Team USA v Team Puerto Rico

tonygreen

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I can't remember if this is 1994 or 1995-96 ...
 

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This was 1994 and it was the quarter finals of Don Mackey's World Team Billiards. The Puerto Ricans, captained by 'Spanish' Mike Lebron beat Team USA. Tony Robles is the player shooting and the team also included Frankie Hernandez.

The PR team went to the Las Vegas for the semi finals and final. But they were stopped short by my boys (Team Ireland). This was a major shock because we had only played the game of 9 Ball for six weeks. We went on to meet the Team Philippines monster squad (Reyes, Parica, Busta, Andam and Luat) in the final. We were ahead 4-3 when a miscue from Tommy Donlon handed the table back to the Filipinos and they ran the match 7-4. The prize money was $50k for Team Philippines and another $50k was split between us, PR and Team Germany. It took me 10 months and a little persuasion to get our $17k share of the prize money but I don't think any of the other teams got paid.
I will stand corrected if this was not the case.

Strangely enough the tournament was actually called - The Mosconi Cup
 
This is from Baltimore thanks I have 5 or 6 other pics and I think Jose Garcia from PA NJ area and Dominguez ... I dont think I have F. Hernandez in any of them.

Cheers
 
Tony,

Sure looks like Mike Sigel standing to the far right leaning on the railing. Earl, Buddy, Rempe and the guy with his arms folded looks like (but probably isn't) Tom Rossman. Guess the small crowd thing is just the way pool is. Then and now.

Lyn
 
It is definitely World Team Billiards. Referee is Mike McAndrew, Tony Robles is shooting then we have Machine Gun Lou Butera. Buddy, King Jim and Earl are there with CJ Wiley. Just off camera next to him is Johnny Archer.
Kim Davenport, Howard Vickery, Nick Varner, Mike Sigel, Little David Howard and Bob Meucci arre there. Pretty Boy Floyd (Jimmy Mataya) was in the commentary box.

In the audience..........
 
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I have most of the World Team Billiards matches including Rodney Morris in Team Hawaii plus Team Mexico, Team Sweden, Team Scotland (with Michaela Tabb's husband Ross McInnes) . Most of the players in the picture formed Team USA Allstars (a fourteen man team) that played against The Best of the Rest
 
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It is definitely World Team Billiards. Referee is Mike McAndrew, Tony Robles is shooting then we have Machine Gun Lou Butera. Buddy, King Jim and Earl are there with CJ Wiley. Just off camera next to him is Allen Hopkins.
Kim Davenport, Howard Vickery, Nick Varner, Mike Sigel, Little David Howard and Bob Meucci arre there. Pretty Boy Floyd (Jimmy Mataya) was in the commentary box.

In the audience..........

That's when Shadow's mullet was in its PRIME.
 
Team USA

This was 1994 and it was the quarter finals of Don Mackey's World Team Billiards. The Puerto Ricans, captained by 'Spanish' Mike Lebron beat Team USA. Tony Robles is the player shooting and the team also included Frankie Hernandez.

The PR team went to the Las Vegas for the semi finals and final. But they were stopped short by my boys (Team Ireland). This was a major shock because we had only played the game of 9 Ball for six weeks. We went on to meet the Team Philippines monster squad (Reyes, Parica, Busta, Andam and Luat) in the final. We were ahead 4-3 when a miscue from Tommy Donlon handed the table back to the Filipinos and they ran the match 7-4. The prize money was $50k for Team Philippines and another $50k was split between us, PR and Team Germany. It took me 10 months and a little persuasion to get our $17k share of the prize money but I don't think any of the other teams got paid.
I will stand corrected if this was not the case.

Strangely enough the tournament was actually called - The Mosconi Cup


Doug-
You are just full of old pool info! I remember Sigel, Rempe, and maybe Davenport were in Alaska staying at our house. (not sure if Kimmer was there this trip or not) and they got a telephone call that the team concept was 'on'.

I think that was around summer of 93. This was promoted by Don MacKey if I remember.

Seems like yesterday!

Mark Griffin
 
Doug-
You are just full of old pool info! I remember Sigel, Rempe, and maybe Davenport were in Alaska staying at our house. (not sure if Kimmer was there this trip or not) and they got a telephone call that the team concept was 'on'.

I think that was around summer of 93. This was promoted by Don MacKey if I remember.

Seems like yesterday!

