Karen Corr - Photo courtesy of Erwin Dionisio
Ireland’s Karen Corr went undefeated through a field of 56 women who competed in the $8,350-added Diamond Women’s Open 9-Ball Pro Championships, held as part of the Super Billiards Expo on the long weekend of April 12-15, and sanctioned by the North American Pool Tour. It was her third SBE Women’s Pro Championship title, which she won, as well, in 2016, and 2014. It was her first win in 2018.
In the field that was vying for $26K in prize money and included anyone’s list of the top women in the sport, the top 16 were seeded at the beginning of the initial, double elimination bracket. When that bracket came down to the final eight on each side, those 16 women entered a single elimination phase that was not seeded. Corr, after defeating Sonya Chbeeb, Rachel Lang and Veronique Menard to secure her spot on the winners’ side Final Eight bracket, got by Janet Atwell 11-8, and Vivian Villareal 11-9 to face Allison Fisher in the semifinals of that winners’ side Final Eight.
Brittany Bryant, in the meantime, who’d lost an opening round match to Kim Whitman, won four on the loss side, against Krista Walsh, Ada Lio, Stephanie Goens, and Dawn Hopkins to claim a spot on the losers’ side Final Eight. In the single elimination phase, Bryant downed Bernie Store 11-7, and April Larson 11-9 to face Jia Li in the semifinals of the losers’ side Final Eight.
Long-time adversaries at the table (and friends, off the table), Corr and Fisher battled in what arguably should have been the event final (a seeded single elimination phase might have kept them apart until the finals). Corr won it, 11-8, and advanced to the finals. Byrant joined her, after downing Li 11-9. Corr took the final 11-6 to chalk up her third SBE title.
