Tournament Director Bill Focaccia handed the winner's check this
week at the Tri-State Tour stop at Comet Billiards to Ben Sadowski
after Sadowski blasted his way home through the one-loss brackets.
Sadowski wasn't even on the radar screens when the final rounds began.
Pete Brennan had sent him over to the one-loss side where the odds are
long and everyone's eyes were on the right side of the board where Mike
Polizzi, Pete Brennan, Ryan McCarthy and George Osipovitch were all in
gear and primed for a win.
But Sadowski took his early loss and got stronger
from that medicine. He began to surge during the one-loss round of
eight. He dominated Dave Fitzpatrick 6-2 and then took the hammer to
Duane Toney (6-1) in the next round. As Toney was trying to get the
license number of that truck, the winners side final four was setting
up the ending brackets with Mike Polizzi edging Ryan McCarthy (6-5) and
Pete Brennan opening the left-bracket door for George Osipovitch (6-2).
Sadowski was brutal in the next two matches as he
ended the run for both Ryan McCarthy (6-2) and George Osipovitch (6-3).
When Mike Polizzi sent the last man left by beating Pete Brennan (6-2)
in the hot seat match Sadowski was ready. It was Brennan who had beaten
him earlier. Revenge is a dish best served cold and Brennan could only
warm the chair as Sadowski barbecued him 6-1 to charge into the final
round against Polizzi.
Mike Polizzi had every right to own confidence. He
had not lost to anyone, had not a single scar to show for his work. But
Sadowski gave him no quarter. Polizzi took the early lead at 3-1 and
that only put another charge in the Sadowski force field. From that
score on it was all Sadowski as he never allowed the score to improve
for Polizzi and he took the win home 8-3.
