by InsidePOOL Staff

Ron Gabia and Ed Culhane elected to split first place at the January 14 stop of the Tri-State Tour because of the lateness of the hour. The $500-added 9-ball event was hosted by Castle Billiards in East Rutherford, NJ, and drew a field of 47 A-D players.

Ron Gabia and Ed Culhane elected to split first place at the January 14 stop of the Tri-State Tour because of the lateness of the hour.

Gabia took the right side of the bracket by storm, defeating Joe Palone in a double-hill match to advance to the hot seat match. His opponent, Cory Sohlman, had just thumped George Osipovitch 6-1, but against Gabia he found no respite, as Gabia went on to win 8-3.

Culhane was fighting his way through the left side, eliminating Annie Flores 7-5 and Palone 7-5 to reach the quarterfinal match. Facing him was Ed Dacosta, who had just ousted Osipovitch at fifth place 6-2. Their match went double-hill before Culhane squeaked past with a 7-6 win.

Sohlman was the last barrier before Culhane could reach Gabia, and though he put up a fight, it was Culhane who emerged the 8-5 winner. But in the finals, Gabia and Culhane decided to split top honors.

Results:
1st Ron Gabia $575
Ed Culhane
3rd Cory Sohlman $275
4th Ed Dacosta $150
5th Joe Palone $100
George Osipovitch
7th Annie Flores $75
Rick Shellhouse