Just got a call from Virginia Young Gun Brandon Shuff who is having a blast on his first trip to Las Vegas. He finished 9th through 12th in the one-pocket tournament, and he's getting ready to play his first match in the Banks tournament. This field is limited to 32 players, and the entry fee was 100 bucks. Shannon Daulton, Ronnie Wiseman, and Gabe Owen are some of the players in this event. Brandon's first match is with a player named Shawn Thompson.
Brandon came to Vegas at the last minute, due to a cancellation of another player who couldn't enjoy a NUTS qualifier spot. Here he was in the gambling capital of the world, but unfortunately the 22-year-old hadn't time to prepare and was a little, shall we say, on the shortskies.
With nothing but time on his hands and only a few nickels to rub together, Brandon decided to mosey on over to the Cue Club, figuring he'd check out the scene. Apparently, some of the stakehorses in attendance liked Brandon's style when they saw the kid banging a few balls around and ended up staking him against another young player, a Filipino named Dayo. The stakes were high; 9-ball, racing to 15. Brandon snapped it off, 15 to 8, and now has a little jingle in his pocket, thanks to the goodwill of some Vegas locals.
BTW, Brandon said the finals of the one-pocket tournament between Scott Frost and Gabe Owen was pool at its finest. The winning game for The Freezer went something like this. Gabe breaks, and after a back-and-forth, he has two ballls in, and Scott needs nine, due to an earlier foul. Gabe played a safety, but Scott ended up pulling out a terrific bank-combo shot which brough the crowd to their feet, and he proceeded to run the table out and captured the U.S. Open One-Pocket Championship title.
One day you're down, and the next day you're up. C'est la vie in Las Vegas. I'm supposed to get an update at 7:00 p.m. on the banks, my time [EST], and will post anything noteworthy!
JAM
Brandon came to Vegas at the last minute, due to a cancellation of another player who couldn't enjoy a NUTS qualifier spot. Here he was in the gambling capital of the world, but unfortunately the 22-year-old hadn't time to prepare and was a little, shall we say, on the shortskies.
With nothing but time on his hands and only a few nickels to rub together, Brandon decided to mosey on over to the Cue Club, figuring he'd check out the scene. Apparently, some of the stakehorses in attendance liked Brandon's style when they saw the kid banging a few balls around and ended up staking him against another young player, a Filipino named Dayo. The stakes were high; 9-ball, racing to 15. Brandon snapped it off, 15 to 8, and now has a little jingle in his pocket, thanks to the goodwill of some Vegas locals.
BTW, Brandon said the finals of the one-pocket tournament between Scott Frost and Gabe Owen was pool at its finest. The winning game for The Freezer went something like this. Gabe breaks, and after a back-and-forth, he has two ballls in, and Scott needs nine, due to an earlier foul. Gabe played a safety, but Scott ended up pulling out a terrific bank-combo shot which brough the crowd to their feet, and he proceeded to run the table out and captured the U.S. Open One-Pocket Championship title.
One day you're down, and the next day you're up. C'est la vie in Las Vegas. I'm supposed to get an update at 7:00 p.m. on the banks, my time [EST], and will post anything noteworthy!
JAM
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