Not one of their opponents made it to the hill, as Leo Rojas and Ruben Bautista tore through their respective divisions, Rojas decimating his 52-player, amateur 9-ball division, and Bautista annihilating his 47-player, open 9-ball division, to capture their first-ever titles at the Poison Lone Star Billiards Tour Finale Event.
On October 8th-9th, 2016, Bogies Billiards and Sports Bar (Houston, Texas), along with tour title sponsor Poison by Predator Cues PoisonBilliards.com, and sponsors Cyclop Pool Balls facebook@CyclopPoolBalls, Delta-13 Rack Delta-13.com, Ozone Billiards OzoneBilliards.com, and the APA of North Harris County facebook@APANorthHarrisCounty, facilitated another successful Poison Lone Star Billiards Tour event, procuring a generous $1,000 in added money, with nearly eighty players in attendance, and a near $7,000 prize fund.
Underneath his quiet, unassuming demeanor laid a force to be reckoned with inside Leo Rojas. The newcomer took no prisoners on his way to the final four winners’ side, defeating Greg Ross, 7-4, Jacob Watson, 7-5, Bob DeTuncq, 7-4, and Bobby Perez, 7-3. Joey Bourgeois, Jr. was on a role of his own, with wins over Tim Boelk, Chuck Adams, 7-4, Reddy Akkasani, 7-4, and Matt Cash, 7-5. Also new to the tour, Steve Rangel ousted Charlie Jenkins, 7-3, Dave Ramirez, and Eric Hsu, while Tony Benestante overcame Chris Thompson, 7-1, John Jenkins, 7-6, Curt Bovenzi, 7-6, and Marvin Diaz, 7-5. On the west side, following a first round loss to Josh Pangilinan, Phillip Tieu took out Kenneth Price, 5-3, C. Jenkins, 5-1, Daniel Wise, 5-1, David Chow, 5-1, and Akkasani, 5-0, but fell to Diaz, 5-2. Following a 7-4 loss at the hands of Curt Bovenzi, Will Felder made a comeback, logging wins over Tim Smith, 5-3, Adams, 5-4, Thompson, 5-3, and J.C. Torres, but lost to Burak Temel, 5-4. Also rounding out the one loss side final four, Hsu defeated Pangilinan, 5-0, and Will Jones eliminated Cash, 5-3. On the east side, Rojas made quick work of Bourgeois, 7-1, while Rangel overcame Bnenestante, 7-2. Hot seat actioned witnessed two new players, unknown to one another, go head to head for the very first time. True to form, Rojas didn’t give Rangel a second thought, ousting the Rosenberg, Texas player, 7-4. Back on the one loss side, Hsu eliminated Diaz, 5-2, and Bourgeois, Jr., 5-2, while Temel ousted Jones, 5-2, and Benestante, 5-1. Hsu went on to defeat Temel, 5-1, but was stopped short by Rangel, 5-2. It would be a short-lived, hot seat rematch for Rangel, as Rojas steam rolled to victory, 7-0.
In the open 9-ball division, another unfamiliar face made its way through an elite class of players. Ruben Bautista remained unscathed, taking down Adam Cooper, 9-2, Tim Boelk, 9-4, Ruben Montelongo, 9-3, and Billy Pinion, 9-5, to reach the winners’ side final four, while Kenneth Price overcame Will Felder, 9-8, Bret Harlan, 9-5, Jacob Watson, 9-0, and Leo Rojas. Former tour champion, Andy Jethwa, was well on his way, pummeling Andy Schnell, 9-0, Burak Temel, 9-3, and Ernesto Bayaua, 9-0, while his future counterpart, Chase Rudder, ousted Bobby Perez, 9-6, Daniel Wise, 9-0, Sonny Bosshamer, 9-2, and Marvin Diaz, 9-7. On the one loss side, Steve Rangel overcame Billy Pinion, 7-1, and Bobby Perez fell to Rojas, 7-3, while Bayaua defeated J.C. Torres, 7-2, and Lee Clark lost to Diaz, 7-2. As the one loss side final four took shape, on the east side, Jethwa took down Rudder, 9-4, and Bautista dusted off Price, 9-3. The hot seat match was a true crowd pleaser, as the two super talents went head to head, in an ultimate battle of wills. Ninth inning bases loaded, Bautista pulled ahead to win the hot seat, 9-8. Back on the west side, Rojas demolished Pinion, 7-2, and Bayaua elminated Diaz, 7-4. Once again, Bayaua fell to Jethwa, 7-3, and in turn was dealt the same hand, losing to Rudder a second and final time, 7-2. Rudder has earned himself another shot at Bautista, but unfortunately for Rudder, the end to the story remained the same. Bautista defeated Rudder in the first set, 9-3, to capture his first open division title.
