Three Times a Charm for Newman

Three Times a Charm for Newman
Great Southern Billiard Tour / Inman, SC

by Lea Andrews

Though Josh Newman’s first encounter with Mark Parlier didn’t go his way, the 17-year-old made up for it in the next two sets to earn his first win as an A-player on the Great Southern Billiard Tour. Newman topped the mega-sized field of 81 that arrived for the $1,500-added A-B amateur event, held March 6-7 at Raisin’ Cain’s in Inman, SC.

Newman faced A-ranked Parlier for the first time on the winners’ side final four, and Parlier earned a spot in the hot seat match 9-7. Earning the other spot was B-ranked Dusty Gosnell, who’d sent A-ranked Paul Mullens west 7-5. Gosnell came up one game shy of his goal of seven games against Parlier, and he moved over to the semifinals for a shot at the rematch.

On the one-loss side, A-ranked Chase Smith blew through B-ranked Randy Henderson 9-1 to meet up with B-ranked Marvin Reed, who’d gone hill-hill with A-ranked Marty Free 7-8. Another hill-hill match was waiting for Reed against Smith, but he was on the wrong end of this one, and he landed in seventh 9-6. Meanwhile, AA-ranked recent winner Jared McGee took care of B-ranked Trey Melton 11-4 to face B-ranked Michael Walker, who’d ousted A-ranked Barry Medlock 7-5. Holding Walker to five games, McGee moved on to Newman, who pushed his way past 9-7 to reach the quarterfinals. There he faced Smith, who’d edged out Mullins 9-8. Another 9-7 victory for Newman put him up against Gosnell in the semifinals, where they were both fighting for another chance with Parlier. It was well into the early hours of Monday at this point, and Newman outlasted Gosnell to claim his spot in the finals 9-5.

The first set of the true double-elimination match went hill-hill, and in the final rack, it seemed like it would be the only set. An unlikely late miss by Parlier brought Newman back to the table, though, and he finished off the rack to push the second set 9-8. Though neither showed it, fatigue had to have been wearing on both players, but Newman’s stamina served him well, allowing him to finish off his win 9-7 at just after 6 a.m. Monday morning.

Results:
1st Josh Newman $1,000
2nd Mark Parlier $600
3rd Dustin Gosnell $400
4th Chase Smith $200
5th Paul Mullins $150
Jared McGee
7th Marvin Reed $100
Michael Walker
9th Randy Henderson $50
Marty Free
Barry Medlock
Trey Melston
13th Nathan Roberts $25
Kenny Wilson
Dayne Miller
John Thompson

Bauer Bashes Tri-State Billiards Competition

Bauer Bashes Tri-State Billiards Competition
Tri-State Tour / New York City, NY

by InsidePOOL Staff

Geoffrey Bauer took down the competition at the March 6 installment of the Tri-State Tour, defeating Sam Li in the final match. The $500-added B-D event was hosted by Eastside Billiards in New York City, NY.

Bauer went undefeated through the event, besting Tony Eglesias 7-5 in the winners’ side final four to advance to the hot seat match. Meeting him there was Alan Chan, who squeaked past Li in a hill-hill match 6-5. The hot seat match also went double-hill, with Bauer moving on to the finals while Chan was sent to try his luck on the west side of the chart.

From the west side, Li went on to face Teddy Lubis down, going forward after their hill-hill bout 7-6. Kapriel Delimelkonoglu tied with Lubis in fifth place after Eglesias dealt him a 7-3 loss. Eglesias and Li then met in the quarterfinal match, and Li was the one who progressed 7-3. Li then steamrolled Chan 6-1 to move on to the final match against Bauer, but Bauer was the one who ended up the winner there, taking the finals and the title 7-5.

