2015 ARCHIVES
REGIONAL TOUR CHAMPIONSHIPS (2015 Season)
ZINGALES BILLIARD ROOM & SPORTS BAR
TALLAHASSEE, FLORIDA
JANUARY 7-10 2016
Jia Li wins third straight
Regional Tour Championship
~ Skip Maloney, AZ Billiards, Jan. 12, 2016
In 2014, in Phoenix, AZ, China's Jia Li defeated Janet Atwell to become the WPBA's Regional Tour Champion for the first time. In 2015, in Herndon, VA, it was Betty Lea who played runner-up to Li's second championship. On the weekend of January 7-10, 2016 at Zingale's in Tallahassee, FL, it was Christy Dickerson, who, though she would defeat Li to claim the hot seat, fell in the finals to hand Li her third straight RTC title.
The $11,000 prize fund drew a full field of 64 entrants, drawn from 13 regional tours around the country; roughly, five from each region, with some over-under exceptions. Eight round robin brackets, yielding four winners per bracket, cut the field in half, into a double elimination bracket of 32.
Through 25 winners' side games in the opening three rounds, Jia Li gave up only four racks, and three of those to her opening round opponent, Kim Pierce. Dickerson came to the winners' side semifinals, having carved a somewhat more arduous path - 35 games, with an aggregate score of 21-14. The two faced each other, while teenager Taylor Hansen (31 games, 21-10, including a 7-2 win over Belinda Calhoun) and Gail Eaton (32 games, 21-11) met up in the other winners' side semifinal.
Eaton sent the youngster Hansen to the loss side 7-3, as Li and Dickerson, in their first meeting, fought to double hill. Dickerson prevailed, claiming the hot seat as Eaton headed for the semifinals.
Over on the loss side, Stephanie Mitchell, who hadn't competed in an RTC since she bought Corner Pockets in Largo, FL in 2010, was working on a modest loss-side streak that began when Dickerson had defeated her 7-3 in a winners' side quarterfinal. Mitchell's opening loss-side victory over Nicole Albergaria was her toughest, coming down to a single game. She then
JPNEWT sweeps the RTC in Tallahassee:
Jia Li wins the Tournament and
Kia Sidbury wins the Second Chance !!!
RTC winner, Jia Li; Zingale's Billiards owner', Michael Zingale; RTC runner-up, Christy Dickerson
Kia Sidbury, 2nd Chance winner; Jia Li, RTC winner
downed Michell Monk 7-1 to pick up Hanson. Jia Li, in the meantime, was hooking up with Jeannie Seaver, who'd eliminated Calhoun 7-5 and given up only a single rack to Roe Guanero.
Hansen ended Mitchell's weekend 7-2, as Li was busy with a double hill match that she eventually won over Seaver. Li then downed Hansen 7-3 in the quarterfinals, and spoiled Eaton's chances at a re-match against Dickerson, with a 7-3 victory in the semifinals.
Li chalked up her third straight RTC title with a single set 9-3 win in the finals.
2015 STOP 1
March 7-8
Triple Nines Bar & Billiards
Elkridge MD
32 player field
1st $800 Karen Corr
2nd $450 Linda Shea
3rd $330 Kim Whitman
4th $150 Kia Sidbury
5th $100 Nicole Monaco
$100 Meredith Lynch
7th $ 75 Jia Li
$ 75 Kassandra Bein
9th $ 50 Joy McFeaters Haas
$ 50 Olivia Reinecke
$ 50 Nicole Fleming
$ 50 Delia Mocanu
l-r: Linda Shea, Karen Corr
Karen Corr Wins the J. Pechauer Northeast Women’s Tour Season Opener at Triple Nines
On Saturday, March 7, Karen Corr and 31 mere mortals showed up at Triple Nines Billiards in Elkridge, MD, to compete in the 2015 season opener of the J. Pechauer Northeast Women’s Tour (JPNEWT).
During the two-day event, BCA Hall of Fame inductee Karen Corr won six matches and lost only eight games total. She started the day with her only shutout, beating Shanna Lewis 7-0, then defeated Susan Shin (7-3), Delia Mocanu (7-1), and Nicole Monaco (7-2). She then won the “hot seat” with a 7-1 score over tour director and 2014 finale winner Linda Shea, and faced Shea again in the finals, winning again with the same score.
