Kim edged multiple-winner Dutchman Dick Jaspers 3-2. The frame scores were 13-15, 15-7, 15-11, 2-15 and 15-8.
Defending champion Martin Horn from Germany and Filipos Kasidokostas (Greece) lost out in the semifinals.
This was the 29-year-old Korean’s first World Cup title. His previous best was second in the 2008 Suwon World Cup. In that final he lost 3-2 to Jaspers.
He received €5,500 for the victory and Jaspers got €3,500 for second place.
Marco Zanetti (Italy) had the highest general average among the 56 competitors with 1.846. Daniel Sanchez (Spain) had the highest single match average in the final stage with 2.464. Japanese Kouji Funaki’s 13 was the highest run in the event.
The win moved Kim from sixth to fifth in the World Players Ranking. Jaspers improved from fourth to third. Frédéric Caudron (Belgium) stays on top with Torbjörn Blomdahl (Sweden) in second place.
The event took place 15-21 February 2010 at the Belconti Resort Hotel, Antalya, Turkey. It was the first of at least four events in the 2010 World Cup. The next events is in Suwon, South Korea, 6-11 April 2010.
Niels Feijen successfully defended his title by winning the 2010 French Open.
In the final the merited Dutchman defeated first-time finalist Craig Osborne (England) 9-2. The victory was worth €5000. Osborne got €3300 for second place.
The semifinals saw Feijen defeating Malta’s 2008 winner Tony Drago 9-5. Osborne overcame Dimitri Jungo (Switzerland) 9-3.
This was Feijen’s second win in the French Open and sixth Euro Tour win overall, from 11 finals. That puts him in fourth place on the all-time list, only behind the German trio of Ralf Souquet, Oliver Ortmann and Thomas Engert.
The win keeps Feijen in third place in the season’s first Euro Tour Ranking. Losing finalist Osborne improved from 14th to ninth. Souquet and Imran Majid (England) stay in first and second respectively.
The tournament was played 11-13 February 2010 at the Leader Billard Club, Paris, France. It was the first event of seven on the 2010 Euro Tour. Next up is the Italy Open which runs from 14-18 March 2010.
In the final they defeated Philippines 4-1 to claim the $75,000 first prize.
Greece were beaten 4-2 by Great Britain in the semifinals. Russia were defeated 4-1 by Philippines in the same round.
The winning team consisted of Imran Majid, Darren Appleton, Karl Boyes, Daryl Peach and Mark Gray. The Filipino team included Ronnie Alcano, Warren Kiamco, Antonio Lining, Marlon Manalo and Dennis Orcollo.
The event took place from 31 January to 7 February at the Deutsche Messe, Hannover, Germany. 42 teams took part and all matches were a combination of scotch doubles and singles, in 8-ball, 9-ball and 10-ball.
The final against defending champion Allister Carter (England) was an impressive display of scoring power. He made breaks of 137, 101, 95, 81, 76, 72 (twice), 71, 59 and 54 in the 9-4 win.
The Scot received £35,000 for the victory and runner-up Carter got £17,500.
Ronnie O’Sullivan (England) and Stephen Maguire (Scotland) lost out in the semifinals.
Higgins also had the highest break of the event, a 138 which earned him £2,000.
This was the second Welsh Open title for Higgins and his 21st ranking title. He also won the event in 2000.
The win strengthens Higgins’ lead in the provisional rankings. The next two also remain the same, with O’Sullivan in second and Neil Robertson (Australia) in third.
The event took place at the Newport Center, Newport, Wales 25-31 January, 2010. Next up on the snooker calendar is the Sanyuan Foods China Open which starts 29 March 2010.
The tournament is comprised of three events. Reyes was second in bank pool, top 25 in one pocket and first in 9-ball. He secured the title several rounds before the end of the last event.
Here are the final results, with field sizes:
Bank pool (352): Winner: John Brumback (USA), $10,000; Runner-up: Efren Reyes (Philippines), $5,000 One pocket (289): Winner: Scott Frost (USA), $12,000; Runner-up: Sylver Ochoa (USA), $6,000 9-ball: (257) Winner: Efren Reyes (Philippines), $16,000; Runner-up: Rodney Morris (USA), $8,000
All-around title (Master of the Table):
Reyes, $20,000
Brumback, $3,000
Alex Pagulayan (Philippines), $2,000
This was Reyes’ record fifth all-around-title and also his second 9-ball crown. It was Brumback’s second Banks title and it was Frost’s first victory in One Pocket, after finishing runner up last year.
