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| Jennifer Barretta delivers her biggest victory.....Baby Max! Jennifer gave birth to Max Barretta at 5:03 pm on Wednesday, Dec 20th! She originally went to the hospital for a regular check-up, and an ultrasound showed that the umbilical cord was wrapped around the baby, so her doctor decided that immediate C-section was a necessary precaution to ensure the baby's safety. Everything went perfectly, and both mother and baby are feeling wonderful and healthy. Jenn is feeling great and she asked that we pass on her thanks for all the support she has received from everyone during the past 9 months! Jenn and Max will be at home for Christmas, and hopefully we will have pictures early next week. Congrats to Jenn from the WPBA and all her fans.   #11 ranked WPBA Professional Sarah Ellerby, to appear on The Golf Channel’s Sprint Post Game Show Orlando, FL, November 30th, 2006 - Sarah Ellerby A.K.A Velvet will appear on The Golf Channel’s Sprint Post Game Show on December 8th, 2006. The Golf Channel is conducting a series of feature interviews with top athletes who also play golf. Velvet was interviewed by Kelly Tilghman, the first full time female golf commentator on the PGA Tour, starting in 2007. The interview took place at Reunion Resort, home of one of the richest events on the LPGA’s schedule, the Ginn Open. Read more... The Women’s Professional Billiard Association Announces Fourteen Year Old Liz Lovely To Represent The U.S. in the Upcoming WPA, Junior World Championship in Australia Goodlettsville, Tennessee –When she was a “little girl”, Liz Lovely, now fourteen years old, probably never thought about traveling to Australia, much less to play pool. However, at age eleven she had already caught the bug by challenging, among others, her older brother and father, at the family’s residence. When Liz’s dad, Richard bought a house that would accommodate a pool table, he thought it would be “a good, safe place for the kids to hang out.” The very first time Liz asked if she could play against her brother and Dad, it took the men 10 games to beat her. Richard Lovely knew then and there that his daughter had special talent. Liz will get to showcase that talent when she travels to Australia with her Mom in November to compete in the WPA, Junior World Championship. Liz qualified for this event by winning her division in the BCA, Jr. National Tournament in Tucson, Arizona earlier this year. Although Liz is only 14 years old she will be competing in the 19 and Under Division. In addition to playing pool, Liz, is a popular high school freshman who is well liked and additionally a “straight A student”. When speaking with her parents it is very obvious how proud they are of Liz and all that she has accomplished in such a short time. She usually plays in over 100 tournaments each year, both locally and nationally, including the Jacoby Great Lakes Regional Tour stops. She has been a member of the Women’s Professional Billiards Association (WPBA) and the Valley National Eightball Association (VNEA) for three years as well as the Billiards Congress of America (BCA) for one year. She has won three consecutive Junior VNEA Singles Eight Ball championships. Liz was the youngest player to compete and “cash out” in the WPBA Midwest Classic in Peoria, Illinois this summer. After beating some very distinguished tour veterans, Liz was overwhelmed by the fan support at the event. So overwhelmed and excited she almost forgot about the money she won. Dad reminded her after the crowd thinned out and Liz bought herself a new snowboard. Liz is excited to represent the United States in Australia this year. This will be her Mom’s first time traveling overseas. The two plan on having a big time both during the tournament and being tourists afterward. Liz plans to keep up the good work not only in pool, but in school and life and, of that, her family can be very proud. Karen Corr wins 2006 Tournament of Champions More info... Belinda Calhoun to be inducted into the WPBA Hall of Fame. The Women’s Professional Billiard Association Announces 2006 Hall of Fame Inductee Goodlettsville, Tennessee –The Women’s Professional Billiard Association (WPBA) will induct Belinda Campos Calhoun, The Texas Belle, from Austin into the WPBA Hall of Fame on November 8 at their 2006 Annual Banquet. The Banquet will be held at the Chinook Winds Casino in Lincoln City, Oregon in conjunction with the Cuetec Cues National Championship Women’s Tour Event. Belinda was introduced to pool by a fellow she was dating during the summer of 1971, in Austin, Texas. “My first attempts were so disastrous, it became an instant challenge,” says Calhoun. “The first time I saw a National Billiard News in 1972 and read that there were tournaments and championships I knew what I wanted to do.” She qualified to play in her first U.S. Open 14.1 (Straight Pool) Championship in 1977 in her first attempt. “Mother and I flew to Chicago and took the bus to Rockford, Illinois for my first qualifier. The following month I competed in the U.S. Open in Dayton, Ohio and finished 3rd.” She credits her determination to the difficulty of the game itself. When asked what being a pro has meant to her, she replies, “a lifetime of dedication and sacrifice pursuing a passion.” A story that typifies the progress our sport has made, says Calhoun, “In 1985, myself, and three other players were in Kansas City for a tournament. We were being pulled over and I'm shouting "hide the cues, hide the cues." Today, there is awe and wonder displayed when I proudly say, "I'm a professional pool player." “Being inducted into the WPBA Hall of Fame and joining players like Jean Balukas, Dorothy Wise and Ruth McGinnis never entered my mind. When I started playing it was strictly about striving for excellence and perfection,” said Calhoun. “Now all the years of hard work have paid off. It’s just like pool. Focus on the process and the results will come.” In addition to playing pool every day, giving private and group instruction, Belinda teaches an accredited course in pool at Texas State University. She is also a long time member of Austin Cornerstone Church. In a recent interview, to be included in the 2007 WPBA Media Guide Calhoun was asked, “what are the best words of advice you have received from a friend?” Her answer… DO IT!! The Women’s Professional Billiard Association was formed in 1976 to promote competitive 9-Ball. In 1976 the tournaments were scarce with prize money barely covering the winner’s expenses. The organization has grown from a handful of players into a well organized professional tour including a program of nine affiliated, recognized regional tours serving the needs of the over one thousand members in 2006. Since the WPBA began airing on ESPN in 1993, many of the women have become familiar names. Although there is no physical Hall of Fame at this time, the WPBA is working on a "Virtual Hall of Fame” at WPBA.com for the near future. Dawn Hopkins Wins New York State Championship Pam Treadway wins Planet Pool Qualifer Sarah Ellerby featured in Dr Phillips Lifestyle Magazine and CHI Magazine Dates for Amway WPA Women's World 9-ball Championships announced Jasmin Ouschan wins first WPBA Qualifier in Canada Hopkins wins and Lawless qualifies at RI State Championship Leslie Anne Rogers wins Hunter stop More info... Naomi Williams wins Raxx Qualifier More info...
BCA ULTIMATE POOL PARTY Joanne Ashton wins NWPA "crowd pleasing" qualifier. More info... Holly Sholes tops AWBT qualifier. More info...Debbie Schjodt wins 2nd spirit tour qualifier More info...Heather Lloyd wins Hunter G-cue qualifier More info...Kelly Fisher wins Maryland State Championship Two-Time World Champion to be in Denver Details for Amatuer Nationals Announced Anna Wins Hunter Tour Stop Webb Wins Wally's Kathy Friend Takes JPNEWT Comet Event Melissa Little finishes 5th in Hard Times Men's 9-Ball Division  Kyle Smith, son of Laura Smith, awarded BEF Excellence in Education Scholarship Nashville, TN, June 16, 2006--The Billiard Education Foundation [BEF] has announced the names of eight high school seniors who will receive academic scholarship funds to assist with expenses in their early undergraduate careers. Over 130 students applied for consideration in March, and the BEF Trustees concluded the rigorous review on June 1 by selecting eight winners overall, including one BEF Excellence in Education winner, Kyle Smith. The single Excellence in Education recipient earns a $5,000 award, issued over a two-year term, and seven $1,000 BCA scholarships are awarded to individuals each year. Even before he was born, billiards played a major role in Kyle Smith's life. Kyle, son of Laura Smith, one of our own touring professionals since 1979, graduated from Fairview High School in Boulder Colorado this year but was touring with his Mom before he was born. "Although I don't remember it," says Kyle, "I am told that for much of my childhood I was constantly surrounded by top men and women pro players." Since those days, billiards continues to be an important factor in Kyle's life. Pool has taught him perseverance, to keep a good attitude, and that enthusiasm is contagious. It has also transformed him into a better problem solver and student. "It is not just a game. It allows me to expand my mind and it continues to challenge me to discover new ways of completing a task," said Smith. Being exposed to angles and geometry at a very young age has shaped him into a very good math and science student. He will continue to use the skills that pool has given him when he enters Colorado School of the Mines this fall where he will major in Engineering. Kyle will be very busy in college, as in addition to his studies he will also be playing football for which he also received a scholarship. Kyle has had the privilege of participating in the BCA Junior Nationals for three consecutive years. He says he has learned a lot about himself through his participation. Two years ago at the BCA Junior Nationals, he had played a National Champion three out of his four matches. Although he didn't win, this taught him that "there will always be obstacles in life and if you want to succeed, you have to fight though the adversity and seize every moment. I learned that it doesn't matter how hard you fall, what matters is if you decide to get back up or not." The competition has taught him a lot about his own inner strengths and weaknesses. He says he has learned to accept more challenges and let go of limitations. He has also learned discipline which he feels will continue to help him make good choices in all aspects of his life. Everyone at the WPBA wishes Kyle the best in all his future endeavors. We also want Kyle and his Mom to know how proud we are of his accomplishments. We additionally wish to congratulate the BEF $1000 Scholarship winners: Gregory Gaskin, South Lake Tahoe, Calif. Christopher Kaltenbach, Newtonville, Mass. Dorothy Mix, Camino, Calif. Conor Parker, LaGrange, Ill. Jessica Ray, Avon, Conn. Megan Skinner, Des Moines, Iowa Joshua Strazanac, Holland, Mich. Promotional Event at the Riviera Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas Main Street Productions is pleased to announce that the "9-Ball" Pool Movie Promotional Event on August 24th, 2006 will take place at the poker and entertainment shrine Riviera Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada. This Event is in conjunction with the APA National Team Championships taking place August 18th-26th. The "9-Ball" Pool Movie Promotional Event is part of the marketing package to publicize our exciting new feature film "9-Ball". The first part of the "9-Ball" Pool Movie Promotional Event is a single-elimination tournament open to APA members. The winner will get to play Jennifer Barretta in the final match, and will be invited to be a featured extra in the movie "9-Ball". The second part of the Event is an exhibition match between two top WPBA players Jennifer Barretta and Kim White. All APA members are encouraged to register now for the opportunity to be selected for the tournament at www.mainstreetproductions.com . The general public is invited to attend the "9-Ball" Pool Movie Promotional Event tournament at no charge. Spectators are also welcome to attend the exhibition match between Jennifer Barretta and Kim White, tickets for this match are available for advance purchase on our website, due to limited seating. Currently in pre-production, "9-Ball" stars real-life WPBA superstar player Jennifer Barretta in the lead role, and will be directed by Anthony Palma of Main Street Productions. Palma also created the story, co-wrote the screenplay, is producing, and will direct the film. "9-Ball" follows the story of a young amateur player as she strives to become the Women's 9-Ball Champion of the World. Barretta says of the film: "This project is the most exciting thing happening in pool right now and I'm excited to be a part of it. "9-Ball" is destined to become a classic." The APA, the WPBA, the BCA, and major manufacturers Olhausen Billiards and Aramith have all shown their full support of the film. "9-Ball" has been written about in Pool & Billiards Magazine, Billiards Digest, AZ Billiards and The Break. Please visit our website www.mainstreetproductions.com to read our full press coverage and for more information on the film. Cuetec Cues Florida Classic June 28 – July 2, 2006 Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino One Seminole Way Hollywood , FL 33314 954-327-ROCK (7625) Celebrity Charity Media Pro-Am Tournament Tickets via www.ticketmaster.com
