Easy Billiard Tour Win for Webb
Ladies Spirit Tour / Spring Hill, FL
by Rick Davis
The Ladies Spirit Tour got back in action over the September 8-9 weekend where a 34-player field fought it out at Capone’s Billiards in Spring Hill, FL. The double-elimination action brought in a tough crowd of locals, amateurs, and WPBA pros; however, they were all shut down by Monica Webb, who soared through the event to win undefeated.
Currently ranked fifth on the WPBA, Webb started in one of only two winners’-side matches not to get a first-round bye, and from there she owned the bottom half of the bracket. Four wins followed by a fifth against Helena Thornfeldt, where Webb dominated 7-3 to put her comfortably in the hot seat match. On the upper half of the chart Ellen Van Buren enjoyed a nice ride as she drilled Malea Swanson 7-0, Freida Walker 7-1, Tracie Hines 7-0, and finally Leslee Davis-Blaikie 7-5 to meet Webb in the hot seat match. The very top of the chart seemed to totally stacked, as former tour stop winners Debbie Schjodt and Jeannie Seaver, along with other top players from regional tours, all whittled each other away as Van Buren slipped past. Capping off the winners’ side Webb took little time with Van Buren before chalking up a quick 7-2 match to whisk her into the finals.
On the one-loss side the stacked grouping produced its favorite, while the others scrambled to overcome a comeback. After falling short on her first match Tamara Redemakers blew through five matches to reach the quarterfinals, eliminating more than her share of the field. Not far behind, Seaver took seven matches to catch up with Redemakers in the quarterfinals by eliminating Schjodt 7-3 and Thornfeldt 7-6 among others.
Redemakers was in great shape as she slipped past Seaver double-hill in the quarterfinals, although Van Buren was eager for a rematch and slapped Redemakers away 7-4 to face Webb once again in the finals. The well-rested Webb once again tore through Van Buren, as her superior skills could not be stopped. In the end Webb took the match 7-1 to end the event and claim another victory for herself.
Open Results:
1st
Monica Webb
2nd
Ellen Van Buren
3rd
Tamara Redemakers
4th
Jeannie Seaver
5-6th
Leslee Davis-Blaikie
Helena Thornfeldt
7-8th
Debbie Schjodt