IPT World Open Preview: Talented Tots Wu and Ouschan to Debut
The big news in the first round of the International Pool Tour’s latest multi-million dollar 8-ball tournament will be the debuts of young superstars Chia-Ching Wu of Taiwan and Jasmin Ouschan of Austria, both looking for a big piece of the record-setting $3 million purse.
The eight-day 8-ball event — with a precedent-setting $500,000 first-place prize — kicks off Sunday, Sept. 3, at the Grand Sierra Resort and Casino in Reno, Nev.
Both 17-year-old Wu and 20-year-old Ouschan earned entry into the tournament through the IPT’s rugged qualifier process, and they’re expected to go deep. The precocious Wu is the current WPA world 9-ball and 8-ball champion, and Ouschan topped the star-studded field at the EnjoyPool.com 9-Ball Championship in May.
Otherwise, it looks like smooth sailing for most of the favorites in the first round of the International Pool Tour’s World 8-Ball Open Championship, as the just-released groupings reveal predominantly balanced matchups for the first two days of the event. Top-ranked players were seeded in the field.
Of course, a few players had cause for muttering under their breaths when the groups were announced early Friday. Of the best-known players, Hall-of-Famers and best buddies Ewa Laurance and Loree Jon Jones appear to have their work cut out for them. For that matter, the groupings did no favors for Ouschan, the only female player to have won a spot in an IPT field through the qualifier process.
Expect some surprises. As the players learned in the IPT’s first event of the 2006 season — the North American Open 8-Ball Championship in July — there are dozens of unheralded 8-ball whizzes out there waiting for their big shot, and the 200-player World field features 50 qualifiers who have already proved their mettle.
Look for surprising runs from several Asian qualifiers who now have their feet in the IPT’s door, including Wu from Taiwan (who was seeded 16th in the absence of Filipino Rodolfo Luat), and his countryman Hui-Kai Hsia, a two-time world juniors champion.
The first round will feature 40 groups of five players each. After round-robin play, the top three finishers in each group will proceed to the second round. Eliminated players from the first round will each receive a whopping $5,000.
The complete list of groupings is available at the IPT Web site: www.internationalpooltour.com.
Here are some of the more intriguing brackets from the first round:
Bracket 23 — BD Bloodbath Special: Spectators looking for an exciting bracket to follow should check out this group. No superstars, just tough and hungry veterans: Ivica Putnik (Croatia), Thomas Engert (Germany), Tony Chohan (USA), Tony Drago (Malta), and Zlatko Jakulj (Croatia)
Bracket 1: German sensation Thorsten Hohmann received the top seed by virtue of his $350,000 win at the North American Open, joined here by talented American Steve Moore, Filipino toughie Warren Kiamco, and Americans Jim Raney and Loree Jon Jones. Jones, who survived the first round at the North American Open, will have to bring her “A” game here.
Bracket 26: Austria’s Jasmin Ouschan must contend with Hall-of-Famer Earl Strickland, Swedish veteran Tom Storm, Aruba national champion Roland Acosta and American Pete Fusco. Ouschan regularly hones her skills against the best male players in Europe, so don’t expect her to be intimidated by Strickland, or anyone else in the field, for that matter,
Bracket 18: Hall-of-Famer Ewa Laurance will have her hands full with Australia’s Quinten Hann, the snooker bad boy who finished a surprising 18th at the North American Open; snooker ace Ronnie O’Sullivan from the U.K.; and Jeremy Jones (USA) and Jose Parica (Philippines), both experienced champions who met untimely exits at the North American Open. This bracket will be a dog fight.
Bracket 35: Future Hall-of-Famer Allison Fisher, who was undefeated in the first round of the North American Open, once again has a clean look at the second round. But watch out for qualifier Hui-Kai Hsia of Taiwan and surprising Frenchman Yannick Beaufils. Tough Americans Teddy Garrahan and John Ditoro round out the group, and neither will play patsy.
Bracket 10: Once again, 13-year-old Austin Murphy has a good shot at leaving the first round, this time sharing a bracket with 10th-ranked Darren Appleton (U.K.), Paul Potier (Canada), George San Souci (USA) and Ouahbi Amine (Morocco). Murphy missed the second round at the North American Open by a single rack, losing an 8-7 nailbiter to Danny Basavich. Let’s go, Austin.
