Predicions were done by Cam(legend.skillz) and myself(leeds_united14) if you're in the top half of the bracket and you got a bye you were lucky enough to have Cam write up a little blurb about you...isn't that nice.
Rd 1 Playoff Matchups
#1 ypool_machine vs bye - Travis really needs no introduction he is truly one of the best in the playoffs and has earned his #1 seed. I predict he makes it real far in the playoffs and possibly wins it...gl man your rd2 will be a cakewalk.
#16 nhanxx vs #17 xlx_nish_xlx - This match will be interesting because Nhan has really improved. He was dominating in the tnt tourneys before ss pulled out...if nhan plays like hes capable of this could go down to the wire Nish can be a really good player or a really bad player. If Nish shows up to play I see this being a blowout
7-3 Nish Result - 7-0 Nhan
#8 fhm_champion vs bye - Ben is a really good player and he will definately make a run for this aswel. Unlike Trav, Ben will have a harder match in round 2. I can see him making semis easy if he gets past Jon or Brent... gl man.
#9 leeds_united14 vs #24 TrueBoston - This match will be a great match, one of the best round 1 matches. Brent has been playing good ypool and he could definitely make a run at this as well. So could Jon...all around I think Jons better than Brent because Jon seems to know what hes doing. Brent doesn't have any real good strategy but when he's on his game...yeah Brent could take it....I just dont see it.
7-5 Jon Result - 7-3 Brent
#4 the_pool_professor vs bye - Kenny used to be a sicc player. He isn't as good as he once was but he's still got talent to take this cam comp... gl man.
#12 lone__wolf vs #21 king_hustler2004 - This will be an easy match for King. Dave is ok but not anywhere near King's level.
7-2 King Result - 7-4 King
#5 pud'n vs bye - Shannon will have a hard match in rd2 as well with Marco or TJ. Either will give him a fight...Shannon is also capable of running away with this... gl man.
#11 xxl_stud_lxx vs #22 eyye74 - Both players here are really good but I think TJ will be a little too much for Marco to handle. Honestly i like both of these players... very respectable..I just think TJ will be too much and it will give Shannon a better match in round 2 if TJ won.
7-3 TJ Result - 7-2 TJ
#15 UN_NATURAL vs #18 xlxkavinxlx - Judging by the seedings this should shape up to be an interesting matchup. I don't think anyone stands out as an obvious favourite here as Kavin has definitely been improving his game and has shown some good skills through his first cam comp. The experience edge definitely goes to Trey as he's been in this position several times before. Playing for the right to take a crack at last season's champ Irfan I think Trey will take down Kavin in a relatively close set.
7-4 Trey Result - 7-0 Trey
#10 stun.shot vs #23 __imaj__ - Last season finishing 10th in the group stage gave you a bye to the second round of the competition. However this season you get to play AJ which is essentially a bye right? AJ qualifies as one of the 3 dangerous wildcards. Dangerous in that he has the potential to put a good set together every once in a while. Nick has the better all around game especially with his running ability. Should win this round with ease and continue his recent success at the compition. Prize for the winner is a date with Pita in the following round.
7-3 Nick Result - 9-7 Nick
#14 i_always_rape vs #19 mvp_chiddy - Looking at all the first round matchups I'd have to say Shane got the worst luck out of all the higher seeds. Shane had a great season and playing vs him lately I've noticed he's got a lot better with his run game. He actually can finish tricky runs now and then which helps out a lot in sets. Craig got stuck in an inactive group and ended up with a pretty low seed. I think the difference in this set will be Craig's ability to play a very strong safety game while being able to go for the kill when necessary. Shane definitely has the potential for a surprise upset here and will try to keep it close. I wouldn't want to witness the bickering that will surely be going on at this match. Winner will have a tough task with Cam waiting next.
7-5 Craig Result - 7-4 Craig
#13 Pimpism vs #20 billiard_inc - This is a match featuring two players who know each other well. I'm sure each of them is coming into this set thinking they can come away with the win. I've been pretty impressed with Chad's play of late as he's been displaying some great cue control that has been helping him run just about any table. Justin at the same time seems to be getting better with his run game. This set is going to come down to who makes the fewest mistakes for sure and I'd have to give the edge to Chad there. Should be an interesting set to watch as both these guys try to advance past round one in their sscam debuts. Winner might get a bye to rd 3 as Daz hasn't been heard or seen from in a little while.
7-5 Chad Result - 7-0 Chad
Rd 2
#1 ypool_machine vs #16 nhanxx - This won't really be a good match.. This will be like Colt Manning(?) vs Elvis Grbac. I don't know how Nhan beat Nish 7-0 but he did and it gives Trav an even easier set. I don't see this being close @ all.
7-1 Trav Result - 8-6 Nhan
#4 the_pool_professor vs #21 king_hustler2004 - This could be a pretty good matchup but I'd have to say a huge edge goes towards Kenny. He is the better all around player and will take advantage of King's mistakes early and often. King can put some runs together so that gives him an outside chance but I don't see Kenny being tested until the Quarter Finals in this competition.
7-3 Kenny Result - 7-4 Kenny
#5 pud'n vs #11 xxl_stud_lxx - This will be a great match and I'm looking forward to it. Shannon is a solid runner and he's becoming a really good player. TJ is probably more experienced since he's played this game longer and he's still a really good player. I'm going to say TJ will take this.
9-7 TJ Not Played - 9-0 TJ
#8 fhm_champion vs #24 TrueBoston - This match will be a great match, I'm really looking forward to it. Ben is a pretty solid runner and hes not afraid to play safety either...but if he overlooks Brent then I belivee Brent will pull off the upset...you can't overlook Brent... Brent beat a great player in Jon in round 1... Brent has really improved, he's becoming elite in this game....really it could go either way.
