Saturdays Amateur event. Some notable names in attendance were Tommy Kennedy, John Ditoro, Rob Saez, Tony Crosby, Rafael Martinez and Richard Broumpton to mention a

few. The day would kick off with a good first round battle between Rob Saez and Tony Crosby, Crosby would run out a 7-4 winner and go onto the winners side final with wins over Sam Kantar 7-5, Trey Jankowski 7-5, Pierre Palmieri 7-4 and then a 7-4 win over Raul Alverez to get in winners final where he would face John Foster. Foster had battled his way through with wins over Prescott Buckwold 7-4, Rick Gatta 7-4, Curtis Kelly 7-2 and then Richard Broumpton 7-3. Foster would also come out on top in the winners side final playing some strong pool to take a 7-5 win over Crosby. While all this was going on Tommy Kennedy who had taken a 2nd round loss to Louis Altes was making his way back with wins over Sam Kantar, John Ditoro, Doug Young, Pierre Palmieri, Richard Broumpton, Curtis Kelly and then a 7-4 win over Crosby to put himself in the final.John Foster was playing great pool all day and the final was no different. He would take a 7-3 lead in the single race to 8 and look like winning easy until Kennedy started a late charge, and would take the next 3 games to get to 7-6 and just when he looked like tying the match up at 7-7 he would miss a straight in 9 to hand Foster the match. We would like to thank ultimate Billiards for hosting another great

event and also the largest this season with 99 players showing up over the weekend. We would also like to thank all our sponsors that can be seen at www.kfcuetour.com along with all other tour info.Our next event will be at Hammerheads in Holiday, Florida 19th-20th December we look forward to seeing you all at our last event for 09.

January 2010 - Stroke Magazine 9

Meglino and Foster take down KF cue tour events

John Foster and Tommy Kennedy

PAYOUTS1st $600 Anthony Meglino2nd $450 Jeff Mabry3rd $330 Prescott Buckwold4th $200 Danny Satinoff5th-6th $150 Raymond Linares, Jason Sheerman 7th-8th $100 Mark Block, Ted Harris9th-12th $75 Wesley White, Chris Gentile, Justin Gilsinan, Bill Dunsmore

PAYOUTS1st $700 John Foster2nd $500 Tommy Kennedy 3rd $350 Tony Crosby4th $200 Curtis Kelly5th-6th $110 Richard Broumpton, Raul Alverez7th-8th $75 Pierre Palmieri, Louis Altes

Page 10: Stroke Magazine January Issue 2010

10 Stroke Magazine - January 2010

SANDCASTLE BLAZE The Blaze Tour Stop, made their first visit to Sandcastle Billiards in Edison NJ. Room owner and pool enthusiast "Sandman" welcomed 26 of the Northeast's best pool players to the one day Pro/Am event. The Blaze Tour is known for having the strongest one day field in the Northeast, but players didn't expect so many heavy hitters to be in attendance. "Ginky" George Sansouci, Joey Testa, Shane Winters, Mike Miller, Matt Krah, John Alicia, Dave Grau, Randy Schwager, Shaun Wilkie, Dan Cintron, Joey Landi. and "Kid Delicous" Danny Basavich all came out to battle. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Danny_Basavich, The last Blaze stop at Sandcastle, Mike Sigel was dominant, and it was clear that several of the top up and coming players were hungry to stir up some buzz around their game. To the delight of the knowledgeable NJ crowd, Kid Delicious came did not disappoint his fans through impressive play, but came short of cashing after losing a "Hill-Hill" set to Shaun Wilke. Top regional player Mike Miller was in dead gear, as he defeated Erin McManus 7-2, Shaun Winters, 7-5, Ginky 7-5, John Alicea 7-6 lining up a Winners side "Hot Seat" match with Joey Landi. On the bottom half of the Winners bracket, Joey Landi went through Duane Toney "Wu Tang" 7-6, Derek Schwager 7-3, Ben Sadowski 7-0 and Randy Schwager 7-2 on the bottom half of the winners side bracket. Joey Landi was impressive in bouncing back to top form, after a long break from the

