Groups Announced For IPT World Open Championships

The International Pool Tour announces the official player groupings for the IPT World Open 8-Ball Championship. The tournament starts Sunday, September 3, 2006 at 10am in Reno, Nevada at the Grand Sierra Resort.

This historic event boasts the biggest prize fund in the history of the sport. $3,000,000 is the total prize purse, and the winner of the tournament will win an historic $500,000!

Here are the official groupings:

Group 8:

Peach, Daryl
Lohtander, Marko
Jones, Samuel
Eberle, Max
Kutcher, John

Peach provides double celebration for Davis

Blackpool's Daryl Peach and partner Steve Davis - who was celebrating his 49th birthday - survived a tough opening clash with Korea to progress to the second round of the World Cup of Pool in Newport.

Peach and Davis beat Korea 9-6 and now have a day off before they take on the winner of the USA and Singapore on Thursday at 7pm.

The World Cup of Pool features 32 teams from across the globe with the Philippines favourite to lift the title with their partnership of pool legends - Efren Reyes and Francisco Bustamante.

The new event is promoted by Matchroom boosts a $250,000 prize fund and has a unique scotch doubles format which means each team take alternate shots each visit.

While Peach - who has been ranked UK number one for the last three seasons - and Steve Davis make up the England B squad, England A comprises of Ronnie O'Sullivan and Raj Hundal.

They take to the table against Spain's David Alcaide and Rafael Guzman on Wednesday 23 August at 7pm.

Peach pockets IPT Tour Card

The IPT offers the largest guaranteed prize money in the history of pool - with a purse of $5 million in the first year.

It has been set up by US media mogul Kevin Trudeau - who has promised all players on the tour in 2007 $100,000 in prize money. If they don't make in table earnings he has pledged to write them a personal cheque for the difference. Therefore, Peach's tour card should propel his earnings somewhat. He is used to picking up less than £1500 for winning a UK Pro event.

Peach beat Japan's Goh Takami 10-4 in the final to clinch his spot on the tour - which boasts 150 of the world's top cue talents including snooker professionals Ronnie O'Sullivan and Jimmy White.

Peach has dominated the UK 9 Ball rankings for the past decade but he failed to get his IPT application in on time - forcing him to slug it out in the five qualifying tournaments for a place on the IPT.

The first four were staged in the US followed by the European event this weekend. Peach missed the opening qualifier but played from event two in Atlanta. He ran six successive racks against Manchester's Tony Crosby who now resides in Florida in his opening match.

He received free entries to the remaining qualifiers - a stiff $2000 per tournament - for the feat.

Although he didn't make it through the USA events - he secured the final available spot in Wert's House of Billiards Club. In the past, he said the Wert club tables didn't suit his game - but after bagging his tour card there it looks likely he has a new favourite club!