Tony's Web Log 10/1/2008 Kf Cue Tour latest TJ’s Billiards in New Port Richey, Florida. Was the host location for inaugural KF Cue Tour Event Saturday would see a very strong field of 25 players turn up with for a piece of the $1,720 purse.  Notable names in attendance included Johnathon Pinegar , Donnie Mills, Trevor Braymore, Tony Crosby, WPBA player Tracy Hines, Current US national Amateur Champion Jason Richko. There was some great first round matches with Donnie Mills defeating Jason Richko 9-6, Jonathon Pinegar defeated Justin Hall 9-7, Trevor Braymore defeated Tony Ruberto 9-3. Jonathon Pinegar would follow his win up over Hall with wins over Billy Moses 9-8, Louie (The Spoiler) Smith 9-3 which put him in the winners final where he would also meet a man on a mission Julio Aquino. Aquino had battled his way through Kevin Overton 9-4, Tournament Director Tony Crosby 9-7, James Roberts 9-1 to get to the final. Pinegar would win this match to take the hotseat 9-6 and sit back to see who would play him in the final. There were two men on the one loss side on similar missions with Justin hall toughing his way through with wins over WPBA pro Tracie Hines 9-4, Adam Wheeler 9-7, Tony Crosby 9-5, Jason Richko 9-7 and Louie Smith 9-6 he would now play Tony Ruberto who had also been toughing his way through the one loss side with wins over Taz Naravane 9-3, Rocky Mcelroy 9-0, Jim Oddy 9-1, Billy Moses 9-6, James Roberts 9-7 he would eventually come unstuck to Hall 9-5. To leave him in 4th spot. Hall would now be playing a determined Aquino for a shot in the final. Aquino would bring halls run to an end with a very hard fought 9-6 win. The finals looked like it was going to be one way traffic with Pinegar (hennesy) stroming into an 8-3, Julio had other ideas going onto play some great pool to win the next 5 racks to level the match. The next few racks would be battled out with Aquino moving ahead in the match 10-9, a dry break would see Pinegar back to the table to run the rack out and tie it hill hill for the title. Pinegar broke the balls dry in the last rack and left the 9 hanging and just when it looked like it was going to be all over the last ball rolling would block Aquino from a shot on the one, with the 9 hanging and the 2 ball right next to it Aquino decided to jump over the ball only to fould and hand Pinegar the win and first place. 1st Jonathon Pinegar, 2nd Julio Aquino, 3rd Justin Hall, 4th Tony Ruberto, 5/6th James Roberts & Louie Smith. The event also had prizes for top junior players Bryce Lepak who at 11 years of age is showing signs of a very strong player for the future and Taz Naravane another local top rated junior player. The ladies top honors were shared by Tracie Hines and Stephanie Mitchell. Sundays Amateur event Kicked off with a field of 32 players battling it out for a share of $1420 that was in the pot. The Amateur event is slightly handicapped due to some of the high level players in the area. I realized when starting this tour that if I didn’t handicap the high level Amateurs by 2 racks that it would be unfair. On the day there was 8 players giving there opponents a 2 rack advantage and I feel this was a big success in leveling out the field. On the one loss side high level players would still have to go to 7 and there opponents 5. However this did not Stop James Roberts who went onto win the event with the handicap. James went undefeated to the winners side final where he was pitted against Michael Delawder from Orlando who was having his best ever tournament reaching the final of the winners bracket. Michael would keep his great day going sending Roberts to the one loss side of the chart. Roberts would have to clear his head fast as his next opponent Louie (The Spoiler) Smith had been on a rampage after dropping his first round match to Trey Jankowski. Louie would make it to the one loss side final (Semis) with wins over Josh Lewis(high level) 5-3, Taz Naravane 5-2, Travis Croft 5-2, Scott Howard 5-1, Jason Richko (high level) 5-4, Bobby livrago( high Level) 5-2, Mark Wathen 5-2 before meeting up with a determined Roberts who halted his run with a 7-3 defeat leaving Louie in 3rd place. The final would see Roberts have to go to 9 and Delawder to 7, This was a very good match with Roberts breezing into a 4-0 lead and Delawder fighting hard to win the next 3 racks. They traded the next 5 racks with Roberts edging 7-5 ahead. A dry break would be Delawders last chance at the table with Roberts running the rack and then breaking and running the last to take the Amateur Title. 1st James Roberts, 2nd Michael Delawder, 3rd Louie Smith, 4th Mark Wathen, 5/6th Bobby Livrago & Keelan Mccullers, 7/8th Ted Lepak & Jason Richko. Top Junior finisher was 11 year old Bryce Lepak Top Ladies finisher, Stephanie Micthell. The KF Cue Tour would like to thank TJ Fiorneli for hosting the event. Tjs Sports bar and Grill this is another high class pool room in the Bay area. We would also like to thank our sponsors and all the players that turned out to make this event and also Natalie and Tracie Hines who worked tremendously hard to help run both events. Please support the people who support the tour visit our sponsors page and check out all the latest products. Thanks Tony Crosby KF Cue Tour Director 9/16/2008 Deuel Wins on home court Deuel went undefeated in the latest Florida pro Tour event at Capones where he is also the house Pro. Deuel breezed into the final beating Donnie Mills 8-1 and then scoring another convincing win over Charlie Williams 9-4 My next event will be the KF cue Tour, Tjs, in New Port Richey is the venue. Thanks Tony Crosby 9/4/2008 KF Cue Tour, Web Site The KF cue tour is weeks away from it first event. The tour is getting a lot of press in the Pool World and has just lauched it user freindly website www.kfcuetour.com The website will give you all the latest news on tour dates, Rankings Winners and latest news on what the tour is doing. You can sign up for our news letters and press releases by entering your email address to be kept up with the latest news. We look forward to seeing you at the newest pool room in Florida, TJ"S in New Port