Holland, MI and the beautiful Guppies Casual Dining & Billiards saw the return of The Jacoby Cues Great Lakes Tour on October 22nd & 23rd. Guppies, which is listed as one of the top 10 new rooms in the country in the November Billiard Digest, is owned and operated by Jerry & Candy Thomas. Along with their great staff, Jerry and Candy provided an excellent venue for the two-day tournament.
The playoff began with 18 players from Michigan, Illinois, Ohio, & Indiana all out to capture the 2006 WPBA Qualifier. With all but 4 players getting a first-round bye, the second-round match between 04-05 tour points winner Julie Melman and Ohio's perennial contender Dawn Fox intensified. Fox came out on top (7-5), giving her the momentum to emerge victorious on the winners' side.
Meanwhile, Lansing, Michigan's Tara Davis lost her third-round match to Adrian, Michigan native Lonnie Fox (7-3). Davis then began making her way through the one-loss side with wins over Holly Walters (7-1), Tina Carpenter (7-4), Lisa Blaylock (7-3), setting up a Sunday rematch with Lonnie Fox. Ultimately, Davis would eke out a 7-5 win and head to the semifinal match against Indiana's Lisa Cain. That match brought a 7-5 victory for Davis and a place in the finals against Dawn Fox.
In the finals, Fox would fall behind early, rally late, and fall short in the end, losing 9-6. Davis took 1st place and the qualifier spot.
The tour staff would like to thank Candy & Jerry and the entire staff of Guppies as well as all their sponsors:
Jacoby Custom Cues, Midwest Amusements, Labarons Billiards, Championship cloth, Nick Varner Cues & Cases, BeBob Publishing
Media sponsors include Inside English Magazine, AZBilliards.com, Billiards Digest, National Billiard News, Professor Q Ball, Inside Pool, Pool and Billiard Magazine.
The next Great Lakes Tour stop will be the first of three events to be held on Diamond 7' tables. The event will take place at The Billiards Club Of Louisville in Louisville, KY on November 5th & 6th.
Complete Results:
1st Tara Davis 400.00 + Qualifier
2nd Dawn Fox 270.00
3rd Lisa Cain 190.00
4th Lonnie Fox 120.00
5th Lisa Blaylock 75.00
5th Julie Melman 75.00