TULSA, OK - Defending champ vs. the world's best woman player in the history of pool. Who would win? That was the big question and it got answered in a big way as Allison Fisher took the title from 2x US Open Champion Ga Young Kim in a heated battle that Allison won 7-4.   
 
Fisher won the opening break, but couldn't capitalize, giving the first game win to Kim. But Allison quickly tied things up after Ga Young missed a jump shot, then broke and ran the next two racks to lead 3-1 in the race to seven.
 
In game five, players traded safes for a few shots until Kim got the first clear look at a shot and ran out to trail 2-3. In game six, a missed bank on the two by Kim again put Allison in the driver's seat. She ran the rack... to the nine... and uncharacteristically missed, leaving Ga Young Kim an easy nine to tie the match 3-3. She broke and ran to the five, nearly missing it but slopping it in the other corner (with apologies to her opponent), then made a 6-9 combination to pull ahead 4-3.

Breaking in game eight, Kim ran to the three, played safe, but the cue ball slow rolled its way into the corner pocket. Fisher played safe and Kim kicked and made a ball, but missed a bank. Allison played a long six ball and caromed in the nine to tie it up 4-4!
 
A scratch on a safety attempt in the next game might have resulted in a runout for Kim, but missed position on the five ball caused a miss on a tough five. Allison ran out to again lead the match, 5-4. Fisher broke in game ten and played safe on the one. Ga Young made the hit with her jump cue, but left Allison a clear shot on the one. She executed a perfect runout to get to the hill 6-4!

Allison broke, pocketed the five on the break, made the one ball and then... made a 2-9 combination for the WIN! Both players thanked the fans and event host River Spirit Casino for a fantastic and exciting week in Tulsa.

Visit http://www.wpba.com/images/stories/brackets/2011usopen.pdf for a complete blow by blow of the final match.

About the Women's Professional Billiard Association (WPBA)
The WPBA was established in 1976 as the Women's Professional Billiard Alliance, and celebrates its 35th anniversary in 2011 as the oldest pro player organization in the sport. The WPBA sanctions and produces the Women's Pro Billiard Tour, which features ESPN-televised events with the world's greatest women players. Visit www.wpba.com for more. The WPBA Classic Tour is sponsored by the American Poolplayers Association, Diamond Billiards, Iwan Simonis, Cuetec Cues, Delta 13, Pooldawg and Aramith.  
 
About River Spirit Casino
Tulsa's $195 million casino project at 81st & Riverside, showcases 300,000 square feet of gaming space and is one of the largest gaming floors in Oklahoma. With over 2,600 high-tech electronic machines, 24 table games and 15 poker tables, River Spirit Casino offers the most current technology and latest games available. The facility features four world-class dining and beverage venues including the largest casino buffet in Oklahoma, a fine dining establishment, a 24-hour café, lounge and sports bar.  For more information on River Spirit Casino please visit the website. www.riverspirittulsa.com?As an active community partner, River Spirit Casino provides a positive economic impact for Tulsa and surrounding towns, adding 450 new jobs to the city. Proceeds from gaming operations help to fund a variety of Muscogee (Creek) Nation service programs such as housing, education, elderly assistance and healthcare. For more information on the tribe's history and government, please visit the Muscogee (Creek) Nation's Web site. www.muscogeenation-nsn.gov

About River Spirit Event Center
The newly renovated River Spirit Event Center is located at the site of the former Creek Nation Casino - Tulsa at 81st and Riverside Drive. The venue has nearly 20,000 sq. ft of useable space for sporting events, entertainment, conventions and meetings and all amenities.

TULSA, OK - Defending champion Ga Young Kim struck out to a three game lead to launch her attack against the world's #1 ranked player, Jasmin Ouschan, in the second semifinal match of the WPBA US Open 9-Ball Championship at the River Spirit Event Center in Tulsa.
 
In the fourth rack, a scratch on the five ball put Jasmin back at the table with ball in hand and she quickly won the game to trail 3-1, but Ga Young answered with another game win after a safety exchange in game five - score 4-1 in Kim's favor.
 
A bad hit on a kick in the next rack by Jasmin again put Ga Young back at the table. She quickly polished off the remaining balls to lead 5-1. Jasmin again answered with a rack of her own after a leaked safety by Kim, only to scratch on the break in the next game to let Kim quickly run the rack with ball in hand to lead 6-1, just a game away from the win.  
 
