NECam Season 1/2012 Playoffs B

Thanks to Brice and Naveen for help with predictions.

Semi-Finals

#1 Sergi_Boca vs #12 hustle - Here we are in the final 4 and Sergio once again has to play against Chad. Seems like this is a match that just happened but actually there were two Chads in the bracket and he happens to be going up against the other one here. Sergio so far has broken the curse of the #1 seed after being the first one to advance to the semis since early last year. He's looked pretty good doing so with two good wins against solid players. Chad is up to his normal tricks again as he's looking to advance to his second finals in as many tries in div B. He's got his toughest challenge ahead of him with Sergio but he's looked pretty sharp as well so far with good wins, including an impressive win against last season's finalist, Brad, in the previous round. Both guys are pretty good shooters but Chad probably holds the edge in that category while Sergio has turned into a guy who plays a really patient style with a lot of safeties. Sergio seems to be playing his best pool of late and his controlled style should prevail in this match but it should be close and watch out if Chad races out to an early lead. 

9-7 Sergio (Jon)


#15 Mr_Goodman vs #22 _Eddie_2 - The second semi-final is set and we have what should be another entertaining match in Niks vs Eddie. Niks is the defending champ in this division he's looking even better this time around. Last season he had some notable wins along the way but this time around there was a much deeper field and his last victory against Ashton is probably his biggest win to date. He claims he didn't hit too many safeties against Ashton which was probably a wise change in strategy because it's hard to out-think a versatile player who has more experience in the game. Eddie has always been a dominant player in the group stages but this is the first time we've seen him do much in the playoffs. He started it off with a big win against a great player in Mike and carried that momentum which allowed him to take care of business against Moon in the following round. Eddie has always been a good shooter with no real defining characteristic about his game. Mostly a run first player the main difference in Eddie now and Eddie before is that he's a better shooter and has better table vision which allows him to finish more of his runs. I've personally been wrong way too many times when predicting for Niks that there's no way that I'd pick him to lose this one. Once again the difference should be Niks' more balanced approach in a close set.

9-6 Niks (Jon)

Quarter-Finals

#1 Sergi_Boca vs #9 cyberinferno1 - Sergio beat DJ in round 2 and moving onto Chad who could be a tougher opponent. Chad 7-0'ed Carl but I think everyone expected a blowout there. Sergio will need to focus on completing his runs because Chad, unlike Sergio's last round opponent, can runbreak. Chad can pull some nice runbreaks and clean up people's messes. He has a decent snook game as well but he is known for choking. Sergio needs to be on his run and snook game and make Chad play his game. If Sergio can do that I see no reason why he can't advance past Chad. But it will be a tough task.

7-5 Sergio (Brice) Result - 7-4 Sergio

#4 Punk_Lobster vs #12 hustle - no pred

Result 7-5 Chad

#15 Mr_Goodman vs #10 sin-e - The last one of the quarter-finals is ready and it sets up what looks like an intriguing matchup on paper. Niks is last season's champ and is once again looking to be on a pretty strong run after taking out two tough challenges in Tim and Brice. Ashton is back in after a bit of a layoff from competitions, and a month into that comeback, it's pretty obvious that he's the favourite to win it all. Niks will try to attack Ashton with his patented safety game but it's going to faze Ashton like it would against weaker players. Niks has been on an unlikely run of knocking off better shooters by playing an extremely patient style but there's no way that it's going to work against this quality of player. Ashton isn't the kind of player you want to give extra shots to because he'll make you pay. Don't really see a challenge for him remaining until the finals.

7-3 Ashton (Jon) Result - 7-4 Niks

#14 jj-man vs #22 _Eddie_2 - JJ made it to quarters on 2 nice wins over Koty in round 1 and Jan in round 2. JJ's play has been getting better but his run game is still sketchy at times. Koty and Jan both are good players that he took out which could set himself up well against Eddie, however JJ will need to play his best because Eddie is no slouch. Eddie has made it to quarters on a nice 1st round win over Mike, who I felt was a favorite to win it all and Moon who had a nice season. Eddie has been playing better as of late and could go all the way to finals he will need a solid performance here though. JJ vs Eddie should be a close one. If JJ can get his playing style going he could take this one. However if Eddie can get his run game going and stay focused I think he is the better overall player. So I think Eddie should win this one and find himself in semis.

7-4 Eddie (Brice)

Round 2 

#1 Sergi_Boca vs #16 XRANCIDX - Sergio was the only one in NE Cam Div B to go 5-0 which got him the 1 seed. DJ got to round 2 via a DQ win over Trey. However, I think that this one will be close. Sergio is a good player and is a good runner. However if he isn't playing his best he will choke and DJ can take advantage of that. DJ isn't much of a break-runner but he can pull some out. He can clean up peoples messes up though which is why Sergio will need to avoid choking. DJ and Sergio are about even in the snook aspect of the game, and while Sergio has the better run game, I think DJ is more composed. DJ was a finalist in Div B before and can get there again and possibly win it if he actually plays and doesn't mess around. This one will be close but I see DJ pulling out the win and knocking the 1 seed out early.

8-6 DJ (Brice) Result - 7-4 Sergio

#25 BL4ME vs #9 cyberinferno1 - Interesting matchup here as Carl is coming off a pretty surprising upset of Josh in the first round to show that he's got some game as he's going up against another player who has had a great season so far in Chad. Chad is probably happier to be facing the lower seed here but he definitely can't take Carl too lightly as Carl has proven that he can finish games. These two have some familiarity with each other as they faced off in the first round of the MCC playoffs about a month ago where Chad took that race 7-2. Not sure that Carl has improved to a level where he can actually knock off Chad in this race but expect it to be closer this time.

7-4 Chad (Jon) Result - 7-0 Chad

#4 Punk_Lobster vs #13 lol_lmfao_rofl - No upsets to speak of in round 1 for either of these guys as two of the stronger players in div B from the past 3 seasons meet up once again. This is actually the 3rd time these two are meeting up in the playoffs and based on past results that's bad news for Bryan. Both of the past two playoff sets have been wins by Brad with pretty wide margins each time. Brad of course was the runner up last season and is looking to prove that he can do it again against a tougher field. His run game is definitely better than Bryan's and the only thing Bryan might be able to do to slow him down will be safeties. Bryan isn't afraid to make the safe play but even when he makes effective, game changing shots, he doesn't always know how to take advantage and finish the table. Look for Bryan to be motivated and to try to slow the game down quite a bit here but in the end Brad should be too much once again.

7-4 Brad (Jon) Result - 9-7 Brad

#5 n_4_v_e_e_n vs #12 hustle - Round 2 starts out with a great match with Chad and Naveen facing off. Naveen is coming off yet another strong group stage where he managed to win his group at 4-1 on the strength of a bonus point. Naveen is coming out of one of the easier groups but still it's not a huge surprise to see him with a high seeding once again as he's made that a habit the past 3 seasons. Chad's last appearance in div B ended up with a trip to the finals. Last time he started off by knocking off Sterlo too, so that's gotta mean something right? Right?? Definitely a tougher field this time around and look for this to be a pretty close set. These guys can both play pretty well at times with Chad being a big shot player while Naveen tries to keep his play steady throughout. Chad is playing quite a bit of good pool with some good wins and he should ride that momentum to an "upset" victory here.  

8-6 Chad (Jon) Result - 9-7 Chad

#2 _The_Leprachaun_ vs #15 Mr_Goodman - Well it took absolutely forever for Niks to get his first round played but he finally played it and managed to get himself a comfortable 7-4 win against previously undefeated Tim. This should be a pretty close set, don't let the seedings fool you. Brice is coming off his best season in the competition and it also happened to be against the best field he's probably ever faced in here but the real test will begin now as he's consistently going to be tested by other playoff players. Niks has shown from his performances last season that he won't be playing like an underdog in the least coming into this challenge. Brice may have improved but he still makes a lot of mistakes. A run first style where not too many of the runs are completed will play right into Niks hands. Niks still isn't the greatest shooter but he's switched more to a crazy safety style where he only runs if he's absolutely confident that he can pull it off. Brice hasn't played anyone like this so far in the competition and it might be too late before he figures out how to deal with it.