Richey. This event will also be played on new Brunswick Metro tables which is another bonus. on the 27th/28th of September. Visit the website and sign up for our news letters. Thanks Tony Crosby 8/25/2008 Upto No 10 in the Rankings After my last event in NY last week I have jumped upto World No 10 on the Pro ranking list. I have been trying for 3 years to break into the top 10 and have been bordering the on 12-13 for the last year. My game is improving all the time and one or two more good finishes would see me break into the top 5. I want to thank all the people who have been supporting me. My next ranking event will be the US Open in Virginia oct 19 thru 26th. I am feeling very good about my game and the things I have been working on are paying off. My next event will be the Florida Pro Tour at Cappones in Spring Hill, september 10. Thanks Tony crosby 8/19/2008 Turning Stone Results I just got back from the Joss $25k Added ranking event. This was a full 128 man field and was stacked with some of the best plaers in the world. My results over the weekend were as follows Tony Crosby beat Aaron Greenwood 9 - 2, Tony Crosby lost to Johnny Archer 9 - 5 after losing to Johnny I would play one more match friday nigt beating Mike Wallace 9 - 5. I would now come back on Saturday and play six matches back to back which was a very hard days Pool, My results from saturday are as follows. Tony Crosby Beat Shin Park 9 - 7 Tony Crosby Beat Walter Szydlowski 9 - 6 Tony Crosby Beat Matt Krah 9 - 5 Tony Crosby Beat Greg Antonakos 9 - 3 Tony Crosby Beat Ernesto Dominguez 9 - 8 I would then lose in the last round of the night to Shane Van Boening 9 - 5 who played well but also gave me many chances that I failed to convert. The event would see me finish in a respectable 9th place and the man that beat me in the second round Johnny Archer go onto win beating Charlie Williams in the Final. My next event is going to be he Florida Pro tour at CApppones in Spring Hill which is very close to where I live. Thank to everybody for there support in this event. Tony Crosby 8/11/2008 KF CUE Tour Coming Soon KF Cues 9-Ball Tour Tony Crosby Partnership Comes to Fruition Between Tony Crosby and K.F. Cues K.F. Cues (Kao Fa Cues) has been a supporter of the billiard industry for many years now and as of late, a more recent sponsor to two of the top professional players in the United States, Ga Young Kim and Tony Crosby. The cue maker/manufacturer has decided to take that sponsorship one step further in the way of teaming up with Tony Crosby as lead sponsor of his upcoming tour – the KF Cues 9-Ball Tour. K.F. Cues defines themselves as the leading professional in delivering exquisite pool cues and accessories. The company provides customers with not just sheer comfort, but stability and precision, along with excellent customer service. With forty years of cue making experience, K.F. Cues has extensive knowledge and offers absolute professionalism in what pool players need. As if the company being one of only a few ICA certified cue manufacturers was not enough of a credential to boast, support continues to grow via the professional pool scene with names such as Fong-Pang Chao, Tony Crosby, Ga Young Kim, and Xiao-Ting Pan proving its reputation in the billiards industry. Crosby, along with K.F. Cues, will kick off their first season together this September 27th-28th at TJ’s Billiards in New Port Richey, Florida, with its $1600 total added events. The tour will offer $1000 added open nine-ball events on Saturday and Sunday; and $600 added amateur events Sunday only. Entries will vary for the two divisions: the main event will run $65 which includes a $10 green fee and $10 registration fee; while the amateur field will be $50 with the same green fee/registration fee included. Juniors will play for $15, amateur ladies receive half-off entries, plus a discount will be received by those that play both divisions. Prizes will be provided to top juniors and top women players, along with Player of the Year honors. Specifics for each are as follows ($20 tour card required for participation): Open Events: Races to 9W/9L Double Elimination Winner Breaks (rack your own) Standardized World Pool Rules Amateur Events: Races to 7W/5L Double Elimination Top Level Amateurs Will Be Handicapped* *Note: Top Level Amateur players will give a two rack start (handicap) to lower speed up-and-coming amateur players – this has been setup in this manner to avoid excluding higher speed amateur players who have not yet reached professional level from competing in tour events The tour will primarily focus on the Tampa Bay area of the state, with approximately eleven scheduled events and a season finale to cap the season off. The tour has already received rave reviews from many and has acquired support from top names in the billiard industry including Stroke It Wear, Sniper Cues, Tiger Products, Axiom Pool Tables, Vigor Shafts, Extreme Focus Vitamin Water, AZBilliards.com, Billiard Scoop, Billiards Digest, and Inside Pool Magazine. “In the last few years, Florida has grown to become a pool mecca to many of the best pool players in the world whether they be residents or by simply traveling through the area to attend some of the larger events that take place in the region. The K.F. Cues 9-Ball Tour has already sparked major interest with many pool rooms and players from outside of the state with interest in not only attending, but hosting events. I believe the tour will be a success and is just what Florida needs at this time. I have worked with K.F. Cues for over a year now and stand by the products they produce, the partnership is a fantastic opportunity for both of us as K.F. Cues makes some of the best hitting cues on the market today and the tour is an excellent way to show off and promote their products here in the US.” - Tour Director, Tony Crosby We look forward to seeing you all out on tour! If you would like to learn more about the tour visit www.kfcuetour.com (tour) or for additional information about the tour’s title sponsor, K.F. Cues, visit www.poolcues.com.tw or www.vigorshaft.com The complete schedule can be found on