Congratulations

to all the winners of the very first SA Open Artistic Pool Championship hosted at the Gold Reef City Hotel and Casino!

9 players participated in the inaugural event to take their share of the

R35 000.00 pot prize fund!

Each player was required to take their game to the next level and test their skills like never before by playing 5 shots from 8 discipline categories to score as many points as possible!

Players who scored the highest in each discipline category were also awarded the SA Champion title for that discipline.

Wayne Parker and Kyle Akaloo both were even scores on the Trick and Fancy discipline which took them through to a tie breaker shot requiring 6 balls to be potted with one shot. Although Kyle fell short of making it Wayne fortunately was able to seal the Trick and Fancy SA Title in his 2nd attempt.

Wayne also managed to win the Special Arts and the Stroke shots category. However as contrary to many opinions it was by no means a walk in the park for Wayne Parker. Jamiel Jacobs took his moment in the spotlight when he surprised everyone by winning the SA Title for the Follow shots discipline making him the first ever in Africa to hold this prestigious title.

But Kyle Akaloo was determined to showcase his talent, self belief and discipline he is so well known for and secured the SA title for the Draw shot category by setting an SA record and world class whopping score of 39 out of 40!

Ashraaf Haribhai also made his presence known by bagging two SA titles in the Bank and Kick and Jump shot categories showing that he was not just there for fun but was a force to be reckoned with.

Rising up and coming Trick-Shot star Zaffar Kassim with his own trick shots YouTube channel also brought his talent to the 9-ft 9-ball table but being used to the 7ft table made it very challenging to adapt although being familiar with all the shots.

It came down to the very last discipline of Massè shots which looks like Wayne was going to bag yet a 4th SA discipline title, but it was Kyle who stepped up his game with a monster Massè shot in his 2nd attempt snatching his 2nd SA discipline title for the event!

This event also saw SA Heyball President Lenyuktha Star-Lord Chetty competing, and with that being the very First Lady in Africa ever to compete in an official Artistic Pool Championship. Well Done!

Another proud moment was to see the attendance of Elijah Mpundu Musonda representing Zambia and came to gain a wealth of experience to take back home with him!

Although Jason Theron never took any of the discipline titles his strong and consistent performance secured him the overall finishing position of 3rd place and R3000.00.

Kyle Akaloo finished off in the overall position of 2nd place but still banking a hefty R7000.00 for his excellent performance.

But it was indeed the tournament favorite Wayne Parker who eventually won the whole event with a total score of 192 points only narrowly trailed by Kyle with his 188 score. This literally could have ended up with a different result purely on a single shot.

Wayne walks away with a hard earned

R13 000.00 and winner of the inaugural and prestigious Mike Massey Floating trophy! This trophy will be passed on to the next winner in the 2024 event! Will Wayne defend his claim on holding onto it for yet another year. Only time will tell.

A special

congrats

to players Ashraaf Haribhai on taking 4th place, Llewellyn Sedgwick who took 5th place, Jamiel Jacobs who took 6th place, Zaffar Kassim secured 7th place, Elijah Mpundu took 8th place and Lenyuktha Star-Lord Chetty who took 9th place all securing for themselves a piece of the prize pot!

A very special Thanks goes out to all the sponsors who contributed to this first of its kind event through their financial contribution, services and support.

McDemrott Cues, Main service sponsor Gospel Trick Shot Ministries, Inc. "Dr. Cue" Tom Rossman, Brian Pauley from Superman Trickshots, Andy Cloth for supplying the best cloth ever, Basil Munsamy from Basil billiards who setup all the tables, and the promoter The Cue Coach for the live streaming!

To the best tournament co-ordinator one could ask for along with his warm and concise commentary carried out by none other than Vernon Gradidge who fittingly was the very person who introduced and coached Wayne Parker in the game of pool when he was 12 years old! Without all of you this event simply would not have been made possible!

Last but not least, a special thanks to South African Pool Union and Blackball South Africa and Gold Reef City for hosting the SA Open Artistic Pool Championship along side SA 9-Ball Heyball South Africa who did an amazing job combining multiple Pool Cue Sport codes in one event. SAPU leading the way for Pool in South Africa! Well done!!

Thank you all for your sacrifice, support and contribution!

For more information regarding your interest and support in Artistic Pool South Africa and the Sport, feel free to email wayne@artisticpoolsa.co.za or call on +27824413300