game. Joey mentioned that he is playing well because of putting in a lot of hours on the table at Sandcastle, which is his home room. In the match between Mike and Joey… Mike Miller jumped quickly out to a 5-2 lead, which proved to be too much for Joey to handle on this day knocking Joey out of the tournament 7-4. On the One Loss Side you had impressive performances from a combination of players

including John Alicea, Dave Grau, Danny Basavich, Randy Schwager and Shane Winters… but no player could constantly bring the heat like Shaun Wilke was bringing on this day. Shaun edged Raj Vannala 7-6, Shaun had a tough well played battled with Dave Grau 7-3 before losing to top North East player Randy Schwager 7-5. and then Shaun shifted into a higher gear. Shaun Wilke defeated Shane Winters 7-2 and overcame an impressive

performance against Kid Delicious Danny Basavich 7-6, then beating John Alicea 7-2 and Randy Schwager 7-3. Now Shaun was lined up with Joey Landi, who at one time was consistently a threat to win on the Florida Pro Tour. It was clear that Shaun was hungry to make a statement at this event and payed near flawless to defeat Joey 7-3. The Blaze Tour uses a true double elimination format, which meant that Shaun Wilkie had to

defeat Mike Miller 2x, which he went on to do in two consecutive sets. The first set was a 7-6 nail biter, where Shaun clutched out a gritty run, and the second set Shaun's momentum and swagger was too much for Mike to fade on this day. The Blaze Tour Staff would like to thank Sandcastle Billiards and it's Sponsors for their support. The Tour's next stop will be at Skyline Billiards, in Brooklyn NY on the 20th of December. Congratulations on a remarkable performance by "Get Some" Shaun Wilkie. Shaun Wilkie would like to thank his sponsor Lucasi Hybrid for equipment and on going support. I would also like

to thank thank the players for coming out to play, and special thanks to Jerry Tarantola for covering the event.

FINAL RESULTS:1st: $940 Shaun Wilke2nd: $550 Mike Miller3rd: $325 Joey Landi4th: $200 Randy Schwager5th: $130 George "Ginky" Sansouci John Alicea

Winner Shaun Wilkie, 2nd Mike Miller, 3rd Joey Landi and Owner Ed Liddawi

Page 11: Stroke Magazine January Issue 2010

January 2010 - Stroke Magazine 11

Page 12: Stroke Magazine January Issue 2010

12 Stroke Magazine - January 2010

AMERICA RECLAIMS MOSCONI CUPHatch MVP in Storming Sunday

TEAM USA have won the PartyPoker.net Mosconi Cup outright for the first time since 2005 as they took the required two points on Sunday to defeat defending champions Europe by a four point margin. A win for Dennis Hatch, who took ‘Most Valuable Player’ honours as the winning team’s biggest point scorer, took the team to the hill and then Shane Van Boening snatched the trophy clincher as he defeated Ralf Souquet. It was a proud moment for American captain Nick Varner after last year’s disastrous trip to Malta; “This has been the best five days of my life and they all just played so well and I’m so proud of them,” he said. “I feel really good and I think I’m going to be like Dennis and probably start crying. The whole team - Dennis, Johnny, Corey, Oscar and Shane - have played so well and I am so happy.” Making his Mosconi Cup debut, Buffalo-based Hatch was the star of the show throughout as his ebullient presence from start to finish as well as his outstanding play, drove his side on. Clutching his glass MVP Award, a tearful Hatch said, “I can’t explain how I feel; this is the best moment of my life. “I want to thank all the fans for being here and if it was not for those guys we wouldn’t have won. It’s the best feeling I’ve ever had and this team is just amazing. “Nothing can compare to this. I’m already thinking about the Turning Stone Classic which I have to play in three days but I won’t care if I win or lose because it won’t be as good as this. How can it compare to this?” he added. For Europe it was a tough defeat after two consecutive victories; "We came here very motivated but from day one we felt we were swimming upstream,” said Alex Lely. “Today we got going but hats off the Americans, they played really well. Oscar and Dennis played really strong and the old schoolers did well and they deserved it. "But I'm proud of my team. We've been swimming upstream and we had to fight for it and it didn't happen for us. But hanging around these guys is great and a lot of fun and we will be back next year in Europe." Trailing 9-5 at the start of the day, Europe needed the biggest comeback in Mosconi Cup history to retain the trophy and Ralf Souquet was the reliable choice for skipper Alex Lely and he delivered a solid performance to defeat Shane Van Boening by 6-3. Van Boening hasn’t been at the top of his game at this year’s event and Souquet had a

