It was the third Friday of the month, time for the best paying tournament around; the one at Cheers on Bell.

It had rained all week; would this deter some from coming out and playing? Maybe some, but not most. It was the usual crowd of players. Many of the top players around were there, blended with some up-and-comers, and enough ladies to do a 300% singles tournament.

Bill Beard and Jimmy Damore would make the long trek, not only for the tourney, but for the money games before and after. Dave Fatum was there after knee surgery had forced a long layoff. Dean and Tanya Sitzler were back after a few years in Washington.

It was great to have them back for good. The music was rollin' and the drinks were a flowin' as the games would begin. With Tobin gone, it was up to the Scooter Pie to get things going and keep it smooth. He did great, managing both the ladies and the guys simultaneously (at the same time, Gilligan).

Lots of great players were paired, so it wouldn't be easy for anyone. Dean snagged Rik Scherbing, and Martin Bedoni and Jerry Shasteen paired as well. Those were the teams to beat, but anything can happen at Cheers. Dean and Rik took me (Master Bates) and The Rymer Non-Factor down first.

Martin and Jerry rolled as well. It came down to four teams with Martin and Jerry on top of the winners. Billy and Scooter were shooting awesome; Rymer and I would have to step it up to get by this duo. It was a classic match, coming down to the last dart of the last game, but we pulled it out.

Dean and Rik would be next and handled us pretty easy the first time around. We wanted, and got, revenge - taking the guys out and giving them the bronze medal. The confidence was there, but would the darts be enough to overcome the top squad? Six games later, the gold was ours - a grueling battle.

The celebration lasted only minutes as the money games quickly started. No time to dwell on the tournament, it was time to win some cash. On the Ladies side, Tina Martinez was shooting excellent and held the hot seat. Angie Lester would sneak out a win against Tanya Sitzler to face Tina in the finals. Angie was just too hot and took home the first prize.

Men's Final

1st: Mike Bates/Mark Rymer; $260
2nd: Martin Bedoni/Jerry Shasteen; $160
3rd; Rik Scherbing/Dean Sitzler; $100
4th; Bill Beard/Scooter; $40