Planet Pool Tour

Official Site

Web links

2000 - present

Years active

Pool

Game(s) played

History

[Taken from the official Planet Pool Tour website] The Planet Pool concept was conceived during the winter of 1999. The last regular pool tour that serviced the Washington DC Metro region—Maryland, DC, Virginia—was long defunct, and players in the area were hungry for tournaments. There was a gap in the Mid Atlantic Region, and Planet Pool was to fill it. Starting from scratch, the tour kicked off its first event in January of 2000, and followed that highly successful 87-player event with fifteen more during its first year. Each event featured an “Open” event and a “Women’s” event. Tournaments were hosted in Baltimore, MD, Newark, DE, Richmond, VA, Salisbury, MD and as far south as Norfolk, VA. The 2000 year-end final in Laurel, MD drew more than 100 players, male and female. Although not entirely aimed at catering to the big-namers, the tour has featured international and professional players the likes of Ralf Souquet, Earl Strickland, Francisco Bustamante, Santos Sambajon, Frankie Hernandez, Mika Immonen, Karen Corr, Charlie Williams, Danny “Kid Delicious” Basavich, Max Eberle, Keith McCready, and Jose Parica. These players help fill the stands, while giving the average player a chance to compete against them and learn in the process. The tour went from strength to strength, and 2001 followed suit with another 15 successful events. Mike Ricciardella of RE/MAX Pros joined Planet Pool as sponsor and part owner, and the tour moved closer to corporate status. Before the end of 2001, Planet Pool was officially rated the largest amateur pool tour in the United States, based on the number of active playing members. Read more on the official site : About the Planet Pool Tour