7-4 Niks (Jon) Result - 7-5 Niks

#7 HawaiiBlazer vs #10 sin-e - This one could possibly be the best of all the second round matches. Ashton is obviously a known commodity and has been one of the clear favourites all season to win div B. The challenger, Kevin, isn't really widely known but he's made quite a bit of noise in competition already. His group stage would have been perfect had it not been for an issue with cam settings back in set number one. Kevin won against most of his opponents by a pretty wide margin but I think it's safe to say that Ash won't be going down easy here. The winner of this one will probably be the favourite to go all the way to the final and possibly to take the whole thing. Still don't know a whole lot about Kevin's game but Ashton is definitely a guy who can play any style pretty effectively so there aren't really many weaknesses to exploit in that direction. Even though Kevin's potential is a little unknown I'm still going to go with Ash to pull it out in a close set.

7-5 Ashton (Jon) Result - 8-6 Ashton

#3 x_zanik_z vs #14 jj-man -  Both are pretty good players with desent skills. Seen both of them play manytimes.  To me JJ is out of form at the moment, but he is a prettty good runner as well as a good banker. Haven't seen him regular on ypool so I assume he is a lil rusty atm. On the other hand we have Jan who is on a pretty good rhythm with his 4-1 record in groups and his only loss coming to last season winner Niks. Jan can run as well as he is good in safties. Infact, they have already played each other in group stage where Jan had won pretty easily over JJ. But I dont think its gonna be that easy for you Jan cos JJ will surely try to comeback at you. If JJ is on his game then I see an upset for Jan, otherwise its Jan who is gonna have the last laugh in this race.

7-4 Jan (Naveen) Result - 7-1 JJ 

#6 rubiiiiiiii vs #22 _Eddie_2 - Moon is coming off of her best season in the competition. It's probably fair to say that it's her best season in any competition and the fact that it came against some pretty good players is pretty impressive. Her play earned a group win, and with that, a bye into the second round. She got a little bit of luck with her second round opponent too, as Eddie was able to knock off Mike, in what most people would call a pretty big upset. The fact that Eddie actually did beat Mike does tell us that Eddie might be playing at a pretty high level at the moment. These players are pretty similar in that they shoot pretty well and are mostly lacking in strategy. Moon seems to be shooting well but she still attempts to run tables that are near impossible to finish and sometimes you see her getting to that last ball with no hope of a pot. Eddie has been around longer and seems to know his limitations a little better. Both players will have their nice runs in the set but the difference is going to come down to who knows when to be conservative to pick up some easy points. If Eddie treats this the same way he did the previous round then it should be him.

7-4 Eddie (Jon) Result - 7-2 Eddie

Round 1

#16 XRANCIDX vs #17 UN_NATURAL - This one is kind of difficult to predict as both of these players have there good days and there bad days. DJ went 3-2 with 18-27 in probably one of the mid pack groups. Trey went 3-1 and 19-8 in the new group. But records aside this is the playoffs and this is where it counts. DJ if he is on a good day can run some good tables and run break a few times. But on the flipside if it's a bad day for him he is kind of mediocre and will choke. Trey is more consistent than DJ and really could compete in Division A if he put his mind to it. He is a good runner and doesn't have too many what you'd say really bad days. So with that being said, I have to give the edge to Trey on this one.

7-4 Trey (Brice) Result - DQ win for DJ

#8 xXx_TruPlayer_xXx vs #25 BL4ME - From what I've seen Josh is a good player, he won his group at 3-2 and if his mind is right he should be able to do well in the playoffs. Carl is a decent player not one of the top tier Division B players he went 3-2 and got in on a wild card. If Josh can get his run game going he should be able to take this one vs Carl as his run game is okay but not great. If Josh can get out to an early 2-0 or 3-0 lead he should be able to hold it. But he can't underestimate Carl cause if Carl gets hot which he can at times, he could take this right out from under Josh's feet. This could be close in the end but Josh should come out as the winner.

7-5 Josh (Brice) Result - 7-5 Carl

#9 cyberinferno1 vs #24 TlNO_NICA - Both of these players are pretty decent players and shouldn't be under estimated. Chad went 4-1 in his group and missed out of winning it due to losing to the person who won the group Brad. These 2 were in the same group and Chad beat Tino 8-1. Don't know if Tino had a bad day or if Chad was just playing well. However if what happened then happens now it won't be a good day for Tino but I don't see that happening. Chad is a good runner and has good shot making abilities. Tino is the same but I think his snook game is better overall. This one, if both are on the top of there game could go to extras. However, I'm predicting, due to group stages what people would call an upset and I think Tino will win this one.

7-4 Tino (Brice) Result - 9-7 Chad

#13 lol_lmfao_rofl vs #20 eagles05856 - To be honest I really don't know much about this Steven guy so I just have to go off what sets he played. Bryan on the other hand is a decent player can end up banging a lot though. He had a decent season going 4-1 due to archive wins and coming in second in his group. He can run some difficult tables if he's playing well. But he normally just cleans up the misses that people make. Steven went 3-2 with 2 archive wins. Judging by who he won and lost to I just can't see him beating Bryan in this one.

7-3 Bryan (Brice) Result - 7-2 Bryan

#12 hustle vs #21 Top__Dawg__ - Both of these players are hit or miss, Sterlo more than Chad. Chad can play some decent pool, better at 5 sec than untimed which could be his downfall. He finished 4-1 in his group with his only loss coming to Ashton. Sterlo barely scraped into playoffs at 2-3. Chad is more of a consistent runner than Sterlo is which is the one advantage I believe Chad can exploit if needed. Sterlo is known for banging and choking at times which he needs to try to stop and play slow and smart if he hopes to beat Chad. Chad if he gets behind can get frustrated at times and will just start banging and give the set away which is something he will need to control. IF sterlo can exploit that however it will be Chads downfall. I do however believe Chad wins this one.

7-4 Chad (Brice) Result - 7-4 Chad

#15 Mr_Goodman vs #18 handkrash - Niks won Div B last season and can do it again if he gets hot this season. While Tim is nowhere near a pushover, there will need to be some good playing by him, if he looks to down Niks. Niks didn't win his group this season only going 3-2 which is kind of surprising to say the least. Tim finished 3-0 with those 3 wins big wins. Niks has gotten better at his runs and better at his snooks. He is one of the fast rising players that could be in Division A next season if he does good here. Tim is a solid runner as well when he is on his game and someone to watch out for if he's hot. He has a decent snook game to go along with it so this should be a close set to watch for. If one of these guys can get hot in the beginning or middle part of the set they could end up running away with it. Niks I think will come out on top though.

8-6 Niks (Brice) Result - 7-4 Niks 

#7 HawaiiBlazer vs #26 dead.bang - Kevin won his group and is a pretty decent player, and if he gets hot should go deep into the playoffs. Jon has been hit or miss lately which has really slowed him down. If Kevin can get his run game going early and get a early lead on Jon I don't see him giving it up but he still has to rely on Jon being on a miss streak which may not happen. If Jon can make sure he plays Kevin when Jon is at his best it could end up being a really close set. Jon has a good run game and can do some damage in these playoffs if he is really focused. But that's the only problem, will he be? Will we see the Jon that's been hit or miss, or will we see the consistent Jon that we're used to?

7-5 Kevin (Brice) Result - 7-3 Kevin

#10 sin-e vs #23 JordanPunk - Ashton is one of the top players in Division B and he is talented enough for A. Jordan is getting better each day and could prove to be a threat if he can pull this upset over Ash. Ash went 4-1 in his group and finished 2nd while Jordan went 1-2. Ashton is a good runner and a good snooker so the common thinking is that he should win this one quite handily, well I'd say that is wrong. Jordan has gotten better and many people underestimate his ability to come back in pressure situations when given the opportunity. Jordan could win this one if Ashton takes him lightly as he is a decent runner and can clean up peoples misses. Jordan I think will give Ashton a run for his money but overall in the end, Ashton should come out on top on this one.

