118 players left a wind-chilly day outside to heat up play in the annual Partners tournament at Doolys Burnside. 1-pointers and 2-pointers were drawn at random to make up the 59 teams vying for the title. The A-side final four saw 2011 champ Joey Bernier and partner Lawrence Borden facing off against Randy Bourque and his partner, 2019 League MVP Kyle Richard. Bourque/Richard got the better of that match and took the hot seat undefeated. Meanwhile, defending champ Craig Teal and partner Steve Hipson came back from losing an A-side semi-final to face Bernier/Borden in the semi-final matchup. Not to be denied a chance at repeating as champion, Teal and Hipson posted a win to get into the final, where they would have to win twice to claim victory. The first two games of the first set went to Hipson/Teal before their opponents won a game, but they managed to close out a 3-1 win in the first set to force one final best-of-five for the trophy. Bourque/Richard won the first game and looked poised to go up 2-0 but missed the last ball to let their opponents back in to try to tie the match. With Richard's last ball near a corner pocket and no easy ball to get started, Teal opted for safety and locked the cue ball up behind his own ball. Richard immediately looked at a three rail hit and judged it to perfection as he not only got the hit but made the ball, leaving an easy 8-ball for Bourque to go up 2-0. After closing out the next game as well, Bourque/Richard were the last team standing and lifted the trophy after a well deserved win. Thanks to our sponsor the Billiard Shop for providing prizes for the players and to host Doolys Burnside (Jen Reid and Tracey Goodyear, you rock!) for having us once again. Thanks also to Glenn Nickerson and Keith Tyler who helped out with the draw and ran a smooth ship all day. A special shout out to Craig Teal who not only had a great day on the tables, but helped with the draw, looked after the day's finances and also archived the draw. That's a busy day for any TWO guys! Much appreciated!!
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