Joe Giammarino
First we would like to thank Sun City Oro Valley Billiards Club (SCOV), Jim Lilja Activity Director and Tom Caswell President of SCOV Billiards Club for the friendly competition and camaraderie. Another big thank you goes out to Dominic Borland and Gary Barlow, Captains of the Pool Players of the Brooke (PPB) Travel Team for organizing this event and making sure it was a success and they did just that. On Monday, February 4, 2019, at 10:00 a.m. the PPB hosted the SCOV Billiards Club at the beautiful Catalina Recreation Center’s Billiard Room (CRC) for an 8-Ball Team Challenge. We were competing on three eight-foot Connelly pool tables for temporary ownership of a Traveling Plaque. Our three teams consisted of Dan “Oh No!” Stebbins and Randy “Thin Man” Smith, Ron “Dblo7” Ridge and Jim “Rocketman” Donat, Joe “Fast Eddie” Giammarino and Tom “Blind Squirrel” Barrett. Our opponent’s teams consisted of these three partner teams, Mike Connoy and Michael Rutman, Tom Caswell and Sean Parks, Tony Kupra and Jim Lilja with Robert Dufur as an alternate.
The format was simple and interesting. Each of our teams would play each of their teams four games of 8-ball with each game won being one point for the winning team. There were a total of 36 points in the match. The first-round score was 8–4 in favor of the PPB, during the second round SCOV made a comeback to get the score to 13–11 with the PPB still ahead. In the third and final round SCOV completed their comeback to tie the score at 18 all. What a great comeback for the SCOV Billiards Club! Because we were tied at the end of the regular competition, a playoff would determine whether the PPB would give up the Traveling Plaque or keep it on the wall in the CRC’s Billiard Room. The playoff would be a two out of three 8-Ball match between one player picked by each team’s Captain. Sean Parks was chosen for the SCOV and Joe “Fast Eddie” Giammarino was picked for the PPB. Joe outlasted Sean to win the match; the Traveling Plaque stays in SaddleBrooke and is still on the wall in the CRC. Good job, PPB! Until next time, we enjoyed the competition and the luncheon at the RoadRunner Grill following the 8-Ball match with the SCOV. Congratulations to all the participants! Rack ’em up!