the tour website. If you would like to be added to the mailing list, email either Tony Crosby at tony@strokeitwear.com, Natalie Crosby at natalie@strokeitwear.com, or call (727) 488-0536. By Sherry Pouncey - AzB Staff - 2008-08-06 Upcoming Events KF Cues 9-Ball Tour Season Opener TJ's Billiards New Port Richey, FL September 27 - 28, 2008 $1600 total added: $1000 added open 9ball event Saturday/Sunday (Entry $65 includes $10 green fee/$10 registration fee); $600 added amateur 9ball event Sunday only (Entry $50 includes $10 green fee/$10 registration fee) For more info: www.kfcuetour.com Stroker's Billiards Palm Harbor, FL October 25 - 26, 2008 $1600 total added: $1000 added open 9ball event Saturday/Sunday (Entry $65 includes $10 green fee/$10 registration fee); $600 added amateur 9ball event Sunday only (Entry $50 includes $10 green fee/$10 registration fee) For more info: www.kfcuetour.com Capone's Billiards Spring Hill, FL November 29 - 30, 2008 $1600 total added: $1000 added open 9ball event Saturday/Sunday (Entry $65 includes $10 green fee/$10 registration fee); $600 added amateur 9ball event Sunday only (Entry $50 includes $10 green fee/$10 registration fee) For more info: www.kfcuetour.com 8/4/2008 Lucasi Hybrid 4th Place finish WOW what a strong event this was. My weekend Kicked off with a win over US Open Champ David Howard 9-5 I would then follow that up with another win over US Open Champion John Schmidt 9-2, This would set up a match with World No1 Dennis Orcollo. Dennis beat me the last three times we played so this was a big match. I have been playinmg solid pool and was really looking forward to this match, It was a good one for me coming back from 7-3 down to win 9-8 and put my self in thew last 4 on the winners side. Sunday would see me take on Johnny Archer in my first match and this was another strong match which I ended up losing 9-8. I would then go onto play Mika and take another hard fought match winning 9-8. Charlie Williams would be my next opponent and he was on a mission beating me 9-4 in a match where I just could not get going, He would then go all the way beatin Shane Van Boening 9-8 and then taking down Archer 10-5 in the final. Over all a great weekend of pool. I am looking forward to my next event in Syracuse NY the Turning Stone Classic. I recieved some great support over the weekend so I would like to say a big THANK YOU to everybody. Thanks Tony Crosby PS dont forget to check out the www.kfcuetour.com its coming soon. 8/3/2008 Lucasi Hybrid 10 Ball I had a good day yesterday with wins over David Howard 9-5, John Schmidt 9-2 John had just beat me a day earlier in the Straight pool event which made me a little more determined to play very hard. I then would beat Dennis Orcollo in waht was another strong match with very few balls missed by both of us. Dennis had me down 7-3 which was a little annoying as I had given up two easy games. I held on and played some very solid pool breaking and running a bunch of 10 ball racks, I got back on level terms at 7-7 only to come up dry Dennis would go onto run out and put himself on the hill, another dry break by Dennis would have me come back to the table hooked on the 1 ball, no matter where I pushed he would have a tough shot on the one ball which he went for and missed this would be his last one with me running a very tough rack to make it 8-8 and then breaking and running another very tough rack to win the match. I am very happy with my performance and need to play just as hard to day against my next opponent Johny Archer. I also did an interview right after the Orcollo match with inside pool so copy and paste the link below. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cg6Y8bzgiSs# Thanks Tony Crosby 7/29/2008 KF Cues 9 Ball Tour I am happy to anounce that the KF Cues 9 Ball tour will have its openning event at one of Florida's newest rooms TJ's Billiards in New Port Richey on september 27th-28th. The schedule is alsmost complete with only a couple of blanks to fill you can check the schedule out at www.kfcuetour.com this site is under construction and has limited information right now. This tour can only grow as there has been much interest from players and pool room owners from all over the country, we also have had some postive feed back with regards to sponsorship so with any luck the money could be raised for bigger and better payouts. If you would like to be added to the mailing list please email me direct at tony@strokeitwear.com and you will be the first to know what is going on. My next event is going to be in Jacksonville Florida for the Lucasi open. I will bring news from the events Thanks Tony Crosby 7/29/2008 KF Cues 9 Ball Tour I am happy to anounce that the KF Cues 9 Ball tour will have it openning event at one of Florida's newest rooms TJ's Billiards in New Port Richey on september 27th-28th. The schedule is alsmost complete with only a couple of blanks to fill you can check the schedule out at www.kfcuetour.com this site is under construction and has limited information right now. This tour can only grow as there has been much interest from players and pool room owners from all over the country, we also have had some postive feed back with regards to sponsorship so with any luck the money could be raised for bigger and better payouts. If you would like to be added to the mailing list please email me direct at tony@strokeitwear.com and you will be the first to know what is going on. My next event is going to be in Jacksonville Florida for the Lucasi open. I will bring news from the events Thanks Tony Crosby 7/24/2008 Straight Pool 146 Ball Run I made the highest run in our straight pool leauge this week with a run of 146 balls, This is also my second highest run ever which was nice as it was on my birthday, My other high run in the leauge was 102 so its a nice jump. In this match I gave 140 ball start in a race to 170, This makes you try that little extra hard to focus and it payed off. I will be taking part in the Lucasi Hybrid Invitational event which also includes a Straight pool event and a 10 ball event. This is a dragon promotions event and will take place in