The American Billiard Club Association is off the ground and looking good, especially good for the 8 players that qualified for what undoubtedly could be a special piece of pocket billiard history – the first ever American Rotation National Championship.
64 players across the country laid the groundwork by playing 7 matches at their own local billiard rooms over a 7 week period. Week 8 of this national event was a 1 day regional event where players in each region attempted to earn a spot in their National Championship. All players who qualified were guaranteed a minimum of $1,000 each upon arrival, which ensured they would not lose money while traveling to their National Championship.
This first championship was hosted by Diamond Billiards in Midlothian, VA and had players from:
Oklahoma – Gordy Vanderveer, Jamaica Joe’s, Midwest City.
North Carolina – Scott Johnson, Gate City Billiards, Greensboro.
New England region – Joe Dupuis, Snookers Billiards, RI & Joe Tucker, Amazin Billiards, MA.
Florida – Adam Wheeler, Cue Phoria, Winter Park & James Roberts, Stroker’s, Palm Harbor.
Alabama – Robert Hall, Bumpers, Huntsville & David Rowell, Bumpers, Hoover.
The 8 player championship called for two groups of 4 players competing in a round robin format. The top 2 players from each group were then seeded into single elimination brackets where matches would be increased from 125 points to 150 points. The final 4 turned out to be a New England vs Florida battle (Think Sox, Rays) #1 seed James Roberts vs. the #4 seed Joe Tucker and #3 seed Adam Wheeler playing the #2 seed Joe Dupuis. James Roberts who appeared by general consensus to be playing the best pool of the day had at least two 15 ball break and run outs while defeating Tucker 150-118, moving one Floridian into the finals. On the streaming table were Adam Wheeler and Joe Dupuis in a fast and well played match that kept the regional battle alive with Dupuis prevailing by a score of 150-115.
Most American Rotation matches to 150 points take about 2 hours on average. Here with everything on the line and a chance to become the first ever National Champion you might expect the pace to slow just a bit, but NOT the case with Joe Dupuis in the finals. As he did all day, he came out with his usual fast and loose style that entertained the crowd and occasionally brings some additional heat. The final match took 1hour and 15 minutes, one of the fastest of the day, with Joe Dupuis becoming the game’s first National Champion by the score of 150-95.
Joe Dupuis won the title of first ever American Rotation National Champion, a commemorative custom case by John Barton Cases and a nice check for $3,000. Our Runner up, James Roberts, received a check for $2,000. Adam Wheeler and Joe Tucker won $1,500 each for 3rd and 4th (Joe is donating a portion of his winnings to session II fees for 8 last place players of session 1 as a reward for these players stepping up and showing some heart in an effort to improve their own game and support our sport). Gordy Vanderveer, Scott Johnson, Robert Hall & David Rowell won $1,000 each.
The American Billiard Club Association (ABCA) must be doing something right, because all who competed in the first national event have nothing but good things to say. Even the players that didn’t qualify for the nationals are praising the format, which aims to solve the problem of player expenses, and the game, which aims to improve American players.
ABCA Championship Series II will begin the week of October 28th. Week 8 regional events will be held across the nation in December, and National Championship II will be held in conjunction with the 2014 Derby City Classic in January. The ABCA plans to hold their national championships close in time and proximity to other national events. This helps players save on expenses, if they choose to attend such events, and helps promoters get more entrants to their events.
As this article is being written, Joe Dupuis is at the U.S. Open 9-Ball Championship also in VA, something that might not have happened, had he not qualified for the ABCA national event.
American players and club owners are encouraged to contact Joe Tucker at 508-840-6133 or jttenball@gmail.com ASAP. It just takes 8 players with a little desire to make your club one of 64 nationwide that will help our sport present one legitimate and self sustaining format that we can all be proud of!
For more information about the American Billiard Club Association, please visit:
