Souquet seeks to play the best.
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Ralf Souquet is the dominant player on a European continent that boasts more than its share of world-class talent. Despite competition from the likes of Oliver Ortmann, Tom Storm, Francisco Bustamante, Mika Immonen and Thomas Engert, Souquet has emerge
d as the most consistent winner. At the recent European Championships, Souquet merely won both the 8-ball and 9-ball titles, and missed the triple crown by a single match, losing in the straight-pool final to Immonen.
Still, the 29-year-old German star longs to battle the best. Foregoing a European ranking tournament in which he would almost certainly would win top-three money at little personal expense, Souquet bought a $750 rountrip airline ticket to Kansas City, plu
nked down his $250 entry fee and booked a hotel room for five nights to compete in the Shooter's 9-Ball Open in Olathe, Kan., where a standout 96-player field awaited him.
Why bother?
"I simply want to play the best," Souquet said matter-of-factly, after his 11-3 pounding of George SanSouci in a loser's bracket match Saturday afternoon in Olathe. "I'm a better player here, and I always improve by playing against the best."
So passionate is his desire, and so firm is his committment, Souquet has, in fact, posted his entry fee for all eight Camel Pro Billiards Series events in 1998. Will he make all eight?
"I'm certainly going to try," says.
Between tournaments, Souquet will return to Germany to compete. His effort is aided by his sponsor, Veith Billiards, a large billiard equipment distributor in Germany.
"The tournaments in Germany are very difficuly to win, for sure," Souquet adds. "But I don't always have to play my very best. This is where the best players are. This is where I need to be."
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