Brumback was the defending over-all champion. See Past Champions at the official site for a list of all previous winners.
During the week there were several more events being staged. For instance, Charlie Williams (USA) won the Straight Pool Challenge and Reyes won the Fatboy 10-Ball Challenge for $6,500.
The tournament ran from January 22-30 at the Horseshoe Casino and Hotel, Elizabeth, Indiana, USA. It was the 12th edition of the event.
England’s defending champion Ronnie O’Sullivan was just one game away from his fifth win after taking a commanding 9-6 lead but Selby stormed back to take the title 10-9.
Selby received £150,000 for the victory and O’Sullivan got £75,000 for his runner-up spot.
Mark J Williams (Wales) and Stephen Maguire (Scotland) lost out in the semifinals.
Maguire and Neil Robertson (Australia) tied for the highest breaks of the tournament with 140 to share the £10,000 prize..
This was the second Masters title for Selby. He also won on his 2008 debut. Last year he lost in the final to O’Sullivan.
The event took place at the Wembley Arena, London, England 10-17 January, 2010. Next up on the snooker calendar is the Totesport.com Welsh Open which starts 25 January 2010.
The final against Scotland’s John Higgins was a very tight affair, until Ding took it 10-8 after a 75 in the final frame.
Stephen Maguire (Scotland) and Ronnie O’Sullivan (England) lost out in the semifinals.
Ding received £100,000 for the victory and Higgins got £46,000 for his runner-up spot.
Stephen Lee had the highest break of the tournament with 141, which made him $5,000.
This was the second UK and fourth ranking title for Junhui. He’s previously won the 2005 China Open, the 2005 UK Championship, the 2006 Northern Ireland Trophy. Higgins was looking for his third UK title and 21st win in ranking events.
In his four wins Ding has defeated the four greatest players of the last 30 years; Stephen Hendry (Scotland), Steve Davis (England), O’Sullivan and now Higgins.
Murphy moves from ninth to sixth in the provisional rankings. The top two remain the same. Higgins stays on top, followed by O’Sullivan. Neil Robertson (Australia) sits in third.
The event took place at the Telford International Centre, Telford, England 5-13 December, 2009. It was the third ranking tournament of six on the 2009/2010 Main Tour. Next up on the snooker calendar is the Masters which starts 10 January 2010.
The US team was in front all the way, leading 4-1 after the opening day, 7-2 after the second and 9-5 after the third. On Sunday Shane Van Boening sealed the deal by defeating Ralf Souquet (Germany) 6-2.
Europe was heavy favorites coming into the event with two straight wins and a team packed with world champions. USA now have 12 wins in total to Europe’s 4.
The teams:
USA
Nick Varner (non-playing captain)
Johnny Archer
Corey Deuel
Oscar Dominguez
Dennis Hatch
Shane Van Boening
Europe
Alex Lely (non-playing captain, Netherlands)
Darren Appleton (England)
Niels Feijen (Netherlands)
Thorsten Hohmann (Germany)
Mika Immonen (Finland)
Ralf Souquet (Germany)
The event took place from December 10-13 at the MGM Grand Hotel and Casino, Las Vegas, USA. Matches were singles, scotch doubles and scotch quintuples with alternate break. Next year’s Cup will be held in Europe.
In a roller-coaster final Philipoom defeated Swedish legend Torbjörn Blomdahl 3-1. The frame scores were 3-15, 15-14, 10-15, 15-11 and 15-0.
Turkey’s Tayfun Tasdemir and virtually unknown Ruben Legazpi from Spain lost out in the semifinals.
This was the 45-year-old Belgian’s first World Cup title. His previous best was second in Sluiskil earlier this season.
He received €5,500 for the victory and Blomdahl got €3,500 for second place.
Defending champion Daniel Sanchez from Spain lost 2-1 to Legazpi in the quarterfinals.
Sanchez had the highest general average among the 56 competitors with 1.873. His 2.523 was the highest single match average in the final stage. The Spaniard also tied Kyung-Roul Kim (South Korea) and Marco Zanetti (Italy) for highest run with a maximum 15.
Frédéric Caudron’s fifth place finish secured his victory in the 2009 World Cup Ranking. Blomdahl and Philipoom moved into a tie for second place, from fourth and seventh place respectively. Last year’s winner Dick Jaspers (Netherlands) finished in seventh position.
