The Ladies Spirit Tour got their 2003 season underway this weekend with a $1500 added event at Cunningham's Pool & Darts in Vero Beach, FL. The added money was made possible by not only Cunningham's, but also Ayers Wireless who sponsored $500 of the added money.
The field of players was 40 strong with the notable addition of WPBA player Ming Ng. The ladies in Florida were not very hospitable though, as Ming lost to Bonnie Coats and Crystal McCormick to finish two matches out of the money.
The final four players on Sunday were no surprise, as they consisted of the #s 1, 2, 3 and 9 players from last season's points list. The match for the hot seat came down to last years points leader Sarah Ellerby and Penny Swann. Ellerby dominated the tour last year and she looks to be picking up where she left off last year as she defeated Swann 7-0 for the hot-seat.
At the same time, Jeannie Seaver was defeating Tracie Majors 7-5 on the one-loss side to send Tracie to the bleachers in fourth place. The loss to Ellerby must have let some of the wind out of Swann's sails, as she then lost to Seaver 7-1 and settled for third place.
This set up the final match between Seaver and Ellerby. Seaver has been keeping her game strong by competing on the Southeast Amateur Ladies Tour, where she has scored two second place finishes already this year. Her match with Ellerby would be a rematch of their battle earlier on Sunday. Ellerby came out on top 7-6 in that meeting and the final match looked to be another great one. Both players came out strong and the match was tied at 3-3 before Ellerby took control and finished off the match with a 7-4 win.
Ellerby collected $700 for first, while Seaver took $600 for second. Swann and Majors filled out the top four spots.
The Ladies Spirit Tour will be at Baker's Billiards in Tampa, FL on March 22nd - 23rd for their next event.
Photo courtesy of Pinwheel Productions
Complete Payouts:
1 Sarah Ellerby $700
2 Jeannie Seaver $600
3 Penny Swann $500
4 Tracie Majors $400
5th/6th Bonnie Coats, Maggie Hamilton $300
7th/8th Dawn Lorne, Tracy McCreary $200
9th/12th Niki Rasmussen, Amy Poulter, Helene Caukin, Jessica Barnes $75
