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Open
Circuit
Stop #17
Best Buds Alicea & Ginky Co-Champions
at Raxx |
For the
Mezz Pro/Am 9-ball Tour’s 17th stop
of the season, a field of 31 top NY-area players
came out to Raxx Billiards to compete for
top honors. Some of the notable players in
attendance included “Ginky” George
Sansouci, Shaun Wilkie, Matt Krah, Rob Pole,
John Alicea, Victor Nau, Gregg McAndrews,
and Brett Stottlemyer, along with three of
the tour’s lady players, Caroline Pao,
“Snooky” Diana Rojas, and Linda
Cheung.
George “Ginky” Sansouci was making
noise early through the winner’s bracket,
rolling over Matt Krah 7-1, John MacArthur
7-1, and Rob Pole 7-2, before losing to Zion
Zvi 7-5.
Zion had also been steamrolling over his opponents,
including an impressive 7-0 win over Mike
Miller, which lined up the feature match.
In the match between Zion and “Ginky”,
Zion jumped out early playing flawless 5-3,
but Ginky responded by tying it up 5-5. Zion
then won the next game, and Ginky was breaking
and running out when he uncharacteristically
scratched on the 6 ball, giving the set to
Zion 7-5.
Zion then was lined up for a match against
young gun John Alicea to determine who would
take the hot seat. John had just come off
a come-from-behind win win against Brett Stottlemeyer,
where he battled back from 6-4 to win 7-6.
That win was immediately followed up by an
impressive 7-5 win over the tour’s current
#1-ranked player, Josh Brothers, who after
the match mentioned that he was impressed
with John’s performance. Josh also watched
part of John’s first round match where
he defeated Chip Klein 7-2 in dominant fashion.
In the match for the hot seat against Zion
Zvi, John outplayed the more-seasoned Zion,
controlling the momentum of the set, which
lead to an impressive 7-2 scoreline.
It is clear that John is gaining confidence
and experience as he continues to defeat players
he grew up admiring.
While John had some time to rest and reflect
after snagging the hot seat, the one-loss
side was chocked full of pool giants battling
it out.
After his winner’s side loss to John
Alicea, Brett Stottlemyer defeated Mike Fingers
in dominant fashion, 7-2. Prior to this loss,
Mike had been impressive in grinding out several
consecutive hill-hill matches in a row.
This win against Mike lined up Brett against
George “Ginky” Sansouci, who was
fresh off his close battle with Zion.
Ginky took a 4-3 lead before Brett tied it
up at 4-4. Brett got up 6-5… broke made
a ball, and played safe on the one ball. Ginky
kicked it one rail hard, and lucked the ball
in the side pocket tying the set at 6
each. On the break, Ginky made a ball and
had an easy shot on the one ball. To Brett’s
frustration, the 2-9 was a dead combo…
so Ginky easily made the one, then the combo
for the “W”.
That win lined up a rematch between George
“Ginky” Sansouci and Zion Zvi,
after his portage John Alicea knocked Zion
to the one-loss side. In this set, Zion got
ahead early 3 games to 2, but Ginky grinded
back to take the lead 6-4. Zion responded
by winning the next game, closing the scoreline
to 6-5. With the alternate break format, it
was Ginky’s turn to break, and he broke
and ran out a clutch rack to set up a match
between the teacher versus the student in
the finals.
Ginky was impressive in following up a win
in the last Mezz Tour event he played in,
but the big story here is John Alicea’s
evolution as a player. John was hot coming
off of the last Predator Tour win, and has
been tearing up the local scene of late. The
22-year-old up-and-coming player has been
putting in the work on the practice table
as well staying busy in competition.
Ginky would have normally had to defeat John
Alicea twice in the finals to win, but John
decided to let Ginky share the title as co-champions,
as Ginky was celebrating his birthday with
friends and family.
Congratulations to both John and Ginky for
showing dominance at this event. The Mezz
Tour would like to thank all the players who
came out to compete at this event, as well
as all of the tour’s sponsors.
The next stop on the Mezz Tour will be held
at Main Line Billiards on August 15th, 2010.
Visit www.MezzTour.com to learn more and check
out the complete schedule. |
Complete Payouts:
T-1st: $735 John Alicea
T-1st: $735 George “Ginky” Sansouci
3rd: $350 Zion Zvi
4th: $170 Brett Stottlemyer
5th/6th: $100 Mike Fingers, Chip Klein
Top C/D
Jay Chiu $50
Barry Banks $25
Diana Rojas $25 |
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Women's
Circuit
Stop #2
Pao & Hopkins Co-Champions at Main Line |
On August 7th, 2010, the
Mezz Women's 9-Ball Tour held its second stop
of their inaugural season at Main Line Billiard
Club in Frazer, PA. A field of thirteen players
including top names such as Dawn Hopkins,
Megan Smith, Gina Kim-Lipsky, and Erin McManus
were set to battle that Saturday.
Also among these top players was arguably
the most impressive female junior player in
the U.S., PA's Briana Miller. Former Junior
World Champion and multiple Junior National
Champion, Briana continues to
prove that she is a strong force at the table.
In this event, Briana ran through to the hot
seat match after defeating Sam Miskezich,
Kathy Friend, and Erin McManus.
In the match for the hot seat, Briana faced
Caroline Pao, who previously had wins over
Eugena Gyftopoulos, Linda Cheung, and Dawn
Hopkins. Caroline would then battle against
Briana Miller, where she edged ahead to win
7-5 to guarantee a spot in the final.
After Dawn Hopkin's loss to Caroline Pao,
she forged a comeback on the one-loss side,
defeating Erin McManus and Gina Kim-Lipsky,
before winning the semifinal against Briana
Miller, 7-3. This set Dawn for a rematch against
Caroline Pao, but the two WPBA pros decided
to share the win.
Congratulations to winners Caroline Pao &
Dawn Hopkins! Thanks to all the players who
came out to compete in this event, as well
as the host room, Main Line Billiards. Stop
#3 on the Mezz Women's 9-ball Tour will be
held on September 18, also at Main Line Billiards
in Frazer, PA. |
Complete Payouts:
1st: Caroline Pao, Dawn Hopkins $300
3rd: Briana Miller $100
4th: Gina Kim-Lipsky $60 |
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