You Guessed It: Filipinos Reign at First World Cup
The Filipino dream team of Efren Reyes and Francisco Bustamante became the inaugural PartyPoker.com World Cup of Pool champions as they blew away Team USA, 13-5, in front of a packed arena at the Newport Centre, South Wales.
The American duo of Earl Strickland and Rodney Morris were expected to make a match of it, but a combination of bad luck and loose shots on the part of the Americans and unrelenting skill from the Filipinos kept them at bay.
With upwards of 900 people in the arena including a large contingent of expatriate Filipinos, the atmosphere was electric and the tension mounted as the two teams shared the first eight racks of the race-to-13 final.
From there though things unraveled for the Americans. They lost control of the cue ball on the break and consequently found it difficult to get any momentum.
By contrast the Philippines turned up the heat with Reyes in particular playing a series of stunning shots to get out of jail and pot some seemingly impossible balls.
The second half of the match became something of a procession as the Philippines won seven consecutive racks to leave their opponents in no man’s land.
Team USA got one back to take the score to 11-5, but Reyes and Bustamante knocked off the final two racks to take the magnificent silver trophy, the title and a check for $60,000.
“It’s funny that every time there is a new big tournament, I win it, but all week I thought if we could get to the final we can win, said a delighted Efren Reyes after the match.
“The USA is a good team but they were unlucky and that made it easy for us,” he said.
Bustamante was thrilled to take pool’s first ever World Cup event. “In the beginning there was a lot of pressure on us but when we went three games ahead it all lifted,” he said.
“Efren played lots of unbelievable shots; some of them I’ve never seen in my life! That’s why we won.”
For the Americans, Rodney Morris summed up their feelings: “That was pretty disappointing. After 4-4 it didn’t go our way although the match was closer than the score suggested, but when it went to 7-4 we were both pretty deflated and felt it slipping away.”
“We never really got a clear shot off the break and it was a tough hill to climb but they played great – the way they were supposed to, so congratulations to them,” Morris added.
Hall-of-Famers Hall, Rempe Opt Out of IPT Again
Hall of Fame Members Jim Rempe and Buddy Hall have withdrawn from the IPT World Open 8-Ball Championship set to take place Sept. 2-10 in Reno, Nev. Both cited “personal reasons” that are keeping them from being able to perform under the grueling tournament format and conditions.
These two spots are now up for grabs and the IPT will fill them based on the qualification tournaments for the World Open. Players who have taken third place in World Open qualification tournaments more than once will be considered first. Then, players who took third place once will be considered. If there are ties, the IPT will consider the total number of qualification tournaments the players have played in. There are still five remaining qualification tournament in which to compete.
Qualification tournaments this weekend are being played in Florida, Chicago, Tokyo, London, and Pasadena. Entry fee deadline is TODAY (Aug. 24) at 4 p.m. CST.
Thirty-one Countries Vie for World Dominance in Wales
National pride is at stake at the PartyPoker.com World Cup of Pool, taking place now at the Newport Centre in Newport, Wales. Pressure is high as the scotch doubles matches are played on a straight knock-out basis.
The first round began on Aug. 22, with 32 two-man teams working together to represent their country. Thailand, represented by Tepwin Arunnath and Amnuayporn Chotipong, fell to Canadians Luc Salvas and Tyler Edey, 9-5. Team Qatar (Fahad Mohammadi and Bashar Hussain) was stymied by Malaysians Patrick Ooi Fook Yuen and Ibrahim Bin Amir, 9-3. And in an inter-continental contest, the Czech Republic, represented by Roman Hybler and Michal Gavenciak, defeated Poland’s Radoslaw Babica and Mariusz Roter.
The Phillipines, represented by Efren Reyes and Francisco Bustamante, were the clear crowd favorites, and rose to the occasion in round one, with a 9-0 massacre over Malta’s Tony Drago and Alex Borg. It was a tight battle between Taiwan’s Wang Hung-hsiang and Yang Ching-shun and India’s Dharminder Lilly and Alok Kumar. The tiny island nation prevailed, 9-6.
