Moore uses two, double hill wins over Shuff to claim VA State 10-Ball title

What a difference a year makes. Last year at this time, we were reporting on Shaun Wilkie‘s sixth straight win on the Action Pool Tour at the 2015 VA State Open 10-Ball Championships, in which he defeated Matt Krah in the finals to claim the title. A year later, two competitors who weren’t even involved in last year’s championship, emerged from the pack to battle twice for the 2016 title; Eric Moore and Brandon Shuff. And in what could only be termed a surprise ending, it was Moore who bested Shuff, twice, double hill, to claim the title. The 2016 VA State Open 10-Ball Championships drew 59 entrants to Diamond Billiards in Midlothian, VA. A concurrently-run Women’s event (separate story), drew 18, and saw Janet Atwell defend her title, with, for the second year in a row, Jacki Duggan as the runner-up.

In the Open event, four of the five matches that Brandon Shuff played on the winners’ side went double hill, including his first two versus Shane Wolford and Rich Glasscock. Shuff got by APT Tour Director Ozzy Reynolds 7-2, before engaging in his fourth and fifth double hill battles. He won the fourth over Bill Duggan before running into Moore in a winners’ side semifinal. Moore had some early trouble against Sean Sporleder in his opening round, but advanced 7-5 to defeat three straight opponents (Rick Senter, Nilbert Lim and Rick Scarleto) 7-2. He capped this with the double hill win that sent Shuff to the loss side. Chris Futrell and RJ Carmona, in the meantime, squared off in the other winners’ side semifinal, won by Futrell 7-3. Moore claimed the hot seat over Futrell 7-3 and waited on Shuff’s return.

On the loss side, Shuff walked right into his sixth double hill match; this one, against Reymart Lim, who’d defeated Christopher Wilburn and Adam Kielar, both 6-4, to reach him. Carmona picked up Scarleto, who, following his winners’ side defeat at the hands of Moore, had defeated Rafael Reyes 6-4 and eliminated last year’s champion, Shaun Wilkie, in a double hill match.

Shuff won his sixth double hill match (over Lim), as Scarleto eliminated Carmona 6-2. Perhaps in preparation for what was to come, Shuff bore down and took the quarterfinal match over Scarleto and the semifinal match against Futrell, both 6-3.

In the finals, Shuff and Moore locked up in what was Shuff’s seventh double hill match, out of eight played. Moore prevailed to claim the 2016 VA State 10-Ball Championships.