Meanwhile, several JPNEWT regulars had stand-out performances and personal bests. Kia Sidbury of Baltimore lost her first round match 7-1 to Kim Whitman, but Sidbury rallied on the one-loss side and put together six straight wins to finish fourth overall. Along the way she sent home Melissa Jenkins (7-6), Lynn Richard (7-1), Eugenia Gryftopoulos (7-5), Delia Mocanu (7-1), Kassandra Bein (7-1), and Meredith Lynch (7-2). She then got a second chance at Whitman, but came up just a little short, losing 7-5.
Whitman also had a strong run on the one-loss side, which included two double-hill battles and a shutout. She lost her second match to Nicole Monaco (7-5), but then scored impressive wins over Nicole King (7-6), Judie Wilson (7-3), Joy McFeaters-Hass (7-0), Jia Li (7-6), and Nicole Monaco (7-3).
Linda Shea’s journey to the winner’s side final included wins over Connie Eddins (7-4), Nicole Fleming (7-2), Joy McFeaters-Haas (7-4), and Meredith Lynch (7-5). After losing to Corr, she faced Whitman, who was playing with confidence after her series of wins. Nonetheless, Shea reached the hill first at 6-5, and finished the match with an impressive run out.
In the final, Corr jumped out to a quick lead and never let up. She capped off her stellar weekend with perfect execution and a 7-1 victory over Shea.
~Nicole Vincent Fleming, NYC Grind
l-r: Karen Corr, Meredith Lynch, Nicole Monaco, Kia Sidbury, Linda Shea, Kim Whitman
2015 STOP 2
April 25-26, 2015
First Break Cafe'
Sterling VA
26 player field
1st $750 Karen Corr
2nd $380 Linda Shea
3rd $275 Joy McFeaters
4th $150 Tina Scott
5th $100 Eugenia Gyftopoulos
$100 Nicole Monaco
7th $ 75 Cheryl Sporleder
$ 75 Delia Mocanu
9th $ 50 Asia Cy
$ 50 Kassandra Bein
$ 50 Kathy Friend
$ 50 Nicole Fleming
l-r: Linda Shea, Karen Corr
Corr Still Undefeated in 2015 J. Pechauer Northeast Women’s Tour
When BCA Hall of Famer Karen Corr shows up at a J. Pechauer Northeast Women’s Tour event, she doesn’t just participate, she dominates. Saturday, April 24, at First Break Café in Sterling, VA, was no exception. Corr and twenty-five other women competed for over $1,600 in total prize money.
While there were many close matches during the weekend event, Corr wasn’t involved in any of them. She lost just ten games in her six consecutive winner’s side matches. She won her first two matches 7-1 against Britanya Rapp and Asia Cy. In her third match, she faced Nicole Fleming, who was poised to tie the match at 4-4, but missed a cut shot on the nine. Corr took full advantage of that mistake and won the match 7-3. She then defeated Nicole Monaco (7-0) and Linda Shea (7-3) in the winner’s side final.
Tour director Linda Shea also enjoyed several lopsided victories during the tournament. She started the day with wins over Colleen Shoop (7-1), Melissa Jenkins (7-0), Tina Scott (7-3), and Eugenia Gyftopoulos (7-5). After losing to Corr, Shea defeated Joy McFeaters (7-0) to earn a second chance at Corr. Shea wasn’t able to improve on her first attempt, as Corr played nearly flawless pool, winning the match 7-1.
McFeaters, who finished ninth in the first tour stop, lost her first round match to Nicole Monaco (7-3). She then went on a six match tear that brought her all the way to the B-side finals. She sent home Rumi Brown (7-3), Denise Reeves (7-4), Nicole Fleming (7-4), Cheryl Sporleder (7-3), Eugenia Gyftopoulos (7-5), and Tina Scott (7-2), finishing in third place behind Corr and Shea.
Tina Scott, who first joined the tour last year, had her best finish to date, placing fourth overall. Her weekend included wins over Kia Sidbury (7-5), Carol Clark (7-5), Kassandra Bein (7-2), Delia Mocanu (7-5), and Nicole Monaco (7-5).
~Nicole Vincent Fleming, NYC Grind
l-r: Linda Shea, Tina Scott, Jan McFeaters, Cheryl Sporleder, Eugenia Gyftopoulos, Delia Mocanu, Nicole Monaco, Karen Corr
2015 STOP 3
May 30-31
Triple Nines Bar & Billiards
Elkridge MD
28 player field
1st $750 Karen Corr
2nd $380 Briana Miller
3rd $275 Kim Whitman
4th $140 Kathy Friend
5th $100 Linda Shea
$100 Nicole Fleming
7th $ 75 Kia Sidbury
$ 75 Tina Scott
9th $ 50 Eugenia Gyftopoulos
$ 50 Joy McFeaters
$ 50 Lynn Richard
$ 50 Pauline Mattes
Karen Corrr
l-r: Briana Miller, Kim Whitman, Kathy Friend, Karen Corr
Corr wins her third victory, eighth over two seasons, on the JPNEWT
Karen Corr continues to dominate the proceedings on the J. Pechauer Northeast Women's Tour. On the weekend of May 30-31, she chalked up her third 2015 victory on the tour (adding to her five victories on the tour in 2014), going undefeated through a field of 28, on hand for the $1,0000-added ($500 by Coins of the Realm) event that was hosted by Triple Nines Bar and Billiards, in Elkridge, MD.