“Yikes!” or “Whew…”: IPT North American Groupings Announced
“Yikes!” or “Whew…”: IPT North American Groupings Announced
Jul 14, 2006, 9:44 AM
Several top pool pros won’t be sleeping too soundly for the next week, now that they know the identities of their opponents in the first round of the International Pool Tour’s North American 8-Ball Open Championship.
Among those who might have trouble catching some “zees” are Karen Corr, Cory Deuel, Charles “Hillbilly” Bryant, and Kim Davenport. On the other hand, Allison Fisher and 13-year-old Austin Murphy look to be pretty well rested.
The $2 million, 200-player event — with a $350,000 first-place prize — kicks off Sunday, July 23, at the Venetian in Las Vegas, Nev.
The IPT announced the first-round groupings — composed of 40 sets of five players each — on Thursday. After round-robin play, the top three finishers in each group will proceed to the next round. Eliminated players from the first round will each receive $2,000.
The complete list of groupings is available at the IPT Web site: www.internationalpooltour.com.
However, we’ll point out a few of the more remarkable first-round matchups to get the inevitable debate and buzz started. In no particular order:
Group 20 — International Incident
A big-time pro is going home with $2,000 — and the lonely, agonizing plane ride could be transcontinental. The round’s toughest group is topped by former world 9-ball champions Mika Immonen (Finland) and Oliver Ortmann (Germany). They’re closely followed by tough-as-nails American Charles “Hillbilly” Bryant and the wily Gandy Valle from the Philippines. If “Gentleman” Jim Raney (USA) can make it out of this group, he deserves a $10,000 bonus.
Group 14 — Cakewalk
It’s dangerous to call any group a “gimme,” because there are so many relatively unknown international players in the IPT. You can bet there will be several surprises along the way. But Brit snooker and 9-ball ace Allison Fisher looks like a lock to get past group 14, populated by middling and/or obscure players Grady Matthews (USA), Andreja Klasovic (Serbia/Montenegro), Marko Lohtander (Finland), and Jeff Abernathy (USA).
Group 32 — Dogfight of the Sleepers
Fans might not know all these names, but one or two of these guys are sure to be around late in the event. The group features rough road player Steve Moore (USA), 2006 Derby City Master of the Table winner Jason Miller (USA), resurgent 9-ball pro Kim Davenport (USA), and Canadian aces Paul Potier and Tyler Edey.
Group 18 — Bloodbath
A top player is going to go down here. This one looks like the semifinals roster from a Reno Open, with multitalented Shannon Daulton (USA) facing off against Canadian stalwart (and, coincidentally, 2005 Reno Open winner) Ronnie Wiseman, former BD Player of the Year Cory Deuel (USA), Chicago 8-ball machine Ike Runnels, and sneaky veteran Pete Fusco (USA).
Group 2 — No Rest for the Invader
Ireland’s Karen Corr will have her work cut out for her against Holland’s top pro Niels Feijen, China’s no-nonsense Wei-Liu, underrated 8-baller Greg Hogue (USA) and Hall-of-Famer Ray Martin. But Corr went 4-1 in the first round of December’s IPT King of the Hill event, so look for her to pass with honors.
Group 5 — Let’s go, Austin!
Okay, we’re (unofficially) rooting for 13-year-old Austin Murphy, who is no slouch, by the way. He just won his second consecutive title at the BCA Junior Nationals, and he can hold his own against the big guys. He has an excellent chance to get out of his first-round group, where he will face Danny Basavich (USA), Hall-of-Famer Ewa Laurance (USA), and little-known qualifiers Sam Monday (USA) and Anthony Ginn (England).
Lovely Day for First-time Junior Nationals Winner
The 2006 Billiard Congress of America Junior Nationals would’ve been a re-run of last year if it weren’t for the debut of Elizabeth Lovely, who dethroned the defending champion in her division to join the three other defending champions in the winners’ circle.
The 9-ball event brought 94 of the nation’s brightest young pool players to Tucson, Ariz., where they competed in divisions of 14 and under and 19 and under.
In the 14 and Under Girls division, Lovely of Centerville, Ohio faced defending champion Chelsea Hardwick from Evansville, Ind. in the final. Both players felt the pressure to perform and the match was marred by nerves. Lovely took an early 2-0 lead, but Hardwick came back to take the lead at 3-2. That third game would be the last that Hardwick won as Lovely took the next three racks for the 5-3 victory and her first Junior Nationals title.
