Group A
The first group is proving to be a fairly level playing field with a few surprises so far that's helped keep the field close together. No one has managed to get 3 wins yet but we have 4 players tied on 2 wins at the moment. Right now the early edge looks like it goes to JJ who hasn't lost yet and sits at 2-0. Although he hasn't played any of the other 2 win players yet he's got no losses. Thieu and Jon come in behind with 2-1 records and they look like they've got at least one easy win each to reach their 3rd. Adam has put together a better effort this season but it looks like it's going to come down to his last set vs JJ to see if he'll make the playoffs. Dawn did have a win through 3 sets but she's since withdrawn from the league. David has been giving the competition a try for the first time but no luck so far sitting at 0-3.
Two key sets to watch:
oh.talent vs dr_papsmear_at_your_cervix - This is a rematch from last season's group stage where JJ took the set 6-3. Adam is in a little better position this time around with a chance at the playoffs on the line but it will be a must win. This is also pretty important for JJ because this might be his easiest remaining set and his best chance at grabbing a 3rd win. Adam has shown us he can compete with good players this season with his win against Thieu so it wouldn't be wise to overlook him here.
dead.bang vs oh.talent - Just guessing that this will be the set that determines first place in the group. Jon hasn't made quite the same splash in the group stage that he made last season but that's mostly due to not having all his sets played in the first week this time around. He's still left with a pretty good opportunity to win the group despite the early loss to Thieu. If JJ can win this set he'll probably have a pretty good look at going 5-0 in the group and grabbing a great playoff seed. Should be a good set between two playoff players.
Group B
Lots of action has taken place so far in group B. We have two players who have so far seperated themselves from the pack in Sacha and Tino. Sacha is having his best group stage in what seems like forever as he won all 5 of his sets in the first week and in impressive fashion winning twice as many games as he lost. Second place right now goes to Tino is enjoying the friendly confines of div B and actually is getting a chance to win some sets. He's basically a lock for the playoffs at this point. Behind there it gets really fuzzy as two players sit on 3 points in Jordan and Brian. Jordan has beaten Brian already and he's got 3 sets left to play so he's looking a little better for 3rd place right now. Rich and Amy still have a few sets left to play and have shown before that they can win so they're not out of the picture just yet.
Two key sets to watch:
TlNO_NICA vs JordanPunk - Tino will be looking to cement his playoff spot while Jordan is going to need to bring his A game to grab a second win. Tino has been a div A level player for a while and this isn't exactly an opponent that should make him nervous at all. Jordan on the other hand has shown in the past that he can rise to the occasion in tough situations. This isn't must win for Jordan but it would help separate himself from the field.
cheeto_sandwich vs G_O_D99 - This is a battle of players on the outside looking in but both have a real chance to save their seasons. Brian was expected to do a little better this season and his last chance to salvage that will be coming up with a win against Rich. Rich might actually be in the more enviable position despite his lack of win yet he does have 3 more opportunities to get points. Rich really only shows class in his game about once every 3 seasons so I'm not sure if he's overdue here but you never know.
Group C
This group is actually the one with the least amount of activity since our start date with only 4 sets played so far. On top of that the player who's in first place with half of those wins has said she's quitting. Gosh! Well I guess there are a couple other wins to talk about. Both Niks and Naveen have picked up one win each and are sitting in an alright position. Marco only has one loss so far while Jan has picked up two. Adam was the replacement added into the group in Moon's place and he definitely has the ability to make some noise. Hard to say what's going to happen with the rest but with Leanne dropping out it makes things a little easier.
Two key sets to watch:
Mr_Goodman vs ml2_wolverine - These are the two other guys who have picked up a win so far so I suppose that makes them favourites to advance right? Still lots to play out in this group but both of these players have been playoff players in the past. Naveen was the #1 overall seed in last season's playoffs so he's definitely become a tough match. A loss here for Niks wouldn't be the end of the world but a win would pretty much clinch a playoff spot.
A_D_A_M_ vs c.marcoo - This set might as well be labelled the outsiders. Marco and Adam have been in the competition before but it was a while back so it's hard to say how they measure up against this current level of competition. Both guys have been active enough in other cam comps and have been playoff players in 8brcam. I like Marco's game a little more in this set but Adam has been around and he can surprise.
Group D
About half of the sets here have been played so far and the point distribution hasn't been very even. Only half the players actually have points so far and that leaves a fairly defined top 3. Sitting in first place as no huge surprise we have Kerry who put together yet another solid group stage not to mention completing her sets in record time. She's sitting in first but the set she did lose was to Sergio and he's been a wrecking ball so far in this group. With over 70% of his games won so far he's sitting at 3-0 and looks like he'll probably be one of the 5-0 guys this season and get a good playoff seed. Shelle is in the mix once again after losing her first set she went on to win the next two, notably winning against Sterlo. There are 7 losses combined throughout the last 3 players. Sterlo is in the most trouble because he's lost 3 already. Doesn't get that much better for Rahul and Graeme though as they basically need to win their remaining sets to have a chance.
