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Rice Crowned at The Palace

Ashley Rice

The WPBA Tiger SMART Tour staged the 5th Annual WPBA South Carolina State 9-Ball Championship May 20-21, 2017 at Palace Billiards in Greenville, SC.  Many thanks to owner, Mike Sijon, for opening his room to host the event.  Palace Billiards is a new venue for Tiger SMART and it is safe to say, will be a permanent venue for the tour.  Sijon commented, “The girls are terrific; so well dressed and congenial.”
 
Format was two, six person, round robins, race to seven, with the top two finishers of each bracket playing a single elimination semi-final and race to nine final.  Five rounds of group play began and was completed on Saturday.  Bracket one results were: Ashley Rice 4-0; Tiffany Stidham 2-2 with a games won/games lost record of 25-20; Marianne Merrill 2-2/21-18; Cheryl Pritchard 2-2/21-23; and Audra Mozee 0-4.  Bracket two results were: Belinda Calhoun 3-1/24-18; Debbie Teichert 3-1/24-22; Lisa Cossette 2-2/23-21; Betty Lea 2-2/22-21; and Julie Stephens 0-4.
 
On Sunday, the semi-finals were played by Debbie Teichert, who was having a fantastic tournament with her only loss in group play was to Calhoun and who has shown tremendous improvement over the past year and up and coming future star, Ashley Rice.  Rice continued her unbeaten streak for a trip to the finals.  The other semi-final was contested by Tiffany Stidham, back from child birth and Belinda Calhoun. At 5-6 Stidham played a great safety on the seven-ball.  Calhoun kicks in the seven and had a shot on the nine for the win.
 
Rice played solid, was consistent, and took advantage of her opportunities, always a winning formula as evidenced by her 9-3 victory and a perfect 6-0 record for the weekend.   Congratulations to Ashley Rice for a stellar performance the entire tournament.  Rice not only captured the title but has won the opportunity to play in the next WPBA Pro event.
 
Many thanks to Tiger SMARTs sponsors:  Tiger Products, Ozone Billiards, Simonis, Aramith, and Quick-Clean for helping to make dreams come true.
 

Jeannie Seaver wins her first WPBA Regional Tour Championship

Jeannie Seaver

After 17 years as a recognized pro, and a long string of victories that began about three years after she'd picked up a pool  cue for the first time, Jeannie Seaver has chalked up a win on the WPBA's annual Regional Tour Championships (RTC). Held on the weekend of January 12-15, the event was the first of three RTC's to be hosted by Zingale's Billiards in Tallahassee, FL, who hosted the 2016 RTC, as well. The event drew 64 entrants, who competed in a combination of round robin and double elimination brackets for $11,000 in prize money.
 
"I don't know what made it different this year," said Seaver, who competed in her first WPBA event, the WPBA US Open, in 1999 (finishing 17th), and finished fifth in last year's RTC. "I ran out when I could and played safe when I could.
 
"I never think I'm going to win," she added. "I just go in trying. I know when I hit a gear, though, and when it happens, it happens."
 
It happened for her at this year's RTC. By the time the field of 64 completed the round robin phase of the event, half of the competitors were gone, leaving a field of in-the-money 32, Seaver among them, to compete in the double elimination phase. Seaver got by Tam Trinh, Kimberly Pierce, and Ricki Casper to move into a winners' side semifinal match against Betty Lea. Gail Eaton, whose career goes back as far as Seaver's, with a number of previous head-to-head matchups, had defeated Angela Garza, Denise Berlanger (double hill), and Michell Monk, and faced Leslee Blaikie in the other winners' side semifinal.
 
Seaver and Eaton moved into the hot seat match with identical 7-3 scores over Lea and Blaikie. Seaver's 'gear' slipped a little in the winners' side final, as she managed only a single rack against Eaton and with Eaton in the hot seat, moved west to the semifinals.
 
On the loss side, Autumn Duncan, who'd lost her opening round match, double hill, to Debbie Teichert, was in the midst of a six-match winning streak that would take her as far as the quarterfinals. She downed Michell Monk 7-3 and  Windy Tang 7-4 (loss-side wins # 4 and #5) to face Betty Lea. Ricki Casper, who'd been sent to the loss side by Seaver in a winners' side quarterfinal, defeated Krista Walsh 5-4 and Jessica Human 7-1, to draw Blaikie.
 
Duncan and Casper advanced to the quarterfinals; Casper with a double hill win over Blaikie, and Duncan 7-4 over Lea. Casper ended Duncan's loss-side streak 7-5, and then had her own four-match, loss-side effort ended by Seaver 7-4 in the semifinals.
 
Eaton jumped out to an early, slim lead in the finals, taking a 2-0 lead, before Seaver responded with two racks to create the first of four ties in the match. They traded racks to a 3-3 tie, before Eaton chalked up three in a row. Seaver came right back with three to tie it again. They traded racks to the last tie of the match at 7-7, but Seaver's 7th win was the first of three in a row that gave her the 9-7 win and her first RTC title. 

Parks and Parker Win U.S. Amateur Championship Titles

Brian Parks

Champs Advance to Pro Event in 2017

It’s about leaving a legacy. Sure, there’s perks too.  Like a getaway to Tampa, one of the premier vacation destinations in the world.  An all-expenses paid trip to a pro event next year courtesy of the APA.  Oh, and let’s not forget the championship trophy – a combination of marble and bronze that more closely resembles a piece of fine art than something awarded at a tournament.

But winning the U.S. Amateur Championship is all about the title.  It’s about leaving one’s mark on the sport of pool.  It’s about having your name and your accomplishment forever etched in history.  That’s what drove more than 2,000 of North America’s top amateur players to try and qualify.  That’s what brought 128 men and 33 women to Stroker’s in Palm Harbor, Fla., in early November to compete in this year’s U.S. Amateur Championship.
 
Parks Wins Record 4th Title
 
Brian Parks of Bakersfield, Calif., has already left his legacy on the sport.  The three-time U.S. Amateur Champ had little to prove. He’d been there and done that.  
 
That was before a then 68-year-old fellow Californian named Henry Brodt decided to come out of retirement to win his third U.S. Amateur Championship title in 2015 – tying Parks record.  In his post-victory celebration, Brodt playfully “called out” Parks – who’d chosen not to compete last year.  Aware of Brodt’s good-natured ribbing, Parks returned this year, determined not to share his unmatched excellence.  Early on, he showed no rust from his one year hiatus.  He was vintage Parks, going undefeated through the first two days of competition and knocking off some of the top players in the field including Troy Jones, Marvin Guss and Brett Stottlemyer.
 
Then came an unexpected setback – a loss to the up-and-coming James Adams of Brooksville, Fla., a potential heir apparent to the U.S. Amateur Championship throne.  Parks would have to fight his way back through the one-loss bracket, and avenge his earlier round loss to Adams, to advance to the final round.
 
In the final round, Parks would face young Daniel Gambill of Hickory, N.C.  Gambill, another U.S. Amateur Championship regular who’s poised to be part of the event’s next generation of perennial stars.  Gambill had gone undefeated throughout the event and was playing arguably the best pool of his career.
 
The finale began in the 8-Ball set at Parks choosing.  Gambill opened with two quick wins.  Parks regrouped for two wins of his own.  They’d go on to split the next four games and were dead-locked at 4-4 heading into the 9-Ball set.  That’s where Parks shined.  He won seven straight games, giving Gambill few chances at the table.  What moments before looked like it might be a hill-hill nail-biter, was suddenly over faster than anyone expected.  Parks had won 11-4, and secured his fourth U.S. Amateur Championship title.
 
A gracious Gambill was the first to congratulate him, understanding all too well who’d defeated him, and knowing that his time would eventually come.
 
Parks will compete in the 2017 U.S. Open, and his name will once again be added to the Larry Hubbart Trophy of Champions.  Gambill finished as Runner-up, while Adams finished in 3rd Place – it was both players top finish in U.S. Amateur Championship competition.
 
Fernando Vaca of Gaithersburg, Va., finished in 4th Place.  Brett Stottlemyer of Pasadena, Md., and David Singleton of Port Orange, Fla., tied for 5th Place. 
 
[photo id=45563|align=right]Parker Takes Women’s Field By Storm
 
Generally it takes newcomers a few years of U.S. Amateur Championship competition to be in a position to take home the title.  Maybe it’s the combination 8-Ball and 9-Ball format.  Maybe it’s the level of competition.  Whatever it is, it certainly wasn’t the case for Robin Parker of Birmingham, Ala.  After failing to qualify in a Preliminary Round five years ago, Parker not only qualified, she steamrolled this year’s Women’s U.S. Amateur Championship field in just her first appearance.  Parker went undefeated, taking out seasoned veterans like Dee Dee Copeland and former champion Betty Lea.
 
Her most difficult test would come from Jackie Blomlie of Ocala, Fla. Parker sent Blomlie to the one-loss bracket early on the final day of competition, but Blomlie would put herself in position to avenge the loss by ousting Lea for a spot in the final round.
 
In the finals, Blomlie got on the board first with a win in the 8-Ball set, and led 3-1 after four games.  An unfazed Parker would take the next two games, and evened the match 3-3 as the ladies moved into the 9-Ball set.  Blomlie again got on the board first in the 9-Ball set.  Just when it looked as though she might open up the match, Parker rose to the occasion, and reeled off six straight wins for a dominating 9-4 win.
 
The victory secures Parker a spot in a 2017 WPBA pro event, while Blomlie had to settle for a strong Runner-up finish.  Former champion Betty Lea (’06) finished in 3rd Place in her first U.S. Amateur Championship competition in several years.
 
Match coverage, including the finals, of this year’s U.S. Amateur Championship and Women’s U.S. Amateur Championship, can be found on the APA YouTube channel at youtube.com/apaleagues.
 
The entry window for the 2017 U.S. Amateur Championship will open April 1 with the Preliminary Rounds scheduled across North America in mid-September.
 
The 2016 U.S. Amateur Championship was conducted by the APA, and is the only tournament produced by the APA open to both members and non-members.  Preliminary qualifying rounds were held throughout the country in mid-September.
 
As Champions, both Parks and Parker will return next year to defend their coveted titles.
 
The U.S. Amateur Championship is a double elimination tournament that offers the nation’s top amateur players the opportunity to showcase their skills through a combination of 8-Ball and 9-Ball matches, in the only APA event that does not use The Equalizer® handicap system.
 
The APA, based in Lake Saint Louis, Mo., sanctions the world’s largest amateur pool league, with leagues throughout the United States, Canada and Japan.  More than 250,000 members compete in weekly 8-Ball and 9-Ball League play.  The APA is generally recognized as the Governing Body of Amateur Pool, having established the official rules, championships, formats and handicap systems for the sport of amateur billiards.
 
The APA produces three major tournaments each year—the APA World Pool Championships, the APA Poolplayer Championships and the U.S. Amateur Championship—that, together, pay out more than $2 Million in cash and prizes annually!
 
The APA and its championships are sponsored by Aramith, Action Cues and Pool Dawg.
 
For complete coverage of the U.S. Amateur Championship visit http://www.poolplayers.com/usam/.

Acerra goes undefeated to win Sport 9 season opener

Amy Acerra

Amy Acerra, whose pool-shooting career includes a victory over Janet Atwell on the Southeast Amateur Ladies Tour, back at the turn of the century, opened the Sport 9 Ladies Tour with an undefeated victory on the weekend of April 2-3. The $500-added event drew a short field of 11 entrants to Meucci Family Billiards in Byhalia, MS.
 
Accera advanced through to a winners' side semifinal versus Tina Frederick, as Patty Dietz squared off against Kim Housman. Accera moved into the hot seat match, following a shutout over Frederick, while Dietz was busy surviving a double hill victory over Housman. Accera claimed the hot seat with a double hill win over Dietz.
 
On the loss side, Frederick picked up Janeen Lee, who'd defeated LeAnn Marshall 7-2 and Sonya Hurst 7-5 to reach her. Housman drew Betty Lea, who'd eliminated Teresa Ballinger 7-5 and Kelly Jones 7-4.
 
Lee and Housman advanced to the quarterfinals. Lee handed Frederick her second straight shutout, as Housman locked up in her second straight double hill match; this time, emerging as the winner. Lee then ended Housman's weekend 7-4, and gave up only a single rack to Dietz in the semifinals. Accera put an end to Lee's loss side winning streak with a 7-4 victory in the finals to claim the event title.

Jia Li wins third straight WPBA Regional Tour Championship

In 2014, in Phoenix, AZ, China's Jia Li defeated Janet Atwell to become the WPBA's Regional Tour Champion for the first time. In 2015, in Herndon, VA, it was Betty Lea who played runner-up to Li's second championship. On the weekend of January 7-10, 2016 at Zingale's in Tallahassee, FL, it was Christy Dickerson, who, though she would defeat Li to claim the hot seat, fell in the finals to hand Li her third straight RTC title.
 
The $11,000 prize fund drew a full field of 64 entrants, drawn from 13 regional tours around the country; roughly, five from each region, with some over-under exceptions.  Eight round robin brackets, yielding four winners per bracket, cut the field in half, into a double elimination bracket of 32.
 
Through 25 winners' side games in the opening three rounds, Jia Li gave up only four racks, and three of those to her opening round opponent, Kim Pierce. Dickerson came to the winners' side semifinals, having carved a somewhat more arduous path – 35 games, with an aggregate score of 21-14. The two faced each other, while teenager Taylor Hansen (31 games, 21-10, including a 7-2 win over Belinda Calhoun) and Gail Eaton (32 games, 21-11) met up in the other winners' side semifinal.
 
Eaton sent the youngster Hansen to the loss side 7-3, as Li and Dickerson, in their first meeting, fought to double hill. Dickerson prevailed, claiming the hot seat as Eaton headed for the semifinals.
 
Over on the loss side, Stephanie Mitchell, who hadn't competed in an RTC since she bought Corner Pockets in Largo, FL in 2010, was working on a modest loss-side streak that began when Dickerson had defeated her 7-3 in a winners' side quarterfinal. Mitchell's opening loss-side victory over Nicole Albergaria was her toughest, coming down to a single game. She then downed Michell Monk 7-1 to pick up Hanson. Jia Li, in the meantime, was hooking up with Jeannie Seaver, who'd eliminated Calhoun 7-5 and given up only a single rack to Roe Guanero.
 
Hansen ended Mitchell's weekend 7-2, as Li was busy with a double hill match that she eventually won over Seaver. Li then downed Hansen 7-3 in the quarterfinals, and spoiled Eaton's chances at a re-match against Dickerson, with a 7-3 victory in the semifinals.
 
Li chalked up her third straight RTC title with a single set 9-3 win in the finals. 

Williams goes undefeated to take second stop on the Sport 9 Tour

Tara Williams worked her way through a very small field of 11 entrants, going undefeated to take the second stop on the Sport 9 Tour. The $500-added event,  held on Saturday, May 23, was hosted  by Lacy's Cue in Chalmette, Louisiana.
 
Williams and tour director Janeen Lee battled twice for the title. Williams sent Kim Housman to the loss side 9-4 in one winners' side semifinal, while Lee was busy shipping Susan Shinn over 9-5 in the other. Williams took the first of two against Lee 9-4 and sat in the hot seat, awaiting her return.
 
