Afterwards, Tommy Kennedy admitted that had he played a final match against Anthony Meglino, he would likely have been defeated. Meglino had defeated him in the opening round of the February 23 stop on the Tiger SE Open 9-Ball Tour, and though Kennedy had fought his way back through eight matches on the loss side to meet him again in the finals, both agreed that it had grown a little too late to test Kennedy's loss-side streak or Meglino's undefeated run. They opted out of a final match and split the top two prizes. The $500-added event had drawn 34 entrants to Cunningham's Pool and Darts in Vero Beach, FL.
As Kennedy toiled away on the loss-side, Meglino advanced among the winners' side final four to match up against Devin Brown. Curtis Kelley and Jason Sheerman met in the other winners' side semifinal. Meglino got into the hot seat match with a 7-3 win, while Kelley survived a double hill battle versus Sheerman. Kelley got into his second straight double hill match, vying for the hot seat, but Meglino held on to win it.
It was Sheerman who picked up the streaking Kennedy, who'd won his fourth and fifth match on the loss side, against Mark Coats (a 7-5 struggle, which, according to Kennedy, came within a ball of double hill), and Sam Kantar 7-2. Brown drew Adam Wheeler, who'd gotten by Raul Alvarez 7-2 and John DiToro 7-3. Kennedy dropped Sheerman 7-5, and in the quarterfinals, met up with Wheeler, who'd ended Brown's day 7-3.
Kennedy then defeated Wheeler 7-3, and was afforded the opportunity for a re-match against Meglino, by taking the semifinal match against Kelley 7-4. Kennedy and Meglino took stock of the situation at that point, and decided against a final match. Undefeated in the hot seat, Meglino was declared the event winner.
As tour director, Kennedy thanked Cunningham's owner, Chris Davila, for his support of the tour, as well as sponsors Tiger Cues, Mueller Recreational Products, Simonis Cloth, Cliff Manning, Andy Gilbert Custom Cues, Robert Harris, and Marshall, for assisting him with the conduct of the tour stop. The tour is scheduled for a hiatus, while Kennedy prepares for his role as a member of the World Professional Billiard League, whose inaugural season is scheduled for late March/early April. Kennedy, along with Scott Frost and Manny Chau, will be a member of the league's Phoenix Fire team.
