Vindication for Vidal

Blaze 9-ball Tour / West Hempstead, NJ
by Jose Burgos
The Blaze 9-ball Tour made its way to Raxx Bar Grill in West Hempstead, NJ, April 20. Out of a field of 30 billiards players who came out to play, Marc Vidal walked away the ultimate winner.

Vidal led the top half of the bracket with wins over Janie Gerber 7-1, Dave Shlemperis 7-3, Pete Testeralla Jr. 7-5, and Pete Testeralla Sr. 7-3. Leading the bottom half of the bracket was Bobby Blackmore with wins over Duane Tony 7-4, Joe Pierce 7-3, Mhet Vergara 7-5, and Anthony Pizaro 7-1.

Vidal and Blackmore matched up for the hot seat in a set that went back and forth with Blackmore pulling off a 7-5 victory. Now on the one-loss side, Vidal defeated Anthony Pizaro in the semifinals to earn a rematch with Blackmore. Vindication was his, as Vidal earned top honors over Blackmore.
Results:
1st Marc Vidal
2nd Bobby Blackmore
3rd Anthony Pizaro
4th Mike Fingers
5th Sean Morgan
Pete Testeralla

Top Blaze Tour Finish for Abraham

Blaze 9-ball Tour / Boothwyn, PA
by Jose Burgos
The March 30 installment of the Blaze 9-ball Tour was hosted by Rileyʼs Concord billiard. A field of 38 players came out to play in the $1,500-added event, with tour regular Eddie Abraham taking away top honors.

Marc Vidal scorched through the top half of the bracket with wins over Williams McWilliams 7-3, Matt Douglas 7-4, Lew Morris 7-1, and Joe Pierce 7-4. Leading the bottom half of the bracket was Abraham, who scored victories over Joe Hong 7-3, Jeremy Sossei 7-3, Bill McCoy 7-6, and Scott Freeman 7-2.

Abraham and Vidal met in the hot seat match, and Abraham pulled off a tight 7-5 win. Sossei was waiting for Vidal on the one-loss side in the quarterfinals. This one-sided match saw Vidal earn a rematch with Abraham in the finals 7-1. The final match went all the way to hill-hill, and Abraham came out on top, winning 7-6 and the lion’s share of the purse.
Results:
1st Eddie Abraham
2nd Marc Vidal
3rd Jeremy Sossei
4th Matt Krah
5th Scott Freeman
Joe Pierce
7th Tom Bow
Charles Marshall

Davis Captures Blaze billiard Tour Championship
Blaze 9-ball Tour / Egg Harbor, NJ

by Jose Burgos
The Blaze 9-ball Tour Championships was held January 27-28 at Atlantic City billiards. A determined field of 93 players came out to play, including Ryan McCreesh, Mika Immonen, Jerry Slivka, and Allen Hopkins. When the dust had cleared, though, it was Mike Davis standing in the winners’ circle.

Leading the way was McCreesh and Immonen, who ended up playing each other for the hot seat. This turned into a blow-out, with McCreesh defeating Immonen 9-3. The bigger story, though, was Davis coming from the west side of the chart to reach the finals against McCreesh. Davis had to best McCreesh twice, and he did not shrink from the challenge, winning the first match 7-2 and the second 9-4.
Results:
1st Mike Davis
2nd Ryan McCreesh
3rd Mika Immonen
4th Shaun Wilkie
5th Joey Testa
Ed Mastshonek
7th Adam Kielar
Manny Chau
9th Shin Park
Mhet Vergara
David Abraham
Rob Pole

Kielar Kills the Competition

Blaze 9-ball Tour / West Hempstead, NY

by Jose Burgos
Adam Kielar came out on top of the September 30 stop of the Blaze 9-ball Tour to take first place. Hosted by Raxx Bar and Grill in West Hempstead, NY, this stop brought out top pool players such as Mike Davis, Eddie Abraham, and new points leader Mike Finger.
Shaun “Get Some” Wilkie led the top half of the bracket, whitewashing Emily Harrison 7-0 and Rob Pole 7-0. He then went on to best Mike Miller 7-5 and Rob Omen 7-1. Meeting him in the hot seat match was Kielar, who scored victories over Wali Muhammad 7-4, Matt Krah 7-6, Carol Martorana 7-1, and Mike Davis 7-5.
Wilkie and Kielar clashed in the hot seat match, and Kielar pulled away late to win the match 7-5, sending Wilkie to the west side of the chart. Meeting him there was Abraham, and though their match went double-hill, it was Wilkie who got to 7 first to earn a rematch with Kielar. In the double-elimination finals, Wilkie had to defeat Kielar twice. He won the first set 6-4, but it was all Kielar in the second match, winning 5-2 to take down his first Blaze event.

Open Results:

1st
Adam Kielar

2nd
Shaun Wilkie

3rd
Eddie Abraham

4th
Mike Miller

5-6th
Rob Omen

Mike Davis

Double-Dip Blaze Tour Win for Robles
Blaze 9-ball Tour / Vineland, NJ
by Jose Burgos
Tony “The Silent Assassin” Robles swept through the September 23 stop of the Blaze 9-ball Tour to double-dip Lee Holt in the finals, earning first place. Hosted by Jose Garcia’s Q-ball billiards in Vineland, NJ, this stop attracted players such as Shaun “Get Some” Wilkie, Matt Krah, and Dawn Hopkins.
Wilkie took over the top half of the bracket with wins over Carlo Fauretto 7-2, Steve Shaw 7-4, Hopkins 7-5, and Robles 7-3. Leading the bottom half, Holt notched wins over Frank Bogush 7-2, Paul Batcheler 7-3, Krah 7-6, Don Polo 7-6, and Mike Fingers 7-3.
Holt and Wilkie met in the hot seat match, and Holt virtually ran away with it, taking a 7-3 victory and sending Wilkie to the one-loss side. Robles was waiting there to get revenge. It seemed like Wilkie had the match sewn up with a 5-1 lead in the race to 6, but Robles caught fire and ultimately won 6-5 to advance to the finals. In the true double-elimination final match, Robles had to defeat Holt twice to win, and that was exactly what he did.

Open Results:

1st
Tony Robles

2nd
Lee Holt

3rd
Shaun Wilkie

4th
Mike Fingers

5-6th
Ariel Rivera

Robert Pole

7-8th
Wali Muhammad

David Abraham