T
Timberly
Guest
I didn't think that I was going to be able to attend this event because I'm always in Philly. I found out early last week that I had to work on Fri so afterwards I ventured out to York to catch the annual Black Fri 9 ball tournament at the Yankee Club.
They were PACKED! This was the largest field they've ever had since starting the Black/Good Friday 9 ball tournaments. (BANKONIT, how long have they been having these events?) A nice man by the name of Cy Long was running the event and said the last time they had that many players was 20 yrs ago for a straight pool event they had. Cy, congrats on the large turnout.
There were 53 players which included one female. They had $1440 in the calcutta with Mike Davis and Ryan McCreesh both being the highest bids at $150. They had to shorten the races to 5 on the winners side and 3 on the one loss side due to the number of players.
The lady of the tourney, Colleen Shoop shoots a pretty mean stick (she went for $60 in the calcutta). The locals at the bar were really pulling for her. She lost to McCreesh in the 1st round, won her 2nd match, her opponent forfeited the 3rd match and in her 4th match she ended up playing her boyfriend/husband(???) and almost beat him. She was a nice lady who always had a smile on her face. I was glad to see a female jump into this event with all the strong players they had there.
The kid of the tourney was one of my favs, Richard Barney. I think he might be 15 now, I'm not sure. It was fun to listen to some of the locals at the bar marvel about the kid that shoots so good and that was beating some of the strong local players. This young man is such a pleasure to watch.... not only does he shoot well but he's got a great demeanor. He made 5 balls on the break (did I mention he's a got a solid break with good cue ball control??) unfortunately his next shot was difficult and he missed. Instead of making a pouting face, jabbing his cue at the floor, and stomping off to pout in his chair, he simply watched the ball miss the pocket, kept his face emotionless, walked back to his chair and sat down until it was his turn to shoot again. Most adults can't contain their emotions this well and certainly not most teenagers I've seen. That kind of demeanor along with his demeanor off the table is what makes this kid head and shoulders above kids his age and even adults.
Richard the kid was still in it when I left and I think they were paying out spots 9th-12th. Richard went hill hill against McCreesh and after a lengthy safety battle on the one ball, Ryan won the set. Richard defeated Dan Madden and was playing someone that I did not recognize when I left for the evening.
I met AZB member Frank White for the first time. LOL, he's definitely a lively one! Psst Frank... my name is TIMBERLY. He knew who I was when I introduced myself but ended up calling me Tiffany. I should be happy, most people never get the first letter right... at lease he did!
Frank was in heaven at the Yankee Club... did ya'll think I was kidding when I said the food & drinks were cheap?!?!? The story I heard was when Frank went to the bar and ordered his first Heineken (the night b4 the tourney) and they told him it was $2, he said in that case give me four! My large draft beer was only $1.25. About 8 or 9 Frank lost his 2nd match, got a beer, drank half of it and said he was going to the car for a nap. I had the bartender put his beer in a pitcher of ice for him (how nice am I!?!?!) but Frank never made it back in and by midnight I gave her the drink and said toss it. Frank, it was a pleasure meeting you. 
The big AZB member story of the night? CaptJR! When I first saw him I asked him if he was still in it and he said that not only was he still in it but he was on the winners side! LOL, almost as if he were surprised. His next match was Bill McCoy who is very well known in these parts and greatly respected by the locals. (I heard his name yrs b4 I ever saw his face) Capt really respects Bill and winning that match put him on cloud nine. The Capt then walked over to Mike Davis and told him that the next time they play, he's not going to let Mike intimidate him. Capt had to play Mike a few weeks ago and allowed himself to be intimidated by Mike's touring pro status. As fate would have it, the Capt's next match was against Mike. In a race to 5, the Capt made it to the hill first. 
Mike won the next game and at hill hill it was the Capt's break and he made the 9 on break. Way to go Capt!! He was waiting on his next game when I had to leave so I'm not sure how he ended up doing.
AZB member Black-Balled was there too. As always it's a pleasure to see him. He's got a laid back, very dry sense of humor. We had some pretty good laughs at some others expense last night.
Even though he doesn't get to play very much anymore (that's what happens when you have a wife & a baby) he's still a force to be reckoned with. He snuck into the calcutta only going for $10 and was still in it when I left which means he cashed in the calcutta if I'm not mistaken.
Mike Davis lost his 2nd match to Casey Wagner who is a local player if I'm not mistaken. Mike ended up finishing 9th-12th. I believe this was somewhere around midnight so he took off & headed to Hagerstown (2 1/2 hr drive) for the Tiger Tour event that starts today. He was one of the lucky ones because there were a few that were still left in the tournament that also had to head that way to play today. There's definitely going to be some tired players there today.
AZB member BANKONIT was also having a great night. When I left he was still in it and also in the money. Good shooting BANKONIT!
They have a barbox set up out of the way which turned into a mini pit challenge table. Scott was the "keeper of the gate" in which he maintained the list of players. The bet was $5 a game but every once in awhile the two players at the table would agree to a $10 or $20 bet amongst themselves. I maintained a seat by there while also being able to see the tournament tables. Due to the different characters there, it was always entertaining!
Some other notable players in the event were....
Brett Stottlemyer
Shawn Jackson
Shawn Toni
Joe Cataldi
AZB member Kevin Lindstrom
Thanks to the Yankee club, and Cy Long for a great event and good time. Thanks to BANKONIT for getting the word out and helping make this event the biggest one yet. They announced last night that they'll be having another 9 ball event the last Sat in January. Be sure to go check it out if you get the chance. Also, be sure to order one of their ice cream sandwiches. LOL, I told one guy that they're picture worthy... they're huge, homemade, and they sold out of them. LOL, people were eating them with a knife and fork!