Jasmin had a chance for a runout in the next game, but played poor position on a seven ball. An inning later, Ga Young Kim banked the 8 in the side after a bank attempt by Jasmin. She slammed it center pocket and came up behind a long 9 that she stroked perfectly for the win!
 
Next up at 5:00 pm EST, the final bout between veteran champion Allison Fisher and defending champ Ga Young Kim!
 
Ongoing scores (refresh for updates) will be available throughout today's matches. Visit http://www.wpba.com/images/stories/brackets/2011usopen.pdf

About the Women's Professional Billiard Association (WPBA)
The WPBA was established in 1976 as the Women's Professional Billiard Alliance, and celebrates its 35th anniversary in 2011 as the oldest pro player organization in the sport. The WPBA sanctions and produces the Women's Pro Billiard Tour, which features ESPN-televised events with the world's greatest women players. Visit www.wpba.com for more. The WPBA Classic Tour is sponsored by the American Poolplayers Association, Diamond Billiards, Iwan Simonis, Cuetec Cues, Delta 13, Pooldawg and Aramith.  
 
About River Spirit Casino?River Spirit Casino
Tulsa's $195 million casino project at 81st & Riverside, showcases 300,000 square feet of gaming space and is one of the largest gaming floors in Oklahoma. With over 2,600 high-tech electronic machines, 24 table games and 15 poker tables, River Spirit Casino offers the most current technology and latest games available. The facility features four world-class dining and beverage venues including the largest casino buffet in Oklahoma, a fine dining establishment, a 24-hour café, lounge and sports bar.  For more information on River Spirit Casino please visit the website. www.riverspirittulsa.com?As an active community partner, River Spirit Casino provides a positive economic impact for Tulsa and surrounding towns, adding 450 new jobs to the city. Proceeds from gaming operations help to fund a variety of Muscogee (Creek) Nation service programs such as housing, education, elderly assistance and healthcare. For more information on the tribe's history and government, please visit the Muscogee (Creek) Nation's Web site. www.muscogeenation-nsn.gov? ?

About River Spirit Event Center?
The newly renovated River Spirit Event Center is located at the site of the former Creek Nation Casino - Tulsa at 81st and Riverside Drive. The venue has nearly 20,000 sq. ft of useable space for sporting events, entertainment, conventions and meetings and all amenities.

TULSA, OK - Hall of Famer Allison Fisher owns more pro titles than any woman pool player in the history of the sport, but hasn't won a major on US soil since 2008 (San Diego and Great Lakes Classic). So, long time Allison fans were only cautiously optimistic when she faced off against pro tour newcomer Erica Park of Korea in today's first semifinal bout.  
 
It was Erica who drew first blood in the race to seven, but Allison answered back and the score was knotted at 1-1 and 2-2. It looked like it would be another close session.
 
But then Allison began doing what Allison has been known to do best: WIN. She put on a display of near-perfect pool as she won the next five games straight to take the match and seal herself a spot in the finals.
 
Next up, Jasmin Ouschan vs. defending champ Ga Young Kim!   
 
Ongoing scores (refresh for updates) will be available throughout today's matches. Visit http://www.wpba.com/images/stories/brackets/2011usopen.pdf

About the Women's Professional Billiard Association (WPBA)
The WPBA was established in 1976 as the Women's Professional Billiard Alliance, and celebrates its 35th anniversary in 2011 as the oldest pro player organization in the sport. The WPBA sanctions and produces the Women's Pro Billiard Tour, which features ESPN-televised events with the world's greatest women players. Visit www.wpba.com for more. The WPBA Classic Tour is sponsored by the American Poolplayers Association, Diamond Billiards, Iwan Simonis, Cuetec Cues, Delta 13, Pooldawg and Aramith.  
 
About River Spirit Casino
River Spirit Casino, Tulsa's $195 million casino project at 81st & Riverside, showcases 300,000 square feet of gaming space and is one of the largest gaming floors in Oklahoma. With over 2,600 high-tech electronic machines, 24 table games and 15 poker tables, River Spirit Casino offers the most current technology and latest games available. For more info on River Spirit Casino please visit www.riverspirittulsa.com

The other semifinal (3 pm tomorrow) will feature US Open defending champion Ga Young Kim vs. #1 ranked Jasmin Ouschan (pictured). Kim defeated Vivian Villarreal 7-5 in a thrilling match that saw both players fight through a few tough spots.

In the next quarter final, Monica Webb looked like the player to beat, leading 4-2, 5-3 and 6-5, but a brutal miss on a 2-9 combo at 6-6 left Jasmin with the win!

Tomorrow's semi final action begins at 1:00 p.m. and we'll be here to report the results!