Housman and Shinn moved to the loss side and were immediately handed their second loss; Housman going down 7-6 to Jennifer Townsend, who'd gotten a first-round, loss-side bye and then defeated Patty Dietz 7-2, and Shinn falling 7-5 to Betty Lea, who'd defeated Kelly Jones 7-6 and Sonya Chbeeb 7-2.
 
Lea defeated Townsend 7-3 in the subsequent quarterfinals, leading to a Lee/Lea semifinal; the two, having finished 1st and 3rd, respectively, in the 2014 tour rankings. Lee prevailed 7-3, and got her second shot at Williams in the hot seat. Lee managed two more racks than she'd chalked up in the battle for the hot seat, but Williams completed her undefeated run 9-6 to claim the event title.

Dana Aft Wins Augusta Classic

Tiger SMART began its 2015 season at Rack&Grill II in Augusta, GA.  Room owner, Chris Kuneman, was the perfect host extending every courtesy possible to the players.  The staff was friendly, fast, and fun.  The homemade chicken soup , one of the daily specials, was dee-lish.  Tiger SMART is very appreciative of every kindness extended to the tour.
 
The field was loaded with talent and included first time Tiger SMART participants:  Danielle Hill, Michelle Vaughn, Katia Sullivan, Tiffany Finnan, Sonja Hancock, Caitilin Elie, Cindy Doan, and Maryse Gordon. A large contingent from Georgia, including spectators, was present and added to the excitement of the event.  A big thank you to the Georgia gals!
 
Day one saw many close matches including Buffy Jolie over Kathleen Lawless 7-6; Betty Lea over Cindy Doan 7-5; Sonja Hancock over Katia Sullivan 7-5; Buffy Jolie over Tiffany Finnan 7-5; Buffy Jolie over Belinda Calhoun 7-5; Betty Lea over Cheryl Pritchard 7-6; Dana Aft over Betty Lea 7-5; and Marianne Merrill over Buffy Jolie 7-6.
 
Day two, six players returned.  Matches for 5th-6th saw a rematch between Jolie and Finnan. After her first loss to Jolie, Finnan used her experience from having played in other regional tours and posted wins over Carolyn Newsome 7-2; Maryse Gordon 7-6; Cheryl Pritchard 7-6; and Sonja Hancock 7-3 before falling, once again, to Buffy Jolie 7-5.  In the other 5th-6th match, Betty Lea bested Belinda Calhoun 7-6.
 
There were now two players in the one-loss bracket and two undefeated players.  On the one-loss side, was an extremely well played match between Buffy Jolie and Betty Lea resulting in a 7-5 win for Jolie. In the winners bracket match, equally exciting, Dana Aft grabbed the hot seat with a 7-5 win over Marianne Merrill.  The semi-final would see an intensely fought battle between Buffy and Marianne which, of course went hill-hill!  The final game was put away by Marianne earning a trip to her first Tiger SMART final! Congratulations to Buffy Jolie who has returned to her flawless execution on the table.
 
Dana’s trip to the final included wins over Christy Norris 7-3; Sonja Hancock 7-1; Betty Lea 7-5; and Marianne Merrill 7-5. Marianne’s road featured wins over Diana Colgrove 7-0; Michelle Vaughn 7-3; Buffy Jolie 7-6; Dana Aft 5-7; and Buffy Jolie 7-6.   In the final, Aft played with pin point focus, well calculated offense to defense percentage, and super safeties as she sailed to a 9-1 victory. Congratulations to both Dana and Marianne for having an excellent tournament.
 
Tiger SMART would like to thank Tiger Products, title sponsor, and also Aramith, for providing ball sets for the tour, Simonis, Ozone Billiards, and Quick-Clean who are all on board for 2015. Your support is invaluable and greatly appreciated.

