“The Scoripon” Johnny Archer stings the Giant Killer Jeremy Sossei at “Turning Stone”

“The Scorpion” Johnny Archer sting was too potent for the tough North East Field to fade as the Veteran fights through 128 man field.

“The Giant Killer” Jeremy Sossei from Connecticut, continues his breakout year with a very impressive run at Turning Stone before facing the biggest test of his career.

Mike Zuglan is the tour owner of the Joss Tour 9 Ball Tour, and he welcomed 128 players and an abundance of fans to his flagship event that is held at the beautiful Turning Stone Resort and Casino, held at Verona NY.

This event is enjoyable for the players because everything is under one roof, and serves as a truly rememberable experience for the players and fans. The tournament drew 128 top players from the Northeast as well as the world, including some of the top women pro’s. The top women pros that were in attendance were… “The Striking Viking” Ewa Mataya, (WPBA Rookie of the year)Joanne Ashton, “The Irish Invader” Karen Korr, Julie Kelly and NY’s own Liz Ford.

The tournament started on Thursday with 128 of many of the worlds best players, and was a grueling challenge for the cream to rise to the top out of this tremendous field.

The goal was to capture the $8,000 prize as well as the title of the 2008 $25,000 added “Turning Stone” Joss Tour 9 Ball Stop.On Sunday, only 12 players began the day with a chance to grind out the most important and critical matches as the tournament began to wind down.

Here is the breakdown of all the action of the “Final 12″

On the Winners side”T - Rex” Tony Chohan matched up against “The Scorpion” Johnny Archer, and while he held the score close… Johnny Archer was able to pull out a 9-7 win, allowing him the chance to play the winner of Jeremy Sossei (Pronounced Saucy) and “It ain’t funny unless you are playing for big money” Ronnie Wiseman.

The match between Jeremy and Ronnie was a match up of up an coming kid, versus the seasoned road veteran Ronnie Wiseman. In a display of shear grit and determination Jeremy is able to overcome Ronnie on this day by a score of 9-7 allowing him a chance to play Johnny Archer in a hot seat match.

In the hot seat match, while Jeremy was able to hang with the great “Scorpion” Johnny Archer, Johnny brought too much firepower for Jeremy to fade as he bowed to Johnny by the score of 9-7… earning Johnny Archer a spot in the finals undefeated.

On the “One Loss Side”:

Louis Ulrich who has been playing lights out of late, defeated CT/NY’s own (former Florida Pro Tour Player of the year) Robb Saez by the score of 9-5 setting up a match with (Former World Champion) “The Ice Man” Mika Immonen who just made quick work of Mike Wallace 9-2.

Mika has been on fire of late coming off of a 2nd place Predator Tour finish along with capturing the last Blaze Tour stop. “The IceMan” Mika Immonen took an early lead and never looked back as he defeated Louis Ulrich by the core of 9-3.

Mika was now matched up with Ronnie Wiseman who was forced to the west side of the bracket by Jeremy Sossei.

The match between Mika and Ronnie was a close battle but in the end Mika Immonen was able to pull out a 9-7 win locking him up 4th place minimum.”The Hatchetman” Dennis Hatch one of the world’s most dominant players from Buffalo NY was playing extraordinarily well throughout the event including an impressive 9-0 win over “The Irish Invader” Karen Korr.

The Hatchet man came into the day on the “One loss side” after suffering a Saturday night loss to “Robin Hood” Robb Saez 9-6.”The Hatchetman” Dennis Hatch defeated Louis Rios 9-6 before cutting down the always impressive Stevie Moore 9-5, which lined up a match with “T-Rex” Tony Chohan.

“T-rex” just came off of a loss to “The Scorpion” Johnny Archer 9-7, and was looking to bounce back. Dennis Hatch from Buffalo NY is one of the Worlds best pool players and had his sight on winning his first Turning Stone, Joss Tour title. In the match between Hatch and Chohan, Hatch showed was too much to handle on this day for Tony Chohan as he clutches out to win a 9-7 win locking up 4th place and a the opportunity to play Mika immonen for a chance to advance to the quarter finals.

In the match between Mika Immonen and Dennis Hatch it was a sure delight for the fans, as both of these players brought their A game. This match was a battle as both players where grinding out game by game. The match was tied up at 6 games a piece before Dennis was able to push through to win the next three consecutive games to advance to the Semi Finals.

In the Semi Final match it was match up of two of the hottest players in the tournament.”The Hatchet Man” Dennis Hatch felt extremely confident coming in to the match with “The Giant Killer” Jeremy Sossei, and was looking to avenge his 9-3 loss that he suffered to Jeremy during the Ocean State Championships at the Snookers Banner event.

All eyes where on the David vs. Goliath match up of the young emerging superstar and the battle tested powerhouse veteran. In this match, several fans mentioned that Jeremy was playing like he was posessed by the spirit of Luther Lassiter or Willie Mosconi, as he played near flawless pool.

Jeremy took an early lead and never looked back as he cruised to a 9-2 win over “The Hatchetman” Dennis Hatch.This set up a Final Match between “The Giant Killer” Jeremy Sossei and “The Scorpion” Johnny Archer. While Jeremy was having a truly memorable tournament and has clearly earned the respect of players and fans in the North East, it seemed that most of the fans picked Archer for the win.

The final match was one race to 13 for an $8,000 prize and the title of the “Turning Stone” Joss 9 Ball Tour title.Johnny Archer brought his A game and relied on his experience and seasoning along with his amazing stroke to carry him in this match.

While it was a hard fought match, it seemed as if Jeremy Sossei was tiring out after a grueling tournament and the battle tested Archer remained cool, calm and collected as he out played the emerging superstar Sossei.When the dust settled at the Turning Stone Casino, it was “The Scorpion Archer” who destroyed his competition in what was a very impressive win for player of the decade in the 90’s.

When the tournament was over, Jeremy mentioned that while I feel like I can now hang with the best in the world… I still feel honored to have the opportunity to earn my name against players who I have grown up watching and admiring all my life.The feeling of now really believing that I can hang with the best is surreal and this second place victory hasn’t sank in yet.

I kind of felt the same way when I won the Ocean State Championships in Rhode Island. All I know is that the more I play with these guys, the more confident I will become. I want to thank all of the fans for the genuine support and it is awesome to see people come up to me for autographs… I am not used to it, and it forces me to live up to the expectations that those who support me have for me.

Congratulations to “The Scoripion” Johnny Archer as he is sure to answer any questions in the minds of pool fans, of whether he still has the ability to dominate the pool world. Johnny Archer has dominated the 90’s like no other living human, as he will always be remembered as the “Player of the Decade”

Final Results:
1st: “The Scorpion” Johnny Archer
2nd: “The Giant Killer” Jeremy Sossei
3rd: “The Hatchetman” Dennis Hatch
4th: “The Iceman” Mika Immonen
5th: Ronny Wiseman
6th: Tony Chohan
7th: Steve Moore
8th: Louis Ulrich
9th: Robb Saez
10th: Jason Klatt
11th: Louis Rios
12th: Mike Wallace