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“DR. CUE” WINS U.S. OPEN “ARTISTIC POOL” CHAMPIONSHIP!!
On May 3, 2007 Shooters Billiards in Southington, CT welcomed 24 of the top “artistic pool” players in the United States. Veteran and conditioned champions as well as determined newcomers to this growing sport entered the competitive arena to perform select professional shots from the 8 structured disciplines of challenge. Each player expressed a focused desire to take home the overall champion title, plus one or more of the 8 discipline title attachments and special player designation of the sportsmanship recipient. (See complete listings below for award winners and overall finish)
As the skill and beauty of the each “artistic” challenge unfolded it became evident during the preliminary rounds that this event would produce some of the highest scores ever recorded in the history of the sport. When all the balls had stopped rolling after the initial 40 shot challenges were executed by each competitor, Andy “The Magic Man” Segal posted an outstanding 250 points out of 341 possible. Tom “Dr. Cue” Rossman edged out Mike “Tennessee Tarzan” Massey, with both players scoring 246 points, but Rossman making more 1st attempts than Massey. “Quick Nick” Nikolaidis took a solid hold of 4th in the initial scoring with a very respectable 242 points. Matt “No Fail” McPhail and Charles “”Spitball Charlie” Darling registered scores over 200 also as the playoff matches took bracket form.
Segal, Rossman, Massey, and Nikolaidis earned “bye” positions in the final 12 player “head to head” match play format. Rising superstar MacPhail defeated Jamey Gray, who demonstrated great promise during only his second event in the pro arena. Dave Nangle continued to show resolve in his “artistic pool” pursuits by edging out the always crowd pleasing Darling. Host room owner/promoter Sal Conti was victorious over US Open promoter and Team USA member champion Bruce Barthelette. Jason Lynch played superbly in his 1st ever playoff appearance, besting long time “artistic pool” friend and fan favorite Paul Danno.
The quarterfinal matches allowed each high points player from the preliminary rounds to remain poised for the final race to victory as Rossman, Nikolaidis, Segal, and Massey defeated Conti, MacPhail, Lynch, and Nangle respectively. The venue filled to capacity in anticipation of 2 great semi final match ups. Nikolaidis posted a victory over Segal in a very close contest. Rossman and Massey continued their friendly multi – decade rivalry in “artistic pool” with “Dr. Cue” garnering another victory this time around. Special note should be made during this match that Rossman made 7 out of 7 wing shots for the 3rd time in the last 3 years.
Nikolaidis and Rossman prepared for the final matchup. Just 2 months prior at the Masters Championship “Quick Nick” defeated Rossman with brilliant shot making and consistent play. Nikolaidis started out with a slim lead this time around and continued to hold it until late in the match, when he missed the most difficult long “yo-yo” masse. “Dr. Cue” made it on his 3rd attempt to take the lead. With one shot to go, Nick was forced to pick one of 2 remaining shots in the program with a degree of difficulty of 11. Choosing the very popular and extremely demanding “circular draw” shot, Nikolaidis approached the table and took his 1st attempt, which would guarantee a tie if he made it and Rossman missed it on 3 attempts. The shot missed by less than an inch, allowing Tom “Dr. Cue” Rossman to become the 2007 US Open “Artistic Pool” Champion.
A wonderful time was had by all the players and fans. The “sport and show” of “artistic pool” once again produced a perfect script of competitive beauty and a promise of enhanced vision for its future. A special thanks to all the sponsors of this event and all those that continue to support this magnetic sport and art form.
Submitted by, Tom “Dr. Cue” Rossman
2007 US Open (Shooters Billiards - Southington, Connecticut - USA)
May 3-6, 2007
56 Shot Program - 341 Max Score
Top 12 from preliminary round of 40 shots advanced into single elimination playoff format.
Playoff Matches:
Finals
(2) Tom Rossman def. (4) Nick Nikolaidis
Semi Finals
(2) Tom Rossman def. (3) Mike Massey
(4) Nick Nikolaidis def. (1) Andy Segal
Quarter Finals
Preliminary Playoff Round
(1) Andy Segal: bye
(2) Tom Rossman: bye
(3) Mike Massey: bye
(4) Nick Nikolaidis: bye
(5) Matt MacPhail def. (12) Jamey Gray
(11) Dave Nangle def. (6) Charles Darling
(10) Sal Conti def. (7) Bruce Barthelette
(8) Jason Lynch def. (9) Paul Danno
FINAL POSITIONS OF FINISH:
Position |
Player |
Location |
Points (preliminary round) |
Prize Money |
1 |
Indiana, USA |
246 |
$2,300 |
|
2 |
Quebec, Canada |
242 |
$1,870 |
|
3 |
New York, USA |
250 |
$1,540 |
|
4 |
Utah, USA |
246 |
$1,320 |
|
5 |
Massachusettes, USA |
215 |
$1,100 |
|
6 |
Michigan, USA |
192 |
$880 |
|
7 |
Connecticut, USA |
179 |
$660 |
|
8 |
Maryland, USA |
176 |
$500 |
|
9 |
Missouri, USA |
208 |
$330 |
|
10 |
Massachusettes, USA |
193 |
$230 |
|
11 |
New Jersey, USA |
181 |
$160 |
|
12 |
CT, USA |
175 |
$110 |
|
13 |
Pennsylvania, USA |
169 |
------- |
|
14 |
Massachusettes, USA |
162 |
------- |
|
15 |
Oklahoma, USA |
157 |
------- |
|
16 |
USA |
147 |
------- |
|
17 |
New Jersey, USA |
141 |
------- |
|
18 |
Chicopee, MA, USA |
137 |
------- |
|
19 |
Massachusettes, USA |
119 |
------- |
|
20 |
Bridgeport, CT, USA |
112 |
------- |
|
21 |
Unionville, CT, USA |
107 |
------- |
|
22 |
Randolph, NJ, USA |
95 |
------- |
|
23 |
Massachusettes, USA |
93 |
------- |
|
24 |
Albany, NY, USA |
65 |
------- |
DISCIPLINE CHAMPIONS:
Discipline |
Player |
Points |
|
Trick and Fancy |
37 of 38 |
||
Prop / Novelty / Special Arts |
37 of 48 |
||
Draw |
37 of 41 |
||
Follow |
33 of 43 |
||
Bank / Kick |
39 of 41 |
||
Stroke |
33 of 42 |
||
Jump |
40 of 41 |
||
Masse |
44 of 47 |
The tie between Tom Rossman and Nick Nikolaidis could not be broken in the Trick and Fancy Shots Discipline. There are six tie-breaker categories. Both players were tied in all six categories. Two discipline medals were awarded.
Sportsmanship Award: Tim "Dragon" Chin