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 Curtis White, APA player from Babineau's Billiards in Raleigh, NC, will never forget the ‘8 On The Break’ he made during Higher Level Tournament play following the Spring Session of 2007. Not only did he win his match during this 'City Tournament' and receive a ‘HLT 8 On The Break’ patch, he also got the patch tattooed on his leg to commemorate the event. Curtis’ team, ‘Single Moms Support Group,’ was one of twenty-five 8-Ball teams from the  Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill APA participating in the second 2007 Spring Session City Tournament held at Snookers Sports Pub in Raleigh, NC on June 21 – 24, 2007. ‘Single Moms Support Group’ had a pretty easy tournament leading up to the match when Curtis made the ‘8 On The Break,’ with a BYE on Thursday Night and a quick victory on Friday Night. The team was undefeated, in good spirits and scheduled to play in the 3:00PM round on Saturday, June 23, 2007. In the 3:00PM round on Saturday, ‘Single Moms Support Group’ played ‘Or That Guy’ from Snookers Sports Pub. Curtis played the first individual match of the team match-up. Curtis, APA S/L 4, was playing Daniel Vick, APA S/L 3, in the match-up making it a 3-2 race, respectively. Curtis won the first game of 8-Ball, thus giving him the break in the second game. Curtis wanted to make sure that he broke the rack strong, so he got down to break, did a few warm-up strokes, drew his cue back, and attempted to power through the cue ball. What resulted was a miscue, but wait…..it was a legal break and the 8-Ball was in motion…..and it went in the pocket!!! He was stunned. Curtis went on to win the first individual match for his team.  Once receiving his ‘HLT 8 On The Break’ patch, Curtis decided he needed to commemorate the moment. Curtis left after his match, told his team he would be back by the 8:00PM round and went, with a fellow teammate, to ‘No Regrets Tattoo’ in Raleigh, NC. Chris Hicks, professional tattoo artist, sketched out the tattoo based on the APA ‘HLT 8 On The Break’ patch Curtis earned. Curtis then proceeded to have the sketch tattooed on the back of his left calf. “Every decade or so, I get the itch to get another tattoo. I figured, why not,” Curtis stated. Curtis returned to Snookers Sports Pub for the 8:00PM round only to find out his team had lost the three matches immediately following his win to get knocked out of the tournament.  Curtis moved to Raleigh, NC from Kitty Hawk, NC in 1992. He has been an active APA member since January of 2004. Aside from being a familiar face in the local area during Higher Level Tournament play, Curtis also participated in the American Poolplayers Association 2006 National Team Championships with his team ‘Mad Dogs,’ also from Babineau’s Billiards. Curtis, from APA to you, congratulations on your 'HLT 8 On The Break' and good luck in future tournaments. Sporting APA Leagues and your successes on your calf makes APA proud!! Tattoo, anyone? Photographs provided by Ethan Ekkens - RDUPhoto.com |
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