7-4 Ashton (Brice) Result - DQ win for Ashton

#14 jj-man vs #19 o0_koty_0o - Here we have one of the more even matchups from the first round. JJ has been a playoff player now in every season he's entered the competition and this will be his third time trying to advance out of the first round. His opponent this time around is a really old school player in Koty. Koty had a pretty strong group stage with his only loss coming to the top seeded Sergio. It's important to note that Koty has probably been playing at a high level for a lot longer as he's previously been in div A player in top competitions. Key word in that statement though being previously... it's been a while since Koty has been at that level and this should be a great test to see where he's at now. JJ has also been playing for a while and has the potential to deliver a strong performance. Koty should make fewer mistakes over a race to 7 and that should be the difference.

7-5 Koty (Jon) Result - 7-3 JJ

#11 uBlowMe vs #22 _Eddie_2 - The last two times these guys played in the competition was in div A, but unfortunately they both washed out. Ok well it might not be a permanent washout but at least they get some playoff action down here in the minor leagues. Mike was one of the favourites going into the season to take this division and there's no reason to really think that has changed. His seeding would have been higher had he cared enough to give himself a stat boost with some archives but here we are. Eddie has apparently been away for a little while so that might explain his low seeding. In his previous div B seasons he's always gone 5-0 and been one of top few seeds. Despite all the high seeding for Eddie he hasn't really ever made a run so maybe he'll relish the underdog roll here. He's a little bit overmatched here as Mike is probably the better player in all aspects of the game. Mike should advance here but expect Eddie to keep it close.

7-4 Mike (Jon) Result - 9-7 Eddie

NECam Season 1/2012 Playoffs A

Thanks to help on predictions from Dante, Ben and Trav. Authors of predictions appear next to score at bottom.

Finals

#8 leeds_united14 vs #10 good-faith - 

Semi-Finals

#8 leeds_united14 vs #28 xxl_concrete_coma_lxx - As we have reached the semifinals we have an intense matchup. It is no surprise to see Coma and Jon. Both have played well to get this far. Coma has sneaked by in each round beating Roy, Andy, and Mina all in fairly close matches. Jon, also had semi-close matches but handled Dante and Scotty in the end. I think this late in the playoffs this match can go either way, no doubt. Coma tries to run more than not, while Jon also prefers to run but seems to be more strategic and may try to snooker Coma. However, I think Coma might have a real slight edge in running ability but it's not significant enough to rely on a win over Jon. If both players bring the same level of intensity, it will definitely be a playoff match to watch. In the end though, my instinct tells me that Coma will win in a hard fought set.

11-9 Coma (Ben) Result - 9-6 Jon

#10 good-faith vs #27 AzN_PrIdE_LuVa - Both veterans of the game, both with different but entertaining styles. Pita is a classic table runner, rarely makes a safety shot because he simply doesn't need to due to his great knowledge of english. He will look to break balls and games will generally not last too long. On the other hand, Ant has the ability to run tables that can initially look un-runnable to start with. A simple shot that no one sees and he is up and running. His general style is a little more controlled than Pitas with Pita looking to break balls, Ant prefers nudging the problem areas and it all looks neat and tidy. In this match expect a whole lot of big shot making and time spent with either opponent not getting too many chances per game. I generally favour Ant as he is slightly more consistent than Pita but I simply cannot rule Pita out for the fact he is one of the current top players in this game and a dangerous opponent for anyone on his day.

9-6 Ant (Lewis) Result - 9-2 Ant

Quarter-Finals

#17 xlx_s_p_g_xlx vs #8 leeds_united14 - Two very strong players here who play very similar styles of pool. Both can run a open table and both are very good snooker players. One big advantage Scotty has over Jon here is banking. Scotty is one of the better bankers on ypool in my opinion and if you leave him any bank shot you can be pretty sure it will go in. In groups Scotty beat Jon 8-1 and even though I think this time will be a lot closer set, I cant go past scotty winning this. GL

7-4 Scotty (Kerry) Result - 7-4 Jon

#29 pr0.g0dly vs #28 xxl_concrete_coma_lxx - It's safe to say, even moreso now, that the seedings aren't all that important, as long as you get in. These two have joined Pita as 3 of the wildcards to make it into the final 8. These two were actually the last ones to get into the playoff bracket and so far they've made the most of it. It's hard to tell who is playing better based off previous scores but Mina is coming off a 7-2 win vs Uriel which was pretty impressive. Didn't see it happen but it tells me that Mina must be on fire to come out with such a big margin against a steady player like that. Coma has beaten Roy and Andy in very close sets to get here, winning by 2 on both occasions. These two are great shooters who rarely find a table that they don't like. Coma will jump on absolutely any opportunity to run while Mina might be the one with a little more of a tendency to slow things down if he doesn't like what he sees. Coma hasn't been unbeatable by any stretch, but since he's been back in competitions, he's gone through just about everyone he faces which culminated in a victory in YPM not too long ago. Mina should keep this close and if he continues to play as well as it appears then he's got a great shot to win. I just have a really hard time going against Coma and he should pull it out.

8-6 Coma (Jon)

#18 l2_o_c_k_y vs #10 good-faith - One face here is pretty familiar for this stage in the competition while the other one is not. Hopefully it doesn't take two guesses to figure out that Ant is once again playing in the later stages a competition. The fact that this is the first time we're seeing Rocky go so deep into a top competition doesn't make him an overwhelming underdog. Anyone who has played against Rocky knows that he's got an impressive run game, and that if he's doing his best, he can run just about any table. The guy he's going up against does all that and more though. Ant has virtually no weaknesses in his game and while he's guaranteed to take advantage of any mistakes by Rocky, he'll also be running some tables of his own. While Rocky does do a great job with his runs I feel that he's a little more out of control than a guy like Ant and that will lead to some mistakes late in runs. Should be an interesting set to watch and it should be close for some of the way. In the end Ant can tighten up and hit another level that Rocky can't.

7-4 Ant (Jon)


#3 lncognegro vs #27 AzN_PrIdE_LuVa - no pred 

Result - 7-4 Pita

Round 2

#1 x_i_am_me_x vs #17 xlx_s_p_g_xlx - Here in round 2 we have a very convincing matchup. Alex with the overall number 1 seed flew through group play going undefeated and winning 7-2 over ant. On the other hand, Scotty's track record this season might not be as impressive, but he did finish 3-1 with a solid 8-1 win over Jon. As Scotty's record did not get him a bye in round 1 he had to play a good player in Stephen, and ultimately handled him easily with a 7-2 victory. Once this battle begins, I look to see both players try to run the table on the most part, and obviously, whoever makes the least amount of silly mistakes will win. I think Scotty has the upper hand on harder shots like banks and long shots, but Alex might be slightly smarter when deciding to use snooker. Whichever the case, this is a hard matchup to choose a winner in, and in my eyes, each player has about a 50-50 chance to win. However, since Scotty seems to be hot as of late, I am going to go with him over Alex in a very tough set.

8-6 Scotty (Ben) Result - 7-3 Scotty

#8 leeds_united14 vs #24 mvp_n00b - In this matchup we have a proven cam competition winner in Jon against a good player who usually always makes playoffs and wins a few rounds. Although I must say, Steve got some luck to make playoffs, as he was only 1-1 in group play. With others in his group disappearing he got the nod to head to the playoffs. In addition, Steve's first round match against Todd also led to a DQ win, and so here he is in round two. Jon's road to round two has definitely been more impressive. He won his group at 4-1 with solid wins over Derrick and Mina. Also, his first round matchup was no easy task, as Dante is a well rounded player who might not make it far all the time in playoffs, but has the potential to beat anyone. In this head to head face off, I look for Jon to try and out smart Steve and play his strategic game. On the other hand, I believe Steve will try running from the start of each game, relying on snooker only if he gets caught up, or if he decides he is having a hard time running. Overall, I think this matchup gives a real slight advantage to the former New Era champ, and I take Jon to win.

7-5 Jon (Ben)

#29 pr0.g0dly vs #13 PRO_BOY - The last match to be set up will surely be another great contest when Mina and Uriel face off with a trip to the quarter-finals on the line. Mina became the 3rd wildcard to advance through round one with his big win against Conor. Uriel had a bit more of a solid group stage and he backed that up by dispatching last season's finalist 7-2 in a laugher. These guys consistently play at a pretty high level and it's no surprise to see them with this opportunity. Mina has a fairly well rounded game but prefers mostly to run tables. He's a smart shooter with a great knowledge of english which can be frustrating to play against if he's in a groove. Uriel will play more of a cautious game but he's pretty good with picking his spots and not taking on runs that are too tough. Look for Mina to do enough to hang around with Uriel for most of the set and catch a hot streak in the critical games to advance here.