P&B instructor Charlie Williams, aka the Korean Dragon, can be proud of his coaching skills: Both of his Dragon Promotions players, Allison Fisher and newcomer Erica Park from Korea (pictured at left), have advanced to the semifinals of the US Open 9-Ball Championships at the River Spirit Casino & Event Center in Tulsa. The bad news: they play each other at 1:00 p.m. tomorrow. The good news: one will be in the finals!

In the first quarter-final of the day, Erica Park faced off against USA's own Jeanette Lee. In a tight match that saw neither player pull more than one game away from the other, Park defeated Jeanette Lee 7-6!

In the next quarter-final, it was a battle of the Fishers; Allison (pictured right) took on Kelly in another heated battle. Allison quickly pulled ahead to a 3-1 lead before Kelly answered with four straight games to lead 5-3. Then Allison pulled out all the stops to win four straight of her own, breaking and running the final rack to win the match 7-5.

Two quarter-final matchups remain to be played today; defending champion Ga Young Kim vs. USA's Vivian Villarreal, and USA's Monica Webb vs. #1 ranked Jasmin Ouschan of Austria.

Stay tuned... (Ongoing bracket scoring can be found at http://www.wpba.com/images/stories/brackets/2011usopen.pdf

Ga Young Kim, US Open defending champion!

The Women's Pro Billiard Tour's US Open 9-Ball Championships has kicked off its first round of play at the River Spirit Event Center in Tulsa with a full field of 64 players. The initial double elimination draw and match times for all 64 competitors are below. Quarter final, semi final and final matches will be taped by ESPN for seven one-hour national broadcasts.

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Story and Photos by Ted Lerner
(Shanghai, China)--Great Britain’s Chris Melling (pictured) proved that his current number 2 ranking on the brutally tough Euro Tour is no fluke, as he put in a series of stellar performances on Saturday and stormed into Sunday’s semi-finals in the China Open 9-ball tournament in Shanghai.

It was a long and grueling road to hoe  inside the Shanghai Pudong Yuanshen Stadium for the men as the field was reduced  from 32 to four with race to 11, alternate break matches. Joining the red hot Brit in the first semi-final will be the Netherland’s Niels Feijen. The other semi-final will feature former double World Champion Ronnie Alcano of the Philippines against upstart Chinese-Taipei newcomer Hsu Kai Lun.

Sunday’s first semi-final will begin at 9:30 AM(GMT +8) local time with the second one to follow immediately afterwards. The men’s final of the China Open 9-ball will be contested right after the women’s final.

On the women's side, 17 year old Chinese pool star  and defending champion Chen Siming lived up to all the accolades when she stunned Austria’s Jasmin Ouschan in the semi-finals, storming back from an 8-3 deficit to win their semi-final match 9-8 and move into Sunday’s final.

Chen’s improbable comeback means that Sunday’s race to 9 final will be an all Chinese affair. In the first semi-final earlier in the evening, current World 9-ball champion Fu Xiaofang put in a solid performance and outlasted Korea’s Lim Yun Mi 9-7.

The final match between the two best women players in China will be aired over China Central Television(CCTV) and the viewing audience is expected to be in the tens of millions.

You can follow all the action at www.wpa-pool.com through a live scoring platform.

By Frederico Makabenta: It’s now down to the final four. The new champion in the Philippine Open Pool Championships will be known today,  Monday, April 11, at the SM Megamall in Mandaluyong City. As early as Sunday afternoon, Ricky Yang of Indonesia, the defending champion, bowed out of the tournament after suffering his second setback. He lost to up-and-coming Filipino player Carlo Biado, 1-9, as early as the round-of-16. The 27-year old Biado continued to push his luck as far as he could and he did that with a stunning 9-7 win over his compatriot, newly-crowned World 8-Ball champion Dennis Orcullo.
His luck ended in a do-or-die battle against former world champion Thorsten Hohmann of Germany, who won in a thrilling 9-8 encounter. The German player, who is seeking his first championship on Philippine soil, joined his bosom buddy and countryman Ralf Souquet and Liu Haitao of China, two players who barged into the Final Four unscathed going to the final day.

