Dechaine Destroys the Field

by Rick Davis

The January 26-27 stop of the Joss Northeast 9-Ball Tour swung into Comet Billiards in Parsippany, NJ, where Mike Dechaine bested the 40-player field to claim the title. This double-elimination 9-ball action was second stop of the 2008 year for the tour.

On the winners’ side Dechaine owned the chart leading up to the hot seat match, where he faced and defeated top WPBA star Karen Corr 9-6. On the one-loss side it was a last-minute scramble to see who would remain to face Dechaine in the finals.

Tournament director Mike Zuglan ousted Len Favata 9-7 to reach the quarterfinals, while Bucky Souvanthong was not far behind. After taking an early loss to Dechaine double-hill, Souvanthong streaked through the one-loss side, clearing the final remaining players that included Mike Yednak 9-6, Zuglan 9-3 in the quarterfinals, and then eliminated Corr 9-6 in the semifinals.

With only one match remaining, Souvanthong was eager to avenge his early loss, although the true double-elimination format gave him a tough hill to climb. To start things out both Souvanthong and Dechaine kept things very close, as neither found a lead more than one rack, but Souvanthong edged out the double-hill win to force a final set. In the last set things kept close again until the score reached 4-all, where Dechaine was able to catch a gear and propel himself to the 9-6 win to claim the event.

Results:
1st Mike Dechaine
2nd Bucky Souvanthong
3rd Karen Corr
4th Mike Zuglan
5th Len Favata
Mike Yednak