little bit too much in all departments. He ended the match with a confident 3/9 combination to put his side within three of the Americans. "It was very important for us to win. We were down 9-5 and with the US only two games away from victory so we went into today as playing a regular tournament,” said Souquet. “Even though it's still a double elimination where we can lose once, we want to win every match. "The first one was very important and I'm really looking forward to every match. But we have to take it one step at a time and that was only the first step." People’s Champion Dennis Hatch, who was selected by a fan vote, took America to the brink of Mosconi Cup glory as he pounded Niels Feijen 6-0 to take the score 10-6. As ever, Hatch was fired up as he strode into the arena and his aggressive play was too much for the Dutchman who suffered the first whitewash of the competition and his second

reverse to the Hatchetman in two days. "I've lived for this moment all my life. It's all about enjoying it while you're there, having fun and living the moment,” said Hatch. "No words can say how proud I am to win for my fans, my family and myself. It's just the best environment ever and the best player format I've seen in my life and I'm loving it. "We couldn't have a better story for me to beat Niels 6-0 and then Johnny to beat Thorsten to win the cup." It was not to be though as Thorsten Hohmann played a blinder as he upset Archer 6-1 to keep the Euro comeback dream alive. The American, who was undefeated up to this point, succumbed to Hohmann’s doggedness as he played to

keep his team in the competition. That left it to Shane Van Boening to win his first Mosconi Cup in three attempts, as he reversed his earlier defeat to Ralf Souquet with a historic 6-2 victory. ‘This is the third year I have been in it and I’ve lost the last two so there was no way I wanted to lose again,” said Van Boening. “Before that match with Ralf started I was thinking ‘how the hell did he beat me?’ so I said to a friend that he is never going to beat me again. “He had my number in the first match and I couldn’t let him beat me again so I just put him away. I played perfectly in that match and didn’t make a single mistake.” Making a record-equalling 13th appearance in the competition, veteran Johnny Archer put the disappointments of ’08 behind him, and delivered a series of outstanding performances to help his team over the line. “It’s easy to say we’ve had a good time when you’ve won but the whole experience has been fantastic,” said Archer. “Losing the last two years wasn’t an inspiration but we really wanted to redeem ourselves but I was just so excited to be on the first team without any negativity.” THE SCORESRalf Souquet 6 – 3 Shane Van BoeningNiels Feijen 0 – 6 Dennis HatchThorsten Hohmann 6 – 1 Johnny ArcherRalf Souquet 2 – 6 Shane Van Boening Live in its entirety on Sky Sports in the UK, the PartyPoker.net Mosconi Cup features two five-man teams representing Europe and the USA doing battle in a series of singles and doubles matches.

Story and photo courtesy of: Matchroom.com

Page 13: Stroke Magazine January Issue 2010

January 2010 - Stroke Magazine 13

They certainly accomplished their mission and a big congratulations goes to Team USA for becoming the 2009 Mosconi Cup Champions. “We began preparing for the event much earlier this year after our loss last year.” said Team USA captain, Nick Varner. At the pre-event reception Nick was focused, determined and very serious about why they were there and that was....to win. Thursday morning as Match 1 was underway, the crowd was anxious to see how rookie, Oscar Dominguez, would fare under pressure. To everyone’s surprise, he seemed to be the most relaxed player on the team. Cool, calm and playing extremely well. Johnny Archer, being a veteran of the Mosconi Cup was an outstanding teammate. Whether playing in a scotch doubles match or sitting in the sidelines, he was always right there to support and applause his teammates. Corey Deuel never ceased to amaze the audience with his astonishing shot making ability and the most deserved MVP trophy went to Dennis Hatch for his entertaining performance all weekend. Lastly, Shane Van Boening was extremely strong and consistent. He lost to Ralf Souquet 3-6 on the final day and had to play Ralf again 3 matches later. With Team USA only needing 1 more match win to claim the cup, Shane never looked back and defeated Ralf 6-2. Great job Team USA, we couldn’t be more proud.

