I have to say, my breathe was taken away. I was so close to the best that I do believe some of their talent may have rubbed off on me. Or better yet, I hope. I consider myself extremely lucky for the simple reason that I am a New Yorker living in South Korea. And Max, Thorsten, Mika, Jennifer, Charlie and I all had two things in common: the passion for pool and the English language! So basically since not many there could speak English, they were forced to communicate with me!
Actually, everyone I met at the event were considerate, well-mannered and out-going. I arrived on Wednesday night in Incheon with my Korean friend Young-jin. We shot around a bit,nothing serious because I couldn't keep my eyes off of the door. Just hoping and anticipating the arrival of the top stars. I was out of luck, no stars arrived and I still had to pay the game fees for losing all night! So off to bed I went. Tossing,turning and waiting for sunrise doesn't qualify sleeping but thank the good lord for videos to pass the time.
Thursday I tried to focus on the qualifying rounds. I couldn't find a single bit of focus and I am sure you know why. The Korean Dragon was on hand so 1/5 of my nervousness had subsided. That wasn't enough unfortunately and I went out in the first round. Even with the support of my buddy, ex-NBA star Ken Washington watching and coaching me I still managed to scrape out only two games. Oh, did I mention I drew my buddy Young-jin in the first round? LOL, that wasn't so nice...
On Thursday night, we narrowed it down to the 8 qualifying finalists. But that was second to the much anticipated arrival of Max, Thorsten, Mika and Jennifer. I am not one to just walk up and introduce myself so I waited patiently for a proper introduction. It came Friday morning before the tournament started. Charlie was gracious enough to do so. Thank you Charlie!!
I talked a bit with each of the stars and each had their own distinct personalities. Each of them brilliant with their knowledge of billiards. And to top it all off, I was absolutely amazed with their kindness. I mean, how many people can say Thorsten Hohmann bought them lunch?
I sat their from Friday afternoon until Sunday midnight watching every game possible. Now I know why Mika is called "Iceman". Nothing seemed to bother him. Against Korea's top player Park Shin-young, he won the lag, broke and ran. Then on his next break he failed to pocket a ball, leaving an open shot for Park. Park ran the next four racks bringing the crowd into a frenzy. I glanced around into eyes of hope and anxiousness. Sorry people, but the Iceman have cometh. Mika ran 9 straight racks bringing the score to 10-4. I specifically remember Mika breaking on rack number 8 and leaving the cue ball behind the 7 with the 1-ball on the rail. Park stood up, smiled after hearing from the crowd in Korean "It's your turn now, show the kid what you got" and prepared for his turn. "It's still my table" was the look I saw in the Iceman's eyes as he masse'd the cue around the 7, cutting the 1-ball into the corner pocket. My mouth dropped while the crowd silenced. And Park, well, he never really recovered...
It was my first time to watch Max Eberle. I heard of him of course, but never really got the chance to witness his play. I feel so incredibly lucky now that I have had the chance. Max doesn't stop smiling throughout the entire match. Even when he was down, he kept that smile. I watched him on and off the table, just to see his reactions. Nothing seems to bother him, nothing. And his love for the game simply pours out while he plays that I felt like I was observing 9-ball poetry.
I still can't get over how wonderful of a person Thorsten Hohmann is. I was so scared to meet him at first. He has this rare aura of greatness surrounding him in which I felt pool inadequacy in his presence. But that disappeared immediately after our introduction. He is the type of person that you feel like you have been friends with forever, shortly after you meet for the first time. He has to be the most knowledgeable pool player in the world. His 9-ball skills seem so flawless that one has to wonder, am I practicing enough? And the answer would most definitely be a resounding, NO.
During one of Thorstens matches, I got to sit next to Jennifer Baretta. I absolutely love her attitude. She radiates so much positive energy that you feel like you want to just get up and find a table to play on. And what she has accomplished in such a short time is amazing. How could someone be that good, that quick? Dedication and Determination...That is Jennifer Baretta.
Well, I had to do it. I had to save the best for last! Here comes Charlie! He is by far my favorite pool player. I know I am too old to be having idols, especially when they are 6 years younger than you but come on, it's Charlie Williams! I could go on and on and on and on about his superb personality but this is a billiards website, not matchmaker.com right? Here is how the tournament started. During the calcutta(player auction) we were able to buy a player who you thought was going to win the whole thing. I of course chose C.W. As I pointed to him as my choice, he laughed and said "Justin, I haven't played all week and I am running this tournament! I am a terrible choice!". I just smiled and said, leave the betting up to me for I only invest in greatness. Boy did I choose right! He played so comfortably and with such confidence from the first match that I knew right away it was inevitable. I also bought my young Korean buddy who met Charlie and had him 8-6 in a race to 9!! He had only one game to win and send Charlie to the losers bracket. But he couldn't close the deal and the Korean Dragon won 3 in a row to finish my boy off. In the final 8, C.W. met another Korean who broke and ran the first rack to the 9. He missed an easy shot, leaving the table to Charlie. Charlie then won the next 10 games in a row!!! In the final four he matched up against Thorsten. By this time, C.W.'s confidence was too overwhelming. Hohmann put up a good fight but it wasn't enough to slay this dragon especially on his home court. During the finals with Mika, with whom he hasn't beaten for a while now, was so accurate that Immonem would have had to played a perfect game. Fortunately for Dragon, that wasn't so. And my prediction came through... Charlie gets his revenge, and remains the champ!
