Gerda Hofstatter defeated Shu-Han Chang of Chinese Taipie to win the 14th annual WPBA San Diego Classic 9-Ball Championship, held this weekend at the Viejas Casino in Alpine, CA.

This was Gerda's first major tour stop win since the BCA Open 9-Ball Championships in 2000. She defeated newcomer Chang 7-3 in the final, taped for later broadcast on ESPN, and won $12,700 for the victory.

On her way to this momentous win, Gerda defeated Angelina Paglia and Kyoto Sone to make the final sixteen, then took down Monica Webb 9-3 in the first round of the single elimination portion of the event. Next up was #1 ranked Ga Young Kim and Gerda made short work of her too, 9-4.

In the televised semi-final she bested former #1 Karen Corr 7-4.

Chang defeated Pool & Billiard Magazine 2009 Player of the Year Jasmin Ouschan, Jeanette Lee and China's Xiaoting Pan in the other televised semifinal 7-5.

In the final bout, Chang took the lead 2-1, but Gerda came back to lead 4-3 and never looked back, winning 7-3.

Gerda made history as the WPBA Classic Tour's first-ever event winner in San Francisco in 1993 and proves today that she's still a player to beat!

Congratulations, G-Force!

The Super Billiards Expo, set to take place at the Valley Forge Convention Center, will boast amateur and pro events and a great pool & billiard shopping experience in 150,000 square feet of exhibit and arena space, including exhibits from world famous American Cuemakers Association and International Cuemakers Association members.

Pro events at the Expo include the popular Diamond Open 10-Ball Players Championship and the Artistic Pool Masters Championship.

Pool & Billiard Magazine will be there as always, with expert coverage and our annual show special. Stop by Booth #L6 and say hi!

(At left, George Breedlove and Jeanette Lee, Photo by Jerry Forsyth). Women's professional billiard star Jeanette Lee and her husband, George Breedlove, are eagerly awaiting the birth of their sixth child. The couple announced the great news at the WPBA San Diego Classic in Alpine, CA. The baby will be the first natural-birth child for Lee and Breedlove.   "George and I are so excited to welcome another child to our growing family," said Lee. "This is really a wonderful surprise for us. Nothing gives me greater joy than being a mom and to be able to bring a life into this world is something I will always cherish."

In October, Lee and Breedlove welcomed their first biological child together, Chloe Angelee Breedlove, who was born to a surrogate mother. They are also the parents of an adopted child, Cheyenne, and a foster child, John Kang, as well as Breedlove's two daughters from a previous marriage, Morgan and Olivia.

"Jeanette and George are a perfect example of the success of a modern blended family driven by faith-based values and strong parenting," said Tom George, Octagon's Senior Vice President. "Their love and devotion for all of their children is apparent and I am so glad that they have been blessed with the opportunity to give birth naturally. It is something Jeanette has always hoped for."

With a due date in mid-September, Lee will continue to play in professional tournaments through roughly mid-July. From that point until at least mid-November, Lee will be at home on maternity leave.

In her 17 years as a professional, Lee has fashioned one of the most illustrious careers of any billiards player in history, including claiming more than 30 national and international titles. Formerly ranked as the No. 1 player in the world, she has been named "WPBA Sportsperson of the Year" as well as "Player of the Year" by Pool & Billiard Magazine. Lee was a 2001 World Games gold medalist and 2004 International Trick Shot champion in addition to taking home back-to-back Empress Cup titles in 2008 and 2009. Selected as one of the "Sexiest Female Athletes in the World" by ESPN, she has appeared in television and print, including features in Esquire and on HBO Real Sports, The Today Show, The Late Show with David Letterman and Live with Regis & Kelly.

UK based Matchroom Sport announced that the 2010 PartyPoker.com Mosconi Cup, featuring multi-discipline pool and billiard competitions between American and European pro pool players, will take place at the fabled York Hall, Bethnal Green, London from December 9-12, 2010...

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We love pool & billiard fans, especially fans who show the world they love pool with a cool pool avatar! We really appreciate you and think you ought to be rewarded for reminding people of pool each day on your Facebook, Twitter and other social media pages.

So here's the deal. We're going to pick our favorite 100 cool pool avatars and give you each a FREE one year subscription to Pool & Billiard Magazine.

No catch, no purchase necessary - and if you're already a subscriber, play along and we'll add a free year to your subscription if you're one of the lucky 100.

