Scotch With a Twist

Last weekend there was another Scotch Doubles tourney in the area that I played in, but this one was very different.

I'm really enjoying getting out and playing in these type of tourneys.  Gets me out of the house among friends and allows me to test my skills on the table.  And being 8ball, I love it even more!

This time we played at a new place, and the tourney was strictly held for a purpose:  to raise money for a league team.  I liked the idea, actually.  They took money out of each entry and also sold food to raise money for the team.  And yummmm - the tostadas were EXCELLENT!

We arrived at 11:30 but I don't think play started til about 1pm.  Next time we will show up at noon, the designated time, and not be so early.  As we waited for the tourney to start, I noticed that I didn't recognize a lot of the players.  So, I thought it was possible my boyfriend and I would place well.   But I also know in a race to 2, ANYTHING can happen.

Turns out it was APA rules (and that made more sense why we didn't know most of the players, b/c we don't play APA).  Besides slop counts, the rules were only slightly different than what I'm used to, but not much.  My main worry was scratching on the 8ball - that was a "loss of game" whether making the 8ball on the break or if missing the 8ball last and scratching. This rule made me a little nervous!

Only ten teams played.  We didn't know how much money they were taking out of each $30 entry to raise money for the team, but they were paying two spots.

Our first match went 2-1.  CLOSE!  The next match almost went 2-1.  A race to 2 was pretty tough!  We got our groove though as we normally do and found ourselves in the hotseat.  :)  We barely won that 2-1 and waited for the finals.

As we waited, one of the girls asked us if we "came to hustle their tournament."  My b/f and I just laughed and replied, "no, no."  I shared that we played in a scotch doubles tourney just last weekend and only placed 4th (implying there was no guarantee we would win).  She was a really sweet lady and told us we were welcome back.  I was happy she said that and explained to her I like to help teams raise money, and we like to test our scotch doubles skills, so it was great she would like to see us again.

As we walked back to our table to wait for the finals, I really did wonder if most of the people wanted us back, tho.  My b/f and I play pretty sporty together and they may not want us back again.  I know *I* wouldn't want us back again.

I know how I feel when I walk into a tourney and the best players in the city showed up, also.  I figured I had a chance til I saw them, lol. 

However, I also feel that we can help these players.  We will give them motivation to strive for better play and to practice, I'm hoping.  If we win some more, they will want to beat us even more.  That means they will work on their game and that will help them in the long run.

We ended up winning the tournament and I had to come with a long rail kick on the 8ball and the whole place went crazy!  It was so sweet and awesome.  They really seemed very enamored with our play and sincerely meant it when they said we played good.

(click to enlarge)

We found out they took out $10 PER entry to raise money, so that only left $200 for the payouts.  But, the bar added $75!  That was an awesome surprise!  We made $165 for First Place  :)

I hope they let us play again - it was a lot of fun meeting genuine people and playing the game we love.