Baraks Double-Dips Wilgus for Title

Baraks Double-Dips Wilgus for Title
Lucasi Hybrid All-American Tour / Decatur, IL

by InsidePOOL Staff

James Baraks bested Dustin Wilgus twice in the final set to take the Lucasi Hybrid All-American Tour by storm February 27. Held in Decatur, IL, this $500-added event featured a 52-player field in a double-elimination 9-ball format on 8-foot tables.

Wilgus took the undefeated route to the hot seat, including an A-side semifinal win over Sergio Perez 8-6 and the A-side finals win over Mike Dunklin 8-6. Dunklin won his A-side semifinal match over Chris Austin 8-7 prior to his loss to Wilgus, and Dunklin then awaited his opponent in the B-side finals.

In the B-side round of eight, Baraks and Rick Halls eliminated Chris Winschief 8-4 and Ike Runnels 8-6, respectively, at seventh place. The B-side quarterfinals featured Baraks and Halls continuing by ousting Perez 8-5 and Austin 8-7, respectively, at fifth place. In the B-side semifinals, Baraks edged Halls at fourth place by an 8-7 margin. Baraks maintained his momentum in the B-side finals by defeating Dunklin 8-5. Versus the undefeated Wilgus in the finals, Baraks displayed conviction in winning two sets for the title, 8-2 and 8-6.

Results:
1st Jamie Baraks $240
2nd Dustin Wilgus $200
3rd Mike Dunklin $160
4th Rick Halls $140
5th Sergio Perez $120
Chris Austin
7th Chris Winschief $100
Ike Runnels
9th Mike Durbin $60
Tony McCray
Marco Jyawook
Richard Southwell

Viking Cue Olhausen Billiards Classic Tour Announced

Viking Cue Olhausen Billiards Classic Tour Announced

Viking Cue Mfg. Inc., Olhausen Billiards Mfg. Inc. and The Viking Cue 9-Ball Tour have entered into an agreement to add a new tour/format to the existing Viking Cue 9-Ball Tour. The new Tour is dubbed the “Viking Cue – Olhausen Billiards Classic Tour” and will feature six $5,000 added Pro-Am tournaments in 2010.

All locations hosting these six new events will receive a Brand New Olhausen Champion-Pro 9′ table with delivery and set-up to the host location + over $8,000 in products and discounts from Viking Cues and the Viking Tour co-sponsors. This is a $15,500 Value to billiard room owners.

Room owners interested in hosting one of the New “Viking Cue – Olhausen Billiards Classic Tour” Events should contact Mike Janis at 1-800-200-POOL or email vikingtour2@yahoo.com. Act FAST, there are only 6 of these events available.

Larry Olhausen, Sales Director Olhausen Billiards Mfg., Inc., stated “Olhausen Billiards is very excited to be associated with Viking Cues and to help promote the upcoming 2010 Viking 9-Ball Tour. The Viking Cue 9-Ball Tour has demonstrated that it is the premier tour to be associated with and we were pleased to be asked to be part of it. This tournament helps reaffirm Olhausen Billiards continued commitment to the sport of billiards and its many players. We are looking forward to a very exciting season.”

Barry Hart, President of Viking Cue Mfg., Inc., stated, “Viking Cue has always supported tournaments and players throughout the country with sponsorships and is proud to be associated with Olhausen Billiards and the Viking 9-Ball Tour. Viking believes industry sponsorships and investing in the promotion of our sport through tournaments is good for the future of pool.

Mike Janis, the founder of the Viking Cue 9-Ball Tour, added, “Having Viking Cues and Olhausen Billiards combined as the title sponsors for these new tour events will be a blessing to our sport. Viking Cues and Olhausen billiards sponsorship will allow us to give many more dollars in prize money to the players over the year along with relieving most the associated costs to room owners that host the tour events. I am really excited about the new Viking Cue – Olhausen Billiards Classic Tour events. Together we will be able to continue to provide excellent events for the players and help billiard room owners with the costs of hosting tour events.”

About Viking Cue
Viking Cue Mfg. Inc. is the oldest manufacturer of cues in America and has the strictest quality control in the industry. Supported by “Viking’s Lifetime Warranty” and made exclusively in the USA there is no compromising when it comes to Viking Cues. Viking lives up to the expectations of current and future owners as the most critical tool for your game.

For more information about Viking Cues please visit: http://vikingcue.com

About Olhausen Billiards: The Story – Butch and Donny Olhausen
As kids growing up in New Mexico , Butch and Don Olhausen worked for their dad setting up and re-covering pool tables. Their dad had a shop in every house they ever lived in. Little did they know they were learning a trade that would carry them through the rest of their lives.

In the summer of 1969, Butch moved to California . Donny decided to follow in 1972. That’s when the Olhausen boys started their own company, moving and re-covering pool tables, they also delivered new tables for a small manufacturing company in San Diego . They charged $12 to deliver and install a new table, using Butch’s classic ‘59 El Camino and paying for the gas. What a deal! They could be done with a delivery by 10:00A.M. After that, they would go out and “pound the pavement” for any more work they could find.
Then came what they thought was a great opportunity. The owner of the manufacturing company that they delivered for offered to sell them the business for $1000 and take a note back on the inventory. So in 1973, they took everything they had and bought the company lock, stock and barrel. That’s when the world changed for them.

