Uplifting Osaka win for Immonen

With the countdown to the Malta 2008 PartyPoker.com Mosconi Cup ticking fast, interesting news keep flowing in to generate the right atmosphere for a grand contest.

The latest big splash came from the Japanese city of Osaka where a strong 128 armada of the game's super players contested the 41st All Japan Pool Championships. The entry list included glittering names like Taiwan's world champion Wu Chia Ching, Kuo Po Cheng, China's Li He-wen and Challenge of Champions winner Fu Jianbo, Japan's former World 9-Ball champion Kunihiko Takahashi, and Korean champions Young Hwa Jeong and Seung Woo Ryu.

Quite unfamiliar names on this side of the globe yet other participants, like World 9-Ball and 14.1 Champ Thorsten Hohmann (Germany), World 9-ball and 8-Ball champ Ralf Souquet (Germany), and USA top pros Rodney Morris, Charlie Williams, and Max Eberle, are definitely more familiar.

But the 'Invincible' of the Osaka experience was 'The Ice Man', Mike Immonen, 35, who, following his excellent success at the US Open in October, is high on confidence ahead of the Malta appointment.

The Finn, who is possibly the best player in the world at the moment, will be making his 12th appearance at the Mosconi Cup and was a member of the winning side in 2002 when the event was last played in London.

"I feel I am playing my best pool ever. The Mosconi Cup is a team effort and my victory should serve to strengthen our team as a whole. I am sure this builds confidence in everyone," Immonen, who received $21,000 for his Japanese triumph, said.

The 15th PartyPoker.com Mosconi Cup takes place at the Hilton Conference Centre, Portomaso, from Dec. 11 and 14 and will feature two five-man teams representing Europe and US in a series of singles and doubles matches.

Together with Immonen (Finland), Team Europe will include Neils Feijen (Holland), Souquet (Germany), Mark Gray (England) and our own Tony Drago.

The World Cup of Pool winning duo Morris and Shane van Boening, Earl Strickland, Jeremy Jones together with American number one Johnny Archer will make up Team America. Dutchman Alex Lely and Nick Varner are the non-playing captains of Team Europe and Team USA respectively.

Online ticket booking on the official website of The Mosconi Cup, www.maltacup.org/mosconi, is still available to both Maltese and overseas pool fans. Bookings from the Hilton Conference Centre, Portomaso, will open on Monday.

Matchroom Sport are the promoters of The Mosconi Cup while Snooker Promotions have been entrusted with the local organisation of the event.