This is the largest round of this special event tournament, featuring 64 dynamic duos as they compete head-to-head in five-game series for the right to be called Doubles 8-ball champions. We begin with eight series today, the first seeing...
Max and Ruby, the Siblings, against Wario and Waluigi, the Wah Brothers. The red cue gets the appearance for this series. The Wah Brothers seemed to dominate game 1, including Wario's four-ball run near the end, but Max kept the Siblings in charge and used a five-ball run-out, including some gutsy positioning and a pinch shot on the 8 to the top left to get the win for a 1-0 series lead. Game 2 was a bit more of the game, with the Wah Brothers connecting early on, but Waluigi couldn't make anything of what Wario set up, choking the game away on a three-ball run that could have been longer. Ruby played the hero for the Siblings this time, making the last two shots for a solid 2-0 series lead. Controversy sprung in game 3 as both Waluigi and Wario took consecutive shots on the 12 at the top left pocket. Both were rejected due to pocket capacity, which is not legislated under these tournament rules beyond the rules of the game. Since the ball didn't occupy the pocket, both turns were ended. Max and Ruby combined to set up and score the 8 in the top right, sealing the series at 3-0 after Wario's shot sent the 12 off the table. Game 4 was forgettable for both sides, save for Wario's six-ball run from the start. It ended up turning into a gritty battle, as Max and Ruby held off the Wah Brothers with strategic scratches and their own poor shooting. In the end, Waluigi and Ruby took chances at the 8, with Ruby cutting it to the top right for the win, and a 4-0 lead in the series. Wario helped save some face for the Wah Brothers, connecting on a four-ball run-out to bring game 5 to a close after Waluigi's poor shooting. The series still favored the Siblings 4-1, and they advance to the second round.
In series two, another pair of rookies, the Star Twins Celestia and Solaris, face off against the Angel Bears, Bright and Wings. The blue cue has control for this series. The Star Twins had a rough start, getting chipped at by the Sun Bears during the first two rounds. Bright and Wings took the shots one and two at a time, but their pace was overwhelmed by Celestia's five-ball run-out in the end. Celestia took a heady approach, positioning well for a 1-0 series lead when she completed the run. Game 2 followed a similar pattern, as Celestia came up empty on the break and Bright and Wings took deep runs to get themselves down to just the 8. Solaris countered with a four-ball run in the end, but left Wings open for a long cut on the 8, which he made to help the Angel Bears tie the series at 1. Game 3 took very little time to complete, with Bright and Celestia exchanging four-ball runs. Celestia surrendered an extra ball to Wings, who made the next two shots. Solaris challenged, but couldn't hold up for the Star Twins, and Bright knocked the 8 in for a 2-1 series lead. In game 4, Bright continued to intimidate at the start, making a three-ball run. Wings followed up with most of the heavy lifting after that, and while Celestia did a four-ball run, she couldn't draw a strong set-up to the 8, and Wings buried it instead to clinch the series at 3-1. The Star Twins collapsed a bit more in game 5, pushing the Angel Bears to the limit before fading off, allowing Bright and Wings one last push to the finish, which they succeeded on for a win and a 4-1 series result in their favor to take into the second round.
The theme continued in series three, as the veteran Doggy Duo of Americus and Princess plays the hosting role against Outcast Leaders Hoppy and Nibbles, a pair of rookies. The silver cue gets this appearance. The Doggy Duo took game 1 with relative ease, as Princess had good turns and made the winning shot, sandwiched around Americus setting the 8 up nicely. Hoppy was unable to come up in big moments, and Nibbles didn't make an impact as the Outcast Leaders fell behind 1-0 in the series. The Doggy Duo pressed the pace again in game 2, with Americus making a deep cutting run early in the game after an empty turn from Nibbles. After Hoppy's miss, Princess stepped up with an odd but effective three-ball run-out, making the 14 on a kick that poked off the bottom side corner and straight down the rail to the bottom left. She potted the 8 and put her team up 2-0. The Doggy Duo got a bit too showy in game 3, and it cost them in the end, as Hoppy roared back from way down to make a six-ball run-out full of well-executed shots, ending on a tap-in with the 8 to the bottom right. This cut the series to 2-1. Princess made a highlight in the early part of game 4, scoring the 10-13-15-14 combination to the bottom left. She followed it up on the next turn with a 9-11 combination to the bottom right that turned into a double-pot as the 9 caromed to the top side. None of the other players could keep up, and when Americus set Princess up on the 8, she knocked it down on her third to, securing the series at 3-1 with a highlight-filled game. Nibbles had a highlight in game 5, making the 15-12-14 combination to the bottom left corner as part of a six-ball run-out to steal another game, making it a 3-2 final for the series. The Doggy Duo advances to the second round with their win.