Two key sets to watch:
Shelly_05_09 vs TheGreatOne41 - Two playoff spots have pretty much been taken and the third one is definitely in play in this set. Shelle already won one of her key sets against Sterlo which put her in this great position needing one win out of her last two. Unfortunately one of those sets is against Sergio. So that leaves Rahul as the potentially easy prey. Well he's not always easy. Last season he went' 0-5 and this season's 0-2 start isn't a good indication but he's been in the playoffs before so look for this one to be a good set.
o0_GoKu_0o vs Shelly_05_09 - This is what I'll refer to as a measuring stick game. Shelle has been a borderline playoff player in this competition just about all year. Sergio here has gotten dropped into the div B mix and is dominating so far. Sergio is one of the favourites to win the whole competition so Shelle is about to get an up and close look at what it takes to be near the top. Sergio's game isn't the prettiest all the time, but he knows enough about english and is a good enough shot maker to clear some tables. Shelle will have to play her best game to keep this close.
Group E
Another fairly active group to write about here. Group E just got a whole lot tougher too, and it's a guy who hasn't even played a set yet who is bringing the heat. Dan was one of the early favourites but unfortunately had to be replaced by DJ. DJ's last season in div B was a finals appearance so that makes him an instant target. But lets talk about what has actually happened already. Bryan is out to a great start this season with 4 set wins and no losses so far. He won't be fighting too hard for the playoffs this time around. After that we have a couple players who are tied with 2 wins. Prakash has the edge with only one loss so far but he needs to pick up another win to advance. Chris is having a much better season this time around but he's got a tough task needing a win against DJ to grab his 3rd. Dorie and Kris are both having disappointing seasons with them both sitting at 3 losses so far... probably not good enough to get it done.
Two key sets to watch:
lol_lmfao_rofl vs PxYxRxO - Bryan has already clinched his playoff spot and DJ will no doubt be planning to punch his ticket too sometime in the next two weeks so this should be a match to determine playoff seeding. Definitely going to give the edge to DJ here as Bryan might be a little more relaxed knowing that he's already moving on. Should be a good one to watch as these two have proven in this season and seasons past that they're probably the two most skilled players in the group.
PxYxRxO vs SideShot - Well well looks like Chris is all grown up and has found himself in one of this seasons key sets to watch! Now this could be a tough task considering he's facing a proven vet of the competition in DJ but there are some things going for Chris. This shouldn't be a must win set for DJ so maybe he'll be a little more lax and Chris has definitely improved his game so as long as the improvements keep coming the sky is the limit. This might have already been mentioned but this is a must win set for Chris to punch his ticket to his first playoffs. No pressure man.
Group F
Here we have yet another interesting group with plenty of exciting pool drama left to unfold. Nigel so far has quieted doubters and once again proven that he's for real as he's already clinched first place in the group after 4 set wins. I personally wouldn't have called him the favourite but maybe that's who he is now. For me the guy to beat was Brad but and he's done a pretty ok job living up to that. He's comfortably got his 3 wins with one set to play to improve his playoff seeding. After that we have a whole lot of question marks. Brice and Praveen are the other two players who have points so far and Brice's win against Praveen should be mentioned to give him the edge. Really either of these two could step up though in their remaining sets. The other two players in the group, Bubba and Jenna, aren't out of it yet as they each have 3 sets left to play and have both shown before that they can win sets.
Two key sets to watch:
en_dk vs praveen_cs04 - Of course we'd like to see Nigel play some pool, he's been on fire lately. He's making an effort to get his first 5-0 group stage in his time in sscam and that would be a pretty neat accomplishment. Standing in his way is a playoff qualifier from last season in Praveen. This is basically a must win set for Praveen while Nigel is basically looking to pad the stats. Praveen is definitely no slouch and could take Nigel by surprise here but only if he really wants it more.
HoT_CaNdY_69 vs Dopey_69_ - There's going to be a whole lot of 69 going on in this set and that's reason enough to tune in. Yet another set featuring two of last season's playoff competitors but probably only one of these two will have a chance to get back. Jenna hasn't won a set yet and basically has to win the rest of hers. Brice only has two sets left to play and also will be needing to win his remaining sets. It's definitely a tough situation for both players but this is the place to start something positive. Look for a fairly close set to take place here.
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