Corr was challenged by different opponents in the hot seat and finals. Following victories over Boye Lu, Kia Sidbury, and Joy McFeaters (by an average score of 7-2), Corr squared off in a winners' side semifinal against Nicole Fleming. Kim Whitman, in the meantime, who'd averaged 7-3 victories over Kassandra Bein, Tina Scott, and Kathy Friend, faced Briana Miller, who had defeated her three opponents (Connie Eddins, tour director Linda Shea, and Eugenia Gyftopoulos) by an average that was right between Corr's 7-2 and Whitman's 7-3.
Corr gave up only one rack to Fleming, and in the hot seat match, faced Whitman, who'd sent Miller to the loss side 7-2. Corr claimed the hot seat 7-4 over Whitman and waited for what turned out to be the return of Briana Miller.
On the loss side, Miller picked up Shea for a second time. Shea was on a four-match winning streak that had included victories over McFeaters 7- 3 and a shutout over Tina Scott. Fleming drew Kathy Friend, who'd gotten by Pauline Mattes 7-3 and Kia Sidbury 7-1. Miller downed Shea a second time 7-3, and in the quarterfinals, faced Friend, who'd eliminated Fleming 7-2.
Miller took the quarterfinal match 7-4 over Friend and then, gave up only a single rack to Whitman in the semifinals. Miller came within a game of forcing Corr into a double hill, deciding game, but Corr prevailed 7-5 to claim her third 2015 JPNEWT title.
~Skip Maloney, AZBilliards
2015 STOP 4
June 13-14
First Break Cafe'
Sterling VA
23 player field
1st $750 Karen Corr
2nd $400 Briana Miller
3rd $300 Jia Li
4th $130 Nicole Monaco
5th $ 85 Kia Sidbury
$ 85 Tina Scott
7th $ 60 Boye Lu
$ 60 Kathy Friend
9th $ 40 Judie Wilson
$ 40 Kassandra Bein
$ 40 Lai Li
$ 40 Nicole Fleming
Ll-r: Jia Li, Nicole Monaco, Briana Miller, Karen Corr
Corr downs Miller for the second straight time in finals, wins fourth stop on JPNEWT
They'd battled in the finals of Stop #3 on the J. Pechauer Northeast Women's Tour on the last weekend in May; Briana Miller coming from the loss side to challenge Corr in the hot seat. Corr won it, chalking up her third victory on the tour. On the weekend of June 13-14, at the $1,000-added fourth stop on the 2015 tour ($500-added from Coins of the Realm, contributing to the top three finishers), Corr and Miller battled again, this time, twice; in the hot seat and finals. Corr won them both to record her fourth straight and ninth overall win on the tour since March 2014.
Corr gave up only four racks through her first 32 games, defeating Eugenia Gyftopoulos and Kathy Friend 7-1, and shutting out Boye Lu. This put her into a winners' side semifinal against Jia Li who, by comparison, had given up 10 racks through her first 31 games. Miller, in the meantime, was awarded an opening round bye, and defeated both Nicole Fleming and Lai Li 7-2, which set her up to face Nicole Monaco in the other winners' side semifinal.
Miller defeated Monaco 7-3, as Corr was sending Jia Li to the losers' bracket 7-2. Miller recorded as many racks in the hot seat match as all of Corr's previous opponents combined, but moved to the semifinals on the heels of Corr's 7-4 win.
Tour director Linda Shea, who had been Corr's finals opponent in the two opening stops of the 2015 tour and twice in 2014, as well, went an uncharacteristic two-and-out in this one. Sent to the loss side by Jia Li 7-5 in the opening round, she battled to double hill against Nicole King on the loss side before being eliminated. Coming over from the winners' side semifinal, Monaco ran into Tina Scott, who was in the midst of a four-match, loss-side winning streak that had included a double hill win over Judie Wilson and a 7-3 win over Boye Lu. Jia Li ran into Kia Sidbury, who'd survived two straight double hill matches against Kassandra Bein and Kathy Friend to reach her.