As I stated before, I am one lucky New Yorkan!
Actually, everyone I met at the event were considerate, well-mannered and out-going. I arrived on Wednesday night in Incheon with my Korean friend Young-jin. We shot around a bit,nothing serious because I couldn't keep my eyes off of the door. Just hoping and anticipating the arrival of the top stars. I was out of luck, no stars arrived and I still had to pay the game fees for losing all night! So off to bed I went. Tossing,turning and waiting for sunrise doesn't qualify sleeping but thank the good lord for videos to pass the time.
Thursday I tried to focus on the qualifying rounds. I couldn't find a single bit of focus and I am sure you know why. The Korean Dragon was on hand so 1/5 of my nervousness had subsided. That wasn't enough unfortunately and I went out in the first round. Even with the support of my buddy, ex-NBA star Ken Washington watching and coaching me I still managed to scrape out only two games. Oh, did I mention I drew my buddy Young-jin in the first round? LOL, that wasn't so nice...
On Thursday night, we narrowed it down to the 8 qualifying finalists. But that was second to the much anticipated arrival of Max, Thorsten, Mika and Jennifer. I am not one to just walk up and introduce myself so I waited patiently for a proper introduction. It came Friday morning before the tournament started. Charlie was gracious enough to do so. Thank you Charlie!!
I talked a bit with each of the stars and each had their own distinct personalities. Each of them brilliant with their knowledge of billiards. And to top it all off, I was absolutely amazed with their kindness. I mean, how many people can say Thorsten Hohmann bought them lunch?
I sat their from Friday afternoon until Sunday midnight watching every game possible. Now I know why Mika is called "Iceman". Nothing seemed to bother him. Against Korea's top player Park Shin-young, he won the lag, broke and ran. Then on his next break he failed to pocket a ball, leaving an open shot for Park. Park ran the next four racks bringing the crowd into a frenzy. I glanced around into eyes of hope and anxiousness. Sorry people, but the Iceman have cometh. Mika ran 9 straight racks bringing the score to 10-4. I specifically remember Mika breaking on rack number 8 and leaving the cue ball behind the 7 with the 1-ball on the rail. Park stood up, smiled after hearing from the crowd in Korean "It's your turn now, show the kid what you got" and prepared for his turn. "It's still my table" was the look I saw in the Iceman's eyes as he masse'd the cue around the 7, cutting the 1-ball into the corner pocket. My mouth dropped while the crowd silenced. And Park, well, he never really recovered...
It was my first time to watch Max Eberle. I heard of him of course, but never really got the chance to witness his play. I feel so incredibly lucky now that I have had the chance. Max doesn't stop smiling throughout the entire match. Even when he was down, he kept that smile. I watched him on and off the table, just to see his reactions. Nothing seems to bother him, nothing. And his love for the game simply pours out while he plays that I felt like I was observing 9-ball poetry.
I still can't get over how wonderful of a person Thorsten Hohmann is. I was so scared to meet him at first. He has this rare aura of greatness surrounding him in which I felt pool inadequacy in his presence. But that disappeared immediately after our introduction. He is the type of person that you feel like you have been friends with forever, shortly after you meet for the first time. He has to be the most knowledgeable pool player in the world. His 9-ball skills seem so flawless that one has to wonder, am I practicing enough? And the answer would most definitely be a resounding, NO.
During one of Thorstens matches, I got to sit next to Jennifer Baretta. I absolutely love her attitude. She radiates so much positive energy that you feel like you want to just get up and find a table to play on. And what she has accomplished in such a short time is amazing. How could someone be that good, that quick? Dedication and Determination...That is Jennifer Baretta.
Well, I had to do it. I had to save the best for last! Here comes Charlie! He is by far my favorite pool player. I know I am too old to be having idols, especially when they are 6 years younger than you but come on, it's Charlie Williams! I could go on and on and on and on about his superb personality but this is a billiards website, not matchmaker.com right? Here is how the tournament started. During the calcutta(player auction) we were able to buy a player who you thought was going to win the whole thing. I of course chose C.W. As I pointed to him as my choice, he laughed and said "Justin, I haven't played all week and I am running this tournament! I am a terrible choice!". I just smiled and said, leave the betting up to me for I only invest in greatness. Boy did I choose right! He played so comfortably and with such confidence from the first match that I knew right away it was inevitable. I also bought my young Korean buddy who met Charlie and had him 8-6 in a race to 9!! He had only one game to win and send Charlie to the losers bracket. But he couldn't close the deal and the Korean Dragon won 3 in a row to finish my boy off. In the final 8, C.W. met another Korean who broke and ran the first rack to the 9. He missed an easy shot, leaving the table to Charlie. Charlie then won the next 10 games in a row!!! In the final four he matched up against Thorsten. By this time, C.W.'s confidence was too overwhelming. Hohmann put up a good fight but it wasn't enough to slay this dragon especially on his home court. During the finals with Mika, with whom he hasn't beaten for a while now, was so accurate that Immonem would have had to played a perfect game. Fortunately for Dragon, that wasn't so. And my prediction came through... Charlie gets his revenge, and remains the champ!
As I stated before, I am one lucky New Yorkan!
