Independent Event Weekend Wrap-up June 21-22, 2008

White Diamond Billiards Summer 9-Ball Extravaganza

The prior three tournaments at White Diamond Billiards topped 93 players, but this past weekend White Diamond Billiards Summer 9-Ball Extravaganza in Lafayette, Louisiana scored a new record of 117 players in their most anticipated event yet.  The double elimination tournament with races to seven on both sides had a whopping total payout of $31,110 – not too shabby for a $40 entry and a couple of calcuttas.  The results are as follows:

Results:
1st Steve Lenz $9635
2nd James Davis, Jr. $5470
3rd Jason Lafluer $4104
4th David Parker $3055
5th/6th Gus Correa/Bob Ray $2083
7th/8th Ricky McMillian/Ricky P (The Pistol) $1212
9th-12th Chris Miller/Mike Black/Carlton Broussard/Daniel McKinnery $564

Steel City Summer 9-Ball Tournament

The second independent of the weekend was the Steel City Summer 9-Ball Tournament at Breakers in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.  The tournament limited the field to sixty-four players and ultimately saw a very strong field of thirty-two players and a flow of spectators.  The first day saw known regional players Ryan McCreesh, Manuel Chau, Gary Nolan, and Don Steele fall and end their quest for the final round.

Sunday began with Jerry Slivka, Adam Smith, Danny Barnes, and Ron Beard dropping off the charts as Matt Clatterbuck, Rob Krull, Eddie Abraham, and Dennis Hatch moved on in the brackets.  In the end, the semis came down to Clatterbuck and Abraham – Abraham, after the set see-sawed ended up with the nail biting win of 9-8 to end up matching with Hatch in the finals.  The final arena was extremely exciting with superb play by both Hatch and Abraham.  Abraham was able to get to the hill first 8-7, but a dry break would allow Dennis the out and a break/run for the 9-8 win.

Results:
1st Dennis Hatch $2105
2nd Eddie Abraham $1610
3rd Matt Clatterbuck $1055
4th Danny Barnes $550
5th/6th Rob Krull/Ron Beard $300
7th/8th Adam Smith/Jerry Slivka $200