 Oscar and Ernesto Dominguez |
The weekend of August 18th and 19th Danny K's Café and Billiards in Orange, California hosted a $500 added straight pool tournament that by only word of mouth attracted a total of fifty eager pool players to show up and give their best performances. This, in itself, was an amazing feat as there were only approximately twelve players that emerged for the Predator World 14.1 Championship qualifier only a few months prior. A variety of skill leveled players from San Diego, Los Angeles, and some from even further away made the trek to play in and support this event.
The Tournament Director (and promoter) for the event was Roger Tafoya with Wayne Norcross and Ron Schneider as Directors. This was Roger Tafoya's first attempt at a straight pool event and judging by the amount of players, it was a complete success. This is hopefully a sign that the game will soon again be discovered by the younger generation of pool players, as it appears to be gaining in popularity across the United States once again.
During this event, there were many enjoyable matches that kept the crowd on the edge of their seats, this included one of the tour's Directors, Wayne Norcross. He was able to hold the attention of the railbirds in matches against Frank Almanza and during a match-up with Oscar Dominguez. But, ultimately, it would be the event's top high runner for the weekend that would eventually be the tournament winner - Oscar Dominguez. He had a run of 69 balls which earned him the high run prize of $100. In addition to this run, other high runners during the event consisted of 47 balls by Marshall Jung and 42 balls by David Nakano.
Thanks go out to Danny Kuykendall (owner of Danny K's) for allowing the event to be played at his establishment, to the players for supporting the event, and to the fans that attended.
If you are interested in sponsoring a straight pool event in the area in the future, please contact Roger Tafoya directly at (714) 299-5432. This is a great way to show your support for the sport!