7-5 Mina (Jon) Result - 7-2 Mina

#28 xxl_concrete_coma_lxx vs #12 X_STRIKE_X - Here we have another rematch from the group stage with Coma going up against Andy for a second time. The last time these guys played Andy was able to come out on top 6-3. Coma was able to recover and just barely get into the playoffs, grabbing the last spot in the bracket. Once again he's proving that you just need to get in to have a chance as he managed to come out on top in round 1 vs Roy in a comeback victory. Andy didn't have to play in the previous round as he advanced as the result of a DQ but either way he was expected to be in this position. Coma is the type of player to attempt the run on almost every table and he's successful with that strategy because over the course of a set he'll finish a pretty good percentage of those attempts. Andy is much more calculated with picking his spots and isn't afraid to take his time with some ugly looking tables. Andy does have the perfect style to win here but with the way Coma can get hot makes it very challenging to hold him off in a longer race. I see Coma getting his revenge here in a close set.

7-5 Coma (Jon) Result - 7-5 Coma

#2 xl_vain_lx vs #18 l2_o_c_k_y - Mike was somewhat of a pleasant surprise this season with so many good players in the competition he was only one of two to complete the group stage at 5-0 and that earned him a first round bye to go along with the #2 seed. Had a really strong group stage, beating Pita and Todd along the way. Rocky was also fairly strong and was able to advance out of the first round with a nice victory against Hope, who had been playing pretty well. Rocky can have a pretty devastating run game when he's on form and can finish a lot of tough tables in any given set. Mike plays a little more under control and chooses to attack sometimes with safeties too. This should be a close, hotly contested set, but I think Mike's balance as well as the form he's displayed lately will carry him to a close win here.

7-5 Mike (Jon) Result - 7-4 Rocky 

#7 qierk vs #10 good-faith - This is one of the marquee matchups of the second round. You can basically throw the seedings out the window at this point as all they're really telling us is that these were two of the top players in the competition up until now. Jordy and Ant are each coming off fairly easy victories in the first round of the playoffs as they both won by 7-2 scores. Jordy has been known as one of the better runners in the game for a while and at this point he's really not intimidated by anyone. In addition to his run quality he's mixing in devastating safeties when the opportunity arises to make some challenging tables a little easier. Not too much point in trying to break down Ant's game as he's one of the best players ever and still plays at a level that most won't achieve. Despite some eyebrow raising losses by Ant lately, he's still winning competitions and he should keep moving here in a close set with Jordy.

8-6 Ant (Jon) Result - 8-6 Ant

#3 lncognegro vs #14 nishilicious - Here we have our first re-match from the group stage. Nish has proven that he's a strong player by advancing through the first round but now he's coming up against someone he lost to pretty badly in the group stage. Mike had a very strong group stage, picking some some quality wins with his 4-1 record. Mike has always been a player that can find the best routes to unlikely runs, and when he's on top of things, that happens early and often. Nish shouldn't be taken lightly because he's shown good things to make it this far but while he seems to have a stronger game, he's still a guy who probably makes a few too many mistakes. Mike is the kind of player who will take advantage of any openings, so for Nish to keep this close he's going to have to be running well. Nish will win more than one game this time for sure but Mike shouldn't be pushed too hard here. 

7-4 Mike (Jon) Result - 7-2 Mike

#27 AzN_PrIdE_LuVa vs #22 SQUIB___ - It's hard to really call anyone an underdog in this brackets as most have the potential to be great in any given set. Pita and Sukio are prime examples of that as Pita turned a lucky wildcard into a first round thrashing of Trav which no one really could have seen coming. Sukio is coming off a big win of his own against Luis in a much closer set. One thing is for sure both of these guys know how to shoot. I think they both play a pretty similar run first style and don't mind taking on huge challenges with their runs. Pita probably has a stronger resume with his recent cam comp success and having watched both of these guys play I'd say Pita plays a little more under control. If Pita manages to bring the same intensity that he had against Trav we could see a comfortable win but I see this one being a very close win for Pita

7-5 Pita (Jon) Result - 7-2 Pita

Round 1

#16 l1_stephen_1 vs #17 xlx_s_p_g_xlx - Getting right into it here we have what should be a highly entertaining set with Stephen facing off against Scotty. Both of these players are coming off identical seasons statistically with matching 3-1 records. Scotty started off very strongly and ended up getting his loss late while Stephen started with a loss and finished with 3 straight wins. That probably doesn't mean too much as it's been a while since both played there last set here. These guys have very similar objectives in that they have run first attitudes. Scotty generally has a much more precise run attack and relies on fewer bangs than Stephen and that will typically lead to fewer mistakes. Stephen is no stranger to this level of competition and has shown in the past that he can hang with anyone on his day. Stephen will go down fighting but Scotty should be too much here. 

7-4 Scotty  (Jon) Result - 7-2 Scotty

#8 leeds_united14 vs #25 _dante - Two top notch players right here. Dante's been coming into his own the past few months, I would have expected him to have a higher seed if infact his group wasn't tough. Jon's group was no picnic either though, picking up wins against Derrick and Mina. As far as who should be more prepared for this match, it's clearly Dante. He's been playing many good players lately. However, I do see Jon as more consistant, and probably more of the strategizer here. Overall Jon has the upperhand going into the match, should be a close tight match with Jon coming out victorious.

7-4 Jon (Trav) Result - 7-4 Jon

#9 epa_robbinz vs #24 mvp_n00b - One of these guys had a great season and the other one barely showed up. But here we are back to level pegging and just about anything could happen. Todd's first effort in this competition was successful as he ended up going 4-1 which was good enough for second in his group and a pretty nice seed. Steve wasn't really around all that much in the group stage and was probably as responsible as anyone for the inactivity within the group but it ended up working out as he grabbed 3rd place in his group.  Todd seems to be the obvious favourite and not only just because of the records. His style of play doesn't rely on nearly as much luck as he's not afraid to safety and usually has great shot selection. Steve even at his best is banging quite a bit which relies on low percentage shots to complete runs. With that said Steve has come out on top facing long odds before, but these odds are even worse than usual.  

7-3 Todd (Jon) Result - DQ win for Steve

#4 c-b vs #29 pr0.g0dly - Conor is the fucking zezima of yahoo pool. I'm guessing he'll probably win the whole thing. What isn't there to say about conor? He has superb cue control, and can run just about any table. going to be tough to get past him. Mina can pull off impressive shots, but isn't too consistent to win enough games to make it past this tough round one. Should easily win a few games, but I don't see you winning more than four. You barely squeezed in here, but doesn't look like you'll make it too far.

7-4 Conor (Dante) Result - 7-4 Mina

#13 PRO_BOY vs #20 scott22883 - Uriel has always been the type of player who takes his time, and makes good shots. Just an overall solid player. Scott's A game is better than Uriel's hands down, but Scott definitely lacks any consistancy. It's clear in his results when he destroyed the best person in the group, then got destroyed by two of the easier ones. I have to go with Uriel in this match, because frankly I don't know which Scott will show up. If it's the A game Scott, pack your bags Uriel.

7-3 Uriel (Trav) Result - 7-2 Uriel

#5 murkedddd vs #28 xxl_concrete_coma_lxx - One of the top seeds in the bracket here, Roy had a great season going 4-1 in the group stage which was good enough for the top spot in his group. Pretty good deal for his first time in the competition. Unfortunately that seed is doing him no favours this time around. The second lowest seed in this bracket happens to be a shark in Coma. Roy has got a pretty well rounded game and seems to be on form at the moment. Coma on the other side was in one of the toughest groups which would help explain his two losses. He's probably one of the top players in competitions at the moment after recently coming off a YPM victory. Coma has some of the best understanding of english around and often makes difficult shots look effortless. With a runner though, even one this good there's always a chance they go cold. Roy definitely has the skill to take advantage of a bad effort from Coma but that'll be unlikely. 

