Black Tier Champion Joseph Hankins
Nationwide & PoolDawg Headline List of Event Sponsors
LAKE SAINT LOUIS, MO (Aug. 2, 2018) — A record number of aspiring young APA members from across North America made their way to St. Louis, Mo., in early-July for the APA Junior Championships.
After four-days of having fun, making new friends from across the country and playing their hearts out on the pool table, four new champions were crowned in each tier of the Junior Championships.
In the finals of the Green Tier (Skill Levels 1-2), Robert Gumm, Jr. of Independence, Mo., defeated Imagine Gordon of Lawton, Okla. Gordon finished Runner-up. Luke Jackett of Guelph, Ont., and Brent Lemke of Convoy, Ohio, tied for 3rd Place in the Green Tier which featured the largest number of competitors in this year’s event with 172 participants.
In the finals of the Red Tier (Skill Level 3), Dylan Edwards of Washington, Ill., defeated Lukas Sterbenz of Necedah, Wis. Sterbenz finished Runner-up. Alex Van Valkenburgh of Schenectady, N.Y., and Deekin Smith of Lebanon, Ind., tied for 3rd Place in the Red Tier which had 94 participants.
In the finals of the White Tier (Skill Levels 4-5), Paul Marshall of Wyoming, Mich., defeated David Parks of Maricopa, Ariz. Parks finished Runner-up. Ryan Curmi of Acton, Ont., and Elijah Wilson of Grandview, Mo., tied for 3rd Place in the White Tier which had 87 participants.
In the finals of the Black Tier (Skill Levels 6-9), Joseph Hankins of San Diego, Calif., defeated Travis Criblez of Mantua, Ohio. Criblez finished as Runner-up. The Black Tier, featuring the highest skilled players, included 33 competitors. Tying for 3rd Place in the Black Tier were Johnathan Portwood of Moundville, Mo., and Devlin Smith of Lebanon, Ind.
Overall, nearly 400 players competed in one of the four 9-Ball skill level tiers July 5 – July 8 at the Renaissance St. Louis Airport Hotel.
The four-day event also included recognition for Outstanding Academic Achievements and a special exhibition and autograph signing by “The Black Widow” Jeanette Lee.
Event sponsors included: Nationwide Insurance, Aramith, PoolDawg.com, Khamsin Designs Inc., Kingery Printing, Omega Billiards Supplies and Shaftmaster.
The APA, based in Lake Saint Louis, Mo., sanctions the world’s largest amateur pool league, known as the APA Pool League throughout the United States, and as the Canadian Pool League in Canada. Nearly 250,000 members compete in weekly 8-Ball and 9‑Ball League play. The APA is generally recognized as the Governing Body of Amateur Pool, having established the official rules, championships, formats and handicap systems for the sport of amateur billiards.
The APA produces four major tournaments each year—the APA World Pool Championships, the APA Poolplayer Championships, the APA Junior Championships and the U.S. Amateur Championship—that, together, pay out nearly $2 Million in cash and prizes annually!
The APA and its championships are sponsored by Aramith, Action Cues and PoolDawg.
For more information on the American Poolplayers Association, visit www.poolplayers.com.
