Reyes to Meet Morris in the Finals of IPT Billiards Tournament

Reyes to Meet Morris in the Finals of IPT Billiards TournamentEven though he lost his fifth-round match to billiard player Mika Immonen of Finland 8-5, Rodney Morris still led his group, along with Efren Reyes, who he will play in Sunday’s final match for the grand prize of $500,000. The runner-up will receive $150,000.Junne Padua acted as Morris’s cornerman all day, as Morris swept through match after match. Finally meeting Immonen, Morris’s fast and loose style fell a bit short against Finn’s precise, measured play. Up 4-3, Morris scratched on the break, and Immonen cleared to win that rack and then broke and ran out the next two for a 5-4 lead. He scratched on his break next, and Morris ran out, saying, “I’m keeping it respectable.” The Hawaiian missed position on his last solid in the following rack and barely missed a cross-bank attempt, and Immonen reached the hill and then broke and ran the final rack.IPT World Open 8-Ball Championship ForumsVisit the IPT World Open 8-Ball Championship Image Gallery
Even though he didn’t advance, Immonen didn’t act too disappointed with his $92,000 score for third place. “It’ll probably sink in tomorrow. Right now I’m still a little disappointed with that first-round match. I didn’t really have a chance—I didn’t show up. Ridiculous. If it hadn’t happened like that, I might have had a real good shot at the finals … But getting third in this group, I’m really proud. It’s the greatest prize money I’ve ever made, so like I said, it hasn’t really sunk in. Tomorrow it will, or even tonight, later on. I’m going to party tonight.“It’s been a long, hard week, it’s been like a marathon, but it’s fun,” Immonen added. “This is how the game’s supposed to be played and portrayed. It really rewards the best players. I love the rules, I love the format, I love everything about it. I don’t think they should change it.”Corey Deuel only won one match today and ended up in sixth place. He met Dennis Orcollo in the final round and found out the meaning of the electric chair when Orcollo opened up the match with a seven-pack. A hiccup allowed Deuel to the table long enough to win a rack, but then Orcollo was back in the saddle to win their match 8-1. Deuel will collect $50,000 for sixth place, and Orcollo receives $66,000 for fifth.On the TV table, Oliver Ortmann and Efren Reyes went at it, though it didn’t really affect Reyes either way, win or lose. They traded the first four racks, and then Ortmann won three in a row. At that point Reyes came alive, winning four in a row, but Ortmann broke and ran the last two racks for the 8-6 win.Was he disappointed with his finish? “Absolutely not. I haven’t had my best day. I had a tough one against Corey and Mika. I didn’t play my best against Mika especially, so after all, with fourth place, I can be very happy with that.“I was working hard for the IPT—I practiced a lot of eight-ball and made a lot of workouts, so I will continue that. It’s very important to be in good shape, especially like me, I haven’t gotten a lot of sleep over here, only four or five hours a day—I couldn’t find any sleep.”Reyes shared his feelings about Sunday’s big match. “I’m excited for tomorrow. This is a lot of pressure for me and Rodney Morris. This is for five hundred thousand. You cannot find another tournament like this. We’ve been playing a lot for how many years, and the prize money we win from the tournament is ten thousand, twenty thousand only. But this is the big one. I hope that this IPT tour is going to be continued.”He added, “I’m thinking to win tomorrow because a lot of people in our country are expecting us to win.”Before he left for the evening, Rodney answered what the thought of playing for so much money feels like. “It feels wonderful. It feels like … I really feel good about myself. Efren is the greatest that ever lived, as far as pool, in my opinion, but he’s fifty-two years old, and I’m in my prime, I think. So I’m ready. If I just play my game, I think I’ll be fine. And I’m not even worried about the money. I mean, I’m excited about it, but if I think about the money while I’m playing, I’m not gonna win. The money’s not even a thought right now. I got one more race to eight. I gotta get eight games tomorrow and that’s it. He’ll never get eight.”After thanking Rocky McElroy at Capone’s in Spring Hill, FL, Morris continued, “It just feels great to be playing Efren. He was my idol growing up, and he’s the greatest. I got to watch him a lot of years. Ten years ago this month, I beat him in the finals of the U.S. Open, so I’m excited about that, and I’m excited doing it again. Eight-six would be nice. You heard it here first.” Muttering something about Efren voodoo dolls and long, sharp pins, Morris went off to get his nightly bowl of wanton soup.Visit www.internationalpooltour.com to get live streaming video of Sunday’s final match. The biggest prize fund in the history of the sport will be awarded tomorrow when either “Rocket” Rodney Morris or Efren “Bata” Reyes wins $500,000 for first place.

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