Winners will be selected by our staff and the only rule is your avatar must be based on a pool theme, pool message, cool pool pic or graphic - sky's the limit so long as it promotes our sport. If your Facebook or Twitter profile pic is about pool, then you qualify to enter!

It's easy to enter, too. Throughout this month (March) you can show us your avatar by commenting on this post at our FACEBOOK FAN PAGE or our FACEBOOK GROUP or replying to our TWEET. Our favorite 100 Pool Avatars will be showcased in the May issue of P&B and those lucky 100 will win a free one year subscription to Pool & Billiard Magazine that begins with that issue.

Ready to play? Connect with us today! Just tell us you want in when you become a fan at our Pool & Billiard Magazine Fan Page or join our Group Page, o Farmers, No Mafia, No Fish, Just Pool Players. This is POOLMAG Mister! or tweet us at @PoolandBilliard

Shoot straight!

P.S. Here's a few pool avatars from some of our social media savvy staff (No, we're not eligible to win)

Here's one just in from Topeka, Kansas: The city of Topeka, Kansas, home of www.mycustomgameroom.com, has changed its name to "Google, Kansas" for the month of March. This means they are actually shipping products from the town of Google for a limited time.

A new website has been started in this Midwest town with a very important mission, to educate the public about all of the nuances of the sport of billiards. Topics of interest will range from equipment to tips on actually playing the game. The Mayor changed the city's name in an attempt to sway Google to bring their experimental "Fiber for Communities" program to Topeka.

This program is meant to test a new super high speed connection that Google is developing, it could mean internet speeds up to 100 times faster than elsewhere. Speeds like this could prove very useful to a new billiard website.

Mycustomgameroom.com is operated by long time billiard mechanic and pool player, Rich Brown. Besides delivering quality products, one purpose of the site is to provide a resource for everything from "How to hang a pool table light" to "how to choose a pool cue."

According to the release on Earthtimes.org, "Years of experience installing all brands of pool tables, as well as playing billiards with some of the finest pool players in the country is being added to the site weekly."

McDermott Cue Mfg., LLC is a leading manufacturer and world-wide distributor of pool cues, performance shafts, and billiard accessories. McDermott is proud to announce an agreement with Elephant Balls LTD to be the exclusive distributor of Elephant Balls branded products which include billiard balls, training aids and other billiard accessories.

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Kevin Trudeau, infomercial pitchman and author, better known to pool fans in his role with the International Pool Tour, was ordered by a federal judge to serve 30 days in prison and must turn himself in tomorrow, according to Chicago Tribune and Chicago Sun Times reports.

According to the Sun Times report: "'This was an attempt by Mr. Trudeau to harass, intimidate and influence the court,' said U.S. District Judge Robert Gettleman, who was flooded with hundreds of 'harassing, threatening and interfering' emails, locking up the judge's email system and shutting down his Blackberry for part of the day."

For the full story, CLICK HERE

In an arena dominated by males, Jeanette Lee stood head and shoulders above the rest to capture the 2010 "St. Louie" Louie Roberts Action and Entertainment Award at the Derby City Classic. The voting of the award by DCC attendees and members of the various internet forums resulted in a landslide victory for Lee as she was named on over 90% of the ballots. Others in consideration for the award included players like "Strong Arm" John, Harry Platis and Richie Richeson...

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Each year the Billiard Congress of America (BCA) recognizes an outstanding individual who has made significant contributions to the billiard industry with the presentation of the BCA President's Award.  This year the BCA has chosen to recognize Frederick Mali.  Mali, who passed away at the age of 76 in 2007, was the president and CEO of The Henry W.T. Mali & Co., Inc. (Mali Cloth), the oldest continuously family-run company in New York City, founded in 1826.  

"Fred Mali was a great ambassador for the game of billiards, as well as the most gentlemanly individual with whom I have ever done business," said BCA President Ivan Lee. "I feel it is important to recognize a man who never had an enemy, made an indelible mark on his company and this industry and always found time for anyone needing his assistance or support. Fred provided direction and assistance to many people in the billiard industry selflessly and willingly. The loss of Fred Mali to the billiard industry is difficult to accurately determine, but his eternal optimism and civilized manner would have been a guiding light in the troubled economic times that our industry faces today. I only regret that this recognition comes to him posthumously."

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