NORTH HOLLYWOOD - At the end of the race the roles in the American championship were reversed. The eightfold champion Pedro Piedrabuena was dethroned by Hugo Patino in the tournament that was held in North Hollywood. In the final round with eight, Patino took twelve match points, two more than Pedro Piedrabuena, whom he defeated and Jae Hyung Cho.
In the final match Patino outplayed his main rival 40-36 in 33 innings. Piedrabuena was also beaten already by Vicky Pineda 40-38 in 36 innings.
Jae Hyung Cho was in the final stage the only competitor for the two finalists, but after his loss against Piedrabuena (40-36 in 19) and Miguel Torres (40-31 in 26), he had lost his title chances. With ten match points and an average less than Piedrabuena, Cho still finished on the podium.
The final ranking:
1 Hugo Patino 12-1.473-10
2 Pedro Piedrabuena 10-1.604-12
3 Jae Hyung Cho 10-1.348-10
4 Miguel Torres 8-1.281-11
5 Vicky Pineda 8-1.008-9
6 Carlos Palafox 6-1.022-11
7 Young Gull Lee 2-0.881-6
8 Ricardo Carranca 0-0.807-7.