Ernesto Bayaua and Will Felder finished at the top of their respective open and amateur 9-ball divisions, to be crowned 2016 Poison Lone Star Billiards Tour Champions! For their exemplary play throughout the year, each received Poison by Predator Cues, and Delta-13 products. Also, congratulations to Eric Hsu and Burak Temel, who achieved their highest finishes to date, and all the players who reached a pool playing milestone, at this event. The tour extends a warm welcome to all the new players who attended this final event, and invites them back at every opportunity!
If not for the sponsors and venues, it would be difficult to produce these types of events. The tour extends its deepest gratitude to its 2017 sponsors and venues: Poison by Predator Cues, Cyclop Pool Balls, Delta-13 Rack, Ozone Billiards, and the APA of North Harris County. The tour’s Texas venues include Bogies Billiards and Sports Bar and Bogies West, owners David and Shannon Richardson (Houston), Ariana’s, owners Bill and Minh Hammond (Houston), and Skinny Bob’s Billiards, owners John and Sue Cielo (Round Rock). The tour would also like to recognize all the people who assisted in the operation of 2016 events; John Newsome, Chuck Adams, Mike Fabacher, Teresa Garland, Ernesto Bayaua, Jacob Watson, and Zach Goldsmith. Lastly, many thanks to Roger Allen, James Hanshew, and Walter Kelley, who provided valuable cue repair services, throughout the year.
Without the nearly 300 players who attended Poison Lone Star Tour events this year, production of this tour would not be possible. The tour would like to thank each and every player who competed this year, if only in one event. Thanks to your patronage, the Poison Lone Star Billiards Tour will celebrate its 9th year in 2017, serving players across Texas and in surrounding states. The tour welcomes everyone back for the first event of the New Year, to be held on January 7th-8th, 2017, at Bogies Billiards and Sports Bar in Houston, Texas. The full 2017 schedule will be published at www.LoneStarBilliardsTour.com. The Poison Lone Star Billiards Tour encourages everyone who loves to play pool and compete in a friendly atmosphere, to attend an event. “Like” us on Facebook @LoneStarTour and “Follow” us on Twitter @LoneStarTour09.
Amateur
1st Leo Rojas $500/$565
2nd Steve Rangel $320/$380
3rd Eric Hsu $220/$240
4th Burak Temel $140/$120
5th-6th Tony Benestante, Joey Bourgeois, Jr. $80/$60 ea.
7th-8th Marvin Diaz, Will Jones $50 ea.
9th-12th Bobby Perez, Phillip Tieu, Matt Cash, Josh Pangilinan $25 ea.
Open
1st Ruben Bautista $500/$900
2nd Chase Rudder $340/$630
3rd Andy Jethwa $240/$400
4th Ernesto Bayaua $160/$200
5th-6th Leo Rojas, Kenneth Price $100/$50
7th-8th Marvin Diaz, Billy Pinion $50 ea.
9th-12th Steve Rangel, Bobby Perez, Lee Clark, J.C. Torres $35 ea.