Anchorage Daily News

Pool can be a lot like golf in that, sure, you've made that easy shot a thousand times in the company of friends. But try to make that shot in a tournament, with money on the line, and it's dead quiet and a crowd is watching to see if you'll crack.

That's a different story.

That's why when Milton Brabb of Wasilla formed a team to compete at an international Las Vegas billiards tournament, he sought out players not only slick with cue, but those possessed of that something -- a will to win, a love of performance in the spotlight, the ability to sink a shot when they absolutely must.

Brabb said he looks for players with "heart."

"If you don't have that, the pressure, it'll crush you," he said. "It'll tear you up."

Brabb and his team The Pyscho Destroyers lived up to the pressure last month at the VNEA International 8-Ball Championships at the Riviera Hotel and Casino.

Brabb's handpicked team of seven players -- five from the Valley and two from Anchorage -- placed fifth out of about 500 teams in the open class.

But Brabb, a 48-year-old painting contractor, was also looking for local talent. He wanted the team to be made up primarily of Valley players.

The team -- Brabb, Milan Janulek of Big Lake, Mohammad Hereimi of Wasilla, T.J. Frank of Wasilla, Dennis Clark of Wasilla, and Johnny Leydon and Billy Stephan of Anchorage -- play on a league at the Silver Fox Inn, located at Mile 50 on the Parks Highway.

"We were playing against national champions," said Brabb, a certified billiards instructor under the VNEA (Valley National 8-Ball League Association). "Where we came from and what we accomplished, I'm still amazed."

Clark said the VNEA tournament is one of the largest in the world, attracting teams from Europe, Australia and Canada. Teams played on coin-operated Valley brand tables, much like those found in many bars.

The tournament format went like this: Using two tables per match, five-person teams squared off in a double-elimination bracket. In each match, everyone played against each other once. Each game was worth up to 10 points per team: one point for each of the sevensolid or stripe balls sunk, three points for the eight ball.

Matches continued until one team was mathematically eliminated: up to 25 games.

Clark said 50 percent of their matches came down to the last two games, including their final match. The Psycho Destroyers ended up bowing out against a team from Canada.

The Psycho Destroyers won $3,900, split among the five players and two substitutes.

The level of play was exceedingly high, Clark said. He put it this way: Many of the players could "break and run," meaning if they sank a ball on the break, they could go on and sink every stripe or solid and win. Game over for you, and you don't even get a shot. A break and run is worth 10 points for your team, none for the opposition.

"If you can't break and run, it's over," Clark said.

'LIFELONG GAME'

Some members of the team, like Janulek, have played with Brabb for years. Others, like Frank, an electrician who commutes to work on the North Slope, have been with the team one year.

All share a love of the game that goes way beyond going to the local pub a few nights a week to shoot stick.

At 19, Frank left his home in Idaho to travel the Pacific Northwest to play pool. He'd frequent pool halls in Portland, Ore., Seattle and Boise, Idaho, seeking out the best players and putting money on the table.

Frank admitted his love of billiards is tied to gambling. He loves the pressure when money is on the line. The mind quiets, the focus narrows. Without it, Frank said, the game holds less interest.

"I made some money, but I spent it," said Frank, now 30. "I was a young kid."

Hereimi is the prodigy. Originally from Kuwait, Hereimi picked up pool only eight years ago at 21. Brabb saw something in Hereimi during league play.

"It's just like any sport," said Hereimi, who goes by Mo. "You've got to work at it."

Hereimi's wife, Veronica, also played at the VNEA tournament. Her team, the Foxy Strokers, placed 19th. Other team members are Yvonne Powell, Dawn Williams, Tammie Kerby and Linda Barton. Another men's team from the Silver Fox, the Crazy 8s, also competed.

Leydon, 46, is the old pro of The Psycho Destroyers. With bald head and a graying goatee, he is nicknamed "The Wizard." Originally from New York, he began playing pool at 16 and wanted to be a champion. He too traveled, looking for tournaments and seeking the best players he could find.

But Leydon found that the best players wanted to gamble, and when he beat them, they didn't want to play him anymore. He quit playing for 12 years, returning only when a friend asked him to join a team. Before he knew it, he'd picked up his cue full time.

Leydon has played in various Las Vegas tournaments for years. His best finish, 12th, came in a 2005 singles tournament, the Billiards Congress of America National 8-Ball Championships.

Leydon drives from Anchorage to play at the Silver Fox because of his teammates.

"In order to do well in Vegas, the reason we did well, is team chemistry," he said. "When one guy faltered, another stepped up. And everybody stepped up when it was needed the most."

Stephan, 31, also makes the drive from Anchorage, his hometown. In high school, Stephan immersed himself in pool when his father, uncle and grandmother died in succession.

"It was my way of getting away," he said. "It helped me get through it."

Stephan started working the counter at Son of River City Billiards, an institution on Fireweed Lane in Anchorage, until it closed several years ago. He now works at an Anchorage bingo parlor.

Stephan said it's easy to tell a great player: It's written in their eyes.

"These are people that live it," he said. "It's a lifelong game, a lifelong journey."

Find Ron Wilmot online at adn.com/contact/rwilmot or call 352-6712.

ADVERTISEMENT