Williams Wins Big Apple

Williams Wins Big AppleBy InsidePOOL StaffAfter having an amazing, undefeated tournament at Master Billiards, Charlie "The Korean Dragon" defeated Efren Reyes in the final match 13-8. With a 92-player international field that was one of the strongest to be seen yet on American soil, The Big Apple was undoubtedly one of the best events yet this year. The event was held at Master Billiards in Queens, NY, and began on Friday, August 15 and ended Sunday, August 17. Naturally, the room experienced several snafus as a result of the biggest power outage in our history last Thursday. However, the show must go on, and on it went. Sanctioned by the World Pool-Billiards Association and by the UPA, the event was sponsored by Benedict Min, the owner of Master Billiards, and Joel Shapiro. Boasting a whopping $20,000 added to the prize fund, there was a total of $38,500 given to the players.The matches were fiercely fought, with many going hill-hill before eliminating some worthy player. And there was no lack of strong players. With the International Challenge of Champions ending the evening before, the arrival of contestants Efren Reyes, Ralf Souquet, Francisco Bustamante, and Ching-Shun Yang would enhance any tournament. Add to the mix several other top Asian players and most of the Filipino contingent, along with excellent players from the U.S., and you've got yourself one of the toughest fields ever seen.
Thorsten Hohmann, recent winner of the World Pool Championship in Cardiff, Wales, last July, was present, defeating Bob Weimar in the first round 11-0 and then losing to Danny Barouty 11-10 and ultimately was eliminated by Jimmy Fusco.Rodney Morris had a great event at the Big Apple. After he vanquished Niels Feijen of the Netherlands in a hill-hill nailbiter, he went on to defeat Jose "The Giant Killer" Parica in the match for fourth place, after Parica had knocked him into the one-loss bracket the evening before after a hill-hill match. The Rocket as always put on a stunning show: down 2-8 to Parica, he turned the tables and won their match 11-8. Reyes made his way quietly through the winners' bracket, with a notable match against Taiwan's Ching-Shun Yang. Reyes ran the first four racks of their match and looked unstoppable, but Yang fought back to bring the score to 7-6 in his favor. The two giants fought a mammoth hill-hill battle, but it was Reyes who was still standing at the end of it, winning by the score of 11-10. Reyes went on to challenge current UPA president Charlie Williams in the hot seat match, with Williams triumphing over the Filipino master 11-9. Reyes, who was recently inducted into the BCA's Hall of Fame last July, and Morris faced each other in the match for third place. "The Magician" gave Morris all he could handle, however, and Reyes won their match by the tight score of 11-8, with Morris settling for third place. With Williams and Reyes in the final match, the crowd was tense and ready for anything. After a snafu on the airplane, Williams was forced to borrow cues all weekend for tournament play, but that didn’t seem to make a difference at this point. After a monumental struggle between two great players, it was Williams in the end who came out on top, winning by the score of 13-8. Williams did what most would consider an impossible feat -- he defeated Reyes twice in the same event.1st - Charlie Williams $12,0002nd - Efren Reyes $7,0003rd - Rodney Morris $4,5004th - Jose Parica $3,0005th/6th - Francisco Bustamante, Alex Pagulayan $2,0007th/8th - Hsiao-Lan Fang, Ching-Shun Yang $1,400 Visit InsidePOOL for the latest news from the world of billiards and pool.

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