Justin Martin Wins Carolina Billiards Circuit Stop 3 in Cary: A Comeback Two Years in the Making

Justin Martin had not cashed in a tournament since January 2024. Two years of silence, two years of rumors, and then one weekend in Cary, North Carolina changed the whole conversation. On May 23 and 24, Martin came through the loss side of a 51-player field at Breaktime Billiards to win Stop #3 on the Carolina Billiards Circuit, beating tour co-founder Mike Davis Jr. double hill in a race to 9 final. For players here in the Carolinas, this is the kind of story that makes regional pool worth following, and it carries a few lessons worth stealing for your own game.

The Weekend in Cary: How the Bracket Played Out

The $2,000-added Open event drew 51 entrants to Breaktime Billiards, with races to 7 on the winners’ side and 6 on the loss side. Martin opened strong with a pair of 7-2 wins over Chris Petoletti and Tj Beauchemin, then ground out tougher matches against Scott Roberts and Greg Kane before running into Greg Taylor in a winners’ side semifinal. Taylor took that match 7-5 and sent Martin to the loss side, where comebacks either die quietly or turn into stories people talk about for years.

Martin chose the second option. He eliminated Steven Page 6-4, dispatched Monaim Neffati 6-2 in the quarterfinal, and then got his rematch with Taylor in the semifinal. The first meeting had been close. The second went all the way to double hill before Martin dropped the final 9-ball to earn his shot at Davis, who had claimed the hot seat in his own double-hill battle with Taylor.

The final was everything a race to 9 between two players rated within eight FargoRate points of each other should be. Martin came in at 757, Davis at 749, and FargoRate gave Martin a 54.6 percent edge. The match went double hill, naturally. Davis missed a shot with ball in hand in the deciding game, Martin got back to the table on his next opportunity, and closed out the rack and the title.

What Changed in Martin’s Game

Here is where the story gets useful for the rest of us. Davis noticed something different about Martin’s game before they ever met in the final. Watching him shoot, Davis realized Martin had rebuilt his setup around his dominant eye, adopting the distinctive stance, grip, and stroke that Joshua Filler has ridden to the top of world pool, including his recent 13-1 demolition of Wiktor Szewczyk at the 2026 UK Open final. Martin, like Filler, is left-eye and left-hand dominant, and his new alignment puts the cue directly under that left eye, with the head tilt that makes it work.

Martin acknowledged the similarity after the event. In a Facebook statement posted the Tuesday after his win, he confirmed what the grapevine had suspected for two years: he stepped away from competition specifically to rebuild his game. He never stopped playing. He stopped competing so he could change how he plays without the pressure of needing results every weekend. His own words: “I am back. And I am back with a vengeance.”

The Dominant Eye Lesson

Most amateur players never check which eye is dominant, and plenty of stubborn misses trace back to a cue that sits under the wrong side of the chin. The test takes ten seconds. Extend your arm, point at a distant object with both eyes open, then close one eye at a time. The eye that keeps your finger on the target is dominant. If your cue does not sit under or near that eye at address, you are aiming with a distorted picture, and your brain has been quietly compensating for years.

Rebuilding alignment is uncomfortable for a few weeks, which is exactly why Martin did it away from tournament pressure. You do not need two years. You need a few honest practice sessions, a straight-stroke drill, and the willingness to feel awkward before you feel better.

Why Regional Tours Like the Carolina Billiards Circuit Matter

The Carolina Billiards Circuit is exactly the kind of tour that keeps competitive pool alive between the big televised events. Founded in part by Davis himself, the circuit has already produced memorable winners this year, including Rodney Morris taking the inaugural 9-Ball Open in February and Joshua Shultz winning the Wilmington stop in late April, right here in our backyard. The fields mix touring-caliber players with strong local amateurs, the added money is real, and the racing format gives everyone a genuine chance to play their way into form.

The next stop is scheduled for June 27 and 28 at Fat Cats Billiards in Arden, just south of Asheville, with $2,000 added again. If you have been thinking about testing your game outside your weekly league night, a regional stop like this is the right size of jump. You will see better patterns, tighter safeties, and faster tables than most league rooms, and nothing accelerates improvement like getting punished for sloppy position by someone who runs out.

Gearing Up for Regional Competition Without Overspending

Watching a 757-rated player win double hill on the hill drives home a simple truth: equipment does not win matches, but unfamiliar or inconsistent equipment absolutely loses them. Every player who cashed in Cary brought a cue they trust completely. If you are putting together a tournament setup for events like the Carolina Billiards Circuit, the playing cue is where consistency matters most.

A great middle path between starter cues and custom money is something like the McDermott G302, a G-Series cue built around McDermott’s quality maple construction and adjustable weight bolt system, so you can fine-tune balance as your stroke develops. McDermott has been the workhorse brand of American league and regional tournament players for five decades for a reason, and the full McDermott pool cue lineup covers everything from first tournament cue to lifetime cue.

If your budget sits under three hundred dollars, the Cuetec AVID Chroma Highlands delivers a fiberglass-bonded shaft that shrugs off humidity swings, which matters more than people think when summer tournaments move you between air-conditioned rooms and muggy Carolina parking lots. And for players chasing a softer hit with modern playability, the Lucasi LH40 Hybrid pairs premium components with Lucasi’s low-deflection hybrid shaft technology at a price that stays well below custom territory.

Whatever direction you go, buy the cue before the event, not at it. A new cue needs ten to twenty hours of table time before it stops feeling new. Browse the complete pool cue collection with enough lead time to get comfortable before you put money on the line.

Three Takeaways From Martin’s Comeback

Improvement Sometimes Requires Stepping Back

Martin did not grind through two years of weekly tournaments with a broken setup. He removed the pressure, rebuilt the foundation, and returned when the rebuild was done. Amateurs can apply the same logic on a smaller scale. If your league session keeps reinforcing a flaw, three weeks of focused practice beats three months of competitive repetition of the same mistake.

The Loss Side Builds Champions

Winning four pressure matches in a row after a winners’ side loss, including two double-hill finishes, is a different psychological achievement than cruising through the hot seat side. Losing early in a tournament is information, not a verdict. The players who treat it that way are the ones waiting in the final when the hot seat occupant gets nervous.

Details Compound

A stance adjustment measured in inches and a head tilt measured in degrees turned a two-year absence into a title. Small, correct changes, applied consistently, beat dramatic overhauls almost every time. Check your dominant eye, check your grip pressure, check your cue. Then go enter something. Fat Cats in Arden is waiting, and as Justin Martin just proved, the field never knows who is about to show up playing the best pool of their life.