By identical 7-3 scores, Li and Monaco eliminated Sidbury and Scott and advanced to the quarterfinals. Li shut Monaco out in those quarterfinals, but was eliminated 7-5 by Miller in the semifinals. Corr improved on her 7-4 hot seat performance against Miller, by defeating her 7-2 in the finals.
~Skip Maloney, AZBilliards
K
2015 STOP 5
July 18-19
Champion Billiards Sports Cafe
Frederick MD
25 player field
1st $900 Karen Corr
2nd $500 Linda Shea
3rd $380 Jia Li
4th $200 Kathy Friend
5th $125 Lai Li
$125 Melissa Jenkins
7th $ 80 Pauline Mattes
$ 80 Tina Scott
9th $ 55 Boye Lu
$ 55 Denise Reeve
$ 55 Judie Wilson
$ 55 Nicole Fleming
Ll-r: Tina Scott, Melissa Jenkins, Lai Li, Pauline Mattes, Jia Li, Kathy Friend, Karen Corr, Linda Shea
Corr wins fifth straight on JPNEWT
It's becoming a familiar, repetitive story. Women gather to compete on the J. Pechauer Northeast Women's Tour, and as a result of how things have played out over the past two seasons, most of the tournament entrants are fighting to figure out who'll finish in second, third and/or fourth place, because Karen Corr takes home the title; five out of nine times in 2014 (she didn't compete in the other four), and all five times so far in 2015. She chalked up her most recent victory during the fifth stop on this year's tour, on the weekend of July 18-19. The $1,500-added event ($500 from Coins of the Realm) drew 25 entrants to Champion Billiards and Sports Cafe in Frederick, MD.
On the previous stop (June 13-14), Corr made it to a winners' side semifinal, having given up only four racks through her first 32 games. She gave up nine in her first 30 games during this most recent stop, including six in a race to seven against Jia Li, who won three stops in 2014, and was runner-up to Corr in another. Corr prevailed and after a subsequent 7-1 victory, she moved into a winners' side semifinal against Lai Li (no relation to Jia Li). Linda Shea, in the meantime, who was runner-up to Corr twice last year, and twice this year, faced Melissa Jenkins. Corr downed Li 7-3, as Shea defeated Jenkins 7-1. Corr claimed the hot seat 7-3 over Shea and waited, once again, on her return.
On the loss side, the narrowly defeated (by Corr) Jia Li was working on a seven-match winning streak that would take her as far as the semifinals. She shut out Nicole Fleming and defeated Pauline Mattes7-5 to draw Lai Li. Melissa Jenkins picked up Kathy Friend, who'd gotten by Denise Reeve 7-5 and Tina Scott 7-3. Jia Li defeated Lai Li 7-2 and in the quarterfinals, faced Friend, who'd eliminated Jenkins 7-4.
Jia Li defeated Friend 7-2, and then had her loss-side winning streak snapped 7-5 by Shea in the semifinals. Corr closed out her fourth straight win on the 2015 JPNEWT with a 7-2 victory over Shea in the finals.
~Skip Maloney, www.azbilliards.com
~
2015 STOP 6
August 1-2
RAXX Pool Room, Sports Bar & Grill
West Hempstead NY
24 player field
1st $900 Karen Corr
2nd $600 Jia Li
3rd $400 Brianna Miller
4th $275 Morgan Steinman
5th $185 Fran Crimi
$185 Kia Sidbury
7th $130 Linda Shea
$130 Nancy Kim
9th $ 50 Tina Scott
$ 50 Judie Wilson
$ 50 Borana Andoni
$ 50 Erica Tests
Ll-r: Jia Li, Karen Corr, Briana Miller, Morgan Steinman, and Raxx owner, Holden Chin.
Corr wins sixth straight on the JPNEWT
~Skip Maloney, www.AZBilliards.com
​
Since March, Karen Corr has allowed opponents on the J. Pechauer Northeast 9-Ball an (unscientific) average of between two and three racks in match races to seven. Until two weeks ago, and on the weekend of August 1-2, only one opponent had chalked up more than four against her. China's Jia Li, the two-year reigning champion of the WPBA's Regional Tour Championships, pushed Corr to the double hill limit in the second round of the tour's fifth stop (July 18-19). Though she would go on to win six on the loss side, Li was defeated by tour director Linda Shea and denied a second shot at Corr.
On the weekend of August 1-2, in a $2,000-added event, hosted by Raxx Billiards in West Hempstead, NY (24 entrants), Li fought back through five matches on the loss side to face Corr in the finals. Corr won it to chalk up her sixth straight on the tour, but not before Li had brought her to the brink in their race to nine.