www.pooldawg.com

In 2009, we sponsored quite a few live streams. Our goal is to help live streams, such as OTBnTV or ontherailtv.com to remain free to the viewers. We want everyone to be able to watch pool tournaments on live stream, because not everyone can be there to watch their son, brother, friend, etc..We were honored to be sponsors of two major streams, this past year. One was the Olhausen 3 Cushion Open tournament, streamed by Steven Elzinga and the other was the Dr. Cue Classic Artistic Pool Cup III and Search for Cue-Dean-E, streamed by Ray Hansen. This was the very first artistic pool event ever to be streamed and it was a great success! In the Dr. Cue Classic Artistic Pool Cup III, Nick Nikolaidis won first place and Jamey Gray defeated Andy “The Magic Man” Segal to take 2nd place. A Crown Cue was won by Rodney “The Preacher” Fontaine and Jason “The Michigan Kid” Lynch received the title of Cue-Dean-E.We’d like to thank all the other sponsors of live streams. We could not win this battle alone. Remember to support the stream sponsors, so they can continue to keep the streams free for all to view.Watch for our articles in the next couple of issues for inside information about the players we sponsor and where to find them (and us) at the 2010 Super Billiards Expo, in March. Have a safe and happy New Year!

What’s Happening in the Little Wooden Shed

CueSports International (CSI), in partnership with promoter Mark Cantrill, would like to announce that Team CSI – American Grand Masters is heading to the U.S. Midwest for the first leg of the Team CSI Tour.The team is comprised of: BCA Hall of Fame inductee and 5 time U.S. Open 9-Ball Champion Earl “The Pearl” Strickland, 2009 Texas Open winner Charlie “Hillbilly” Bryant, 2006 U.S. Open 9-Ball Champion and 2009 Derby City Classic One Pocket winner John “Mr. 400” Schmidt, and 2001 U.S. Open 9-Ball Champion Corey Deuel who has also served on the U.S. Mosconi Cup Team 6 times.Each of the four members of Team CSI still actively compete in both U.S. and international events, thus two members of the team travel together for each leg of the tour. The Midwest Tour, which is scheduled January 8-17, will feature Earl Strickland and John Schmidt.“I have always enjoyed teaching and passing on knowledge in person. I also enjoy meeting new people and so this is going to be a great experience and can’t wait.” said John Schmidt.Strickland and Schmidt will perform a series of exciting exhibitions and hold pool schools throughout Michigan, Indiana, Illinois, Nebraska and Iowa. The pool school is 4 hours in length with a maximum of 12 students per school. Each student will have an opportunity for individual instruction with both Strickland and Schmidt addressing the student’s personal needs to progress in their respective games. The total cost to attend the pool school is $200 per student.For information about Team CSI visit the CSI website at www.playcsipool.com. For more information about the tour, to schedule an exhibition or pool school in your area, and to register to attend a pool school contact Mark Cantrill at (480) 612-7732 or email him at [email protected] addition to CSI, Team CSI – American Grand Masters 2010 Midwest Tour is sponsored by, Mueller Recreational Products, Cornhuskers Billiards, Sterling Gaming, and Nielsen’s Billiards.CueSports International (CSI) is dedicated to creating more choices for all players. CSI is the parent company of the BCA Pool League, the National Championship Series (NCS), and the USA Pool League. CSI also produces independent events such as the U.S. Bar Table Championships, the Jay Swanson Memorial and the U.S. Open 10-Ball Championship. Visit www.playcsipool.com, www.playbca.com and www.playusapool.com for more information about CSI and its divisions.