7-5 Coma (Jon) Result - 8-6 Coma

#12 X_STRIKE_X vs #21 lxl_blaze_lxl - This is pretty much one sided in my opinion, though stranger things have happened! Andy beat two good players in his group (Coma, Uriel) to go 4-1, his loss coming from Conor. I actually watched one of Craig's matches.. the one vs Cameron, which resulted in one of his two wins. He played decent I'll admit, but Andy's just the better player with the most experience and I think that's all it will take to win here

7-2 Andy (Trav) Result - DQ win for Andy

#15 eat_pinaples vs #18 l2_o_c_k_y - Hope had some nice wins in groups, no doubt. She's definitely a player if whom you underestimate she'll take you out. Rocky is also an underestimated player, this predictor felt his wrath in group stages. Unless Rocky plays like an utter fool, I don't think they'll be much contest here. Especially if they just try running each other back and forth, because Hope's only shot is to play smart and choose good tables to run.

7-3 Rocky (Trav) Result - 7-4 Rocky

#7 qierk vs #26 R_ook - Jordy had a pretty good season with a fairly high seed and is going against JT. Most of Jordy's wins over fairly easier opponents were rather low, so it makes me wonder if he is choking too much? If he doesn't be careful, JT could capitalize on any mistake. JT is a pretty chill dude. Didn't pull off anything fancy to make it here, so he'll have to start showing us something. Slighty above the average player in my opinion. I think you'll play some pretty good pool, but in the end, Jordy will just barely pull again and wave you good bye.

7-5 Jordy (Dante) Result - 7-2 Jordy


#10 good-faith vs #23 Sk8er_Mikey -Whenever Ant isn't killing cows and making bank loot on runescape, he's killing noobs in the world of yahoo pool. All that will happen here is Mikey will become another statistic. Mikey did beat Mina, but I didn't get to watch how it all went down. I'm sorry i don't know too much about you, but i'm going to put you down as getting creamed. Don't take it personally, I'd give the same prediction no matter who his opponent is. Haven't seen you around, hope you show up to play.

7-2 Ant (Dante) Result - 7-2 Ant

#14 nishilicious vs #19 Oh My God! - Quite an interesting match here. Mainly because both Nish and JD had tough groups and managed to earn their spots in the playoffs. Nish clearly had the most impressive win, beating Kevin 8-1, as well as beating Dante. Either way, regardless of whom done what in groups, this has the potential to be the closest, nitty gritty match of this round. They both play very similar, make/miss the same types of shots. I'm going to go with Nish here, but I'm also going to add if it goes passed 7's, JD will take it. I'm going to predict it won't though.

7-5 Nish (Trav) Result - 7-3 Nish

#6 _fAllOuT vs #27 AzN_PrIdE_LuVa - Another example of a bad season from a player who normally is near the top after the group stages. Pita lucked out and managed to tie for 3rd in his group on points which got him into the playoffs. Not exactly a warm greeting with Trav as a first round opponent but he'll take it. Trav has always had success in this competition as he does with most others. Last season he was a semi-finalist and he has a quarter-final appearance 3 seasons back so it's not often that he gets stopped early. Pita really has no big wins in the playoffs in this competition so he's possibly overdue. He proved that he can play with anyone after 8brcam's DE and might benefit from not being the favourite for a change. Trav seems to be playing well as usual as he topped one of the toughest groups and the safe money is on him.  

7-5 Trav (Jon) Result - 7-1 Pita

#11 King_jLuis vs #22 SQUIB___ - This should be a pretty interesting matchup with both players coming off fairly strong seasons. Luis went 4-1 in the group stage with a little help from an archive win but still picked up good wins against Dante and Nish to go with a close loss to Mike. He's a pretty strong player with his runs but isn't really dominant. Sukio has been back in competitions lately and is coming off a pretty strong showing in YPM. He only picked up two wins in the group stage here that weren't overly impressive so it's hard to say how he'll match up against a strong player here. This one should be fairly evenly matched and Luis should take it..

7-5 Luis (Jon) Result - 7-5 Sukio

New Era Cam - Week 3 Power Rankings Div A

Another week has gone by and another 20-30 sets have been played so it's time to see if there are any changes in the power rankings. While most of the names have stayed the same, there are a couple players who are making charges up the leaderboard. This was the result of 9 experts' rankings.

#1 x_i_am_me_x (5-0) - No more sets played for Alex, not that he has a choice. Still sitting on top after going perfect with some impressive wins.

Last week (#1)

#2 xl_vain_lx (5-0) - Another player who finished with a perfect season. The voters woke up and bumped Mike up a bit on the list.

Last week (#4)

#3 qierk (4-0) - Our biggest riser of the week here, Jordy improved his record and did so while taking out stiff competition in Joey and Sukio.

Last week (#7)

#4 lncognegro (4-1) - Wasn't able to cap off the perfect season so he drops down just a little bit here. A loss to Dante doesn't hurt that much.

Last week (#2)

#5 manutd_ (3-1) - Ant slides down just a little bit again after not playing last week. Still has a set left to play which could bump him up for the final rankings.

Last week (#3)

#6 murkedddd (4-1) - Yet another player who is all done playing, Roy got a little bump up from the voters as his season gets a little more appreciation.

Last week (#9)

#7 epa_robbinz (3-1) - Todd wasn't active this week and might be done with his sets too depending on if Brent ever decides to finish their set in progress.

Last week (#5)

#7 King_jLuis (4-1) - One of his wins is a DQ but Luis still makes his first appearance here on the strength of some good wins.

Last week (NR)

#9 xlx_s_p_g_xlx (3-1) - Scotty played 3 sets this week and did pretty well in them, managing to hang on to a spot in the top 10.

Last week (#8)

#10 _fAllOuT (3-1) - Trav won in his only set of the week against Safdar and holds steady in the top 10 once again.

Last week (#10)

Others receiving votes: zl_stu_lz, leeds_united14, c-b, xxl_concrete_coma_lxx, nishilicious, PRO_BOY, X_STRIKE_X

New Era Cam - Week 3 Power Rankings Div B

Well here we are once again for the second last edition of the power rankings for this season. Many more sets have been played since the last time and we see some changes to where people end up. Once again 8 experts were consulted on this ranking and here they are.

#1 Sergi_Boca (4-0) - Hasn't played a set since the last rankings but still remains on top. Some other players are closing the gap.

Last week (#1)

#2 sin-e (4-1) - Ashton rebounded nicely from an upset loss to Moon and took care of business in the remainder of his sets to get a bump back up here.

Last week (#4)

#3 uBlowMe (3-0) - Another player who hasn't seen any activity since the last rankings. Mike slides down a spot, but still has a good opportunity to improve his resume.

Last week (#2)

#4 UN_NATURAL (3-0) - Trey was added as a replacement player and has gotten off to a strong start. Was the top seed last time he entered div B.

Last week (NR)

#5 x_zanik_x (4-1) - His quest for a perfect group stage was foiled in Jan's last set vs Niks. He drops a bit here but looks strong going into playoffs.

Last week (#3)

#6 rubiiiiiiii (4-1) - Moonie has added to her win total and stands pretty strong here in the top 10. She's probably earned herself a good playoff seed.

Last week (#6)

#7 Mr_Goodman (3-1) - Niks played 3 sets in the past week and is looking more like the defending champ from last season after some huge wins.

Last week (NR)

#8 n_4_v_e_e_n (3-1) - Didn't play at all during this week and only takes a bit of a drop in the rankings because of that, combined with a few surges from other players.

Last week (#5)

#9 cyberinferno1 (3-1) - He went 1-1 this week that started with a loss to Brad. Chad resumed his rampage putting up 8 wins in his other set.

Last week (#8)

#10 _The_Leprachaun_ (4-1) - Brice won his last match and has set himself up well looking ahead to the playoffs. Might have a hard time keeping this ranking with all the other sets left to play.

Last week (#7)

Others receiving votes: Punk_Lobster, _Eddie_2, HawaiiBlazer, o0_koty_0o, hustle, handkrash, Trust_in_me, BL4ME, xXx_TruPlayer_xXx

New Era Cam - Week 2 Power Rankings Div B

Yet another edition of the Div B power rankings. This list was made based on the votes of 8 yahoo pool experts. Look for another edition of the rankings in a week.