Corr gave up only seven racks over four games to get into the hot seat; starting with Borana Andoni (2), Fran Crimi (1), and, in a winners' side semifinal, Kia Sidbury (3). Briana Miller, in the meantime, having sent Jia Li to the loss side, double hill, in the third round, was giving up an average of three racks per game, and gave up just that many to Morgan Steinman in the other winners' side semifinal. Corr then sent Miller packing 7-1 and sat in the hot seat, waiting for Jia Li.
Li, in the meantime, started out in cruise control on the loss side, defeating Borana Andoni and Linda Shea by an aggregate score of 14-3 (all three to Andoni). She drew Sidbury, while Steinman drew Fran Crimi, who was coming off her own loss-side, cruise control performance 14-2 against Tina Scott and Nancy Kim (with the two).
Corr gave up only seven racks over four games to get into the hot seat; starting with Borana Andoni (2), Fran Crimi (1), and, in a winners' side semifinal, Kia Sidbury (3). Briana Miller, in the meantime, having sent Jia Li to the loss side, double hill, in the third round, was giving up an average of three racks per game, and gave up just that many to Morgan Steinman in the other winners' side semifinal. Corr then sent Miller packing 7-1 and sat in the hot seat, waiting for Jia Li.
Li, in the meantime, started out in cruise control on the loss side, defeating Borana Andoni and Linda Shea by an aggregate score of 14-3 (all three to Andoni). She drew Sidbury, while Steinman drew Fran Crimi, who was coming off her own loss-side, cruise control performance 14-2 against Tina Scott and Nancy Kim (with the two).
Li's cruise control continued with a 7-1 victory over Sidbury. Crimi's came to a stop with a shutout by Steinman. Li's final two loss-side opponents tightened the screws a little bit. She gave up five racks to Steinman in the quarterfinals that followed, and then, Miller, for the second time this season, challenged her in the semifinals. Back in June, Miller had defeated Li 7-5 in the semifinals. This time, they hit double hill before Li prevailed for a shot at Corr.
It was the closest anybody had come to dethroning the undisputed 'queen' of the JPNEWT. But Corr held off a double hill challenge by Li to lock up her 6th win on the tour, her 11th, overall in two years.
~
Q-MASTER'S MID-ATLANTIC WOMEN'S 9-BALL OPEN
2015 STOP 7
August 15-16
Q-Master Billiards
Virginia Beach VA
47 player field
1st $1500 Karen Corr
2nd $1000 Briana Miller
3rd $750 Kim Whitman
4th $450 Jia Li
5th $320 Emily Duddy
$320 Linda Shea
7th $200 Colleen Shoop
$200 Nicole Monaco
9th $150 Cheryl Pritchard
$150 Iris Cabatit
$150 Jacki Duggan
$150 Shanna Lewis
13th $100 Belinda Calhoun
$100 Borana Andoni
$100 Jessica Brown
$100 Pauline Mattes
Ll-r: Jia Li, Karen Corr, Jacki Duggan, Linda Shea, Shanna Lewis, Kim Whitman, Nicole Monaco, Colleen Shoop, Cheryl Pritchard, Briana Miller, Emily Duddy, Iris Cabatit
Corr chalks up another one on the JPNEWT
~Skip Maloney, AZBilliards.com
​
They've come at her from every angle; the hot seat/final route, where Karen Corr gets challenged twice by the same player; the three-match, loss-side route, in which a player loses a winners' side semifinal and wins three on the loss side to get a second chance at her, and most recently, the deep-from-the-loss-side route, in which a player comes from deep on the loss side (say, five matches or more) to challenge her in the finals.
The occasion this time around, on the J. Pechauer Northeast Women's Tour, was the Q Masters Mid-Atlantic Women's 9-Ball Open, held on the weekend of August 15-16, offering a $6,000 prize fund, and hosted by the US Open's Barry Behrman at his Q Master Billiards facility in Virginia Beach, VA. Pretty much everyone on the 47-entrant roster was looking to deny Karen Corr her seventh straight win on the JPNEWT tour. Corr responded with a six-match, 35-8 performance that secured that seventh straight win, and for the third time this year, Briana Miller challenged her in the finals, choosing the only method of the three noted above that she hadn’t tried yet; the ‘deep from the loss side’ (seven wins) route.