In series four, Crystal and Sleepy B, the Silent Core, face off with Mario and Luigi, the Italians, playing with the red cue in this series. Mario needed just a single turn to run the table for the Italians after a good but not great three-ball run from Silent Core's Crystal. Mario showed excellent shot selection and execution in lifting his team ahead 1-0 in the series. Mario didn't give the Italians a good break for game 2, leaving things open to a three-ball run for Crystal. Sleepy B. lacked in her turns, and this allowed Luigi to do the heavy lifting before Mario finished off the game and made it a 2-0 series lead for his side. Mario struggled again from the break in game 3, but Luigi kept the Italians in the game. It wouldn't matter, as Sleepy B. showed a much stronger pace for Silent Core, finishing off the game when Luigi missed his chance on the 8. Sleepy B. potted the last two shots, and this win cut the series to 2-1. Mario didn't let the slip up have an effect for the Italians, as they came back with pace in game 4. Crystal ended up responsible for the downfall of Silent Core, as she failed to make contact on the 11, and Mario ran out three balls for the win from ball-in-hand, which doubled as a series clincher, the first by an all-rookie duo in the first round. Sleepy B. nearly looked to make a highlight reel in the meaningless game 5, but she couldn't quite double-cut the 8 to the bottom side, ending a good four-ball run. Mario came through with a three-ball run-out for the Italians, ending the series at 4-1 for the team. Mario and Luigi will compete in the second round.
Over halfway for this portion of the round, we have the Oriental Kids Shiny and Sparkles against the Tall Blondes, Taylor Swift and Rosalina. The red cue also features in this series. The Oriental Kids took charge from the break of game 1, with Shiny making a couple of shots. Sparkles had a good turn in the middle of the game, making a pair of ridiculous banks to deflate the Tall Blondes. Taylor had a chance to counter in short order, but she couldn't manage, and Sparkles finished the game for a 1-0 series lead. The Tall Blondes kept themselves in it, with Rosalina pushing late in the game against a shakier appearance by Sparkles, and then Taylor capitalizing on a scratch by Shiny to pot the 8 in the top side for the win, tying the series at 1. Taylor set the tone for the Tall Blondes in game 3, rocketing a seven-ball run from the break that sent them to the verge of victory. Only Shiny got to the table, and she pulled off a three-ball run before failing on a defensive attempt that allowed Rosalina to tap the 8 home off of Taylor's set-up shot and give the Tall Blondes a 2-1 series lead over the Oriental Kids. Taylor set a similar tone for the Tall Blondes in game 4, scoring a five-ball run from the break. Rosalina got nothing on her turn, which made the matching three-ball runs from Shiny and Sparkles, plus a conceded ball by Taylor look more dangerous. In the end, it was Rosalina icing the game with a three-ball run-out after a miss from Shiny, and the Tall Blondes claimed the series at 3-1. Shiny got a game back, mostly through her own effort and Taylor's scratch on the break to start game 5. Shiny ran a six-ball run at the start, and the Tall Blondes never caught up. They did, however, take the series 3-2 over the Oriental Kids, and Taylor and Rosalina will see time in the second round.
