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Upsetting Start to World Pool Masters
Jun 8, 2007, 10:46 AM

The first match is in the books at the World Pool Masters in Egmond aan Zee, Holland is in the books, and we are guaranteed a new champion.

Ralf Souquet, the top-seeded player in the field of 16 and last year's champion, faced David Alcaide of Spain in the first round. The match remained tight throughout, but the Spaniard eventually closed out the five-time champ, 8-6.

The event will run through Sunday, June 10, at the Hotel Zuiderduin in Egmond aan Zee. The race-to-8, single-elimination format levels the playing field to a point where prognostication is impossible.

The top eight players in the star-studded field were ranked, with the remaining eight matched up by draw. Following the top-ranked Souquet, Ronnie Alcano earned the second seed by virtue of his 9-ball and 8-ball world championship wins in the last year. Taiwan's Chia-Ching Wu and Niels Fiejen of the Netherlands round out the top four.

Austrian superstar Jasmin Ouschan is the only female competitor. She will face Holland's Nick Van den Berg on Saturday evening.

No U.S. players are represented in the tournament. Tyler Edey of Canada is the lone North American that will be in the competition. His first-round match will be against Wu on Saturday.