NEW YORK - Colombian Alexander Salazar has won the Verhoeven Open at the Carom Cafe in New York. The tournament, which gained great notoriety under the name Sang Lee Open, was played in slimmed-down form with many Americans, got a final between Alexander Salazar and Korean Jun Tae Kim, the only world player that was invited as a seeded player. Salazar won that final 40-34 in 35 innings. The run-up to the final was of a much higher standard with Salazar, Kim, Jose Juan Garcia, Pedro Piedrabuena and Ly Van Dao among others in leading roles.
The Sang Lee open, in early years New York Open, was later renamed the Verhoeven Open and gained great fame on the calendar. This year, the tournament at Carom Cafe, one of the most famous billiard halls in the world, was not on the UMB calendar. Therefore, the New York event attracted lesser-known participants.
Nevertheless, the quarter-finals were high quality matches. In those sessions, Pedro Piedrabuena won against Huberney Cataño 40-16 in 15 innings (2.667 average), Jun Tae Kim beat Trung Do Hau 40-32 in 17, Alexander Salazar was the better of Ricardo Carranca 40-30 in 25 and Jose Juan Garcia beat Ly Van Dao 40-25 in 24.
The semi-finals showed a fantastic playing Alexander Salazar. He won against Jose Juan Garcia 40-22 in 13 innings, good for 3.077 average with a run of 12. Jun Tae Kim won vs Pedro Piedrabuena in a thrilling game 40-39 in 35.
Huberney Cataño played the best game of the tournament winning over Harry Peña 25-13 in 17 (3.571 average, run 14).
Well-known players who were eliminated in the preliminary were Luis Aveiga, Ramon Rodriguez, Hau Trung Do and Raymon Groot.
The three groups in the final round before the knockouts ended in Group A in a win for Jun Tae Kim ahead of Pedro Piedrabuena and Ramon Rodriguez. Group B was won by Luis Aveiga ahead of Salazar and Carranco. In Group C, Ly Van Dao was the strongest ahead of Hugo Patino and Jose Juan Garcia.
The top four in the final standings:
1 Alexander Salazar
2 Jun Tae Kim
3 Jose Juan Garcia
3 Pedro Piedrabuena.
All results supplied by Merrill Hughes/USBA
Alexander Salazar, the winner in New York's Carom Cafe
Jun Tae Kim, the runner up