All Event General Admission Pass $60 (Does not include Wed Night) Tiffany Nelson Storms Spirit Tour Field Thirty-four ladies filled the Diamonds at Baron's Billiards in Bradenton, Florida for the Ladies Spirit Tour's third stop of the season, March 25th and 26th, 2006. The energy ran high and opportunity was on the line as two qualifiers, one donated by LTLUniverse.com and one by Baron's Billiards, were up for grabs to the two highest-placed amateurs. Viper Challenge for Cystic Fibrosis WPBA Touring pro star Melissa "The Viper" Little is back organizing another fundraiser for her favorite organization Cystic Fibrosis. She got together with some sponsors and is giving away a Brunswick Ventura pool table to help raise money for the CF Foundation of Colorado. Starting next week listen to 950 The Fan for all the information. Click here to download the pdf. Melissa is ranked in the top 8 in the USA in billiards, two-time Colorado state champion, WPBA Amateur National Champion, three time representative in the World Championships, and an invitee to the World Games. Melissa is the house Pro at the Historic Wynkoop Brewing Company's billiards room located at 1634 18th Street, Denver, Co in Lodo 303-297-2700. For more info on Melissa please visit www.viperchallenge.com  WPBA National Champion Ga-Young Kim Defends World Title Nine Ball crowned a new heroine tonight in Taipei, Taiwan. Ga-Young Kim finished a tough day and even tougher week with three consecutive victories, finally besting another former champion, Shin-Mei Liu, to take the highest honor in the game. She had to get past Jeannie Seaver in the quarter-finals, then Akimi Kajitani before stepping up for the final time against Liu. It was a long day of battle and it began with the quarter-finals rounds. Ga-Young Kim of Korea Jeannie Seaver of the USA as the favorite. She had already won the event in 2004 and that experience, along with her skills, should have carried the day. But early in the match the mistakes came to her rapidly. In the very first rack she missed an eight ball she was expectd to make and Seaver finished the rack to take game one. Now owning the break, Seaver broke and ran the next rack to go ahead by two. In rack three Kim came to the table only to foul a ball while removing the rest and again Seaver cleaned up behind her to go up 3-0. Finally, in rack four, Seaver made an error of her own and scratched on the break. Kim returned to form and ran the rack to take her first point. The next rack was the first to give Kim a good roll. She made a ball on the break, sank the one ball and then played a three-nine combination to draw within one. But the errors returned in the next rack when Kim just flat missed a half-table shot on the one with an easy layout behind it that Seaver went through with a good pace. The score was 4-2. Seaver scratched on the break again in the next rack to give a ball-in-hand run to Kim. She capitalized to again pull within one. She also won the next two racks, first with a safety on the eight ball that Seaver did not answer and then with a good run-out and owned her first lead at 5-4 in the race to seven. Rack ten found Kim pushing out, but she failed to put Seaver out of sight of the two ball. A clumsy mistake as the two and the nine were in range of one another for a carom. Seaver, pleased at the position she found herself in, wasted no time in stepping to the table and firing the carom in to tie the match at five games apiece. Unbelievably, in rack eleven, Seaver again scratched on the break shot. But this was a tough table and clusters had to be parted. When Kim moved one apart on her first shot the two ball rolled up next to the nine but the nine was between it and the cue ball. Her kick proved fruitless and Seaver returned to play. All Jeannie had was a combination on the two Ðsix and that failed to deposit. Kim still had a rough layout as the four was blocked from the corner by the eight. She chose to play safe on the four and married the cue ball right against the seven. Jeannie had a very tough shot to maneuver. She was up to the task and made a good hit off a two-rail kick. But now the table was set so that a run was possible. Kim made good on that opportunity and stood ready to win. She had the break and only needed one more game. She began the rack by potting three balls on the snap. From there the run seemed obvious. There were no clusters, no trouble balls. Still, she got funny on the eight and had to draw across and down the table for the nine. She left herself no cherry of a shot as she wound up along the foot string with the nine near the foot rail. She gutted up and made the thin cut to take the win 7-5. Seaver's effort was spoiled by the three scratches on the break. The second pairing of the day was an all-Japan show. Akimi Kajitani and Yukiko Hamanishi wound up in a safety battle that lasted through three long racks. It wasn't until the fourth rack that there was a decent spread to the balls and Hamanishi had the good fortune to be the recipient of the layout. She made a nice run then and our score was tied at two apiece. The next rack also spread nicely about the table but Hamanishi had to push out on her first shot. The racks went back and forth with neither player having the opportunity to mount long runs. At the end of the eighth rack Hamanishi and Kajitani were tied at four games apiece. Hamanishi missed the nine ball in that rack that would have supplied her a two-game margin. Rack nine produced our first break and run of the match with Kajitani taking that one down and gaining the momentum of three consecutive wins. The situation for Hamanishi had come unraveled. She scratched in the next rack and when Kajitani finished those balls out she stood on the hill with a nice 6-4 lead. Hamanishi would not have the opportunity to set things right. Kajitani produced her second break and run to finish the match at 7-4 and move on to face Ga-Young Kim. Waiting on-deck were Shin-Mei Liu and Hsiang-Ling Tan, both of Chinese Taipei. It is difficult to have a good match against Shin-Mei Liu. She is the Queen of Taiwanese pool and is comfortable in that role. She has already stood upon the World Championship podium once, winning it all in 2002. Tan would give it her best effort, but Liu was simply too poised to be overcome. Liu is one of the best table managers in the game. She sees patterns flawlessly and is famous for denying opportunities to her opponents. And that was the story line this day. She moved around the table on soft feet and coerced balls in gently, one after another. As the match drew on her lead stretched out farther and farther and she cruised to the 7-2 win. Jasmin Ouschan of Austria was on a roll. She had been powering through her opponents all week in a take-no-prisoners approach that denied her nothing. In this quarter-final match she faced her good friend, Line Kjorsvik of Norway. Her coach told us before the match that Jasmin would have been more at ease facing a stranger, and this was some concern to him. It needn't be. Jasmin simply crushed Line, leaping out to a 6-1 lead before Line could score her second point of the match. Kjorsvik managed to move another bead in the next rack, but it was way too little, way too late. Ouschan poured in a three-nine combination in the next rack to earn her berth in the semi-finals 7-3. Our first semi-final match race to nine games was Ga-Youg Kim (KOR) vs. Akimi Kajitani (JPN). The semi-final matches at a major tournament are the most cruel. The winners get to move on to play for the title while the losers fade into anonymity. Ga-Young Kim is not one for anonymity. The 2004 World Champion mastered a gorgeous bank shot on the four ball to begin her run through the first rack. Akimi Kajitani, however, wasn't about to surrender. She strode to the table facing a tough three ball in he second rack and sent it home, then cleverly moved through the rest of the pack to tie the score at one. Unfortunately, she then scratched on her break shot. Kim played a two-way shot, a one-nine combination without much hope that gave her a safety when it failed. This began a long exchange of safeties. Kajitani grabbed the first opportunity, sank the one and rolled up for a two-nine combination that she made. Two to one for Kajitani and Kim could see the momentum in the room flowing to the other corner. Kim got a break in the next rack when Kajitani rolled past shape on the six ball and missed the shot. She cashed that check to pull the match back to a two-two lockup. The breaks seemed problematic for both players. Kim failed to make a drop on her break and Kajitani gained the floor. Shortly thereafter she scored and once again led Kim by a single point at 3-2. The edge would not last. Kajitani missed a half-table shot on the seven in the next rack to bring Kim to the floor for her next point. Tie game at three. Kim's break again failed and Kajitani had the table. The only problem was moving from the four to the five and Kajitani hit it like it was a no-brainer. Everything else on the table was a breeze and Kajitani reclaimed her one-game advantage 4-3. Kajitani made three balls on the next break but then failed to drive a rail playing safe on the two and Kim got ball-in-hand. She moved quickly through the rest of the table and we were tied again at four. For once, Kim made a ball on the break. But she followed this with a missed shot on the one. Kajtani was uncomfortable with the long cut on the two ball and missed it to send herself back to the chair. Kim swept the table for the lead 5-4. Kim's old break came back to haunt her and nothing fell away on her snap. The balls were well-spread but Kajitani once more over-ran her shape, this time on the four ball. Kajitani was beginning to fumble her speed control and the safety she attempted came up short and left Kim open. Again Kim finished the job begun by Kajitani and now led 6-4, beginning to stretch out the lead. Again the break was hollow. Kajitani, obviously uncomfortable with her stroke now, again over-ran her shot and snookered herself on the two. She managed to kick out of it but was forced to again retreat to her corner and hope for the best. She got her chance shortly when she kicked well out of a safe and left Kim hooked. The resultant foul shot gave her ball in hand. She needed to take this rack home but once again her stroke betrayed her and she over-ran shape on the five to land behind the six ball. She kicked safe. Kim kicked into the four and banked it in cross-corner. Only four balls remained and they were no match for her energy. She dropped a long nine ball and led the match 7-4. Kim scratched on the opening shot of the next rack. Again Kajitani had the opportunity to close the gap. This time she would not fail. 7-5. The next rack found both players at the table but Kim was there last and regained the three-point advantage 8-5. Kim had another dry break in the next game and Kajitani pushed out. Kim missed a carom on the five and Kajitani just missed the long one in the corner. Kim came to the table hooked behind the eight. The safety exchange that followed lasted several turns and Kajitani was the first one to get her sights on the one. She made a long shot into the corner and then went easily through the rest of the rack to get a little closer at 8-6. Kajitani made nothing on the snap and the table went back again into defensive mode. Again Kajitani saw the first light but her arm failed her when she reached the three ball and she missed her shot in the corner. Kim had to use the rest and miscued as she sank the three so she had to play another safety. Kajitani failed to return the safe and left Kim a full ball hit but no pocket. The safeties continued for two turns but Kajitani was the first to blink and leave an open shot. That was all Kim needed as she easily went through the remaining balls to be the first player to claim a seat in the finals with her 9-6 victory. Our second semi-final would be a contrast in styles. The thoughtful table management of Shin-Mei Liu versus the aggressive run and gun style of Jasmin Ouschan. Shin-Mei drew first blood with a nifty run in rack one. She followed that up with another break and run and then only allowed Jasmin a single trip to the table as she also earned the next rack. In short order Liu had gained a hefty 3-0 advantage. Jasmin did get to the table in rack four and put away five balls, but she just wasn't controlling her rock the way she had in her earlier matches and she fell out of line on the seven ball and missed the shot. Then Shin-Mei went past her line on the eight and faced an ugly eight-nine combination. She studied the angle and sent it home to go up 4-0. Shin-Mei was not about to give Ouschan an opening to begin an offensive flurry. She took the next rack with precise position play to go up 5-0 and then proved she was capable of small errors when she missed the two ball in the next rack but left nothing but a safe for Jasmin to play. The two sat by the nine and Liu kicked two rails to send the two perfectly into the nine and the nine into the corner. A beautiful shot to go up 6-0. Ouschan began to look like a deer in the headlights of a very large truck. Ouschan finally caught a break in rack seven when Liu missed a kick shot on the one ball. With ball in hand and anger in her eyes she ran the rack to take her first mark but she had a long road to travel to catch the 6-1 lead Liu had established. Ouschan's break shot sent the balls scurrying away from impact. The table was open and she marched through the rack, determined to show the world why she deserved to be here. She played a forceful, but not careless, rack to move another bead, 6-2. The next rack proved frustrating for both players. Both made errors that gave opportunities to the other but Jasmin got hers last and took the rack out to narrow the lead to 6-3. She was going to make a contest of this yet. When Ouschan broke and ran the next rack you could feel the energy recharge her. She was back in this match and she was in control and she was only down two games. She had come a long way in a short time. Her next break was perfect. Two balls evacuated the scene and she fell dead on the two ball. The run was there for her to take. The run was as close to perfect as you would ever want to see and she had closed ranks with the great Liu to stand one game behind at 6-5. Again, two balls left the scene on her break and again she had a nice opening shot on the two ball. Again the run was there for her to claim. And she did. She had vanquished the scoreline and had answered Liu's six straight games with six of her own. For the first time, Liu began to squirm in her chair, wondering if she would rise again. She would. Finally, in the next rack, Ouschan's break failed to drop a ball. Six of the balls were huddled around the bottom left quarter of the table, all beneath the second diamond. It was a tough set-up. Liu tried to combo the nine on her first shot but failed. Jasmin was back at the table. The layout was just as untidy as before and she, too, made