Thanks to all the onepocket.org members who helped make this event so great.
First, let's talk about Buffalo. He spent $80,000 to get his room up to snuff, including buying 8 new Diamond 4.25 inch tables for the tournament, and buying 10 more tons of air. He rented another bathroom so that it would relieve foot traffic in the room. He had all hands on deck for the whole event, catering to the 400 or so fans and players that were in action at all hours of the night.
Second, the players. Despite COVID restrictions, quarantines, and a competing European event that was punishing players who chose Buffalos over Gibraltar, 20 great players descended on New Orleans to compete in the $2,000 entry fee, $10,000 added event. They played for $50,000 in tournament money, and the calcutta was an All time high for one pocket: $112,200!. And while most players usually don't get 1/2 of themselves, in this event, many did. I guess it was that $45,000/$35,000/$20,000/$12,200 payoff that made them scrape their nickels and quarters together. The players were great and were in awe of what they were apart of. Ike Runnels was in shock at the ease of action in the Big Easy. John Morra joked he would never leave.
Third: The action. Members witnessed the 24 hour action on all tables at Buffalos and matched up themselves. Newkirk stayed in action and acquitted himself just fine. Some of the locals did quite well betting on the action, with a couple local action guys winning in excess of $200,000 for the week. While we are accustomed to big action in New Orleans, it started literally a month early this year and went right on into the tournament. Some of the action guys confessed they would be happy when it was over so they could catch up on their sleep.
Fourth, poolacationtv.com. Great work as usual by Ray Hansen and his staff. He does a great job not only streaming the event with top commentary, but doing all the legwork behind the scenes to make sure that the players show up and we have a full field, that the stake horses are taken care of and that all the trains run on time. Ray has done as much for professional one pocket as anyone in America in the last 10 years and we should recognize his efforts. Sure, he makes a living doing it, but that's no sin and we are all the better for his work.
Finally, I want to commend the new tournament director, Jason Hill, who did an outstanding job at his first Pro Classic. Just top notch all around.
The format lent itself to few upsets, as the top field and the race to five demand the cream come to the top, with the final four consisting of three previous champs and a Hall of Famer. Great tournament for new comers Devin Poteet and John Morra, who finished just out of the money. We'll see them both in the future. Justin Hall acquitted himself well, knocking out the Robocop in the biggest upset of the tournament, and Tony Chohan proved his championship pedigree and took one step closer to his inevitable future Hall of Fame legend status. For those that don't know, Tony is 39 and will soon be eligible, but he has many great years of play left. Good tournament for Scott Frost as well, who continues to round back into shape after a four year absence from tournament play.
In all, the Pro Classic was a smashing success and the standard by which all events are compared. We could only hope to get eight such events in the future. Then we could really talk about one pocket going to the next level.
First, let's talk about Buffalo. He spent $80,000 to get his room up to snuff, including buying 8 new Diamond 4.25 inch tables for the tournament, and buying 10 more tons of air. He rented another bathroom so that it would relieve foot traffic in the room. He had all hands on deck for the whole event, catering to the 400 or so fans and players that were in action at all hours of the night.
Second, the players. Despite COVID restrictions, quarantines, and a competing European event that was punishing players who chose Buffalos over Gibraltar, 20 great players descended on New Orleans to compete in the $2,000 entry fee, $10,000 added event. They played for $50,000 in tournament money, and the calcutta was an All time high for one pocket: $112,200!. And while most players usually don't get 1/2 of themselves, in this event, many did. I guess it was that $45,000/$35,000/$20,000/$12,200 payoff that made them scrape their nickels and quarters together. The players were great and were in awe of what they were apart of. Ike Runnels was in shock at the ease of action in the Big Easy. John Morra joked he would never leave.
Third: The action. Members witnessed the 24 hour action on all tables at Buffalos and matched up themselves. Newkirk stayed in action and acquitted himself just fine. Some of the locals did quite well betting on the action, with a couple local action guys winning in excess of $200,000 for the week. While we are accustomed to big action in New Orleans, it started literally a month early this year and went right on into the tournament. Some of the action guys confessed they would be happy when it was over so they could catch up on their sleep.
Fourth, poolacationtv.com. Great work as usual by Ray Hansen and his staff. He does a great job not only streaming the event with top commentary, but doing all the legwork behind the scenes to make sure that the players show up and we have a full field, that the stake horses are taken care of and that all the trains run on time. Ray has done as much for professional one pocket as anyone in America in the last 10 years and we should recognize his efforts. Sure, he makes a living doing it, but that's no sin and we are all the better for his work.
Finally, I want to commend the new tournament director, Jason Hill, who did an outstanding job at his first Pro Classic. Just top notch all around.
The format lent itself to few upsets, as the top field and the race to five demand the cream come to the top, with the final four consisting of three previous champs and a Hall of Famer. Great tournament for new comers Devin Poteet and John Morra, who finished just out of the money. We'll see them both in the future. Justin Hall acquitted himself well, knocking out the Robocop in the biggest upset of the tournament, and Tony Chohan proved his championship pedigree and took one step closer to his inevitable future Hall of Fame legend status. For those that don't know, Tony is 39 and will soon be eligible, but he has many great years of play left. Good tournament for Scott Frost as well, who continues to round back into shape after a four year absence from tournament play.
In all, the Pro Classic was a smashing success and the standard by which all events are compared. We could only hope to get eight such events in the future. Then we could really talk about one pocket going to the next level.
