Francisco Bustamante
Francisco Bustamante (PHI) and Pin-Yi Ko (TPE) have officially confirmed as two (2) of only sixteen (16) players that will compete in the inaugural CSI Invitational 10-Ball and CSI Invitational 8-Ball Championships which will take place July 18-25, 2014 during the BCAPL & USAPL National Championships at the beautiful Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, NV.
Bustamante brings an astonishing resume to the field. Although his titles are too numerous to list, some of his most notable accomplishments include the 2008 & 2013 Derby City Classic Master of the Table, 2009 World Cup of Pool Champion, 2010 World 9-Ball Champion, and 2nd place in the 2012 US Open 10-Ball. He has also been featured on several TAR matches and various other challenge match formats.
Ko, relatively unknown in the U.S., also possesses an impressive list of accomplishments. He was the 2011 Guiness World Series of Pool Champion, 2011 & 2013 All Japan Men’s Champion, and 2013 Indonesia 9-Ball Open Champion. He also finished 2nd in the 2009 Qatar International Open, 3rd in the 2010, 2011 & 2013 World Cup of Pool, 5th in the 2013 US Open 10-Ball, and 5th in the 2013 US Open 8-Ball.
Each event will be $16,000 added ($32,000 total) and feature 16 of the world’s best players to compete in a round robin format (four groups of four). Each group will consist of a North American, European, Filipino, and Asian player with the top finisher from each group advancing to a single elimination bracket. In each event, every player will receive prize money with first place winning $8,000.
CSI has sent invitations to players selected not only for their proven skills and accomplishments, but also for the respect and dignity they display as professional pool players. For at least one hour per day during these events, they will provide free lessons, demonstrations, autographs, etc. for the BCAPL & USAPL amateur players. Additional player announcements will be made as they confirm.
CSI is dedicated to creating more choices for all players. In the past 9 years CSI has directly paid out $9,000,000 to players. CSI is the parent company of the BCA Pool League and the USA Pool League. CSI also produces independent events such as the US Bar Table Championships, the Jay Swanson Memorial, the US Open One Pocket Championship, the US Open 8-Ball Championship and the US Open 10-Ball Championship. Visit www.playcsipool.com, www.playbca.com, and www.playusapool.com for more information about CSI and its divisions.
