Twenty Six players started of the series five Masters Ranking event at the Ivy Rooms on Sunday Feb 26th and as ever the games were very competitive and very tight.
Early Indications were that this was going to prove to be another week where some of the big guns would fall.
Currently ranked number 1 Tommy Gleeson went out to a 3 – 0 defeat at the hands of Stephen Merrigan who beat Dessie Sheehan by 3 – 1 previously in round 1.
Tony Thorpe won 3 – 0 in round 1 against Dan Carroll and then defeated Brian Quigley 3 – 1 to set up a quarter final match against Merrigan, with Thorpe coming out of that match winning by three frames to one..
Brendan Cooney playing some beautiful snooker defeated Jim Carrick 3 – 0 then repeated the 3 – 0 result against Frank Sarsfield. Limerick’s Kevin McMahon defeated Albert Hogan and Brendan Thomas en route to the quarter finals.
Mark Tuite was in good form too, defeating John McBride 3 – 1, then went on to repeat the punishment on Series 4 winner Anthony Bonnar by 3 – 0 gaining some revenge for his Series 4 Final defeat.
Cooney was in inspired form winning his semi final match 3 – 0 against Thorpe making it through to the final without dropping a single frame.
McMahon defeated John Connolly to meet Tuite in the semi finals where the Cue Club Killarney player won out by three frames to one.
So the Final was set Brendan Cooney versus Mark Tuite and it was the Youghal CYMS man Brendan Cooney who got off to a flier winning the opening frame.
The Cork man then won the next frame making it two frames to nil, just one away from victory and his eleventh straight frame won.
Mark Tuite convincingly won the third frame inflicting the Cork man’s first frame loss of the day. The Tuite proved too strong winning the next frame levelling the final, which was then set up for a cracking decider.
Mark Tuite proved too strong in the decider winning the final by three frames to two frames.
Series 5 Masters Results
Round 1
Dessie Sheehan 1 – 3 Stephen Merrigan
Dan Carroll 0 – 3 Tony Thorpe
Brian Quigley 2 – 2 Seamus Brereton
Jim Carrick 3 – 0 Mick White
Derek O’Rourke 0 – 3 Ernie McMullen
Paul Arnold 1 – 3 John McBride
Freddie Chute 3 – 2 Derek Kiely
Kevin McMahon 3 – 0 Albert Hogan
Adrian Landers 2 – 3 Brendan Thomas
Mick Farrell 0 – 3 Shane Gorman
Last 16
Tommy Gleeson 0 – 3 Stephen Merrigan
Tony Thorpe 3 – 1 Brian Quigley
Brendan Cooney 3 – 0 Jim Carrick
Ernie McMullen 2 – 3 Frank Sarsfield
Mark Tuite 3 – 0 John McBride
Freddie Chute 1 – 3 Anthony Bonnar
Kevin McMahon 3 – 1 Brendan Thomas
Shane Gorman 2 – 3 John Connolly
Last 8
Stephen Merrigan 1 – 3 Tony Thorpe
Brendan Cooney 3 – 0 Frank Sarsfield
Mark Tuite 3 – 1 Anthony Bonnar
Kevin McMahon 3 – 0 John Connolly
Last 4
Brendan Cooney 3 – 0 Tony Thorpe
Mark Tuite 3 – 1 Kevin McMahon
Final
Brendan Cooney 2 – 3 Mark Tuite