Team CSIHeads to the HeartlandStory and photo courtesy of: VegasBilliardsBuzz.com

Page 14: Stroke Magazine January Issue 2010

14 Stroke Magazine - January 2010

Hammerheads Billiards lounge hosted the latest event on the KF Cue Tours Calendar. The event kicked off with 47 players showing up for the $1000 added pot. Jason Richko would prove to be the man to beat making his way to the hotseat with wins over Rick Gatta, Scott Howard, Chip Dickerson, Glen Miller, Dan Dennis and then a close battle with Bill Dunsmore 7-6 to take the hotseat. While all this was going on Mike Xiarhos Snr who was taking names on the one loss side. After taking a second round loss to Mark Wathen, Xiarhos would make his way to the final with wins over Dave Adams, Eddie Wheat, Stephanie Mitchell, Garry Blatt, Bill Delisle, a revenge match over Mark Wathen, Dan Dennis, Josh Palmer and then a semi final win over Bill Dunsmore to reach the final to play Richko. Xiarhos would come out firing in the final and take a 5-0 lead, Richko trailed the whole match would come back to tie it up at 7-7 and take the last rack after several safety exchanges and his first KF title. Sundays $1000 added open event also had a $1000 bonus going to the winner to help offset the expenses for the Predator international 10-ball event that would take place in Spain early January. A very strong 29 player field showed up with the likes of Rafael Martinez, Mike Davis, Robb Saez, Tommy Kennedy and Tony Crosby. Louis Altes was looking very strong on the day with wins over Rafael Martinez 7-6, Mike Davis 7-5, Tony Crosby 7-6, Josh Palmer 7-3 before

losing a very close match 7-6 to Kennedy for the hotseat. After taking a loss to Louis Altes Tony Crosby was looking to try and book his trip to Spain with wins over Dan Dennis 7-4, Robb Saez 7-4, Bill Dunsmore 7-2, Mike Delawder 7-5 and then a strong revenge win over Louis Altes 7-0 to set up a final with Kennedy. The final would go right to the wire with both players playing great pool. With the score tied at 8-8, Kennedy would break the balls and just when looking like it was all over he would hang a tough four ball and Crosby would run out to take his first title of the season and book his trip to Spain with the extra $1000 bonus. We would like to thank Hammerheads Billiards lounge and there staff for hosting another great weekend of pool, our sponsors which can be seen at HYPERLINK "http://www.kfcuetour.com" www.kfcuetour.com with the schedule for the New Year, We hope everybody has a happy and safe holidays merry Christmas from the KF Cue Tour.

OPEN PAYOUTS1st $1650 Tony Crosby $16502nd $400 Tommy Kennedy $4003rd $300 Louis Altes $3004th $200 Mike Delawder $2005-6th $100 Josh Palmer, Bill Dunsmore $100

AMATEUR PAYOUTS1st $650 Jason Richko $6502nd $400 Mike Xiarhos Snr $4003rd $300 Bill Dunsmore $3004th $200 Josh Palmer $2005-6th $125 Glen Miller, Dan Dennis $1257-8th $90 Scott Howard, Mark Wathen $909-12th $60 Louis Altes, Trey Jankowski, Bill Delisle, Michael Xiarhos JnrTop Lady: Stephanie Mitchell $30 plus a free entry.

Richko and Crosby Hammer it out

Tony Crosby

Wilkie continued from page 4

repeated over Scott Tollefson (9-4), then avenged his earlier loss to Ginky with a strong 9-4 win. However, on this evening, Shaun's single-minded determination seemed to radiate from his presence at the table, like a predator that smells blood. Through a display of entertaining shot making and smart, chess-like moves around the table, Shaun was able to grab the lead and momentum early and never look back to win 10-3. The Sunday B/C/D Tournament helped fill the pool room with competitive spirit along with an engaged audience. Turkish women's professional Neslihan "Ness" Gurel, was impressive in earning three strong wins before running into a brick wall against Raj Vannala.

