In what was a thrilling and exciting day with over 120 players testing their minds, endurance, and ability to read the game, Garfield Brissett emerged as the Spanish Town leg champion of the Supreme Ventures Limited’s Domino Master competition.
The tournament, which is played in a “cut-throat” format, was held at Miggie’s Sports Bar in Greendale on Sunday, March 19.
Brissett qualified for the grand final as one of the best losers from the semi-finals, along with Collin Powell, joining fan favourite Natalie “Lady Assassin” Wright and Jeneard Williamson in the final.
Playing to the first six points, Brissett, with some tricky plays, came out on top ahead of Williamson (four points) and Wright and Powell on two points each.
Brissett was awarded prize money of $150,000 as the winner’s share, while Williamson went home with $100,000, Wright got $75,000, and Powell received $50,000. Wright was adjusted as the third-place winner for having reached two games before Powell, under the rules of the game.
“I felt very delighted. I should have won the semi-final game, but as I said before the final, I knew what I had to do and I pulled through, but I was overjoyed to win the competition.
“I was very comfortable at five games and to make it to six, the game that went to the derby. If I had played the rounds, the lady [Natalie Wright] had twos in her hand, and so I would have won that game and the title then.
“But I said if the other guy had a blank in his hand, he would win, and so I went two blanks, and the game ended in a block as the two players counted four each. Williamson won the derby, and the next game I did what I had to do and I won,” Brissett told the Jamaica Observer.
Brissett, who hails from Portmore, said that the decision to play in the Spanish Town leg had paid rich dividends.
“There are a lot of good players in Portmore, the likes of Tyson and others, and so I came here to try my luck, and if I hadn’t succeeded here, it left me no choice but to play in the Portmore leg, but I made the decision, and it was the right move. We are all domino players, but cut throat is about reading the game, remembering the game, having some luck, and executing,” Brissett added.
Chloleen Daley-Muschett, corporate communications and public relations manager at SVL, said that the Spanish Town leg of the competition was a huge success.
“The turnout was fantastic; we had a fabulous, epic domino tournament here in Spanish Town at Miggie’s, and based on the passion of the crowd and the passion of the players, we think we have a hit event, and we really look forward to rolling out the rest of it across Jamaica.
“There were numerous rounds, and so we were here a little late, but that’s great as we had a full day of great domino playing and everybody stayed to the end, which means they really enjoyed it, and we are looking forward to the next stop,” Daley-Muschett said.
The tournament started at Pier 1 in Montego Bay on Sunday, March 12, 2023, and Jerry Gardener secured his spot in history as the tournament’s first community winner, second place went to Allan Harris, while Licidius Nelson and Gavin Simpson secured third and fourth places, respectively.
The tournament’s next stop will be at Caymanas Park in portmore, St Catherine, on April 23, 2023.
Players interested in participating in the tournament can register online at www.svl.com or purchase tickets at any of the 16 ticket outlets located throughout the island, including Pier 1, Fontana Pharmacy, the Montego Bay Retail Centres (City Centre and Fairview), and Fairview Texaco in Montego Bay; Savannna La Mar Texaco and Fontana Pharmacy in Savanna La Mar; Ocho Rios Retail Centre and Fontana Pharmacy in Ocho Rois; Spanish Twon Retail centre in Spanish Town; Fontana Pharmacy in Mandeville; Cross Roads Retail Centre, Flagship Store (Constant Spring Road), Fontana Pharmacy (Barbican), Fontana Pharmacy (Waterloo) in St Andrew; and Portmore Retail Centre in Portmore, St Catherine.
The cost of tickets for the community qualifiers is $1,000 per person, and for the national level it is $5,000. The top 16 individuals from each community will qualify directly for the national championship.
Source: https://www.jamaicaobserver.com/sports/i-felt-delighted/
