Boynton Beach, Fla. (July 16, 2011) – The day paid off for some players who came out to the first men and women's $500-added Open 9-Ball event hosted by the Flamingo Billiards Tour on Saturday at Slate Billiards in Boynton Beach, FL. Anthony Meglino of Tamarac, Florida, took the honors and $750 at the July Jam event which drew a variety of players from all around South Florida. Included in the special guest list was Mike Dechaine, in town to support friend and room owner Mike Bradford.
Meglino's day was a breeze until he met up with veteran player John Foster, who quickly sent Meglino west 7-1. Not to be deterred, Meglino made it back to the semi-finals stopping FBT member Sue Roberts, 5-0, with a record four 9-ball combos. Meglino followed up by knocking out room owner Mike Bradford, 5-0, and Stan Ketchum, 5-1, to get to the semi-final match.
On the winner's side of the bracket, Curtis Kelley made it to the hot seat ending John Foster's winning day in a tight match that went to the hill. Foster, who earlier sent Meglino west, came back to the semi-final through the one-loss side only to have the favor returned by Meglino. Meglino also stopped David Broxson, 5-1, who earlier ended Mike Dechaine's guest appearance at the event. Jerry Calderon was out early as well.
In the final race to 11, it just wasn't the day for Kelley, who's back in tournament mode after being on paternity leave for nine months. Meglino quickly took the lead, 8-3. Just as it looked like Kelley was going to make a come-back wining the next two matches to make it 8-5, Meglino took over and won the next three games and the event.
Some of the event's matches can be viewed at http://www.ustream.tv/channel/billiardcommunity-com.
The FBT, a WPBA-Recognized Regional Tour, is the stepping stone to the WPBA for women in Florida who want to qualify for Women's Professional BilliardAssociation events. This is the first FBT-non-points 9-Ball event open to both women and men.
Many thanks again to room owners Mike Bradford and Joe Sistarelli, (www.billiardcommunity.com), for being great hosts and to Boynton Billiards (www.boyntonbilliards.com) for their support of the Flamingo Billiards Tour.