7-5 Ben Result - 7-5 Ben
#2 potting_machine010 vs #15 UN_NATURAL - Being the #2 seed Irfan probably deserved an easier secound round matchup than this one. While I think Irfan is the stronger player, Trey will definitely be an opponent who will be able to force some errors with his safety game. Irfan is now a seasoned set player though and I'm sure Trey won't really catch him off guard very much at all. While I think there is an outside possibility for an upset here the defending champ should be moving on to the quarter-final round.
7-4 Irfan Result - 7-4 Irfan
#7 xsoubanhx vs #10 stun.shot - This should be one of the better second round matchups. Pita is arguable the most solid player in ss when he is on his game and I believe could contend to win the whole competition. Nick is a former champ in this competition who has been handed a pretty road to get deep into this competition again. No time to be conservative for either of these players as both posess great running ability. I think Pita's safety game is a little better and he'll make fewer mistakes on his runs. This set could go either way and it might not even get played as Pita has been MIA as of late.
8-6 Pita Not Played - 9-0 Nick
#3 legend.skillz vs #19 mvp_chiddy - This is another one of those matches that is almost too close to call. Both players here are very experienced in cam comps and aren't really strangers to being in the second round of playoffs. Cam is going to try to run Craig off the table and he does posess the skills to do so if everything is going well. Craig can rely a little more on a safety style if he decides things are moving a little too fast. Recent results in UCC and 8brcam during these current seasons would indicate Craig has gotten the better of this matchup but for reasons unknown I'm going to predict Cam to play like his #3 seeding and squeak this one out.
7-5 Cam Result - 7-3 Cam
#6 Sourwood vs #13 Pimpism - This should be a pretty comepetitive set as it sets up a rematch from the group stage with a spot in the quarter-finals on the line. Chad took the first matchup but this is the only set that matters at the moment. Chad has a really good chance at an upset here because of his willingness to play the safety game. This won't be anything like the set vs Justin so don't expect a walk in the park. Daz has been off for a bit but not long enough to make him too rusty I expect him to pull out a very close set.
8-6 Daz Result 7-3 Daz
Quarter-Finals
#16 nhanxx vs #8 fhm_champion - This will be an interesting match, Nhan has pretty much shocked everyone with his win vs Trav 8-6. Can he pull off his 3rd upset? I highly doubt it.... Ben has really good strategy and I think it will be too much for Nhan to handle. I don't think it will be a walk in the park for Ben however I do think Ben will get it done.
7-4 Ben Result - 8-6 Ben
#4 the_pool_professor vs #11 xxl_stud_lxx - The first thing that comes to mind when you see this matchup is the result from the group stage. 9-0 TJ and that's with all the games played. Kenny is definitely going to want to get some revenge pretty badly here and he definitely has the tools to do so. TJ on the other hand is playing some really good pool lately and he's running lots of tables. There's no chance TJ blows this one out too because there will be fewer mistakes from Kenny. Will TJ even give Kenny a chance to shoot. I see this one being really close but Kenny's all around game takes the edge in this race.
8-6 Kenny Result 7-2 Kenny
#2 potting_machine010 vs #10 stun.shot - Here is another great matchup putting together the winners of the last two SSCams. Last season's champ is Irfan and it's looking like he's got a tough road back to the finals with Nick up here in the quarter-finals. Irfan and Nick play very similar styles with both of them being primarily run-first players. Despite Irfan's great run last season and great results versus strong players in other competitions I'd say Nick is the more refined player. Irfan definitely can safety but I think Nick is more likely to use slow play if he needs it. This race will come down to who can finish their runs and who can make the best adjustments througout the race. This one is a toss up but I'll stick with the hot Irfan.
7-5 Irfan Result - 7-5 Nick
#3 legend.skillz vs #6 Sourwood - This could turn out to be a fast race to 7. Both of these players like to run tables and clear breaks. Their style is very similar. Daz might be a little better with snooker or uses it more frequently than Cam, But I think Cam runs and banks in this set better, while Daz coughs up a few more runs. No matter the case, expect to see a good show folks.
7-5 Cameron Result - 7-1 Daz
Semi-Finals
#8 fhm_champion vs #4 the_pool_professor - We are officially down to the final 4. This is a pretty interesting matchup featuring too players with fairly similar styles. Unlike the other semi-final both of these players prefer to play at a more controlled pace, picking and choosing their opportunities wisely. Not that Kenny has been playing badly but he definitely has another gear that we haven't seen in a while. Not too sure how Ben will respond to the pressure here mostly because I haven't seen him this deep into a cam comp before. If both players show up and do their best this set could go for a long time. I'm guessing Kenny will jump out to an early lead and not look back.
9-5 Kenny Result 9-4 Kenny
#10 stun.shot vs #6 Sourwood - Not sure that anyone would have predicted this semi-final matchup as both players have had to knock off higher seeds to make it this far. Once again the former champ Nick is coming up against a pretty hot player here. Daz has been around a lot longer than Irfan in cam comps so that will provide a new challenge. Both players do prefer to run tables and there really isn't too much to choose between either of them. Daz has had some very strong results against Chad and Cam so it's hard to bet against him. I'm done however with betting against Nick as he seems on form and capable of winning a second SSCam title.
9-6 Nick Result - 9-6 Nick
Finals
#4 the_pool_professor vs #10 stun.shot - Well the finals have finally arrived. Both have had great seasons to make it this far. Congratulations to both of you! Now lets get the final match on, shall we? Nick has a mixture of playing styles but usually decides to try and run if he sees any kind of opening, while Kenny will try to run an open table, but will also snooker at the start of games if he wants a change of pace. Overall, it comes down who makes fewer mistakes and I think Kenny has gotten his game back and wins this when it counts.
9-5 Kenny