Li (JPNEWT) goes undefeated, besting Lea (Sport 9 Tour) on WPBA RTC

Jia Li, who entered the WPBA's Regional Tour Championship on the weekend of January 8-11, having won three stops on the 2014 J. Pechauer Northeast Women's Tour, went undefeated through the event's field of 64 to claim the WPBA's 2015 Regional Tour Championship title. Her opponent in the finals of the RTC, Betty Lea from Atlanta, GA was a single event winner and Leader of the Year from the 2014 Sport 9 Ladies Tour. Together, they had survived two round robin stages of the RTC; Li, going undefeated through 10 matches in two stages, while Lea won seven of her 10 matches. The two advanced into a 16-player single elimination phase, which culminated when they faced each other, early Sunday evening. Li added four victories to her undefeated list to take the final match over Lea. 
 
In all, 64 players, representing 14 regional women's tours gathered at Breakers Sky Bar Lounge in Herndon, VA to compete for the 2015 Regional Tour Champion title. It was the first combined RTC since 2008. Half of the entrants shared over $11,000 in prize money, including Li's first place prize of $2,500 and Lea's $1,400 as runner up. 
 
In Stage One of the event, which divided the 64 entrants into eight groups and began on Thursday, January 8, Jia Li, Bernie Store, and Gail Eaton were the only competitors to emerge from the seven-match phase, undefeated. April Larson, Dawn Fox, Belinda Calhoun, Rebecca Wagner, Linda Shea, Nicole Albergaria, and Natalie Mans had each given up one match in the phase. They, along with 22 others, entered a Stage Two, three-match round robin phase, which featured eight groups of four players. The top two from each of the eight groups in Stage Two advanced to the 16-player, single elimination and final phase of the tournament.
 
Stage Two featured five undefeated performances (Li, Lea, Shea, Wagner and Meredith Lynch), while Samantha Barrett, Belinda Calhoun, Michele West, Suzanne Smith, Gail Eaton, Kawania Watson, Tara Williams, Kim Benson, Nicole Albergaria, and Jennifer Kraber won two out of three of their matches in the phase. Kelly Jones, who won just a single match of her three in the phase was also advanced to the final 16.
 
Emerging from the opening round of the single elimination phase (and combined with their second round opponent) were Watson and Lea, Smith and Albergaria, Benson and Li, and Shea and Williams. Lea advanced to the semifinals with a 7-3 win over Watson. Albergaria downed Smith 7-2. Li was tested, but survived a double hill battle against Benson, while Shea advanced with a 7-5 win over Williams.
 
Lea defeated Albergaria 7-5, as two of the JPNEWT representatives – Li and Shea – squared off in the other semifinal. The two had met three times in the finals on the JPNEWT tour, with Li winning all three. She defeated Shea in this match, as well; 7-4, to advance to the finals against Lea.
 
Li got out in front in the single race-to-9 final and stayed there. She completed her undefeated run with a 9-4 win over Lea and claimed the 2015 Regional Tour Championship title.

Lovely downs Aft twice to win Zingale’s Amateur Ladies Tournament

Dana Aft and Liz Lovely

Back in January, when the Tiger Florida Tour was the Flamingo Tour, Dana Aft, from Atlanta, GA, made a trip south to compete in that tour's debut event. She went undefeated through a field of 39, and later, on her Facebook fan page, made a casual comment about the girls from Florida getting together sometime with the girls from Atlanta.
 
" I was really impressed with the level of play of all the Florida girls!!," is what Aft actually wrote. "I think they should take a road trip and meet the rest of the Atlanta girls sometime."
 
Betty (Sessions) Lea, from Atlanta, a long-time tour director read the comment and got the ball rolling, eventually communicating with Mike Zingale of Zingale's Billiards in Tallahassee to create the Zingale's Amateur Ladies Tournament, held on the weekend of June 21-22. Tom Gedris of Triple Cross Cues contributed a cue to the event, while Mike Zingale added a Predator Cue, and cookies from his mother, Linda. The $1,000-added (plus two cues and cookies) event drew 18 women from a variety of locations to Zingale's and was won by Ohio's Liz Lovely, who got by Atlanta's Dana Aft twice to claim the title. Betty Lea ended up winning the event's $250-added Second Chance Tournament, which drew 9 entrants.
 