Four matches in, with victories over Connie Eddins, Barb Yeager, Nicole Monaco, and Shanna Lewis, Corr had given up only three racks; one each to Eddins, Yeager and Lewis. At this point, in a winners’ side semifinal, she ran into a familiar nemesis, who’d challenged her three times in the finals this year – Tour director Linda Shea. In the meantime, Jia Li, who’d been runner-up to Corr earlier in the month, faced Kim Whitman, who would finish third for the third time this year.
Shea became the first player to chalk up more than a single rack against Corr, but moved to the loss side 7-2. Whitman, in the meantime, sent Li packing 7-4. Corr, apparently not happy with Shea’s second rack against her, gave up only one to Whitman, and sat in the hot seat waiting for Miller to complete her seven-match, loss-side run.
Following victories over Nicole Fleming and Borana Andoni, Miller had been sent to the loss side, by TruTV Hustler, Emily Duddy 7-4. She began her loss-side run with 7-4 victories over Kassandra Beinand Belinda Calhoun, and followed them with a 7-1 win over Iris Cabatit, and a 7-4 victory over Nicole Monaco. This set her up against Shea. Li, in the meantime, picked up Duddy, who’d survived a double hill match against Jacki Duggan and defeated Colleen Shoop 7-2.
Miller downed Shea 7-2 and was denied a rematch against Duddy, when Li defeated her 7-4. Miller took the quarterfinal match against Li 7-4, and gave up only a single rack to Whitman in the semifinals. Corr completed her (yet again) undefeated run with a 7-2 win in the finals.
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2015 STOP 8
September 19-20
Top Hat Cue Club
Parkville MD
27 player field
1st $700 Karen Corr
2nd $350 Nicole Monaco
3rd $280 Meredith Lynch
4th $130 Borana Andoni
5th $100 Kia Sidbury
$100 Kim Whitman
7th $ 70 Dawn Fox
$ 70 Nicole King
9th $ 50 Boye Lu
$ 50 Jackie Duggan
$ 50 Judie Wilson
$ 50 Kathy Friend
l-r: Borana Andoni, Kia Sidbury, Karen Corr, Kim Whitman, Dawn Fox, Meredith Lynch, Nicole Monaco, Nicole King
CORR ELEVATES HER GAME ANOTHER STEP AT JPNEWT
~Skip Maloney, AZBilliards
​
Reporting that Karen Corr has won a stop on the J. Pechauer Northeast Women's Tour is getting to be a little like informing people that the sun came up. On the weekend of September 19-20, Corr not only won her eighth straight stop on the tour, she did so by giving up only two racks in 44 games. She shut out four of her opponents, one of whom, runner-up Nicole Monaco, was also one of the two players who chalked up a single rack against her (Carol Clark, second round, was the other). The $1,000-added ($500-added by Coins of the Realm) event drew 27 entrants to the Top Hat Cue Club in Parkville, MD.
Two shutouts and the middle 7-1 win over Clark put Corr in a winners' side semifinal against Kia Sidbury. Monaco and Meredith Lynch squared off in the other one. Corr chalked up her third shutout, versus Sidbury, and in the battle for the hot seat, faced Monaco, who'd sent Lynch to the loss side 7-4. Corr gave up her second and last rack of the tournament defeating Monaco to claim the hot seat.
Over on the loss side, where a total of 24 matches were played, only two of those resulted in either a shutout or 7-1 score. Sidbury came over and met up with Borana Andoni, who'd chalked up the loss side's only 7-1 victory, over Eugenia Gyftopoulos, and defeated Judie Wilson and Nicole King, both 7-2. Lynch drew Kim Whitman, recent winner over Jacki Duggan and Dawn Fox, both 7-4.
Lynch and Andoni advanced to the quarterfinals; Lynch 7-3 over Whitman, and Andoni 7-2 over Sidbury. Lynch downed Andoni 7-4 in the quarterfinals, providing her the opportunity to meet the opponent who'd sent her to the loss side, Monaco, in the semifinals. Monaco defeated her a second time 7-4 and got a second shot at Corr. Corr shut her out to claim her eighth straight JPNEWT title.
​
2015 STOP 9
October 3-4
Markley Billiards
Norristown PA
23 player field
1st $500 Linda Shea
2nd $320 Dawn Fox
3rd $200 Meredith Lynch
4th $100 Nicole Monaco
5th $100 Jia Li
$100 Nicole Fleming
7th $ 55 Kathy Friend
$ 55 Kia Sidbury
l-r: Kathy Friend, Linda Shea, Nicole Monaco, Meredith Lynch, Nicole Fleming, Dawn Fox, Jia Li
Shea finishes strong to take 9th stop on JPNEWT
x~Skip Maloney, AZBilliards
​
It looked, in the early going, as if tour director Linda Shea was going to breeze through the field that had signed up to compete in the 9th stop of the J. Pechauer Northeast Women's Tour on the weekend of October 3-4. She gave up a single rack to her first opponent, three to her second and none to her third, before going on a three-match, tough-fight streak that included two double-hill wins to complete an undefeated run which allowed her to claim her first JPNEWT title since last November. The $500-added event drew 23 entrants to Markley Billiards in Norristown, PA.
