|
Hall Wins 2001 U.S. Amateur Championship
In the finals against Henson, Hall flashed that confidence early on in front of a large crowd of spectators, taking the first three games of the 9-Ball set to start the match. Henson quickly recovered and battled back to take the next two games and close the gap in Hall’s lead.
Hall’s defensive skills and shooting ability would dominate the next four games, and give him a 7-2 lead. Henson again mounted a comeback taking games 10 and 11. Following Henson’s back-to-back victories, Hall went on the offensive again winning the final two games in the 9-Ball set and the first game of 8-Ball, and took a commanding 10-4 lead.
Henson would postpone Hall’s victory celebration temporarily with two strong victories, but Hall capitalized on Henson’s inability to pocket the 8-ball in the next game, and closed out the match 11-6.
Although somewhat disappointed by a 2nd Place finish, Henson acknowledged that advancing to the finals in his first U.S. Amateur Championship was quite a feat.
Finals Set
Robert Hall of Merdianville, Ala, will meet James Henson of Alexandria, Va., Sunday evening in the Finals of the 2001 U.S. Amateur Championship at Champion Billiards in Laurel, Md., in a race to 11.
Hall remains undefeated in the tournament, and Henson advanced to the final after defeating Jim Barber of Colorado Springs, Colo., 7-5. Barber advanced to the match-up with Henson after defeating former two-time U.S. Amateur Champion Henry Brodt of Glenview, Ill., 7-3.
Barber finished in 3rd Place and Brodt placed 4th.
Final Four Set
The 128-player field at this year’s U.S. Amateur Championship has been narrowed down to four. Left standing are Jim Barber of Colorado Spring, Colo., Henry Brodt of Glenview, Ill., Robert Hall of Meridianville, Ala., and James Henson of Alexandria, Va. Barber will face Brodt, while Hall and Henson will take-on one another Sunday afternoon at Champion Billiards in Laurel, Md.
Binion eliminated, Brodt suffers first loss
2001 will not be the year that John Binion, three-time U.S. Amateur Championship Runner-up, finally wins it all. Binion was defeated Sunday afternoon by Jim Barber of Colorado Springs, Colo., 7-3.
Meanwhile, two-time champion Henry Brodt also suffered his first loss of the tournament. After defeating Binion earlier in the day, Brodt was defeated by James Henson of Alexandria,Va.
Binion rebounds from loss, knocks Wellnitz from tournament
Just moments after suffering his first loss of the tournament to former champion Henry Brodt in a hill-to-hill match, John Binion was in action again. Binion took on Heinz Wellnitz in a rematch of Round 10 – which Binion won 7-5.
Unlike their last meeting, Binion knew exactly what to expect from Wellnitz - offense. Wellnitz quickly won the first game with his sharp shooting and took a 1-0. But Binion would show his tournament experience by slowing down the pace, and playing defense. The strategy worked as Binion would not lose another game in the match and eventually won 7-1.
Brodt hands Binion first tournament loss
In rematch of the 1999 U.S. Amateur Championship Finals, former two-time champion Henry Brodt defeated three-time Runner-up John Binion, 7-6, Sunday morning. Both players were undefeated heading into the match.
Binion gained a 3-0 lead early on in the 9-Ball set, before Brodt mounted a comeback, winning the next two games to close the gap to 3-2. The players then split games six and seven, making the score 4-3.
Binion looked as though he was going to close the match out after winning games eight and nine, but was unable to secure the victory after going to the hill.
Brodt fought off elimination in the 10th game, then made an 8-on-the-break in the 11th to pull to within one game of Binion.
That would change the momentum of the match, as Brodt would take the final two games, and the match.
Brodt remains undefeated.
Defending Champion Rowell ousted after suffering second loss of the day
Defending 2000 U.S. Amateur Champion David Rowell was defeated 7-4 by Thomas Acciavatti of Latham, NY, late Saturday afternoon, eliminating him from this year’s tournament. Rowell suffered his second loss of the day, after being defeated this morning my two-time U.S. Amateur Champion Henry Brodt. Rowell finished tied for 33rd overall.
Acciavatti advances on to face Mark Bolduc of Ellington, Conn., Saturday evening.
Brodt wins a thriller in quest for third U.S. Amateur title
For most, a 13th Place finish in the nation’s most competitive amateur pool tournament would be considered very respectable, but not for a two-time defending champion. That’s why after being bumped from the tournament earlier than expected last year, Henry Brodt was as determined as ever to take back his title.
Brodt was off to an incredible start, taking his first three matches by a fairly good margin, before he met his toughest challenge to date in this year’s tournament when he squared off against Daniel LaVoie of Mount Dora, Fla. LaVoie gave Brodt a run for his money in the match-up that went hill-to-hill, but in the end Brodt emerged victorious 7-6, however not without a little help from LaVoie.
