Szewczyk Goes 7-0 to Reclaim the World 10-Ball Title
Photo: Predator Pro Billiard Series
Four years after he first won it, Wojciech Szewczyk is the world 10-ball champion again. The Pole beat Albania's Eklent Kaçi 3-1 in last Saturday night's final of the Iwan Simonis WPA Men's 10-Ball World Championship at Phu Tho Indoor Stadium in Ho Chi Minh City. He finished the week without dropping a match, going 7-0 through a 96-player field. The title pays $80,000 from a $300,000 prize fund and gives him a second world 10-ball crown to go with the one he won in 2022.
Szewczyk already knew how to beat Kaçi before the final, having handled him 2-0 in the double-elimination stage. The knockout rounds asked more of him. He went through Olivér Szolnoki, Johann Chua and Francisco Sánchez Ruiz, then beat Sanjin Pehlivanovic in the semifinals. Kaçi reached the final from the other half by beating Joshua Filler, and then ran into the same opponent who had already beaten him once that week.
Filler's semifinal exit carries a little history. He beat Szewczyk in the UK Open final earlier this year to become that event's first two-time champion, and the two have spent 2026 trading the biggest matches between them. Filler now heads to Manila for his Reyes Cup debut later this month, while Szewczyk goes home with the world title.
Pia Filler won the Poison Saigon Women's 9-Ball Open on Sept. 25 at the same venue, closing out five days of play in a $90,000 event, and Liu Shasha and Hsieh Chia-Chen took the Box Billiards Mixed Doubles Open. The Pro Billiard Series has already moved on to Bali, where the KAMUI WPA Women's 9-Ball World Championship, the Aramith Men's Open and the Men's Doubles are being played through Oct. 5.
Sources: AZBilliards; WPA; Matchroom Multi Sport via AZBilliards.
Meglino Holds Off Trenton White at the Cue Corner Bar Box Classic
Photo: The Dunnski Dungeon
All 96 spots were filled for the Cue Corner Bar Box Classic at Racks Billiards in Sanford, Fla., on Sept. 26 and 27. The event was presented by Cue Corner, powered by Cuetec and organized by The Dunnski Dungeon. It was call nine-ball on bar boxes with staggered Fargo races, so every match had two numbers on the board, and the $13,000 prize purse included $5,000 added by Cue Corner. Anthony Meglino of Tamarac, Fla., won it, and Trenton White of Plant City came within one set of taking it from him.
Meglino's run on the winners' side was about as clean as a bar-box nine-ball bracket allows. He opened 12-1 over Khang Phan, shut out Jon Gore and Benjie Estor 10-0 each, and beat Justin Toye 9-4. He followed with two more 12-1 scores against Daniel Castillo Castro and Ryan Seigler. In the hot seat match he beat Casius Cassie of Orlando 9-4, racing to 9 against Cassie's 7.
White took the long way. He won his first three matches, beating Robert L Hicks 10-1, Lynda Hohmann 12-2 and Kristian Dimitrov 9-2, then lost 8-4 to Billy Burke. From there he won seven straight on the loss side, including an 8-7 escape against Kirill Rutman, an 11-0 shutout of Seigler, and an 8-5 win over Cassie in the loss-side final.
In the final, White raced to 7 and Meglino to 9, and White needed to beat him twice. He won the first set hill-hill, getting to 7 with Meglino sitting at 8. Meglino won the second set to take the title. Cassie finished third and Seigler fourth, with Lauren Kowalski and Michael Philip Piedad tied for fifth.
Sources: DigitalPool; Racks Billiards.
Quick Hits
Reyes Cup rosters are filling in. The third Roobet Reyes Cup is set for Oct. 15 to 18 at Makati Coliseum in the Philippines, with Team Asia trying to beat Team Rest of the World for a third straight year. New Rest of the World captain Ralf Souquet has picked Joshua Filler for his Reyes Cup debut and brought back former world No. 1 Fedor Gorst, who joins Francisco Sánchez Ruiz and Shane Van Boening. Souquet has one wildcard pick left to make. 🔗 Filler selection. 🔗 Gorst selection.
