Shane Connors, Dennis Hatch, Bucky Souvanthong and Frank Connors
The Joss NE 9-Ball Tour kicked off their 2011/2012 season over the weekend of September 24th and 25th with their first ever stop at Premium Billiards in Syracuse, NY. While it was only the first event of the season, the battle between the last two season's top points players is already underway as Dennis Hatch defeated last year's points winner Bucky Souvanthong for the tournament win.
Bucky's place in the finals was in jeopardy early as he lost his first match early on Saturday. There were no such early losses for Hatch as he cruised through days of play relatively untested. Hatch took the hot-seat on Sunday with a 9-1 win over Lyn Wechsler.
On the one loss side, Souvanthong was still alive and he then eliminated Wechsler 9-5 in the semi-finals.
Although Souvanthong is the reigning tour points leader, Hatch was the favorite going into the finals and he played like it. The finals was over in one quick set as Hatch won decisively 9-3 for his first win of the season.
Hatch pocketed $1000 for first place, while Souvanthong settled for $700.
Sunday's second chance event saw Tim Parisian run through the field undefeated for the win. Parisian defeated Brian Lipes for the hot-seat and then defeated Dominick Martoccia in the finals.
Parisian earned $270, while Martoccia took home $170.
The Joss NE 9-Ball Tour will be at TJ's Classic Billiards in Waterville, Maine next week for their next event.
Players are urged to get their entries in now for the Turning Stone Classic XVIII on December 15th - 18th at the Turning Stone Casino in Verona, Ny.
