Craig McLaren tops Leisure Time All American Tour Stop

The thirty-fourth stop on the 2007/2008 Pechauer All American Tour (produced by the American CueSports Alliance – ACS) was hosted at Leisure Time Billiards in Sterling, IL, on Saturday, February 9. The $500 added event drew twenty-one players in a double-elimination 9-ball format on 7-foot bar boxes. Craig McLaren (Galesburg, IL) marched undefeated to the finals. In the hot-seat match, McLaren (rated a “4” on a regional handicap system used) raced past Anthony Garcia [4] (E. Moline, IL) 4-1. Earlier in the A-bracket semi-finals, McLaren handled Bryan Dickerson [4] (Cedar Rapids, IA) 4-2, while Garcia clipped Ken Harvell [4] (Brodhead, WI) 4-3. In the B-side round of eight Wayne Wright [5] (Rock Falls, IL) eliminated Jeff Hawks [4] (Dickson, IL) 5-3, while Jim Fridley [4] (Dickson, IL) ousted Rich Bideaux [5] (E. Moline, IL) 4-3 – each tying for 7th place respectively. In the B-side quarterfinals Ken Harvell knocked out Fidley 4-1, while Wayne Wright ended Bryan Dickerson's run 5-2 – each loser tying for 5th. The B-side semifinals featured Wright ousting Harvell 5-2, and Wright continuing his hot hand in the B-side finals to eliminate Anthony Garcia 5-0. Wayne Wright had to defeat Craig McLaren two sets for the crown in the tourney finals, but McLaren prevailed in set one over Wright by an 4-2 margin for the title!

By virtue of Wayne Wright being the highest-finishing ACS member in the event, he qualified for a free 9-ball singles entry into the 2008 ACS Nationals in Las Vegas – courtesy of the ACS. The ACS wishes to thank sponsors J. Pechauer Custom Cues, Championship Billiard Fabric and Nick Varner Signature Cases for their support in donating “Value-In-Kind” product for this and all stops on the Pechauer All American Tour. Sponsorship opportunities are still available for the 2007/2008 All American Tour by contacting the ACS.

The Tour continues on Saturday, February 23, with a $1,000 added 8-ball event at Rockford Billiard Cafe in Rockford, IL (contact Angela Voorhees at 815-962-0957) and a $500 added 8-ball event at Rudy's Place in Aurora, IL (contact Miguel Terrajas at 630-898-7769). Further information, entry details and schedules for the 2007/2008 Pechauer All American Tour are available at www.americancuesports.org