(l to r): Carlos Aguilar, Bill Phillips & Steve Fleming
Bill Phillips gave up only two racks in his final three matches to complete an undefeated run on the New England 9-Ball Series’ second tour stop on Saturday, September 30. The $500-added Dave Marcus Memorial 8-Ball Tournament drew 34 entrants to Buster’s Billiards in Somersworth, NH.
Phillips, who finished fourth in the tour’s season opener the previous weekend, got into the hot seat match with two straight shutouts. The first, against Marco Pirotta, came in a winners’ side semifinal, as Steve Fleming was busy sending Charles Rosco to the loss side, double hill, in the other winners’ side semifinal. Phillips shut out Fleming and in the hot seat, waited on the return of Carlos Aguilar, who was in the midst of a seven-match, loss-side winning streak that would net him a spot in the finals.
Rosco moved over and picked up the last remaining B player in the tournament, Brett Chansky, who’d defeated the only other B player among the event’s final 12, Thomas Hood 4-2, and Matt Elaine 4-1. Pirotta drew Aguilar, four matches into his loss-side streak, which, most recently, had included victories over Eli Davenport and Gilmer Fagundes, both double hill.
In a straight-up race to 3, Aguilar defeated Pirotta 3-1. He was joined in the quarterfinals by Rosco, who’d shut out Chansky. Aguilar downed Rosco 3-1, and then shut out Steve Fleming in the semifinals.
The finalists, Phillips and Aguilar, were both coming off shutout wins over Fleming. With Aguilar racing to 4, Phillips prevailed in the final match 3-2 to claim the event title.
Tour director Marc Dionne thanked the ownership and staff at Buster’s Billiards for their hospitality, along with sponsors Molinari, OTLVISE, Ozone Billiards, AZBilliards, and Delta 13 racks. Stop #3 on the New England 9-Ball Series, scheduled for October 14-15, will be a $1,500-added event hosted by Legends in Auburn, ME.
