Melissa Little went undefeated to win the Ladies portion of the 2nd Annual Summer Heat 9-Ball Classic, held under the auspices of the Midwest 9-Ball Tour and hosted by Jamaica Joe's in Midwest City, OK. Sean King gave up the first set of the double elimination finals, but came back to win the second and claim the Open title. The $2,000-added Open event drew 45 entrants, while the $500-added Ladies event drew 12.
King faced Chip Compton three times; the first, in a winners' side semifinal, as Mark Haddad and Richard Pierce squared off in the other. King sent Compton west in the first of their three 9-7, and in the hot seat match, met Pierce, who'd sent Haddad over by the same score. King and Pierce fought to double hill before King prevailed.
Compton moved over and picked up John Gabriel, who'd defeated James Walden 9-7 and survived a double hill battle against Ken Jennings to reach him. Haddad drew Shane McMinn, who'd gotten by Greg Hogue 9-7, and J.C Riley 9-3. Compton and Haddad advanced to the quarterfinals; Compton with a 9-6 win over Gabriel and Haddad 9-7 over McMinn.
Compton advanced to the semifinals with a 9-6 victory over Haddad, and then, denied Pierce a re-match against King with a 9-5 win. With momentum on his side, Compton took the opening set of the finals 9-1. King, though, came back in the second set to win it 9-5 and claim the event title.
In the Ladies' event, Melissa Little's undefeated run ended with two wins over Rhonda Pierce. They met first in the hot seat match, when Little sent Pierce to the semifinals 7-4. On the loss side, Debi Aldridge won the quarterfinal match over Michelle Davis 7-3, but was stopped by Pierce in a double hill, semifinal match. Little and Pierce fought to double hill in the finals, but Little survived to claim the Ladies' title.