Results:
1st Geoffrey Bauer $440
2nd Sam Li $220
3rd Alan Chan $105

Moran and Kennedy Crush Southeast Open Fields

Moran and Kennedy Crush Southeast Open Fields
Southeast Open 9-Ball Tour / Gulfport, MS

by Lea Andrews

Tommy Kennedy juggled both tournament director and player duties at the March 6-7 installment of the Southeast Open 9-Ball Tour, getting past last stop’s winner John “Mr. 403” Schmidt to top the open division, while Jason Moran topped Sunday’s amateur division. The $1,000-added open event drew 29 players to Skeeters Billiards in Gulfport, MS, while the $500-added amateur event drew 25.

Kennedy edged out Cliff Joyner 9-8 to meet Schmidt for the first time in the hot seat match. Schmidt, who was coming off a 9-4 win over Johnny Armstrong, notched up another one against Kennedy, who went west to fight for a rematch. On the left side of the bracket, Jay Bird took care of Jason Moran and Neil Alexander before coming up on Joyner, whom he held to seven games to reach the quarterfinals. Meanwhile, Greg Hagin notched wins over Josh Charbonnet and Luc Detierne to face Armstrong. Allowing Armstrong just three games, Hagin advanced to the quarterfinals, but the four games he marked up there against Bird put him in fourth.

In the semifinals, Kennedy was ready for his rematch with Schmidt, and he dropped Bird into third 9-6 to earn his chance at revenge. In the single race-to 11 final match, the two veterans stayed close, trading games until Kennedy reached the hill 10-9. Schmidt was on his way to tying it up, but an unlikely miss on the 6 ball brought Kennedy back to the table, and he took care of what was left to earn his victory 11-9. Other open event winners were Neil Alexander, who earned $50 as the highest-finishing senior; Jessica Penick, who pocketed $25 as highest-placing lady; and Johnny Armstrong, who took home an extra $25 as the top junior.

On Sunday, Moran’s 5-2 win over Jim Sterling put him into the hot seat match against Tracy Guernsey, who’d shut out Luc Detierne. Against Moran, though, he managed just one game, and he moved over to the semifinals. On the other side of the bracket, Steve Kuhnau, who’d suffered an earlier loss to Sterling, was making his way through the field, getting past Steve Neil Alexander and Mike Trawick for another crack at Sterling. Meanwhile, Ken Black pushed his way past Brandon Goudreau and James Faison to reach Detierne, whom he put in fifth 4-1 to reach the quarterfinals. There he faced Kuhnau, who’d exacted his revenge on Sterling 4-3. Another 4-3 victory put Kuhnau up against Guernsey in the semifinals, and a 5-3 win put him into the single race-to-7 final match, but that was where his run ended. Moran took control early and kept it, finishing up his undefeated event 7-2.

Open Results:
1st Tommy Kennedy $700
2nd John Schmidt $475
3rd Jay Bird $350
4th Greg Hagin $250
5th Johnny Armstrong $150
Cliff Joyner

Amateur Results:
1st Jason Moran $470
2nd Steve Kuhnau $300
3rd Tracy Guernsey $200
4th Ken Black $100
5th Luke Detierne $45
Jim Sterling

Nevel Tells Archer “The Truth”

Nevel Tells Archer “The Truth”
Jacoby Custom Cues Carolina Tour / Wilmington, NC

by Lea Andrews

A late loss at the March 6-7 stop of the Jacoby Custom Cues Carolina tour did nothing to slow down Larry Nevel. “The Truth” rebounded to top the tough field that gathered at Break Time Billiards in Wilmington, NC, for the $1,000-added event.

After handing Nevel his 7-4 loss, Keith Bennett moved into the hot seat match against Johnny Archer, who’d just shut out Trey Greene. Archer claimed the hot seat 7-3, while Bennett moved over to semifinals. On the west side, an early victim of Nevel’s, Michael “Bulldawg” Fuller, notched a 7-4 win over Zach Wilson and a shut-out win over Greene to reach the quarterfinals. Meanwhile, another one of Nevel’s victims, Shawn “Big Bubba” Putnam, who’d reached the finals in each of his three Jacoby appearances so far, found his streak come to an end at his fourth event as he faced Nevel once again. Nevel dropped Putnam into fifth 7-2 to meet back up with Fuller, and another 7-2 win put him into the semifinals against Bennett. Earning his revenge 7-3, Nevel advanced to the single race-to-11 final match.

