Category — APA

Diamond Eight will host an APA Singles Board at 2pm on Sunday, November 9th. All APA members with a handicap based on at least 10 scores are welcome. Eight players per board; the more players, the more boards we can run. The board (single elimination, 8-person tournament) starts at 2pm.

The window for qualifying for the March regional closes November 30th. Future boards may be scheduled before the 30th, but don’t wait! This is another way to qualify for Las Vegas!

Diamond Eight regular Tom Acciavatti has proven his mettle yet again. This time, Tom won the gold medal in both the 8-Ball and 9-Ball competitions of the 2008 National Senior Games Championship Festival. Congratulations, Tom! Very nice! You can view the top finishers within this PDF, from the NSGA.

The APA (American Poolplayers Association) partnered with the National Senior Games Association (NSGA) to host the 2008 National Senior Games Championship Festival & Euflexxa Hockey Championships. The event was held September 4-7, 2008 in Providence, Rhode Island.

Competitions took place in Billiards (8-ball & 9-ball), Team Bowling, Hockey, Pickleball and Weightlifting. Athletes had to be 50, or older, by January 1, 2008.

Congrats to Brian Widelski and Wes Hotaling, who bested Audre Hartman and Dan Hickey in The APA of Greater Albany’s Scotch Doubles Tournament held at Diamond Eight on Saturday, October 11th. Third Place went to the team of John Robinson and Frank Bogardus. All the matches were very close with many of them going to the hill. Thanks to all the players who came out and competed!

Scotch Doubles is a format in which partners alternate shots, not turns. It is a great format and lots of fun! If you are interested in joining the APA’s Scotch Doubles Monday night division, stop by Diamond Eight this Monday, October 20th at 7pm.

More APA tournaments will be announced shortly!

Diamond Eight regular Chris Smith vanquished the competition over the weekend to win entry into the 2008 U.S. Amateur Championship, to be held in Atlanta in November. The preliminary tournament was held September 20-21 at Shooter’s Billiards in Southington, CT. Chris kept his signature cool focus throughout the tournament to claim victory and earn the privilege of competing in the 2008 U.S. Amateur, scheduled for November 7-9 at Mr. Cues II in Atlanta, GA.

A number of other Diamond Eight players also competed in the Qualifier and advanced to deeper brackets of the tournament: Frank Rich, Tom Acciavatti, John Robinson, and Ivan Anthony. Congrats to all of our players. And good luck to Chris, as he competes in the prestigious U.S. Amateur Championship!

Thursday night 9-Ball starts Thursday, September 18th! Players are needed to complete this in-house division for our growing APA league. If you are curious about the APA or have been out of the league for a while, a great entry point is APA 9-Ball! Everyone has a chance to win in 9-Ball, with each ball sunk worth 1 point (the 9-Ball is worth 2!). This different format is both fun and challenging! Stop by Diamond Eight at 6pm on Thursday for free practice and to join a team. Singles and couples are welcome!

9-Ball is the APA’s best-kept secret! Fewer teams compete in 9-Ball throughout the country, so fewer teams compete for Vegas, and even fewer actually make it to Vegas for the National Championship!

The road to Vegas starts now! The new pool league session is here! Now is your chance to join a team and compete for the coveted trip to Las Vegas to compete in next year’s National Championships.

Here is the lineup for Fall:

• Tuesday night 8-Ball (travel) will be starting in Albany and Troy on September 2.
• Wednesday 8-Ball (in-house) at Diamond Eight starts on September 10.
• Thursday 9-Ball at Diamond Eight begins September 4.
• Double Jeopardy (both 8- and 9-Ball on the same night) at Diamond Eight begins September 7

The APA of Albany has planned a great Fall session, with plenty of tournaments and singles boards. Doubles and Masters divisions are also planned for later in September.

Even if you do not have a team, stop by Diamond Eight on your preferred night of play; many teams will be looking for additional players, especially lower-skilled players! With the APA’s great handicapping system, everyone has a chance to win!

The regular 2008 Summer session has come to a close and now it’s playoff time! Sunday night Double Jeopardy saw 8 teams competing in both 8- and 9-Ball divisions on the same night! The playoffs have begun! Click the link to see the latest results.

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UPDATE

“No Clue” have finished tied for 193rd in 9-Balt, and tied for 513th in 8-Ball. The team made a great effort in matches that could have gone either way! They enjoyed the experience and want to thank everyone for their support!

Diamond Eight and the APA of Albany wish “No Clue” good luck as they head to Las Vegas to compete in the 2008 APA National Team Championships in both 8-Ball and 9-Ball!

For the first time in the area league’s 5-year history, one team emerged from the Local Team Championships victorious in both 8-Ball and 9-Ball formats. We congratulate “No Clue” and wish them the best of luck in Las Vegas as they compete for the National titles and $25,000. first place prize in 8-Ball and $15,000. first place prize in 9-Ball!

“No Clue” is Cindy Dominy (captain), Cathy Dominy, Victor Carrk Jr., Derrick Holtzclaw, Christopher Smith, Ann Smith, and Steven Sims.

You can keep track of the Diamond Eight team at the 2008 APA National Team Championships website.

Anne and Chris got the better of Mike and John in the APA Scotch Doubles Tournament held Saturday, August 9 at Diamond Eight. It was a fun day as both current and potential APA members squared off in the modified single elimination scotch doubles format (team members alernate shots, not turns, and every team is guaranteed to play at least 2 matches).

Ten teams came out for the event, which encouraged current members to bring guests who had never participated in the APA. These “new-to-the-APA” players had a great time and we hope to see them all in league play in the near future! More photos and info after the link.

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Diamond Eight and all the APA players of the Greater Albany area want to thank Mike and Kathy Murray for their exceptional work in starting and maintaining the Greater Albany league for the past five years. Their enthusiasm for the league and love of the game was contagious. While Kathy deciphered our paperwork and made sure all the details were in place, Mike was building strong relationships with his players and helping build a strong foundation for the future of the league.

Although we are sad to see them leave their positions within the APA, we understand that change is inevitable. We are so happy to know both Mike and Kathy and owe them a debt of gratitude for their hard work, honesty and patience. More importantly, we want the Murrays to know their legacy is secure: their league is one that is based on having fun, the love of the game, and a great way to meet new people. We wish them luck in their future endeavors!