Rodney Morris Wins Wyoming Open

Apr 2, 2012

Saratoga, Wyoming- Rodney "Rocket" Morris won his second time in Saratoga at this year's 5th Annual Wyoming Open. He went through a talented field of 8-Ball players that included the likes of Charlie Williams, Raj Hundal, Amar Kang, Mark Tadd, Tony Piazza, Mark Vidal, and more. The event was sponsored by Poison Cues by Predator and Asia's #1 cloth Andy Cloth will be the official cloth used during the event.
The Wyoming Open drew nearly 150 players from Colorado, Utah, Wyoming and of course the top pros which came from England, Florida, and California. There were a total of 5 events including the opening night Saratoga Open, and the 8-Ball main events with Sportsman, Classic, Masters, and Ladies divisions.
"Almost all the divisions were full, so I'm really ecstatic about that. There will definitely be a 6th Annual Wyoming Open next year. I plan on making the event bigger and better for all the players and divisions. We always want improvements. ", says EJ Glode , promoter of the Wyoming Open.
In the Classic Division which was hosted for intermediate level players, Ronnie Chavez defeated Chris Wilson in the 64 man field. Jordan Thayer and Chris McCreary rounded out the top 4. In the Sportsman Division, Eric Burgman won the event over Brian Guice. The Poison Cues Ladies Open saw Melissa Little go undefeated over Tenille Whitten in the finals.

The Masters Division drew 57 players with several contenders. Defending Champion Charlie "Korean Dragon" Williams took an early loss to Raj Hundal in the second round but managed to come back and qualify for the final 16 bracket. Raj Hundal only dropped 2 games (to Williams), in his first 3 matches with two 7-0 shut-outs. Rodney Morris cruised through along with road buddy Amar Kang to the winner's bracket finals which Amar won.
In the final 16 rounds, the players were all drawn into a new double elimination bracket. Unknown local Utah talent Ace Brown upsetted Charlie Williams 6-4 in a stellar played match. Raj Hundal dropped his match to Amar "AK-47" Kang but rebounded with a 7-6 decider over Ace Brown. Williams rebounded with back to back wins including a 7-1 over Vidal, a 7-6 revenge match over Hundal, and a 7-6 over Mark Haddad. Leaving the final three players Williams, Morris, and Kang which became known as the Rat Pack, the pro crew of players that traveled to the event together and roomed.
Morris stopped Williams from a Wyoming Open repeat at 7-4 and then defeated Kang 7-6 in the first set of the finals. Forcing a deciding set, Morris came back from a 2-0 deficit to win 7-4 to become the Wyoming Open Champion again.
"EJ does a terrific job promoting pool in the region of the country. I always look forward to coming here to play and help out", said Morris. Rodney is sponsored by Poison Cues made by Predator which he has his own signature line, and managed by Dragon Promotions.
Coincedentally Morris, Kang, Williams, and Hundal all use Predator Poison technology and they represented the top 5 finishers of the event which was sponsored by Predator and Poison Cues.
The pro players will give fans and players an opportunity to learn tomorrow in Wyoming at the Poison Pro Pool School hosted by Duke's Bar & Grill.
The event is majorly supported by the town's own businesses which include : Hotel Wolf, Duke's Bar & Grill, Valley Foods, Riviera Lodge, Carbon County, and Shively Hardware. For more info or to play in the Wyoming Open contact EJ Glode ejglode@yahoo.com or 307-329-8924
Masters
1st Rodney Morris $3,200
2nd Amar Kang $2,400
3rd Charlie Williams $1,800
4th Mark Haddod $1,300
5th Raj Hundal $750
Tony Piazza $750
7th Mark Vidal $400
Steve Pierson $400
9th Shane Wertz $200
BJ Spencer $200
Ace Brown $200
Tom Bourdeon $200
13th John Sandifer $100
Mike Kushlan $100
Andrew "ATM" Pettenger $100
EJ Glode $100
Classic
1st Ronnie Chavez $1,250
2nd Bruce Wilson $1,000
3rd Jordan Thayer $800
4th Chris McCreary $600
5th Ole Olson $350
Chuck Gemelli $350
7th Alan Hendricks $225
Travis King $225
9th Aaron Schnitker $125
Nick Dittmar $125
Shannon Fisher $125
Sam Diep $125
13th Troy Maben $65
Jason Burt $65
Kirk Brenamann $65
Bobby Brown $65
Sportsman
1st Eric Burgman $400
2nd Brian Guice $300
3rd JJ Morris $200
4th Trey Brattin $150
5th Tyler Hopkins $85
Bill Ward $85
7th Jason Michael $50
Earl Espy $50
9th Desi Grootegoed $30
Reg Forster $30
Casey Tully $30
Jackie Norwood $30