Jacksonville Florida. Thanks Tony Crosby 7/24/2008 KF Cue Tour The KF cue tour schedule is out and the first event will kick of in september at a new room that will be open very soon called TJS, in New port Richey. Copy and paste the link below for the tour flyer http://s324.photobucket.com/albums/k341/ncrosby79/ More info will be coming soon Thanks Tony Crosby 7/15/2008 Florida Pro Tour I lost My fourth round match to Corey Deuel 8-6, in this match I was 3-0 down and played solid pool to turn it around and take a 4-3 lead only for a lapse in concentration I would have been 5-3 up after missing a straight in ten ball. Corey would then go onto to play some good pool and close me out of the match 8-6. My next match I would lose another tight one to Donnie Mills 8-5 with Donnie closing the match out with three break an runs. I did announce the Start of my new tour, KF cue tour which will kick of in september, More news will come very soon on this tour. Thanks Tony Crosby 7/12/2008 Fl pro Tour Update My weekend has kicked of with three wins. I played up an coming player Travis Croft in my first match. I knew having watched him only just lose to Wiseman in the last event 7-6 I couldn't take any chances. I played solid pool and came out a 7-1 winner, I followed this up with two more wins 7-0 over Raymond Linares and then another good win over Tommy Kennedy 7-5. My next match will be against Corey Deuel at 7pm. There have been some very good matches with Yu Ram Cha playing very solid pool and still undefeated with wins over Dave Ross 7-3, Dan lavoie 7-2 and then Japans Sato Takuya 7-1 she will now go on to play Jon Pinnegar. There are 8 left on the winner side Jon Pinnergar v Yu Ram Cha Ron Wiseman v Stevie Moore Chip Klein v Justin Hall Tony Crosby V Coey Deuel. Complete brackets are updated on www.azbilliards.com Thanks Tony Crosby 7/11/2008 FL Pro Tour, Gainsville The FL pro tour kicks of tonight at the new room in Gainsville Art Of Billiards, This should be another very strong field of players, I will bring more news on the event later tonight. Thanks Tony Crosby 7/1/2008 Wiseman Takes down Viking event Ronnie Wiseman came out on top of a very strong 41 player field at the Viking event. My tournament kicked of with a win over Sparky Ferrell 9-6; I was then sent to the one loss side by Justin Hall 9-6; once there I had wins over Ted Lepak 9-1; Mike Janis 9-4; Neil Young 9-4; Stony Stone 9-6; Justin Hall 9-8; Shawn Putnam 9-5; and was elminated in the semi finals by Deuel 9-1. Deuel broke an ran the last 6 games not giving me a shoit so not much I could do sat in my chair. He would then go on to play Wiseman and win the first set 9-4 and then lose the second 9-6. This was a very good work out for me and I realise that these local events are a big help towards making your game and confidence stronger. I am happy with where my game is right now but also see there is still a lot of room for improvement. My next event will be at Art Of Billiards in Gainesville, Florida for the Seminole Florida Pro Tour. I have heard this is a great new room and I am really looking forward to playing in it. Thanks Tony Crosby 6/22/2008 Florida pro tour My day kicked off with a win over Jason Kirkwood 8-7 and I them followed it up with an 8-3 win over Hunter Lombardo. My tournament would then be ended by Jerry Calderon who played well beating me 8-3. For the latest results check out azbilliards.com Thanks Tony Crosby 6/21/2008 Seminole Pro Tour, Diamond Billiards, Cape Coral I managed to get through the day on the one loss side. I took my frist loss to Donnie Mills in a match a probably should have won, I was 5-3 up and hooked my self running out on the 8 ball and it just all went wrong from there. I went onto win two matches against Room owner James Oswalt and then Dave Uwate which sets up a meeting with Jason Kirkwood tomorrow morning at 10am. I dont feel I played my best pool all day which makes it nice to get through. you can check out Azbilliards.com for further updates and complete brackets. Only 12 people come back tomorrow. Thanks Tony Crosby 6/21/2008 Seminole Florida Pro Tour I won my 2nd match beating Johnathon Hennesy. 7-3. I will now play Donnie Mills. This is a tough math as I see a lot of Donnie in my home town where we do play a lot of cheap sets. Thanks Tony Crosby 6/21/2008 Seminole Pro Tour, Diamond Billiards, Cape Coral The tournamnet kicked of last night with 60 players. Some of the notable names are Earl Strickland, Corey Deuel, Ronnie Wisemann, Tony Chohan, Johnathon Hennessy. There were some tough match ups the first round with Ronnie Wiseman surviving a scare against up an coming Travis Croft, Wiseman clawed his way back from 6-4 down to win this match. Tony Chohan would lose his first round to Johnathon Hennessy 7-4, I would beat last months 3rd place finisher Han Berber 7-4 to set up another tough match with Hennessy today at 1pm. you can also check out the brackets for the event on AZbilliards.com. I will be taking pictures at the event and post them later in the week. Thanks Tony Crosby 6/14/2008 Jones Takes the BCA Title congratulations to Jeremy Jones for winning the BCA Title. My event was ended by Stevie Moore in what was a very frustrating match. Stevie played extremely slow and complained nonstop about the rack. After one hour and twenty minutes we had played 5 racks of 9 ball, I have beaten stevie in our last few meetings so I know he changed his game plan for this match and it worked, I would go onto to lose over 3 an half hours later 11-6 which was a very frustrating exit to the event but also a very valuable lesson. My next event will be the Florida Pro Tour at Cape Coral on the 20th June. Thanks Tony Crosby 6/10/2008 Generation pool, BCA I lost to archer today 11-5, A couple of dry breaks at the start of the match and two break and runs by Archer gave him a 4-0 lead so it was an uphill battle. I will now face the winner of Stevie Moore and Warren Kimaco at 530pm. RAj Hundal lost 11-5 to Shawn Putnam and that was the only other result. Thanks Tony Crosby 6/9/2008 Generation pool, BCA I beat Kim Davenport today in my first match 11-8. This turned out to be