The win will move Philipoom from 12th to about ninth in the World Players Ranking. Blomdahl will likely improve from fourth to third. Jaspers will keep his lead.
The event took place 6-12 December 2009 at the Sunrise Garden Beach Resort, Hurghada, Egypt. It was the final of five events in the 2009 World Cup. The next season opens in Antalya, Turkey, 15-21 February 2010.
Gray defeated Karl Boyes 8-6 in the final to earn the €5000 first prize. Boyes received €3000 for second place.
In the semi finals Gray beat home player Francisco Diaz-Pizarro 8-5. Boyes defeated Mateusz Sniegocki (Poland) by the same scoreline.
This was Gray’s first Costa del Sol Open title and second win in total, from two finals. It puts him at No.16 on the all-time list.
Boyes’ previous beat was third in the 2008 German Open. Sniegocki was looking for his first final in his third semi-final appearance. It was Diaz-Piarro’s first ever Euro Tour start.
2007 overall winner Gray moves from ninth to fifth in the final Euro Tour Ranking. Boyes jumps from 24th to 12th.
Ralf Souquet (Gemany) “only” managed a ninth place finish this time but still held on to the lead to claim his second straight and record fifth Tour title. He also picked up the trophy in 1995, 1999, 2001 and 2008. Imran Majid (England) and Niels Feijen (Netherlands) finished in second and third place respectively.
The tournament was played 3-5 December at Hotel Alay, Benalmadena, Spain. It was the last event of seven on the 2009 Euro Tour. First up on the 2010 Tour is the French Open which runs from 10-14 February 2010.
The Finn won a one-sided final against Lee Van Corteza (Philippines) 11-6. Immonen received $60,000 for first place while Van Corteza got $30,000 for finishing second.
In the semifinals Immonen overcame Antonio Lining (Philippines) 9-7 while Van Corteza downed David Alcaide (Spain) by the same score. There was no bronze match this year so they both tied for third and won $15,000 each.
2009 champion Darren Appleton (England) had a fairly successful title defense, reaching the quarterfinals before losing 9-6 to Alcaide.
Exactly as last year the event was dominated by the European and Asian contingent. Amazingly this year they grabbed the 32 first spots on the leaderboard! There were 18 Asians and 14 Europeans.
This was Immonen’s second world title. He also won the 2001 9-ball world championship.
It was the third World Tour win of the year for the fabulous Finn after also having captured the Qatar Open and the US Open.
Immonen now dominates the WPA rankings, ahead of Ralf Souquet (Germany) and Appleton.
This will be the only men’s world championship of 2009. For the second year in the row there will be no 9-ball world championship.
The tournament was staged from 25-30 November 2009 at the World Trade Center, Manila, Philippines.
Burden beat surprise finalist Igor Figueiredo (Brazil) 10-8 in the men’s final while Yee overwhelmed Australia’s Kathy Parashis 6-1.
Yu Delu (China) and finished third in the men’s event and Bi Zhuqing (China) reached the same position among the ladies.
These were the first world titles for both Burden and Yee. Burden is a former top-32 player on the Main Tour.
Neither of the defending champions competed this year. Thepchaiya Un-Nooh (Thaniland) is currently playing on the Main Tour while three-time winner Reanne Evans (England) could not find a sponsor.
The victory means Burden is set to be nominated for a return to the Main Tour in the 2010/2011 season.
The final in the Masters event saw two former pros clash. Darren Morgan (Wales) beat defending champion Dene O’Kane (New Zealand) 6-0. Morgan also won in 2007. Last year he played in the men’s event, where he was knocked out in the last 16.
In the final she won the last eight games to defeat three-time runner-up Karen Corr (Ireland) 9-5. The comeback included five consecutive break-and-runs.
In the all-Chinese bronze match Xiotang Pan trounced Fu Xiofang 9-1.
Shushua edged 2007 champion Pan 9-8 in the semifinals and Korr beat Xiofang with the same score.
Defending champion Yuan-Chun Lin from Taiwan went out in the early rounds after losing 7-0 to Corr.
This was the sixth world title in a row for Asian players. The last non-Asian to win was four-time champion Allison Fisher (England) in 2001.
The tournament ran from 16-22 November, 2009, in Shenyang, China.
Kasidokostas played to a high standard in the final where he beat Eddy Merckx (Belgium) 3-1. The set scores were 11-15, 15-8, 15-13 and 15-3.
Two-time defending champion Marco Zanetti (Italy) and Eddy Leppens (Belgium) shared third place.
