Just when it looked like the 2009 Stick Built Tour to Benefit Habitat for Humanity was going to be dominated by Tony Williams and Johnny Griffin, a new face burned his way through the competition to take 1st Place in the third stop of the tour, hosted by New York Billiards & Café in Raleigh.
Jackson “Smokee” Jeffreys, a resident of Knightdale NC, drew a bye in the first round but the wait did not slow his game. Jeffreys won through players including Adrian Warden and Mitch Day to take the top spot. Johnny Griffin, who had been sent to the loser side by Jeffreys in an earlier match, had to overcome another newcomer, Daniel Hill, for a chance to come back and face Jeffreys again.
It was an intense final match as both Griffin and Jeffreys dealt with some unpredictable, fast cloth, resulting in rolls that caused eyes to widen and heads to shake. But Jeffreys managed to take it down and remain undefeated for his first ever non-handicap tournament win.
Jeffreys is just fourteen years old, by the way, and we here at Cue Sport Promotions expect to see this young man's name with greater frequency as he puts on years and goes gunning for the pros. Jackson “Smokee” Jeffreys just may be “the future of pool.” We're with you, Smokee. Go get ‘em!