Photo: Matchroom Multi Sport
Trick shot worlds open in Philadelphia. The WPA Artistic Pool World Championship and the first WPA Freestyle Artistic Pool World Championship are under way at Bluegrass Billiards in Philadelphia, running Oct. 1 to 4. Admission is free, and the Billiard Sports Network is streaming every table. France's Florian "Venom" Kohler, who won the artistic world title and then defended it in Michigan in February 2025, is in the field. 🔗 Event preview.
Junior worlds land in San Antonio in November. The Predator WPA Junior 9-Ball World Championship (Nov. 23 to 25) and Junior 10-Ball World Championship (Nov. 25 to 27) are part of the Pro Billiard Series stop in San Antonio. To get ready, Junior Team USA coach Samm Diep-Vidal is hosting a team prep camp at Felt on Oct. 10 to 12, run as a private event and fundraiser. 🔗 Junior Team USA camp. 🔗 PBS San Antonio events.
Sources: Matchroom Multi Sport via AZBilliards; PA Times; Billiard Sports Network; Fédération Française de Billard; sammdiep.com; Pro Billiard Series.
Watch This
Meglino v White, Bar Box Classic final. The first set of the Bar Box Classic final shows what staggered races do to a match. White needed seven and Meglino nine, and the set came down to a single rack with both men one game from home: a loss would end White's event, and a win would force a second set. Bar-box nine-ball with a call rule punishes every loose position play, and this set is a good study in managing the cue ball in a small space with everything on the line.
Also worth your time this weekend: every table at the Artistic and Freestyle Artistic world championships in Philadelphia is streaming free on BSN through Sunday. 🎥 BSN on YouTube.
Sources: Dunnski Dungeon YouTube (EvoSports); DigitalPool; Billiard Sports Network.
Buy Box
Poison VX Break (Green). If you are still breaking with your playing cue, this is the easiest way to stop. Poison by Predator's VX break cue pairs a Venom carbon fiber shaft with a Radial joint and a phenolic tip, so it can drive into the rack hard while your playing shaft stays fresh for the shots that come after. This one has a green carbon forearm with black, green and pink VX graphics. The VX also comes in black, and there is a VX break-jump version in green, grey or black if you want one cue that does both.
Product details: Poison by Predator.
Events and Drops
WPA Artistic Pool and Freestyle Artistic Pool World Championships | Bluegrass Billiards, Philadelphia | Oct. 1 to 4 | Free admission, every table streamed by BSN
Predator Pro Billiard Series Bali | Bali, Indonesia | Sept. 28 to Oct. 5 | KAMUI WPA Women's 9-Ball World Championship, Aramith Men's Open, Men's Doubles
Roobet Reyes Cup | Makati Coliseum, Makati, Philippines | Oct. 15 to 18 | Team Asia vs Team Rest of the World, live on WNT TV
Pro Billiard Series San Antonio | San Antonio | Nov. 23 to 28 | Little Monster Men's and Women's Opens, ARC Mixed Doubles Open, Poison Wheelchair Open
Predator WPA Junior 9-Ball and 10-Ball World Championships | San Antonio | Nov. 23 to 27 | Played during the PBS San Antonio stop
Pro Billiard Series All Stars | Hyatt Regency Jacksonville Riverfront, Jacksonville, Fla. | Dec. 15 to 20 | PBS season finale | Singles, doubles and mixed doubles
Sources: PA Times; AZBilliards; Matchroom Multi Sport; Pro Billiard Series.
From the Hill
The first set of the Bar Box Classic final ended 7-8, and the player with seven won it. In a 96-player handicapped field, staggered Fargo races did their job: the event came down to a hill-hill set between the hot seat winner and a player who had won seven straight on the loss side. If handicapped events keep producing finals like that, every bracket and recap should print the race next to the score, the way DigitalPool already does, so a 7-8 result reads as the win it was.
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