Kasidokostas took away €4,800 for the victory. Merckx received €3,200.
The Greek champion had the highest average in the tournament, with 1.869. In addition he had the highest single match average with 3.058. As if that wasn’t enough he also tied for the highest run of 13 with Roland Forthomme (Belgium) and Sergio Jimenez (Spain).
This was Kasidokostas’ first world title, from three finals. In 2003 he lost to Semih Sayginer (Turkey) and in 2004 he lost to Dick Jaspers (Netherlands). This was the 62nd edition of the world championship but the very first won by a Greek player.
Merckx was aiming for his second world title, having previously won in 2006.
The win takes Kasidokostas from 17th to 10th in the World Players Ranking. Merckx advances three places from eighth to fifth. Jaspers only finished ninth in this event but is still the leader. Daniel Sanchez (Spain) stays in second and Frédéric Caudron (Belgium) moves from third to second.
The championship was held at the Centre de congrès et d’expositions Beaulieu, Lausanne, Switzerland between 11th and 15th November 2009.
The semifinals saw Ouschan edge Jeanette Lee (USA) 7-6 while Pan beat Kelly Fisher (England) in a 7-2 drubbing.
This was Oushan’s first WPBA Championship win, her third victory of the season, and her fifth Classic Tour title in total. She was unbeaten in the tournament and apart from the semi-final thriller she was really never threatened.
Defending champion Monica Webb (USA) finished tied 17th after losing 7-6 to countrywoman Michell Monk.
Ouschan improved from fourth to second in the rankings for the 2009 Classic Tour. Pan dropped from second to third. Nobody could surpass Ga Young Kim (South Korea) though who won her first overall title. Last year’s winner Kelly Fisher finished just outside the top four.
The event took place from November 12-15 2009 at the Seminole Hard Rock Casino, Hollywood, Florida, USA. It was the last of six events this season on the Classic Tour.
The 2008 champion earned $40,000 by defeating 2002 winner Ralf Souquet (Germany) 13-10 in the final. Souquet earned $20,000.
Donnie Mills was beaten 11-10 by Immonen in the losers’ final to finish third. That was worth $10,000 for the American.
The Finn had to endure a long run on the losers’ side after an early loss. In total he played 15 matches, which is more than any previous champion.
Immonen is only the second player to win back-to-back US Open titles. Nick Varner (USA) accomplished the same feat in 1989-1990.
In addition to his two titles Immonen was also runner-up to Corey Deuel (USA) in the 2001 final.
The two finalists are both in the middle of some impressive streaks. Prior to this event Souquet and Immonen were second and third in the WPA rankings and also held the top two positions in the BCA Points List.
The tournament was played 18-24 October at the Chesapeake Conference Center, in Chesapeake, Virginia, USA. There were 216 entrants in this the 34th edition of the championships.
In 8-ball making shots always feels good. But when you are playing in the APA league there are times when making a crazy 4 bank or more shot is not the best answer. In fact, regardless of skill level, there are times when a properly place defensive shot will be the key to winning any game.
The following video is of an actual game. Michael Vass, in the red, is a skill level 5 APA pool player. The opponent is a skill level 6. Both can make difficult shots with a decent level of assurance that it will work. But rather than making the extremely hard shot, and thus opening the table for the opponent to win, defensive shots were used.
This is just one case where defensive shots can be critical. I have seen many matches decided by a well place defensive shot. Especially in Las Vegas during the National competition. Never underestimate the usefulness of this technique.
From time to time I have discussed the American Poolplayers Association league that I play in. Located in Endicott New York, I play in the 8-ball and 9-ball leagues.
Most notably I have commented on how my 8-ball team qualified and went to the Las Vegas APA National Tournamnet this summer. And I provided a bit of video of not only me but the rest of my team.
But I have not given my 9-ball team (playing out of Guys and Dolls Pool Hall in Endicott) as much attention. Because while I am good, no one player is a team. And while I am captain, and my team is currently leading the fall session, this would not be tryue without a great team.
So I decided to show a bit of video on some of the rest of my team. this one focuses on Gary Hinkley (the man in the video). He is ranked a level 4 - though he may go up a level after this game. he is playing a level 7 player (the woman in the video). This is the last rack of their match.
You can see why Gary is one of the leading players in the league, and a great asset to my team. And yes, Gary did win the match. 18 - 2.
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John Higgins (Scotland) won the 2010 totesport.com Welsh Open.
