Sunday, December 23, 2007

2007 in the billiard blogosphere

Since posting "My favorite billiard blogs" almost a year ago a lot has happened in our small section of the blogosphere. New blogs have appeared while others have ceased to exist. Here's a short rundown of the year in billliard blogs:

New blogs

A number of new blogs were launched this year. Here are some of the ones I found most interesting:

Players

Grady's Place is written by legendary player Grady "The Professor" Mathews. He has just opened a pool hall in Lexington, South Carolina and gives useful insights on this process. In addition he shares some fascinating tales from his many road trips.

Unfortunately there are very few top players with blogs. Multiple world champion Thorsten Hohmann is one of the exceptions. He launched his blog in September and has so far provided some great content, e.g. from the World Pool Championship. Let's hope he keeps up the pace!

Danish pool player Bahram Lotfy could very well enter the top echelon of his sport. Unfortunately his blog is in Danish, so far too few readers will have the pleasure of following his progress, in competetive play and in practice.

News & results

greenbaize by Andrew Orange and Jonni Fulcher is predominantly a snooker blog, focussing on the major snooker events. Andrew handles the snooker posts while pool star Fulcher provides an inside view of the Euro Tour.

Another blog covering snooker and pool was launched in April. It's called Play89 Pool Blog and keeps you up to date with the essentials (and not-so-essentials) on the billiard scene. It's maintained by the folks at the Play89 online pool room.

As the name suggests NYC Grind is based in New York. It covers both the international and the local pool scene. The articles, mainly written by "Jerry T", makes for an interesting read.

The Philippines is by many regarded as the top country in pool. Billiards Philippines monitors the progress of Philippine players both in national and international competition. The reports are provided by Marlon Bernardino and Jove Sison.

If you're into carom sports and knows a bit of Spanish then Entrada51 is the perfect blog for you. Blogmaster Juan Antonio de los Reyes delivers extensive coverage of events in the no-pocket category.

Snooker Planet is another latin-speaking blog. Author Luis Alves, who writes in Portugese, covers the professional snooker scene in great detail.

Other

I must admit I prefer straight pool and one pocket when it comes to pool. Pocket Billiards therefore is right up my alley, as it deals with the above-mentioned disiplines as well as other great pocket billiard games. Blogmaster Dennis has been playing pool since 1960, but only started playing straight pool in the past few years.

If you're into the technical aspect of pool the Pool Cue News and Review might be the thing for you. The purpose of the site is to review pool cues and accessories, with a preference for products in PoolDawg store. Right now though the blogmaster (identity unknown) is trying to find the ultimate "Billiards Hottie".

Added 24 December: You'll also find some excellent Spanish-speaking blogs over at Billarnet. There are blogs on a variety of subjects, including all the major billiard games. Training Day by Alonzo has a number of interesting looking posts, making me wish my Spanish skills were up to scratch.

Dead blogs

A blog is rather uninteresting if it's not being updated on a regular basis. Some blogs have not had any new postings in 2007 and have therefore been removed from the blog roll:

Others have been closed or died:

All this leaves us with exactly 100 blogs in the blog roll to your right. Let's hope that number will increase in 2008!

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Monday, December 17, 2007

Europe finally regains Mosconi Cup

Mosconi Cup 2007Europe won a much wanted Mosconi Cup by beating their US rivals 11-8.

The US team had the best start, leading 4-1 after the opening day. Europe managed to tie up the contest at 5-5 after day two though, and held a 9-6 lead after day three. German Mosconi Cup veteran Ralf Souquet clinched the match by defeating Rodney Morris 6-4.

USA now leads the event with 11-3. Europe's last win came in 2002.

The event took place from December 13-16 at the MGM Grand, Las Vegas, USA. Matches were singles, scotch doubles and scotch quintuples(!) with alternate break.

To avoid soft breaks there was an additional break rule this year. This rule stated that for the breaker to stay on the table at least three balls had to pass the headstring or be potted. The normal rule that a ball needs to be potted off the break for the inning to continue still was in effect.

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Ronnie O'Sullivan wins fourth UK Championship

Please see the right menu for coverage of the 2008 World Snooker Championship.

