Kondo is the Kingpin of the M.O.B. Hit List Finale!
The Inaugural M.O.B. Hit List Shootout Went Off with a Bang
First of all, THANK YOU to all 450+ players who joined the first session of the M.O.B. Hit List by Salotto and made it the amazing success that it was. When we first spoke with Salotto about working together to help grow pool, the first thing we all agreed on was our mission was to help get more people playing competitive pool. Thanks to you all, that statement has held true!
We had the winners announced last week and this weekend culminated in the M.O.B. Hit List $3,000 Added 9-Ball Shootout. We had 19 players take part and we appreciate everyone who came to play. We had a wide diversity of players skill levels from a 307 to 669.
We had originally planned this as a tiered tournament but changed it to a traditional double elimination with the size of the field and there were some great matches played the finals was no exception! Josh Kondo (669) made it to the Hot Seat match to face Bill Paolella (446). Josh continued his great play to win the Hot Seat 7-1 in a 7-3 race. Simon Lee (475) made it through the loser’s side to finish 4th after beating a hard charging Steve Ernst (528) to face Cher Bulanadi (463). Cher hit his high gear beating Simon 6-4 to advance to play Bill “Pepperoni” Paolella in the semifinal match. After falling in the first three games, Bill caught his stride and beat Cher to the hill. Cher won the next game to force a hill-hill thriller. After a few back and forth in the match game, Cher came out on top to advance to the finals to face the only player who had beaten him in Josh Kondo.
In true double elimination form, Cher had to beat Josh twice to win as Josh was still undefeated. Cher came out guns blazing and took the first set 3-3 in a 7-3 race. Josh roared back in the final set in domination fashion to win 7-1 and take home the championship.
A lot has been said about how difficult it is for higher players to give up this weight (7-3 max race with alternate break). In my (Jack Murray) opinion, in a truly fairly handicapped tournament it should be just as difficult for the top players as it is for the lower players. The winners should be those that play to the best of THEIR ability. Josh Kondo proved this today as he played very well, stepped up to take on the challenge, and took home over $2,000 for the championship as a reward. Well done Josh!
Payouts: Everyone in the Inaugural Hit List Shootout scored something!
- $1,650 Josh Kondo
- $1,070 Cher Bulanadi
- $600 Bill “Pepperoni” Paolella
- $350 Simon Lee
- $250 Savannah Easton
- $250 Steve “the Geeky Stripper” Ernst
- $175 Dave Steele
- $175 Robert Reyes (400-499 Session One List Champion)
- $150 Marlene Macdonald
- $150 Justin Koetter
- $150 Reed Merschat
- $150 Bryan Champagne
- $50 Brandon Brown
- $50 Brittney Sisco
- $50 Chris Seawood
- $50 Su-Bei Yin (399 & Under Session One List Champion)
- $50 Reno Provine
- $50 Colby Frontiero
- $50 Jack Murray
$30 Sidepot
- $100 Josh Kondo
- $80 Cher Bulanadi
$60 Sidepot
- $200 Josh Kondo
- $100 Cher Bulanadi
$40 WTA
- $200 Josh Kondo
Well said jack, although it is very tough to win these tourneys….it just shows that it can happen so all us higher level players need to come out and make these tourney bigger and better. It was a great tourney! Thank you jack and Rebecca for a fun and challenging tournament. It was a blast🤙🙂
Thank you Josh. Congratulations.