Robles and Zvi Co-Champions at Society Billiards

L-R Tony Robles, Gail Glazebrook, Borana Andoni, Zion Zvi

Mezz Pro-Am Tour made its way to Society Billiards & Bar in New York City on Sunday April 10, 2011. A strong field of 31 players came out to play, players like Tony Robles, Zion Zvi, Jonathan Smith, Michael Yednak, Eddie Abraham, Mike Miller, Jennifer Barretta, Jude Rosenstock, and Borana Andoni to name a few.

Leading the top half of the bracket was Tony Robles with wins over Borana Andoni 7-3, Zion ZVi 7-3, Tony Rodriguez 7-3, and Jude Rosenstock 7-1. Leading the bottom half of the bracket was Jonathan Smith with wins over Alvin Borja 7-3, Noel Bensurto 7-2, Edward Rodriguez 7-0, and Michael Wong 7-3.

Playing for the hot seat was Tony Robles Vs Jonathan Smith This was a great match that went hill hill but when it was all said and done it was Tony Robles coming away with the win 7-6 and sending Jonathan Smith to the one lost side. Making the move on the one lost side was Zion Zvi with wins over Lionel Rivera, Ed Cohan, Edward Rodriquez, Mhet Veraga, Jude Rosenstock, and Michael Yednak.

In the finals it was it was Tony Robles Vs Zion Zvi these two good friends decided to be co-champions. Congratulations to both players for an outstanding day of play, I would also like to thank Mezz Cues and all are sponsors for their ongoing support and all the players that came out to play. Complete Payouts:

1st Tony Robles, Zion Zvi, $550
3rd Jonathan Smith $300
4th Michael Yednak $200
5th Jude Rosenstock, Michael Wong $150
7th Mhet Vergara, Mike Miller $100

Eddie Abraham Takes the Mezz Tour at Mainline Billiards

Eddie Abraham (1st), Mainline Billiards owner Mike Nardo, Josh Brothers (2nd), Bruce Nagle (3rd) and his daughter Mikaya Engler

The Mezz Pro-Am Tour was hosted by Mainline Billiards in Frazer, PA on Sunday, April 3^rd.  A strong field of twenty-eight players came out to compete, including Eddie Abraham, Matt Krah, Brett Stottlemyer, Josh Brothers, Mike Miller, Jose Cruz, Joe Hong, and Bruce Nagle, to name a few.

Leading the top half of the bracket was Bruce Nagle, with wins over Jose Burgos 7-5, Jay Brotherton 7-5, Rob Vannatta 7-6, and Josh Brothers 7-6.  Meanwhile, Eddie Abraham took charge of the lower half of the bracket with wins over Nocholas Jankowski 7-2, Joe Hong 7-3, Matt Krah 7-3, and  Mike Lizzio 7-3.

Eddie Abraham then took on Bruce Nagle in the hot seat match, which would turn out to be a good battle where Eddie Abraham pulled off the win 7-5 and sending Bruce Nagle to the one lost side. Waiting for Bruce Nagle on the one-loss side was Josh Brothers this to was a good match but it was Josh Brothers coming away with a 7-5 win.

The final was a familiar match-up on the tour between Josh Brothers and Eddie Abraham, where Brothers would have to beat Abraham twice to win the event.  However, the day belonged to Eddie Abraham, and in the first set, Abraham took control from the start and never looked back, winning 7-1 to thane the eventevent.

The Mezz Pro-Am Tour would like to thank all of their sponsors along with all the players that came out to play at Mainline Billiards.

The next stop on the Mezz Tour will be held at Society Billiards in NYC, this Sunday, April 10.  For more tour information, visit www.mezztour.com.

For more information, visit www.nycgrind.com.

Jason Klatt Crowned New NYC 9-Ball Champion at Skyline Billiards

Rob Saez and Jason Klatt

On March 19-20, the sixth annual NYC 9-Ball Championship was held at Skyline Billiard Club in Brooklyn, NY. Skyline graciously adds $3,000 each year to this event. The format was a race to 9/7 with an affordable entry fee of $150 to draw players of all levels. Hot homemade entrees were brought in on Saturday for players, catered by co-owner Rob Pole’s own mom.