UK Championship 2007Ronnie O'Sullivan from England won the UK Championship for a fourth time this weekend.

In the final O'Sullivan overwhelmed Scotland's Stephen Maguire 10-2 to capture his first ranking title since the 2005 Irish Masters.

For the third straight ranking tournament 2006 world champion Shaun Murphy (England) lost out in the semi-finals. This time he was beaten 9-5 by Maguire. Mark Selby from England lost 9-8 to O'Sullivan in the other semi-final.

Defending champion Peter Ebdon was beaten 9-8 by fellow Englishman Ian McCulloch in the first round.

This was O'Sullivan's fourth UK win. He also won in 1993, 1997 and 2001. It was his 19th ranking title, but first since the 2005 Irish Masters.

O'Sullivan received £100,000 for the victory. In addition he won £30,000 for making a maximum in the deciding frame against Selby. That was his eighth maximum in professional competition, tying the record set by Stephen Hendry (Scotland).

Maguire won £46,000 as runner-up. He was looking for his second consecutive ranking win, having captured the Northern Ireland Trophy last month.

The win lifts O'Sullivan from second to first in the provisional rankings. Maguire rises from fourth to second. Shaun Murphy drops from the top spot to third.

The event took place at the Telford International Centre, Telford, England Dec 3-16, 2007. It was the fourth ranking tournament of seven on the 2007/2008 Main Tour. Next up on the snooker calendar is the non-ranking event Saga Insurance Masters which starts 13th January 2008.

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Sunday, December 16, 2007

Daniel Sánches claims World Cup win in South Korea

Daniel Sánchez from Spain won the three cushion World Cup event in Seoul, South Korea.

In the last match he trounced surprise finalist Chi Tranh Tran (Vietnam) 3-0 (15-14, 15-9, 15-4).

Ramon Rodriguez from Peru and Frédéric Caudron (Belgium) shared third spot.

The home nation's Jae Dong Choi had the highest average in the tournament with 2.357. Caudron's impressive 3.266 was the highest single match average. Martin Horn from Germany had the highest run of 13.

This was Sánchez' first World Cup win of the season. Last year he won twice.

The win moves Sánchez to fourth place in the final World Cup Ranking. Tran enters the list at 20th. The top three hold onto their places, with Torbjörn Blomdahl (Sweden) on top, Caudron in second and Dick Jaspers (Netherlands) in third.

Sánchez advances to third place in the World Players Ranking. Tran is at 39th. Blomdahl is still the leader and Caudron stays in second.

The event took place 10-15 December 2007, in the Ajou University Gymnasium, Seoul, Soth Korea. It was the seventh and final event of the 2007 World Cup. Next year's first event is in Sluiskil, Netherlands, 21-27 January.

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Sunday, December 09, 2007

Bruno Muratore surprise winner of Costa del Sol Open

Italy's Bruno Muratore won his first major title by grabbing the Dynamic Costa del Sol Open.

In the final he edged Radoslaw Babica (Poland) 10-9 to win €5000. Babica took home €3300 for the runner-up position.

In the semi-finals Muratore beat last event's winner Mark Gray (England) 10-7 and Babica defeated Netherland's Niels Feijen 10-4. Defending champion Fabio Petroni (Italy) finished in 17th place.

This was Muratore's first win on the Euro Tour. Prior to this event he had never even reached the semi-finals.

The win took Muratore all the way from 16th to fourth in the final Euro Tour Ranking. Losing finalist Babica moved from 22nd to 11th.

Gray jumped from 12th to win the 2008 Euro Tour title by a margin of 45 points. He finshed the season with an impressive 3-1-3 run. Konstantin Stepanov (Russia) was relegated to second place, ahead of German legend Ralf Souquet. Last year's winner Nick van den Berg of Netherlands finished the season in 12th place.

The tournament was played 6-8 December at the Torrequebrada Hotel and Casino, Malaga, Spain. It was the seventh and final event on the 2007 Euro Tour. The first event of next season runs from February 7-9 2008.