an attempt to combo the nine in the corner. But she left Liu safe with three balls between whitey and the three and no good kick to be had. Liu managed the impossible. She shot away from the pack diagonally into the two rails by the far corner. The cue ball came slowly toward the cluster and through the tiniest of openings and pocketed the three ball to boot. But it was to no avail. She could not reach the four and fouled. Ouschan took ball in hand and made the four but when she made the five and broke the cluster up it moved the seven ball in front of the six. The combination did not work and Shin-Mei returned to claim the rack. She was back in the lead, but only just so at 7-6. Finally, the ugly rack was over. Shin-Mei Liu broke and ran the next rack, The run included a shot where she broke the four ball away from the nine and got shape on it as well. As pretty a shot as you will ever see. Now at 8-6, Liu needed only one more nine. She wanted her last break to give her the chance to keep the power of Ouschan away from the table. At the very least she needed a shot after the break that allowed her to maintain control. Two balls fell away but the five ball ruined her party by rolling in the line between the cue ball and the one at the very last moment. She had to push out and she elected to leave Jasmin a long reverse cut into the corner. She issued a challenge to the young gunslinger. Jasmin didn't take the bait. Instead, she paved a tidy two-rail safety that forced Liu to kick at the one. Liu had lost control. Liu made the kick but left a full ball for Jasmin to play with. Again Jasmin went for the safety but this time she came up short of the mark and Liu was the one with a full ball to work. She made the table-length cut off of the fifty yard line and also got shape on the three. The look on Ouschans face in the chair said it was over and it was. Liu cleared the rack and the greatest comeback that almost was evaporated into memory. Liu and Kim would wage an all-Asia battle for the Championship of the World. And so the stage was set. The 2002 World Champion (Liu) would face the 2004 World Champion (Kim) to see who would take their second crown in a race to eleven games. The first rack went Liu's way after Kim scratched and left little work. Her break of the next rack came up dry but the one and the cue ball were eight feet away from one another and Kim, going for a safe, combo'ed in the two and hooked herself on the one. She would go airborne to make the hit and left only a carom on the five for Liu to work. The carom didn't produce a drop and Kim returned to the table. After an exchange of safeties Kim received ball in hand and took the rack out from there. 1-1. The next two racks were also traded out and the champions each held two games. At this point both were playing cautiously, neither wanting to make an error that would create an opening for the other. Safeties were the order of the day and after Kim hid the cue ball Liu scratched on the kick and Kim completed the run with ease. 3-2 Kim made two balls on the next break and the lay of the balls allowed a run. Kim relaxed and began to get into her form. But she came up very short on position on the nine ball and had to make a tough cut into the side. That done she took a two-game lead at 4-2. It would not last. Liu took the next game and pulled the match close again at 4-3. Liu's next break was not productive and Kim elected for the safety. It was a good one with the cue ball tucked right up under the five. Liu kicked into the long rail and made the hit but left Kim a shot in the side. Instead of taking the shot she played safe again. Liu had to shoot over an intervening ball and fouled that ball with her stick to give Kim ball in hand. But there were clusters in two areas of the table and Kim elected to go for three fouls. Again she played a good safe. Liu made a bad hit on her kick and was on two fouls. But now the three lined up with the nine for a good combination and Kim played down to that and sank the nine for the game to go up by two again at 5-3. Two balls disappeared on Kim's break but the one was not available so again she played a safe on Liu. Liu tried to go two rails but could not make the hit and Kim again had ball in hand. She used that to run the rack and move ahead 6-3. Kim made the two ball on the break and had an open table with which to work. But she moved the five out of line when she made the four and lost the pocket. She played safe again. Liu attempted to return the safety but Kim could see the five ball. It did her no good when she missed the five but she caught a good roll as the cue ball ran and hid behind the seven. Liu pulled out the short stick and jumped into the hit but the balls set up well for Kim to finish out the table. She accomplished that with ease and led 7-3. Kim's lead was due to her ability to keep Liu from ever coming to the table with an opportunity. Liu could only sit in her corner and await an error from the young Korean. That error came in the next rack when Kim missed the six ball and left it clear and open. Liu finished the work that Kim had started in that rack and moved the score to 7-4. She broke the balls well in the next game and was headed out when she snookered herself on the four ball. She settled for a kick into a safe. Kim had to bank the four cross corner and succeeded but she, too, snookered herself and kicked for the hit. Liu then just grazed the edge of the five and moved it safely behind the nine ball to force Kim once again into kicking. Kim made the hit but scratched on the effort. Liu converted on the opportunity and our match moved to 7-5. Liu's break was working. She was making a ball and squatting the cue ball in the center of the table but the one ball was not helping her at all. She once again had to push out and another safety challenge was on. The challenge ended several turns later when Kim fouled on a jump shot gave Liu the opportunity to run the rest of the rack. She would fail by running well past her position on the eight ball and missing the bank attempt. Kim took the two balls remaining and the match sat at 8-5. Shin-Mei Liu took the next rack when Kim jawed the eight and then broke and ran the next rack, culminating that with a long-rail bank on the nine to take away Kim's elbow room at 8-7. Liu waltzed through the next rack as well and, with the score tied at eight, the World Championship would now be decided by a race to three games. Even one error could prove fatal. Rack seventeen was another monster. The balls were breaking apart well, but they would scamper around the table and then meet back up behind the foot string in clusters. After several defensive trips to the table Kim caught a glimpse of a chance and ran out to lead 9-8. She began the next rack with a carom on the three ball then missed a three-quarter table-length cut down the long rail. Her luck held when the one rolled up behind the two to deny Liu a shot. She played a safe but left a narrow window for Kim between the eight and nine for a hit to be made. Traveling that alley, Kim pushed the one ball way uptable where Liu's only offensive option was a bank back in to the corner. Liu edged the one ball and tucked the cue behind the two. Km kicked at the one and it went two rails into the side. She raised her hand in apology to Liu for the fluke. She was on her way to the hill when the six ball hung in the corner and refused to fall. But Liu ran past her shape on the eight ball and it, too, wound up hanging in a corner pocket. However, the cue ball was behind the nine. Kim played a slight masse to make the eight but was tough on the nine with no easy pocket available. She played a perfect pocket-speed shot to the side to be within one game of the championship at 10-8. The next rack would not be a gift. He rack came apart well but the one was hidden and Kim had to push. Shin-Mei Liu played a safety that would be a tough escape. She managed the hit but left Liu an opening. Liu sank the one and moved the cue into position in an alley between the three and nine. She dropped the two in the corner, the three in the side, and the five in another corner. The rest of the rack was a roadmap. She was following that map home when she again over-amped her shape and fell tough on the nine ball. She would have to bank it in the side or thin cut it in the corner. She went for the thin cut and the nine ball went to the jaws and bounced there, coming to rest as a pigeon for Kim to shoot to claim the title. RESULTS Jeannie Seaver is Only American Still Standing The sweet sixteen round got underway today at the Amway WPA Women's World Nine Ball Championship in Taipei. With all eight matches to be played on the television table our first match featured Ga-Young Kim of Korea facing Makiko Tagaki of Japan. Kim, one of the top eight seeds, had the day off yesterday and came into the match rested and jovial. Tagaki came into the arena appearing stiff, twisting her back from side to side as if to ward off an untimely spasm trespassing her back. This one was the Ga-Young show from start to finish. Kim won every safety exchange between the two and owned the first two racks. When she made the nine ball on the snap in rack three she held a three point lead that she extended with a break and run in rack four and a three-nine combination in rack five. After allowing Tagaki to the table only briefly in rack six she took that one as well and stood one game away from victory while Tagaki had not as yet moved a bead. In the next rack Tagaki had a glimmer of light cast her way when Kim missed the one ball and brought her to the table. Tagaki took out the rack through the seven and then missed a bank shot on the eight. But Kim scratched on her next effort and Tagaki breezed the simple eight and nine for her first point. The light for Tagaki lasted only briefly. Tagaki scratched on the next break and fouled on a safety left her by Kim. Ga-Young sailed through the remaining balls to become the first player to qualify for play on the final day. Next on stage were two Americans, Jennifer Barretta and Jeannie Seaver. This match became a tug of war with neither cueist able to put together a string of racks. Momentum and fortune swung from side to side as the breaks were producing clustered tables that thwarted runs. The match remained tied throughout. We were tied at one game apiece, then two, three, four, and five. Barretta got to the hill first, but then fouled when she did not drive a rail on a safety on the two ball and Seaver had an opportunity to gain control at the critical moment in the match. She was making her way through the rack when she hung the six ball in the corner. But fortune played a role here and Barretta was snookered behind the eight ball. When Barretta failed to make the hit Seaver applied the ball in hand advantage to finish the rack and tie us again, this time at six apiece and the championship was once again presented with a one-game decider as had so often occurred throughout the earlier rounds.. Seaver had been hitting her break shots poorly the entire match, sliding off the side of the one ball rather than striking it full in the face. On this, her final break, that error bit her badly as she scratched in the corner. But the table was ugly with most of the balls still gathered about the rack area. When Barretta failed to pot the two-nine combo Seaver had another shooting opportunity. All that was available was a two-five carom and she put that away neatly. The two and the three balls both fell in opposite corners and the four co-operated at the other end of the table. Now the table had opened up and the run to the finish line was obvious. Seaver connected the dots and went forward to the next round as Barretta was left to ponder rolls and fate. Our next match was also an intra-country rivalry as Japanese players Akio Otani and Akimi Kajitani came to the felt battlefield. The experience of Kajitani soon blossomed as she took a commanding lead and held it. Otani won the first rack but then could only bear witness to the power within Kajitani's cue. Showing no hesitation Kajitani stretched out to a comfortable 6-1 lead. To her credit, Otani never gave up. She gained the table in rack eight and took it home by mastering a very difficult layout. But trailing now 6-2 her task was nigh on impossible. Kajitani held the advantage that a comfortable lead supplies and played a masterful safety on the one ball that Otani could not negotiate successfully. She made the hit but left a shot and Kajitani appeared ready to pounce on victory. Uncharacteristically, Kajitani lost focus briefly on the seven ball and missed the shot. Otani could not, however, see a pocket from the position the seven ball assumed beside the eight and when that effort failed Kajitani cleared the table for a forceful 7-2 victory. This was followed by another all-Japan matchup as Yukiko Hamanishi came out against Chihiro Kawahara. Both of these are powerful players and their match was highlighted by magnificent shot-making. This would be another close match as again we saw the scoreline tied at one, two and three games apiece. In rack seven Hamanishi stumbled when she missed a four ball that she thought she owned. But Kawahara returned the favor by leaving the nine ball available after a tough cut attempt and Hamanishi took the game that she thought she had given away. Kawahara did not dwell on the error. She regrouped quickly and took the next rack to tie us again at four games apiece. Kawahara came up dry on her break but left a mess on the table with six balls all grouped together around one corner. Hamanishi caromed off the one to make the four, then attempted another carom on the nine that barely failed. Kawahara would not fail in her carom attempt and dropped the nine to gain a narrow 5-4 lead. Kawahara broke and approached the first shot but her hair touched a ball as she leaned in to shoot and a foul was called. That would not be her only error of the game. She got back to the table and was headed for a win but scratched when she sank the eight to grant Hamanishi an easy win to tie the match again at five apiece. When Kawahara missed the seven ball in the next rack Hamanishi completed the table to be the first to stand on the brink. Hamanishi fell short on her effort to make a jump shot