Kelly Brimicombe Is Studley Showdown Champ; Jody Swim Earns Stud Showdown Title
- Cue Sports Nova Scotia
- Oct 5
- 3 min read
By Craig Teal.
October 5, 2025
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There are mixed emotions that come with memorial tournaments, especially an event in its infancy where memories are fresh in the minds of those gathered to celebrate cherished past times spent at the pool hall. Such was the case for the 2nd annual Serena Studley Showdown women’s 8-Ball event held Saturday October 4th at Dooly’s Portland. Thoughts of Serena weighed heavily, but the day also represented a chance to play some pool, socialize with friends, and raise some money for charity!
Last year 52 women competed in the first annual Studley Memorial, won by Julie Gibson. This year saw 32 women in field, but there was a bonus addition of the first annual Stud Showdown men’s event that had 42 participants. Both events were round robin format, where players were randomly drawn into one of four group. In stage 1, each player would play 1 game against every player in their group. At the conclusion of the round robin phase, the top players in each group would advance to a single knockout stage to determine the ultimate winner. Matches in the single knockout phase would be best 3 of 5 games.
In the Studley Showdown, there were 4 groups of 8 ladies each. 3 from each group would advance to stage 2. Tracey Goodyear, Connie Reid, Gillian Letzer, and Paris Shahsavar each were the top player in their group. Of those group winners, only Connie Reid was able to navigate her way to the semi-final matches of single knockout. It was there that Connie’s day came to end at the hands of Kelly Brimicombe 3-0, securing Kelly’s place in the final, and placing Connie in a respectable 3rd. In the other semi-final, Monette McCue battled Audrey Ozon, with Audrey moving on to the final 3-0, and Monette sharing 3rd place with Connie. Audrey, having had a lot of tournament success this year, was squarely the favorite in the final, but a determined Kelly would impose her drive to win, capturing the 2nd Annual 2025 Studley Showdown Memorial title with a 3-1 win.
The Stud Showdown had two groups of 11 players and two groups of 10. 4 players from each bracket would get to move on. Brian McNamara, Jody Swim, Dale Brimicombe, and Chris Penney held the best records in each of their respective groups. All but McNamara were able to carry that momentum into semi-final showings. Semi-final number one saw Jody Swim defeat Les Dupuis 3-1. The second semi final had Chris Peney taking the nod 3-1 over Dale Brimicombe. Jody and Chris, Faithful members of the frequent foes club, were set for yet another final showdown, a testament to their dedication and skill. On this day, it was Jody seizing the opportunity with a 3-0 win. Contracts on being the inaugural Stud Showdown winner!
Although there are still improvements that can be made to make the tournament run better, things were relatively smooth. There was lots of preparation efforts put in by the tournament organizing committee, and by Jen Reid and the staff of Doolys Portland. 1-game round robins can be chaotic, to say the least, but pace of play exceeded expectations due in largest part to the attentiveness of all the players being ready to roll when their games were called. Janet Ritcey tirelessly wrote out match cards, which was instrumental in continuously keeping the flow going. Thanks to Dale Brimicombe for helping to support getting results inputted. Thank you Brian McNamara for being on hand to live stream games.
The day would not be possible without the passionate energy shown by Kim Hobbs to commemorate her good friend, Serena. The Studley Showdown, and now the Stud Showdown, were born from Kim’s desire to have a meaningful and social pool event to remember Serena. This year was a proven success. To add even more significance, money is raised through 50/50 draws, food sales, donations, and silent auctions in support of the Heart and Stroke Foundation. This year’s edition raised $1020 to be donated. A fabulous result made possible by Kim!
Thank you to Serena’s family for being part the day.
We all look forward to next year.
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