Gerson Martinez Boza Wins 2026 Ultimate Pool USA Florida Open 8-Ball: Chris Melling Doubles Up at Classic Billiards

The 2026 Ultimate Pool USA Florida Open wrapped up Sunday at Classic Billiards in Lauderhill, Florida, with one of the deeper international fields seen on American soil this spring. A hundred and sixty players from across the United States, Latin America, the United Kingdom, and Asia battled across six divisions from May 8 through May 10, and by the time the lights came down, two storylines had taken over. Gerson Martinez Boza took the headline Florida Open 8-Ball title in a hard fought match against Joven Bustamante, and Chris Melling left South Florida with two trophies that confirm the Magician is still one of the most dangerous traveling pros on the planet.

Gerson Martinez Boza Lifts the Florida Open Trophy

Gerson Martinez Boza came into Lauderhill carrying both expectations and momentum. The Peruvian standout is a longtime McDermott player and now also a familiar face inside the Predator stable, and at this Florida Open he made the kind of run that single brand ambassadors dream about. His final against Joven Bustamante was the kind of patient, position oriented match that tells you what eight ball at the top level actually looks like. There were no wild break and runs traded back and forth like trading cards. Instead, there was discipline. Pattern reading. Calm safeties when the layout was a mess, and confident open table run outs the moment the cluster broke.

For league players studying the match, the takeaway is not that Martinez Boza ran every rack. It is that he knew when not to. The eight ball is a game of decisions before it is a game of stroke, and the champion repeatedly chose the second best looking shot because it gave him the best second ball after it. If you are working on raising your APA or BCA level this year, watching how Martinez Boza treated cluster management is a free lesson worth replaying twice.

The equipment behind the title also gives the home builder a clean blueprint. Martinez Boza is a McDermott loyalist, and his preferred sticks fit cleanly into the company’s mid and upper tier production lineup that QKB stocks every day. The McDermott pool cue lineup at QKB runs from approachable G Series production cues to the higher tier custom inspired sticks that show why the brand has been a Mosconi Cup constant. A practical starting point for any player who watched the Florida Open and wanted to chase the same playing feel is the McDermott G302 Cue, a balanced 19 ounce production cue that gives you the McDermott hit at a price that respects a real player budget. A step down in price but every bit a McDermott is the McDermott G201 Cue, which sits at the wallet friendly end of the same family.

Chris Melling Sweeps Mixed Pairs and 10-Ball Showdown

Chris Melling has long been the kind of player who looks like he is doing magic tricks at the table even when he is grinding through a long set, and South Florida saw both sides of his game. The Magician partnered with Sofia Mast to win the Mixed Pairs Championship, then turned around and closed out Tom Cousins five to four in the 10-Ball Showdown final. That is a lot of pool to play across one weekend, and finishing on the right side of two trophies is not how it usually goes when you stretch yourself across multiple formats.

Melling is a Cuetec ambassador and a public Cynergy player. He plays the Cynergy Truewood II Ebony butt with several Cynergy shafts depending on the game, including the Cynergy 11.8 for nine ball style pocket pool. The Cynergy story is straightforward. The shaft is built around carbon fiber technology, the deflection is low, and the radial pin joint is consistent. For QKB shoppers watching Melling close out the Florida 10-Ball Showdown and thinking they could learn from the same setup, the natural first stop is the Cuetec pool cue category. The recently restocked Cuetec CT103NW Truewood No Wrap in particular gives players a real piece of the Truewood family at a price that still lives in production cue territory, and the matching Cuetec CTCF Cynergy 12.5mm shaft is the upgrade most amateur Cuetec owners ask about first.

Sofia Mast Takes Women’s Open, Gavin Mathew Wins Juniors

The Florida Open also delivered champions outside the marquee events. Sofia Mast played a remarkably composed final against Jordan Helfery to take the Women’s Open seven to three, and she did it the same weekend she partnered with Melling for the Mixed Pairs win. The double trophy haul for Mast was one of the under reported stories of the event. In juniors, Gavin Mathew edged Gage Smith six to five in a final that came down to the last rack, the kind of hill hill closer that builds tournament players for life.

For parents looking at a kid who could become the next Gavin Mathew, the right first cue is not always obvious. Junior players need cues that match their height and reach, not full size production sticks built for adults. The QKB pool cue catalog covers junior length options as well as the lighter production cues that work for growing players, including youth friendly options inside the Action and Valhalla families that share the same DNA as the cues their heroes carry.

What the Florida Open Tells Us About 2026 American Pool

The takeaway from this Florida Open is bigger than any individual title. It is the field. A hundred and sixty players from this many regions, playing eight ball, ten ball, and mixed pairs side by side, is exactly the kind of crossover event American promoters have been trying to build for a decade. Ultimate Pool USA is doing it. The format also rewarded versatility. The same players who showed up for the rough and tumble of UK rules style pool were tested again in the longer geometry of ten ball, and the players who could swap mental gears between the two were the ones who put trophies in the car.

That same versatility argument is one league players can apply to their own equipment shopping. The single best dollar you can spend in 2026 may not be a new top end carbon fiber shaft, even if everyone in your room is buying one. It may be a setup that lets you handle multiple games well. A quality production cue plus a dedicated break cue plus a known low deflection shaft will outperform a single luxury build for a player who jumps between bar table eight ball, league nine ball, and the occasional ten ball ring game. The QKB break cue category in particular is where most multi game league players miss the easiest upgrade in their bag.

The Equipment Trail From Lauderhill to Your Local Room

Tournaments like the Florida Open are gifts to the at home player because they give you a real time look at what working pros are actually using. Martinez Boza’s McDermott. Melling’s Cynergy. Mast’s calm, repeatable stroke matched to a cue that fits her game. None of these are accidents. The smart move for a home player after a weekend like this one is to look at one piece of your own kit and ask if it is matching the level you want to play at. Maybe that is a real break cue instead of breaking with your player. Maybe that is a low deflection shaft on your existing butt. Maybe it is finally finishing the upgrade you started last winter. Whichever piece it is, QKB has the lineup that matches the brands the pros are actually playing.

If you missed the live stream from Classic Billiards, queue up the replays this week and watch with the equipment angle in mind. The next time you walk into your local room with a new cue, you will be ready to make that cue earn its keep against players who watched the same matches.

About Corey Bernstein

Corey Bernstein is a competitive pool player, billiards equipment specialist, and co-owner of Quarter King Billiards in Wilmington, North Carolina. With over a decade of experience in the sport, Corey has competed in regional APA and BCA sanctioned tournaments and maintains an intimate knowledge of cue construction, shaft technology, and table mechanics. As a certified dealer for brands including Predator, McDermott, Jacoby, Viking, Lucasi, Meucci, Joss, and Cuetec, Corey personally tests and evaluates every cue that comes through the shop. His hands-on approach to the business means he has racked thousands of hours behind the table — breaking in shafts, comparing tip compounds, and dialing in the nuances that separate a good cue from a great one. When he is not behind the counter or on the table, Corey is researching the latest advances in low-deflection technology, carbon fiber shaft construction, and cue ball physics. His articles on Quarter King Billiards combine real-world playing experience with deep product knowledge to help players at every level find the right equipment for their game.