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APA NATIONAL TEAM CHAMPIONSHIPS MOVING ON UP The American Poolplayers Association National Team Championships’ short trip produced big dividends. By Skip Maloney MAZING HOW the scenery can change when you move across the street. After nearly a quarter century based at the now shut- Atered Riviera Hotel & Casino in Las Ve- gas, the American Poolplayers Associa- tion relocated its annual National Team Championships to the nearby Westgate More than 300 tables awaited APA teams at the Westgate Hotel in Las Vegas. Hotel & Casino (formerly the Las Vegas Hilton). The change seemed to do the “There weren’t many hiccups,” said gas for the Nationals before,” said team event plenty of good. Bowman. captain Matthew Leckner. “I advanced “It was fantastic,” said APA’s Mar- In fact, the 2014 National Team to regional (competition) the last three keting Director, Jason Bowman. “Defi- Championships ushered in several sig- years in a row, each year on a different nitely an upgrade. I’d spent nearly a nificant improvements. For the first team. year’s worth of nights at the Riviera, time, competitors could download an “It was my first time as a captain,” he and though there was some sentiment online tournament bracket App to keep added, confessing that a lot of his time about that, the Westgate is just a differ- track of individual schedules and get a during the team’s regular 16-week sea- ent class of hotel; a definite step up.” glimpse of a progress in each division. son was spent “figuring out who was go- The most significant improvement, Also first time, the APA live-streamed ing to show up or not.” Bowman went on to explain, was ad- some of the matches. It was, he said, a team that got togeth- ditional square footage, which allowed “We started with the Masters and er with the intention of playing a single, more room for play…and for play. then streamed matches in the 8-ball local session “just for fun.” They quali- “It was roomier,” said Bowman. “Even tournament,” said Bowman, adding that fied for regional competition, and got with 320 tables (up from somewhere in it was done internally to gauge its po- something of a wake-up call when they the vicinity of 250 at the Riviera), there tential. “We didn’t want to throw staff lost their first match. They woke up. were wider aisles to move through and or money into it right away. “We started winning from there,” said less congestion.” “Feedback told us that those who saw Leckner. “All the way to Vegas; 20 in a It made a difference, as well, during it liked it, “ he added. “We might ex- row as a team.” the league’s annual pool party, known pand that next year.” APA team play in 8-ball is governed as Poolapalooza. The championships played host to by a point system, which takes into ac- “There wasn’t a lot of space at the nearly 12,000 players from 47 states count not only wins and losses, but Riviera,” he said. “At the Westgate, the and three countries, who competed for performance by both opponents in any pool area had multi-levels, a view of The more than $1.2 million in cash awards. given match. If a player shuts out an Strip in the background; just another More than 1,900 teams competed in five opponent, the winning player’s team is class of property.” separate divisions; Open 8-Ball, Open awarded three points. If the losing play- As might have been expected, there 9-Ball, Ladies, Masters and Jack & Jill er in a match has won at least one game, were some initial concerns about the (two-person teams). the winning player’s team will score logistics of such a massive move, es- For Just Scouting, the seven-member only two points. If the losing player has pecially with only six months to make squad from Coldwater, Mich., the key to reached the hill, the winning team is it happen. Any issues were cushioned, winning the 711-team Open 8-Ball divi- awarded two points, while the losing in part, by the fact that the manage- sion (by far the biggest event of the 2015 team is awarded one point. There are 15 ment group that handled the event at championships) was experience. points at stake, and essentially, the first the Riviera had had also moved to the “Two members of our team (Nicole team to eight wins. Westgate. Janusz and Eric Anglin) had been to Ve- All of which impacted the tightly con- 28 BILLIARDS DIGEST October 2015 tested championship match between Just nament memoir, “our team captain and them equally eight ways. Scouting and Mike’s Magnum of Texas. I were sitting in the stands, watching The 252-team Masters division, which Leckner opened the match with a three- the finals of