The company they bought was making about 35 tables annually. The first year, their goal was to somehow double the business and sell 70 tables. Within two years, they were selling over 300. Olhausen Billiard Manufacturing, Inc. is now selling almost 30,000 tables a year in their 250,000-square-foot facility in Portland , Tennessee . Still family-owned and operated, Butch, Donny and all the people at Olhausen have consistently pursued a tradition of dedication to Quality, Service, Selection and Value. These attributes and four generations in the business have earned their company the title of “The Best in Billiards.”

About the Viking Tours
The Viking Cue 9-Ball Tour was founded in 1994 as the Ohio 9-Ball Tour by Mike Janis from Cleveland , Ohio . Over the years it has grown significantly to include many regions of the US . It is currently the largest and longest running Open regional billiards tour in the USA . The Viking Tours now consist of five separate tours: The Viking Cue Open, Amateur, Amateur-Advanced, Junior 9-Ball Tour and the new Viking Cue – Olhausen Billiards Classic Tour. Combined, the tours offer approximately 141 tournament events each tour season for players from beginning to professionals to compete in. Player and business associate members are offered many outstanding benefits that separate the Viking Tours from any other tour in the USA . These benefits include: Health-care insurance, Hotel and Travel discounts, Free entry fees for Ladies and Junior players, Discounts to Military Personnel, Senior Citizens and Pool League Players.

For more information about sponsoring, participating in or hosting Viking Tour events contact the tour at vikingtour2@yahoo.com or call 1-800-200-POOL.

Visit the Viking Tours web page at: http://www.viking9balltour.com

Krah Capitalizes on Blaze Tour

Krah Capitalizes on Blaze Tour
Blaze 9-Ball Tour / Boothwyn, PA

by Jose Burgos

Matt Krah escaped a double-elimination final match to win the Blaze 9-Ball Tour’s November 8 stop. Hosted by Riley’s Billiards in Boothwyn, PA, this stop featured players such as Mike Miller, Joey Testa, Shaun Wilkie, and Josh Brothers.

Krah led the top half of the bracket, notching victories over Wilkie 7-3, Randy Jaragoske 7-2, and Brothers 7-4. On a path to meet him in the hot seat match, Miller scored wins over Bob Madara 7-4, Carl Khan 7-2, and Joey Testa 7-3.

The ensuing hot seat match between Krah and Miller went hill-hill. After facing a 6-2 deficit, Krah came back to win the match 7-6 and send Miller to the one-loss side. Waiting for him there was Testa, but it was all Miller this time, as he skated past Testa 7-2 to earn a rematch with Krah in the finals.

In the true double-elimination finals, Miller had to defeat Krah twice to win the event. It looked as though he was going to pull it off, with his strong 7-1 victory in the first set. But in the second set it was all Krah, who won 7-5 to take the title.

Results:
1st Matt Krah $750
2nd Mike Miller $360
3rd Joey Testa $290
4th Shaun Wilkie $100
5th Josh Brothers $50
Mike Danato

Tarantola Storms Castle Billiards for First Predator Tour Win

Tarantola Storms Castle Billiards for First Predator Tour Win
Predator 9-Ball Tour / East Rutherford, NJ

by Alison M. Fischer

The Predator 9-Ball Tour held its first ever stop at Castle Billiards in East Rutherford, NJ, November 7-8, where nearly a full field of 61 players came out to compete in this A-D event. Some of the top names who came out for this event include Lionel Rivera, John Alicea, WPBA pro Megan Smith, and top NJ player Scott Simonetti, but it was Jerry Tarantola who walked away with the ultimate prize.

On Sunday at noon, eight players returned on the one-loss side. Borana “Queen B” Andoni continued her fight, but her run was ended by Shawn Sookhai 7-3, and she took home fifth place. After his win there, Sookhai moved on to face Scott Simonetti in the quarterfinals. However, Simonetti didn’t give Sookhai a chance and easily won the match 7-2.

In the semifinal match, Jonathan Castillo was spotted one game on the wire in a race to seven against Simonetti. The two battled back and forth, with Simonetti reaching the hill first. But up 6-5, he couldn’t retain position on the 9 ball, and he missed and left a long shot for Castillo, which he duly fired in to go hill-hill. After trading a couple of innings in the final rack, Castillo missed a risky bank on the 8, and Simonetti took the win to move on to the finals.

In the final match with Tarantola, Simonetti got one game on the wire going to 9. Tarantola jumped out to a 3-1 lead, but Simonetti came back with the next two racks to tie at 3 apiece. From there, Jerry kept an edge over Simonetti until the match reached hill-hill. All eyes were on the final table when Tarantola broke in the last rack. A ball dropped on the break, and a cluster was narrowly avoided, and Tarantola ran out the rack to win.

On Sunday, the Predator Tour held their Second Day B-D tournament, which drew 14 players. Once again, B-class player Ariel Rivera landed in the finals, this time on the winners’ side. However, Dave Ascolese did not give up easily after his second-round loss. He came back on the one-loss side to win three more matches, besting Romeo Singh to meet Rivera in the finals, where he defeated Rivera 7-4 to win the event.

