The hot seat match and finals, combined, took just over an hour and a half. Francisco Bustamante won them both (against first, Rodney Morris and then, Jayson Shaw) to capture the 4th Annual Chet Itow Memorial Tournament in Mountain View, CA. The $3,000-added event drew 109 competitors to the California Billiard Club in Mountain View.
Bustamante's path to the winners' circle was eight matches long. Shaw's path, which began when Ronnie Alcano defeated him in the opening round, went through 14 loss-side opponents before Bustamante stopped him in a less-than-45-minute final. With five down and three to go, Bustamante moved among the winners' side final four and matched up against Stevie Moore. Rodney Morris and George Pagalayun squared off in the other winners' side semifinal.
Bustamante got into the hot seat match with an 8-3 win over Moore, and was joined by Morris, who'd sent Pagalayun west 8-5. Bustamante made short work of Morris 8-3 and sat in the hot seat for longer than his final two matches combined.
Over on the loss side, Shaw was hard at work. With nine down and five to go, Shaw wreaked his vengeance on Alcano, and then defeated Santos Sambajon to pick up Moore. Pagalayun drew Amar Kang, who was on a six-match, loss-side streak of his own, which had included a victory over Warren Kiamco. Shaw and Kang continued their streaks; Shaw defeating Moore, and Kang ending Pagalayun's weekend.
Shaw then ended Kang's streak with an 8-2 win in the quarterfinals, that set him up to face Morris in the semifinals. Shaw repeated his quarterfinal score (8-2) against Morris in the semifinals to complete his long trek back to the finals.
Shaw opened the potential double-set finals with two quick racks; he and Bustamante both playing as though they were late for a bus. Bustamante got on the board, and Shaw took advantage of an unforced error to regain his two-rack lead. Bustamante used a carom shot to drop the 9-ball early in the fifth rack, and pull back within one, but he made another unforced error in the sixth rack to return the two-game lead to Shaw at 4-2.
Shaw didn't know it as the balls spread out in rack seven, but it was over. Bustamante put together a title-earning six-pack that included a 3-9 bank combination that finished it, in less than 45 minutes.
