2012 -The Year of the Three-Peat Champions!
All three Champions for 2012 have won their title for a third time!
Rankings Champion "A" Class: Pedro Piedrabuena Has a (Nearly) Perfect 2012
Pedro Piedrabuena finished the 2012 year with the maximum number of Ranking Points possible: 440. This represents his best-five performances of the year: Four 1st place finishes in USBA TOUR Open Tournaments (80 ranking pts each) plus a first place finish in the Nationals (120 ranking points)
The journey started back in February where Pedro bested the field at MGM Billiards in Woodside, NY, averaging 1.466. Then in April, it was on to Los Angeles at Eight Ball Billiards where Pedro won it again with a 1.400 grand average. In May, Pedro won his fifth US National Title in Las Vegas averaging 1.497.
In June, Pedro flew in to Boston at Napoles Billiards where he averaged just 1.391 (his worst performance of the year, LOL). In August, Pedro played flawlessly at Carom Café in New York at the Verhoeven Open where he defeated the great Torbjorn Blomdahl in the final match, averaging 1.592 in that tournament.
In October, at the first-ever USBA TOUR Open held in Houston at Paris Bida Billiards, Pedro wins again. In November, Pedro came back to Carom Café to once-again play in the final match against Torbjorn Blomdahl. This time, Blomdahl got him, and it would be the only time in 2012 that Pedro did not finish in first place. Instead he had to settle for second.
In December, at Hard Times Billiards in Bellflower, CA, Pedro capped off his near-perfect 2012 in grand style, going undefeated throughout the entire tournament and averaging a whopping 1.667. He finished the whole year with a grand average of 1.502. Not too shabby. Congratulations, Pedro, on a spectacular year!
Rankings Champion "B" Class: Jim Shovak Wins For the Third Time
Why did Jim Shovak win for the third time? Because he played in more tournaments than anyone else in the country. Right? Partly true. In all, Jim played in a whopping 14 USBA Tournaments in 2012. Boy, that's tiring. Only Jim's five-best performances, however, counted towards the rankings.
2012 was not Jim's best year, as far as winning tournaments are concerned. Not like 2007 when he captured two "B" championships and another two in the 2010-2011 season. But his five-best performances were enough to keep him in front for most of the entire year. His highlights for the year include a 3rd place finish in the Louisville, KY Qualifier behind Mazin Shooni and Gilbert Najm; a fourth-place finish at the Doral Billiards "B" Tour Event followed by a third place finish in the Carom Café "B+" TOUR Event followed by a 2nd place finish at the Napoles Billiards "B+" TOUR Event. [Editor's Note]: Jim is consistently one of the most active players and when he's not at the table he can be seen running tournaments as the tournament director while still tending to his duties as USBA Secretary/Treasurer. Thanks Jim for all your hard work and congratulations on your impressive third year as "B" Rankings Champiom.
Rankings Champion "C" Class: Gary Eake Wins For the Third Time
Gary Eake started the new year off right at the Louisville, KY Qualifier by making the finals and giving everyone he played a hard time. In April, he managed a 7th place finish in Marshalltown, IA. He then played in 3-straight tournaments: the Nationals, the "B" TOUR Event in Chicago and the Dubuque Open in Iowa, further racking up his points total. His best finish was a 5th place spot at the Minneapolis Billiard Club Fall Classic. Gary is one of the most consistent players in the USBA and his three crowns as "C" champion confirm that.
Congratulations to all three winners! To see pictures of our winners click the "Read More..." to be taken to the full article page.
Photographs courtesy of ProfessorQBall. Vist his web site at www.professorqball.com