“This tournament used to be held the weekend before the world straight pool tournament,” said tournament director, Jose Burgos. This event has always boasted an impressive attendance record, most notably Francisco Bustamante’s win in 2008 with Mika Immonen, Mike Davis, and Johnny Archer among the field and, Neils Feijen’s victory in 2007 when the Filipino contingency of Dennis Orcollo, Ronnie Alcano, Lee Van Corteza, and Jose Parica all made appearances.

This year was no different. A tough field of 39 players showed up, including reigning U.S. Open 9-Ball Champion Darren Appleton, as well as Mike Davis, Jason Klatt, and John Morra. Two-time reigning champion, Stevie Moore’s hope of bringing home a third title was shattered when he got the one-two k.o. from Appleton. Moore was defeated 9-7 in a first round match deemed worthy of the finals. He was later eliminated by Appleton 7-1 in 30 minutes flat and settled for 7th place.

Appleton received his first loss by Klatt when he missed a 3 ball at hill-hill. A few rounds later, he found himself down 5-2 against Morra who’s only mistake was breaking dry. Appleton closed the gap before hanging a 5 ball. Morra pocketed the 5 and hooked himself on the 6. His jumping skills failed him this time, allowing Appleton control of the game and match. Appleton dished another convincing win of 7-1 over local player Joey Kong before getting handed a 7-1 loss from Rob Saez. Saez was ahead 6-0 before Appleton won his first game. The Brit had several uncharacteristic misses on the 9 ball and received a third place finish for his efforts.

Klatt defeated Saez 9-6 to enter the finals, while leading the entire match. The confident Saez, who finished runner-up to Ralf Souquet last weekend at the Super Billiards Expo, was out for blood. His strong victory over Appleton gave him the chance for a rematch against Klatt. Without hesitation, Saez claimed the first set 9-7. Both players took a quick break before starting the second set. Klatt got his mistakes out of the way early in the match when he missed a 4 ball to go up 1-0. Before Saez knew it, Klatt caught a gear and jumped ahead 6-1 before missing the same 4 ball in the side. Saez took that game and the next two but his comeback was short lived. Klatt ran the final rack  to win 7-3.

Complete online brackets here.

Click here for tournament payouts.

Stevie Moore Win the Mezz Tour’s 3rd Stop at Q-Ball Billiards

Stevie Moore (1st), Q-Ball Billiards owner Jose Garcia, Joey Testa (2nd)

The Mezz Pro-Am Tour made its way to Q-Ball Billiards in Vineland, NJ on Sunday, March 6, 2011, for the third tour stop of the season.  A strong field of forty-two players came to play, which included Stevie Moore, Shane Van Boening, Joey Testa, Eddie Abraham, Josh Brothers, Matt Krah, Jose Feliciano, and Emilio Felicianoto.

Leading the top half of the bracket, Stevie Moore took out John Greshock 7-5, Tim Dlugosz 7-3, and Paul Cooney 7-0.  Following that up, Moore ran in to Shane Van Boening in the final four of the winner’s bracket.  This was a great match that had Shane Van Boening ahead 6-1, only to see Stevie Moore grind out game after game to make the match hill-hill.  Shane Van Boening had an easy nine ball for the win, but the cue ball skidded and he missed the nine giving Stevie Moore the win, 7-6.

Joey Testa, who plays out of Atlantic City Billiards and is sponsored by Gary Conover, led the bottom half of the bracket, walking over Mike Winover 7-1, Bob Miane 7-1, Jim Walder 7-2, and Josh Brothers 7-3.  Testa then met up with Stevie Moore in the hot seat match… this was a great match that had Steve Moore pulling away late to win 7-5 and send Joey Testa to the one-loss side.

Waiting for Joey Testa on the one-loss side was Eddie Abraham, who had previously beaten Shane Van Boening 7-4, followed by Josh Brothers in the quarterfinal.  In the semifinal, Abraham gave Joey Testa a run for his money, but it was Joey Testa who edged ahead to win the match 7-5 to get to the final.