Mark Griffin

Here is a bit more Mark
The tournament was sponsored by World Wide Collectibles (you can see part of their banner in the new pictures)/. I went to Vegas with Team Ireland where WWC were launching a series of collectors cards featuring pool players. The 85 card set showed each of the leading players of the day. But notably missing were Team Mexico because their players refused to be photographed for fear of losing action if their faces became recognised. The company was headed bY Maurice Rind (a nephew of the notorious Meyer Lansky who along with Bugsy Siegel was credited with creating the Vegas concept model.
I met Maurice and we discussed doing a similar card set for the top darts players. He agreed and brought me back three weeks later to the Sahara for the Darts World Cup.
I was going to do the players biographies on the back of the cards but the top echelons of dart players were just breaking away from the existing governing body and I was unable to get them to agree to work together on this project. I wasn't able to make them 'an offer they could not refuse'.
I have two sets of the billiards cards. If you want one of them then I will send one to you. In exchange you can make a personal donation to Brandon Shuff for his trip to thr Worrld 8 Ball.
 
This is from Baltimore thanks I have 5 or 6 other pics and I think Jose Garcia from PA NJ area and Dominguez ... I dont think I have F. Hernandez in any of them.

Cheers

Jose Garcia, although Puerto Rican, was not part of Team Puerto Rico.
Dominguez is from Mexico.

Team Puerto Rico was Mike Lebron, Tony Robles, Frankie Hernandez, Efrain Morales, and Jose Robles.
 
Jose Garcia, although Puerto Rican, was not part of Team Puerto Rico.
Dominguez is from Mexico.

Team Puerto Rico was Mike Lebron, Tony Robles, Frankie Hernandez, Efrain Morales, and Jose Robles.

Long Time, No Hear Harold!
That was the team that we beat in the World Team Billiards semi finals in Vegas. But the event was double elimination and they came back to beat Team Germany and we lost in the final to the Filipinos. So we rematched with your men again. The match was tight but Puerto Rica went a rack ahead and Mike Lebron did an Oscar worthy impression of The Six Million Dollar Man by doing everything in slow motion to run out the match time clock. That was the first time I had met them but all three turned up in Cardiff for the World 9 Ball in 1999.

Neither Jose Garcia or Ernesto were at the Baltimore match so they cannot be in the pictures.
 
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Here is a bit more Mark
The tournament was sponsored by World Wide Collectibles (you can see part of their banner in the new pictures)/. I went to Vegas with Team Ireland where WWC were launching a series of collectors cards featuring pool players. The 85 card set showed each of the leading players of the day. But notably missing were Team Mexico because their players refused to be photographed for fear of losing action if their faces became recognised. The company was headed bY Maurice Rind (a nephew of the notorious Meyer Lansky who along with Bugsy Siegel was credited with creating the Vegas concept model.
I met Maurice and we discussed doing a similar card set for the top darts players. He agreed and brought me back three weeks later to the Sahara for the Darts World Cup.
I was going to do the players biographies on the back of the cards but the top echelons of dart players were just breaking away from the existing governing body and I was unable to get them to agree to work together on this project. I wasn't able to make them 'an offer they could not refuse'.
I have two sets of the billiards cards. If you want one of them then I will send one to you. In exchange you can make a personal donation to Brandon Shuff for his trip to thr Worrld 8 Ball.

Doug you are awesome! Will I be seeing you in next month at world 8ball?
 
Here is a bit more Mark
The tournament was sponsored by World Wide Collectibles (you can see part of their banner in the new pictures)/. I went to Vegas with Team Ireland where WWC were launching a series of collectors cards featuring pool players. The 132 card set showed each of the leading players of the day. But notably missing were Team Mexico because their players refused to be photographed for fear of losing action if their faces became recognised. The company was headed bY Maurice Rind (a nephew of the notorious Meyer Lansky who along with Bugsy Siegel was credited with creating the Vegas concept model.
I met Maurice and we discussed doing a similar card set for the top darts players. He agreed and brought me back three weeks later to the Sahara for the Darts World Cup.
I was going to do the players biographies on the back of the cards but the top echelons of dart players were just breaking away from the existing governing body and I was unable to get them to agree to work together on this project. I wasn't able to make them 'an offer they could not refuse'.
I have two sets of the billiards cards. If you want one of them then I will send one to you. In exchange you can make a personal donation to Brandon Shuff for his trip to thr Worrld 8 Ball.

If anyone else would like a set of these 132 cards and would like to help Brandon to represent the USA in the World 8 Ball I have acquired a couple of extra sets. They were the first set of trading cards to be covered by an Authentication Verification System which guaranteed them as part of a genuine limited edition.
They will cost $50 as a minimum bid. So post up on here with an offer and I will email instructions to successful participants on how to get the money direct to Brandon himself. Come on support your player.
 
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