Shooters, a major pool room just outside of Kansas City, was host to 3-cushion billiards star Mazin Shooni on May 20. Mazin conducted a clinic for four local players—Travis Gallup, Stan Lombardo, Bob Mansky, and Dennis Reinecker—in the afternoon, and that evening he put on an exhibition before an attentive and appreciative audience. Both events were on Shooter’s newly recovered Gabriels Imperator table.
Tribute to Grady ‘The Professor’ Mathews
January 3, 1943 – April 18, 2012
They called him ‘The Professor’, but they could just as aptly have called him Mr. One Pocket. It is hard to imagine a model for contributing more to the game of One Pocket than exhibited over the career of Grady Mathews; he has truly been an ambassador to the game.
Born January 3, 1943 in San Antonio, Texas, when Grady was a teenager his family moved to San Mateo, California, just about 25 miles outside of the pool Mecca of San Francisco. Grady was a good natural athlete, but once he got started with pool, that is where he turned his attention. He proved to be an adept student of pool, especially the game of One Pocket, honing his skills at fabled Cochran’s in San Francisco in the early 1960’s before he took to the road.
Two old rivals met in the early rounds of the Champion of Champions tournament. Mazin Shooni and Sonny Cho traded billiards for the better part of the game, but Mazin gradually pulled away with some great shot making. He made a double-the-rail shot for his 33rd billiard, and an umbrella for his 34th. One more would give Mazin the victory. A routine three-railer would seal the win. He struck the cue ball, which touched ball number two and then the long rail. It seemed right on course as it hit the second rail. Sonny rose from his seat to congratulate his foe, but the cue skidded long off the third rail and slid by ball number three. “It missed by next to nothing,” Mazin would later say. Trailing 28 to 34, Sonny stepped to the table. Watch the fabulous end.
The game is eight-ball and you have the solids. The 8-ball is blocking the corner pocket. It wouldn’t help to make the 7-ball, and while there are various ways to play safe off the right side of the 3-ball, they don’t improve your chances, and they give your opponent a chance to play safe in return. An ingenious play is to hit the 3-ball squarely with low backspin so that it banks off the end rail and back into cueball.
The United States Billiard Association (USBA) and Kozoom are proud to announce an International partnership to promote the sport of carom billiards.
Kozoom, based in France, is the largest live/archival streaming production company in the world. Kozoom’s teams travel the globe bringing exciting carom billiard events to the Internet. including UMB World Cups, National Championships and numerous other world class special events.
USBA, the governing body for three cushion billiards in the United States, is enjoying remarkable growth in the interest in this challenging sport. More and more individuals and room owners are adding carom tables nationwide, enabling players througout the US to paricipate in both casual and official tournament play.
LAKE SAINT LOUIS, MO (March 30, 2012) — The entry window for the 2012 U.S. Amateur Championship opens April 1. Players interested in competing in this year’s event can download an entry form at www.usamateurchampionship.com.
Preliminary qualifying rounds for the U.S. Amateur Championship will be held throughout the country in late-September. The Men’s Division will feature 128 players, while the Women’s Division will feature 32 players.
Trvor Heal wins Tri-State event at $750 Added B/D 9 Ball event held at Port Richmond Billiards in Staten Island, N.Y. His tournament trail of 6 wins and 1 loss, included wins over Ed Culhane 7 – 0; Inna Bediner 10 – 8; Rajesh Vannala 7 – 4; and Gary Murgia 7 – 1; before suffering a loss to Bryan Jeziorsky 7 – 5 for the Hot Seat. From the loss side Trevor defeated Bill Suden 7 – 4, to face Bryan for a rematch in the Finals. ???