#1 Sergi_Boca (4-0) - One of his wins was of the DQ variety but Sergio has also beaten Koty and is off to yet another fast start.

Last week : (t#5)

#2 uBlowMe (3-0) - Mike is showing so far, so good with his div B campaign. 3 wins and now slowing down in sight, his win against Naveen was his best so far.

Last week : (#2)

#3 x_zanik_x (3-0) - Jan is moving up in the rankings after 3 impressive wins. Still has a big set to look forward to against Niks.

Last week : (t#5)

#4 sin-e (2-1) - Many people expected the group stage to be a cakewalk for Ashton but he's got an early loss and still two sets left to play.

Last week : (#1)

#5 n_4_v_e_e_n (3-1) - Naveen is once again proving that he's become a more consistent player and might be a real contender in div B

Last week : (t#5)

#6 rubiiiiiiii (3-1) - Moonie had a great win against Ashton and people have taken notice. She's actually the leader of that group with 3 early wins.

Last week : (NR)

#7 ravenchild_ (3-1) - Brice is off to a much better start this season with some pretty big wins already. Will need to keep winning to hold this position.

Last week : (NR)

#8 cyberinferno1 (2-0) - Chad was unranked last time around but he's got two big victories including once against a strong player in Tino.

Last week : (NR)

#9 _Eddie_2 (2-1) - Eddie started off with an early loss but has bounced back nicely and should see himself advance to the playoffs safely.

Last week : (t#9)

#10 o0_koty_0o (3-1) - Koty has moved into the top 10 on the strength of 3 quality wins. One more to go to cement a nice playoff seed.

Last week : (NR)

Others receiving votes : hustle, Mr_Goodman, handkrash, Trust_in_me, TlNO_NICA, BL4ME, xXx_TruPlayer_xXx, XRANCIDX, Megzzz, Punk_Lobster

New Era Cam - Week 2 Power Rankings Div A

Yet another edition of the Div A power rankings. This list was made based on the votes of 8 yahoo pool experts. Look for another edition of the rankings in a week.

#1 x_i_am_me_x (5-0) - It's going to be hard for anyone to top Alex for the rest of the season as he's taken the competition by storm, including knocking off last week's #1 Ant.

Last Week : (NR)

#2 lncognegro (4-0) - On the verge of joining the 5-0 club, Mike has an impressive victory against Kevin and has taken care of business in the remainder of his sets.

Last Week : (NR)

#3 manutd_ (3-1) - Ant takes a slight slip in the rankings here but not by much. It's possible that he could slip more before the season is over but he should stay pretty high.

Last Week : (#1)

#4 xl_vain_lx (5-0) - Mike has earned his position on the strength of already clinching his group while knocking off both Todd and Pita.

Last Week : (NR)

#5 epa_robbinz (3-1) - Todd is looking pretty impressive in one of his first competitions back. People remember that his game can be at an elite level.

Last Week : (NR)

#6 zl_stu_lz (0-0) - Stu doesn't have a win to his name yet but that doesn't matter. He's got a strong reputation and will be expected to join all these guys as top seeds in the playoffs.

Last Week : (NR)

#7 qierk (2-0) - Doesn't really have an overly impressive victory to his name yet. 2-0 record looks pretty good from an always dangerous player.

Last Week : (#7)

#8 xlx_s_p_g_xlx (1-0) - With only one set played, he's still riding his preseason ranking. Doesn't hurt that one set was an 8-1 beatdown vs Jon.

Last Week : (#6)

#9 murkedddd (4-1) - Another player with all his sets finished. With 4 pretty good wins Roy is in a great position to get a high seed for the playoffs.

Last Week : (NR)

#10 _fAllOut (2-1) - Trav is the final player to crack the top 10 for this week. Will be a player looking to make a move up during this week.

Last Week : (NR)

Others receiving votes: leeds_united14, witheaze, dwaechte, l2_o_c_k_y, lxl_blaze_lxl, o0o_PoolMaster_o0o, SQUIB___

Div B Mid-Season Report 1/12

It's that time of the year again. Almost half the possible sets have already been played so a lot
has happened already. This blog is intended to go over what we've seen so far and what to expect
through the last two weeks of play.

Group A 

Some of the sets have been played here but we're far from finished sorting out who will finish where. Moonie has to be considered the surprise player of the group as she's knocked off Kerry and Ashton already and sits at 3-1. Despite the one loss, Ashton hasn't disappointed so far, and sits in second currently with a 2 wins. Chad is the other player in the group with a win through two sets played while Kerry and Mangesh are still looking for points. Trippy has been added to the group as a new player and it remains to be seen what kind of an impact he'll have on the playoff hunt, if any.

Two key sets to watch:

KrazyKerry vs hustle - This set is pretty important for both players but definitely a little more important for Kerry. Right now she's already picked up two early losses and a third one would put her in a bad position for advancing to the playoffs. Chad still has a chance to come in first place in the group and is favoured in all his remaining sets but this is the one that should be the most evenly matched. If there was one for Chad to lose this would be it so look for a good set.

sin-e vs Captain_Trippy - Well it comes as no surprise that Ashton is included in this section as he's one of the top players in div B this season. The one who calls himself Trippy is a bit of a wild card, in that we're not really too sure what to expect. Personally I'm expecting a big win here from Ash but in a best of 9... who knows.

Group B

B stands for Drama in this case in the biggest soap opera of a group. Nothing like a little controversy to spice things up. When the dust settled Sergio is leading the group at 4-0 and has clinched a playoff spot. Koty looks to be en route to finishing in second place with 3 wins and having already lost to Sergio. Dan looks to be in a pretty good spot with two more chances to pick up a 3rd win in the group to punch his ticket to the playoffs. Adam has an outside chance with 2 sets left to play and Sterlo has finished all his sets and will be praying that 2 wins will be enough in this group.

Two key sets to watch:

Trust_in_me vs o0_koty_0o - Dan was fairly unknown coming into the competition but has done well so far after knocking off a pretty strong player in Sterlo and getting helped out with a dq. Koty needs a win here to secure a high seed for the playoffs but he's pretty much in the playoffs already. Might be a situation where we see Dan needing it more and coming out with a little extra energy.

dr_papsmear_at_your_cervix vs Sergi_Boca - Two guys on opposite ends of the standings right here. Adam is still alive after a little help from the DQ but will need to bring his best game here against Sergio who can play very well. Adam definitely can play well too, and that combined with a possible let down from Sergio should provide a pretty competitive set.

Group C

Lots of action to discuss here as more than half of the sets have been played already. Right now the most impressive in the group is Jan as he's raced out to a 3-0 start with wins coming against JJ and Carl. JJ and Carl happen to be the guys tied for second right now as they're both on 6 points. Carl has the edge in that tie as he's already beaten JJ and has two sets left to play. Niks doesn't seem to be in a huge rush with getting his sets played as he's only played the one but it did result in a win. Maria also has a win but also has two losses to go along with it and can't afford to lose again. Praveen who was once a playoff player in the competition is already out of contention with 4 early losses.

Two key sets to watch:

x_zanik_x vs Mr_Goodman - The only two players with no set losses yet, one will have to lose in this matchup. Jan is looking to be in good form with his quick start while winning over 75% of his games. Niks is tough to predict sometimes but he did manage to win last season's title and is used to getting matched up against good players. Should be pretty close and yet another good test for Niks.

BL4ME vs Your_Sweetest_Angel_Girl - Two players who weren't exactly picked to do all that great in the group stage still have a chance. Well Carl has more than a chance with his 2 early wins but this should be an important set for him as his only other one comes against Niks. This should be his best chance at getting that 3rd win. On the other hand Maria seems to be playing pretty well lately despite her poor record. Should see a pretty competitive set here with both players fighting to stay alive.

Group D

So... only 3 sets have been played here so what have we learned? Tim appears to be better than expected after an 8-1 win against DJ. Josh might be a pretty good replacement after also beating DJ handily. And DJ despite his two losses is still good getting a win against a pretty good player in Jon. Two replacements have been made to put Josh and Colby into the group. Katrina hasn't played yet but is expected to start playing her sets for the remainder of the comp.