In the final, it was a rematch between Joey Testa and Stevie Moore, where for Testa to win the event, he would have to beat Moore twice. This day belonged to Steve Moore as he beat Joey Testa 7-3 to win the event.  I would like to thank all the players that came out to play, along with and all the sponsors for their ongoing support.

Next up on the Mezz Tour will be Tour Stop #5 on April 3, 2011 at Main Line Billiards in Frazer, PA.  For more info, visit www.mezztour.com and www.nycgrind.com.

“The Iceman” Mika Immonen wins the Masters 10-Ball Championship

Winner Mika Immonen & runner-up Ralf Souquet with Barry Behrman & Shannon Behrman-Paschall

At the conclusion of the 2011 Masters 10-Ball Championship, tournament promoter Barry Behrman suggested that Mika Immonen might want to relocate to Chesapeake considering his success in tournaments there. While the move is highly doubtful, Immonen didn’t immediately reject the idea. But let’s not get ahead of ourselves.

The match for the hot seat at the 2011 Masters 10-Ball Championship was contested between Immonen and Mike Davis. Immonen jumped out with a huge statement to lead 5-1 early while Mike Davis searched for any opportunity and could find none. At 6-1 Immonen scratched on the break but the two ball was tied up with the nine and when Davis broke them out the nine snookered him from a shot. All Davis could do was play safe at a time when he needed rack scores. Immonen answered with a safe of his own and Davis came with a kick-safe that did not work at all, leaving the rack to Immonen to take and increase his lead to 7-1 In the race to 8, Immonen was running out his case rack when he hung the seven in the corner. Davis managed the last three balls to bring us to 7-2, but Immonen broke and ran the last rack to snatch the hot seat 8-2. He played some of the finest pool this reporter has ever seen in this match. No one could have kept up with the skills he displayed here today. His shotmaking was near-flawless and his position and speed were perfect.

On the one-loss side Ralf Souquet inched ahead of Mike Dechaine early 4-2. He stretched this to 5-2, then 6-2 and 7-2 as he played his usual smart pool. Souquet doesn’t take a lot of risks – no showboating, just one shot after another until the rack disappears. He refused to allow Dechaine the chance to display his power as he dominated control of the table. He finished Dechaine off with a 2-10 combo to win the match 8-2.

This set up the semi-final match between Ralf Souquet and Mike Davis. Souquet won the lag but broke dry and Mike Davis ran out to take a 1-0 lead. Davis three-fouled Souquet for the second rack to lead 2-0. Souquet came back with a billiard on the ten ball off of the three to take rack number three. Davis looked to be in trouble in rack four when he overshot position on the 8-ball and had to play safe. Souquet failed to capitalize though and Davis pulled ahead 3-1.

Rack five found another dry break from Souquet that resulted in a 4-1 score line but Souquet took the next one to bring it closer to 4-2. Davis is a bulldog of a player. He just keeps clamping down and took the next rack to go 5-2 up. Souquet bit back in the next rack to pull us to 5-3. A rack later he pulled up to 5-4. A dry break by Davis, and a safety by Souquet, led to a 1-10 combo and a tied scoreline at 5-5.

Souquet broke dry in rack eleven, but Davis was unable to handle a tricky shot that left him scratching on the 4-ball. Souquet methodically cleared the table for his first lead at 6-5. Just when Davis needed to stop the bleeding, he played safe on Souquet and was rewarded with ball in hand and rack twelve to tie the score at 6-6.

Souquet found himself playing safe in the next rack, but hit the ball too softly and failed to contact a rail. Davis was the one unable to convert though, as a safety on the 3-ball was misplayed and Souquet found himself gifted with a 3-10 carom and a 7-6 lead. A Mike Davis miss on a very tough 7-ball in the next rack left Souquet in a tough shot. Souquet opted for a thin 7-10 combo which missed the pocket, but left a much easier 7-10 carom which Davis converted for 7-7 and the “win by two” rule took effect.

