Eight Deuce · Tournament #11
Steve McLean Picks Up Where He Left Off
He won the last tournament of 2021 and the first of 2022 — consecutive nights three months apart.
Steve McLean won the October finale that closed the league’s first season. On Friday he won the tournament that opened its second, beating Lee Ugarte heads-up in under seven minutes after four hours and nineteen minutes, for $390.
Two wins in two starts is not something anyone managed inside 2021 — only Eric Denny won back-to-back tournaments, in July and August. Mac now has two here and six across both leagues.
Lee took $270 for second with three knockouts of his own, his best result since winning last March. Paul Coffman was third for $185 and Juan Lopez fourth for $135, the first cash of Juan’s five Eight Deuce tournaments.
Where the money went
| Player | Prize | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Steve McLean | $390 |
| 2 | Lee Ugarte | $270 |
| 3 | Paul Coffman | $185 |
| 4 | Juan Lopez | $135 |
The undercard
Jeff Holderman, the reigning Player of the Year, made five knockouts — more than anyone in the room — and finished sixth, out of the money. Nobody in 2021 made five and failed to cash.
Eric Denny bubbled in fifth. Jason Dailey was the first player out after an hour and twenty-six minutes, one of Holderman’s five.
The bigger picture
Fourteen players and three rebuys made $980, which only two tournaments beat all of last season and which now reads as the going rate.
The season runs to ten tournaments again and the Player of the Year counts a player’s best eight scores, so nothing is decided by an opening night. It is worth noting all the same that the man who has it is the man who won it: Mac starts on 85.00.
| Player of the Year — after #11 | Points | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Steve McLean | 85.00 |
| 2 | Lee Ugarte | 56.67 |
| 3 | Paul Coffman | 42.50 |
| 4 | Juan Lopez | 34.00 |
| 5 | Eric Denny | 28.33 |
| 6 | Jeff Holderman | 24.29 |
| 7 | Warren Mervin | 21.25 |
| 8 | Mike McEvoy | 17.00 |
Eight Deuce #11 — Friday, January 14, 2022. 14 entrants, 3 rebuys, four paid from a $980 prize pool. First tournament of the 2022 season; Player of the Year counts each player’s best eight scores.