Shea had to get by Dawn Fox twice to claim the event title; the first time, in a winners' side
l-r: Tony, Linda Shea, Dawn Fox, Russ Urffer (Markley Billiards owner), and Russ's daughter
semifinal, as Jia Li and Meredith Lynch squared off in the other one. Shea navigated the first of her two straight double hill matches to get into the hot seat match against Lynch, who'd defeated Li 7-1. Shea claimed the hot seat over Lynch in her second double hill match, and waited on the return of Fox.
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Over on the loss side, Fox, already assured of her best finish on the 2015 tour, picked up Nicole Fleming, who'd been sent west by Lynch in the opening round of play, and was in the midst of a four-match, loss-side streak that included a 7-1 victory over Boye Lu, a 7-3 win over Kia Sidbury and was about to end. Li drew Nicole Monaco, who, like Fleming, had been sent over in the opening round of play (by Shea), and was in the midst of her own five-match, loss-side streak that included victories over Denise Reeve (double hill), and Kathy Friend (7-4) and had one match to go.
The victory allowed Linda Shea to maintain her #2 spot in the 2015 JPNEWT rankings, while Dawn Fox's second-place finish notched her up (from #26) to within striking distance of the tour's top 10 players. Fox had defeated #11, Nicole Fleming, who, as a result of her finish in the tie for fifth place had moved among the top 10. Judie Wilson, who entered the event in the #10 spot, finished in the tie for 13th place, which dropped her out of the 10th spot, but five points ahead of Lynch, who finished third.
The next stop on the JPNEWT, scheduled for October 17-18, and hosted by ProShot Billiards in Dickson City, PA will be a WPBA qualifier for the Soaring Eagle 2016 Masters Tournament at the Soaring Eagle Casino and Resort in Mount Pleasant, MI.
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2015 STOP 10
November 17-18
ProShot Billiards
Dickson City PA
19 player field
1st $600 Kathy Friend
2nd $400 Linda Shea
3rd $280 Kia Sidbury
4th $175 Dawn Fox
5th $120 Jia Li
$120 Nicole Fleming
7th $ 60 Borana Andoni
$ 60 Boye Lu
l-r: Jia Li, Linda Shea, Dawn Fox, Nicole Fleming, Kia Sidbury, Kathy Friend
Friend goes undefeated to take Stop 10 on the JPNEWT
~Skip Maloney, AZBilliards
Over the last few months, as the J. Pechauer Northeast Women's Tour has been closing in on its final 2015 event (Stop # 11; November 7-8 at Triple Nines in Elkridge, MD), the battle for any individual event title has almost been less significant than the jockeying for position on the tour rankings. These standings are important because of their significance in determining who, from the tour, will be selected to compete in the WPBA Regional Tour Championship in January. Though the number of women to be selected for that RTC has yet to be determined, the women of the JPNEWT know, as the season draws to a close, that the closer they are to the top, the better their chances.
Following tour stop # 10, held on the weekend of October 17-18, all ten of the tour's Top 10 players remained in the Top 10, although some of them were in different positions than they'd occupied prior to the event. Kathy Friend, for example, who won the $1,000-added event that drew 19 entrants to Pro Shot Billiards in Dickson City, PA, moved from her #7 slot to #5.
l-r: Linda Shea, Kathy Friend, Kevin Clark (ProShot's owner), Kia Sidbury
The runner-up, tour director Linda Shea, remained in the #2 spot, as did Karen Corr in the #1 spot, even though she didn't compete in this event (her eight straight wins through September made her #1 tour ranking unapproachable). Nicole Monaco, who finished in the tie for 9th place at this most recent event, maintained her position at #3, although she was joined (tied) by Jia Li, who came in at #4, and finished in the tie for 5th place. Kia Sidbury stayed put in the #6 ranking slot, while Briana Miller, who didn't compete, dropped from #5 to Friend's previous spot at #7. Tina Scott stayed where she was at #9. Kim Whitman, who didn't compete, and Nicole Fleming, who did, switched positions; Whitman dropped from # 8 to #10, while Fleming moved up from #10 to #8.
