There is nothing better than a tournament down South, and this weekend, the Virginia State 9-Ball Championship was no exception. Held at The Playing Field in Richmond, there was a full field of 64 with 10 hopeful players on the waiting list. Tournament Director Josh Dickerson pulled off a perfect event the second year in a row.
Todd Elkins of Parrot Cues was the main sponsor, and his business has skyrocketed in recent years, due to high-quality workmanship. Wanting to give back to the pool community, his contributions to getting this event going is greatly appreciated.
Needless to say, I am on cloud nine this morning after witnessing one of the BEST finals of the year between 48-year-old Keith McCready and 15-year-old Chris Futrell. Every now and then in my travels, I get the opportunity to see champions in the making, and make no mistake about it, Chris Futrell is the real deal.
Keith knocked Chris to the B side of the chart earlier in the tournament, but the match could have gone either way, ending up in a tension-filled hill-hill, with Keith coming out on top. Chris knocked down quite a few heavy-hitters on his way to the finals and was definitely the crowd favorite. The youngster had a table-side demeanor of a seasoned pro, maintaining his game face throughout the match. His break is powerful, and he can run out better than most seasoned veterans. It was truly a joy to witness this kid on a field of green, and be sure to check him out at the upcoming U.S. Open. He is one pool-playing machine.
Chris' mom dropped him off each day at The Playing Field, but left him alone to do battle, not wanting to make him nervous. So, while Chris was fighting his way to the top, she took the rest of the family to the movies and hoped for the best. Chris called her up on his cell phone between each and every match, giving her the updates. She knows Chris has talent and supports him 100 percent. Here's an example of a kid who grew up playing pool at Q-Masters pool room and pursued his dream to be all that he can be, and it paid off. And he's only 15 years old.
Chris and Keith lagged for the break in the finals in this double-elimination format, with one extended race to 11 for the championship. Keith missed it by a mile, and Chris got the first break. I think Keith was a little cold sitting on the rail waiting for the losers' bracket to play out, but his first shot at the table, he managed to win 4 games in a row, with a couple of break-and-runs, making the score 4-zip. I was feeling a wee bit more comfortable sitting on the rail at this juncture with my horse in the race having a 4-game lead, but that was soon replaced with tension and lots of nail-biting.
Chris was cool as a cucumber and just waited patiently for an opportunity to get back to the table, and when he did, he let Keith know he was there. Soon the score was 5 to 5, and I began to sweat bullets watching the child pool phenom execute perfect safety plays and a few break-and-runs of his own, and before I knew it, Chris snatched the lead, 7 to 5, as Keith sat helplessly watching this youngster give it his all. The shot of the finals had to have been when Keith executed a perfect safety play that would have made Efren Reyes scratch his head, but Chris didn't bat an eyelash and managed to not only make a good hit, but pocketed the ball with a two-rail bank. The crowd became unglued, and Futrell now had the momentum to keep it going.
The pockets on the GC's were not friendly to the pool players this weekend. They were tighter than most, and I heard from the previous House Pro of The Playing Field, John Dagonhartt, that the materials used for the rubber was harder than most. So, when a player would try to cheat the pocket or hit the ball with a little draw, sometimes it would bounce and wiggle back and forth, leaving the next player in line a duck.
Showing no fear whatsoever, Chris was running out like a machine. The turning point in the set had to have been when the score was 7 to 5, Chris' favor. He hit a 7-ball with authority, but it wouldn't drop, thanks to those unforgiving pockets, and it just lay there for the taking. McCready seized the golden opportunity, and soon tied the score, 7 to 7 going to 11. The remaining few games were mostly all Keith's with the final score of 11 to 8.
Here is a picture of Runner-Up Chris Futrell, Tournament Director Josh Dickerson, and Keith McCready, the new 2005 Virginia State 9-Ball Champion!
JAM
Todd Elkins of Parrot Cues was the main sponsor, and his business has skyrocketed in recent years, due to high-quality workmanship. Wanting to give back to the pool community, his contributions to getting this event going is greatly appreciated.
Needless to say, I am on cloud nine this morning after witnessing one of the BEST finals of the year between 48-year-old Keith McCready and 15-year-old Chris Futrell. Every now and then in my travels, I get the opportunity to see champions in the making, and make no mistake about it, Chris Futrell is the real deal.
Keith knocked Chris to the B side of the chart earlier in the tournament, but the match could have gone either way, ending up in a tension-filled hill-hill, with Keith coming out on top. Chris knocked down quite a few heavy-hitters on his way to the finals and was definitely the crowd favorite. The youngster had a table-side demeanor of a seasoned pro, maintaining his game face throughout the match. His break is powerful, and he can run out better than most seasoned veterans. It was truly a joy to witness this kid on a field of green, and be sure to check him out at the upcoming U.S. Open. He is one pool-playing machine.
Chris' mom dropped him off each day at The Playing Field, but left him alone to do battle, not wanting to make him nervous. So, while Chris was fighting his way to the top, she took the rest of the family to the movies and hoped for the best. Chris called her up on his cell phone between each and every match, giving her the updates. She knows Chris has talent and supports him 100 percent. Here's an example of a kid who grew up playing pool at Q-Masters pool room and pursued his dream to be all that he can be, and it paid off. And he's only 15 years old.
Chris and Keith lagged for the break in the finals in this double-elimination format, with one extended race to 11 for the championship. Keith missed it by a mile, and Chris got the first break. I think Keith was a little cold sitting on the rail waiting for the losers' bracket to play out, but his first shot at the table, he managed to win 4 games in a row, with a couple of break-and-runs, making the score 4-zip. I was feeling a wee bit more comfortable sitting on the rail at this juncture with my horse in the race having a 4-game lead, but that was soon replaced with tension and lots of nail-biting.
Chris was cool as a cucumber and just waited patiently for an opportunity to get back to the table, and when he did, he let Keith know he was there. Soon the score was 5 to 5, and I began to sweat bullets watching the child pool phenom execute perfect safety plays and a few break-and-runs of his own, and before I knew it, Chris snatched the lead, 7 to 5, as Keith sat helplessly watching this youngster give it his all. The shot of the finals had to have been when Keith executed a perfect safety play that would have made Efren Reyes scratch his head, but Chris didn't bat an eyelash and managed to not only make a good hit, but pocketed the ball with a two-rail bank. The crowd became unglued, and Futrell now had the momentum to keep it going.
The pockets on the GC's were not friendly to the pool players this weekend. They were tighter than most, and I heard from the previous House Pro of The Playing Field, John Dagonhartt, that the materials used for the rubber was harder than most. So, when a player would try to cheat the pocket or hit the ball with a little draw, sometimes it would bounce and wiggle back and forth, leaving the next player in line a duck.
Showing no fear whatsoever, Chris was running out like a machine. The turning point in the set had to have been when the score was 7 to 5, Chris' favor. He hit a 7-ball with authority, but it wouldn't drop, thanks to those unforgiving pockets, and it just lay there for the taking. McCready seized the golden opportunity, and soon tied the score, 7 to 7 going to 11. The remaining few games were mostly all Keith's with the final score of 11 to 8.
Here is a picture of Runner-Up Chris Futrell, Tournament Director Josh Dickerson, and Keith McCready, the new 2005 Virginia State 9-Ball Champion!
JAM
