World Pool Masters preview: top half of the draw
Part one of a three-part preview series for the World Pool Masters, which starts on Thursday in Gibraltar. I break down the four preliminary matchups in the top half of the bracket.
Twenty-four of the world’s best pool players descend on Europa Point Sports Park in Gibraltar to fight for $25,000 and the World Pool Masters crown this week. The four-day event beginning on Thursday features five rounds all played on a single table, an unique feature of what Matchroom calls “9-ball’s biggest invitational tournament.” DAZN will carry the broadcast in the United States, and for a full list of broadcasters by country, check here.
The tournament begins with 16 players participating in a preliminary round. The top-eight seeds for the event, which were based off the 2022 Nineball World Rankings, received a bye into the round of 16. Every match will be a race to seven racks except for the final, which is a race to nine.
The first session on Thursday will begin at 12:30 p.m. EST with Olivér Szolnoki taking on American Skyler Woodward. Four games will play on Thursday before coverage returns on Friday at 7 a.m. EST. The schedule, as listed currently, does work out a little funny, though, with Joshua Filler and Albin Ouschan not touching the table until Saturday evening and three other players also remaining dormant for the first two days of the four-day event.
This is the first piece of a three-part preview and will be covering the four preliminary round matchups making up the top-half of the draw. In the next couple of days, look out for the other previews which will cover the lower half of the draw and some background on the top-eight seeds for the tournament.
Eklent Kaçi vs. Dennis Orcollo
Winner plays (1) Alex Kazakis
A battle of old and young. Kaçi, just 23 years old, takes on Orcollo, who’s a full two decades older at 43. The Albanian Kaçi has to be the favorite for this matchup purely due to the fact that Orcollo hasn’t played much competitive pool, especially at this sort of level, this year because of his US travel ban. Kaçi, meanwhile, finished third at the Dynamic Billiard Lasko Open and World 10-Ball Championship. He was also a semifinalist in last year’s World Pool Masters.
But Kaçi has struggled in major Matchroom events since. Lo Ho Sum upset Kaçi in the round of 64 at the World Pool Championship last month. And in the Premier League Pool near the start of this year, Kaçi finished last in a field of 16.
Taking into account Orcollo’s domination of the pool scene the last two years before his travel ban, it’s hard to count the Filipino money game king out. He was No. 1 on the AZBilliards money list in 2020 and 2021, amassing a little over $250,000 combined, which included a run to the semifinals of last year’s US Open. He’s also a former winner of this tournament in 2010.
Olivér Szolnoki vs. Skyler Woodward
Winner plays (8) Joshua Filler
It’s hard to pick a clear favorite in this one. Woodward’s got the upper-hand in experience, especially on this sort of stage where you’re only playing on a single TV table all the time. He’s reached at least the quarterfinals of the last two World Pool Masters editions, and funnily enough, the only player he’s ever lost to in this tournament has been Alex Kazakis. The shot clock should also slightly favor Woodward given his extensive Mosconi Cup experience, which Szolnoki doesn’t have.
But momentum plays into Szolnoki’s hands. He reached the quarterfinals of the World Pool Championship while Woodward crashed out of that tournament before the payouts with back-to-back losses on the opening day. The short race to seven also lends itself to unpredictability, another factor going Szolnoki’s way.
Omar Al-Shaheen vs. Dimitri Jungo
Winner plays (5) Max Lechner
Al-Shaheen must be the favorite in this matchup, though he’ll be wary of a wily veteran like Jungo. After falling off the pro scene for a few years in the middle of the 2010s, the Swiss Jungo found a resurgence in the last two years. He reached the round of 16 of the 2021 World Pool Championship and repeated the performance in 2022. He’s also reached the quarterfinals of the Lasko Open and Alfa Las Vegas Open this year to earn the most – $11,669 – he’s made in a single year since 2011.
The young Kuwaiti superstar, on the other hand, broke through onto the world stage last year. He finished well in regional events around the US early in 2021 before reaching the finals of the World Pool Championship where he lost to Albin Ouschan. He also finished runner-up at the Diamond Las Vegas Open. This year, he hasn’t yet found the same level of success in rotation-pool, though he did finish 10th in the Derby City Classic 9-Ball division and made a round of 16 appearance at the World Pool Championship.
Pin-Yi Ko vs. Ping-Chung Ko
Winner plays (4) David Alcaide
The match to watch in the preliminary round, and Matchroom agrees.
These two have seen a lot of each other growing up and practicing together, but rarely do we get to see them meet in a tournament setting. Pin-Yi, the older brother, comes in as the slight favorite.
Both went on a lengthy hiatus during the pandemic and have only recently begun playing in overseas tournaments again. It’s been Pin-Yi who’s shown better form in their return. He reached the round of 16 at both the Alfa Las Vegas Open and World Pool Championship. Ping-Chung only managed a round of 64 appearance in the latter tournament and didn’t reach the payout stages of either the Las Vegas Open or the World 10-Ball Championship.