Two key sets to watch:

xXx_TruPlayer_xXx vs handkrash - Two players who are definitely unknowns within this competition and I wasn't really able to find anything on these guys anywhere else but both have come up with big wins already in this group. This could be a set to see who will win the group and it's pretty hard to say considering all the other sets still left to complete.

dead.bang vs handkrash - Tim already showed that he should be taken seriously after beating DJ, but can he do the same thing to the other favourite in the group? Haven't really seen too much of Jon lately so he might not be on top of his game consistently anyways. Jon still can be a very tough player if you catch him on the right day as long as he limits his bad mistakes should be an interesting set.

Group E

This group has an average number of sets played so far and two players have have raced out to pretty big point leads. Mike is the early leader on the strength of a victory against Naveen that's included in his 3-0 record. He should be in a good position to go 5-0. Naveen also has 9 points with a set left to play and looks to be a good bet for second place. That's where things get a little fuzzy. Alix, Jordan and Rahul have all been playoff players in the past but who is going to step up this time. Rahul hasn't started playing yet as he was added to replace Graeme but not sure how much he's been playing lately. Gary is still in the picture too but needs to start winning.

uBlowMe vs oh.alix - Most would say that Mike is a pretty clear favourite in this set but it would be wise to take Alix seriously. While Alix doesn't always impress with her strategy she does have a knack for shooting pretty well and has some english skill. If Mike is having trouble finishing look for Alix to take advantage and at least keep things close.

JordanPunk vs oh.alix - The winner of this set I think has the best chance of outright clinching the 3rd spot in the standings. Jordan is a guy who doesn't back down from any competition and he should have good expectations going into this set. If Alix still plays as well as she used to then we should see a pretty good set from two underrated players.

Group F

Through one of three weeks this group has completed one third of it's sets... so nice pace! (Ideal for spreading out the joy of sets evenly) So not a whole lot has been decided but a couple interesting things have happened already. Chad is looking like a world beater after knocking off Tino 8-1 as well as the same score in his other set vs Meg. He has the early lead at 6 points. Tino and Meg each have 3 points and are at 1-1 records. While Chris is only 1-2 his one win did come against Brad which is a pretty good win. Brad's only set so far was that loss but look for him to turn it around in the remainder of the competition. Amy has been replaced by Tyler and that should be a welcome sight for the rest of the group.

Two key sets to watch:

cyberinferno1 vs Punk_Lobster - Not a must win yet by any means for these players but Brad definitely won't want to pick up a second loss especially if this is the next one he plays. Chad has done very well so far and must be shooting pretty well. Brad is definitely one of the better shooters in the competition and I don't see him getting blown out in this matchup.

TlNO_NICA vs Megzzz - So far Meg and Tino have identical stats but that's about to change soon. Tino is going to be a pretty heavy favourite going into this set but his big loss to Chad can't really say very good things about how he's playing at the moment. On the other hand Meg will be playing with no pressure and has already surpassed expectations with her win against Chris. This could end up being pretty close.

Group G

A handful of sets have been played so far in this set with the favourites mostly getting in their sets against each other early. And what have we learned so far from these crucial sets? Not a whole lot... Brice, Bryan and Eddie each went 1-1 against each other and they still all sit at one loss. They'll be favoured in the rest of their sets but we'll see who actually carries it out. Brice has 9 points and leads so far, Eddie has 6 points and Bryan has 3. Yousif only has one loss but looked really shakey in his one set. Jenna isn't out of it yet but definitely could use a win to get back into the race. Dima is a bit of a dark horse and could surprise a couple of the leaders but she's yet to play.

Two key sets to watch:

ravenchild_ vs MyLove_5 - This should be a pretty interesting set. We've seen different sides of Brice where he's done well but also at times can look pretty shaky. Dima is a pretty good shooter and while there aren't a whole lot of dimensions to her game she'll be able to take advantage of mistakes, especially late in games. Also Brice might let up a bit knowing he's already got his 3 wins but hopefully we see some good pool and a close set.

lol_lmfao_rofl vs dream__diva - Jenna has changed up the ID and hopefully that will change her fortunes in this season. This set is pretty important for both players as Bryan needs it to solidify his playoff campaign while Jenna needs it to stay alive. Jenna has won sets before but this might be considered her biggest upset if she can pull it off. Bryan can be good but isn't always consistent and that opens up the door even if it's just a little for a potential upset.

NEW GROUP

Group H

HawaiiBlazer - Well I hate to do this but this is a player that I was able to find zero info on. He's been drawn into a group with a few good players so we'll see how he measures up. 

fsd_sn00k - Another player that I don't have too much info on but Brice says he's good and legit. Not exactly sure what that means but I tried to avoid any follow up questions. An ID that sort of looks familiar but I couldn't find him in any other competitions. 

__thaman__ - Should be a player to watch. Hopefully not for all the wrong reasons. He's shown that he can be decent in competitions before. Might have a chance at the playoffs. 

UN_NATURAL - Trey always does well in the div B group stage and this season should be no different. There might be some surprises in this group as there seem to be a few unknowns but Trey should still have no trouble getting at least 3 wins to qualify for the playoffs. 

chill.l3abe - Jenni hasn't been playing as much lately and that's probably not the best thing for her game. She had been a contender for a playoff spot in seasons past but she hasn't been quite as interested lately. Depending on what level the rest of the group is at she'll probably need to play pretty well to get in.  

eagles05856 - This guy isn't a first time player in competitions. I was pretty confused but someone linked me to this random competition that I'd never heard of to show to me that Steven had won something before. So I guess that's cool but the level of competition there is debatable. Sky is the limit though could be a boom or bust.

Pecking Order - 1.Trey 2.Greg 3.Steven 4.Thomas 5.Jenni 6.Kevin

Div A Mid-Season Report 1/12

It's that time of the year again. Almost half the possible sets have already been played so a lot
has happened already. This blog is intended to go over what we've seen so far and what to expect
through the last two weeks of play.

Group A

There has been some activity in this group but still a ton to be decided. Of the 6 total sets 5 of them have involved Roy and he's already finished with a 4-1 record and as a result is one of the earliest players in the competition to clinch a playoff spot. Marco and Dan each have a set win so far and look to be in the best positions. Jesse and Hope definitely still have time to turn it around and no one would be surprised to see last season's finalist Scott, win his last 3 to grab a playoff spot.

Two key sets to watch:

dwaechte vs scott22883 - This is a rematch of the finals from last season and it would be great
to see how they'd match up again. Scott wasn't happy with his play and will be looking to get some
revenge. Dan still has lots of work left to make playoffs and this is a must win for Scott
to avoid his third loss.

c.marcoo vs jmunoz3rd - Still lots of pool left to play for these two players but this set will
be key as to determining who is going to make the playoffs. A win here for Marco would increase
his odds for sneaking into the playoffs quite a bit. Remains to be seen what level Jesse is playing
but he'll know this is a key set to turning his season into a success.

Group B

This group hasn't seen a ton of action and not too much has been decided yet. Mike is actually participating in the competition this time around and that seems to have helped him out as he's raced out to a 4-0 start including a win against Kevin. The only other player with a win so far in the group is Nish and he's stitting with an 1-1 record. Kevin and Luis each have one loss apiece and are by no means out of the playoff hunt. If Kevin manages to complete his sets he'll be favoured to come in second at this point. David is off to a slow start with two losses but he's found a way to win his must win sets in the past. Dante is a new addition to the group and should like his chances to crack the top 3 if he can track down his opponents.

Two key sets to watch:

lncognegro vs _dante - Should be one of the more entertaining sets remaining in the competition. Mike has had a great deal of success so far and is looking to join the leading group that have already finished with perfect records. Dante is no slouch and should put up more of a fight than Kevin did at least. He's had some great results in comps lately and seems to be playing at a pretty high level. A win here would go a long way towards helping out Dante's playoff hopes.

l3_lvl_x vs sixohtwo - Even though the odds of this set even getting played aren't the highest, for me anyways, it's one that could prove to be fairly entertaining. Kevin at the moment is sitting at 0-1 and will probably be doing his best to not lose any more sets if he even chooses to play. David tends to be the kind of player who raises his game against better players and we've seen him knock off great players while pushing others in close losses. Should be fun to watch.

