Alex Vangelov, Dinko Busanich and Jay Pass
The first time that Dinko Busanich won a (recorded) event in the New York City Tri-State area was eight years ago, when he and Frank Sieczka split the top two prizes at a stop on the Tri-State Tour back in December of 2014. As the undefeated occupant of the hot seat at the time, Busanich became the official event winner. The next and last time Busanich won a recorded event was this past weekend, Saturday, July 10, when he went undefeated to win a stop on the Garden State Pool Tour. The $250-added event drew 20 entrants to Side Pocket Billiards in Howell, NJ.
Busanich faced Alex Vangelov twice in this one; hot seat and finals. Busanich was awarded a bye, before downing Rob Wetherhold, double hill and drawing Mike Johnson in a winners’ side semifinal. Vangelov, in the meantime, playing one more match to get to the same place, defeated Luigi Ramos 6-4 and Giancarlo Delgado 6-3 to arrive at his winners’ side semifinal against Kevin Rushing.
Busanich sent Johnson to the loss side 7-3, as Vangelo was busy doing likewise to Rushing 6-1. Busanich claimed the hot seat 9-5 and waited for Vangelov to get back from the semifinals.
On the loss side, Jay Pass, who’d lost her opening round match, made it all the way to the semifinals to challenge Vangelov. She’d defeated Stephen Persaud 6-4 in the quarterfinals to get to him. Vangelov stopped Pass’s run 6-3 in those semifinals for a second chance shot at Busanich.
In the extended-race-to-11 finals, Busanich could have ended it by winning 9 racks first and at 7-7, that was still possible. Vangelov, though, took the next two racks, which extended the race to 11. Dinko came back to win two, knotting the score at 9-9. Vangelov won rack #19 to reach the hill first, but when he hung the 9-ball in the next game, Busanich took advantage and forced the 21st game of the final. Things went back and forth in that final rack, but in the end, Busanich dropped the event’s last 9-ball to claim his (first ‘no final match’) event title.
Tour representatives thanked the ownership and staff at Side Pocket Billiards for their hospitality, as well as Billiards Engineering, Kamui, J-Flowers Custom Cues & Cases, AZBilliards and John Bender Custom Cues. The next stop on the Garden State Pool Tour, scheduled for this weekend (Sunday, July 17), will be a C/D Class 9-Ball event, hosted by Black Diamond Billiards in Union, New Jersey. And it will be a C-D Class 9-Ball event.
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