There were 91 players who showed up at the Planet Pool 9-Ball Tournament yesterday for the Main Event in Hagerstown, Maryland. The pool room has 18 Gold Crowns and 7 Diamond bar boxes. When we walked in the front door, the first player I see practicing on the front table is none other than Youngstown, OH's BEST: Shawn Putnam, winner of the NAOT-Pittsburgh event and the Pro Open at the Super Billiards Expo!
Quite a few heavy hitters were in attendance, to include Ryan "Genie Man" McCreesh, PP 9-Ball Season Finale Champ Brett Stottlemyer, Young Gun Josh Brothers, UPA Touring Pro Mike Davis, recent Florida Pro Tour 10-Ball Winner Pookie, Lee Holt, BCA Instructor Doug Sharp, Virginia Veteran Jimmy Mack, just to name a few. Captain JR played in his first PP 9-Ball event and was having a grand time. Landshark77 and Timberly were also sitting railside with JAM, sweating the matches.
There are 12 (I think) players returning today at 10:30 a.m. Mike Davis and Pooky got knocked out yesterday. Josh Brothers is a player to keep an eye on. He's playing topnotch pool, and I was very impressed with his caliber of play. As luck would have it, Keith McCready pulled Josh his very first round, and I was biting my nails, 1 to 1, 2 to 2, 3 to 3, 4 to 4. Because Josh put the pressure on Keith, he managed to dig in and beat him, a little revenge over last week's Hampton Ridge Tour second-chance tournament when Josh beat Keith TWICE. However, don't count this young gun out yet. He defeated Mike Davis yesterday and is looking to win this event. He was accompanied by Pam Treadway, the young lady who won the Ladies Open at the Super Billiards Expo this year. What a dynamic duo!
Next round, Keith pulls Carl Jones. What a blast from the past seeing "Punky" from Hagerstown (a/k/a Carl Jones). He used to be a very prominent figure in the pool scene all over Maryland several decades ago, and although he recently had knee surgery, he stepped up to the plate and put on a first-class exhibition. Keith won the set, but Punky won my heart, seeing him in pain and still give it his best effort.
Third round, Shawn Putnam and Keith battled it out, with Shawn coming out the winner, 9 to 7. The fans and spectators enjoyed seeing Shawn Putnam, and he was signing autographs, having his picture taken, throughout the day. Shawn said he has been reading AzBilliards recently and intends to start posting!
I saw a sign along one of the aisleways which had the signatures from some lady players who competed in Hagerstown at the 2001 Northeast Women's Tour. Smack in the middle, I had to smile when I saw Carol Clark's signature, a/k/a "CarolNYC." Carol sure does get around! Speaking of lady pros, tomorrow the ladies event begins at 11:00. This will be a WPBA qualifier, and I was told that quite a few folks have been calling about attending this one. Should be some great matches on the horizon for today.
That's just a snippet of yesterday's activities. Check out CarolNYC's signature right in the middle, a little above the dollar sign. Kind of a small world when it comes to pool!
JAM

Quite a few heavy hitters were in attendance, to include Ryan "Genie Man" McCreesh, PP 9-Ball Season Finale Champ Brett Stottlemyer, Young Gun Josh Brothers, UPA Touring Pro Mike Davis, recent Florida Pro Tour 10-Ball Winner Pookie, Lee Holt, BCA Instructor Doug Sharp, Virginia Veteran Jimmy Mack, just to name a few. Captain JR played in his first PP 9-Ball event and was having a grand time. Landshark77 and Timberly were also sitting railside with JAM, sweating the matches.
There are 12 (I think) players returning today at 10:30 a.m. Mike Davis and Pooky got knocked out yesterday. Josh Brothers is a player to keep an eye on. He's playing topnotch pool, and I was very impressed with his caliber of play. As luck would have it, Keith McCready pulled Josh his very first round, and I was biting my nails, 1 to 1, 2 to 2, 3 to 3, 4 to 4. Because Josh put the pressure on Keith, he managed to dig in and beat him, a little revenge over last week's Hampton Ridge Tour second-chance tournament when Josh beat Keith TWICE. However, don't count this young gun out yet. He defeated Mike Davis yesterday and is looking to win this event. He was accompanied by Pam Treadway, the young lady who won the Ladies Open at the Super Billiards Expo this year. What a dynamic duo!
Next round, Keith pulls Carl Jones. What a blast from the past seeing "Punky" from Hagerstown (a/k/a Carl Jones). He used to be a very prominent figure in the pool scene all over Maryland several decades ago, and although he recently had knee surgery, he stepped up to the plate and put on a first-class exhibition. Keith won the set, but Punky won my heart, seeing him in pain and still give it his best effort.
Third round, Shawn Putnam and Keith battled it out, with Shawn coming out the winner, 9 to 7. The fans and spectators enjoyed seeing Shawn Putnam, and he was signing autographs, having his picture taken, throughout the day. Shawn said he has been reading AzBilliards recently and intends to start posting!
I saw a sign along one of the aisleways which had the signatures from some lady players who competed in Hagerstown at the 2001 Northeast Women's Tour. Smack in the middle, I had to smile when I saw Carol Clark's signature, a/k/a "CarolNYC." Carol sure does get around! Speaking of lady pros, tomorrow the ladies event begins at 11:00. This will be a WPBA qualifier, and I was told that quite a few folks have been calling about attending this one. Should be some great matches on the horizon for today.
That's just a snippet of yesterday's activities. Check out CarolNYC's signature right in the middle, a little above the dollar sign. Kind of a small world when it comes to pool!

JAM
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