Ten grand, three days By Ty Hughes We checked our not-so-faithful records, and concluded that never before has a single location guaranteed $10,000 in cash over the course of a single weekend. Well, that's exactly what those visionaries did over at Happy Days Casino on Bridgeport Way in Lakewood . The second weekend of September was solely reserved for cash-crazy dart players, putting forth their best efforts to ensure their spot on the list of in-the-money finishers. There were six shoots scheduled, five $1,500 Gtd. Payouts and one $2,000 Gtd. Payout, plus a smattering of second-chance tournaments sprinkled throughout the weekend. The doors were opened Friday, September 8, when darting fanatics came flooding in to Happy Days Casino. Quickly the players began warming up their weapons of skill, tipping back a couple to loosen up, and socializing with their buds. Players came from all over the Puget Sound area, and even a handful from out of town, including Jason and Heather out of Portland , who spent the entire weekend in competition. Thanks for showing up, guys! Also out for the entire weekend, to everyone's jubilee, was none other than Medalist's number one player worldwide, Scotty Burnett! After watching him interact with our Northwestern-based players, making friends everywhere he went, Scotty has been officially accepted as a warm, caring and personable fella by those fortunate enough to get to know this amazing player and person. Scotty's presence brought a sense of excitement among the lower-rated players who idolized the man, as well as the high-rated players who wanted desperately to compete with him both casually and with everything on the line. While many had the opportunity to rub elbows and play with or against Scotty, it was our own Massey Bentz who walked away with the bragging rights, after beating Scotty two out of three Cricket games. Thanks to Scotty Burnett for your professionalism and engaging attitude while visiting our fair city. You are, no doubt, welcome to our corner any time with open arms. The money to be paid out over the weekend was unprecedented. Ten bigguns—that's thousands, by the way. Let us take a moment and show our appreciation to those directly involved with making the entire weekend a fun and positive experience for hundreds of dart players. First, let's thank the Happy Days ownership, including Mr. Steve Brizer, who is 100 percent dedicated to the success of his dart program and has made all the necessary moves to guarantee just that! Secondly, to the incredible staff at Happy Days, who consistently go above and beyond to create happy guests. They are a fun-loving bunch, and bent on serving your every need with total efficiency. Thanks to Steve Kassuhn of Champions Choice, who took personal responsibility for the provision of the hardware and much of the promotion prior to the actual event. Seventeen boards is quite a layout to behold! We must not forget the guy that is the glue, the personality, the front-man—Manuel Garza—who masterfully routed several hundreds of dart players through the charts, putting in yeoman service and countless hours in the interest of friendly competition. And finally, to every single dart player who came out to jump into the action, relinquishing portions of their hard-earned money at the dart boards and in the plush casino at Happy Days. It was a party-like atmosphere for several days as many of the players made new friends and solidified existing relationships. As usual, the entire lounge area with its seventeen boards filling every available wall space in three separate rooms was packed to the gills with happy, fun-loving people. Congratulations to our week-end warriors who managed to line their pockets with some of that cool green paper:
Friday PM - $2,000 Gtd. Payout 24-Point Trios 1st place ($810): Skeeter, David, Rachael 2nd place ($510): John, Yelena, Danny 3rd place ($300): Matt, Tori, Rob
Saturday AM - $1,500 Gtd. Payout 14-Point Doubles 1st place ($600): Danny and Yelena 2nd place ($400): Chuck and Michelle 3rd place ($300): Cliff and Rex
Saturday AM - $1,500 Gtd. Payout 15-23-Point Doubles 1st place ($600): John and True 2nd place ($400): Scott and Richie 3rd place ($300): Chris and Victor
Saturday PM - $1,500 Gtd. Payout 19-Point Doubles 1st place (split $1,000): Scotty, Rachael and Hele, Jerry 3rd place ($300): Jason and Heather
Sunday AM - $1,500 Gtd. Payout 19-Point Mixed Doubles 1st place ($600): Scotty and Marcie 2nd place ($400): Massey and Catherine 3rd place ($300): Skeeter and Rachael
Sunday PM - $1,500 Gtd. Payout 19-Point Doubles 1st place (split $1,000): Roger/Josh and Jim/Terrence 3rd place ($300): Peter K. and Jackson Has Happy Days thrown down the gauntlet? Are the other locations expected to match these kinds of payouts to attract players? We've yet to determine; but in the meantime, Happy Days is enjoying a high level of player participation—we will expect great things to come from this powerhouse in the dart community over the months to come.
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