In addition to its significance in the overall tour rankings, this most recent event was a qualifier for the WPBA Masters Tournament, set for February 3-7 at the Soaring Eagle Casino and Resort in Mt. Pleasant, MI. It was a good time for Friend to return to the JPNEWT winners' circle, where she hasn't been in nine years. The last time she took a JPNEWT title, at Comet Billiards in Parsippany, NJ, on June 25, 2006, was also the first time she took a JPNEWT title. In that earlier event, she lost her first match and won six on the loss side to meet and defeat hot seat occupant, Barbara Stock.
At this most recent event, Friend opted out of the loss-side run, in favor of the undefeated route, which took her through victories over Tina Scott, Sharon O'Hanlon, and Boye Lu, before meeting up with Linda Shea in a winners' side semifinal. Kia Sidbury, in the meantime, had gotten by Meredith Lynch and Judie Wilson, to pick up Dawn Fox in the other winners' side semifinal. Friend and Shea locked up in a double hill fight, their first of two, before Friend advanced to the hot seat match. She was joined by Sidbury, who sent Fox west 7-1. Friend claimed the hot seat 7-2 over Sidbury and waited in the hot seat for what turned out to be Shea's return.
2015 STOP 11
November 7-8
Triple Nines Bar & Billiards
Elkridge MD
28 player field
1st $750 Borana Andoni
2nd $400 Kia Sidbury
3rd $300 Nicole Monaco
4th $150 Kim Whitman
5th $100 Lai Li
$100 Meredith Lynch
7th $ 75 Nicole Fleming
$ 75 Sharon O'Hanlon
9th $ 55 Amanda Soucy
$ 55 Denise Reeve
$ 55 Karen Corr
$ 55 Kathy Friend
l-r: Lai Li, Meredith Lynch, Borana Andoni, Sharon O'Hanlon, Kim Whitman, Kia Sidbury, Nicole Monaco, Nicole Fleming
Andoni comes back from semifinals to defeat Sidbury in JPNEWT season finale
~Skip Maloney, AZBilliards
Six years ago, Borana Andoni became the first female to record a victory on the 2008/2009 Tri-State Tour. Two months later, she became the first female to record a victory on the 2009/2010 Tri-State tour. In 2013, her best recorded earnings year to date, though she failed to chalk up an event victory, she cashed in nine events, including stops on the Planet Pool, Predator, Tri-State, and JPNEWT tours, as well as the WPBA Masters and the Women's Division of the Ultimate 10-Ball Championships in Tunica, MS. Producers of the recent TRUtv series, The Hustlers, failed to take any of this into account, when throughout the 10 episodes of the series, she was referred to only as the girlfriend of Scott Simonetti.
On the weekend of November 7-8, in the J. Pechauer Northeast Women's Tour's season finale, Andoni once again proved that she has independent pool credibility by taking the $1,000-added ($500 from Coins of the Realm) event that drew 28 entrants to Triple Nines in Elkridge, MD. She worked her way through a field intent on maintaining their position within the tour's rankings for a chance to compete in the WPBA's Regional Tour Championships in January. Andoni entered the event at #19, and before it was over, she'd defeated numbers 1 (Karen Corr), 2 (Linda Shea), and 3 (Nicole Monaco).
Andoni opened her winning campaign with double hill wins over #11, Dawn Fox, and #2, Shea. She then sent Corr to the loss side 7-2, from whence she would not return, making it the first 2015 JPNEWT event in which Corr competed that she failed to win. The win over Corr set Andoni up in a winners' side semifinal versus #14, Meredith Lynch. In the meantime, Kia Sidbury (#6) squared off against Lai Li. Andoni advanced to the hot seat match 7-3 over Lynch, and faced Sidbury, who'd sent Lai Li west 7-4. Just being in the hot seat match guaranteed Andoni her best finish, of six attempts, on the 2015 JPNEWT tour. Sidbury took the hot seat match 7-5 and waited on Andoni's return.
On the loss side, Lynch drew Kim Whitman, who'd defeated Kathy Friend 7-4 and Nicole Fleming 7-3 to reach her. Li picked up Monaco, who'd survived a double hill battle against Amanda Soucy and defeated Sharon O'Hanlon 7-2. Whitman and Monaco advanced to the quarterfinals; both 7-4, over Lynch and Li.
Monaco took the quarterfinal match over Whitman 7-2, before having her four-match, loss-side streak ended by Andoni 7-5 in the semifinals. Andoni took the extended race-to-9 finals over Sidbury 9-4 to claim the title. The victory moved Andoni to among the 2015 tour's top 10 players; from #19 to #9.