Group C

These guys were clearly dying for a cam comp as most of the sets have already been played after just a week. Everyone knew Mike was good but not sure if the 5-0 was expected by everyone. He's won the group already and has secured a top seed in the playoffs to go along with it. Todd pretty much has clinched second place after handing Pita a 3rd loss. He's got one set left to play and it's currently in limbo with him leading 4-0. Pita has already completed his sets and only managed 2 wins this season. He'll need a little luck but a tie for 3rd looks quite possible and his win % is ok. Matt and JD each have a win but can't afford to lose again. Brent has no set wins again but if he can knock off both JD and Matt his odds are pretty good.

Two key sets to watch:

Oh My God! vs sykology - Aside from JD's loss 1-8 loss against Mike the season has been all close sets. Brent appears to be reeling and could continue that slide here against a desperate JD. A loss would definitely take JD out of the playoffs as he'd fall behind Pita while Brent still has a chance to join in the 2 win tie with a victory here.

sykology vs Xx_Different_Class_xX - This should be a pretty interesting set as Matt is coming off a close loss to Todd which has made this set a must win for both players. Brent needs to win both of his remaining sets and should be favoured if the old Brent shows up, but the Brent we've seen recently will probably play this one pretty close and there's no telling who will come out on top.

Group D(Dante)

It seems like this group has been pretty quiet. With only four sets played out so far, Jon leads the group by winning close sets to Derrick and Michael, right before getting blown out by Scotty. Scotty boy has been playing outstanding lately, much like his old self. His birthday is coming up, and I know he asked mother for a new era cam title. Sadly, momma can't buy it for you, so he's out to win it himself. No one expected that 8-1 ass kicking he gave Jon. Mina coming in the group as a fresh, new ball player. Can he take out Scott's hyped up game? Or will Jon destroy Mina before Mina has a chance to show Scott how replacements work around here. Could be exciting. Derrick and Lewis are in desperate needs of a strong victory.

Two key sets to watch:

xlx_s_p_g_xlx vs pr0.g0dly - Mina's jumping in as a replacement ready to show these boys something they never saw coming. Scotty is sitting at 1-0, confident as ever, ready to obliviate anything in his path. Scotty hasn't really been challenged yet since his set with Jon was a blowout, so this set will be the one to look for.

Lewissss vs o0o_PoolMaster_o0o - Both sitting 0-1 and in desperate needs of a win. Derrick lost a pretty close tough set to Jon, and Lewis lost a nice set to Michael. Whoever wins this set will probably be in a good fight against Mina for the 3rd playoff spot in the group. I expect both players giving it their all to get back in this competition and head to playoffs.

Group E

So far the players who have played have been really active. And those who haven't have been especially inactive. That all comes to a close as replacements have been added into the group to shake things up a bit. Rocky, Stephen (l1_stephen_1), and Trav are all sitting in a nice position with very similar 2-1 records. They've all taken turns beating each other as well as the other Stephen (daknight_4u) who is sitting with an 0-3 record. Out go Adam and Derek and in their place Stu and Safdar have been added. Stu becomes the instant favourite in this group as he consistently plays at a high level no matter how long the layoff, while Saf might not have the easiest time in this group but does have what it takes to get some wins.

zl_stu_lz vs _fAllOut - Anytime Stu enters a competition he becomes one of the favourites to take the whole thing home. Before he was added to this group Trav was probably the favourite to come out on top, so this should be an interesting set to see who will get that top spot distinction. Last time these two played in this competition was in the playoffs where Trav actually knocked off Stu.

l2_o_c_k_y vs safdarbandali - This should be a pretty entertaining set as well as going a long way towards determining playoff positioning. Rocky is definitely a great player but Saf is probably going to be looking towards this as being a set he should win as the competition in the group is very challenging. Rocky's other remaining set is against Stu so this one will be important for him too. Both players play a fairly similar style, it should come down to who is completing their runs.

Group F

Not a whole lot of action to discuss here and quite frankly who really know how much more action there is yet to come. So far Jordy leads the group at 2-0 after picking up a close win against AJ to go along with Bren quitting on game 3. Steve and Sukio are both sitting at 1-0 after each picking up a win against AJ. AJ himself managed to have a set given to him by Bren after only playing 2 games. So at the moment really not a lot has been decided besides the fact that Bren doesn't look like he's going to finish his sets. Joey doesn't seem to be able to figure out where any of these people are but he's still a favourite for a playoff spot if he ever does find people.

witheaze vs qierk  - This should be the highlight of the remaining sets in this group. Both players managed to crack the preseason top 10 in the competition so they should be expected to be in the playoffs. Jordy hasn't really been challenged yet and Joey should be just the guy to give him a run or his money. Both guys do consistently play at a high level and there should be some pretty good shotmaking in this set.

mvp_n00b vs SQUIB___ - This one isn't all that easy to break down because both of these players have only beaten AJ so far so what does that really mean right? Sukio isn't really a player I've personally seen much of but he's on a pretty strong run in YPM after just recently knocking off Kevin in the playoffs. We'll see if that translates into consistency in this competition for the remainder of his sets. Steve can either play really well or poorly.... or not at all. If a good Steve shows up then should be a good set.



Group G

Probably the most active group ever in this competition before the first set deadline as there are only 2 sets left to be played within this group. Alex has been the story of the group has he's already clinched first after dominating, winning 80% of his games. The best Ant can hope for at this point is second place but he's also enjoying a good season and has also clinched a playoff spot already. Craig has done fairly well sitting at a 2-2 record and at the moment has the best chance at 3rd. JT and Brian are still alive but they do happen to play each other with the loser being eliminated from contention. Cam was the odd man out in this tough group finishing at 1-4.

Two key sets to watch:

R_ook vs spc_shogun - JT claims he's retired from pool after his most recent set loss. It seems like poor  timing and that a comeback might be in order considering there is still one more chance to make the playoffs.  The winner of this set has a great chance at being tied for 3rd in the group which would at the very least garner a w/c spot.

manutd_ vs lxl_blaze_lxl - Both of these guys should have a good chance at making the playoffs win or lose in this set but it does still have an impact on the group. A win for Craig would put him into second place in the group and possibly get him a decent playoff seed. Ant isn't the type to really take it easy on anyone so look for his usual strong play as he'll also like to grab a top seed.

NEW GROUP

Group H

sicc.stoned - Well Derek had a tough break. This was the first time the first set deadline was actually super strict because I happened to be awake the next morning. He finally got a set in but it was too late and his win vs Rocky did not count. Would have been a great way to start the competition... instead he's now stuck in an even tougher group than before. Hopefully that win vs Rocky is a sign of more good things to come but will be tough to finish top 3 with this group. 

trios.return - Well Trio is back playing in comps again. Well until some silly incident makes him unbearable in sets too. Trio is a pretty decent player, not nearly as good as he thinks he is. Definitely knows how to safety but has stuck mostly to going for bad runs lately. In this group Trio could win a couple sets tops but probably not much of a chance at the playoffs. 

X_STRIKE_X - Andy has always done well in the group stage of this competition before. Usually a guy we see getting a decent seed on the way into the playoffs. One of the more skilled players around still. In this group it's no cakewalk as there's some real top end talent. Andy's season might come down to whether or not he can beat out Uriel for 3rd place.  

c-b - Not really a player we've seen much of in competitions lately. Always a threat to win any competition when he's on form. Haven't been overly impressed from games that I've seen lately but they weren't always the most competitive formats. Conor gets the benefit of the doubt and if he plays his sets he'll challenge for top spot in the group.  

xxl_concrete_coma_lxx - Back from the dead, Coma has been playing in a lot of competitions lately and has been doing very well. He hasn't gone so far as to actually win anything yet but there are a lot of other good players out there. Should be an interesting test to see if he can maintain the high level of play against this level of competition. From what I've seen he's one of the better players around right now and should be fighting with Conor for top spot.  

PRO_BOY - Uriel is often a forgotten man but he should never be taken lightly. Hasn't been in this competition in quite a while. He has won smaller competitions before and those wins have come against pretty good competition. Uriel is probably going to be on the playoff bubble here in this group but he'll be a tough guy to beat and always plays hard through the whole set.  

Pecking Order - 1.Coma 2.Conor 3.Andy 4.Uriel 5.Derek 6.Trio