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Friday, November 30, 2007

Mahitthi and Evans victorious in the IBSF World Snooker Championship

Thailand's Atthasit Mahitthi and Reanne Evans from England won gold medals at the IBSF World Snooker Championships.

Mahitthi beat fellow Thai Passakorn Suwannawat 11-7 in the men's final while Evans blanked defending champion Wendy Jans (Belgium) 5-0.

This was Mahitthi's first world title. His previous best was joint third in 2006. Evans has won once before, in 2004. She is also a three-time defending champion of the World Ladies Snooker Championship, organized by the World Ladies Snooker & Billiards Association.

The victory means Mahitthi is set to be nominated for a place on the Main Tour in the 2008/2009 season.

The highest break of the tournament was 140 by Alex Borg (Malta). Evans had a 64 in the Ladies division and Kieran McMahon (Northern Ireland) topped the Masters break table with a 115.

Former pro Darren Morgan won the Masters (Over 40s). He beat Karnchai Wongian from Thailand 5-1 in the final.

The event was held 11-25 November in Sima Thani Hotel, Korat, Thailand.

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Saturday, November 17, 2007

Allison Fisher reigns supreme in the Cuetec Cues WPBA National 9-Ball Championship

England's Allison Fisher won the Cuetec Cues WPBA National Championship for the seoond year in a row.

In the final she defeated countrywoman Kelly Fisher 7-2. Ga Young Kim (South Korea) and Jeanette Lee (USA) finished joint third.

It was Fisher's seventh National Championship. It was also her fourth WPBA win of the season and the 51st title of her career.

This was the last of eight events on the 2007 WPBA Classic Tour. The win made Fisher the clear winner in the rankings. Next year all players will start off with zero points. Results from the four prior events will decide the seedings.

The event took place from November 8-11 at the Chinook Winds Casino, Lincoln City, Oregon. For the first time there was a group stage in the qualifying rounds. Also the field was trimmed down to 48 from the usual 64.

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Ryuuji Umeda wins World Three Cushion Championship

NB! This is the 2007 World Championship. Also see the 2008 World Championship.

Ryuuji Umeda from Japan won the World Three Cushion Championship.

In the tight final against Daniel Sanchez from Spain he won 3-2, with the set scores 6-15, 15-9, 4-15, 15-7 and 15-12. Dick Jaspers (Netherlands) and Ramón Rodriguez (Peru) captured the bronze medals.

Sanchez had the highest average in the tournament, with 1.805. He also had the highest single match average with 2.647. Gerhard Kostiansky (Austria) had the highest run with 12.

This was Umeda's first world title and Japan's first since Nobuaki Kobayashi won in 1984. Nice timing with next year's event being held in Tokyo.

Japan now holds both world titles as Orie Hide won the 2006 Ladies World Championship.

Defending champion Eddy Merckx (Belgium) finished in 12th place.

The win takes Umeda from 13th to fifth in the World Players Ranking. Sanchez advanced one place from fourth to third. Torbjörn Blomdahl (Sweden) only finished sixth in this event but is still the runaway leader. Frédéric Caudron (Belgium) stays in second.

The championship was held at the Salón de Eventos del Mall del Rio, Cuenca, Ecuador between 7th and 11th November.

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Friday, November 16, 2007

Maguire triumphant in Northern Ireland Trophy

Northern Ireland Trophy 2007Scotland's Stephen Maguire won his third ranking title at the Northern Ireland Trophy.

Maguire beat Fergal O'Brien from Ireland 9-5 in the final to capture his first ranking title since the 2004 UK Championship.

For the second straight ranking tournament 2006 world champion Shaun Murphy (England) lost out 6-5 in the semi-finals. He was beaten by Maguire and Northern Ireland's Mark Allen lost 5-3 to O'Brien.

Defending champion Ding Junhui (China) was ousted 5-3 by Maguire in round three.

Maguire received £30,000 for the victory. O'Brien won £15,000 as runner-up. Ronnie O'Sullivan (England) won £20,000 for his 147 tournament high break. That was the seventh maximum of his career. He accomplished the feat in a breathtaking display against Allister Carter where he won 5-2 with five centuries. That's a first for a best-of-nine ranking match.

