Queens, New York- The anticipation is over. Day 1 of the Predator World Tournament of 14.1 kicked off with a jam packed full house of straight pool fans trying to catch the action with the world class international field. And they weren't disappointed. Some big runs and surprising upsets in round 1.
Dr.Louis Pannullo put up in extra $500 bonus for the highest run of the 5pm round. Brazil's Cleiton Rocha had it for a moment with a 59 ball run. Then he was overshadowed by Efren Reyes 60+ ball run over Dr.Pannullo. But Efren was hard luck when Thorsten Hohmann ran 74 and out on Zaid Thweib of Jordan on the TV Stream table. But it was Max Eberle who had the last laugh with a 79 ball run agains Dr.James Heller.
The 2012 Predator World Tournament takes place July 29th - August 3rd. The event is produced by Dragon Promotions & Dr.Michael Fedak and proudly co-sponsored by Championship Cloth, Olhausen Tables, Amsterdam Billiards, Aramith Balls, Pool & Billiard Magazine, Championship Tour Edition Chalk, and straight pool aficionados Dr.Louis Pannullo of NYC, Stu Mattana of NYC, Ralph Rubin of MD, and Tom Gleich of NC. Co-contributors Dr.James Heller, Drew Thomas, and Charles Eames.
Some dramatic moments came as well with Chicago's World 14.1 Qualifier winner Tom Karabotsos surprising last year's World Tournament finalist Mike Davis running 50& out when Davis only needed a rack. NJ qualifier Dennis Spears destroyed NYC 14.1 pro Danny Barouty 100-26. Charlie Williams dodged a bullet when he won 100-89 against Chicago's Bob Cozzolino when Bob missed a ball in the final rack.
Two other big runs came from Corey Deuel and Darren Appleton. Deuel ran 80+ to win 100 - 1 against Joey Kong of Korea. World 9-Ball Champion Appleton delivered a near flawless 99&out against Jerry Tarantola.
"The atmosphere is exciting and perfect for the World Tournament. This is the first time I've been to Carom Cafe, and it is a really great fit for this event", said Ed Liddawi, owner of Sandcastle Billiards which hosted the NJ Qualifier for the World 14.1 where Spears and Kong qualified.
"The crowd was awesome for Day 1. It wasn't just a handful of polite claps. People were roaring and clapping for great shots and well placed break balls. It is an extremely knowledgeable and large crowd", said Charlie Williams, pro player in the event.
Tomorrow's TV stream schedule is:
10:30am Huidji See NED (World 14.1 Silver Medalist) vs Bob Madenjian USA (NYC Qualifier Winner)
12:00pm Mike Davis USA (World 14.1 Silver Medalist) vs Chris Lynch USA (NYC)
1:30pm Earl Strickland USA (World & US Open Champion) vs Danny Barouty USA (Former Quarter Finalist World 14.1)
4:30pm Darren Appleton ENG (World 9-Ball, 10-Ball, and 2x US Open Champ) vs Max Eberle USA (World 14.1 Bronze Medalist)
6:00pm Efren Reyes PHL (World 9-Ball, 8-Ball, 1-Pocket Champ) vs Corey Deuel USA (US Open 9-Ball Champ)
7:30pm John Schmidt USA (US Open Champ, 5th World 14.1) vs Stephan Cohen FRA (2009 World 14.1 Champ)
Collectors can purchase the main TV table where the finals and all streamed matches will be played on. The beautiful new Olhausen Grand Champion Pro II is valued at $6500 but will have an incredible $5000 price tag which includes souvenir Aramith Balls used in the event, Championship Tour Edition Cloth, and free installation! The table will also be signed by the champion along with an autographed poster of all the World Tournament players. For more information on buying the table, player registration, sponsorship, or if you would like to submit a comment, please email worldstraightpoolchampionships@gmail.com or contact Dragon Promotions at 1-407-782-4978.
Full schedule and event info is now at www.Worldstraightpool.com and more info on www.dragonpromotions.com
The 2nd Annual Straight Pool Hall of Fame Dinner will be inducting Danny Diliberto and Jack Colavita. Fans can buy tickets in advance by going to http://worldstraightpool.com/tickets.html
Get the latest news by following http://www.facebook.com/Worldstraightpool and www.twitter.com/Dragonpromoter
Reserve your tickets for the main events and the exhibitions at: caromcafe.qrickets.com
Pay per view streaming available (14.1 and 3c): www.worldstraightpool.com
