Aicinena, Price, Arechiga, Contreras, Griffin, Hughes, Torres, Contreras
Eric Aicinena went undefeated in the 64-player, open 9-ball division, at the final stop on the 2023 Poison Lone Star Billiards Tour, held at Big Tyme Billiards in Spring, Texas. Aicinena defeated Leon Contreras in the final set, 6-2, to win his first event of the season. In the 64-player, amateur 9-ball division, Johnny Griffin went undefeated, with a final win over Joe Aguilar, 5-2.
On October 14th-15th, 2023, title sponsor Poison by Predator Cues, Predator Cues, Outsville Inc., Team Straight Pool Eye, and Brutal Game Gear USA, facilitated another successful event, drawing full fields in each division, and paying out over $10,000 in prize money. Big Tyme Billiards, located at 100 Cypresswood Drive, in Spring, Texas, provided twenty-four, 7’ bar tables for tournament play, covered in Predator Arcadia Reserve, tournament blue cloth, in a non-smoking environment. Predator sponsored the Arcos II ball sets used on each table, and Accu-Racks were provided by Outsville Billiards, for discussion-free racking.
In the open 9-ball division, winners’ side final eight, Kenneth Price defeated Luis Moreno, 6-3, while Eric Aicinena slid past Johnny Griffin, 6-5. Leon Contreras bested Charles Holan, 6-2, and Cesar Arechiga denied Ricky Hughes, 6-4. In the following round, Aicinena detoured Price, and it was Contreras over Arechiga, by the same score, 6-4. In the hot seat match, Aicinena overwhelmed Contreras, 6-1. On the west side, down to the final eight, J.C. Torres eliminated Hughes, 5-3, and Price, 5-2, while Griffin dusted off Contreras, 5-2, and Arechiga, 5-1. Torres sent Griffin home, 5-3, but fell to Contreras, 5-1. Once again, Contreras faced off with Aicinena, for a shot at redemption. In the true, double elimination showdown, Aicinena wasted little time, closing out the first set, 6-2, to capture the final event of the 2023 Tour season.
Torres, Aguilar, Contreras, Trinidad, Changezi, Griffin, Hughes, Pangilinan
In the amateur 9-ball division, winners’ side final eight, Johnny Griffin ousted Joshua Pangilinan, 5-2, and Joe Aguilar defeated K.J. Miller, 5-3. J.C. Torres shut out Pablo Trinidad, 5-0, while newcomer, Shahram Changezi, sent Ricky Hughes west, 5-2. In the following round, it was Griffin over Aguilar, and Changezi over Torres, by the same score, 5-0. Hot seat action witnessed Griffin deny Changezi, 5-2. On the west side, in the final eight, Hughes dusted off Trinidad, but fell to Aguilar, 4-3. First-timer, Daniel Contreras, eliminated Pangilinan, 4-0, and Torres, 4-2, to meet Aguilar in the final four. Following five consecutive wins on the one-loss side, Contreras continued his streak, defeating Aguilar, 4-1, and Changezi, 4-3, to meet Griffin. In the final set, Griffin took no prisoners, ending Aguilar’s run, 5-2, to capture his third division title of the year.
Johnny Griffin had a monumental year on Tour, capturing three tournaments, earning himself a second, “Amateur Division Tour Champion” title. Griffin missed only one event of the Tour season, and his near perfect attendance and impressive play, earned him his first, “Open Division Tour Champion” title. Congratulation to Johnny Griffin on his well-deserved titles, and his advancement to “open only” status, beginning in 2024.
Shahram Changezi
Finally, the Tour would like to thank all the players who came out to support this event, especially those who attended their very first event, and invite all players back at every opportunity.
Open Division – $5,020
1st Eric Aicinena $610 / $1,100
2nd Leon Contreras $400 / $745
3rd J.C. Torres $280 / $475
4th Johnny Griffin $190 / $300
5th-6th Cesar Arechiga, Kenneth Price $90 / $150 ea
7th-8th Rick Hughes, Daniel Contreras $60 ea
9th-12th Joey Torres, Charles Holan, Raed Shabib, Luis Moreno $45 ea
13th-16th John Braud, Joshua Pangilinan, Aaron Sandoval, Andrew Rodgriguez $35 ea
13th-16th Cesar Arechiga, John Braud, Andrew Rodriguez, Mille Almaraz $25 ea
Amateur Division – $5,025
1st Johnny Griffin $585 / $1,285
2nd Joe Aguilar $350 / $820
3rd Shahram Changezi $225 / $500
4th Daniel Contreras $140 / $320
5th-6th J.C. Torres, Ricky Hughes $70 ea
7th-8th Pablo Trinidad, Joshua Pangilinan $50 ea
9th-12th Seth Gonzales, K.J. Miller, Dinesh Sundaram, Ray Porter $35 ea
13th-16th Cesar Arechiga, John Braud, Andrew Rodriguez, Mille Almaraz $25 ea