In the main event, the two former junior champions, Lovely and Aft, advanced to the hot seat match, once Lovely had downed Autumn Duncan 9-5 and Aft had survived a double hill fight versus Nicole Keeney. Lovely took the first of two against Aft and waited in the hot seat.
 
Keeney and Duncan moved to the loss side, where they were met by Jeannie Seaver (one of the co-tour directors/creators of the event) and Roe Guarnero. Seaver had defeated Cheryl Pritchard 7-1 and Samantha Kikuchi, double hill. Guarnero had eliminated Betty Lea 7-5 and Jeannie Seaver's sister, Vanessa, double hill. Keeney and Duncan got right back to work; Keeney defeating Jeannie Seaver 7-4 and Duncan downing Guarnero 7-5.
 
Keeney took the quarterfinal match versus Duncan 7-2, to earn a re-match versus Aft in the semifinals. Aft, though, earned her second shot against Lovely with a 7-5 win in those semifinals. Lovely earned her $715, first-place prize, and a Predator Cue with a 9-6 win over Aft in the finals. Lea, in the second chance event, took home the $170 first-place prize and the Triple Cross Cue. In addition to $120 for her second-place finish in the Second Chance event, Samantha Kikuchi picked up a $50 gift certificate for Pool Dawg.

Aft comes from the loss side to take 2nd Annual South Carolina Women’s 9-Ball Championship

Dana Aft

In 2013, Dana Aft was defeated by Crystal Lloyd in the battle for the hot seat at the 1st Annual South Carolina Women's 9-Ball Championship, held under the auspices of Belinda Calhoun's Tiger Southern Mid-Atlantic Regional Tour (SMART). Janet Atwell then defeated Aft in the semifinals, and went on to win the tournament. This year, in the 2nd Annual event, Aft, once again, found herself on the loss side; this time, a little earlier. This time, though, she won five on the loss side and successfully challenged Tour Director Belinda Calhoun in the finals to claim the top prize. The $500-added event drew 14 entrants to Grady's Billiards in Lexington, SC.
 
"We started the Tiger SMART Tour last year," said Calhoun, "because there wasn't a ladies tournament in the Carolinas.
 
"We had four stops in 2013," she added of the tour, which takes in both Carolinas, as well as Georgia, "and after this first one, have five more planned for this year."
 
Calhoun worked her way into the hot seat at this event, after defeating Beverly Knight and Betty Lea, both 7-3. Lea, after sending Aft to the losers' bracket 7-2, survived a double hill battle against Wendy Kinzer, before falling to Calhoun in the battle for the hot seat.
 
Aft opened up her loss-side campaign with back-to-back, 7-3 wins over Lisa Cossette and Marianne Merrill, which set her up to face Knight. Kinzer, in the meantime, drew Crystal Lloyd, who'd gotten by Melody Duvall, double hill, and Cheryl Pritchard 7-4. 
 
A replay of last year's hot seat match (Aft vs. Lloyd) was set up when Aft downed Knight 7-2 and Lloyd eliminated Kinzer 7-5. Aft feasted on her cold dish of revenge in the quarterfinals, ending Lloyd's day 7-3 and then feasted on a somewhat warmer dish by downing Lea in a double hill semifinal.
 
"That match could have gone either way," said Aft of the semifinals. "She (Lea) over-ran her shape on the 9-ball in that last game."
 
 Aft brought some momentum into the finals; a single, race-to-9. She defeated Calhoun 9-3 to claim the 2nd Annual South Carolina Women's Championship.
 
"It was a good field," said Aft of the general competition. "It was a small field, but very, very tough; a lot of quality players."