International Challenge of Champions

This article is about the annual nine-ball pool tournament in Connecticut. For the Gladiators franchise event, see Gladiators (TV series). For the tennis event, see Challenge of Champions.

Not to be confused with International Race of Champions.

The International Challenge of Champions is an annual nine-ball pool tournament held at the Mohegan Sun in Uncasville, Connecticut. It has always been broadcast on ESPN and is sanctioned by the World Pool-Billiard Association.

As of 2009, four invited notable players compete in this single-elimination event. Different from other pool tournaments, this is a winner-take-all event: The winner earns the entire purse of the division (men's or women's); in 2009, the men's-division pot was US$25,000. Winners of either division earn the title "Champion of Champions".

Format

Promoters describe the geared-for-television event as "international champions ... battling in short, sudden-death shootouts with pressure-cooker formats".

Each match is compose of two sets; each of them is race to 5 and in alternate break. Players lag to determine who shall break in the first set. The player who loses that set will break in the second.

A 30-second shot clock rule is used. This means a player must make a shot within 30 seconds lest the other player will receive ball-in-hand. Each player, however, can call for an extension but only once per rack.

Unlike other 9-ball tournaments, a player must call the 9-ball before pocketing it. Failing to call the shot or the 9-ball going in another pocket other than the one called will result the 9-ball being respotted and the player loses his turn at the table. Also, a player can't win a rack by pocketing the 9-ball in the break.

To win a match, a player has to win both sets. If the sets are split (one player winning the first but other player winning the next), players again lag to break at the one rack decider.

Winners

Chao Fong-pang holds the most wins (3) in the tournament.

Year	Winner
1991	Mike Lebron
1992	Buddy Hall
1993	Allen Hopkins
1994	Nick Varner
1995	Chao Fong-pang
1996	Ralf Souquet
1997	Oliver Ortmann
1998	Lee Kun-fang
1999	Francisco Bustamante
2000	Oliver Ortmann
2001	Chao Fong-pang
2002	Efren Reyes
2003	Francisco Bustamante
2004	Thomas Engert
2005	Chao Fong-pang
2006	Johnny Archer
2007	Niels Feijen
2008	Fu Jian-bo
2009	Mika Immonen
2010	Mika Immonen
2011	Darren Appleton
2012	Darren Appleton
2014	Thorsten Hohmann
2015	Shane Van Boening
2016	Jayson Shaw

Associated events

The tournament is held in association with Trick Shot Magic – the highest-rated pool tournament ever shown on ESPN – and the special Hall of Fame Challenge Cup (for the title Challenge Cup Champion), a two-player contest between female members of the BCA Hall of Fame.