Takeshi Okumura
Takeshi Okumura (奥村 健, Okumura Takeshi) (b. April 24, 1952 in Fukuoka, Japan) is a Japanese professional pool player.
Professional career
He started playing pool at 16 and turned professional ten years later.[1]
Okumura won the WPA World Nine-ball Championship in 1994, defeating Yasunari Itsuzaki in an all Japanese final. With the win, he became the first Japanese and second Asian to win a world championship in pocket billiards. Until Nick Varner won the title in 1999, Okumura was the oldest champion.
Although he won the world nine-ball crown, Okumura wasn't quite successful in the sport for the next ten years. In 1995, he almost won the International Challenge of Champions but Chao Fong-pang of Taiwan bested him in the last match. He also was closing to winning the US Open Nine-ball Championship in 2000 but lost to Earl Strickland , 5-11, in the finals.[2] He nearly had a shot for a second world title in 2002 but again was defeated by Earl Strickland in the semis.[3]
After some less impressive past performances, Okumura showed dominance one last time, in 2005. He defeated Mika Immonen in the finals to win the All Japan Championship, a long-running tournament featuring players from Japan and the rest of the world.[4]
Titles
- All Japan Championship (1979-1982, 1993, 1995 and 2005)
- Japan Open (1988, 1994, 1995, 1999)
- WPA World Nine-ball Championship (1994)
References
- ^ Takeshi Okumura Profile Template:Ja
- ^ "FIVE and ALIVE!". Billiards Digest. Retrieved 2008-08-09.
- ^ "Lovefest For Strickland In Semis". Billiards Digest. Retrieved 2008-08-09.
- ^ "Okumura wins his 7th title". Ralf Souquet. Retrieved 2008-08-08.
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