a very tough match with Kim leading all the way till he got to 7 games. At 7-7 I broke the balls very good and took the lead for the first time, this was a big turning point and I played very strong from there to win the match and put me in the 17-24 Bracket. My next match would be against former US Open champion John Schmidt. This looked like it was going to be a stroll in the park with John never really getting going and I played some solid pool to go 10-2 ahead. John was now in the position where he didn’t care and just blasted the balls in the pocket to win the next two racks to make it 11-4 I then would miss a long rail bank on the 9 and rattle it in the hole for it to be 11-5, he then would break and run and I would then scratch on my break and he ran them out and before I know it its 10-10 my break. I broke the balls as hard and as good in the last rack making 5 balls and finishing straight in on the 2, wow what a relief I would finally run out and take this match 11-10. I will now play Johnny Archer tomorrow in the last 8 on the winners side. The last rack with Schmidt was a $1300 swing in prize money so a very good rack for me. I will bring some news on my further results tomorrow. Thanks Tony Crosby 6/8/2008 Generation pool, BCA This event will kick of at 10 am tomorrow morning. There are only 32 players on the mens division which means it is a very tough field. I will play Kim Davenport at 10am. I will bring some other news form the event later in the day. Thanks Tony Crosby 4/26/2008 Desert Shootout, 9th Place Finish My day kicked of with a good win over Cliff Joyner 9-6. Cliff played some great pool from 2-0 down to take 6-2 lead, Cliff then missed an easy 3 ball and never recovered, I got some good rolls and made some good outs to take this match 9-6. I would then lose my next match to Rob Saez 9-7 This was a tigh one with the match swaying both ways. This was a good tournament for me as I feel I never got out of 2nd gear but won some good matches to finish a respectable 9th place. This should also move me up on the pro rankings which will guarantee me some invitations. Thanks for all the support I have recieved, this was a well run event so a big hats of to the organizers. Tony Crosby 4/26/2008 Desert Shootout, Arizona, Day two My third round didn’t go as planned losing to Mike Davis 9-3 and feeling like I was lucky to be 3, Mike played solid and got some good rolls to go with it, There wasn’t a great deal I could do form my chair. I would then go onto face Jeremy Jones who is always a tough player to beat. This match was also a money match with the loser getting nothing. I played a little shaky at the start missing a 10 Ball and also one bad safe. But then Jones let me back in the game with some unforced errors and also a missed 10 ball when we were tied at 3-3. This would give me a lot of confidence and also help me towards winning the match by a score line of 9-6. I will now face Cliff Joyner who just sent Thorsten Hohmann out of the event. I play at noon tomorrow so it’s a good night from me. Thank you Tony Crosby 4/25/2008 The Desert Shootout Day One I won my first match over Stevie Moore Today, 9-3 I played some very solid pool and put pressure on from the off breaking and running the first two racks, I broke good in the 3rd only for the cue ball to get kicked in. Stevie Moore would go onto run a tough rack only to miss the ten ball for me to go 3-0 up. I played a very solid match and broke the balls as good as anyone today. My second round would be against Ernesto Domingez who I don’t think I have ever played before. This was the exact opposite to my first round with me making far to many unforced errors. The match was nip and tuck all the way and at 7-7 Ernesto flukes the ten ball in to put himself on the hill, He broke dry and I ran a very tough rack and then broke and ran the last to take this match 9-8. I will now play Mike Davis tomorrow. Ernesto’s son Oscar is having a great tournament beating Shawn Putnam and Shawn Wilkie today both by the score line of 9-7. Mika has a had a tough draw playing Playing Efren Reyes and then Earl Strickland he would win both these matches to set up another tough one with Jose Parica. Johnny Archer would have to strong wins of 9-0 and 9-1 over Louie Ulrich. Thorsten Hohmann would beat local hero Mitch Ellerman 9-5. Charlie Willaims also won two beating Jeremy Jones in the last match. I will bring some more news tomorrow. Thanks to everybody for there support and Emails. Thanks Tony Crosby. 4/24/2008 The Desert Shootout The Desert Shoot out will kick of today with a full 64 player field which is stacked with many high profile names. The event organizer ran into some difficulty with the venue that was originally chosen the Sheraton Hotel due to lack of hotel rooms booked, Rather than cancel the event arrangements were swiftly made to move it to near bye venue Kolby’s pool room in Tempe. They installed bleachers yesterday and managed to get everything ready in time. The event is going to be a very strong 64 player field, and there have been some very good first round matchups which would include my self playing Stevie Moore, Corey Deuel V Dennis Hatch and the one other big one is Mika Immonen playing Efren Reyes. Corey Deuel was trying to make his way back from Dubai for the event and would not have wanted to see a first round match like this. I will take on Stevie Moore at 3pm Arizona time, I will bring some updates on the matches as the day progresses. I think a big congratulation has to go out to the people involved in making this event happen. This is still a 25k added event which will make for a good payout. I will be bringing news and updates as much as my internet connection allows me. Thanks Tony Crosby 4/15/2008 Exciting Times Ahead. I will be heading to Arizona on the 23rd to play in the Desert Shootout which is a $25k UPA sanctioned event. Since I got back from Atlanta I have been trying to play everyday. I have played some cheap sets with Jason Richko and Corey Deuel which I have come out ahead. I have also won the two local events on Wednesday and Monday nights. I did however take my first loss