Shannon Daulton, Kenny Wilson, Clint Nichols and Michael Zingale
Mike Zingale of Zingale's Billiards in Tallahassee , FL made a phone call, and invited Shannon Daulton and his Great Southern Billiard Tour down for a visit. They went, on the weekend of December 5-6, and ran a $1,200-added tournament that drew 32 entrants and saw Kenny Wilson come back from a loss in the hot seat match and double dip Clint Nichols in the finals to claim the event title.
Their first clash followed a 7-4 victory by Wilson over Denny Singletary, and a 6-5 win by Nichols, over Nick Applebee in the winners' side semifinals. Nichols then took the first of three over Wilson, decisively, 6-1, and sat in the hot seat, waiting for the next two.
Singletary and Applebee moved over to the loss side and were immediately defeated a second time. Applebee fell, 7-2, to Chris Gentile, who'd recently defeated Jason Wells 7-2 and Jesse Middlebrooks 7-6 (Middlebrooks racing to 8). Singletary ran into Randy Jordan, who'd been defeated by Wilson in the second round, and was in the midst of a six-match, loss-side winning streak that would take him as far as the semifinals. Jordan chalked up loss-side wins #3 and #4 against Lee Sanders 9-4 and Derek Fowler 9-5.
Gentile downed Applebee 7-2, as Jordan was eliminating Singletary 9-5. Jordan took the quarterfinal match that followed 9-6, to earn a second shot against Wilson. Wilson ended Jordan's loss-side streak, defeating him a second time, 7-7 (same as the first time, Jordan racing to 9), and earning his own second (and third) shot against Nichols in the hot seat.
Five years ago, Wilson had chalked up his first win on the GSBT, by advancing to the hot seat, and holding off a loss-side challenge by Brian White, who entered the finals on the heels of a nine-match, loss-side winning streak. On this most recent weekend, Wilson chalked up his second tour victory with a 7-4 win in the opening set of the true double elimination final and a double hill win in the second set.
Tour director Shannon Daulton was quite pleased with his tour's first visit to Zingale's, which also hosts Tommy Kennedy's Southeast Open 9-Ball Tour, and Tony Crosby's Florida Pool Tour.
"It was a real pleasure to work with Mike (Zingale)," said Daulton. "It's such a player-friendly room (with) an elevated bar for viewing and separate areas for league and tournament play; just a hell of a layout.
"The entire staff at Zingale's was on-point the whole weekend," he added, "and I'll bet Mike served as many drinks as his staff did."
The GSBT will return to Shore Thing Billiards in Myrtle Beach, SC, this coming weekend (December 12-13) and will conclude its 2015 season with a Christmas tournament, scheduled for December 19-20, at Legends Billiards, in Inman, SC.
Shannon Daulton, Jeff Jordan, James Miracle and manager Sandi Teet
Brothers Randy (older) and Jeff Jordan came within a match of facing each other during the June 6-7 stop on the Great Southern Billiard Tour. Jeff went on to win the $1,000-added event that drew 48 entrants to The Rail in Athens, GA, coming from the loss side to down James Miracle in the finals.
The Jordan brothers were two of the four opponents in the two winners' side semifinals, but did not play against each other. Randy faced Miracle, while Jeff squared off against Chris Cox. Jeff went on to defeat Cox 8-5, and met up with Miracle, who'd sent Jeff's brother to the loss side 5-6 (Randy racing to 9). Miracle captured the hot seat 5-3 over Jeff.
Randy moved west and ran into Steve Cox (no relation to Chris), who'd defeated Matt Bulfin 6-1 and Angelo Rodriguez 6-5. The other Cox (Chris) picked up Jesse Middlebrooks, who'd gotten by Chris DeLee 8-5 and Shane Looney 8-4. A Cox versus Cox quarterfinal was avoided when Middlebrooks downed Chris 8-3. Steve advanced to meet Middlebrooks with a 6-7 victory over Jordan (racing to 9).
With Middlebrooks racing to 8, Steve Cox took the quarterfinal match 6-6, only to be eliminated by Jeff Jordan 8-4 in the semifinals. Jordan took a commanding lead in the first set of the true double elimination final against Miracle, and gave up only a single rack to force a second set. Jordan took that second set 8-4 to claim the event title.
Tour director Shannon Daulton thanked Joe Kirkland and his staff at The Rail for their hospitality, as well as sponsors Nick Varner Cues and Cases, Andy Gilbert Custom Cues, Lomax Custom Cues, Tiger Products, Ozone Billiards, Delta-13 and AZBilliards. The next stop on the GSBT, scheduled for June 12-13, will be hosted by Shore Thing Billiards, in Myrtle Beach, SC.
It was technically stops # 7 and #8 on the Shark Billiard Tour, or as tour representative Kristen Bennington put it, "or 7 and 7A." Whichever. It was a double stop on Memorial Day weekend at Zingale's in Tallahassee, FL; a $1,000-added event that drew 48 on Saturday, May 23, and a $500-added event that drew 38. Jeff Jordan took the Saturday event. Jesse Middlebrooks was the runner-up and then went on to win the Sunday tournament, with Josh Lewis playing the runner-up role.
Five of the players among the final 12 on each day competed in both tournaments, all improving from Saturday to Sunday, except for Jeff Abernathy, who finished 4th on Saturday, and in the tie for 9/12 on Sunday. Josh Lewis went from 9/12 on Saturday to runner-up on Sunday. Chris Gentile improved from a 7/8 on Saturday to 4th on Sunday, and Benji Buckley advanced two slots from 9/12 to 5/6. And of course, Middlebrooks, who took second on Saturday and won Sunday.
With Middlebrooks already at work on the loss side, Saturday's event saw Jeff Jordan advance to the hot seat. He'd sent Doug Johnson to the loss side 8-4 in one winners' side semifinal, while Tour Director Nick Applebee sent Howie Gordon loss-side packing 8-5 in the other. Jordan gave up only one rack to Applebee and claimed the hot seat.
Middlebrooks, in the meantime, got by Jamie Chapman and Detroit Griffin 6-2, to draw Gordon. Johnson picked up Jeff Abernathy, on his way to a fourth place finish and fresh off victories over Josh Lewis 6-4 and Chris Gentile 6-3. Gordon and Johnson picked up their second straight losses; Gordon 6-2 to Middlebrooks and Johnson 6-3 to Abernathy. Middlebrooks took the quarterfinal match over Abernathy 6-4 and then battled to double hill against Applebee in the semifinals. Middlebrooks prevailed and then, in the finals, was defeated by Jeff Jordan 11-7.
Having spent time there on Saturday, Middlebrooks wanted no part of the loss side on Sunday. He advanced to a winners' side semifinal against Josh Lewis while Denny Singletary and Derek Fowler met in the other. It was Singletary 8-6 over Fowler and Middlebrooks 8-5 over Lewis. Middlebrooks claimed the hot seat 8-5 over Singletary, guaranteeing himself at least as high a finish as he'd chalked up on Saturday.
On the loss side, Benji Buckley advanced past Arthur Win 6-2 and survived a double hill battle against Randy Jordan, to draw Lewis. Fowler picked up Chris Gentile, recent double hill winner over Jeff Abernathy and 6-4 winner over Raymond Linares. Lewis eliminated Buckley 6-2 and in the quarterfinals faced Gentile, who'd defeated Fowler 6-4. Lewis took the quarterfinal match against Gentile 6-4 and got a second shot at Middlebrooks with a commanding 6-1 victory over Singletary in the semifinals.
Lewis carried that momentum into the finals, opening up a three-point lead (4-1) early. He would chalk up only two more racks in the next dozen games, as Middlebrook battled back to claim the event title 11-6.
Tour director Nick Applebee made note of $100 prize to the top junior player in Sunday's event, Bobby Bruce, Jr. He thanked Applebee thanked Mike Zingale and his staff for their hospitality, as well as Kristen Bennington and all the players who came out to support the tour. Stop # 8 on the Shark Billiard Tour, scheduled for Saturday, June 6, will be hosted by Anastasia Billiards in St. Augustine, FL.
The purse was $1,500 added, $50 entry, 100% payout, no hidden fees, with $2,000 reserved for the king of the hill. Starcade Billiards does it right every single time. Robert Harris, Harris Cues, co-sponsored the event and raffled off a beautiful $1,500 cue and awarded another cue to the Champion, as well.
This event proved to be a tough one, as some top players were upset with an early exit on the first day. Cliff Joyner and Scotty Townsend didn’t make it to the money. Winner’s brackets were races to nine and loser’s bracket matches were races to seven on both days.
Mike Davis was sent to the one-loss side by Jeff Abernathy. However, Mike worked the left side like a pro and avenged his early loss to Jeff by handing him a 4th place envelope.
Meanwhile, Jamie Baraks was in dead stroke and made it to the hot seat by defeating Nick Applebee. Mike was waiting for Nick and had momentum, setting up a final match with Jamie. The final match was a single race to 12. Mike took the crown by pocketing the last nine ball.
Tommy Kennedy was ahead 2-1 in a game against Stoney Stone, during the March 1-2 stop on the Tiger Southeast Open 9-Ball Tour, when things went a little south, as they say. Stone made a difficult jump shot and cleared the table to tie things at 2-2. Kennedy never got back to the table, as Stone went on a five-game run to win the match. Stone would advance to the hot seat, but Kennedy would come back, winning seven in a row on the loss side, to meet and defeat Stone in the finals. The $1,000-added event drew 37 entrants to Pockets, in Dothan, AL.
As Kennedy was at work on the loss side, Stone advanced to a winners' side semifinal against Jared Stevens. Denny Singletary and Rick Howard met up in the other one. Stone got by Stevens 9-5 and in the winners' side final, met Singletary, who'd defeated Howard 9-6. Stone got into the hot seat 9-7 over Singletary and waited on TK.
It was Stevens who ran into Kennedy on the loss side. Kennedy had opened his seven-match, loss-side journey with victories over Scotty Townsend, Rob McGlothine, Jesse Middlebrooks and Jim Majors (forfeit), before drawing Stevens. Howard drew Matt Bulfin, who'd defeated Carl Salaski 7-3 and Mike Townsend (son to Scotty) 9-6 to reach him.
