Play Meter

UPDATE EDITION
Volume 3 Number 22
November18, 1977
Ebonite, Fischer
to merge
Ohio Tournament referees
Tournament draws 2,000
Over 2,000 people jammed into
the Hilton Hotel in Columbus, Ohio
for the first Ohio coin-operated 8-Ball
Tournament Championship October
1 and 2 . The hotel was a sell-out with
three champions from each of 200
taverns, bowling alleys, recreation
centers and other locations from all
across the state.
Considered the world's largest
tournament of its kind, the event was
a huge success, according to Chuck
Farmer, Shaffer Distributing Co.
director of marketing and Len
Schneller, sales manager of U.S .
Billiards, Inc. , co-chairmen of the
tournament.
The tournament ran smoothly
with 45 people employed by Shaffer
Distributing as referees, scorekeepers
and to set up the 24 U.S . Billiards
8-ball tables.
Everyone was a winner at the
championship playoffs . Winners of
the nine-week location qualifier
rounds in three classes each received
a two-piece pool cue with carrying
case, winner's certificate and a
tournament hat. And every player
who traveled to Columbus for the
finals also received cash, even those
who lost in the first round . Locations
of the winners received trophies.
Ohio operators who took part in
the 8-Ball tournament report sub-
stantial increases in the weekly pool
table revenue at their participating
locations.
The Class A winner of $750 was
Jerry Wolfe, from Hunter's Inn ,
Akron, a location of Castle Music
Co., Akron . Runner-up receiving
$500 was Frank Roberts from Mike's
Cafe , Painesville , a location of Roy
George Music, Painesville .
Class B winner of $500 was Ernest
West, Non Commissioned Officers
Club, Wright-Patterson AFB, Day-
ton , a location of J .C .S . Enterprises,
Dayton . Runner-up receiving $300
was Jerry Morgan from John's
County Line Club, St. Marys, a
location of Celina Music Co ., Celina .
Class C winner of $300 was
Robert Burns, Vogue Lounge, Day-
ton, a location of Gem Music Co .,
Dayton . Runner-up receiving $200
was Sam Harman, Mike's . Place ,
Bryan , a location of A. Van Brackel,
Defiance .
Fuqua Industries, Inc., Atlanta,
Georgia and Questor Corporation,
Toledo , Ohio recently announced
that they have reached an agreement
for Ebonite, a Fuqua subsidiary and
member of the Fuqua Sports Group,
to purchase Questor's Fischer divi-
sion . The sale will be effective
December 31 , 1977 .
Since both companies manufac-
ture and distribute billiard and game
tables, the merger will increase
Ebonite's total product line and
strengthen marketing efforts of both
the Ebonite and Fischer table brands.
"Both product lines will continue,"
said John G . Pawly, vice president of
the Fuqua Sports Group, "but
Fischer's manufacturing and distribu-
tion operations in Tipton and
California, Missouri will be moved to
Miami Lakes, Florida sometime
during 1978."
He continued, "We feel that
the merger of the two companies will
improve our market share and permtt
us to offer our dealers a more
complete product line of both
Ebonite and Fischer tables ."
Shaffer's Chuck Farmer &
Schneller of U.S. Billiards
Len