The stage was set at Chinook Winds Hotel and Casino in Lincoln City, Oregon, for the 2007 WPBA U.S. Cuetec Cues National 9-Ball Championship the week of November 7-11, 2007. This year, there was a slight change in the format – the field was limited to the top ranked forty-eight players and the play was performed in a round robin setting until the field dwindled down to the final sixteen players.
As has been the case in prior events, the final sixteen players were subjected to a single elimination format from that point forward. The women that made it to the final sixteen consisted of Allison Fisher, Jeanette Lee, Ga-Young Kim, Kelly Fisher, Sarah Rousey, Vivian Villarreal, Hsin Huang, Helena Thornfeldt, Gerda Hofstatter, Liz Ford, Jasmin Ouschan, Julie Kelly, Sarah Ellerby, Xiao-Ting Pan, Monica Webb, and Tiffany Nelson.
As always, the crowds came out in droves to support the women and they had the opportunity to see great matches throughout the week. In the final sixteen alone, some of those matches included Xiaoting Pan defeating Monica Webb 9-5, Julie Kelly taking down titan Jasmin Ouschan 9-4, and Jeanette Lee besting Helena Thornfeldt 9-4.
By the time the semi-finals were announced, the match-ups included Allison Fisher v. Jeanette Lee and Ga Young Kim v. Kelly Fisher. In semi-final one between Allison Fisher and Jeanette Lee, Lee took the first stab at the match when she won the lag. At a score of 2-1 Lee, Fisher broke and made the nine causing a tie. Fisher went on to win the fifth rack and in rack six, after crucial mistakes by Lee, Fisher jumped ahead 4-2. It looked as though rack seven would push Lee along for a tighter finish, but in fact it was the last she would win (4-3). Fisher took advantage of the mistakes and at one point a generous roll to ultimately break free at 5-3, then finish out rack eight after a missed one ball by Lee, followed by a break and run on the hill for the 7-3 win.
In the second semi-final match-up, Ga Young Kim and Kelly Fisher fought it out to the bitter end. Kim started the set with winning the lag and the two players continued to match game for game until K. Fisher was able to break free for the lead of 5-3 at one point. Kim continued to scratch her way back and was able to tie up the set 5-5. In rack eleven, Kim had the break but after a mistake made shortly after shooting the two ball, K. Fisher had the opportunity to run out and jump on the hill first 6-5. Kim was not willing to roll over for K. Fisher and managed to take the twelfth rack to tie the score at 6-6. The final game saw Kim breaking, but the rack was a toughy and ultimately after a missed seven ball, K. Fisher had an easy out for the win and a step into the final round 7-6.
The finals saw Fisher against Fisher. Allison won the lag and immediately notched her mark on the board with a break and run 1-0. After a scratch in rack two by Kelly, Allison returned to the table and ran the remaining balls to retain the lead 2-0. Allison broke in rack three and proceeded to once again run the rack adding to her score 3-0. Kelly pushed and took rack four in an attempt to fight her way back, but after a break in run in rack five by Allison (4-1) and then a missed one ball in rack six, Kelly had to sit and watch Allison push ahead to a 5-1 lead. In game seven, Allison broke and had to play safe as she had no shot. Kelly returned the table to Allison which forced an error on the two ball by Allison. After a brief safety battle and a couple of tough shots for both ladies, Allison had a shot at the table on the seven ball and she finished the rack allowing her the chance to get on the hill first 6-1. Kelly broke dry in rack eight, but Allison had to play a safe on the seven ball after she erroneously ran into the eight ball while shooting the six. Kelly made a fantastic shot on the seven ball and added a game to her side of the chart 6-2. The final rack was riddled with all types of issues, but it was Allison Fisher who finished off the rack with a jump shot on the one ball and a 2-9 carom for the win.
File photo courtesy of Roberta Case
