Horror Miss From Immonen Proves Costly
MIKA Immonen missed a shot at the 9-ball that would have won the Mosconi Cup for Europe.
With the score at 4-4, Immonen the 2001 World Champion, failed to convert a straight-forward shot into the left centre pocket as Mike Davis won 5-4 to extend the drama to the final rack.
If David Alcaide won it then Europe would clinch the cup for the first time since 2002, if Corey Deuel was victorious then USA would retain the trophy.
Immonen won the lag and gained a tough table-length cut on the 1-ball for his troubles. He chose the safety instead and laid the cue ball behind the green six.
Davis escaped and left the 1-ball tied up behind the brown seven. Immonen's escape left daylight between the white and the object ball and Davis played an excellent snooker. However, Immonen played a lovely kick shot and in turn hooked the American. Davis scratched and, with ball in hand, the Finn ran out to go 1-0 up.
In the second, the burly American had no pot on the 1-ball following his break, He played safe and Immonen left the 1-ball on. Davis pocketed it but left the 2-ball out for immonen after a half-hearted safety. He made it and then rolled in a 3-9 combination to get to 2-0.
Immonen, looking in the zone, rolled through the table in the third rack to further increase his lead but Davis matched him in the fourth to peg the score back to 3-1.
The Finn broke in the next, made a 1-6 carom but had no shot on the 1-ball, although Davis underhit a safety. It left a tricky jump shot, which Immonen clinched and then moved to 4-1 ahead as Europe were only one rack away from the Mosconi Cup.
Davis kept the match alive for another rack by sealing the sixth but Immonen was then breaking to win the cup.
The 8-ball went down on the break and with a shot at the 1 was six shots away from glory. But a missed two ball gave Davis another chance at the table when Europe should have been celebrating the overall win.
Davis had a potential 6-9 combination but played it safe and a loose safety from Immonen gave the American another chance, which he took as the score became 4-3 to Europe.
The American, aiming to make it the third hill-hill match in succession, showed some form and the strength of his character to take the eighth rack for 4-4.
Immonen, a former World Champion, had a shot on the 1-ball in the deciding rack, which he sunk and that led the way open to the cup.
He potted the 8-ball but in doing so forced the 9-ball on to the bottom rail. A table-length bank from Immonen missed but Davis then did likewise to leave the 9-ball near the middle pocket.
Immonen had the shot to win the Mosconi Cup. He rolled it towards the left centre pocket but got a poor connection, missed the pot and the double kiss left the ball over the same pocket.
Davis sunk the 9-ball to make the score 12-11 and keep America's hopes alive of retaining the title.
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