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BCA Pool League to Host World Pool Masters
Feb 14, 2008, 3:33 PM

Filling a void left by the rescheduling of the BCA’s annual 9-ball tournament, the BCA Pool League has announced that the World Pool Masters will take place alongside its National 8-Ball Championships.

Set for May 9-11 at the Riviera Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, Nev., the World Pool Masters is a 16-player, single-elimination tournament produced by the U.K.’s Matchroom Sport.

"It's been a tradition to entertain the thousands of BCA Pool League members who travel the globe to compete in our National 8-Ball Championships," Mark Griffin, CEO of the BCAPL, said. "This year will be no different."

Since being sold to Griffin in 2004, the BCAPL had hosted the BCA’s professional 9-ball event. This year, however, the BCA rescheduled the tournament — the GenerationPool.com 9-Ball Championships — to coincide with its annual trade show in June.

By securing the World Pool Masters, the BCAPL has ensured that the thousands of amateurs who play in the 8-ball national championships — also held at the Riviera from May 8-16 — will still have the chance to watch a professional event.

The list of invited players is still being worked out, but six players have agreed to take part: Daryl Peach, 2007 World Pool Champion; BCAPL representative and 2007 U.S. Open champion, Shane Van Boening; Mika Immonen of Finland; 2007 Mosconi Cup MVP Tony Drago; American Rodney Morris; and 2007 World Junior Champion, Ko Pin Ye of Taiwan.

The final 11 spots will be filled in the coming weeks.

"The invite list is taking shape but, through our agreement with the WPA, we take the top four ranked players on the EuroTour after their next event which finishes on the 24th of [February]," Matchroom Sport's Luke Riches said.