World Pool Association
October 2014
Scotland
After Nile Breweries had guaranteed him the return air ticket and all the sundry expenses to Scotland for the world event, Uganda national pool ace, Jonah ‘Joker’ Turigye has vowed to face and give the finest world stars of the game a bloody nose.
“I have been there before; there are no umpires because CCTV cameras monitor individual tables, so it calls for self-discipline. I will do enough preparation so that I never disappoint”, Joker told Kawowo Sports.
Nile Special brand manager, Timothy Kayondo assured the media that starting 2014, the national open winner will be fully sponsored to participate in international events.
Turigye, currently seeded at number 4 by the Pool Association of Uganda (PAU) beat Joseph Mutawe 6 – 2 in last year’s finals held at Lugogo to claim the national title that he had previously won for 2 times.
Tough call:
Joker, as he is fondly known on the pool fraternity will however face a strong field of world pool super stars.
World’s number one, Hohman Thorsten (19300 points), Philippine’s duo of Van Corteza Lee and Carlo Biado (17590 and 14560 respectively), Britain’s Karl Boyes (14110) and the Finish pool guru, Mika Immonen (12150) are some of the best world renown pool players the Ugandan (not seeded on the global scene) will face.
The highest rated African in the world of the top pool players in the world is South African Gumede, Sibongiseni, who comes at 232 of the best 400 players on the globe.
Countless hours on pool table:
One of the self-explanatory deeds of successful sports icons is the immense effort of self-dedicated training.
Turigye will need to dedicate a large fraction of his time training to perfect the different shots on the pool table, maintaining the physical and mental fitness levels.
Jokers’ Undergoing:
Joker is naturally looked at as one person who fears defeat. His pronounced act of absenteeism at many PAU organized tournaments has left many bewildered.
Since the 2013 national open finals (on 31st August), he did not feature for his league side then, Takers and was a no show at the season ending Christmas cup and the 2014 year opener, the Easter cup.
“I was in the village, failed to turn up for day one”, was the excuse Joker gave as Kawowo Sports probed his absence from the 2014 Easter pool tourney.
Bar his temperament, Joker remains one of the best pool players to grace the pool table in Uganda and many will await to wish him the best at the world pool championships in Scotland come October.