After shooting an exceptional match, and being on the verge of handing Brodt his first loss in the tournament, LaVoie was five balls away from taking the game and the match, but after sinking the 4-ball, he scratched in the corner pocket. Brodt was able to capitalize on LaVoie’s mistake, and secure the win.
Brodt will face-off against a familiar foe early Sunday morning when he meets three-time U.S. Amateur Runner-up John Binion, in a rematch of the 1999 championship finals. Both players remain undefeated after Binion defeated Michael Frank of Odenton, Md., 7-1.
Binion nearly upset by relatively unknown
Three-time U.S. Amateur Championship Runner-up John Binion may not have known who Heinz Wellnitz of Glen Burnie, Md., was before Saturday, but he definitely won’t soon forget. Wellnitz is quickly making a name for himself in the Baltimore/Washington area with his outstanding poolplaying ability, and after nearly defeating Binion here at the U.S. Amateur Championship, he’s also earning the respect of some of the top amateur players in the country.
Wellnitz jumped out to a quick 3-0 lead in the 9-Ball set against Binion, as both players demonstrated their outstanding shooting ability. Binion managed to regroup and cut Wellnitz’s lead to 3-1 by running out the table in the fourth game, after Wellnitz failed to pocket a ball on-the-break. Binion then cut further into the lead with a break-and-run in the fifth game.
Wellnitz wasn’t going down without a fight however, taking two of the next three games, to take a 5-3 lead into the 9-Ball set. Binion then demonstrated the patience and experience that has lead him to the finals of the championship three times, by winning all four games in the 9-Ball to take the match 7-5.
Binion remains undefeated in the tournament, while Wellnitz remains very much alive after suffering only his first loss.
Rowell continues strong push following loss to Brodt
A tough loss may have been just what defending U.S. Amateur Champion David Rowell needed to help him focus. After being defeated at the hands of former two-time U.S. Amateur Champion Henry Brodt, Rowell has responded with strong performances in his next two matches.
Rowell defeated Eric Perry of Ambler, Pa., 7-1, following his shutout of Gary Allen in the previous round. Rowell dominated the match, dropping only the fifth game to Perry to close out the 8-Ball set 4-1. Rowell then managed to run-out the table in the next two games, before making the 9-on-the-snap to close out the match.
Champion rebounds from loss with shutout victory
After suffering his first loss in this year’s U.S. Amateur Championship, defending champion David Rowell of Birmingham, Ala., defeated Gary Allen of Gaithersburg, Md., in a 7-0 shutout.
Following a loss to two-time U.S. Amateur Champion Henry Brodt in the previous round, Rowell came out determined to avenge the loss, and avenge he did, making quick work of Allen in the next match.
Rowell managed to capitalize on some key mistakes early on by Allen to take a quick 1-0 lead. Following Rowell’s break in which he failed to sink anything, Allen appeared to be in solid position to take the second game after running his first five balls. Allen would scratch on the 6-ball however, allowing Rowell to run-out and take a 2-0 lead. Rowell never looked back at that point and eventually took the match 7-0.
Brodt defeats Rowell in early match-up of past U.S. Amateur Champions
Two-time U.S. Amateur Champion (1998 & ’99) Henry Brodt of Glenview, Ill., defeated defending champion David Rowell of Birmingham, Ala., 7-4, in an early Saturday morning match.
The contest was a highly anticipated one, as was evident by the large crowd of spectators on-hand to watch the competitors shoot.
Brodt jumped out to an early 3-0 in the 8-Ball set with some outstanding defensive play and excellent shooting. Rowell managed only one victory in the 8-Ball set.
Trailing 4-1 heading into 9-Ball, Rowell missed a straight-in shot on the 9-ball to give Brodt a 5-1 lead. The mistake would prove to be crucial as Rowell would rebound to take the next three games, narrowing Brodt’s lead to 5-4. Brodt quickly rebounded however to break-n-run in the final two games to take the victory.
Defending Champion Notches First Victory
It appears 2000 U.S. Amateur Champion David Rowell is picking up right where he left off a year ago after defeating John Murray of Los Gatos, Calif., 7-4 in his first match. Rowell advances to a Saturday morning match-up against former two-time U.S. Amateur Champion Henry Brodt. Brodt defeated Joseph Donnelly 7-5 to advance.
Rowell jumped out to an early 3-0 lead on Murray in the 8-Ball set, and lead 4-1 heading into 9-Ball. Rowell managed to take the first two games in the 9-Ball set and a 6-1 lead.
Murray refused to go down without a fight however, and managed to mount a brief comeback to work the score to 6-4.
Rowell then showed the poise that led him to the championship last year with an incredible shot that pocketed both the 4-ball and then the 9-ball for the game and the match.
|
