Billiards' best will vie to pocket $40K top prize

The sharp crack of billiard balls filled the air as players studied angles, lined up shots and took their strokes.

The atmosphere was more serious than usual at the 60-table Q-Master Billiards in Virginia Beach as players from around the world sharpened their skills for the 34th annual U.S. Open 9-Ball Championships. The weeklong tournament begins Sunday at the Chesapeake Conference Center.

Khaled Almutairi, who had traveled 7,000 miles from Kuwait to get to Q-Masters, was practicing Tuesday with eight teammates. They'll compete against more than 250 players from 26 countries.

Almutairi, the team captain, said the $40,000 top prize, part of the $250,000 total purse, isn't the reason they travel so far to shoot pool.

"We would like to bring back the glory and honor of doing well in the tournament," he said.

Last year Almutairi was on the eight-man Kuwaiti team. One of his teammates made it into the top 50. This year the team arrived a week early to get familiar with the Diamond-brand tables used in the tournament.

His team usually plays on Brunswick tables. The subtle differences matter to players at this level. Diamond tables have smaller pockets, and balls roll a little faster, giving them a little more bounce off the rails.

Asked if he was going to take in some of the sights in Hampton Roads, Almutairi said they did get to see the Oceanfront last year, but he doubts they' ll get out and about this year.

"This is not like a picnic," he said. "This is very serious for us."

Almutairi, 33, said billiards just started catching on in the Middle East in the past 15 to 20 years. He said he likes the mental side of the game.

"It takes a lot of self control and concentration," he said. "It's just you, and it's great satisfaction when you win."

While his goal is for the team to place someone in the top eight, he knows that all will gain experience by competing. And where better to get it?

"This is the homeland for the game," he said.

"This tournament is the place to be if you want to see the best players in the world," said Barry Behrman, 62, owner of Q-Masters and founder of the tournament. "The U.S. Open is the largest and longest-running annual tournament in the history of the game of billiards."

Behrman was in his office, with his pooch Buddy, going over his check list. Among the almost 200 items he has to nail down in the next couple days, setting up phone lines, contacting the media and ordering plaques for the winners.

"I'm three-quarters of the way through the list," he said.

He starts seriously attacking his list about 75 days out, and the last couple of weeks are "a very stressful 14 days," he said. "But the week of the tournament is my favorite week of the year."

A couple of lamps sporting the No. 9 blazed. On the walls hung photos of family, friends and pool legends such as the late Steve Mizerak, a past tournament winner.

About a dozen unopened boxes sat stacked in the middle of his office.

"Those are triangles and balls from the sponsors," Behrman said.

The phone rang.

"Just overnight them here by Friday and that would be great," he said before hanging up. "That was about the banners that I get from Ohio."

"It's a great game to watch," he said. "The fans get to see the world's greatest players, and they get to see all of them play under one roof."

Behrman said there is an expected spectator etiquette, like in golf and tennis.

"People applaud and go nuts, yeah, but its very respectful," he said. "You know there are 16 tables going on at one time, but there's a lot of excitement."

Soon 16 blue-felt, perfectly level, 9-foot Diamond pool tables will be placed in the conference center's ballroom. The temperature will be set between 68 and 69 degrees to keep the humidity down; high humidity tends to slow the balls down and make them bounce differently off the rails. This serious sport will begin.

Kuwaiti coach Ali Hasan, 35, was in the Tournament Room on Tuesday watching his team face off with each other, getting the feel of the Diamond tables and gaining the experience that will help make them better players. But there is more he wants from them.

"We are not just coming here to learn," Hasan said. "We are here to win."

Roy Bahls, (757) 446-2351, roy.bahls@pilotonline.com