The win lifted him from fourth to third in the provisional rankings. O'Brien's runner-up spot moved him all the way from No.31 to No.19. Murphy is the new leader, O'Sullivan stays in second and John Higgins (Scotland) drops from first to fourth.

The event took place at the Waterfront Hall, Belfast, Northern Ireland Nov 4-11, 2007. It was the third tournament of seven on the 2007/2008 Main Tour. Next up is the Maplin UK Championship 8th December.

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Sunday, November 11, 2007

Daryl Peach is first British winner of the World Pool Championship

Daryl Peach from England won the World Pool Championship.

Peach grabbed $100,000 for defeating home favourite Roberto Gomez 17-15 in the final. Gomez got $40,000 for finishing second.

The final was a tightly contested affair. Gomez was 15-12 ahead at one point before Peach managed to take the last five games for the win.

In the semi-finals Peach overcame Vilmos Földes from Hungary 11-2. Gomez defeated England's Karl Boyes 11-4.

Peach won a controversial match against Francisco Bustamante (Philippines) in the quearter-finals. Everyone thought Bustamante had won the match with a 3-9 combination at 10-9. After watching the video though the referee ruled that Bustamante had hit the nine first and gave Peach ball in hand. The Brit then won that game and the next to move on to the semi-finals.

Gomez had played brilliantly throughout the event, winning 15 games in a row. He first won eight straight matches in the qualification. Then he won both his matches in the group stages and had five decisive wins in the knockout stages, 10-1, 10-2, 11-0, 11-4 and 11-4.

Former snooker pro Peach is the first player from Britain to win the world title.

Neither of the finalists had been in a world pool final before. Gomez was the top seed after the group stage of last year's event only to lose to eventual winner Ronnie Alcano (Philippines) in the first round of the knockout stage. Peach had previously never been better than 33rd.

The event was dominated by the European and Asian contingent. They both had four players in the quarter-finals.

The tournament ran from November 3-12 at the Araneta Coliseum, Quezon City, Metro Manila, Philippines.

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Sunday, October 28, 2007

Ex snooker pro Mark Gray wins Swiss Open

2007 Swiss OpenEngland's Mark Gray won the Dynamic Swiss Open.

In the final he defeated Vilmos Földes (Hungary) 10-7 to win €5000. Földes took home €3300 for the runner-up position.

In the semi-finals Gray beat David Alcaide from Spain 10-9 and Földes defeated German Oliver Ortmann 10-7.

This was Gray's first win on the Euro Tour. His previous best was third place in last months's Netherlands Open. With Imran Majid winning that event and Daryl Peach taking the German Open English players now have captured two Euro Tour events in a row and three of the last four.

Gray has played on snooker's Main Tour several times. He was last a member in the 2004/2005 season.

With this win Gray takes a giant leap from 73rd to 12th in the Euro Tour Ranking. Losing finalist Földes moves from 21st to ninth.

Konstantin Stepanov (Russia) holds on to the top spot. Daryl Peach (England) and Niels Feijen (Netherlands) move up one spot each to second and third respectively. Stepanov leads Peach by a mere 20 points before the last event but has only a 193rd place to defend.

The tournament was played 25-27 October at the Billiardcenter Island Billiards, Frauenfeld, Switzerland. It was the sixth event of seven on the Euro Tour this season. The next and last stop is the Costa del Sol Open Open (December 6-8).

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Wednesday, October 24, 2007

Caudron on top in Mexico World Cup

Belgium's Frédéric Caudron won the three cushion World Cup event in Mexico City, Mexico.

In the final he defeated Dick Jaspers (Netherlands) 3-2 (0-15, 15-11, 6-15, 15-12, 15-7).

Roland Forthomme from Belgium and Kyong-Roui (South Korea) shared third spot.

Jaspers' 1.955 was the highest average in the tournament. Caudron had the highest single match average, with 2.680. Jean Paul de Brujin from Netherlands had the highest run of 15.

This was Caudron's second World Cup win of the season. He also came out on top in the Corfu event. In addition he won the prestigious Sang Lee International.