Souquet broke and ran rack fifteen to take control at 8-7. When Davis needed a successful break the most, the only ball that found a pocket was the cue ball. Ralf ran a 3-10 combo and successfully converted the shot for the 9-7 win.

The final match between Souquet and Immonen would be a race to 10 with the winner having to win by two. Immonen got things started the best way possible with a break and run in rack one. By contrast, rack two revolved around a long early safety battle but it was Immonen who won that battle as well as the second rack. Rack three was more of the same as Immonen came out on top of a safety battle and won the rack. Rack four was just what the doctor ordered for Souquet with a break and run. Immonen scratched on the break in rack five, but Souquet could only run to the five before a poor safety left Immonen a runnable rack and a 4-1 lead.

Souquet stopped the bleeding with a break and run in rack six, but Immonen won rack seven to regain his three rack lead at 5-2. Souquet again broke and ran in rack eight, and Immonen matched him with a break and run of his own in rack nine. A Souquet dry break in rack ten led to an Immonen table run and a 7-3 lead. It got worse for Souquet in rack eleven when the pool gods game to Immonen’s aid a couple of times. But the mark of a true champion is what they do with good rolls, and Immonen ran out when the run was available. Souquet did all he could to stay in the match with another break and run in rack twelve, but Immonen broke and ran right back to get to the hill at 9-4.

Any chance of an amazing Souquet comeback were brought to a close as he scratched on the break in rack fourteen and Immonen made quick work of the balls to clinch the title 10-4.

Visit AZBilliards.com for more information.

Eddie Abraham Goes Undefeated in the Mezz Tour at Drexeline Billiards

Eddie Abraham (1st), Drexeline Billiards owner Bob Maidhof, Josh Brothers (2nd)

The Mezz Pro-Am Tour’s second stop of the season was hosted by Drexeline Billiards in Drexel Hill, PA on Sunday February 27th.  A number of the area’s top players came out to compete for a top prize of $923, including Eddie Abraham, Josh Brothers, Matt Krah, Joey Testa, Raphael Saldana, Michael Praseutsy, Bruce Nagle, and Adam Kielar

Leading the half of the bracket was Raphael Saldana, who went through the winner’s side wins over Bob Whitfield 7-3, Steven Pullia 7-1, Al Waldo 7-4, Phil Wines 7-6, and Bob Maidhof 7-4.  Leading the bottom was Eddie Abraham with wins over Joe Hong 7-1, Mike Miler 7-3, Josh Brothers 7-4, and Michael Praseutsy 7-0.

The hot seat match featured the remaining two winner’s bracket players, Raphael Saldana and Eddie Abraham.  This would be an exciting match-up that went hill-hill, and when it was all said and done, Eddie Abraham pulled off a 7-6 win, sending Raphael Saldana to the one-loss side.

Rising through the one-loss side was Josh Brothers, who took on Raphael Saldana to see who would move on to the finals… and Josh Brothers would be the one to dominate this one-sided match, winning by 6-2 to get to the finals. This would set Josh Brothers and undefeated Eddie Abraham for the final, but Brothers elected not to play out the match and gave Eddie Abraham the win and the event.

The Mezz Tour would like to thank all the players that came out to play, along with special thanks to Mezz Cues and all the other sponsors for their ongoing support.  The tour would also like to congratulate Josh Brothers and Denise Reeve for being named the 2010 Mezz Pro-Am Tour Players of the Year.

Next up on the Mezz Pro-Am Tour is Stop #3 at Q Ball Billiards in Vineland, NJ, this Sunday, March 6th.  Check out www.MezzTour.com for more information.

Final Results:

1st: Eddie Abraham – $923

2nd: Josh Brothers – $823

3rd: Raphael Saldana – $420

4th: Phil Wines – $225

5th/6th: Michael Praseutsy, Bob Maidhof – $200

7th/8th: Bruce Nagle, Brady Jones – $150

9th-12th: Kenny Rutman, Mike Miller, Joey Testa, Shaun Dobson – $100

For more information, visit www.mezztour.com and www.nycgrind.com.