Day 3 of the USPPA Pro Classic at the Sands Regency in Reno resulted in a number of interesting match-ups. Of the 107 matches played the third day of the event, 17 matches went went 8/7 with another 18 going 8/6. A somewhat more modest average for the day of close matches, but overall of the 384 matches played, 141 were decided by 2 games or less.
Key matches included Michelle Rakin (107 Rating) being eliminated by her mentor, the venerable "Filipino Gene", Gene Ventura (107 Rating). The aged Ventura is still a formidable competitor and you can rest assured any young gun who plays out of the San Francisco Bay Area has been influenced by his tutelage. We doubt any of his current protégés will make the impact that his ex-rack boy in the Philipines, anobscure guy named Efren Reyes has on the pool scene, but we have high hopes for Michelle and her pool playing siblings.
The USPPA Pro Am Classic is down to six players. The match for the hot seat will be between Jeff Gregory (111 Rating) and the always entertaining Joey Gebron (126 Rating) Jeff Gregory dispatched the red hot John Field (94 Rating) despite a borderline 1 game handicap. Gebron did likewise to an equally hot Travis Reil.
A real story in this event has been Wayne Pullen , (93 Rating). Well known in the LA amateur circles Wayne won an incredible ten matches on the loser side to get to 5th and 6th with a chance to still win the tournament and collect some well deserved bonus money. Wayne is competitive in all the open events in the LA area and don't be surprised to see him eliminate one of your favorite professional's if he gets the chance.
The Prize Fund breakdown is as follows:
1st $ 3000
2nd $ 2000
3rd $ 1600
4th $ 1300
5th & 6th $ 900
7th & 8th $ 600
9th - 12th $ 400
13th- 16th $ 300
17th - 24th $ 250
25th - 32nd $ 200
33rd - 48th $ 150
49th - 64th $ 100
65th - 96th $ 60
Additional Coverage:
USPPA Website | Day one report | Day two report
