Bryant Crowned Lone Star Tour Champion
Lone Star Billiards Tour / Houston, TX
by InsidePOOL Staff
Charlie “Hillbilly” Bryant became the first Lone Star Tour’s finale champion when he bested Andy Jethwa in the final match of the December 12-13 stop. The tour’s finale was hosted by Bogies Billiards and Games in Houston, TX, where 75 players came from all over Texas to compete for almost $9,000 in tournament money, along with a free entry into the Derby City Classic 9-ball division and two qualifier spots for next year’s first stop on the Predator World 10-Ball Tour in January.
After a grueling day of match play on Saturday, the players came together again Sunday. Earlier Jethwa had plowed through Bryant 9-4 and then steamrolled Ochoa 9-1 to reach Mike Alonzo, who previous sent James Davis Jr. and Aaron Springs to the one-loss side. It was a nail-biter of a match, but Jethwa pulled through 9-7.
On the west side of the chart, Bryant fought his way through a hill-hill bout with Davis Jr. before facing Sylver Ochoa. In this quarterfinal match, Bryant trounced Ochoa 7-1 and then overcame Alonzo by the same score to make it to the finals.
The final scene became a bit more familiar—Bryant versus Jethwa. It was a great battle of skill, but in the end, Bryant closed out both sets by scores of 9-6 and 7-4.
Twelve women came out to play in the $350-added ladies event, thanks to sponsor James Barnett. Top tour favorites Kyu Yi, Terry Petrosino, Courtney Peters, and Yvette Reyes all finished in the top four, respectively.
For his exceptional play throughout the year and at the final event, Bryant took home top points honors, along with a Delta-13 Rack and a Delta-13 Elite. He also received a $100 bonus, as did the other top three point leaders—Sylver Ochoa, Dennis Strickland, Lanny Herrin. Bryant also received the Derby City 9-ball entry and one qualifier spot to the Predator World Tour Stop in January. Raffle winners include Mike Payne, who won the fabulous AR6 Poison Cue, and Jeff Gardner, who took home a beautiful Delta 13 Rack. Honorable mentions go out to players Blain Barcus, TJ Ortiz, and Jim Henry for their increasingly good finishes throughout the year.
Bogies Billiards & Games played host to the Lone Star Billiards Tour Championships on December 12th-13th, 2009 and wrapped up a very successful first year for the not- so- fledgling Tour.
Results
1st Charlie Bryant $860
2nd Andy Jethwa $560
3rd Mike Alonzo $390
4th Sylver Ochoa $300
5th Jason Bacon $175
Aaron Springs
7th Raul Escobedo
James Davis Jr.
9th Viet Do
Jim Henry
Eric Aicinena
Todd Lewis
13th Thomas Ybarra
T.J. Ortiz
Sonny Bosshamer
Ernesto Bayaua