Open Team T-Shirt Winners

1st – A Whole Different Animal (Moonshadows); Los Angeles, CA – Jon Bourgault, Kingsley Harmer, Julie Walling, Lynnette West, Don Henry, David George, Pat Brown, Larry Nicholson

2nd – ARACKINPHOBIA; Virginia Beach, VA – Christopher Kinder, Gary Meeks, Walter Erb, Jr., Christine Erb, Ronnie Williams, Melanie Watson

3rd – Shooters - Hernandez; Blue Springs, MO – John Hernandez, Cindy Hernandez, Cindy McCoy, Eric McCoy, Diana Francis, Rene Giron, Cindy Bates, Dennis Snapp

Sportsmanship is the key to success in any event. The teams receiving the Sportsmanship Award were nominated by the Referee Staff, APA Staff and other participants in their events. These teams were presented commemorative medallions.

Open 8-Ball Division
Arena Billiards from Little Rock, Arkansas; Danny McDaniel, Shirley Fields, Debbie Miller, Carlton Johnson, Matt Karp, Jason Fakouri, and John Fletcher

CPA Members Enjoyed the Experience

CPA members Roy Cunningham and Justin Morris aren’t new to the National Team Championship Vegas experience, but enjoy coming to the States to participate in a great pool event. “This is my second time here,” said Cunningham, “it’s so much fun and you play so many great players it’s good for my game to meet competition like the competition out here.” Cunningham participated in both the 9-Ball and 8-Ball Championships this year, Morris is a referee at the event. They are both from Toronto, Canada.

The Duchess of Doom Allison Fisher, who’s been on-hand all week at the APA National Team Championships, faced off against select APA members throughout the week in special challenge matches. Every member who showed up for the exhibitions received a raffle ticket for a chance to play against Allison.

9-Ball & Ladies Team T-Shirt Winners

1st – Southside Belles; Paducah, KY – Teresa Smith, Sheila Newton, Lisa Cogdill, Kelley Peck, Kelly Knight, Debi Ogletree

2nd – Mugwamps; Spruce Grove, AB – David Austin, Tyler Austin, Doug McDonagh, Sue Robinson, David Robinson, George McDonald

3rd - 9-Lives; Palm Bay, FL – Angel Washburn, Chuck Tedder, Paul Falco, Sherry Bennick, Faye Mattson, Bill Mitchell, Patti Mitchell, Richard Williams

Sportsmanship is the key to success in any event. The teams receiving the Sportsmanship Award were nominated by the Referee Staff, APA Staff and other participants in their events. These teams were presented commemorative medallions.

9-Ball Division
9 And Out from Goose Creek, South Carolina; James Barnett, Paul Durgin, Theresa Muse, Michelle Davis, Carrie Sottile-Bench, Frank Winger, Mark Bostick, Jr.

Ladies 8-Ball Division
R-Girls from Huntington Beach, California; Ginger Wolsch, Liza Gazmen, Kelly Alderman, Tammy Contreras, Iris Condon and Kris Stover

Cuetec Debuts the Official APA Cue

Cuetec will produce a line of exclusive APA cues that will be available only to members and League Operators; the cues were introduced this year at the APA National Team Championships. The cues were available for members to see in the Pool Emporium the duration of the event. The cues will be available for members and League Operator order, and will be available for delivery the beginning of October. Watch on poolplayers.com for more information, coming soon!

I’m Here!

First year APA member, Cynthia Cheatom, is glad to have finally made it to Las Vegas! “I didn’t know if I was going to make it, I’m from Detroit, I was at the airport Thursday when the blackout happened, they sent me home and told me to come back in the morning, I was just supposed to show-up, I didn’t know if I was going to make it or not, it took a day and ½ for me to finally get here,” said Cynthia.

Cynthia is a Skill Level 3 and decided to come to the National Team Championships to participate in the MiniMania tournaments. So far she has participated in four events, winning two of them, “the competition is tough out here, the 2’s are good and the 3’s are awesome, I’m playing a lot of great poolplayers,” said Cynthia.

Scorpions Still Ready to Sting

Scorpions team mates, Mara Whitfield and Dareen Edwards were checking out the Message Boards in-between rounds of the Ladies Division Championships. “We are still in it, playing,” said Dareen, “and we are hoping to go all the way!”

“This is my first time out here, I’m having a great time, it’s a lot of fun,” said Mara. Dareen competed out here in 1996 and is glad to be back.

Tag-A-Long

Orlando, Florida APA member Gloria Maresma has been coming to the National Team Championships for the past three years. “My team has never qualified to compete in the tournament, but I always know someone who is coming out here to participate so I tag-a-long and play in the MiniMania Tournaments,” said Gloria.