England has two teams in the running, one of which is represented by Steve Davis and Daryl Peach. It was 5-5 before the Brits were able to pull ahead of Jeong Young-hwa and Lee Gun-jae of Team Korea. On Davis’ 49th birthday, he joyously accepted their 9-6 victory.
In the second day of play on Wednesday, Aug. 23, Russia’s Konstantin Stepanov and Konstantin Zolotilov starved Hungary’s Vilmos Foldes and Gabor Solymosi of opportunities, defeating them 9-3.
Hong Kong produced a heroic performance to stun sixth- seeded Sweden in the biggest shock thus far in the PartyPoker.com World Cup of Pool. Sweden, whose side consisted of former World Championship finalist Tom Storm and former World Championship semi-finalist Marcus Chamat, had been 4-1, 6-2, and 8-5 ahead in the race-to-9. But the Hong Kong pairing of Lee Chenman and Kong Man-Ho showed their character to win the last four racks to secure a place in the final 16.
Team Japan, Maasaki Tanaka and Satoshi Kawabata obliterated Indonesia’s Imran Ibrahim and Ricky Yang, 9-0. While the English “A” team of Ronnie O’Sullivan and Raj Hundal, didn’t have it quite so easy against Spain’s David Alcaide and Rafael Guzman. The crowd was gutted as the duo fell to a fast 4-0 deficit, but had their hopes back up as England got their nose in front at 8-7, but the Spaniards took the final two racks to close out a famous victory.
Team U.S.A. is composed of Rodney Morris and Earl Strickland, who had a decided victory over Singapore. The home team, Rob McKenna and Ben Davies of Wales, disappointed their fan base with a heart-breaking 9-2 loss to Germany (Thomas Engert and Oliver Ortmann).
Today, Aug. 24, three matches are left to determine the final 16. This morning, Ireland had no luck against Finland’s Mika Immonen and Markus Juva, heading home after a 9-5 loss.
The first matches of round two will begin tonight, with No. 1-ranked Phillipines and No. 3-ranked U.S.A. taking on their respective opponents. For up-to-the minute coverage at www.partypoker.com!
Frederic Caudron Crowned Champion at the 2006 Sang Lee International Open
After playing over 500 matches from start to finish, two three-cushion players remained standing at the Sang Lee International Open, both determined to be this year’s strongest billiard player. It all came down to a single momentous point made by great Belgium carom player, Frédéric Caudron, in order to dethrone defending champion Torbjörn Blomdahl of Sweden in the final match.
Eighty-two world-class three cushion players representing 18 countries, descended onto Carom Café’s 10-table arena from August 13-20 for a grueling round-robin competition to vie for the $85,000 prize fund. Blomdahl and Caudron burned up the heated carom tables to make it to the final, where, if Blomdahl would score his last point, both players would then have an identical 6-3 record and thus force a sudden-death 15-point playoff. Caudron, who is undisputedly the supreme straight, balkline, and one-cushion carom player of all time, was on a mission to prove that he stands above the greatest giants in three-cushion billiards – by winning this Sang Lee title. To start the final match, in the presence of a huge crowd and in front of the TV cameras, Caudron literally burst out of the gates with a sudden 19-6 lead over Blomdahl in a race to 40 points. Intent on defending his “home-turf”, as Blomdahl affectionately terms New York — due to his numerous titles taken down in the three-cushion city, Blomdahl fought back aggressively to narrow the gap 28-26. Caudron immediately responded by surging ahead and was the first to hear the referee’s call, “Playing for three” — leaving his opponent trailing desperately behind 37-28. In typical Blomdahl fashion, the great champion stepped right up and ran an amazing 10 points – missing his 39th point by a single hair. At this critical moment, both players traded unbelievable near-misses while they simultaneously hedged themselves with carefully planned safety moves — bringing the score up to 39-39 while every single audience member inched themselves to the very edge of their seats in anticipation.
It was then that Caudron unleashed a breathtaking out-shot and immediately upon delivering the winning blow, shook his cue tightly with two clenched fists and let out a deep victory roar that was heard all around the three-cushion world. As he hoisted the massive Carom Cup trophy over his head, the enthusiastic crowd gave him a highly spirited and lengthy standing ovation for his monumental accomplishment.