on the two ball in the next rack. But the two ball also eluded the efforts of Kawahara to send it to gravity and Hamanishi returned to the table. There was a tough situation to navigate. The seven and eight were tied up off-angle on the side rail. All Hamanishi could do was attempt a very difficult combination shot. The shot never threatened a pocket and Kawahara gained the opportunity to send the match to double-hill. Kawahara succeeded and the audience prepared itself for another in what seemed an endless succession of one-rack decisions. Kawahara had her cue ball kissed into the side pocket on the break and Hamanishi faced the last rack with ball in hand. Both players traded misses on the four ball. But Hamanishi missed it a second time and scratched so Kawahara had ball in hand with only five balls remaining topside. Kawahara appeared to be successfully completing the remaining journey but hung the nine ball. Hamanishi accepted the gift and the win 7-6. Our fifth pairing featured Hsiang-Ling Tan and Shu-Han Chang, both of Chinese Taipei. These two traded the first couple of racks before Chang mounted a charge by taking the next two racks, the second with a nifty three-nine combination shot. After the two players exchanged another two racks our score stood at 4-2 in favor of Ms. Chang. When Tan got control of the table again in the next rack she played solid, consistent pool to first erode, then erase the gap between them, Tied at four apiece, we again appeared headed for a dramatic final chapter. Chang, who had been strong in the initial racks, began to weaken as Tan's game began to peak. Tan owned the next two racks to get to six games and needed only one more fallen nine ball to move on. Chang made every attempt to claw her way back in to the match. Still, her aggression appeared tepid, uncertain. She engaged Tan in a safety war that displayed little imagination from either side. When Chang left the six ball clearly open Tan shooed it from the table and cleared the rack for the win 7-5. Ji Won Hyun of Korea had a sizeable hurdle to clear. She was pitted against Taiwan's Shin-Mei Liu, a veteran of televised matches and an unshakable cueist. Liu easily cruised through the first two racks and ran down to an unremarkable shot on the nine when she committed an uncharacteristic error and missed. Hyun potted the nine and had a brief glimmer of light, a chance. She was gifted another nine ball on another Liu hiccup in game seven. That would be the only comfort she would find this day. She was forced to fold like a flower in an early snow as Liu flew into Sunday on large wings, 7-2. For scheduling purposes the final two matches were played simultaneously. On table one Charlotte Sorenson of Denmark was opposite Jasmin Ouschan of Austria and on table two Sweden's Helena Thornfeldt faced another Northern European, Line Kjorsvik of Norway. When Jasmin Ouschan first came on the scene she was a young prodigy of fifteen years, one of those youngsters who might make a game of it or who may as likely disappear into the woodwork. She has far from disappeared. Now a mature and seasoned professional at age twenty, she arrived at this point in the tournament with an unblemished record, never knowing a loss. But like Liu before her she came up short on shape on a nine ball and gave the first game away by leaving the prize ball near a corner pocket. It was Sorenson who came out of the gate with the early lead. Ouschan soon made up the ground and took the next two racks to go out in front 2-1. Sorenson was not ready to retire, however, and when she potted the nine in rack four to tie the game it was obvious she had regrouped from the sloppy victory she had endured the night previous when she outlasted her opponent by simply making a few less errors. On her table, Kjorsvik was controlling everything. She kept Thornfeldt seated for the first three racks as she conducted a break and run show to lead the Swede 3-0. Thornfeldt doesn't think much of trailing. She waged a tactical war to even the score at three apiece before the tide turned against her and Kjorsvik kept finding ways to send the balls home. Making critical shots when she needed, Kjorsvik won the next three racks to lay ever so close to home at 6-3. On table one Ouschan found a higher gear to run. She denied any further opportunities to Sorenson and won the rest of the racks with a deadly arm and a quickening pace. She took the victory 7-2. Things on table two were getting tense. Thornfeldt controlled the table and appeared determined to win the day. She was playing thoughtful, certain pool and won game ten to bring the score to six to four. She broke and ran the next rack to pull the score to 6-5, but scratched on her next break. Kjorsvik ran through the first six balls with ease but failed to get shape on the seven, snookering herself behind the eight. She kicked into the good hit but left a shot for Thornfeldt to try. Thornfeldt ran the seven down the long rail into the corner but was forced to settle for a tough cut on the eight. When the eight fell she had natural shape on the nine and we went to double-hill. Thornfeldt made a ball on the snap but faced a tough shot on the one that she missed. That sealed her fate as Kjorsvik finished out the key rack to retire the affable Swede 7-6. RESULTS: Women's World Championships - Jennifer Barretta Defeats Kelly Fisher On this first day of the Championship Rounds there were amazing comebacks and the playing contingent from Japan really showed their strength. In the very first match of the day Makiko Takagi of Japan and Meng-Meng Zhou of China kept the drama turned on high as both players had to overcome the jitters to improve as the match progressed. In the end it was advantage to Zhou as in the double-hill match she had control of the table after the break. She didn't like her situation. She was a long way away from a tough reverse cut shot on the two ball and so she elected to push out. Takagi had a tough decision to make. If she tried to take the shot on and missed she would almost certainly never rise from her chair again. But if she gave the shot back and Zhou made it she would have to live with surrendering her only real chance at the win. The shot clock added to the pressure of the moment. She had to use her extension to buy more time and with only a few seconds left she bent to the shot and fired. The two dropped through the center of the jaws of the corner pocket and she ran the rest of the rack to progress to the next round 7-6. Score one win for Japan. The next match-up was pre-tournament favorite Kelly Fisher of Great Britain against America's Jennifer Barretta. It appeared that Fisher was going to live up to her expectations as she led the match 5-2 going into the mandatory break after game seven. She had been playing solid as a rock while Barretta had committed several playing errors upon which Fisher capitalized for wins. But after the break those roles were reversed. Fisher suddenly became tentative over her shots and Barretta became assertive with hers. Barretta won the next three racks running and tied the match at five apiece. In the penultimate game Jennifer was forced to run into a pack of balls and try to force the cue ball through for shape. When she went into that group she collided perfectly with the nine ball to send it into the corner and send the match to double-hill and she also owned the final break. She made a ball but had a long shot on the one in the corner. When she made that she over-ran her position on the two ball and had no choice but to attempt a kick on it in the side pocket. She played it beautifully and that shot gave her the lift she needed to complete a difficult table for the win and the upset. The next match also saw a change in momentum. Tiffany Nelson of the USA faced Akio Otani, a qualifying tournament winner out of Japan, and put her big break to work early. She dominated the first part of the match and strolled out to a 3-1 lead. But then Otani gained control of the table and came charging back. Otani won the next five games in a row to stand on the hill at 6-3. Nelson had one more win in her but that was all Otani would allow as she took the final rack for the 7-4 victory. Another Japanese player had found the strength to progress. The fourth match of the day saw the competitors fighting their composure as much as the table. Nerves ruled the day and neither lady could find their best game. Yukiko Haminishi of Japan and Wendy Jans of Belgium were both out of gear and Haminishi held on to her early 2-0 lead to take the match 7-5. It may have been a bit ugly, but a win counts no matter how it is achieved and Japan found their third player moving through to the next day. Two Taiwanese players next took the field. The match was close early on, with the players trading out racks. Then Hsiang-Ling Tan grabbed a couple of games to get to the hill first, leading 6-4 over Shu-Pin Kao. Unforced errors on Tan's part gave ball-in-hand to Kao who used the first one to win game eleven and get within one. She again got ball-in-hand in the next rack when Tan miscued but she ran past her position on the six and had to play safe instead of finishing off the rack. Tan attempted to return the safe but left an open shot for Kao to plunder. Kao, normally a steady shot-maker, jawed it out of the corner to return Tan to play. Tan deposited the three remaining balls and took the win, 7-5. A battle of generations came next. Many-time champion Shin-Mei Liu of Taipei faced young Keioko Yukawa of Japan. Liu appeared entirely at ease and coasted through the first three racks to lead the obviously less comfortable Yukawa 3-0. Liu finally left an opening in rack four when she missed the one ball and left a shot for Yukawa that led to an easy run. All went according to plan and Yukawa scored her first win to trail 3-1. That win took the shake out of her wrist and Yukawa claimed the next rack as well after playing a safety on the six ball that gave her the opening she needed to finish out the rack. She seemed to be gaining confidence with each ball that fell. Rack number six proved tactical as well. After the break the center of the table was barren and there were two clusters of balls grouped at the corner pockets diagonally opposite one another. The two players jabbed at one another with safety spars, each attempting to find an error in the other's stick. On and on they tiptoed off this ball and that, never disturbing the clusters. Liu stumbled first and fouled on the two ball, giving Yukawa the table with ball in hand. Yukawa moved one cluster apart as she pocketed the two and picked her way through the other to pocket the three, four and five. But she came up short on the roll she needed to shoot the six into the open corner and instead was forced to play a carom on the nine ball. She missed it badly. Shin-Mei banked the six back neatly into the corner, found the proper line on the long eight ball shot and finished off the rack. Scoreline: 4-2 in favor of Liu. Yukawa refused to accept the dominance of Liu. When the cue ball skidded on Shin-Mei on the seven ball and scratched Keioko finished out the rack to again pull within two at 5-3. But Liu got back to the table in the next rack and rode it out to stand within one rack of the win. After a brief safety skirmish in the final rack Liu took hold of the game and ran the final four balls to take the win 7-3. Our final two games of the night were played simultaneously for scheduling purposes. On one table American Melissa Herndon faced Sweden's Helena Thornfeldt. On the other Filipino representative Rubilen Amit was challenged by Charlotte Sorenson of Denmark. Melissa Herndon, worried earlier in the day with back pain, found a comfortable pace that carried her to the early lead 3-1. Meanwhile, Amit and Sorenson were keeping their match tight at 2-2. Thornfeldt edged her way back into a tie with Herndon at three games apiece, but Herndon would not give in to the pressure and took the next rack for a 4-3 lead. At the same time, on table two, Rubilen Amit surged to a 5-3 lead over Sorenson. This diminutive lady is les than five feet in height but stands tall at the table and has shown herself t be a powerful horse in this race. Then, comebacks were mounted on both tables and within moments of one another both matches stood tied at five games apiece. A life or death race to two would play out in both arenas. The battle on table two tightened even more when Amit won the next game and Sorenson followed suit with a win in the next. Yet another match would be decided by a single rack as had two earlier in the day. On table one Thornfeldt enjoyed her first lead of the match at 6-5 and stood to break what could be her winning rack. She had to play a kick-safe on the two ball that left a long shot in the corner for Herndon. Herndon made it at the same instant as Sorenson sank the winning nine ball on the other table. Herndon wound up lining up a 5-9 combo to carry her table also to a one-rack decider, the fourth of the eight matches played today. Herndon could not see the one after the break. She was blocked by the five ball and elected to jump. She made the hit but not the shot. Still, she could be comfortable knowing that the shot she left Thornfeldt was more easily missed than made. Thornfeldt eschewed the pocket and played a very good safe that tucked Melissa behind the two ball. Herndon again made the hit and left Thornfeldt another tough, long cut down the rail to the corner. She never even hesitated. She lined the shot up and deposited the one without ever bruising a rail. When Thornfeldt sank the four ball she also broke up a troublesome cluster but this sent the seven ball directly in her path to the five. She was forced to play a safety that again put Herndon out of sight from the object ball. Herndon kicked off the side rail and forced Thornfeldt into a kick of her own. But she left Herndon a long shot and Melissa sank it like it had eyes. She faltered, however, on the six and missed her shot into the corner. With only four balls remaining between her and tomorrow, Helena sank the six in one corner, then the seven in the corner opposite. The eight and the nine were both deposited in the same corner pocket and Helena Thornfeldt claimed the day. RESULTS Line-Ups for Saturday WPBA MEMBER JENNIFER