Chavez Undefeated at Comet Billiards

Chavez Undefeated at Comet Billiardsby Rick DavisThe Joss Northeast 9-Ball Tour streaked through Comet Billiards in Parsippany, NJ, where Ignacio Chavez became the shining star, going undefeated through both days of play. The January 20-21 event drew in 37 billiard players with a near-$5,000 prize fund.Once down to the top four on the winners’ side, it was clear who was in control. Chavez faced top international player Santos Sambajon Jr. and bested him 9-4, while Filipino Gandy Valle kept pace by defeating Steve Lillis with the same margin. This set up the hot seat match between Chavez and Valle, which went down to wire. With the match tied at 8-all, Valle executed a near-perfect safety; however, Chavez managed to kick at the ball, which fell in and allowed him to run the rest of the rack for the 9-8 win.
Over in the western territory, Sambajon Jr. wasted no time getting back in the saddle as he drilled Joe Kong 9-3, while Ken Kerner managed to claw his way past Lillis 9-6 to reach the quarterfinals. Kerner faced a rough battle with Sambajon Jr., and the pro was just too much as he slipped past 9-7. The semifinal match offered a nail-biter until the end when, tied at 7-all, Sambajon Jr. popped back-to-back 9 balls on the break to steal the match from Valle.Reaching the finals, Chavez took control early with a 5-1 lead over Sambajon Jr. but then seemed to stall out as the gap was closed to 5-4. After some time in neutral, Chavez found a gear and blew through four more racks for the 9-4 win to claim the event.The next event of the Joss Northeast Tour will be at Snookers Café in Providence, RI, January 27-28.Results:1st Ignacio Chavez2nd Santos Sambajon Jr.3rd Gandy Valle4th Ken Kerner5th Joe KongSteve Lillis7th Mike ZuglanJonathan Smith

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