In series six, Davidson's Conquest, made up of Kirstin and Niki, goes against the Next Generation of Starlight and Twilight in a major battle of veteran teams. The silver cue has the honors for this series. Davidson's Conquest appeared to be in line for a major upset, despite being the better seeded team, as Niki made a six-ball run to threaten the Next Generation. Kirstin couldn't finish it off though, and Twilight cleared the way for Starlight to ice the game and give the Next Generation a 1-0 series lead. Game 2 came out to be a bit grittier than the previous game, as neither team really established themselves well. It went back and forth for much of the game, and right down to the wire, where a miss by Kirstin set up Starlight for a long and sharp cut on the 8, executed to near perfection as the Next Generation took another win for a 2-0 series lead. Starlight proved unable to keep up with the pace of game 3, as she wasted a four-ball run by Twilight and failed to answer Kirstin's five-ball run, aided by a surrendered ball by Twilight. Davidson's Conquest got bold in the end, but another miss from Starlight allowed Niki to put the 8 in the bottom left on a long cut, which made the series 2-1. Game 4 slowed things down again, with the players on both teams proving able to make short and choppy runs but without much intent on the longer runs. In the end, everyone took a shot at the elusive 8, and Niki made sure there wouldn't be a second go-around with it, potting it to the bottom side after Starlight's missed attempt, tying the series at 2 in the process. Davidson's Conquest completed the comeback in game 5, as Niki made a critical late run against Twilight, and then Kirstin potted the 8 to the bottom side on the bank to seal the win and a 3-2 series win. Kirstin and Niki continue their campaign in the second round.
For the seventh series, stalwarts Goldy and Stealth form Team Korea, facing off against the Muscle Bros, Lionel and Smokey. The red cue takes this series on its docket. Despite a good break from Goldy, Team Korea struggled, mostly due to Stealth's short runs. Smokey struggled a bit for the Muscle Bros, but he came up good enough, and Lionel was firm in earning the win for a 1-0 series lead. The Muscle Bros held up well against Team Korea in game 2, allowing Goldy to carve up a deep run, but then icing the game through a two-ball run-out by Lionel, ending with a bank of the 8 to the top side for the win and a 2-0 series lead. Goldy was nearly perfect in game 3, answering Lionel's empty break with an eight-ball run that was just an inch away from victory, as the cue rolled slowly into the bottom left, negating the amazing sequence of shots and handing the Muscle Bros the series at 3-0. Motivation seemed low in game 4 for either team, as they let their secondary players play first. Smokey and Stealth battled to a null result, and it was Goldy topping Lionel to give Team Korea a win with a three-ball run-out iced by a bank of the 8 to the top left corner, cutting the series to 3-1. The Muscle Bros bounced back just fine in a more competitive game 5, as Goldy surged for Team Korea but Lionel held it off in the end and snagged the win with a three-ball run-out. The strong performance from the Muscle Bros sends them to the second round on a 4-1 series win.
The final series of this segment is the Woodelands, Lexi and Caitlin, against the Old Ladies, Ms. Kitty and Ms. Puppy. Once again, the red cue is in control of the series. Both Caitlin and Ms. Kitty had misses on the 8 after a fairly balanced game 1, and when Ms. Puppy couldn't cut it to the bottom right, Lexi buried her chance in the top right to give the Woodelands a 1-0 series lead over the Old Ladies. Game 2 seemed unspectacular until the end, where Ms. Kitty lifted the Old Ladies into a series tied at 1 with her six-ball run-out to answer Lexi's defensive try. Ms. Kitty hit the highlights with the 14 going off the 4 and then getting double-kissed into the top right corner while leaving Ms. Kitty lined up for the 8 in the bottom right. She converted with ease to equalize the series. Ms. Kitty and Ms. Puppy couldn't get anything after a booming break shot, allowing Lexi and Caitlin to pick their shots at will. It took Lexi two tries to get the 8, but she had plenty of time to work with it and the Woodelands retook the series lead at 2-1. Ms. Kitty and Lexi did almost all of the work for game 4, and in the end, it came down to a bold and ultimately unsuccessful show from Ms. Kitty that sent the Old Ladies packing, as she illegally potted the 8, gifting Lexi and Caitlin the series at 3-1. Game 5 went at a pretty good pace for both sides, with Lexi unable to hold off a late four-ball run-out from Ms. Puppy after much of the early work was done by Ms. Kitty. This made it a 3-2 series win for the Woodelands, who advance to the second round.
We're a quarter of the way through this round already. We'll continue this in the near future.
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