in the Straight pool league I have been playing in my home room Strokers, This league has been going now for almost 3 months and has been excellent practice for me. I am giving most people 100 plus ball start and which has really helped me get focused and make some good high runs including 102 which is my highest in competing. There will be a lot going on for me over the next couple of months with three or four big events to play which include The Desert Shootout in Arizona, The international 10 ball in Vegas and the BCA in Charlotte. Its nice when you have some events to look forward to as it just gives you that extra edge you need to stay on your game.. I will be trying to keep my site updated for all these events and some other weekly updates so stay tuned. Thanks Tony Crosby 4/10/2008 Seminole Pro Tour I got back from Atlanta on sunday night. This was a very strong field tournament with only 48 players. This I didnt fair to well in this event being involved in 3 hill hill matches. I won my first match against Tommy Kennedy 7-6 and then would go onto to face one of my good buddy's Jason Richko. I knew this would be a tough one and it was I took a 7-6 loss, Jason played a very smart on the 9 ball leaving me hooked on the 10, I then would lose 7-6 Mike Davis who also is no slouch of a player, I was 6-2 down in this match with Mike playing some very good pool, I made a strong fight back only to lose 7-6 again. This was a good event and makes me even more dtermined to get my head back in gear and practice a little more. I have some big events coming up and feel good about where my game is. Next event is the Desert Shootout in Arizona and then onto Vegas to play in the Internationalk Ten Ball Championships where we will also have a Strokeitwear Booth for the BCA. 3/18/2008 Super Billiards Expo I just got back from the Super Billiards Expo, This turned out to be a great tournament with me taking a respectable 5th place and taking my first loss to Van Boening who went onto win. This was a non stop event for me as I also set up the Strokeit Wear Booth which was slammed everyday, so between playing matches I was selling products in the booth. A big hit this year was our new kids line of shirts Small Strokes which can be seen on my online shop. I will be playing a Seminole Pro Tour event next month in Atlanta and then the Desert Shoot Out in Arizona which is sanctioned by the UPA, A good event in Arizona could break me into the top ten on the UPA ranking list which is big for invitations. I am very happy to be home after a 20 hour drive. I am going to put a little more time on the table in. Thanks to everybody for there emails and support over the weekend. Tony Crosby 3/16/2008 Super Billiards Expo My day kicked off with a good win over Adam Smith who also has had a great tournament. I would then go onto lose to Van Boening 10-6, Shane missed a lot of balls in this match but never left me any clear cut chances. My next match would see Rodney Morris give me a good beating he stormed into an 8-0 lead I did mange to pull 4 gales back but it was all in vein. Rodney will now play Mika immonnen with the winner taking on Van Boening who lost to Shawn Wilkie 10-9. This was a good even all in all, The strokeit wear booth has been slammed every day. Thanks to everybody for there support and emails Tony crosby 3/15/2008 Super Billiards Expo I played a very solid match tonight against raj Hundal taking this match 10-6, Raj was 6-4 up and was looking like going 7-4 before missing an easy chance this was a big turning point in the match. I will now play Adam Smith in my next round at 130pm. Thanks for all the support Tony Crosby 3/14/2008 Super Billiards Expo I managed to win my first match against Jeremy Sossei, Sossei just finished 2nd to Archer at the Turning Stone casino event, I knew this would be a tough match and it was I won 10-9. This would now pitt me against Charlie Bryant(Hillbilly) and having won 10-9 only minutes earlier I was right back on to play again. I kicked of very well in this match not realy missing much till I got 8-1 ahead, I gave up a couple of silly racks and charlie pulled back to 8-4 only for him to miss an easy 8 ball when it looked like going 8-5, I closed the match out with a 10-4 score line. I will now play Raj Hundal who defeated Danny basavich, Raj pulled out a good win as he did kick of the match trailing 4-0. I am very happy to be 2-0 as we got here late wednesday night after a 20 hour drive and then had to be up early and spend 5 hours setting up the Strokeit wear booth. It was a good first day we lauched some of our new clothes which included a kids line of clothing called Small strokes and your no match. My cue line also was on display. I will play at 830pm so some rest is needed today. Thanks Tony Crosby I will be try bring some more new later. OK Cadilac Bob 3/9/2008 Seminole Update I ended up losing my first match on the sunday to Adam Wheeler, 8-5 this was a dissapointing loss with me making far to many errors at the start of the match. 12 players came back on the sunday and 5 of them were using my line of Jump Break cues THE SNIPER II. My cues have been selling very well and many of the top players in the world are now using them, Rodney Morris is the latest player to pick one up and start using it. I will be heading to Valley Forge on tuesday for the super billiards expo where my cues Strokeit wear will have a booth with also my cue line so come check us out. Thanks Tony Crosby 3/9/2008 Seminole Pro Tour, Strokers The first event of the season kicked of at Strokers Palm Harbor, Florida. I won my first match on the day beating Bobby Garza 7-0, I then took a 7-6 loss to Ronnie Wiseman, Then i would go onto beat Stoney Stone 7-2, James Stewart 7-4, Dan Sheldon 7-4 and then Stevie Moore 8-7. The match against stevie was a very good one with both of us only making a few errors. Moore had the break at 7-6 down and Scratched giving me ball in hand I would then go onto run the rack out and make it Hill Hill, my break hadnt worked all match so I changed the break position and hit them as hard as I could and managed to make a ball and go onto run a