BANKONIT, please be sure to update us on the final results.
They were PACKED! This was the largest field they've ever had since starting the Black/Good Friday 9 ball tournaments. (BANKONIT, how long have they been having these events?) A nice man by the name of Cy Long was running the event and said the last time they had that many players was 20 yrs ago for a straight pool event they had. Cy, congrats on the large turnout.
There were 53 players which included one female. They had $1440 in the calcutta with Mike Davis and Ryan McCreesh both being the highest bids at $150. They had to shorten the races to 5 on the winners side and 3 on the one loss side due to the number of players.
The lady of the tourney, Colleen Shoop shoots a pretty mean stick (she went for $60 in the calcutta). The locals at the bar were really pulling for her. She lost to McCreesh in the 1st round, won her 2nd match, her opponent forfeited the 3rd match and in her 4th match she ended up playing her boyfriend/husband(???) and almost beat him. She was a nice lady who always had a smile on her face. I was glad to see a female jump into this event with all the strong players they had there.
The kid of the tourney was one of my favs, Richard Barney. I think he might be 15 now, I'm not sure. It was fun to listen to some of the locals at the bar marvel about the kid that shoots so good and that was beating some of the strong local players. This young man is such a pleasure to watch.... not only does he shoot well but he's got a great demeanor. He made 5 balls on the break (did I mention he's a got a solid break with good cue ball control??) unfortunately his next shot was difficult and he missed. Instead of making a pouting face, jabbing his cue at the floor, and stomping off to pout in his chair, he simply watched the ball miss the pocket, kept his face emotionless, walked back to his chair and sat down until it was his turn to shoot again. Most adults can't contain their emotions this well and certainly not most teenagers I've seen. That kind of demeanor along with his demeanor off the table is what makes this kid head and shoulders above kids his age and even adults.
Richard the kid was still in it when I left and I think they were paying out spots 9th-12th. Richard went hill hill against McCreesh and after a lengthy safety battle on the one ball, Ryan won the set. Richard defeated Dan Madden and was playing someone that I did not recognize when I left for the evening.
I met AZB member Frank White for the first time. LOL, he's definitely a lively one! Psst Frank... my name is TIMBERLY. He knew who I was when I introduced myself but ended up calling me Tiffany. I should be happy, most people never get the first letter right... at lease he did!
Frank was in heaven at the Yankee Club... did ya'll think I was kidding when I said the food & drinks were cheap?!?!? The story I heard was when Frank went to the bar and ordered his first Heineken (the night b4 the tourney) and they told him it was $2, he said in that case give me four! My large draft beer was only $1.25. About 8 or 9 Frank lost his 2nd match, got a beer, drank half of it and said he was going to the car for a nap. I had the bartender put his beer in a pitcher of ice for him (how nice am I!?!?!) but Frank never made it back in and by midnight I gave her the drink and said toss it. Frank, it was a pleasure meeting you. The big AZB member story of the night? CaptJR! When I first saw him I asked him if he was still in it and he said that not only was he still in it but he was on the winners side! LOL, almost as if he were surprised. His next match was Bill McCoy who is very well known in these parts and greatly respected by the locals. (I heard his name yrs b4 I ever saw his face) Capt really respects Bill and winning that match put him on cloud nine. The Capt then walked over to Mike Davis and told him that the next time they play, he's not going to let Mike intimidate him. Capt had to play Mike a few weeks ago and allowed himself to be intimidated by Mike's touring pro status. As fate would have it, the Capt's next match was against Mike.
In a race to 5, the Capt made it to the hill first. Mike won the next game and at hill hill it was the Capt's break and he made the 9 on break. Way to go Capt!! He was waiting on his next game when I had to leave so I'm not sure how he ended up doing. AZB member Black-Balled was there too. As always it's a pleasure to see him. He's got a laid back, very dry sense of humor. We had some pretty good laughs at some others expense last night.
Even though he doesn't get to play very much anymore (that's what happens when you have a wife & a baby) he's still a force to be reckoned with. He snuck into the calcutta only going for $10 and was still in it when I left which means he cashed in the calcutta if I'm not mistaken. Mike Davis lost his 2nd match to Casey Wagner who is a local player if I'm not mistaken. Mike ended up finishing 9th-12th. I believe this was somewhere around midnight so he took off & headed to Hagerstown (2 1/2 hr drive) for the Tiger Tour event that starts today. He was one of the lucky ones because there were a few that were still left in the tournament that also had to head that way to play today. There's definitely going to be some tired players there today.
AZB member BANKONIT was also having a great night. When I left he was still in it and also in the money. Good shooting BANKONIT!
They have a barbox set up out of the way which turned into a mini pit challenge table. Scott was the "keeper of the gate" in which he maintained the list of players. The bet was $5 a game but every once in awhile the two players at the table would agree to a $10 or $20 bet amongst themselves. I maintained a seat by there while also being able to see the tournament tables. Due to the different characters there, it was always entertaining!
Some other notable players in the event were....
Brett Stottlemyer
Shawn Jackson
Shawn Toni
Joe Cataldi
AZB member Kevin Lindstrom
Thanks to the Yankee club, and Cy Long for a great event and good time. Thanks to BANKONIT for getting the word out and helping make this event the biggest one yet. They announced last night that they'll be having another 9 ball event the last Sat in January. Be sure to go check it out if you get the chance. Also, be sure to order one of their ice cream sandwiches. LOL, I told one guy that they're picture worthy... they're huge, homemade, and they sold out of them. LOL, people were eating them with a knife and fork!
BANKONIT, please be sure to update us on the final results.
