Jenna Bishoff, Ming Ng and Autumn Duncan (Shayla Neris)
In what was only their second ‘big’ event at Skinny Bob’s Billiards in Round Rock, TX, which they purchased last May, the Sanders (Kim and Tracey) held one of the missing events from the 47th Annual Texas Open that had acted as something of a ‘soft opening’ to the renovated facility a few weeks ago. On the weekend of November 21-22, they held the (missing) $5,000-added, 47th Annual Texas Ladies Open, which drew 46 entrants to their location.
Ming Ng went undefeated through that field to defend the title she’d won last year, facing separate opponents in the hot seat and finals. Autumn Duncan navigated through the winners’ side to face Ng in the hot seat match, while Jenna Bishoff, sent to the loss side by Duncan, won six on the loss side to face her in the finals.
While the Sanders concur with the general idea that there’s something to be said for the calmer atmosphere inherent with reduced numbers and (arguably) an all-female crowd, Kim Sanders, for one, prefers the way it was before. She’s hoping that it will be that way again.
“Most of the women are like me,” she said. “They prefer to have it along with the rest of the tournaments. Before, when you had the Ladies event with the Open, the men and women came together and played pool together.”
“The combination makes them feel like they’re part of something bigger,” she added. “It’s just a different atmosphere.”
As pleased with the outcome of the Ladies event as they were with the earlier, larger pair of events, they continue to look forward to a planned week-long 48th Annual Texas Open in 2021.
“It went really well,” said Kim of the Ladies event. “We had a hiccup the first day when one of the matches went a little long, but after that, everything went smoothly.”
Ming Ng’s path to the winners’ circle, after an opening round bye, went through Gigi Callejas 7-1, Jennifer Kraber 7-3 and Kim Pierce, also 7-3, before arriving at a winners’ side semifinal match versus Bernie Store. Autumn Duncan, in the meantime, was also awarded an opening round bye and then downed Cari Balusek 7-2. She sent Bishoff to the loss side and defeated Jackie Karol, both 7-5, before squaring off against Ellen Couvillion in the other winners’ side semifinal.
Ng downed Store 7-2 and hooked up with Duncan, who’d survived a double hill battle versus Couvillion. Ng claimed the hot seat 7-5 over Duncan and waited for Bishoff to complete her loss-side run.
It was Couvillion who ran into Bishoff on the loss side, four matches into her winning streak that had most recently included wins over Michelle Yim 7-1 and Courtney Peters 7-3. Store drew Jennifer Kraber, who, after her defeat at the hands of Ng, went on a four-match winning streak that was about to end and had recently resulted in a shutout over Ricki Casper and a double hill win over Jackie Karol.
Store ended Kraber’s streak 7-2, as Bishoff downed Couvillion 7-4. Bishoff ended Store’s brief time on the loss side 7-1 in the quarterfinals, and then, downed Duncan in the semifinals 7-5.
Ng closed out her undefeated run with a 7-3 victory over Bishoff in the finals.
The Sanders thanked their staff for their hard work as well as sponsors Sanders Roofing & Exterminating, LLC, MinTS Amusements, Hanshew Custom Cues, ABC Supply Co. and GAF.