BARRETTA TO STAR IN UPCOMING FILM "9-BALL" Jennifer Barretta has been cast to star in the new movie "9-Ball." The film is being directed by Anthony Palma of Main Street Productions, who also wrote the screenplay and will produce. Barretta says: "I'm absolutely thrilled to have been cast as Gail! Our lives have many similarities which will authenticate my portrayal of her." "9-Ball" is about a young, up and coming female pool player (Gail) who breaks away from hustling pool in the back rooms of bars under the manipulation of her exploitative uncle, to follow her dream of becoming the Women's 9 Ball Champion of the World. Palma is delighted to have Jennifer on board. "We see in Jennifer a young woman who in reality wants to become the Women's 9-Ball Champion of the World. Gail has the same goal, they both face a tough upward battle, but their determination, and persistence keep them going against all odds. We are very pleased to have Jennifer cast to play Gail in our dramatic new pool movie "9-Ball,'" said Palma. "This project is the most exciting thing happening in pool right now and I'm excited to be a part of it. "9 Ball" is destined to become a classic," Barretta adds. The film has also garnered excitement from other WPBA greats such as Karen Corr and Julie Kelly who have already served as technical advisors on the script. They have also been cast to play themselves in the movie. "After reading the screenplay for "9-Ball" I was more impressed than ever to be involved with this film. "9-Ball" is the first film produced that combines women's professional pool with a story that will keep you on the edge of your seat. Gail is a young woman with a lot of guts, determination, and ambition to become the 9-Ball World Champion. "9-Ball" is a film that you want to see, and after you see it to go shoot pool," said Corr, herself a superstar 9-Ball player. Kelly is also excited to be a part of the movie. "I also like that it is about a woman pool player, we've seen great pool movies about men, but "9-Ball" will be the first one about women. You go Girl," said Kelly. The film aims to inspire up and coming female pool players to take their craft seriously and follow their dreams professionally.  Tiffany Nelson Launches New Website Tiffany Nelson fans can now enjoy the newest and freshest news and photos at www.tiffanynelson.com Tiffany's website couldn't have come online at a better time. She has ended the 2005 year ranked 8th in the world - her highest ranking yet on the Women's Professional Billiard Association Tour! Her goal at the beginning of the year to reach the top ten was helped with an impressive 2nd place finish at the March 2005 Mueller Recreational Products Great Lakes Classic event. Her last 2nd place finish was in 1994 at the Orlando Classic. At an impressive 14 years of age, she defeated Ewa Laurance, Loree Jon Jones and Mary Guarino and finished by losing to Gerda Hofstatter in the finals. Tiffany had two televised matches from her March 2005 Great Lakes Classic event and the matches continue to air on ESPN and ESPN2. She will again be displaying her impressive skills on ESPN as an invited guest at the October 9th National Wheelchair Poolplayer Association event held at Planet 9Ball in Tampa, Florida. Along with fellow pro Loree Jon Jones, Tiffany played in a sponsor's challenge scotch doubles match with Charlie Hans and Bob Calderon. She teamed up with Charlie Hans to take on Loree Jon and Bob Calderon in a match that you won't want to miss. The airing date will be announced shortly so be sure to tune in. Tiffany's amazing 2005 year doesn't end there. She became the New Jersey State Champion in July and added another state championship title to her 2005 list of accomplishments by winning the Maryland State Championship in September. In October, Tiffany became the first female to join the North Team of the Connelly Patriot Cup. She joined Tony Robles, Mika Immonen, Mike Davis, Danny Basavich and Shawn Putnam at Planet 9Ball in Tampa, Florida. Tiffany helped propel the North Team over the South with a great win against one of the world's greatest players - Johnny Archer. To top off her year, Tiffany was one of the few invited celebrities at the radio station WRAT's 95.9's Men's Expo & Texas Hold 'Em Tournament held November 20th in New Jersey. She spent the day matched up against many fans and lost only one time against a very determined 9-year-old young man. Then in December her alma mater, Thomas College, profiled her for their fall magazine edition. Tiffany graduated from Thomas College in 2002. Tiffany's website is chalk-full of photos. Tiffany explains: "photos are very important to me because it's a direct means to share my tournament experiences with fans." She continued, "I'm really excited about my new website. I only had a few requests for my webmaster and then she took off with creating a crisp design that I am very proud of for my fans. I requested a classy and simple website, with a burgundy background that reminds me of a good glass of wine, which symbolizes the perfect evening." Tiffany, 'The Rock,' is known for her strong and accurate break which is where she earned her nickname. As such, her website contains a special section dedicated to the break, which includes important tips, questions and answers, and a break frame-by-frame photo section. Visit www.tiffanynelson.com to follow Tiff's progress, check out the photos, find out more about her from her biography, improve your break, and also email her directly. Allison Fisher and Kasson: Two Great Names Together
New Sponsorship Aligns #1 Rated Player With Top American Made Pool Table Holland, Michigan...Kasson Pool Tables, known for legendary Strength From Within quality, is pleased to announce the official sponsorship of Allison Fisher, the #1 Ranked WPBA Player and World Champion. An icon in the billiard industry, Allison Fisher has captured more professional titles and logged more television time than virtually any other player in the history of the game. She began playing at the age of 7 in her native home of Cheshnut, England, and won her first World Snooker Championship at 17. She moved to the United States in 1995 to compete in the Women's Professional Billiard's Association Classic Tour Event, and has never looked back: 47 Tour Titles and 5 Consecutive Years as Player of the Year only begin to tell her success story. "We are extremely pleased to sponsor such a world class player," said Lee Eilers, Vice President of Sales, Marketing and Distribution for Great Lakes Home & Resort, manufacturer of Kasson Pool Tables. "While Allison's long list of titles speak volumes about her tournament play and skill, away from the table she is a true champion in ever sense of the word. She is an individual of exceptional character and the entire Kasson team looks forward to a long and successful partnership." "My association with Kasson is a good fit," said Allison. "The brand is well known and respected, the table is top quality with great construction, and the dealers are excited about growing their Kasson business. It's a great opportunity for me to do what I love best, while promoting the game at all levels." Kasson has played an active role in promoting the sport of billiards, helping launch the Women's Professional Billiards Association Tour in 1993, and sponsoring numerous nationally televised amateur, professional and celebrity events. The company was founded in 1983 and today is recognized throughout the billiard industry for high quality recreational and professional pool tables. The Kasson line offers consumers the flexibility to order the style, hardwood, finish, leg design and size for a more personalized table. Unlike lesser grade-imported pool tables, Kasson tables are crafted in Babbitt, Minnesota, from native maple and oak hardwood, and are covered by a limited lifetime warranty. Great Lakes Home & Resort acquired the company in 2005. Dealers are encouraged to contact Great Lakes Home & Resort for showroom opportunities at 800.458.1476. The entire line of Kasson tables can be seen at www.kassonpooltables.com. For additional information on the entire family of Great Lakes Home & Resort products, including Great Lakes Spas, Almost Heaven Saunas®, and Kasson Pool Tables, please visit www.greatlakeshomeandresort.com. Contact: Lee Eilers, Great Lakes Home & Resort WPBA's Florida Flash to Appear in Central Florida Ellen "The Flash" Van Buren and Nikki Rasmussen will perform a Billiards Trick Shot Exhibition and Celebrity Challenge on Saturday, December 17 from 9 to 11:30 a.m. and again from 2 to 4:30 p.m. The pro exhibition will take place at the Silver Lake Recreation Center at 683 Rainbow Road in The Villages (phone 352-753-3229). Tickets for the event are $5 for residents and $10 for non-residents. Event sponsors include The Villages Billiards Club and Villages Recreation Department, Mueller Recreational Products and Jackson Hewitt Tax Services. Spectators at the exhibition will have a chance to challenge a pro for $10. Proceeds of the Pro/Am Challenge will go to the Annual Children's Christmas Party Fund. For further information on this event, call 750-6084. For information on the Women's Pro Billiard Tour or its top players, visit www.wpba.com and be sure to visit Ellen Van Buren's Player Online Diary while you're there! Jeanette Lee Announces Partnership with CFR Productions Black Widow Inks Deal to Become Company's "Official Billiards Consultant" McLean, VA USA (December 1, 2005) Under the partnership, The Black Widow becomes the "The Official Billiards Consultant" for CFR Productions. Lee will also appear in certain advertising and promotional material and make selected appearances at company sponsored events. "Jeanette is a staple in the billiards community and we are thrilled to be partnered with a player of her stature," said Kenneth P. Laury, founder of CFR Productions. "Her talent, credibility, and insider knowledge is unmatched and we are looking forward to a great relationship with Jeanette." "I am excited for the chance to team with a company like CFR Productions," said Lee. "They are truly passionate about billiards and will be a credit to the sport." The former World #1 and Player of the Year, Lee holds more than 20 national and international titles and is consistently ranked as one of the Most Powerful People in the sport by Billiards Digest. She is also a member of the Board of Trustees for the Women's Sports Foundation and serves as a national spokesperson for the Scoliosis Association. WPBA Elects New Board/Officers On November 9, the WPBA's Annual Meeting & Awards Banquet saw election of new board members and officers to serve over the next two year term including: President: Kim White (TX) Jennifer Barretta to Challenge 9-Ball Fans at Blue Cube Billiards in Orange Blue Cube Billiards (www.bluecubebilliards.net) will host top WPBA touring pro Jennifer Barretta on Wednesday, November 16, 2005 at 8:00 p.m. Barretta, recently featured on the pages of Penthouse, Playboy and Cigar Aficionado, will perform trick shots and treat fans to challenge matches. All attendees will be entered into a raffle to win a new IPod. Drawing at 11:30pm. The first 3 challenge match winners will win a McDermott Jennifer Barretta Cue, all others will win t-shirts, hats and other prizes. For more information, visit jenniferbarretta.com or bluecuebilliards.net WHERE: WHEN: Jennifer Barretta to Challenge 9-Ball Fans in Topeka, Kansas On Saturday, November 19 2005, Brooks Billiards Supply and Chasers Billiards will host top WPBA touring pro Jennifer Barretta for a trick shot exhibition and challenge matches with fans. Barretta, recently featured on the pages of Penthouse, Playboy and Cigar Aficionado, will perform trick shots at Brooks Billiard Supply from 10 am to 2 pm, then treat fans to challenge matches at Chasers from 4 to 11 p.m. All winners will be entered into a drawing to win an 8ft. Olhausen Americana Pooltable. Brooks Billiards Supply Chasers INTERNATIONAL POOL TOUR TO PREMIERE ON FSN IPT World 8-Ball Championship Will Air in Prime-Time on November 17th FSN, part of the vast Fox Sports tv family, reaches more than 81 million homes nationwide. "We look forward to this event attracting more than just billiards fans," said George Greenberg, Executive Vice-President of Programming and Production, FSN. "FSN is happy to help the IPT turn this championship into a world-class event." The dramatic 8-ball match between Hall of Famers Sigel and Jones was billed as a Battle of the Sexes as well as a showdown between two living pool legends. Loree Jon is a former WPBA National and multi-event title holder. "November 17th is the beginning of a new golden age for pool on television," said International Pool Tour founder Kevin Trudeau. "In fact, this is the beginning of pool as a prime-time major-league sport all over the world." In addition to its national 10:30pm airing on FSN's "Best Damn Sports Show Period" on November 17th, the "IPT World 8-Ball Championship" will also air on the same date on a number of FSN's regional sports channels at 9pm and 11:30 pm. Several WPBA players are expected to compete in the IPT's next event, a King of the Hill challenge to take place in Orlando on Nov. 30 - Dec. 4. For more details and airtimes, stay tuned to wpba.com HURRICANE KATRINA RELIEF EVENT HALL OF FAMER EWA MATAYA LAURANCE "THE STRIKING VIKING" -VS- #1 RANKED ALLISON FISHER "THE DUTCHESS OF DOOM" On Wednesday, November 16th the House of Blues and local billiard legend Ewa Mataya Laurance will be hosting a benefit event to help those affected by Hurricane Katrina. 100% of the night's donations and profits will benefit our House of Blues teammembers from our New Orleans venue as well as Habitat for Humanity, the organization helping to re-build and give homes to families who lost everything to the storm. "The Striking Viking" is joined by ESPN billiard commentator Mitch Laurance, who will be the evenings host and MC. "The Dutchess of Doom" Allison Fisher has also been gracious enough to donate her time for this imprortant cause. Ewa and Allison will play a challenge match, perform 45 minutes of trick shots while interacting with the crowd and perhaps even give some tips on how you can perform trick shots as well. After that we will be hosting an auction for your chance to play against either "The Striking Viking" or "The Dutchess of Doom." The top 30 people who make donations will be given a shot to compete against these top 9-ball champs. If you think you can beat them, want to see if one of your friends can beat them (or get beat by them) you can donate to this great cause and have fun trying. All of those who participate will also receive a photo with the champs and an autograph. There will be no cover charge, but rather an in-kind donation of your choice will be your entry into this great event. House of Blues will provide some complimentary food, a cash bar and some great aution items will be up for bid. Bid on gift packages such as:
Please, grab your friends and join us for a great evening and help support those who have been through such a tragic event. For more information or to find out how you can help, please contact me with any questions. We look forward to seeing you there! Wednesday, November 16th VICKI PASKI TO BE INDUCTED INTO WPBA HALL OF FAME On November 9, 2005, veteran professional pool player Vicki Paski will be inducted into the Women's Professional Billiard Association (WPBA) Hall of Fame in front of her peers; the assembled field of the 29th annual Cuetec Cues WPBA National 9-Ball Championships. The induction will take place at the Chinook Winds Casino in Lincoln City, Oregon, during the WPBA's Annual Banquet. Paski, of Grand Ledge, Michigan, is the only charter member of the WPBA (formed in 1976) still in professional competition. Through her long and illustrious career as a professional pool player she has racked up plenty of honors and titles including a national championship, Sportsperson of the Year, and WPBA President's awards. Under her presidency (1992-1996) the WPBA's highly successful ESPN televised Classic Billiard Tour was launched (1993) and the first national qualifying systems and regional tours were established. According to fellow top player and ESPN commentator Ewa Laurance, "Vicki's contribution to our sport has allowed so many women the opportunity to successfully compete as professional pool players. Everyone in the WPBA owes her a huge debt of gratitude for the mark she's made on women's pool and this honor reflects our respect for her game and her dedication." Paski, along with the other 63 world's best female pool players will be in Lincoln City, Oregon next week (November 9-13) for the ESPN/ESPN2 televised Cuetec Cues U.S. Open 9-Ball Championships. The event is one of eight ESPN televised pool events on the Women's Pro Billiard Tour this year. For further information about Vicki Paski or the Women's Pro Billiard Tour, visit www.WPBA.com or email shari@wpba.com WESTWOOD BILLIARDS SIGNS GA-YOUNG KIM! Orlando, FL - November 3, 2005. Having competed all over the world, Ga-Young Kim joined the WPBA in 2004 and won the 2004 WPBA U.S. Open 9 Ball Championship defeating Karen Corr in the finals. Currently ranked #3 by the WPBA, the "Little Devil Girl" is gaining popularity with every tournament she competes in and is going to be a force on the women's tours for years to come. "When the fastest growing star in professional billiards teams up with the fastest growing billiards company in the industry, you know you've got a great combination" says Lou Ferris, President of Westwood Billiards. "As wonderful as Ga-Young is as a player, she is even more delightful as a person." Ga-Young will represent Westwood on tour as well as making appearances for them at the BCA show in Houston and at Westwood's private dealer show in Orlando next summer. She will also act as spokesperson in their advertising and will be available to Westwood's dealers for personal appearances as her time permits. Westwood Billiards is the fastest growing table manufacturer in the U.S., offering "best in class" tables of exceptional quality that are reasonably priced. Their innovative approach has proven to be a winner for dealers who carry their line of tables and, like Ga-Young will continue their climb towards the top. For additional information on Westwood Billiards please visit the website at www.westwoodbilliards.com or call 1-800-585-5574. Ewa Laurance Wins $25,000 in 2005 ESPN Trick Shot Challenge October 4, 2005 Las Vegas, NV -- Ewa Laurance, top-ranked WPBA touring pro and member of the BCA Hall of Fame, won $25,000 when she defeated #1 ranked Allison Fisher in the finals of the Trick Shot Challenge. Four women qualified to compete in the prestigious ESPN event, including Myrtle Beach based Ewa Laurance, Charlotte resident Allison, New Jersey's Dawn Hopkins and New York's Gerda Hofstatter. Allison defeated in the first semi-final and Ewa defeated Gerda, forcing the playoff between Allison, arguably the best player to ever wield a cue, and Ewa, a veteran of the game who's been performing trick shots for television for a dozen years. Her first pro title since the 1998 Brunswick Boston Classic, Ewa, on sealing her victory, exclaimed, "I won something!" Ewa is a long-time player representative for Brunswick Billiards, a billiards commentator for ESPN broadcasts and co-host of the GSN hit game show, "Ballbreakers". Laurance Donates $2,500 to BEF Pro wins at "Lingo" for Charity In her promotional appearance on the game show "Lingo," Ewa Laurance and BALLBREAKERS co-host Sal Masekela teamed up to take the grand prize on the show that aired September 29. Competing for charity, Ms. Laurance chose the Billiard Education Foundation to receive $2,500 from her share of the winnings. Hosted by Chuck Woolery, "Lingo" is the highest rated original game show exclusive to GSN. In it, Lingo balls bounce as two-person teams compete to guess a hidden word hinted at from letter clues. Laurance and Masekela were showcased in the high-stakes round, after the guest appearances were scheduled as a promotion for GSN's BALLBREAKERS series. In their show, Laurance and Masekela host a high-energy, fast-paced multi-round elimination game in which four players face off in 9-Ball for a chance to win $20,000. The BALLBREAKERS series also offers benefit episodes, featuring celebrities Tia Carrere ("Wayne's World"), Lou Diamond Phillips ("La Bamba"), Camryn Manheim ("The Practice") and Eric Roberts ("Less Than Perfect") in one and Noah Wyle and Goran Visnjic ("ER"), Dorian Harewood ("Roots") and Julie McCullough ("Growing Pains") in another. Winners in these episodes can also earn donations to their favorite charities. BALLBREAKERS airs on GSN each Saturday at 10:00 pm (Eastern and Pacific), with a repeat on the following Monday at 10:00 pm and twice more on the following Friday at 11:00 pm and 2:00 am. WOMEN'S PROFESSIONAL BILLIARDS PLAYER ANGELINA PAGLIA SIGNS ENDORSEMENT DEAL WITH DIVENEY CUSTOM CUES HOLLYWOOD, Fla. - Angelina Paglia, a touring pro in the Women's Professional Billiard's Association, inked a one-year endorsement deal with Diveney Custom Cues recently. Paglia will exclusively use Diveney Cues in competition as part of the agreement. "We are very excited to enter this arrangement with Angelina (Paglia)," said Diveney Custom Cues President Pat Diveney. "We were attracted to Angelina by her personality, integrity and of course her good looks and we feel like she will be an excellent representative of Diveney Cues." "I was awed by the superior craftsmanship, unique design and functionality of Diveney Cues," said Paglia. "I really liked what I saw when I examined their cues." Angelina Paglia is managed by Seminole Sports Management (SSM). She is a rising star on the WPBA tour and is known for her passion for entertaining and interacting with fans. She is currently ranked No. 24 and is steadily rising. Her charismatic attributes and marketability make her one of the more intriguing women in professional sports. She competed in the 2005 Cuetec Cues Florida Classic held at the Seminole Hard Rock Casino in Hollywood last June. Paglia currently resides in Arizona. Diveney Custom Cues is located in West Liberty, Iowa. They are best known for their custom butterfly hustler cue sticks, but craft sticks ranging in prices from $175 to $5,000. The cue stick that Paglia will use is a Cocobolo and Thuya Burl with Ivory, Russian Lavender and Purple Sugalite inlays. Diveney Custom Cues can be purchased via their website at www.diveneycue.com . For more information, contact Elrod Bowers of SSM at 954-494-8376. Kim White Performs Charity Exhibitions for Inner-City Kids A Message from WPBA To our friends, family and fans rebuilding their lives in the wake of Hurricane Katrina's devastation: Please know that our thoughts and prayers are with each and every one of you... and will remain with you throughout this challenging recovery process. From the players, board and staff of the WPBA WPBA PRESENTING SPONSOR APA ORGANIZES RELIEF EFFORT TO AID KATRINA VICTIMS Members Can Make Donations During Weekly League Play The world's largest pool league and presenting sponsor of the WPBA Classic Tour is reaching out to its more than 250,000 members to aid the victims of Hurricane Katrina. The APA will be collecting donations from members nationwide through October 21, and will then present those donations to the American Red Cross. "Thousands of our members in the Gulf Coast region were affected by Hurricane Katrina, some devastated. We felt we had to do what we could to help," said Jason Bowman, APA Public Relations Manager. "We raised more than $30,000 in 2001 following 9/11, so we know our members will respond in full force to help their fellow poolplayers." Players wishing to donate need to write "Red Cross Donation" and the amount they wish to donate on the line titled "Other" in the lower left hand corner of the APA scoresheet (in the box labeled Fees Section Completed By Team Captain). Donations will be accepted in the form of cash or check--please make checks payable to American Red Cross. For tax records, include a note in the memo area designating "Donation to the American Red Cross." The APA, based in Lake Saint Louis, Mo., sanctions the world's largest amateur pool league, known as the APA Pool League throughout the United States, and as the CPA Pool League in Canada. More than 250,000 members compete in weekly 8-Ball and 9Ball league play. The APA is generally recognized as the Governing Body of Amateur Pool, having established the official rules, championships, formats and handicap systems for the sport of amateur billiards. The APA produces three major tournament events each year--the APA National Team Championships, the APA National Singles Championships and the U.S. Amateur Championship--that, together, pay out more than $1 Million in cash and prizes annually! The National Team Championships are sponsored by Michelob AmberBock, the official beer of the APA, Cuetec Cues, Aramith Billiard Balls, Valley Teflon Ultra Cloth by Championship and Valley Tables. For more information about the APA, visit the official web site at poolplayers.com . or call 1-800-3-RACK-EM. Billiard Sharpshooter Kelly Fisher to Appear in NYC Britain's newest cueing sensation Kelly Fisher is now scheduled to appear at New York City's upcoming Rand/Workman Fine Motor Auction and Luxury Lifestyle Expo September 9-11. Fisher, who won this year's Mueller San Diego Classic on the Women's Pro Billiard Tour, has risen in the rankings in one short year to #4, with numerous appearances on ESPN/ESPN2. Fisher will be showing off her talents in the Red Castle Art booth. Red Castle is known for its luxury pool table offerings and a diamond sponsor of the Luxury Lifestyle Expo. This show is New York's largest auction for the finest automobiles and luxury lifestyle. The exhibition consists of fine brands in Jewelry, Watches, Home Entertainment, Private Aviation, Resorts & Spas, Investments, Cigars, Fine Wines and much more. For further information on Kelly Fisher, or the Women's Pro Billiard Tour, visit www.wpba.com or email shari@wpba.com to schedule an interview. For further info or to get tickets for the Expo auction, visit www.randworkman.com or call 212.655.4505. Stauch Shari shari@wpba.com http://www.wpba.com Pool Exhibition with "The Viper" Melissa Little Ewa Laurance to Appear on Fox Sports' Wednesday REALLY SIMPLE SYNDICATION (RSS) AT WPBA.COM ALERTS FANS AND PRESS OF LATEST NEWS Charlotte (August 16, 2005) - The Women's Professional Billiard Association (WPBA) website http://www.wpba.com now features an RSS feed that delivers news releases, notices and other regular news content to its subscribers! RSS (which stands for Really Simple Syndication) provides short abstracts of updated Web content and allows users to receive news updates without having to search through the entire site to find the latest news. Top media outlets, such as ESPN.com and the New York Times offer RSS feeds to their online subscribers, and blogs (including WPBA player blogs) allow for RSS. Now, savvy companies everywhere are picking up on the trend, which allows timely news to be delivered to media and fans without clogging up email channels. This RSS feature has become an important part of Internet technology, simplifing the amount of work that a communication professional must do to gather their news updates on WPBA top players. To view the RSS feed, the user needs to chose an aggregator (also referred to as a channel or reader) that searches for and picks up new information. There are many different RSS aggregators; a list can be found at http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/directory/5/aggregators and includes which aggregators are appropriate for your platform (Mac, Windows, Linux, etc.) To download the aggregator the user needs to follow the directions specific to the aggregators Web site. Once the aggregator has been downloaded, the user can subscribe to the RSS feed. This is done by clicking on file, adding the aggregator when prompted and then pasting the URL into the aggregator. The URL for the WPBA RSS feed is: feed://www.wpba.com/index.rdf or simply click on the RSS button in the URL window. This RSS feed will notify users of news updates that are made anywhere on the WPBA website, from new press releases, to new event dates/info, to upcoming air dates to player blog entries. For more information about RSS technology and sites using RSS, visit http://www.rss-specifications.com/rss-directory.htm. For more information on WPBA and its top touring professional players and