The win strengthens Caudron's hold on second place in the World Cup Ranking. Torbjörn Blomdahl (Sweden) is still the leader and Jaspers stays in third.

Caudron also stays in second in the World Players Ranking. Blomdahl sits atop this list as well, while Jaspers moves up to third.

The event took place August 15-21 October 2007, at the Gimnasio Juan de la Barrera, Mexico City, Mexico. It was the sixth event of seven in the 2007 World Cup. The next and final leg is in Seoul, South Korea, December 8-15.

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Shane Van Boening wins first US Open title

US Open 2007Shane Van Boening from the United States won the US Open.

He earned $50,000 by defeating reigning world 9-ball champion Ronnie Alcano 13-10 in the final. Alcano earned $25,000. Surprise package Tomoki Mekari from Japan got $10,000 for third.

Defending champion John Schmidt (USA) had a disappointing tournament, ending up in 65th place.

Van Boening went undefeated in the tournament with some excellent play. For instance he played flawless pool in the 9-4 victory over Alcano in the winners bracket, maybe making one lose safety. He received a standing ovation from the crowd afterwards.

This win crowned an impressive season for the 24-year old Van Boening. He also won the World 10-ball Championship and finished second in the EnjoyPool.com 9-Ball Championship. The victory secured him a place on the US Mosconi Cup team.

The tournament was played 14-20 October at the Chesapeake Conference Center, in Chesapeake, Virginia, USA.

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Fu tops Grand Prix for first ranking win

Royal London Watches Grand Prix 2007Marco Fu from Hong Kong won the Royal London Watches Grand Prix for his first ranking title.

In the final Fu downed Ronnie O'Sullivan (England) 9-6. O'Sullivan has now not won a ranking title for more than 30 months.

Former world champion Shaun Murphy (England) and Gerard Greene (N.Ireland) both lost out 6-5 in the semi-finals.

Fu received £75,000 for the victory. O'Sullivan walked away with £35,000. Tom Ford (England) won £24,000 for his 147 tournament high break.

This was Fu's first ranking title and second final. He lost 9-2 to Stephen Lee (England) in the final of the 1998 Grand Prix.

The win took him from 35th to 15th in the provisional rankings. O'Sullivan's runner-up spot moved him from No.6 to No.2. World champion John Higgins from Scotland still leads the list. Shaun Murphy (England) sits in third.

The event took place at the Aberdeen Exhibition and Conference Centre, Aberdeen, Scotland Oct 13-21, 2007. It was the second tournament of seven on the 2007/2008 Main Tour. Next up is the Northern Ireland Trophy 4th November.

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Friday, October 12, 2007

Corr retains Midwest Classic title

WPBA Midwest Classic 2007Ireland's Karen Corr won the WPBA Midwest Classic for the second year running.

In the final she defeated Allison Fisher (England) 7-5. Ga Young Kim (South Korea) shared third place with Sarah Ellerby (England).

This was Karen's third Midwest Classic trophy. She also won in 2001. It was her second Classic Tour victory of the season and 22nd of her career.

The victory cements her second place spot in the WPBA rankings. Allison Fisher is still in first place and Kim moves up to third.

The event took place from October 3-7 in the Riverwind Casino, Norman, Oklahoma. It was the seventh event of eight this season on the Classic Tour. Next up is the
Cuetec Cues WPBA National 9-Ball Championship, November 7-11, in Lincoln City, Oregon.

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Monday, October 01, 2007

China surprise champs in World Cup of Pool

NB! This is the 2007 World Cup of Pool. Also see the 2008 World Cup of Pool.

World Cup of Pool 2007China (Li He-wen and Fu Jian-bo) won the PartyPoker.net World Cup of Pool.

In the final they edged out the Finnish duo of Mika Immonen and Markus Juva 11-10 to claim the $60,000 first prize. Finland earnt $30,000 for their efforts and Canada and Japan in third place won $16,000.

Holders Philippines (Efren Reyes and Francisco Bustamante) were beaten 9-6 by China in the quarter-finals.

The event took place from September 25-30 in Outland, Rotterdam, Netherlands. 16 teams took part and all matches were scotch doubles, winner breaks.

