SEMINOLE PRO TOUR - day 1

All right folks! First of all sorry for the wrong link to TAR earlier this week. The live-stream for the Seminole Pro Tour is on right here!
Well, there is not much to say today: I won my first round against a local player by the score of 7:2 and my next one against the 3rd living legend on my trip - José Parica! - by the score of 7:5. I was actually up 5:0 but suddenly forgot how to hold my stick and didn't take the chances he gave me till we finally tied up at 5 each. For the next two games I have to say that none of us really deserved it but he just missed another easy shot to see me running the last three balls and get away undefeated into day 2.

Back to LOS ANGELS

First of all I'd like to thank everybody for their b-day wishes via facebook and text message! I really appreciate it and was overwhelmed how many people took a minute to write something - COOL!
My day "started" at the Tonic Club in Santa Barbara, enjoying party time. Party-bus, nice drinks, cool people, good music and a swollen foot was the final score! Special thanks to Nadine, Natalie and Josh for the last 3 days, the party and last but not least the b-day cake just after being awake - as good as it gets!












Today I experienced what it means to be in a LA-traffic when everybody got off work. I headed back from Santa Barbara to the Hollywood Blvd. in Los Angeles to compete in the Seminole Pro Tour over the next three days. Looks like I at least kind of find back to my game as the strange equipment in the last few weeks took a lot of my self-confidence. I still have to fight for every shot and couldn't develope a fluent game yet. But sometimes pool is not a game, it's a fight, a mental fight!

ISLA VISTA

Enjoying live in Isla Vista (near Santa Barbara) on the UCSB campus is just nice! Life slowed down a little bit after the two weeks in "Sin City" and that's in fact exactly what I needed - nice.
On this occasion I am also checking out the web a little bit more than the last 4 weeks and found a video-shot of the last night at my home pool room again. Thank you Franzi for taking the vid! It was a fun night and I'd like to thank again everybody that showed up that night. I will definately think back to all the years I spend in "Daimler-City" every once in a while!

Don't forget to tune in over the weekend and Memorial Day for the first Seminole Pro Tour stop in California. The guys from TAR (www.theactionreport.com) will stream it live to your home pc all three days of play! Players like Reyes, Bustamante, Gomez, Dominiguez, van Boening, Immonen and many more are awaited. Indeed a high-quality field again! Check it out!

SANTA BARBARA - Isla Vista

Sometimes, betweeen all the matches and tournaments it's just necessary to go away from the green felt and see something new. That's exactly what I am doing right now. A few weeks ago I found out that I friend of mine from Stuttgart is studying near Los Angeles and after some chatting I said to visit here. So here I am now on the campus of the UCSB and enjoy the people and living here. The campus is not only huge but also very cool with a lot of easy going people. And this is, I guess, the only place where the cars have to watch out for the bicycles because there are so many!!


























In the evening I just met a pool player that I got to know only like a week ago in Vegas. We went for a beer to downtown Santa Barbara and I have to admit that this is maybe not the biggest place but very nice and with a lot of air. Also put an eye into the town's only pool hall - also tiny with only seven tables! I guess somebody got to open up a pool hall here...

LOS ANGELES - Hollywood Billiards

After the past few days in Vegas I indeed needed some kind of time-out. Therefore I took a long sleep last night and didn't plan anything for today.
But before I could fell asleep last night I made a very cool experience. The guys from Pool-Stage made it possible to tune me in the State Championships of Baden-Württemberg's live stream to do commentary together with nobody else than Ralph Eckert. It took them maybe 45 minutes to have it all set up and having a connection via Skype directly to "Die Drei - Billard,Dart and more..." in Sindelfingen/Germany. Thankyou guys, David, Stephan and Michael for this very nice intermezzo!

Today, as said, I took it slowly. I enjoyed Hollywood Billiard's cuisine, played some pool and read in a book that one of my postseason's teammates recommended - Tiziano Terzani's "Das Ende ist mein Anfang" (the end is my commencement).

Later in the evening, around midnight, Oscar and Ernesto Dominguez showed up to renew the cloth for the upcoming Seminole Pro Tour stop next weekend. While Ernesto already occupied with the Gold Crowns - thank God there aren't any Diamonds this time - Oscar and me played some cheap practise sets. And this time, after losing two sets in Vegas, I at least could get out even. As at Pool Sharks las week it was a pleasure to play him. Oscar and also his father seem to be different than most American pool players - decenct guys which are not show-offs and don't need to shark thier opponents during the game. Thank you very much for another fair game!