Raj Vannala came back from a 5-3 deficit to defeat Ness 6-5 before following it up with another strong come-from-behind win over Naldo Troncoso (7-6) in the finals. Naldo was running through the finals with 4 consecutive wins and had Raj down 4-0 before Raj started to grind back. Raj was impressive in a breakthrough performance of grit and heart in capturing the final B/C/D Predator event of the year. For the 2010 Predator Tour season, there will be some exciting format changes. There will now be two separate events for pros and amateurs, and each tour stop weekend will feature a pro/open 10-ball event alongside an amateur 9-ball event. The schedule for the 2010 season is now up, and you can check it out at www.predator9balltour.com

FINAL RESULTS: 1st: $2,500 Shaun "Get Some" Wilkie 2nd: $1,500 Frankie Hernandez3rd: $1,000 "Ginky" George SanSouci 4th: $750 Scott Tollefson5th/6th: $550 Mike Miller, Al Lapena7th/8th: $400 Manny Chau, Jose Parica9th-12th: $250 Mhet Vergara, Matt Krah, Joey Korsiak, Chris Orme13th-16th: $150 Kevin Guimond, Mike Wong,

Mike Fingers, Oscar Bonilla

B/C/D CLASS: 1st: $160 Raj Vannala2nd: $100 Naldo Troncoso3rd: "Devil Dave" Dave Ascolese4th: Neslihan Gurel

Highest Finishing Female: Borana AndoniHighest Finishing C/D: John Hacsi

Page 15: Stroke Magazine January Issue 2010

January 2010 - Stroke Magazine 15

DATE CITY LOCATION PHONE EVENT / RULES ENTRY ADDED TIMEJan 2 Albany, GA Break Time Pub (229) 344-5377 9-Ball Open $40 $500 CallJan 2-3 Columbus, OH Cornfed Red’s (614) 834-1000 Amateur/10-Ball Ring Varies Call 1 PMJan 3 Worcester, MA London Billiards www.dominiakcuestour.com 10 Ball Dominiak Cues Tour $25+$10 $350 in prizes 11 AMJan 9-10 Greensboro, NC Gate City Billiards (336) 856-8800 Team DMIRO 10-Ball Call $1,000 CallJan 9-10 Spring Hill, FL Capones Billiards (352) 688-9965 KF Cues Tour Amateur/Open Call $2,000 CallJan 9-10 Syracuse, NY Korky’s Pool Hall (315) 488-4888 CNY 9-Ball Tour Varies $600 NoonJan 16 Gainesville, FL Art of Billiards (352) 225-3535 9-Ball Open - Men/Women $25/$20 $500 Guar 1st 10 AMJan 16 Windsor Locks, CT Pool Table Magic www.dominiakcuestour.com 10 Ball Dominiak Cues Tour $25+$10 $350 in prizes 11 AMJan 22-30 Elizabeth, IN Horseshoe Casino (866) 766-2671 DCC - 9-Ball Banks $100+$10 reg $10,000 guar 10 AM Jan 22-30 Elizabeth, IN Horseshoe Casino (866) 766-2671 DCC - One Pocket $125+$10 reg $15,000 guar 10 AM Jan 22-30 Elizabeth, IN Horseshoe Casino (866) 766-2671 DCC - 9-Ball $150+$10 reg $25,000 guar 10 AM Jan 23-24 Syracuse, NY Cap’s Cue Club (315) 701-0101 CNY 9-Ball Tour $105 $600 NoonJan 30-31 Orlando, FL Corner Pockets (352) 867-8100 KF Cues Tour Amateur/Open Call $2,000 CallJan 30-31 Latham, NY Diamond 8 Billiards (518) 786-8048 Joss NE 9-Ball Tour $100 $2,000 CallJan 31 Clifton Park, NY Trick Shot Billiards www.dominiakcuestour.com 10 Ball Dominiak Cues Tour $25+$10 $350 in prizes 11 AMFeb 13 Gainesville, FL Art of Billiards (352) 225-3535 9-Ball Open - Men/Women $25/$20 $500 Guar 1st 10 AMFeb 13-14 E Yorkville, NY Hippo’s (315) 768-0218 CNY 9-Ball Tour $105 $600 NoonFeb 13-14 Palm Harbor, FL Strokers Billiards (727) 786-6683 KF Cues Tour Amateur/Open Call $2,000 CallFeb 14 Springfield, MA Snookers Billiards www.dominiakcuestour.com 10 Ball Dominiak Cues Tour $25+$10 $350 in prizes 11 AMFeb 22-24 Reno, NV Sands Regency (702) 719-7665 10-Ball Bar Table Champ. $125 $6000 NoonFeb 24-26 Reno, NV Sands Regency (702) 719-7665 9-Ball Bar Table Champ. $125 $6000 NoonFeb 24-26 Reno, NV Sands Regency (702) 719-7665 9-Ball Bar Table Champ. Wms $75 $1000 w/16 NoonFeb 26-28 Reno, NV Sands Regency (702) 719-7665 8-Ball Bar Table Champ. $125 $7000 NoonFeb 26-28 Reno, NV Sands Regency (702) 719-7665 8-Ball Bar Table Champ. Wms $75 $1000 w/16 NoonFeb 27-28 Longwood, FL Fast Break Billiards (407) 830-1036 KF Cues Tour Amateur/Open Call $2,000 CallFeb 27-28 N Syracuse, NY Salt City Billiards (315) 454-8643 CNY 9-Ball Tour $105 $600 NoonFeb 28 Ayer, MA The Billiards Cafe www.dominiakcuestour.com 10 Ball Dominiak Cues Tour $25+$10 $350 in prizes 11 AMMar 6 Gainesville, FL Art of Billiards (352) 225-3535 9-Ball Open - Men/Women $25/$20 $500 Guar 1st 10 AMMar 13-14 Tampa, FL Strokers 2 Billiards (813) 814-2277 KF Cues Tour Amateur/Open Call $2,000 CallMar 14 Albany, NY Golden Cue Billiards www.dominiakcuestour.com 10 Ball Dominiak Cues Tour $25+$10 $350 in prizes 11 AMMar 27-28 Merritt Island, FL Island Breakers (321) 459-9100 KF Cues Tour Amateur/Open Call $2,000 CallMar 28 Springfield, MA Snookers Billiards www.dominiakcuestour.com 10 Ball Dominiak Cues Tour $25+$10 $350 in prizes 11 AMApr 3-4 Syracuse, NY Korky’s Pool Room (315) 488-4888 CNY 9-Ball Tour $105 $600 Noon

