Albrecht Wins Inaugural Tour Event

By Bill Rosenberger

Gene Albrecht battled through a strong field of 43 to emerge undefeated, ousting Shaun Jones in the final of the inaugural event of the McDermott Midwest Tour.  The event was held at Side Pockets North in Kansas City, MO, o­n September 25-26. 

Side Pockets North added $2,000 to the pot, making the first of 11 scheduled events for the new Midwest tour very lucrative for its competitors.

Albrecht cruised through the winners' bracket, o­nly facing stiff competition in the hot seat and finals.  Jones, o­n the other hand, had to battle through the o­ne-loss side to earn a spot against Albrecht in the finals. 

Two competitors who knew each other well were Mike Banks Junior-and Senior.  The father-son combination faced off late in the left bracket, and the torch was seemingly passed as the younger Banks came away with a 9-6 victory.  Banks Jr. later fell to Jones but finished in a respectable fourth place.

Chuck Reed also blew by the competition in the winners' side until the hot seat match with Albrecht.  Tournament director Harvey Hibner described the match as "back-and-forth," saying, "Nobody seemed to jump ahead."  With the scored tied at seven, Albrecht slowly pulled away to win the final two games for the 9-7 victory.  Reed then faced Jones in the semifinal match but never mounted much of an effort as Jones walked away with a 9-5 win. 

The stage was set as Albrecht and Jones squared off for the top spot, which paid $1,150.  Jones took the first game, but eventually the match was tied at 4-all.  "Gene missed a shot in that first game," described Hibner, "and I think it was o­ne of the few balls he missed in the whole tournament.  Albrecht turned his game up a notch and breezed to the 9-5 victory.

Results:

1st Gene Albrecht $1,150

2nd Shaun Jones $750

3rd Chuck Reed $450

4th Mike Banks Jr. $200

5th Marty Heldenbraud, David Hainonen $100

7th Mike Banks Sr., J.C. Rilley $70