The Loose Cannon Club in London saw a higher than average turn out which would compete for eight cash prizes and seven National Final seats.
As soon as Caroline, our ‘hostess with the mostess’ announced ‘shuffle up & deal’, play was under-way for the season 3 West London Regional Final. The first hour saw the likes of Kevin O’Brien, James Minnis and Andrew Hall all eliminated as the tournament swiftly progressed. After the buffet break the field continued to shrink at a rapid rate with many pubs such as the College Oak, the Jack & Jill and the Woodman just falling short of claiming the title of West London Team Event Winner!
The one pub who certainly didn’t fall short was the Goat in Boots in London who had 3 top 50 finishes to secure the first ever team event winner in West London. Kieron Steer, Sylwia Razna and Michele Tommasi took the plaudits from a packed out Loose Cannon Club.
Once we had reached the business end of the tournament we had a 10 player final table with only eight cash prizes and seven National Final seats up for grabs, so there would still be some disappointment lying ahead. Unfortunately Doug Sharp and Shaun McGinty would miss out on the lot with Greg Chojnacki claiming the 8th place cash prize.
As soon as all bubbles had been burst, we soon had a mouthwatering heads-up match on our hands. Steven Parker from the Kings Head in Horley and Stephen ‘to be feared’ Beard, from the Blue Boar in Wantage. The final hand wasn’t much more than a flip as Stephens Ah3h matched up against Steven’s KhTh. The board ran out 596 8 4 which meant Stephen Beard would be crowned the latest West London Champion and will be hoping to go all the way in Nottingham next year!
Cash Prize Winners
1st Stephen Beard – Blue Boar, Wantage
2nd Steven Parker – Kings Head, Horley
3rd Thomas Hynan – Royal British Legion, Worcester Park
4th Peter McMenemy – Queens Arms, Didcot
5th David Ansell – Green Man, Potters Bar
6th Mark Pursey – George, Oxford
7th Luke Doyle – Crown, Northolt
8th Greg Chojnacki – Duke of Cambridge, London
National Final Qualifiers
Stephen Beard
Steven Parker
Thomas Hynan
Peter McMenemy
David Ansell
Mark Pursey
Luke Doyle
Team Winners
Goat in Boots, London