The 2007 ESPN Zone Billiards Shootout was held October 4 in Las Vegas. Stefano Pelinga defeated Tom Rossman for the TRICK SHOT MAGIC title and the lion’s share of the $50,000 purse. ESPN Zone Las Vegas was host to the event which was taped for three 1-hour telecasts on ESPN. The Eighth Annual TRICK SHOT MAGIC featured a stellar international cast vying for $30,000 first prize in the $50,000 event.

Stefano comments on his aspirations of entering the Billiard Hall of Fame... When asked where he saw himself five years from now, “I hope that I will be so good to one day be inducted into the Hall of Fame. That’s my next goal. I have to repeat myself a couple more times, to win a couple more world championships.” Speaking of the Hall of Fame, he wanted to add his sincere happiness for Earl Strickland, a good friend of his. “He might be criticized for his attitude but he’s a great player, one of the greatest players that ever lived.” Visit: www.sammspocket.com

Stefano comments on his early experience playing billiards... “I always liked the game, ever since I was very, very young. But then I found out that Dino was a very good pool player,” he said. “I played straight pool, and I became pretty good, but it was hard for me to find a game. By the time I was 18, I hustled a little bit, and nobody wanted to play me anymore, so that was quite a problem. ”By chance, he saw a documentary on TV about trick-shot artist Paul Gerni, and that gave him a light-bulb brainstorm. “I said, ‘This is probably something I could keep practicing on my own. I don’t need an opponent to practice trick shots, so I can still enjoy the game and learn some more."

For the last ten years Pelinga has been practicing exclusively at one of the nicest pool halls in Rome, the Laser Club. “I have my table always reserved so I never needed to buy one,” he said. “I end up practicing about 2-3 hours every other day, less than half the time I need. Thank God so far it has proved to be enough!” During Billiards International's Trick Shot Magic shows on ESPN Pelinga has demonstated his considerable skills. “In our 40-shot Pro format a few times I scored 200 or more points,” he said, “which is about 2/3 of the total score. I think that I still hold the ESPN ‘Trick Shot Magic’ record with 13 successful shots in a row.”