By the time it was over, dawn was well-established on the eastern seaboard. At 7 a.m. on Monday morning, June 4, Bobby Chamberlain completed both sets of a true double elimination final versus Sean Sporleder to win the Great Southern Billiard Tour's amateur stop on the weekend of June 2-3. The $1,500-added event had drawn 53 entrants to Diamond Billiards in Midlothian, VA.
In what would prove to be his only defeat of the weekend, Chamberlain was sent to the semifinals when Sporleder survived a second straight hill-hill battle that left him in the hot seat. Chamberlain had defeated Chris Bruner 9-4 to get into the hot seat match, as Sporleder was busy sending Chris Adams over.
Laying in wait for Adams on the left side was Sidney Champion, who would eventually work his way back to the semifinals against Chamberlain. He'd moved past Alan Duty 9-5 and Sam Monday 9-10 (with the higher handicap, Monday had to reach 11) before dropping Adams into the tie for fifth 9-5. Cary Dunn, in the meantime, was embarked on a string of 11-7 victories against Curtis Coleman, Chris Futrell and Bruner, that put him into the quarterfinals versus Champion. Champion's handicap helped him a second time in the quarterfinal match against Dunn, where a tie score (9-9) put Champion into the semifinals.
A determined Chamberlain finished Champion's bid for the event victory and with a 9-6 win, he moved back for a second chance at Sporleder. With dawn not too far off, there were some unspoken hopes for a quick finish, but Chamberlain disappointed them with an opening set 9-4 win that forced a second match. He followed that up with a 9-4 win that finished it in time for breakfast.
