The ACUI Collegiate Pocket Billiards National Championship, in recent years known more specifically as the ACUI Collegiate Nine-ball National Championship, was an amateur United States annual pool competition for university and college students, organized by the Association of College Unions International (ACUI). It was founded in 1937, and was one of ACUI's longest-running programs. In June 2020, the ACUI made the decision to discontinue their National Collegiate Pocket Billiards program.
The championship featured separate men's and women's divisions and champions since 1939. The event and its regional qualifying tournaments followed Billiard Congress of America (BCA) / World Pool-Billiard Association (WPA) world-standardized rules, and were double-elmiination in format. The championship was a BCA-sanctioned event, with champions listed as such in BCA's Billiards: The Official Rules and Records Book. BCA was involved in the events' promotion to varying degrees over the years, as was the Billiard Education Foundation (which operates the Junior National Nine-ball Championships, sometimes held jointly with the ACUI event since 2005). First- through fourth-place prizes were scholarship funds, ranging from US$1,000 down to $100
The championships were usually held in May or June, with qualifying local tournaments held at individual educational institution campuses (or nearby facilities) during the fall and spring semesters. Regional, multi-state playoffs were held toward the end of the spring semester over a weekend, alongside other ACUI competitions, including table tennis, and College Bowl-style trivia.
The name of the ACUI championship changed over time, reflecting the particular pool discipline featured in the event. It was most recently known as the ACUI Collegiate Nine-ball National Championship (among various shorter formulations). Collectively, the events were known as the ACUI Collegiate Pocket Billiards National Championships (among shorter formulations). The event was sometimes referred to as international, owing to ACUI's name, but was a US national title.
History of ACUI Billiards Champions since 1937:ÃÂ
The 2015 winners and runners-up:
the player with the record number of first-place titles was Eleanor Callado, then of San Francisco State University, California, winning the women's division four times, in 2003 and 2005âÂÂ2007 (taking second place in 2004).