events, contact Shari Stauch at shari@wpba.com The Black Widow Scheduled for Back Surgery in August Jeanette Lee Continues Battle with Scoliosis That Requires Back Operation McLean, VA, USA (June 27, 2005) -- Escalade�® Sports announced today that Jeanette Lee, The Black Widow, and spokesperson for Mosconi® brand billiard tables, will have surgery in August to repair her back from chronic problems as a result of her lifelong battle with scoliosis. Lee has been playing with significant pain in her back for the last several months, and after consultation with highly regarded spinal specialist Dr. Terry Trammell, it has been determined that the surgical procedure is required for a long term resolution to her back pain. The procedure will be performed by Dr. Trammell, a partner in Orthopaedics Indianapolis, on Thursday, August, 11, 2005 in Indianapolis. In the meantime, she will continue with her regular schedule which includes competing on the WPBA Tour, defending gold for the U.S. at the 2005 World Games in Germany and her tour of United States Naval bases, both here in the U.S. and in Europe. Lee�s last competition will be the WPBA Midwest Classic in Peoria, Illinois that will take place August 3-7. She is expected to return to the billiards circuit in late 2005. "Jeanette has been dealing with scoliosis for her entire life, yet she continues to impress everyone on how she handles herself throughout the adversity," said Escalade Sports' Vice President of Marketing, Phil Piccolo. "We look forward to her pain-free return to billiards that will allow her to compete at the high level we have all become accustomed to with The Black Widow." The former World #1 and Player of the Year, Lee holds more than 20 national and international titles and is consistently ranked as one of the Most Powerful People in the sport by Billiards Digest. She is a member of the Board of Trustees for the Women's Sports Foundation and serves as a national spokesperson to the Scoliosis Association. She has had three previous back procedures related to the scoliosis. Dr. Trammell is a highly respected partner in Orthopaedics Indianapolis, a multi-specialty orthopaedic group of more than 50 physicians, where he specializes in the care of spinal deformities (scoliosis) neck, low back injuries and problems, spinal tumors and trauma as well as racing injuries. Dr. Trammell has been involved in motorsports for more than 20 years and is one of the founding members of the International Council of Motorsports Sciences. Known as the "Orthopaedist to the Stars," his patients have included many of racing's greatest drivers including Dario Franchitti, Mario Andretti, AJ Foyt and Jason Priestly. Escalade�® Sports, which manufactures and distributes Mosconi�®, Murrey�®, and Mizerak�® billiards brands, also manufactures and distributes a full line of sporting goods products including Table Tennis Tables and equipment, Pool Tables and equipment, Basketball Systems, Game Tables, Darting Products and Fitness equipment. For more information about Escalade Sports, contact Phil Piccolo, Vice President of Marketing at Escalade Sports, 817 Maxwell Avenue, Evansville, Indiana 47711, 812-467-1200 or www.escaladesports.com. McDermott Handcrafted Cues announces the "McDermott Cue N.E.Women's Tour" MENOMONEE FALLS, WI.--June 9, 2005. McDermott Handcrafted Cues has signed an agreement with the former New England Women's Classic 9-Ball Tour to be the title sponsor. This tour is a stepping stone for the women players of New England who did not have the opportunity to play on a tour in their area. "This sponsorship is a great vehicle for McDermott to continue its strong commitment to women's billiards" says Link Pendley, Vice President of Global Sales at McDermott. "We have recently signed long-term contracts with Vivian Villarreal and Jennifer Barretta and the new McDermott Cue N.E.Women's Tour is another step to further our goals of elevating women's pool." The McDermott N.E.Women's Tour has two types of tournaments: WPBA qualifiers, which are recognized by the WPBA, and Mini-Tournaments. In the WPBA qualifiers, players gain their points towards pro status and the winner receives entry into a WPBA pro event. Mini-Tournaments are run by the Tour privately and have cash and trophies. In addition, the winner will receive free entry into the WPBA qualifier. "Many players travel from other states to come and play" says Bonnie Saritelli, McDermott Cue N.E.Women's Tour Coordinator. "This tour is a great way to gain valuable experience, compete and give women an opportunity to move their game up to the next level." The McDermott Cue N.E.Women's Tour is anticipating 10 to 12 events for the remainder of the year. The first event, a WPBA Qualifier, will be hosted by Maggie's Pub and Entertainment Center on July 23rd and 24th. The winner of this event wins a qualifier spot at the East Peoria WPBA Pro Tour event in August at the Par-a-dice Casino. Further information on the new Tour can be found at www.newc9balltour.com. W146 N9560 HELD DR. -- MENOMONEE FALLS, WI -- 53051 -- PHONE: (800) 666-2283 -- (262) 251-4090 FAX: (262) 251-9290 -- EMAIL: SALES@MCDERMOTTCUE.COM -- WWW.MCDERMOTTCUE.COM Since 1975, McDermott Handcrafted Cues has consistently raised the performance standards for what billiard players expect from a high performance cue. McDermott builds billiard equipment for people who view playing pool as an end in itself, drawing on cutting-edge technology and tasteful yet aggressive design. McDermott equipment is rooted in performance, using the latest technology in a state-of-the-art facility and utilizing the finest materials available. For further information about McDermott Handcrafted Cues, please visit our website at www.mcdermottcue.com. CONTACT: McDermott Handcrafted Cues Nat Rosasco 262-251-4090 Woman's Billiard Champion Ewa Mataya Laurance To Be Spokesperson For Myrtlebeachgolftrips.Com Sports Star Will Direct Attention To MyrtleBeachGolfTrips.com Brand And Its Golf Courses During Billiards Tournaments And Celebrity Golf Events Myrtle Beach, SC (PRWEB) June 10, 2005 -- Ewa Mataya Laurance, one of the most well-known and recognizable stars in the history of pocket billiards, has entered into a two-year agreement with Burroughs & Chapin Co., Inc. of Myrtle Beach, S.C., to be the official spokesperson for the company's golf properties and its Web site, MyrtleBeachGolfTrips.com. A winner of multiple World Titles and a member of the Billiards Congress of America Hall of Fame, Laurance will wear the logo of a Burroughs & Chapin property on her dress during billiards competitions, as well as on her hat and shirt when she participates in celebrity golf tournaments. Laurance will also make public appearances to promote the Web site and Burroughs & Chapin's golf properties; and she will be featured in the Burroughs & Chapin booth at the PGA TOUR Superstore World Amateur Handicap Championship August 28-31, 2005. "We are extremely pleased to have Ewa as a member of the Burroughs & Chapin family," said Archie Lemon, Director Of Golf For Burroughs & Chapin Golf Inc. "She is a well-known sports celebrity and we anticipate that her representation will result in increased awareness of MyrtleBeachGolfTrips.com and the great golf courses that we have to offer." Burroughs & Chapin also plans to have Laurance join Brad Redding, ranked as one of the Top 100 Golf Instructors in America by Golf Magazine, during some public appearances. Laurance and Redding, who is Director of Burroughs & Chapin's Grande Dunes Golf Academy, will demonstrate the transferability of skills between billiards and golf. "Billiards and putting both require a keen eye and a deft touch," said Lemon "So we thought it would be fun to have Ewa, who is also an avid golfer, team up with Brad and give a clinic during World Amateur week. We expect their demonstration to be a lot of fun, as well as instructive for the golfers at the event." Laurance is one of just a few players to win all of billiards' major championships. She won the US Open 9-Ball title twice, as well as billiards' biggest prize, the WPA World 9-Ball Championship and the WPBA National 9-Ball Championship. A two-time "Player of the Year," she also holds the world's high run record of 68 balls in competitive Straight Pool, set at the US Open in 1992. She has been a guest on numerous television shows including "Late Night with David Letterman," "The Today Show," "Entertainment Tonight," and "Fox and Friends." About Burroughs & Chapin Golf Management Burroughs & Chapin Golf Management, created in 2001 to provide operations and marketing services to golf course properties, has quickly emerged as a Grand Strand leader. Burroughs & Chapin Golf Management currently manages four Burroughs & Chapin Company golf courses and three other courses. It is one of the largest golf management entities along the Grand Strand. Burroughs & Chapin Company has been an active member of the Myrtle Beach golf community for more than 30 years as the owner of Myrtlewood Golf Club, a 36-hole complex that opened in 1966. The company built and developed Grande Dunes Golf Club, which is on Golf Magazine's list of the top 10 new courses, and owns Pine Lakes International Country Club, Myrtle Beach's first course. Aware of the company's track record of success, Tidewater Golf Club, the Grand Strand's most honored course, turned to Burroughs & Chapin Golf Management for its services. Burroughs & Chapin Golf Management also manages Farmstead Golf Links and Meadowlands Golf Club. # # # Shari J Stauch info@sharitheshark.com http://www.ShariTheShark.com Melissa Herndon Busts a Move on Court TV Catch Her Knocking the Action on June 21, 10:30 Eastern Court TV's debut new show, "Takedown" will feature none other than the WPBA's Dragon Lady, California based Melissa Herndon, when she helps show host Paul turn the tables on a would-be pool hustler. Melissa Herndon is a consistent Top 10 finishing touring pro on the Women's Pro Billiard Tour, currently ranked #12 in the world. ...It's a real-life Mission: Impossible, a show built to take down cheaters. The risk is real and the stakes are high. See it on Court TV Tuesday, June 21, at 10:30 p.m. EST. Check your local listings and tune in to see the hustler get hustled by a woman pool player. Emailshari@wpba.com or visit CourtTV's website at www.CourtTV.com/takedown Shari J Stauch info@sharitheshark.com http://www.ShariTheShark.com Press Release: March 18, 2005 A Duel between Stunning Beauties The most exciting moment at the Billiard Table COMING IN MAY 2005 For her millions of fans all over the world, Jeanette Lee, the gorgeous Korean American woman known as the "black Widow" is the most eye-catching woman in the sport of Billiard. She has also been hailed as one of the sexiest athletes of the world. She is easily recognized in any competition as the champion who has beautiful flowing long black hair, who only wears tight black top, leather pants and high heels when competing. With a killer's concentration and skills, she easily demolishes her opponents. She has won more than 15 global champions and has stayed No. 1 for two years. Yet, she is much more than what meets the eye. Hospitalized many times during childhood for the crippling disease of sclerosis, she has had a long steel rod implanted into her spine. Imagine, this incredible athlete actually cannot arch her back! One can only imagine the pain she has endured and the struggle she has had in her life in order to be what she is today! Just as she says, "know that I'm not given things that I can't handle, so as long as I just keep getting back up, I'm OK, and I don't like it, I don't want it, but everyone has a cross to bare." Jeanette Lee was born in Brooklyn, New York. As a first generation Korean American, Jeanette was raised in a bilingual household, which stresses both Korean traditional values and the American ideal of opportunity. Jeanette is married to Billiards Pro George Breedlove in a unique Korean-American ceremony in early 1996, and they currently reside in Indiana with their newly adopted girl. Jeanette's success, poise and exotic good looks are enabling her to expand her horizons beyond the women's pro billiards tour. She has become a national spokeswoman for the Scoliosis Foundation. She often communicates and encourages the patients by emails. Jeanette Lee wrote a book The Black Widow's Guide to Killer Pool and founded a school "The Black Widow Experience" in Les Vegas teaching how to challenge oneself. Jeanette Lee's latest project is "The Black Widow 9 balls Game, " a mobile phone game launched by China Mobile and China Unicom. Invited by fashion celebrity Yue-Sai Kan, Jeanette Lee will be in Shanghai from May 9th to 12th, 2005. She will participate in the OCENID Jewelry Cup US-China 9-Ball Competition held at the Shanghai Grand Theatre. Her competitors will be three top Chinese female billiard players Pan Xiaoting , Zhou Mengmeng and Chen Xue. How will Jeanette Lee face the challenge from China? Let's wait and see. For more information and to purchase tickets, please contact Jenny Chan at Yue-Sai Kan Productions at 138-0178-8151 or email jenny@yuesaikan.com Jeanette Lee's bio: Jeanette Lee: The most sexy billiard player in the world She has flowing long black hair, Asian features and sexy black outfit. She appears to be a sweet girl, but when she plays the pool, she is not sweet anymore. She lures her opponents to the table, and then eats them alive. She has been hailed as one of the sexiest athletes of the world. And finally no one can remember Jeanette Lee, but only her nickname "Black Widow". Besides her sexy appearance, Jeanette Lee has gained miraculous success in billiard. Since she started playing billiard in 1993, Jeanette Lee has won more than 15 global champions. Yet, who can image that such a tough woman was hospitalized many times during childhood. She had a tumor in her leg at eleven. And she had surgery on her leg. Then she was discovered her spine was crooked when she was twelve, she had surgery at thirteen. Doctors implanted two metal rods in her spine. Since then she has had five surgeries, several on her back, a herniated disk in neck, bicep tendonitis in shoulder. Even today, she has difficulty turning back. However, she overcame these difficulties and recovered incredibly. Just as she says, "know that