The last berth for the semifinals was disputed by veteran Filipino Antonio Lining and Darren Appleton of Great Britain. Lining prevailed in the tightly contested match,   9-6. “It’s nice to be in the semifinals. It’s always fun for me competing in the Philippines and until now, I have yet to win a title here,” said Hohmann. “I made several mistakes, including the missed shot at the No. 10 ball, which could have given me a chance to finish off the match earlier. But he made mistakes, too, and we had an interesting finish by making several safety exchanges.” Lining (pictured) is the last Filipino standing.
His win over Appleton, a former World Ten Ball champion, was aided by luck coupled with the Briton’s erratic game, which came at a perfect time. “Luck played a big part in my victory,  as well as  the bad game he played,” said Lining.  The four players take center stage on Monday beginning at 12 noon with Lining taking on Souquet and Liu going up against Hohmann.

Chen vs Fisher for Women’s Championship?
Siming Chen (pictured) of China and Kelly Fisher of Great Britain arranged a titular showdown for the women's championship. Chen survived former Amway World champion Lin Yuan Chun of Chinese Taipei, 9-6, while Fisher defeated former World Women's 9-Ball champion Li Sha Sha of China by the same score. Fisher broke free from a 6-6 standoff by taking the next three racks and spoiling a possible all-Chinese finale. Chen came back from a 3-5 deficit before turning back Lin, a crack competitor who once played against some of the best male players in the inaugural World Ten Ball Championship in Manila in 2008.

The Philippine Open has progressed to the point where the fields begin to thin and some of those who have been culled are not among the names one might expect. Both Shane Van Boening and Allison Fisher (pictured here) have been knocked out of the tournament without enjoying a single victory.

And they are not the only surprise players headed for the exits. Kenny Kwok of Hong Kong is out after being drummed 9-3 by Lung Chang Yu. Pei-Wei Chang, perennial quarterfinalist in the World 9-Ball event, was sent home 9-6 by Ramil Gallego. Canadian John Morra has also been shown the door, as have Jerico Banares, Jeff De Luna, Marlon Manalo, and Demosthenes Pulpul.

On the men's winners side of the bracket the lower half is one killer field of players. Po-Cheng Kuo is set to play Marcus Chamat, Thorsten Hohmann will play Ricky Yang, Jason Klatt will go against Darren Appleton and Ralf Souquet will battle Dennis Orcullo.

The ladies are also winding their way towards the finish line. Fatalities there include Monica Webb and Line Kjorsvik. The key match-ups today on the winner's side show just how strong the women's game has become in Asia. Yu Ram Cha will play Lim, Yun-Mi as Siming Chen plays Jasmin Ouschan.  The lower half of the bracket finds Han Yu against Chieh-Yu Chou and Sha Sha Liu faces Jing Wu.  

Visit www.wpa-pool.com for full brackets. Visit www.rayasports.com for photos from each day of competition!

The WPBA Masters enjoyed a thrilling conclusion when Jasmin Ouschan of Austria defeated veteran professional and #3 ranked Karen Corr, the "Irish Invader" by the narrowest of margins! With a title on the line, Ouschan broke and ran the rack to the eight ball. Then, for a terrifying second, the eight hung in the pocket... The crowd sucked in a collective breath... and the ball fell in!

Jasmin took a deep breath of her own, clean-stroked in the nine ball and collapsed on the arena floor in relief.

The win came after a series of uncharacteristic misses by the young champion. In a tearful speech to the fans, she explained that in the end she felt she'd made all the mistakes she could have and it was time to power on through.

And she did: Karen Corr, ahead 6-4 in the race, scratched on the break and it was the last time she'd get to the table. Jasmin took ball in hand, ran that rack, and broke and ran the next two racks in record time.

This was the inaugural WPBA Masters Championship, hosted by the beautiful Soaring Eagle Casino in Mt. Pleasant, Michigan. Jasmin's win comes on the day before her 25th birthday!

Visit www.wpba.com for complete tournament brackets and a play-by-play of the final match.

About the Women's Professional Billiard Association (WPBA)
The WPBA was established in 1976 as the Women's Professional Billiard Alliance, and will celebrate its 35th anniversary in 2011 as the oldest pro player organization in the sport. The WPBA sanctions and produces the Women's Pro Billiard Tour, which features ESPN-televised events with the world's greatest women players. Visit www.wpba.com for more. The WPBA Classic Tour is sponsored by the American Poolplayers Association, Diamond Billiards, Iwan Simonis, Cuetec Cues, Delta 13, Pooldawg, Mueller Recreational Products and Aramith.
 
About the Soaring Eagle Casino & Resort
The Soaring Eagle Casino & Resort is the Midwest's premier AAA Four Diamond gaming and hospitality destination offering top-name entertainment year-round, award-winning dining, high stakes bingo and a full-service spa. For more information, visit www.soaringeaglecasino.com