Each year at the DCC, Bob Jewitt adds $10,000 from his own pocket to host a Straight Pool Challenge. This year that added money included an additional $100 from another donor. 100% of all the entries also return to the prize fund.
The preliminary rounds drew 27 challengers. For $100 entry, each player gets 12 attempts at a high run starting with ball in hand on a break ball, four a day over three days. The top three high runs for each day receive a pay out of $300, $200, and $100.
Additional bonuses include $1,000 for high run overall, $1,000 bonus for a run of 200 or more (provided by Greg Sullivan and Diamond Billiards), and additional prize money from Accu-stats for a recorded run of 100 and 150 that occurs in the Accu-stats arena. All runs of 50-and-out will be allowed to continue.
The top eight players with the highest runs throughout the preliminary rounds advance to a single-elimination tournament. Among the field of eight, Ralph Eckert and Charlie Williams made their way to the finals. Eckert defeated Bobby Hunter and Alex Pagulayan while Williams defeated Beau Runningen and “Mr. 400” John Schmidt.
In the first round, Schmidt defeated Stevie Moore 100-29. Moore scratched at 12 giving Schmidt a chance at the table and it was all he needed. He ran 100 and out and was then given the opportunity to continue his run. He finished at 171, missing a 3 ball in the side pocket to end his run. Schmidt will receive an additional $1,000 for the overall high run of the tournament and $1,000 courtesy of Accu-stats for his run in excess of 150 when he returns to comment the match.
In the following round, Schmidt would find the tables turned when he scratched. Williams ran the set out winning 100-73 and continued his run to125 receiving a $500 bonus from Accu-stats for his 100+ ball run. The two-hour finals match between Williams and Eckert did not go as smoothly as they hoped. Both players were feeling the pressure. There were several missed balls and a high run of 39 by Williams, who got the job done in the end.
Daily Prizes
Sunday
$300 99 John Schmidt
$200 70 Marc Vidal
$100 57 Ralph Eckert
Monday
$300 113 John Schmidt
$200 111 Ralph Eckert
$100 57 Charlie Williams
Tuesday
$300 156 John Schmidt
$200 99 Corey Deuel
$100 91 Beau Runningen
Wednesday
$300 146 Johnny Archer
$200 93 Charlie Williams
$100 82 Bobby Hunter
Tournament
1st Charlie Williams $2,500
2nd Ralph Eckert $1,700
3rd John Schmidt $1,100
4th Alex Pagulayan $1,100
5th Corey Deuel $700
6th Bobby Hunter $700
7th Stevie Moore $700
8th Beau Runningen $700
29 players remain in round seven of the 9-ball event. Banks champ John Brumback lost his round 6 match to Shane Winters. Brumback is still currently in contention for Master of the Table along with Efren Reyes and Scott Frost. Still hanging on are Rodney Morris, Johnathan Pinegar, Larry Nevel, and Reyes. Still undefeated are Billy Bailey, Stevie Moore, Frost, and Alex Pagulayan.
Tune in to Accu-stats.com and TheActionReport.com for live streaming all week.
Also, make sure you check out the daily AZ Buzz newscasts on the 2010 DCC Coverage page, made possible by Horseshoe Casino Hotel Southern Indiana and CueSports International.