Goodbye Las Vegas - Hello Los Angeles

The days after my out in the US Open 10-Ball I checked out the Las Vegas nightlife again... and I didn't get disappointed! The clubs are just nice and the people celebrate themselves different than back home. The club "XS" at the Wynn was the place to be yesterday - at least for me. Second time visiting this club I could see the real size of it with all the outdoor terrace they have -just stylish and off the hook!

But what else to say about Las Vegas?
I played two tournaments in the same hotel. In fact I failed qualifying for the first, but the difference between
Matchroom Sports and the BCA as a promoter of pro events is significant. The whole TV arena setup was different. The press releases as well as small features were just handeled unlike. Another point that decreased the level of the US Open was the equipment. The Diamond tables are just not ment to be a part of pro events. To quote Raj Hundal: "this was the first time ever that I have seen Efren looking irritated". And that really does mean a lot! The rails are bouncey unlike the Brunswick tables and, more important, don't bounce the same every time. This just took a lot of self-confidence of a lot of players in this tournament and limited the level of the event itself.


Matchroom Sport, in my point of view, did a great job again. The only thing I didn't like was the chosen pool hall for the qualifier. We played on four different kinds of tables with two different sets of balls (even mixed up and not having all the same size sometimes). That is not really the right way to do a qualifier for a championship like the World Pool Masters.
Off the pool halls and tournaments, on the one hand, I liked Vegas. Not only because of the strip, the good food, the clubs, but also because the people I met there. All together just one hell of a trip! On the other hand I was kind of disappointed of "Sin City". Some hotels didn't finish the buildings because the money ran out. This leaves a strange and inglorious touch. Also the old-fashioned lighting doesn't exist anymore. The new hotels are more stylish and keep the colours simple but still have a pompous interior design. It's a very nice place to go but not the Vegas you might remember from the movies.

Today I had to catch my flight to Los Angeles. Everything worked out good. In fact I can call myself lucky this time because I didn't have any trouble with flights, hotels or other arrangements. Also "Enterprise's" car is working fine - for an American car - and I could find Hollywood Billiards straight away! Even the motel "The Hollywood Downtowner" had a room left for me to stay. Good rolls I guess...

LAS VEGAS - rien ne va plus!

Took a time-out yesterday and didn't go to the "Riv" to watch any match. Instead Jonny and me went to see Cirque du Soleil. What a show! Nice! I am sure that I will see another CdS-show in the future. Everytime I go to see a show like this - just like "The Blue Man Group" - I am very impressed by these overwhelming performances. After the show, on the way back to the hotel, we also attended the Pirates-Show at the Treasure Island which was nice to see but not compareable with CdS at all!

Today I actually felt pretty good and self-confident going to the table just after lunch. Nobody else than another legend of the sport, Mr. Target-Pool himself, Kim Davenport. Sometimes you miss the start, sometimes you just play bad. This time I really tried to play the right patterns but just didn't get any payday in the first couple of games. After a while I was down 1:5. I could catch up to go 4:5 but scratched on the 7 - just a stupid shot I made! The funny thing was that he took a time-out only a few minutes later, at the score of 4:6, after I had to play a safty due to the layout after the break. He came back and didn't do good on that kick-shot. This was the last time the spectators have seen him at the table while I was running a 4-pack to win the set 9:6!

With this game in the back and more and more confidence I went to the table for the 6pm-round against former European #1 Mark Gray. I had to play him only once before in the IPT qualifier in at Rileys Victoria in London. Back then I beat him with a solid stroke 10-3 to finish him in that qualifier. But today the cards played different. I just didn't get in stroke and missed some very easy and important shots in a row. My defense was better than his but still I couldn't get that damn table cleared up. After only 60 minutes I had to say good-bye with a 3:9 loss. The rolls in Las Vegas haven't been on my side this time - should rather play the cards I guess...

Tonight the BCA is having a cocktail-kinda-party at the Blush. I might gonna check this one out and see what the late hours gonna give me...
Stay tuned for next week's tourney at Hollywood Billiards in Los Angeles. The Seminole Pro Tour stops by and I am sure to see some of the world's best players again!