Living up to expectations, the winner's bracket finale of the Shooter's 9-Ball Open in Olathe, Kan., Sunday afternoon featured brilliant run-out pool, with two of the game's most animated young stars battling for a spot in Sunday evening's title match.
Dennis Hatch, the lefty from Buffalo who's built more like an NFL linebacker than a pool pro, and Francisco Bustamante, the flamboyant Filipino, battled shot-for-shot in a match that saw seven ties before before Bustamante pulled away for a 11-7 win. While scratches on three consecutive break shots early in the match prevented Bustamante from building a lead, the rack-smashing star from Germany by way of the Philippines finally gained control of the cue ball and ran the final four racks for the win.
The emotional Hatch, who tossed a white towel onto the table as Bustamante prepared to shoot the case 9 ball, now awaits the winner of the Tang Hoa/Buddy Hall loser's bracket match for another shot at Bustamante. (Hoa led, 6-5, when the Bustamante/Hatch match ended.)
"I wasn't lucky with my break at the beginning," said Bustamante. "So I changed shafts on my cue. Sometimes you just need to change and find some luck. I tried to move the cue ball to a different spot, but that didn't work, so I changed shafts."
Bustamante also concentrated on ignoring Hatch's table-side manner, which often consists of waved arms, cue-strangling and rolled eyes.
"That's his problem, not mine," Bustamante said. "I just play my game."