the 2012 9-ball champion- featured a combination of 8-ball (five point shutout, and teammate Rich Ca- ships, and wondered if we could [field] a games) and 9-ball games (eight games), bralla earned a single point in a one-game team that could compete for the National was won by MMMMMM Kay Again (a loss to extend Just Scouting’s lead, 4-2. championship.” “South Park” reference) of Humble, Tex- Anglin picked up three more points “It takes dedication and perseverance,” as. The squad had come close in previ- with a shutout to move Just Scouting to said team captain Nikolaos Kanaloupi- ous attempts, finishing second in 2013 within a point of the title, 7-2. After Ja- tis, whose Greek heritage inspired the and third in 2014. With captain Ernesto nusz’ shutout loss enabled Mike’s Mag- team name. “Trusting each other regard- Bayaua leading the charge, MMMMMM num to close the gap to 7-5. Another shut- ing team decisions. Our best player [Ben Kay Again rolled undefeated to the title, out by Mike’s Magnum would bring the Benson] played only one game [at the knocking off California’s The Drillers in title to Texas, while John Squire needed Nationals].” the final. only to reach the hill to guarantee Just Panathinaikos BC 9 played nine “We’re definitely coming back to de- Scouting the championship. Squire did matches, altogether. A single, early- fend the title,” said Bayaua, who in ad- just that, eventually losing the case game round loss was followed by eight straight dition to heading up the APA Masters but still earning the clinching point for wins, including a (combined match total) Championship team was the 8-ball the unlikely squad from Michigan, 8-7. 50-32 win over the South GA Hustlers. champion in April’s APA National Singles “It was kind of a fluke,” said Leckner of The Ladies championship winner was Championship. the team’s formation success, alluding to actually half of a team from Shreveport, “[The team win] has sparked interest, the fact that the squad will not compete La. After qualifying for the National locally [in Texas],” Bayaua added, after together in 2016. “Just Scouting isn’t to- Championships, the team split into two returning home. “We have a lot of friends gether any more.” squads — Just Like This and Just Like in town, and seeing us win, other teams In contrast, Panathinaikos BC 9 en- That — to increase their chances for suc- are going to play harder to qualify.” tered the 466-team Open 9-Ball division cess. Lastly, the 255-entry mixed dou- with a squad that already had been intact While Just Like This captured the ti- bles Jack & Jill tournament saw team for three years and had earned a trip to tle in the 246-team Ladies division, Just Wasarelli (Wasana Manamperi & Paul the Nationals in 2012 (finishing 65th). Like That limped home in 97th place. Cardarelli) of Ontario, Canada, defeat “Three years ago,” wrote team member Still, as they have in the past, the two Aurora Borealis (Eric Gilbert & Kathryn Michael Weldon, in a post-2015-tour- teams combined their winnings and split Kelly) of Colorado. 2015 APA NATIONAL TEAM CHAMPIONS Open 8-Ball: Just Scouting - Coldwater, Mich. Open 9-Ball: Panathinaikos BC 9 - Plaistow. N.H. Masters: MMMMMM Kay Again - Humble, Tex. Jack & Jill: Wasarelli - Ontario, Canada Ladies Teams: “Just Like This” - Shreveport, La. October 2015 BILLIARDS DIGEST 29 WPA WORLD 9-BALL CHAMPIONSHIP DESTINY’S CHILD With some dazzling shot-making (and a few fortunate rolls), Ko jumped into the record books. Fulfilling the promise of his vast potential, Taiwan’s Pin Yi Ko wins the World 9-Ball Championship, dashing Shane Van Boening’s hopes of bringing the title back to the U.S. By Mike Panozzo n Photos by Richard Walker HERE IS little argument that the nual WPA championship provides. For winning back-to-back WPA World Ju- World Pool-Billiard Association every Darren Appleton, Niels Feijen and nior 9-Ball Championships, has finally (WPA) World 9-Ball Champion- Thorsten Hohmann that have reached met the pool world’s lofty expectations ship is the toughest tournament the title match, the 9-ball world cham- with wins at the CSI 10-Ball Champion- Tin the world to win. Unlike the spo- pionship has seen its share of Albin ship and, more recently, the WPA World radically staged WPA World 10-Ball and Ouschans, Yukio Akagariyamas and 10-Ball Championship in late February. World 8-Ball championships, the World Ronnie Alcanos — all world-class play- Van Boening, arguably America’s best 9-Ball Championship has been staged ers, but hardly perennial international player since three-time world champion every year since 1990, with the excep- champions.