Gabe Owen Wins the Derby City Classic One-Pocket

Gabe Owen Wins the Derby City Classic One-Pocket
Mike Fieldhammer, InsidePOOL Staff
Gabe Owen won the Tenth Annual Derby City Classic one-pocket tournament over Larry Nevel this evening. Owen entered the thirteenth round when he drew the bye, and Nevel bested Francisco Bustamante 3-0 for the right to battle Owen once more. Owen drew the bye in the seventh round as well as the twelfth, but in response to questions that he was lucky to get two byes, Owen said, “Lucky? Have you seen the players I had to beat?”
Owen played a spectacular tournament by all counts. The final match was not his best performance, he admitted, but the grind of the tournament has taken its toll on many. Still, Owen found a way to do something that no player has ever done: won the DCC one-pocket tournament when Efren Reyes played in it. In fact, Owen is the only one who has knocked Reyes out of the tournament. Owen said after the win, “Sure, other players have won a match against Reyes, but he still won the tournament. I knocked him out!”
Reyes isn’t the only heavyweight Owen had to duke it out with. His road to victory was without a blemish. He never lost a match and his victories in order were against this formidable list of one-pocket competitors:
Jeremy Brown
Richard Harris
Huidji See
Robert McCormick
Jim Weast
Francisco Bustamante
Cliff Joyner
Scott Frost
Larry Nevel
Efren Reyes
Larry Nevel
The win netted Owen $12,000 and put him in contention for the Master of the Table prize. Nevel and Bustamante are also contenders for the because of their to high finishes in 9-ball banks.
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Saturday is all 9-ball! We will have tournament coverage as the 9-ball wraps up in the evening. Visit InsidePOOL for all the latest news on the Tenth Annual Derby City Classic.