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Sunday, September 16, 2007

Majid on top in Netherlands Open

England's Imrad Majid won his second Euro Tour title by capturing the Dynamic Netherlands Open.

In the final he defeated Roman Hybler (Czech Republic) 10-7 to win €5000. Hybler took home €3300 for the runner-up position.

In the semi-finals Majid beat Ruslan Chinahov from Russia 10-8 and Hybler defeated England's Mark Gray 10-6.

This was Majid's second win on the Euro Tour. He also won the 2006 Dynamic Billiard Italian Open.

The win takes Majid from 25th to sixth in the Euro Tour Ranking. Losing finalist Hybler moves from 28th to 14th.

Konstantin Stepanov (Russia) and Jonni Fulcher (Switzerland) hold on to the top two places. Daryl Peach (England) improves two positions to No. 3.

The tournament was played 12-15 June at the House of Billiards, Weert, Netherlands. It was the fifth event of seven this season. Next stop is the Swiss Open (October 24-27).

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Monday, September 03, 2007

Blomdahl takes yet another title in Egypt

Three cushion World Cup event in Hurghada, EgyptSweden's Torbjörn Blomdahl won the three cushion World Cup event in Hurghada, Egypt.

In the final he defeated surprise finalist Martin Horn (Germany) 3-1 (0-15, 15-6, 15-10, 15-13).

Dick Jaspers from Netherlands and Frédéric Caudron (Belgium) shared third spot.

Blomdahl is dominating the World Cup at the moment. He has won four out of five events this season and five of the last six overall.

Jaspers' 2.259 was the highest average in the tournament. He also had the highest single match average (3.214!). Caudron had the highest run of 15.

The win further strengthens Blomdahl's lead in the World Cup Ranking. Caudron stays in second. Jaspers stays in third.

Blomdahl also sits atop the World Players Ranking. Caudron rises to second while Daniel Sanchez (Spain) drops to third.

The event took place August 28 - September 1 2007, at the Sunrise Garden Beach Resort, Hurghada, Egypt. It was the fifth event of seven in the 2007 World Cup. The next leg is in Mexico City, Mexico, October 15-21.

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Chang wins inaugural Asian Tour Grand Final

Taiwan's Jung-Lin Chang won the first ever Guinness Asian 9-ball Tour Grand Final.

In the final he beat Lee Vann Corteza (Philippines) 11-8 to claim the $36,000 first prize. Corteza received $10,000 for second place. Chang's two countrymen Chia-Ching Wu and Ching-shun Yang shared third place.

This was Chang's third win of the season. He also won the events in Jakarta and Malaysia. With Yang winning three legs as well, Taiwanese players have made a clean sweep this season.

The event was held August 31 - September 2 at the Grand Hyatt Bali, Bali, Indonesia. It was the sixth and final event of the season.

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Sunday, August 26, 2007

Launching the Billiard Pulse Calendar

The Billiard Pulse Calendar has now been launched. The calendar contains all upcoming cuesport events covered by Billiard Pulse.

The calendar is published through Google Calendar and comes with all the functionality of this service. You can add the calendar to your own schedule, you can get reminders by e-mail, etc.

Although you need to log in to Google to gain access to the full set of functionality you can see a stripped-down version without registering.

The dates have been collected from a number of sources, including WPA, UMB, EPBF, World Snooker, WPBA, Global Cue Sports Centre and AzBilliards.

In the right column you'll find a button leading to the calendar:

Billiard Pulse Calendar

Friday, August 24, 2007

Caudron wins Sang Lee International open - again

Frédéric Caudron from Belgium won the Sang Lee International Open for the second year running.

In the deciding match Caudron edged Turkey's Semih Sayginer 40-39 after having been 39-29 down. He also survived five matchpoints.

Because of the unique format of the event Caudron would have had to beat Daniel Sanchez (Spain) if he had lost loss to Sayginer. Sanchez now had to be content with the runner-up position. Sayginer took third.

Caudron received $12,000 for the win. Sanchez earned $9,600 and Sayginer $8,000.
Sayginer's 16 was the highest run of the event. Torbjörn Blomdahl had the best single game average of 3,500.