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Owning the Shot continued from page 7

will probably need a little right english, while the 7 ball will need left english. Can you take the cue ball to the other side pocket using either one or two rails? I think this is nearly impossible on some tables. Try each position until you leave the cue ball “close enough” to the object ball, which might be to end up within a ball’s diameter or within a hand span. If you want to keep score, consider three tries for each shot as par, so a total of 20 would be good. This is just one example of how to “own” a shot you might stumble over during play. Note any such shots in your own competition and spend some time with them on the practice table. REJ

1 234

5

6

7 15

Get to each of the objectballs after making the 15.

There are two ways to getto the 5, 6 and 7.

Blaze 9 Ball Tour made its way Drexeline Billiards in Drexel Hill PA Sunday November 29, 2009. A Strong field of 49 payers came out to play, players like: Joey Testa, Eddie Abraham, Brett Stottlemyer, Dave Grau, Josh Brothers Matt Krah, Joe Hong, Denise Reeves, and the Ladies point leader Erin McManus. In the Finals it was Eddie Abraham Vs Joey Testa, Abraham has to beat Testa twice to win the event. The first match was a great match with Joey Testa edging Eddie Abraham 7-5 to win the match and the event. I would like to thank the players that came out and all the sponsor.1st $1370 Joey Testa 2nd $750 Eddie Abraham 3rd $450 Brett Stottlemyer 4th $225 Dave Grau 5/6 $150 Joe Hong, Josh Brothers 7/8 $100 Matt Krah, Kenny Rutman 9-12 $70 Tim Anderson, Danny Basavich, Abdllatif Chamseddine, Lou Patrikios

Winner Joey Testa

Te s Ta Ge T s 9-Ba l l Wi n

Attention Pool Players: Do you know of a location that doesn’t receive STROKE - Call or email info on page 3Don’t forget to send us your Tour Schedule

Page 16: Stroke Magazine January Issue 2010

16 Stroke Magazine - January 2010