The Pearl Wins Again in Rochester

The Pearl Wins Again in Rochester Earl Strickland defeated Keith McCready to repeat as champion at the Joss Northeast 9-Ball Tour event at Classic Billiards in Rochester, NY . In a match that kept the crowd engaged until the very end, Strickland climbed to an 8-5 lead but watched McCready claw back to tie the game at 8-8 with McCready breaking. McCready made a ball on his final break and stopped the cue ball in the center of the wide open table but watched in horror as the 3 ball came one rail to knock the cue ball into the side pocket and hand the final game to Strickland for the tournament win. Strickland pocketed $2,500 for the win, while McCready took home $1,800 for second place. Alex Pagulayan and Santos Sambajon, Jr., filled out the top four positions. Earl Strickland Photo courtesy of Diana Hoppe - Pool Pics by Hoppe
Keith McCready said about the match, "The first set, he had me 6 to nothing, and I started coming at him. He played a little lucky in a couple spots. I managed to get to 7 games, with Earl on the hill, but I missed a 2-4 combo, a pretty easy shot, trying to play shape. The ball hung in the pocket, and the kid won the first set, 9 to 8. The second set, it was close all the way. He had me in front again -- and I was charging again -- and I got it to 8-8 (hill-hill), with me breaking. I broke the balls perfect, pocketing a ball on the break. The cue ball came to a stop in the middle of the table. I was already lining up my shots for the run and could taste the second set, as I had to beat him twice from the losers' bracket. Then, it was like a nightmare as the 3-ball, appearing out of nowhere, slammed into the side rail hard. I stood back and knew my fate when the 3-ball headed straight for the cue ball, throwing it into the side pocket for a scratch, giving Earl ball in hand. The only thing I could do was sit down and watch as Earl proceeded to live up to his name and run the rack for the win. Earl was a pleasure to play with, and he was actually a little bit more relaxed playing me than he was playing his other opponents, which is a plus. Mike Zuglan and Joe Tucker, who run the Joss Tour, ran a very superb tournament again, as usual. Rich Warren, the manager of Classic Billiards in Rochester, New York, and the owner, Jackie, were the perfect hosts, making sure that ALL of the pool players were well treated and comfortable." Earl Strickland is scheduled to arrive in Calgary on April 14 to compete in the upcoming Western Canadian Open 9-Ball Championships. 1st Earl Strickland 2nd Keith McCready 3rd Alex Pagulayan 4th Santos Sambajon, Jr.

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