Open Results:
1st Jerry Tarantola $1,000
2nd Scott Simonetti $600
3rd Jonathan Castillo $400
4th Shawn Sookhai $300
5th Borana Andoni $200
Antonio Guerrero
7th Justin Muller $175
Rafael DaBreo
9th Redgie Cutler $125
Derek Schwager
Brian Russell
Teddy Cook
13th Jeff Firester $100
Guy Iannuzzi
Junior Sanchez
Taron Gunness

Second Day Results:
1st Dave Ascolese $140
2nd Ariel Rivera $90
3rd Romeo Singh $50

Immonen Earns Second Consecutive U.S. Open Title

Immonen Earns Second Consecutive U.S. Open Title
U.S. Open 9-Ball Championships / Chesapeake, VA

by Lea Andrews

Mika “Iceman” Immonen tied with Nick Varner when he took his second U.S. Open Championships title in a row, winning 13-10 over Ralf Souquet in the extended final match. The Open began October 18 with 216 players and wound down a week later with the crowning of the Finnish champion, who earned $40,000 for his top showing.

Souquet and Immonen were both past champions of the event, with Souquet winning his green jacket in 2002 when he bested Alex Pagulayan in the finals. Immonen earned his first title last year over Ronnie Alcano of the Philippines.

Souquet faced Mills first in the match for the hot seat and got out ahead of him 9-5. Souquet’s scratch on the break in rack 15 put him in his chair until the score was tied at 9, though, and Souquet came to the table only once in rack 19 to face a two-rail kick shot. Mills closed out that rack to reach the hill first 10-9, but he made nothing on the break in rack 20. Souquet was out, and then a break and run in rack 21 earned him the hot seat.

Almost immediately, Mills had to face Immonen, who’d put Lee Van Corteza in fourth 11-8 after being down 8-5. “It’s not a good habit to get into, but it’s good to be able to come back from a deficit,” said Immonen, who’s had several comebacks this tournament and ended the Corteza match with a break and run. “It’s nice to end with style,” he commented. Against Mills, Immonen opened with a break and run but soon found himself down 5-2 and 7-4. When Mills scratched on the 8 ball in rack 12, Immonen made it 7-5, and three break and runs in a row gave him the lead 8-7. Mills tied it up at 8 after Immonen left a safety on the 1 ball open, but Immonen took the next two to get on the hill 10-8. Immonen missed a delicate safety on the 1 in rack 19, hitting the 9 instead and leaving Mills out. Rack 20 went to Mills after Immonen kicked at the 3 ball and left it hanging, and it was hill-hill. Mills had been breaking very well all day, and there was a good chance Immonen would not get out of his chair again. But the cue ball found the side pocket on Mills’ break, and Immonen navigated a tricky rack down to the winning 6-9 combination.

View the U.S. Open 9-Ball Final 8 Players Tournament Brackets

View the U.S. Open 9-Ball Double Elimination Tournament Brackets 1 (updated continuously)

View the U.S. Open 9-Ball Double Elimination Tournament Brackets 2 (updated continuously)

View the 2009 U.S. Open image gallery

View the LIVE STREAM from ACCU-STATS

Having successfully negotiated through 13 matches on the one-loss side, more than anyone ever had before, according to event promoter Barry Behrman, Immonen now faced former Mosconi Cup teammate Souquet in the extended race to 13. There was a massive $25,000 difference between first place at $40,000 and second at $15,000. Souquet drew first blood when Immonen broke dry, but Immonen took the next three in a row to gain a 3-1 advantage. When the score seesawed to 4 apiece, Souquet surged ahead, winning the next rack with a break and run. Immonen had a chance in the next after Souquet missed a jump shot, but he missed a straight-in 6 ball, and Souquet was out. Instead of being tied at 5 apiece, it was 6-4 Souquet.

Another miss by Immonen in the next, and Souquet put another game under his belt. But the tides turned again when Souquet hooked himself for the 6 and was forced to kick at it. He hit it but left the Finn a shot, and Immonen took that rack. And the next. And the next. Immonen won six racks in a row to bring the score to 10-7 in his favor, an astonishing change from being down 7-4. When he scratched on the 1 ball in the following rack, Souquet dished up, and though Immonen was back at the table in the next rack, he missed an 8-9 combination, and Souquet drew within a game at 10-9.

A delicate safety on the 3 ball by Souquet saw Immonen flail at it without success, and Souquet drew even at 10 each. A safety battle over the 1 ball ended when Souquet left it dangling in the corner pocket, with Immonen clearing that rack. Immonen completely missed the 2 ball after his next break, handing Souquet ball in hand, but Souquet lost that advantage when he scratched after shooting the 6 ball for position on the 8, and Immonen took the hill 12-10. In the final rack, Immonen broke and immediately eyed the 1-9 carom. He lined up, made it cleanly, and collapsed on the floor in a heap.

httpvh://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mPkUrTA39oI
Footage from the finals and awards ceremony.

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