Topeka pool players to compete for world championship
TOPEKA (KSNT) - Six Kansas teams will be traveling to Nevada in the hopes of being named APA World Pool Champions.
Four teams from Topeka and two teams from Lawrence will be competing for $20,000 to $30,000 in top prize money at the American Poolplayers Association (APA) World Pool Championships in Las Vegas at The Westgate Hotel and Casino, according to the APA.
Seventy-four teams participated in a local state qualifier tournament at the Sunflower Ballroom at Hotel Topeka from June 23-25, according to the APA. The winning teams consisting of 32 Topeka residents and 16 Lawrence residents will join nearly 700 other teams from North America to compete for the world title.
"Break it & Like it", "Top City Hustling", "Pooliticians" and "No Poke All Stroke" were the Topeka teams proceeding to the championships, according to the APA. Out of Lawrence, "Sith With It" and "Dressed to the 9's" will also be competing.
Alicia Bullocks and her team Top City Hustling consisting of her husband, two twin daughters and a couple family friends fought their way through the Tricup, giving them a spot at the State Championship, according to the APA. Top City Hustling was undefeated at the State Championship giving them a slot at the World Pool Championship.
"My husband and I met 32 years ago playing pool so this is like the first time we've been able to compete with the twins playing on our team," Bullocks said. "They've been playing for a couple years and have grown in the sport."
Bullocks' team can be found regularly playing pool at Abigail's Oakland but said she would play at any bar with a solid pool table.
Patrick Cady of Break It and Like It has played in the APA for almost 20 years and has competed in Las Vegas on several different teams. Cady said he looks forward to the championship, not so much for himself because he's done it so many times, but for the new players who haven't been able to enjoy the competition.
"It can be overwhelming because it's Vegas," Cady said. "It's a big, big convention center. There's a lot of people."
Cady and Break It and Like It regularly play in tournaments around Northeast Kansas. The team's home base is at Breakers Bar and Grill.
The teams are part of the Northeast Kansas APA (NEKS APA) Pool League and participate weekly at Breakers Sports Bar and Grill, Abigail's Oakland and the Dugout Sports Bar and Grill and Empire Bar and Billiards along with many other locations that host the NEKS APA.
"It's a lot of playing," Bullocks said. "I'm really proud of my team, of course half of them are my family, the other half is like my family. You have to enjoy who you play with. We're not all at a high skill level but it takes all skill levels."