Joss Tour Event Down to Final Eight

Snooker's Cafe Billiards and Bar in Providence, RI, is the host site of the Joss Tour this Memorial Day weekend.  Steve and Regina Goulding, the owners of Snooker's, have always supported the Joss Tour, and when o­ne of the tournaments o­n the tour was cancelled for unforeseen reasons, they graciously opened up their doors and 43 players came to compete in the $3,000 event.

With 16 Gold Crown III's, the tournament moved swiftly, and some of the veteran players were pleased with the blue-dot cue ball.  Spectators were excited to meet Karen Corr, who just won the BCA Open, and Julie Kelly, who placed third, and there were a lot of strong players who came from far and wide such as Teddy Garrahan, Shawn Wilke, Ed Vasquez, Frankie Hernandez, Joe Tucker, Tony Roberto, Steve Tavernier, Danny “Kid Delicious” Basavich, Keith McCready, Jarrod Clowery, Bill Dunsmore, and Mike Rinella.

An exciting match occurred between power shooter Frankie Hernandez and o­ne of the new kids o­n the block, Tony Roberto.  Roberto showed no fear and was o­n a mission, and Hernandez could o­nly sit in his chair and watch as Roberto exploded o­n the table.  The match was over in minutes, with Roberto the 9-2 victor.  He stated he hadn't picked up a stick in three weeks, and as he was running out, maneuvering the balls perfectly, and dancing around the table in Tom Cruise-like fashion, the crowd became unglued.  This is o­ne of the young guns to watch in the future.

Frankie Hernandez was overheard asking Karen Corr why she liked playing o­n the Joss Tour, and Corr responded, "I like the competition the Joss Tour offers, and I think it's harder to beat the guys than the girls.  That is what keeps me sharp." 

Another match that drew a lot of attention occurred between local champion Steve Tavernier and Keith McCready.  Tavernier played perfect pool and ran out very convincingly in front of his hometown crowd and kept McCready in the chair, defeating him 9-5.  McCready next faced a very determined Mike Zuglan in the o­ne-loss bracket.  Zuglan was o­n his game and seemed to have the momentum after making the 9 o­n the break twice in the race-to-9 match, knocking McCready out of the tournament 9-7.  Corr met up with Zuglan later and was defeated as Zuglan cruised o­n in the west side of the chart.

Eight players will return o­n Sunday, and it is anybody's guess as to who will win.  Young gun Tony Roberto; UPA touring pro “Kid Delicious;” and Maryland's gentleman player, Shawn "the Shirt" Wilkie are in the winners’ bracket, and the hopefuls o­n the “B” side are local champ Steve Tavernier; Rich Kravetz; Jason Michas; veteran Mike Zuglan; and New York's best-kept secret, Eddie Vasquez.

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