very good rack to take the match 8-7. I will now face Adam Wheeler in my next match sunday morning. I also have been updating the brackets for AZbilliards so check them out. http://azbilliards.com/2000storya.cfm?storynum=5217 Thanks Tony Crosby 2/20/2008 Andy Grubbs Memorial I finished fifth in the Andy Grubbs Memorial event this past weekend. This event always draws a big field stacked with talent and this one was no different almost 80 players turned out. I played some good pool Saturday going undefeated including a win over highly rated Stoney Stone coming from 4-1 down to win 9-6. Sunday would see 24 players come back with my first match would be against Mitch Yarbrogh a pool room owner from Atlanta. I would win this match 9-4 I would now face John Schmidt who also had been playing some high quality pool using his OB1 Shaft. I would race ahead in this match to a 6-2 lead only to come up dry on the break, John would go onto clear the table and my next visit would be from a push out at 8-6 down in a blink of an eye lid. I would lose the match 9-6 having not missed a single ball. Its not very often you lose in these situations and its only a high quality player like Schmidt that you kind of expect it. My next match would see me play another kind of local hero Scotty Townsend This was another tight match that I would go onto lose 9-7 having not done a great deal wrong. This event is one of the best run events of the year, Room owner Robin runs a no mess tournament and during tournament play you could be in a library. Starcade also stocks my new cue line which are selling very well. The break Jump cue is the hottest thing on the market right now and Mr 400 himself John Schmidt also picked one up to use. This is the best I have seen John play and I think his switch to the OB1 cue has brought his play to another level. My next event will be at my home room Stroker's, Palm Harbor where the Seminole Pro Tour kicks of with its first event. Thanks Tony Crosby 2/14/2008 Seminole Pro Tour The seminole Pro Tour will kick of its first event of the season at Strokers in Palm Harbor, Florida. This is my home room so which is great but always puts that little extra pressure to do well in front of your home crowd. The tour will also have two events out of state going to Atlanta and the Carolinas so this will make it very interesting season. I have posted the schedule on my site so check out the Florida pro Tour section. Thanks Tony Crosby 2/12/2008 Andy Grubbs Memorial I will be heading to Fort Walton Beach this weekend to play in the Andy Grubbs Memorial event at Starcade Billiards. I won this event last year come out ahead of 105 players so it would be very nice to try and defend the title. There is always a host of top name players that turn out to play in this one, John Schmidt, Tommy Kennedy, Scotty Townsend, Dave Broxson just to mention a few. For more info on ther event contact Starcade. 5th Annual Andy Grubbs Memorial Starcade Billiards Ft Walton Beach, FL 850-244-2349 February 16 - 17, 2008 $50.00 Entry 1/13/2008 DCC Classic Souquet beats Bustamante to take down the 9 ball event. Bustamante claimed the $20,000 all round bonus for the first time. My tournament came to end with a loss to Rick Howard 7-3, I played poorly in this match and Rick took his chances and made me pay. I had a very tough draw in this event rounds one, win over Oscar Domingez 7-3, Loss to Niels Fiejen 7-3, then wins over George Rothrock 7-0, Tony Mougey 7-3, Gabe Owen 7-4, Shin Park 7-6 and then took my second loss to Rick Howard. I played very inconsistent in the whole event which I can only put down to lack of practice over the holidays. So new years resolution is hit more balls. Thanks Tony crosby 1/12/2008 DCC Classic The 6th round draw pitched me against Shin Park from Korea, Shin is a very strong player who spends most of his time in New York playing. This is a match where I really had a very good run of the balls and came from 6-3 down to win the match 7-6. I broke in the last game making a couple of balls and almost making the 9 ball, I ended up playing a very good hook on the one ball and sending it down by the 9 which was close to the pocket, Shin didn’t make contact and I took the case game with a combination on the 9 ball. I now play at 11am and don’t know who my next opponent is. I feel I deserved a couple of rolls my 9 ball draw has been tough match after tough match. I am now looking forward to playing tomorrow and am very content with my overall play on the day. Thanks Tony Crosby 1/11/2008 DCC Classic Well they done the fifth round draw and I got matched up against Gabe Owen, so just when I thought I had had some tough matches they got tougher. I mentioned in my last post I needed to come out the gates a little quicker and I did just that playing very well to take a 6-2 lead, just when the winning line was in sight I missed a tricky 7 ball and had to watch Gabe run out and break and run two more to make it 6-5 he scratched in the last game and I ran the balls to take the match 7-5 and put my self in the 6th round. I now await the draw which will be done about 9pm. I will post some updates later. Thanks Tony Crosby 1/11/2008 DCC Classic I drew Tony Mougey who is known for being a bar table champion in my 4th round, I kicked of the match with a couple of misses and let a few games slip to to go behind 3-1, Tony then handed the games right back to me making some unforced errors and I eventually went onto win 7-3. I am now waiting on the 5th round draw so I don’t know who I play. Thanks Tony Crosby 1/11/2008 DCC Classic I lost a tough second round to Niels Fiejen Last night 7-3. This was a long match with lots of safety battles and only one break and run. I would then go onto win my third round match against George Rothenback 7-0 so I am now waiting for the redraw. There is a ton of action going on here with all the games being played so there is plenty to watch on these long first few days. I will bring some more updates later today. Thanks Tony Crosby 1/10/2008 DCC Classic The 9ball event kicked of with 430 players signed up. This is a huge turn out for the 9ball but leaves a very big