BCA 9-Ball Champs Crowned
Thorsten Hohmann and Allison Fisher have taken titles at the Billiard Congress of America’s annual pro event, the BCA Pro Open 9-Ball Championship.
Fisher fought off three-time defending champ Karen Corr in the final, and won, 7-5.
The men’s final match was a shocker. Hohmann kept Johnny Archer in his chair for nearly the whole match, laying down a break-and-run each time he broke in the alternating format. Archer, meanwhile, struggled with the break, sinking nothing once and scratching once. The result was a lopsided 7-0 win by Hohmann.
Both winners collected $15,000. For detailed brackets from both divisions, visit www.wpba.com.
Lions Gate Films Developing Kid Delicious Movie
Lions Gate Films has made a development deal for a feature film to be loosely based on the life of Danny “Kid Delicious” Basavich. Basavich is currently ranked No. 1 on the Billiards Digest Power Index. The deal was announced May 9 by Peter Block, Lions Gate President of Acquisitions and Co-Productions and Michael Paseornek, President of Production and Development.
The deal includes right to the recent Sports Illustrated article “The Amazing Adventures of Kid Delicious and Bristol Bob,” written by L. Jon Wertheim, in addition to a life-rights and consulting agreement with Basavich and his former road partner “Bristol” Bob Begey. The first draft of the screenplay will be written by Wertheim, who is also writing a book based on Basavich, to be published by Houghton Mifflin publishers.
“Kid Delicious is a true American success story, and we are thrilled to be developing a film based on his incredible journey from being one of the most creative and successful pool hustlers to being the top-ranked professional billiards player in the country,” Block said.
Fisher Takes Fifth Amway Title
Fisher grabbed Amway title number five.
In the final, televised live on Taiwanese television station Videoland, Fisher bested Korea’s Ga Young Kim, 11-6. Fisher collected $24,000 for her win. Kim took home $12,000 for second place.
The rest of the field finished as follows: 3. Karen Corr; 4. Shin-Mei Liu; 5. (tie) Yuan-Chun Lin, Wendy Jans; 7. (tie) Jasmin Ouschan, Jennifer Chen; 9. (tie) Shu-Han Chang, Jeanette Lee; 11. (tie) Jennifer Barretta, Kajitani Akimi.
Finals Set for Amway Cup
The quarter- and semifinal rounds are complete at the Amway Cup World Women Billiards Invitational, being held May 6-9 in Taipei, Taiwan. Korea’s Ga Young Kim is slated to face British “Duchess of Doom” Allison Fisher in the final tonight.
In one quarterfinal round, Karen Corr bested Yuan-Chun Lin, advancing to a semifinal against Fisher, where Corr was eliminated, 7-3. In the other quarterfinal, Shin-Mei Liu beat young Belgian Wendy Jans, 7-5. Liu then took a 7-2 beating from good friend Kim.
The playoff for third place between Corr and Liu takes place this evening before the final. All matches are being shown live on Taiwanese television.
European Pool Championships Wrap-up
The European Pool Championships, held April 20-30 in Veldhoven, The Netherlands, has wrapped up the last of the divisions, with 9-ball and team competitions finishing up over the weekend.
The 9-ball competitions began with double-elimination brackets, and became single-elimination showdowns in the final 32. On the men’s side, the final four were Alex Lely, Thorsten Hohmann, Mika Immonen and Ralf Souquet. Lely beat Souquet, 9-8, in the final. In 9-ball, Jasmin Ouschan, Kim Shaw, Katrine Jensen and Charlotte Sörensen were the last four women in the arena. Ouschan took the title, making her a double-title winner in Veldhoven (the first being in straight pool).
In the men’s team championships, Team Germany looked like the team to beat from the start, with Souquet, Hohmann and Oliver Ortmann, among others, on board. Indeed, they beat the team from the Czech Republic, 4-0. In the women’s team event, Germany was again the victor, with The Netherlands in second.
9-Ball Finals Approach at European Pool Championships
The 8-ball and straight-pool divisions completed, and 9-ball fields are narrowing in on a champion at the European Pool Championships. The multi-part event being held in Veldhoven, The Netherlands, started April 20 and goes through tomorrow, April 30th.
Both men’s and women’s 9-ball will play a single-elimination semifinal early this evening, with a final following at 8pm, Netherlands local time.
In the women’s division, Jasmin Ouschan will play Kim Shaw and Katrine Jensen will play Charlotte Sorensen in the semifinals. The men’s semifinals pit Alex Lely against Thorsten Hohmann and Mika Immonen against Ralf Souquet.
Team competitions are ongoing, and will wrap up tomorrow evening.
Results Rolling in for European Championships
The European Pool Championships are well underway, with winners in from many divisions. The multi-part event started April 20, in Veldhoven, The Netherlands, and goes through April 30th. An all-time high of 34 countries are represented.
The men’s and women’s straight pool and 8-ball divisions have crowned champions. On April 26, Alex Lely bested Thomas Kaplan, 8-7, in the men’s 8-ball final. The same day, Cristine Naeff took the women’s 8-ball, 6-2, over Wendy Jans. It is Naeff’s first European title.
Friday the 24th, In straight pool, Germany’s Thorsten Hohmann beat countryman Nicolas Otterman to the title by a lopsided 125-3. On the women’s side, former WPBA National Amateur champion Jasmin Ouschan squeaked by Diana Stateczny, 75-60.
The 9-ball divisions, men’s and women’s, are still in progress, and will conclude on Friday. The team competitions wrap up on Saturday evening. Among those still alive in the single-elimination men’s final 32 are Ralf Souquet, Mika Immonen, Niels Feijen, Hohmann, and Marcus Chamat. Among the women, Ouschan and Jans are still in action, as is WPBA regular Kim Shaw.
Fisher – No, Not That One – Takes WPBA Title
Snooker-champ-turned-9-ball-pro Kelly Fisher won the Women’s Professional Billiard Association’s Mueller Recreational Products West Coast Classic at Viejas Casino in Alpine, Calif., Mar. 30-Apr. 3. The outcome was a shocker. It was Kelly Fisher’s first pro 9-ball title, and she was joined in the television rounds by Gerda Hofstatter (who took second), Vivian Villarreal (third) and Karen Corr (fourth place).
What was most surprising, however, was who did not make the TV rounds. Super-dominant top-ranked Allison Fisher (no relation) was relegated to tie-for-fifth, after being knocked into the one-loss bracket by Hofstatter and then eliminated by Corr. Kelly Fisher took home $10,000 for her win; Hofstatter settled for $7,000.