Kennedy advanced to the quarterfinals 9-3 over Stevens, where he was met by Bulfin, who'd eliminated Howard 9-6. Kennedy chalked up loss-side wins # 6 and # 7 by defeating Bulfin in the quarterfinals 9-7 and Singletary in the semifinals 9-5.
In his re-match against Stone in the finals, Kennedy reversed his fortunes by keeping Stone seated most of the time. He got out to an early lead, chalked up several break and run racks, held his own in safety play and ended up shutting out Stone out 11-0 to claim the event title.
Hayley Clucks took home $50 as the event's top female finisher. Joe Davis took home the same amount as the top senior finisher, and 14-year-old Trey Austin pocketed $25 as the top junior in the competition.
In his role as tour director, Kennedy thanked his assistants Bo Nelson and Joe Davis, along with Ronald Ready and his Pockets' staff. He also thanked signature sponsor Tiger Products, along with J. Pechauer Custom Cues, Simonis Cloth, Mueller Recreational Products and Andy Gilbert Cues. He also made special mention of sponsor Chris Nitti Custom Cues, noting that his victory in this event was his third straight playing with a Chris Nitti Cue.
Stevie Moore successfully worked his way through a field of 27, on-hand for the Saturday, December 7 stop on the Tiger Southeast Open 9-Ball Tour, but not before being challenged by Scotty Townsend, who came from deep on the loss-side to meet him in the finals. The $1,000-added event was hosted by Game Land Billiards in Albany, GA, which added $235 to bring the top prize to $1,000.
Moore was among the final four winners, and faced Denny Singletary in one of the winners' side semifinals. Don Cossart met up with Stoney Stone in the other. Moore got into the hot seat match with a 9-5 victory over Singletary, as Cossart sent Stone over 9-7. Moore downed Cossart 9-5, claiming the hot seat.
On the loss side, Townsend was working his way back, defeating James Parr and tour director Tommy Kennedy to draw Singletary.
"Scotty was really playing well," said Kennedy. "The best I've seen him play in two years."
Stone, in the meantime, drew Jesse Middlebrooks, who'd gotten by Randy Jordan and Adam Towery. By identical 7-4 scores, Townsend and Stone eliminated Singletary and Middlebrooks, and squared off in the quarterfinals. Townsend then dropped Stone into fourth place 7-5, and completed his loss-side run with a 7-3 victory over Cossart in the semifinals.
It was, by this time, getting late. By mutual agreement, Townsend and Moore opted out of playing a final match, choosing to split the top two prizes, leaving Moore as the undefeated title winner.
Tour director Kennedy thanked Bo Nelson and the staff at Game Land Billiards for their hospitality and the added money. He also thanked sponsors Tiger Products, J. Pechauer Custom Cues, Mueller Recreational Products, Chris Nitti Custom Cues, Chris Hightower of Cue Man Billiards, David Adams of Byron, GA and Simonis Cloth.
Shannon Daulton, Bucky Souvanthong, & David Styers
Bucky Souvanthong, who spent much of his pool career in the Northeast, continues to make noise in the South; most recently with a win on the Great Southern Billiard Tour, on its October 26-27 stop in Georgia. Souvanthong was challenged in the finals by David Styers, who took the opening set of a true double elimination final, before Souvanthong took command in the second set to win it. The $1,000-added event drew 38 entrants to Chalk It Up Billiards in LaGrange, GA.
Souvanthong and Styers played a total of three matches, the first of which was for control of the hot seat. Souvanthong had sent Billy Tyler west 11-6, as Styers was defeating Jimmy Gibson 7-2. Souvanthong dominated the hot seat match 11-2, and waited on Styers' return.
On the loss side, Jesse Middlebrooks was making some noise that would carry him all the way to the semifinals. Having been defeated by Souvanthong among the winners' side final eight (11-7), Middlebrooks downed Daryl Gables and Matt Bulfin, both 10-4, to draw Gibson. Tyler drew Shane Masters, who'd won two straight double hill matches against Eric Duncan and Tim Orange, to reach him.
Middlebrooks advanced to the quarterfinals with a 10-4 win over Gibson. He was met by Tyler, who'd ended Masters' weekend 7-3. Middlebrooks eliminated Tyler in a double hill match, and then had his loss-side streak snapped, double hill, by Styers in the semifinals.
Styers, racing to 7, defeated Souvanthong, racing to 11, 7-8 in the opening set of the true double elimination final. Souvanthong came back strongly in the second set, allowing Styers only three racks in claiming the event title.
Shannon and Marge Daulton thanked the ownership and staff at Chalk It Up Billiards, as well as sponsors Nick Varner Cues and Cases, Delta 13 Racks, Andy Gilbert Custom Cues, Tiger Products, Ozone Billiards and Lomax Custom Cues. The next stop on the GSBT is scheduled for November 2-3 at the Marietta Billiard Club in Marietta, GA.
