Basavich Gets Over Hump, Wins Ocean State Tournament

By Bill Rosenberger

The Sixteenth Annual Ocean State 9-Ball Tournament was held o­n January 29-30 at Snooker's Café & Billiards in Providence, RI.  The popular East Coast event, held in conjunction with the Joss Tour, drew an impressive field of 75 talented players, including Tony Robles, Frankie Hernandez, and Tony Crosby.  But it was Danny "Kid Delicious" Basavich who ended his string of second-place finishes with a well-deserved win.

Each year, the event gains national recognition as o­ne of the most prestigious tournaments in the northeast, not o­nly because of the highly competitive field but also because of the huge payouts.  The $5,000-added Joss Tour event had a purse of over $12,000.  First place was worth $2,500, and tournament director Mike Zuglan noted that the top 24 finishers earned a payout.

Winners not o­nly earn a nice payday, but they also gain name recognition at Snooker's Café.  "Each winner gets their name put o­n a permanent banner that hangs over the tables," stated Zuglan.  "Players want to win this o­ne."

While Basavich's play stayed calm and cool, Joe Tucker spent most of his time staving off elimination in the left side.  And interestingly enough, it was Basavich who sent Tucker packing in the third round.

Besides Basavich, Steve Tavernier was also having success in the winners' bracket.  He and Basavich emerged undefeated to reach the hot seat match, but Tavernier's game seemed to go sour.  His wins came too late, and Basavich rolled to a 9-4 win.

Meanwhile, in the left bracket, Tucker wrapped up five straight wins to reach the semifinals against Tavernier.  For the second straight match, Tavernier couldn't find his stroke, and Tucker made it six in a row with a 9-5 win to earn a spot in the finals.

The final match seemed to be Basavich's toughest of the night.  While he dominated most of his other matches, he failed to gain the early edge o­n Tucker, falling behind 3-0.  After Tucker's lead grew to 4-2, he scratched, leaving Basavich a window of opportunity.  Basavich rallied with seven straight wins to earn the victory, but he admitted that he didn't think Tucker's scratch would be the opportunity he needed.  "Joe scratched, but I never realized that would be enough."

Basavich, who recently released his 4-DVD instructional set, has played in the event for the past six years, finishing second to Zuglan in at least three of them, so finally breaking through the ice was a relief.  "I've played in this event for the past six years and always seem to come in second," he said.  "More people want to win this than any other event, and I was really motivated to win."

Results:

1st Danny Basavich $2,500

2nd Joe Tucker $1,800

3rd Steve Tavernier $1,200

4th Jason Michas $900

5th Paul Rota, Pete Genovese $700

7th Frankie Hernandez, Bob Begey $550

9th Paul Dryden, Tony Robles, Mike Deneault, Jay Stevens $400

13th Jude Rosenstock, Mike Minichello, Tom Pereira, Randy Labonte $250

17th Mike Zuglan, Joey Korsiak, Tim Perry, Chris Lynch, Kevin Guimond, Tony Crosby, Ray McNamara, Craig Cochrane $125

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