-provided by Ira Lee, Sang Lee International Open director
Oushan Qualifies for Upcoming IPT Event
Jasmin Ouschan, the winner of the fierce, international field at the BCA Enjoypool.com 9-Ball Challenge held in May, will now be in the running for a piece of the $3-million payout at the International Pool Tour’s World Open in Reno next month.
The 20-year-old Austrian qualified to compete in the single event at The Elbow Room in Oslo, Norway this past weekend, along with Ben Davies. Other players who qualified over the weekend were Antonio Lining and Lee Huewagen in Las Vegas, Ben Nunan and Goh Takami in Victoria, Australia, Teddy Garrahan and Jeff Beckley in Chelmsford, Mass., and
Davide Pascasi and David Alcoberro in Madrid, Spain.
The IPT World Open 8-Ball Championship will take place Sept. 2-10 at the Grand Sierra Resort and Casino in Reno, Nev. The first-place finisher will walk away with $500,000, the largest payout in the history of pool. Check out www.internationapooltour.com for ticket information.
Jennifer Chen Disappears; Huge Gambling Debts Reported
Taiwanese billiard superstar Jennifer Chen is reportedly missing and believed to be hiding from gangsters after running up enormous gambling debts.
Asian TV and print media have been buzzing about Chen’s disappearance since early August, reporting that the 31-year-old WPBA pro allegedly had lost as much as $600,000 gambling on Taiwanese and U.S. baseball, and the 2006 World Cup.
Reports of her whereabouts have varied, with some claiming she has gone into hiding in Hong Kong, and others claiming she has fled to the U.S.
It’s a case with the whiff of the sensational in Taiwan, where the photogenic Chen has long been a celebrity as a pool player, sports broadcaster and actress.
According to a report in the Aug. 13 edition of the Taipei Times, prosecutors in a related case involving a gambling ring were able to gather intelligence on Chen’s gambling debts. Allegedly, gangsters met with Chen on July 24 and demanded that she give up her Taipei residence in order to cover the debts, the Times reported. Chen went missing soon after the meeting.
WPBA officials have not heard from Chen since mid-June, according to tour director Peg Ledman. Chen did not compete in the WPBA’s Florida Classic in late June, nor the Midwest Classic, held July 27-30 in East Peoria, Ill., dropping her ranking to 19th.
Chen told Ledman in mid-May that she did not intend to play in the two events, and that she instead would be working with an acting coach, the tour director said. Their last contact was in mid-June, when Chen confirmed via telephone that she would not attend the Florida Classic.
Chen won a bronze medal in billiards at the 2001 World Games and a silver medal at the 2005 World Games.
Archer’s At It Again
After winning the International Challenge of the Champions one week prior in Uncasville, Conn., Johnny Archer continued his streak at the Joss Tour’s Turning Stone Classic VII, held Aug. 17-20 at the Turning Stone Casino in Verona, N.Y.
The final match was a marathon that lasted into Monday morning, as Archer defeated Santos Sambajon, 13-9, to top the 128-player field.
Sambajon took the hot seat on Sunday afternoon with a 9-5 win over Archer, but Archer overpowered Shawn Putnam, 9-3, on the one-loss side to earn the rematch with Sambajon in the finals. Putnam settled for a third- place finish with Jerry Slivka finishing in fourth. Karen Corr and Jeanette Lee proved their prowess, each turning in a fifth-place finish.
Archer earned $8,000 for first place while Sambajon settled for $5,300. Putnam took home $3,800 and Slivka pocketed $2,700 for fourth place.
Check out the October issue of Billiards Digest for in-depth coverage.
Hatch and Davis: Star-crossed Players in Fair Verona
The second Joss Turning Stone Classic of the year is under way at the Turning Stone Resort and Casino in Verona, N.Y., with 128 players fighting for a piece of the $25,000-added prize fund.
The star-studded field includes Marlon Manalo, Ralf Souquet, Johnny Archer, Dennis Hatch, Mike Davis, Shawn Putnam, Karen Corr, Ryan McCreesh, Keith McCready, Jeanette Lee, Allen Hopkins, George Breedlove and Santos Sambajon.
One of the field’s two top players will be banished to the one-loss side today, Aug. 17, as Mike Davis and Dennis Hatch will duel in the first round.