backlog of matches to get through. I would wait 12 hours yesterday to play my first match, I drew Oscar Dominguez first round who is one of the top players from California. I went onto win this match 7-3 and now wait on the redraw about noon today. I played the straight pool challenge last night with the top 8 runs going to the finals, The highest run is by Mika Immonen 147 with Fabio Petroni close behind recording a 140. I had runs of 47 and 58 which was 6 balls shy of qualifying at the time. I will try and post some updates later today Thanks Tony crosby 1/8/2008 DCC Classic I just arrived at the Derby city Classic for the 9Ball event. The 9 ball had almost 400 players when I signed up today so it going to be a huge event. I am also here to show off my new line of playing cues and break cue. Which has already had a great response in Florida and arizona. I am looking forward playing in this event which is the start of a new year on the pool circuit. Thanks Tony Crosby 12/30/2007 Jason Richko, Fox 13 News Jason Richko who recently won the US National Amateur Championships was recently interviewed on Fox 13 news channel. For all of you that didn’t see it you can copy and paste the link to view it. It’s a very nice piece they did and all the publicity on pool on any news channel is very good for the game, So a big congratulations to Jason Richko 2007 US amateur Champion copy link below. http://www.myfoxtampabay.com/myfox/p...d=1.1.1&sflg=1 I have been a little slack with my site as of late, This is due to lack of tournaments and holiday period. For my next post I am going to try and give a review of how my year was. Thanks for all the support I have received from everybody. I wish you all happy holidays Tony Crosby & family 12/13/2007 Rodney Morris Challenge Match I will be playing a Challenge match V Rodney Morris next week In Arizona. The match is going to be a race to 21 Ten Ball. I am feeling very good about playing Ten Ball right now, my record this year on the Florida Pro Tour proves it, I finished NO3 on the ranking list and cashed in more events than any other player for the season. Mark Cantrill with Eclipse Media Group is the promoter of this event, also sponsored by Kolby's Corner Pocket Billiards, Micasa Lending, Killian Jack's, Boston Lobster, More Money Pawn, www.strokeitwear.com. For more information with regards to this event contact Mark Cantrill @ 480-612-7732. I will try and post a Flier with more details of the event very soon. I have already had many emails and calls about this match. there is a lot of interest for this match in an area where theres are very few pro players. People have got Rodney down as a big favorite which is just how I like it. Thanks Tony Crosby 12/1/2007 Florida Steve Mizerak Championship This event is being held in the Hard Rock live, which is one very fine venue. I am still undefeated going into saturday, I drew a bye in the first round and then had wins over Charlie Williams 7-3, Jason Richko 7-2 and George Mclanhan 7-2. My next opponent will be Ronnie Wiseman at 11.45 am saturday. Other results on the day had Archer taking a big 7-0 loss to Immonen who would later get sent to the one loss side by Thorsten Hohmann. Charlie Bryant would send Stevie Moore to the one loss side with a 7-3 win. Azbilliards.com has live brackets of the event so check them out. I will bring more news from the event later, I also have the Strokeit wear booth set up so its already been a long weekend. Thanks Tony Crosby 11/8/2007 Sniper II. Break Jump Cue I am happy to announce my new line of Break Jump Cues, The Sniper II. As a Pro Player I decided I wanted to bring out a cue that I knew would be as good or if not better than any other break Jump Cue on the market and it really is. I have gone with a maple shaft with maple stained Butt with no wrap. The butt is a dark brown and black Stain. The shaft has a 14mm phenolic Tip and ferrule all in one. This gives the cue a much higher percentage of hitting the correct spot on the cue ball, which means more accuracy and power when breaking and jumping balls. The Sniper II cue has not been out for more than 10 days and has already played a big part in helping Jason Richko become 2007 US National Amateur Champion so A big congratulations to him. The cue is also very well priced at $199. They will be available very soon on my online shop and in a pool room near you. If you would like to purchase a Sniper II you can contact me via Email through my site. If you go to my photo gallery I have posted pictures of the cue. This cue is a must buy and will definitely improve your break and jumping for all level of players. 11/1/2007 Mark Coats Wins His first FL Pro Tour Event The Seminole Florida Pro Tour stopped into Bird Bowl Billiards in Miami, Florida for their $9000 added final stop before the State Championships. stop of the season. The event attracted some of the toughest talent out there considering there was a couple of major events going on in other areas around the country. Mark Coats came out ahead of the 43 player field, to earn himself the $3500 first place. I lost my 3rd round match on the winners side 7-6 to Jerry calderon who was also having a fine event going on to beat Richard Broumpton and Corey Deuel. I then lost one match out of the money to Corey Deuel 7-5. This would mean I end up finbishing 3rd on the rankings for the year. The rankings have now been posted so check them out. Corey Deuel is confirmed player of the year. Thanks Tony Crosby 10/22/2007 US Open I ended up finishing in 25th place at this years US OPEN. I lost my 4th round match on the winner side to Dennis Orcollo 11-5 I then went on to beat Oscar Domingez and my tournamnet would come to an end playing Mika Imonnen 11-6. I felt i could have won this match only for a couple of dry breaks. A big Congrats goes out to Shane Vanboening for winning this event and proving he is with out doubt the best player in the US right now. I would also like to wish him all the best and hope he takes down the World Championships next month. I had some great support at the Open with many people coming to watch my matches. Thanks again Tony Crosby