Final Four Set for Philippine Open by Edward Asistin Day four of the Philippine Open started off with a bang with all of the remaining players playing in the first session of the day. In half of the matches, it was either do or die—win or go home. The other half were matches to reach [...]

Fisher Dominates, Top Seed Ousted Philippine Open The men better watch out, because the 2008 WPBA Player of the Year is on a roll! Kelly Fisher trounced Gabe Owen (US) in the round of 16 of the winners’ bracket of the Philippine Open. Owen never had a chance as Fisher jumped out from the start [...]

JUNIOR BILLIARDS ON NATIONAL TV THIS WEEKEND “Teen Kids News” to Air Segment on World’s Greatest Young Players May 28, 2009 (Lafayette, CO) - The Billiard Education Foundation (BEF) is pleased to announce that a segment on junior billiards, including highlights from the WPA World Junior 9-Ball Championships, will air on TEEN KIDS NEWS Saturday at 9:30 [...]

Day 2 Concludes at Philippine Open by Edward Asistin Reigning world 10-ball champion Darren Appleton advanced into the round of 16 on the winners’ side of the bracket of the 2009 Philippine Open and is the highest seed remaining on the winners’ side, trying to win yet another prestigious title in the Philippines. His opponent was [...]

CueSports International (CSI) would like to announce the National Championship Series (NCS) 9-Ball and 10-Ball National Championships are scheduled September 3-7, 2009 at the award winning Golden Nugget in Las Vegas. The NCS 9-Ball and 10-Ball national tournaments will be treated as two separate events yet held consecutively over the scheduled five-days. 9-Ball will start September [...]

Day One of the Philippine Open by Edward Asistin Sixty-four of the world’s finest pool players began the day with the goal of becoming the first-ever Philippine Open champion. The format for the Stage 2 Main Tournament features a four-player redraw crossover single-elimination final bracket. The top 16 players were seeded and placed in the [...]

WOMEN’S PROFESSIONAL BILLIARD ASSOCIATION WELCOMES NEW AT LARGE BOARD MEMBER: STU MATTANA The Women’s Professional Billiard Association (WPBA) Board of Directors is pleased to announce the appointment of its’ newest member, Stuart Mattana. Stuart, who resides in New York, has extensive background in finance and is a graduate of the Wharton School of Business at the [...]

U.S. Commerce Secretary Gary Locke came to Sacramento on Tuesday with a message: Those who are not ready to make the switch to digital TV need to hop to it.

Locke, speaking during a brief ceremony at the Sacramento Central Library downtown, said Nielsen Co. estimates show Sacramento is the 10th-least-ready city in the country for the June 12 transition from analog to digital television, with about 68,000 households unprepared.

That's about 4.5 percent of the metro area surveyed.

"That seems like a small number, but the truth is we want people in the Sacramento area to be prepared," Locke said. "We want people to not only watch their favorite programs and stations but to have access to important information on weather, police and fire, and important announcements like Amber Alerts."

The switch is intended to offer improved TV picture and sound quality while freeing radio airwaves for wireless broadband services and public safety communications.

The nationwide DTV switch originally was set for Feb. 17, but just before the deadline, Congress postponed the shutdown of analog TV signals.

At that time, the Nielsen Co. said 18 percent of U.S. households were not ready for the transition, and many who had received $40 federal government coupons to defray the cost of buying digital converter boxes that enable older TVs to receive digital signals had let the coupons expire.

To complicate things, the National Telecommunications and Information Administration overseeing the coupons had hit its $1.34 billion funding limit set by Congress.

Since then, funds have been freed up by expired coupons and other adjustments, and numerous local outreach programs have directed coupons into the hands of consumers.

Locke was joined Tuesday by U.S. Rep. Doris Matsui, D-Sacramento, and Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson, both of whom want local residents who are not digital-ready to have access to coupons.

Johnson stressed the "public safety" significance of the June 12 transition, and Matsui, who voted in favor of the deadline delay in February, said the extra time had allowed 24,000 area households to prepare.

Back in February, Matsui said, nearly 6,000 people in Sacramento alone were on the coupon waiting list. Now, she said, there is no list, and "we want to help everyone we can."

Locke said about 3.5 million U.S. households are not ready for the June 12 switch, down from 6.5 million in February.

In February, the Obama administration lobbied hard for the postponement. The administration and groups like Consumers Union contended that many of the unprepared were poor and minorities.

On Tuesday, Joel Kelsey, a policy analyst with Consumers Union, praised the government's efforts to help consumers make the transition.

"All of these improvements were made possible by Congress deciding to delay the transition and provide much-needed funding," he said.

2009 Diamond World Summit of Pool Ready to Kick off PHOENIX, AZ (May 26, 2009) - The United States Professional Poolplayers Association (the UPA) is adding the finishing touches to the upcoming 2009 Diamond World Summit of Pool event to be held at the Riviera Hotel & Casino, 2901 Las Vegas Blvd., Las Vegas, Nevada in [...]

Tri-State Tour / New York, NY by Lea Andrews Amsterdam Billiards in New York, NY, played host to two separate Tri-State Tour events on May 23-24: a 13-entrant $500-added B-player event and an 18-entrant $500-added C-D event. C+-ranked Sal Marcelo topped the field in the C-D division, while B+-ranked Trevor Heal took home the cash in [...]