McDonald prevails in two-set final over Dill to claim title on Q City 9-Ball Tour
This past weekend (Sat., May 10), Barry McDonald joined the ranks of players in our AZBilliards database when he went undefeated to the hot seat and survived a first-set challenge in the finals by Chad Dill, who was looking to chalk up his first victory on the tour since August, 2022. McDonald prevailed to force […]
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This past weekend (Sat., May 10), Barry McDonald joined the ranks of players in our AZBilliards database when he went undefeated to the hot seat and survived a first-set challenge in the finals by Chad Dill, who was looking to chalk up his first victory on the tour since August, 2022. McDonald prevailed to force a second set, won it and took home the top prize. The $250-added event drew 28 entrants to Action Billiards in Inman, SC.
Awarded a bye in the opening round, McDonald’s trip to the hot seat was almost sidetracked in what was his first round of play, when Scott Green tossed a double-hill challenge at him. McDonald survived and improved as he advanced, defeating Michael Freeman 5-3 and drawing Lauren Sorrow in one of the winners’ side semifinals.
Chad Dill, in the meantime, didn’t make it to the hot seat match. And like McDonald, ran into a double-hill match in his opener against Junior Gabriel. Dill got a single ‘bead on the wire’ in a race to 6 against Gabriel, used it to his advantage and defeated Gabriel 5-5. Gill gave up a single ‘bead on the wire’ to Joby Bollard in a race to 5, won that 5-2 and then got two ‘beads on the wire’ in a race to 7 that he didn’t end up needing. He defeated Brian Davis 5-3 and advanced to the other winners’ side semifinal versus Billy Fowler, who, racing to 10, was the event’s ‘most likely to succeed’ competitor, having given up only five racks in his first three matches.
With five ‘beads on the wire’ at the start, Dill battled Fowler to double hill, but it was Fowler who advanced to the hot seat 10-4. McDonald gave up just one rack to Sorrow and joined him. Fowler was giving McDonald five ‘beads on the wire’ as well and used them to claim the hot seat 5-7 over Fowler.
When Dill and Sorrow showed up on the loss side of the bracket, they ran into a pair of opponents who had, combined, won nine matches on that side of the bracket. Sorrow drew Javier Oliu, who’d lost an opening-round match to Chris Clary and won five of those combined nine, most recently eliminating Jesse Draper 7-1 and Brian Davis 7-4. Dill picked up Brian Francis, who’d lost a second-round match to Draper and then, won four straight by an aggregate score of 24-7; the last two of which had eliminated Michael Freeman 6-1 and PJ Stabler 6-4.
Oliu made it six in a loss-side row, downing Sorrow 7-2. He was joined in the quarterfinal by Dill, who’d defeated Francis 5-1. Dill, with two ‘beads on the wire’ in a race to 7, defeated Oliu 5-4. For the second straight time, Billy Fowler and Dill, with the same five ‘beads on the wire’ in a race to 10, locked up in a double-hill fight, only this time, Dill hit his ‘mark’ one jump ahead of Fowler, winning 5-9.
In his fourth, double-hill match, this time in a straight-up race to 5, Dill took the opening set of the true double-elimination final over hot-seat occupant Barry McDonald. McDonald had been idle (more or less) for about two hours when that first match began. He got back ‘up to speed’ in the second set and defeated Dill 5-2 to claim the event title.
Tour director Herman Parker thanked the ownership and staff at Action Billiards for their hospitality, along with sponsors BarPoolTables.net, Break Time (Clemmons), TKO Custom Cues, Realty Group One Results, CHC Undeground, Digitalpool.com, Dirty South Grind Apparel, Federal Savings Bank Mortgage Division and AZBilliards.
This coming weekend (May 17-18), Parker’s affiliated TOP (The Open Player) Tour will make another appearance at the new Breaktime Billiards in Clemmons, NC for the $1,000-added, 3rd Annual Carolina Cup. Competitors can visit the tour’s FB page(s) for further information.