The event was played August 13-19 in Carom Café Billiards, New York, USA. A total of 84 players took part.

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Monday, August 13, 2007

Dominic Dale on top in Shanghai Masters

Roewe Shanghai MastersDominic Dale won the Roewe Shanghai Masters for his first major title in 10 years.

In the final the popular Welshman came back from 6-2 down to defeat practice partner Ryan Day (Wales) 10-6. It was an unexpected match-up. Dale is No.32 in the official rankings whilst Day sits in 16th place.

Former world champion Graeme Dott (Scotland) and 2007 World runner-up Mark Selby (England) lost out in the semi-finals.

Dale received £48,000 for the victory and an additional £2,000 for his 143 tournament high break. Day walked away with £22,500.

This was Dominic's second ranking title. He also won the 1997 Grand Prix.

The win took him to No.16 in the new provisional rankings. Day's second career runner-up finish puts him in 10th position. World champion John Higgins from Scotland leads the list, followed by Shaun Murphy (England) and Dott.

The event took place on the Shanghai Grand Stage, Shanghai, China Aug 6-12, 2007. It was the first tournament of seven on the 2007/2008 Main Tour. Next up is the Royal London Watches Grand Prix 17nd September.

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Thursday, August 09, 2007

Allison Fisher takes third US Open in a row

WBPA US OpenAllison Fisher won the WPBA US Open for the third time in a row.

In the final she defeated fellow Englishwoman Kelly Fisher 7-6. Last year's runner-up Kim Shaw (England) shared third place with Ga Young Kim (South Korea).

This was Allison's fifth US Open trophy. She also won in 1999. It was her third Classic Tour victory of the season and 50th of her career.

The win solidifies her position on top of the WPBA rankings. Karen Corr (Ireland) is still in second place and Xiaoting Pan (China) stays in third.

The event took place from August 1-5 in the Twin River Casino, Lincoln, Rhode Island. It was the sixth event of eight this season on the Classic Tour. Next up is the Midwest Classic, October 3-7, in Norman, Oklahoma.

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No.3 for Yang in Shanghai

Taiwan's Ching-Shun Yang won the China leg of the Guinness Asian 9-ball Tour.

In the final he beat Ronnie Alcano (Philippines) 12-10 to claim the $15,000 first prize. Fu Jian Bo (China) and Ryu Seung Woo (South Korea) shared third place.

This was Yang's third win of the season. He also won the events in Kaohsiung and Singapore. With Jung-Lin Chang winning two legs, Taiwanese players have now made a clean sweep this season.

With this win Yang strengthened his lead in the Order of Merit. His points tally is 245. Chang lies in second with 185 points.

Here are the top 10 finishers in the Order of Merit. They won spots in the 2007 World Pool Championship and also the Tour finals.
  1. Ching-Shun Yang, Taiwan
  2. Jung-Lin Chang, Taiwan
  3. Fong-Pang Chao, Taiwan
  4. Ronato Alcano, Philippines
  5. Chia-Ching Wu, Taiwan
  6. Ricky Yang, Indonesia
  7. Ibrahim Bin Amir, Malaysia
  8. Dharminder Singh Lilly, India
  9. Bernard Tey Choon Kiat, Singapore
  10. Lee Vann Corteza, Philippines

The event was held August 3-5 at the Shanghai Hotel, Shanghai, China. It was the fifth event of six this season. Next and final stop is the Grand Championship Final, on Bali, Indonesia on August 31 - September 2.

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Monday, July 30, 2007

Russell wins record eighth World Billiards Championship

Mike Russell from England won the 2007 World Billiards Championship.

Fellow Englishman Chris Shutt from England took silver after losing 2166-1710 in the final. Defending champion Geet Sethi (India) and David Causier (England) finished joint third.

Russell had the two highest breaks in the event; a 494 and a 482.

He has now won a record eight world pro titles; 1989, 1991, 1996, 1999, 2002, 2003, 2004 and 2007. Some say it is nine since his name was also engraved on the trophy in 2000, even though there was no world championship that year

The championship was held July 18-22 at the Northern Snooker Centre, Leeds, England.

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