At age 13, Austin Murphy from Folson, Calif. has accolades well beyond his years including the 2005 Junior Nationals title and a spot on the International Pool Tour. Now he can add two-time winner of the Jr. Nationals, defending his title In the 14 and under Boy’s division. Murphy cruised through the winners’ side to meet Ryan Dunn from Hillsboro, Tenn. in the final. Murphy was cool and confident, controlling the table to the tune of a quick 4-0 lead. It was looking bleak for Dunn until Murphy finally made a mistake in the fifth rack and Dunn capitalized, getting on the scoreboard, 4-1. Murphy continued to commit uncharacteristic errors and Dunn caught up 5-5. He had the chance to sprint ahead and get to the hill first, but Dunn missed a 2-9 combo with the crowd on the edge of its seat. Murphy came back and ran the table to make the score 6-5. Dunn had another opportunity to reach the hill in rack 12, running his way through some difficult shots but a miss on the 6 marked his end as Murphy ran the last three balls to defend his 14 & Under Boys Title.
While both 14 & Under Division Matches were close until the end, the 19 & Under Division Matches were very one sided. The 19 and Under Girls division saw defending champion Anna Kostanian from Albuquerque, N.M. take on 2004 Champion Mary Rakin from Daly City, Calif. The competition looked even at first, with the score tied at 1-1, but Kostanian commanded the table and pounced on every miss from Rakin on her way to a 6-1 lead in the race-to-7 match. Rakin saw a short reprieve in the eighth rack as Kostanian missed the case 9-ball, but the match end after a Konstanian won a short safety battle and ran out for the 7-2 win.
In his 18 years, Justin Bergman of Fairview, Ill. has become a force to be reckoned with by players of any age. As defending champion of the Boys 19 and Under division, it didn’t look like he was going to allow Chad Palmer of Battle Creek, Mich., to come even one game closer to his title in the final. Bergman’s game was near flawless as he cruised to an 8-0 lead and kept Palmer grounded in his chair for the majority of the match. Palmer put together a nice runout in game 9 after a Bergman miss but a foul on the one ball in game 10 would be his end as Bergman confidently ran out the final rack for the 9-1 win.
BCA Junior Nationals Brings 97 Players to Arizona
The 2006 BCA Junior Nationals got under way on July 5 at the University of Arizona student union with a total of 97 hopefuls in four divisions.
The 18 & Under Boys Division has wooed back last year’s winner, 18-year-old Justin Bergman, who also won in 2003. In his last year of eligibility, he hopes to take home his third title with a repeat performance. Last year’s third-place finisher, Kevin Peterson, is anxious to decorate his trophy stand, however. He and Bergman will face off today, July 6.
There is also an impeachment campaign for the returning champion in the 14 & Under Boys Division. International Pool Tour player Austin Murphy, 13, is back and so is last year’s runner up Landon Shuffett. Shuffett dropped a match on Wednesday, but Murphy has dominated all of his matches so far in the event.
The 18 & Under Girls Division has a field of six players. Anna Kostanian won in 2005, after two years of runner-up finishes. She looked to be en route to a second straight title on the first day of play, going undefeated. The 2004 champion, Mary Rakin will serve as the last line of defense in their hot-seat match today.
The 14 & Under Girls Division also has a returning champion as Chelsea Hardwick looks for another title win in her division.
Third Round Brings All-Star Match-ups at the Reno Open
The 2006 Reno Open is underway at the Sands Regency in Reno, Nev., yielding a field of 156 players.
Tournament coordinator Mick McMillin said that the number of players at the tournament, usually at or above the 200 mark, has decreased this year due to the International Pool Tour qualifiers.
Nonetheless, some great pool is being played. The third round brought about several marquis matches, including a match between longtime friends Gabe Owen and Jeremy Jones. Jones now has the upperhand, defeating his friend, 9-5.
Edwin Montal came up against Rodney Morris in the third round, besting him, 9-2, and Dennis Orcollo sent Cory Deuel to the one-loss side, 9-5.
Kim Davenport remains undefeated in the fourth round, and will match up against Filipino Jose Parica. Young Austin Murphy also remains on the winners’ side, winning his first three matches, and will face Bobby Hunter today.