I'm not given things that I can't handle, so as long as I just keep getting back up, I'm OK, and I don't like it, I don't want it, but everyone has a cross to bare." In 1989, Jeanette Lee started to play billiard and this sport change her life. Lee turned pro in January 1993 and in less than a year on the Woman's Professional Billiards Association Tour became one of the top ten players in the world. Beginning 1994 in the number 8 spot, Jeanette opened the season by winning back to back championships at the Baltimore Billiards Classic and the Kasson Twin Cities Classic and then continued her meteoric rise by winning the BCA San Francisco Classic, the US Open 9-Ball Championship and the WPBA 9-Ball Championships on her way to claiming the number one world ranking. She has maintained the Number One ranking for 1995 and 1996. Olhausen Billiard Manufacturing, Inc. Contact: Sue Doyle, Director of Marketing (858) 486-0761 sdoyle@olhausenbilliards.com NEW SPOKESPERSON FOR OLHAUSEN BILLIARD MANUFCTURING, INC., JENNIFER BARRETTA March 21, 2005, San Diego, CA -- Olhausen Billiard Manufacturing, Inc. (Olhausen), announced today that Jennifer Barretta will be a spokesperson and personal representative of Olhausen and its products. Rising from #29 in 2003 to #12 in 2004, Jennifer's career is skyrocketing in more ways than one. After only 6 years in the game of pool, Jennifer has already become one of the top female 9-ball players in the world. A former body builder, tennis player, fitness competitor, and fashion designer, Jennifer is no stranger to the pressure of competing and winning. She has attracted plenty of media attention in both magazines and television. Olhausen is pleased to sponsor Jennifer Barretta, fast living up to her nickname "9mm Barretta." Olhausen looks forward to a long relationship promoting the game of pool. Jennifer will be supporting the Authorized Olhausen Dealer Network by attending various special events, meeting customers, playing a friendly game of pool with those who want to take on the challenge and signing autographs. Jennifer now makes her home in Manhattan. She is married to Rich Barretta. Not only is Olhausen known for their professional quality pool tables, but also for their fine line of matching game room accessories. The Authorized Dealer Network extends throughout the United States and the world. Olhausen has consistently pursued a tradition of dedication to the billiard industry and their players - past, present and future. The future is Olhausen"Commitment to America's Best Brands, Commitment to You! That is why Olhausen is " America 's Favorite Pool Table," and continues to live up to the name "The Best in Billiards." Contact: www.olhausenbilliards.com 1-800-866-4606. WOMEN POOL SHARKS TO BE FEATURED ON CHIC SPORTS RADIO You've seen them on TV and watched them at the casinos and now you can find out all you want to know about the women who play professional pool. Chic Sports Radio will be including a segment on some of its show from the Women's Professional Billiards Association. The segment will be presented by Shari Stauch who will be the Chic Sports Radio Professional Billiards Correspondent. Stauch is the spokesperson for the Women's Pro Billiard Tour, and will be giving reports about the tour on a regular basis. She is also the co-owner of Pool & Billiard Magazine which was founded by her and her father, Harold L. Simonsen, in 1983 in Chicago as a small newsletter. "Shari Stauch has simply incredible credentials in this sport and we are thrilled to have her participate on the show. She was instrumental in the launch of the WPBA's highly successful Classic Billiard Tour, now seen regularly on ESPN and she helped the WPBA obtain it's first successful TV negotiations, launched a PR division and set up the sponsor development programs," states VP Debby Lening. And, if that wasn't enough, Stauch appeared in and was a special consultant to the production of The Color of Money (1987), with screen credits. She has been featured in hundreds of radio, television, newspaper and magazine interviews in major markets, including feature appearances in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Detroit, Boston, Baltimore, Orlando, Nashville, New York City, Milwaukee, Philadelphia, Charleston and Charlotte. In 1999 she was named one of Charleston, South Carolina's Top "40 Under 40" by the Charleston Regional Business Journal. "Chic Sports Radio is a terrific opportunity to promote our sport and players to a wider fan base. With women's pro tour TV programming now gaining more and more global exposure, it makes sense that radio news and updates also take on global proportions. We look forward to providing the 'Chicks with Sticks' segment on Chic Sports Radio!" CHIC SPORTS RADIO programming will include a PRO SPORTS REPORT with correspondents giving reports from the LPGA, The Sony Ericsson Women's Tennis Tour, Women's Pro Fast Pitch Softball, the WNBA, The Women's Sports Foundation, The Women's Professional Billiards Association, Women's Boxing Association, National Women's Football Association, Women's Bass Fishing Association, Thunder Valley Racing, Babes in the Backcountry, Women's Poker Club and Women's Soccer World. There will also be a COLLEGE REPORT featuring correspondents from many of the top colleges and their women's sports programs. The weekly show will debut on April 8, 2005 at 9:00pm Eastern Standard Time on Sports Byline. CHIC SPORTS RADIO will be broadcast on Sports Byline USA Radio Network (www.sportsbyline.com) which consists of nearly 200 US radio stations and more than 500 stations in 177 countries of the American Forces Network. The show will also be heard on SIRIUS Satellite Radios channel 122. For additional information on CHIC SPORTS RADIO, please visit chicsportsradio.com or call (615) 865-6256. Press Release For Immediate Release 3/1/05 Women's Pro Shootout Featuring Helena Thornfeldt and Monica Webb! Top World Ranking Pros, Helena Thornfeldt and Monica Webb, are coming toArizona for a 1 day billiard exhibition and 2 - 2 hour billiard schools! Exhibition Info: Location: Sixshooters on 35th Ave & Peoria Date: Saturday, March 26, 2005 Time: 6pm to approximately 8:30pm Free Admission! Challenge your skills against one of these ladies for only $10 for adults and $5 for children. OR for only $25, play the challenge match with a brand new cue ball! Helena and Monica will sign the ball for you after the match and the ball will be yours to keep as a memento of this special occasion! In addition to the challenge matches, they will be performing trick shot demos and holding Q & A sessions! Brought to you by the following sponsors: ♦ Sixshooters Peoria ♦ ACS Crazy 8's Pool League ♦ Arizona Billiards News ♦ Arizona Paralegal Services ♦ Arizona Pool League ♦ Arizona Women's Billiard Tour ♦ Buckhorn Billiards ♦ Professional Insurance Services ♦ Billiard School Info: They will also be hosting 2 two hour billiards classes! Each class will be limited to 10 players, so you will have the opportunity to gain valuable knowledge from these two ladies with only a limited amount of students!! There are 2 classes to pick from on two different nights! Class #1 Date: Tuesday, March 22, 2005 Time: 7pm Location: Sixshooters on 35th Ave & Peoria Entry Fee: $150 per person Class #2 Date: Thursday, March 24, 2005 Time: 7pm Location: Sixshooters on 35th Ave & Peoria Entry Fee: $150 per person Classes are filling up fast and space is extremely limited! Don't miss out! Contact Meiko Yamanobe at (602) 625-3445 to sign up! SALTUS PRESS TEAMS UP WITH WPBA Overly Division to Introduce New WPBA Licensed Planners, Gifts and More! MARCH 8, 2005 -- The Women's Professional Billiard Association (WPBA) has announced that it has signed Saltus Press through its Overly division (www.overlypub.com), to manufacture and distribute a new line of WPBA branded planners, note pads, stationary, holiday cards, note cubes, adhesive cubes, ornaments, and even cocktail napkins. Product will be available April 2005. Saltus Press was founded in 1906 and is based in Worcester, MA. They are the leading producers of custom handbooks, academic planners, gift and stationery needs in the college market. Outside of the education community they also supply their products to high schools, country clubs, the government, casinos, corporations and Internet companies. The new WPBA licensed products will be available through selected mass- and specialty-retailers, billiards retailers, WPBA tournaments and on the WPBA's online Pro Shop at www.wpba.com According to Saltus Press president Scott Saltus, "While reaching 100 years of quality printing services, we are excited to join the WPBA team in achieving future success. With our custom-made products, we can bring the WPBA lifestyle right into the home." Manager Rene (Butch) Dion added, "The WPBA is a rapidly growing organization which fits perfectly with our goals of diversifying our clientele." Saltus Press joins a growing list of WPBA licensees including Arrow Screen Printing (t-shirts, hats); Benator Publishing (wall calendars); Capri Glassware (mugs, pub glasses, shot glasses, shot glasses, tall shooters, tankards & double old fashioneds); New Deal Playing Card Company (playing cards); PG&A (travel gear & business accessories); Ragold Confections (peppermints & cinnamons) and Sutter's Mill Specialties (laser-engraved office and gift items). For further information on WPBA Licensing contact Kathy Kopacz, Director of Licensing at (386) 673-7655 or kkopacz@wpba.com. For more information on the WPBA, log onto www.wpba.com. Brits abroad - Allison Fisher Last seen: Taking on the guys in UK snooker dives Now: Beating all-comers in America's pool halls Nick Greenslade Sunday February 6, 2005 The Observer In 1995 a young woman from Peacehaven, East Sussex, said goodbye to England and headed for America. Allison Fisher was 27 and the women's world snooker champion - as she had been nine times, in fact. Frustrated by the continued apathy of administrators and the media towards the women's game, Fisher decided to translate her skills to a sport, pool, and a country, the United States, where they would be more appreciated. That her departure scarcely registered comment underlined the wisdom of the move: against such indifference, there was little future for her in Britain. Ten years on, Fisher has a new identity and career. Meet the self-styled 'Duchess of Doom', a pool aristocrat whose domination of the blue baize surpasses that enjoyed by Steve Davis and Stephen Hendry on the green surface in the Eighties and Nineties. But while the US has opened up new ambitions, horizons and, let's not be coy about this, fortunes, an article on her personal website reveals that her tastes still remain rooted in the homeland: she'll take tea over coffee, baked potato over fries, and Christmas over Thanksgiving any time. As to her favourite scent, that would be freshly cut grass. You can take the girl out of England... The 'Duchess of Doom' seems like an inapposite moniker for one whose accent is more the English south coast than south Kensington and whose blonde, good looks radiate charm. On the other hand, this is a woman who in her first full season in pool claimed eight international titles. Two years later, that end-of-season return had risen to 13 tournament victories. Even Hendry and Davis (or indeed Fisher in her own former career) never inspired the same sense of foreboding in their opponents. Fisher now speaks of her snooker-playing days with a mixture of fondness and scorn. 'I was signed up by Barry Hearn's Matchroom League, which was great since I was playing the top professional guys. I started off as the warm-up act, then progressed to the actual league. That meant competing against the likes of Steve Davis, Dennis Taylor and Willie Thorne. Probably, the highlight was beating Neal Foulds in one of those events. While the experience was good, the attitude of some of those guys was disappointing. It was like being in a men's drinking club. I like a beer as much as the next person, but I was also trying to further my career.' Meanwhile, world titles were relentlessly accumulated. Rather than sating her ambition, however, these only confirmed the limitations of her profession. Matters reached a head at the 1995 world championship inIndia. 'It was one of the most disastrously organised events I've been to. Here we were in a Third World country with Third World facilities being paid Third World money. I came back and told my mum I was going to the States and that I would never play snooker again.' True to her word, she flew out for a tournament in Charlotte, North Carolina, and has lived there ever since. 'As soon as I walked into the pool hall, I knew it felt right. I only came ninth but the tournament organiser asked me if I fancied staying on to compete in another one a week later. I won that. If anyone had asked me a year before if I fancied going to the States to make a living, I would have laughed at them. But it was the best thing I ever did.' It is ironic that Fisher, who struggled to promote herself on the back of the men's snooker boom in the Eighties, is now enjoying fame and wealth in pool, while the game she left behind has failed to capitalise on its former popularity. As for the duchess title, she accepted it as a necessary step towards raising her profile. 'Besides,' she points out, '"princess" and "queen" had already been taken so it was the only one I was left with.' Duchess, princess or queen, some men will never tolerate a female pool player being their superior. Fisher knows the type. 'I'll beat a guy and then he and his mate will put up a thousand bucks and challenge me to some contrived game. It's all rather pathetic. But I'm used to it. Remember, from the age of 14, I was beating grown men in snooker halls.' Of England , she says: 'I go back about twice a year. I miss the architecture, the scenery and, of course, you can't beat an English pub.' Spoken like a true expat. If Allison Fisher were a British tennis player or athlete with the same level of achievement, she would be a national celebrity. As it is, she remains only the self-styled Duchess of Doom. It may not mean anything in Burke's Peerage but in the pool halls of America it is as good as royalty. |
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