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Team DMIRO 10-Ball Tour / Pittsburgh, PA
by Mike Andrews
Allen Hopkins Team DMIRO 10-Ball Tour rolled into Pittsburgh, PA, the weekend of September 5-6 for its second stop in its first year. Breakers Billiards and Lounge hosted the field of 35, who showed up for the $2,000-added event, and Dennis Hatch walked away with the first-place prize.
Hatch quickly advanced to the finals from the open/pro bracket, with a first-round victory of 7-2 over Jordan Haydnak and a second-round victory of 7-5 over Manny Chau. Competing in the amateur bracket, Rob Krull made his way into the finals with victories over Sam Quinzi 7-1, Alan Landy 7-3, Ron Beard 7-4, and local favorite Bill McCullim 7-5.
The finals saw the top four amateurs and the top four open/pros combined in an eight-player bracket, still maintaining the double-elimination format. To kick off the finals, Hatch matched up against Alex Olinger, while Krull faced Dave Grau. Hatch went on to win with a victory of 7-2, while Krull sent a buzz throughout the room with an upset win over Grau 7-2.
During the hot seat match, Krull played at a high level and pulled off some thrilling shots to upset Hatch with a victory of 7-4. On the one-loss side, Hatch then defeated Olinger, who had just knocked off Grau. In the final set, a single race to 9, Hatch had a flashback of his prior match-up against Krull and took command, leaving Krull with few opportunities at the table. Hatch secured the first-place prize of $1,485 with an overwhelming victory of 9-0.
During the hot seat match, Krull played at a high level and pulled off some thrilling shots to upset Hatch with a victory of 7-4.
Results:
1st Dennis Hatch $1,485
2nd Rob Krull $1,050
3rd Alex Olinger $600
4th Dave Grau $425
5th Craig Mcpharlin $215
5th Manny Chau $215
7th Bill McCullim $130
7th Josh Brothers $130