In the absence of the Sunshine State Pro Am Tour's winner from its third stop on the tour last month (Donny Mills), and the somewhat quick exit of that stop's runner-up (Steve Richmond), Anthony Meglino and Mike Delawder, who finished third and fourth on that stop, stepped into the void and battled in the finals of Stop #4; a $750-added event held on the weekend of July 15-16 that drew 57 entrants to Uncle Waldo's Billiards in Daytona Beach, FL. Delawder had to win nine on the loss side to get into the finals, but it was Meglino who hung on to go undefeated.
Meglino opened his winners' side campaign against Richmond, whom he'd missed in the latter stages of Stop #3 (Richmond was in the hot seat for that one, and Mills downed Meglino in the semifinals). Meglino defeated Richmond and then went on to victories over Dreama McMahon, co-tour director Bobby Garza, and Bill Mallen, to draw a winners' side semifinal match against Jesus Borjas. In the other winners' side semifinal, Kenny Willis (aka Jimmy Neutron) faced Brian McBride, who'd won three straight double hill matches to get there.
Both of the battles to get into the hot seat match went double hill. For the first time, McBride ended up on the wrong side of a double hill fight, sending Willis to the hot seat match. Meglino, in the meantime, downed Borjas double hill to join him. Meglino claimed the hot seat over Willis 7-3 and waited for Delawder to finish his loss-side run.
Sent to the loss side by Jeannie Seaver in the second round, Delawder moved west and went to work. He got by Jay Stock, Mark Swisher, Smokey Jacobs, and Chris Gentile, before eliminating the top female finisher, Michell Monk 6-2 and shutting out Bill Mallen, to draw McBride (six down, three to go). Borjas picked up Garza, who'd recently eliminated Jason Lancaster 5-1 and Sam Kantar 5-3.
Delawder chalked up win #7, 6-3 over McBride (McBride's first, non-double hill match all weekend), as Borjas eliminated Garza, double hill. Delawder then defeated Borjas 6-4 in the quarterfinals, and Willis 6-3 in the semifinals.
Meglino and Delawder came within a game of forcing a single deciding game in their final matchup. Meglino pulled ahead to win it by two at 11-9 and claim the event title.
Tour directors Janene Phillips and Bobby Garza thanked the ownership (AJ and Tony Condercuri) and staff at Uncle Waldo's Billiards, as well as sponsors AZBilliards, Billiardbuzz, JQ Image Cues, Jacksonville Roofing, Bill Katchusky (photography) and McDermott Cues.