Though Archer got out to a 3-0 and 5-1 lead, Nevel was able to take advantage of a scratch on the break and a dry break to gain momentum and tie it up at six games apiece, but when he made nothing on the break in the next rack, Archer regained the lead 7-6. It was his last lead, though. Another scratch on the break allowed Nevel to tie it up, and two more racks in a row put him on the hill 10-7. Archer marked up the next rack, but after pocketing three balls on the break in the final rack, he found himself without a shot on the 2 ball. Archer’s well-played safety left Nevel hooked, but Nevel’s unbelievable kick shot put the 2 ball in the pocket and left the path to the 9 ball open. Nevel pocketed the rest of the balls to earn his victory 11-8.

Nevel also took first in Friday’s 16-entrant early bird tournament, earning $150 for his 7-1 win in the finals over Zach Wilson, who took home $95. Hindu Williams earned $50 for third, while Kenny Chin earned $25 for fourth. Patty Sutherland won the ladies’ division on Saturday, while Caleb Grissom topped the juniors’. In Sunday’s second chance event, Kenny Chin earned $80 for edging out Barry Irving 7-6, while Irving earned $20. Karl Deweese took home $80 for beating out five others in the break contest, and CJ Genta became the owner of a new Jacoby Custom Cue after her name was drawn in the raffle.

Results:
1st Larry Nevel $1,000
2nd Johnny Archer $400
3rd Keith Bennett $100

McDermott Gambler Pro Tour Inaugural Event

McDermott Gambler Pro Tour Inaugural Event
Sharkbite Classic at Hammer Heads May 15-16, 2010

The McDermott Gambler Pro Tour has announced its inaugural event to take place this spring. The first annual “Sharkbite Classic” will take place May 15-16, 2010 at Hammer Heads Billiards in Holiday, FL.

Nora Nelson owner of Hammer Heads said, “I am very excited and proud to be asked to hold the first McDermott GPT event. After talking with Dan Dennis, and looking at the format, it is my belief that this will be a wonderful tournament for years to come. Pasco County has recently increased the number of hotels in the area, so players will have no problem finding a room that will suit their needs. Thank you Dan, for giving us this opportunity, It is going to be a great weekend of play.”

Hammer Heads Billiards has been a prime spot for tournaments and tours in Florida for several years. A 15,000 square ft upscale billiard room with 24 Diamond pool tables and a built in arena. Hammer Heads also hosts a first Saturday of the month $500 added mixed 9-Ball/8-Ball tournament and a second Saturday of the month $500 added 10-Ball tournament. You can log onto www.hammerheadsbilliards.com for more information.

“The McDermott GPT is pleased to have the inaugural event being held at Hammer Heads. It’s definitely a great place to host a tournament. Hammer Heads was designed with tournaments in mind. It has a great drop down arena and a nice viewing area for fans to come watch top players play tableside. I’m really looking forward to a pristine event and the first annual “Sharkbite Classic” at Hammer Heads.”

The event at Hammer Heads will host an Open 9-Ball Event May 16th, Semi-Pro/Amateur 9-Ball Event May 15th and a Ladies 9-Ball Event May 15th. For a complete lists of events, formats, tour schedule, player rankings, handicaps and more log onto www.GamblerProTour.com. The McDermott GPT would also like to thank the following sponsors; McDermott Cues www.Mcdermottcue.com, Gambler Clothing, Team Gambler, BilliardScoop.com, X-treme Vision Studios, Inside Pool Magazine and AZBilliards.