Close Calls Lead to the Top 16

Close Calls Lead to the Top 16by Rick DavisOne round down for the day, and the top 16 has unfolded who will now play in single-elimination in order to continue in the Cuetec Cues Florida Classic, held at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Hollywood, FL. Favorite Allison Fisher defeated Ewa Laurance 9-5, while Vivian “The Texas Tornado” Villareal bested WPBA prez Kim White 9-7. White missed a short 9 ball shot, putting Villareal up 7-5, and in the final game she gave away ball in hand with only two balls on the table. Her foul was only seen by herself and tournament director Steve Tipton, who was across the room at the time, but she didn’t think twice about calling it on herself. Tipton commented, “Pretty cool, she called it on herself,” as he walked away from the match.View the tournament bracket
New face on the tour, Xiao-Ting Pan blew past Anna Kostanian 9-1 to reach the next round. Kostanian could not get a roll and continued to rattle pockets, leading to her missing a 9 ball with Pan on the hill. Meanwhile, Kim Shaw bested Dawn Hopkins and Melissa Herndon defeated Melissa Little, both 9-5. Many of these matches brought the break problems from yesterday, as scratching on the break was common throughout the group.Melissa Morris got by Helena Thornfeldt double-hill, while Tracie Hines did the same with Romona Dokovic. Thornfeldt missed the 8 ball with Morris on the hill, and as she sat down thinking that all was lost, Morris missed a similar shot. After a couple more tries each, Morris’ nerves calmed down, and she shot in the last two to win the match.Players from the one-loss had a random draw to pair against the winners’ side, although there was no good pick since that side of board contained so many top players. Fisher drew Jennifer Barretta, who defeated her last night, while Corr, the defending champion, pulled Sarah Ellerby, who came back quick from her mid-day loss Friday. Throughout the evening, play will continue until the top tour remain for Sunday’s play, when the semifinals and finals take place.Visit InsidePOOL for the latest news in the sport of billiards and pool.

Pool Balls and Billiard Balls at LOW PRICES!!!

About the Author:
Inside Pool Magazine publishes billiard news. Definitive Synergy creates pool and billiard management software.