After three years, Gloria, a 9-Ball Skill Level 1 finally won her first Mini! “I’m very excited, if I can do it then anyone can do it!” said Gloria, “It’s so much fun to come out here and play, it’s even more fun now that I finally won!”

Tight Pockets

The pockets may have been a little tight for the Ladies team from Valley Village, California in the beginning of the tournament, but the balls started to drop in their last match. “We just came out of the loser’s bracket, we only had one more loss and that was it, but we pulled out of it and we are still in,” said Kristin Eisen.

The ladies are still in the tournament and hope to make it all the way! From left to right, Julie Shragg, Kristin Eisen, Maria Padron, Geri Bonillas, Diane Livingston, LeeAnn Arendtson and Penny Spitzmesser, are excited to be in Las Vegas!

Who Cares?

The 9-Ball team, Who Cares, from Linden, New Jersey has a lot to care about actually! They are the first team ever to win the state championships and go to the National Team Championships from Union County in New Jersey.

“We placed 33rd in the tournament, it’s our first time out here, but we are already for next year,” said Danielle Schriek, “we are ready!”

Anthony collected the team’s winnings at Cash Payout, “We won $600, we’ll be going out to a well deserved dinner.”

Who Cares got together by chance, three of the members were at The Stanley Cup, their home bar, one evening when the League started up, “we all just kind of found each other, and here we are,” said Rick Soroka, “we just kept winning together, session after session.” Who Cares consists of Dave Fitzpatrick, Rick Soroka, Anthony Rics, Jason Egeln, Melissa Dispoce, Danielle Schriek, and Steve Griffin.

Here for the Entire Event

APA 9-Ball members, Luther Parmer, Shelby Maynard, Fidel Sanchez, Walt Orloski Jr., Tim Carr, Tim Jones and Paul Sullivan, of Cruisers II from Stewart, Florida are also here to participate in the 8-Ball National Team Championships, excluding Paul Sullivan, but with Maggie Kennedy. The members of 9-Ball team Cruisers II will enjoy their stay in Las Vegas the entire duration of the event, through the 8-Ball Team Championships.

“Our team plays both 8-Ball and 9-Ball and this year we won both the 8-Ball and 9-Ball Regionals. We are excited to be able to enjoy both the 9-Ball and 8-Ball Championships, win or lose we are going to have fun,” said Walt Orloski, Jr.

Duchess of Doom Shares Her Wisdom With APA Members

The world’s #1 ranked women’s player is here in Las Vegas at the Riviera Hotel & Casino this week to offer instructional classes to APA members. Fisher is conducting a limited number of classes to members looking to improve their game. Three different types of classes are offered including group and individual sessions.

For players coming to Vegas, a limited number of classes are still available. To sign-up, visit the Allison Fisher booth in the Pool Emporium.

Let the Games Begin!

Opening Ceremonies for the 9-Ball and Ladies 8-Ball Division kicked-off this afternoon. APA President Renee Lyle Poehlman welcomed the 222 9-Ball teams and 62 Ladies teams to Las Vegas. She also thanked the companies that sponsor the APA, Cuetec Cues, Michelob AmberBock and Diamond Tables for their support and enthusiasm of pool. She also recognized the hard working tournament staff who, without them this tournament wouldn’t happen! All teams have started their first match and the field will be whittled down over the next few days.

Click here to view the opening ceremonies on video! 56k | 256k

Check-In – FAST!

Skip the long lines at the Registration Desk this year and jump over to the Express Check-In located near the Mail Drop at the Registration Desk. This is an easy to use touch screen system. You simply tell the computer if you want to check-in or check-out, swipe your credit card (the name on the credit card must match the name on the reservation) and proceed with check-in. The computer will give you all the information a desk attendant would, you sign your name, make your key and you are good to go!

The system was installed just over a year ago and Riviera management hopes to see more kiosks throughout the hotel in the near future. “The new system has improved the check-in process for our guests,” said Geoff Robinson, Hotel Manager, “some days 30% of our check-in is through the machines; that really matters when thousands of people are attempting to check-in and check-out all at once.”

MiniMania – Ready to Roll!

Hundreds of APA members lined up today to register for the MiniMania Tournaments. Registration began at 2:00 p.m. this afternoon, and the line formed quickly! Players can register for a variety of events up to 48 hours in advance. The Mini Tournaments are available 20 hours per day the duration of the tournament. There are a variety of events available for a variety of skill levels, from 8-Ball, 9-Ball, Mixed Doubles, Ladies Only, Scotch Doubles, and Seniors (55+) there is a tournament here for everyone. All tournaments are single elimination and range from $10 to $50 per tournament.