Owen & McMinn Come Through o­n Midwest 9-Ball Tour

By Bill Rosenberger The Midwest 9-Ball Tour held another successful three-day tournament at Tulsa Billiard Palace o­n April 8-10.  Not o­nly did Tulsa, OK, native Gabe Owen earn a victory in the o­ne-pocket, but room owner Jim McDermott almost pulled off the upset in the 9-ball competition.

The weekend started with the o­ne-pocket tournament, with 20 players competing in the $1,000-added event.  Owen, the hometown favorite, came through the field undefeated to take the victory over James Walden. 

Until the finals, Owen had dominated in each of his match wins, including a 3-0 win over former o­ne-pocket winner Andy Friedhofen to reach the finals.  In the semifinals, Friedhofen faced Walden for the second time, as he defeated him 3-0 just a few matches earlier.  This time, though, the match was not as o­ne-sided, as the two players traded games back and forth to reach hill-hill.  In the fifth and final game, Walden earned the win to reach the finals against Owen.

In the first set of the double-elimination final, Walden completely turned the tables o­n Owen, tossing a 3-0 shutout to force the second set.  However, Owen stepped up to the plate and delivered a 3-1 win to capture the o­ne-pocket victory. 

The three-day weekend also included a ladies' 9-ball event, with a 20-player field battling it out.  While the brackets were filled with competitive players, o­nly o­ne completely dominated the tournament. 

Rhonda Pierce came into the event with just as much of a chance as anyone else, but right from the start, she established herself as a major force.  After besting Ginnie Keeler 7-2, Pierce advanced to the finals.

Keeler came out o­n top of Connie Williams in a hard-fought 7-5 semifinal match to force a rematch with Pierce in the finals, but o­nce again, she was unable to gain any momentum.  With the 7-1 victory, Pierce completed a 36-6 overall record and took home first place.

Finally, the open 9-ball event got underway Saturday morning with a 77-player field that included Owen, Walden, Chuck Raulston, and Danny Harriman.  Early o­n, Shane McMinn was also establishing himself as a contender, as was Tony Sulsar and McDermott.

Heading into Sunday night's final matches, it was McMinn versus McDermott for the hot seat, while Owen and Sulsar dueled it out in the west side.  The hot seat match finished up first, with McMinn walking away with a 9-0 shutout.  Later, he explained that his opponent didn't get the opportunities that he had.  The surprise came in the o­ne-loss side, when Sulsar upset Owen 9-5, forcing the U.S. Open champ to settle for fourth place.

In the semifinals, McDermott bounced back from his hot seat trouncing to oust Sulsar 9-6, but it wasn't easy.  After going up 5-2, Sulsar came back with three straight wins, including a 2-9 combo, which tied the match up at 5.  The two traded the next couple games to stay even, but McDermott's break and run in the thirteenth rack sparked a three-game winning streak that earned him the 9-6 victory as well as a spot in the finals.

The final match between McMinn and McDermott was a complete twist of the 9-0 score that occurred in the hot seat contest.  This time, McDermott used the combo shots to put him in position to capture the victory.  His fourth, a 6-9 combo, put him up 6-4, and after extending the lead to three, McMinn started to come back.  With the match at hill-hill, it was still either player's game to win.  In the final rack, McMinn came up dry o­n the break, but McDermott was unable to take advantage, and McMinn ran out the rack to earn the 9-8 victory.

One-Pocket Results:

1st Gabe Owen

2nd James Walden

3rd Andy Friedhofen

4th Shane McMinn

5th Ron Griffus, Mike Betts

Ladies Results:

1st Rhonda Pierce

2nd Ginnie Keeler

3rd Connie Williams

4th Tamara Settles

5th  Emily Hoel, Jackie Myers

9-Ball Results:

1st Shane McMinn

2nd Jim McDermott

3rd Tony Sulsar

4th Gabe Owen

5th Chuck Raulston, James Walden

7th Steve Rector, Jeff Franklin

9th Tony Garza, Chip Compton, Danny Harriman, Randy Jones

13th Jason Howell, Benny Branch, Jim Weast, Kenny Turner

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