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Immonen Ices First Predator Title
Jun 2, 2008, 4:16 PM

Immonen (right) snapped off his first Predator event.

After finishing second at three of the first six stops of the Predator 9-Ball Tour, Mika Immonen finally won his first title on the new tour.

The Finn won five matches — including wins over WPBA star Julie Kelly, 9-6, and Filipino Warren Kiamco, 9-8 — to reach the hot-seat. Tour founder Tony Robles was equally impressive, topping Allen Hopkins, 9-6, to reach the hot-seat match.

In the winners-side final, Robles was in dead stroke, advancing to the final with a 9-5 win over Immonen.

Kiamco topped Hopkins on the left to earn another shot at Immonen in the one-loss final. Again, Immonen was too much, and he advanced by a 9-5 margin this time around.

For the Iceman, the fourth time was the charm. After dropping his first three final matches on the Predator Tour, Immonen would not be denied against Robles. After missing a billiard attempt on the 9 in the third rack, Robles had to watch Immonen collect the next seven games on his way to a 9-5 victory.

Predator 9-Ball Tour
May 31-June 1
Comet Billiards - Parsippany, N.J.

1. Mika Immonen $1,100
2. Tony Robles $725
3. Allen Hopkins $525
4. Warren Kiamco $400
5. (tie) Joey Kong, Shane Winters $275
7. (tie) Steve Lillis, Jason Michas $175