Humiliated by a dismal 2002 showing, the highly ranked Manly Men team - led by alltime WBC plaque-leaders Bruce Reiff and Ken Gutermuth - jettisoned their Ohio buddies Sauer and Mullet and went out in search of some firepower. They recruited a pair of ringers in the form of 2002 champions Steve Likevich and Dave Metzger to go into the 2003 tilt as the second-ranked team at 18:1 odds. The newly acquired mercenaries proved worthy acquisitions, successfully defending their individual championships and bringing a long coveted team title to the Manly Men who crushed the other 73 teams by a wide margin and tied the record for most points by a winning team with 22. 1991's Team Stingley and 1994's Team Dixie now share that record with the Manly Men
The defending champs, Band of Fools, finished 11th.
The 22nd-ranked Team X, made up of the Dolan boys and Greg Schmittgens finished second with 15 points, although the record for over achievers has to go to the 61st-ranked Boarding Party which finished 7th behind strong point performances by Ben Knight and Roy Gibson.
On the other side of the ledger, top ranked Greenville Mafia which was listed at 13:1 finished well behind the pack and out of the top 25 with a mere two points. But the biggest bust award has to go to the 4th-ranked Harbingers which was the highest-ranked of the 24 teams which failed to score a single point.
The Railroad Racers won a six-way tie for the final slot in the Top 25 standings by virtue of their total entrant tie breaker of 312.
So how good were the Happy Handicapper's rankings? Not bad at all. Of his top 12 picks in the field of 74 teams, only Harbingers failed to make the Top 25. Of course, his 13th pick - his very own Beltway Banditos - was the second highest ranked team to get white-washed. The lowest ranked team to defy the odds were Lords of the Wood who sneered at their 63rd ranking of 350:1 and managed to finish 14th.
The Pollish Lancers won the Consistancy Award by having all four team members score points this year. Six teams, led by Manly Men, managed to score three of four. Last year's co-winner, Peripheral Reach, was one of the six so in two years they've scored seven out of eight slots.
GCOM Express won the Misery Loves Company prize with 518 entrants for an average of 129.5 entrants per event. On the opposite end of the scale, claiming the Big Fish in the Small Pond title was Marty & the Beymas whose 68 total entrants averaged only17 players per event.
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Rank. Name |
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Player 1 | Player 2 | Player 3 | Player 4 | Points /Entrants |
1. Manly Men |
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B. Reiff/FBS/8 | K. Gutermuth/WPS/0 | S. Likevich/B81/7 | D. Metzger/812/7 |
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2. Team X |
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D. Dolan Sr/ELC/8 | D. Dolan Jr/FBS/0 | T. Dolan/WRS/7 | G. Schmittgens/NW2/0 |
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3. Me & Three Stiffs |
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M. Giddings/FTP/3 | M. Birnbaum/MRA/9 | B. Smith/EPB/0 | K. Wizson/WNW/1 |
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4. Team Delaware X |
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T. Hitchings/WAS/0 | V. Meconi/GBG/6 | B. Rohrbeck/WSM/7 | E. Hitchings/B17/0 |
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5. Peripheral Reach |
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P. Crandelmire/GSR/9 | B. Cleary/FBS/2 | R. Cox/FI5/1 | R,. McGinley/PRO/0 |
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6. Polish Lancers |
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J. Poniske/WTP/1 | P. Gaberson/WNW/7 | R. Young/HOS/3 | B. Wigdor/UPF/1 |
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7. Boarding Party |
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B. Knight/ACS/4 | R. Gibson/NW2/7 | R. Eastman/FDE/0 | G. Eastman/ELC/0 |
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8. Baby Seals |
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P. Reese/POG/1 | G. Young/WTP/8 | E. McNay/BRI/2 | J. Levine/BAT/0 |
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9. Prezcon Team Champs |
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J. Cornett/NAP/2 | S. Cornett/SCT/0 | A. Cornett/MED/0 | N. Benedict/BRI/8 |
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10. Nest of Spies |
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J. Pei/FTP/8 | D. Dockter/BTB/1 | A. Gupta/E&T/0 | B. Heinzmann/ATS/1 |
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11. Band of Fools |
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G. Dickson/TRC/0 | S. Dickson/DLW/0 | R. Freeman/WAS/8 | T. Gregorio/BTB/2 |
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12. Ghosts |
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L. Lingle/QGB/8 | D. Culhane/WNW/0 | C. Hickok/SSS/1 | J. Wetherall/PRO/0 |
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13. Team Prezcon |
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J. Thompson/KGM/1 | S. Stewart/FMR/0 | B. Alderman/HOS/0 | R. Lightburn/RSK/8 |
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14. Lords of the Wood |
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M. Johnson/UPF/2 | M. Rinella/BKN/0 | K. Schoose/PGG/7 | J. Tracy/AFK/0 |
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15. Three Old Farts & Ray |
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K. Whitesell/FBS/0 | C. Villeneuve/PRS/0 | R. Stakenas/PRO/0 | R. Stakenas II/UPF/8 |
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16. Wabbit's Wevenge |
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C. Moffa/SET/0 | E. Freeman/E&T/0 | G. Thatcher/ELG/0 | B. Flaxington/TKL/8 |
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17. Oh, the Humanity! |
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K. Youells/BAT/0 | J. Gundy/SSS/0 | A. Silverman/FI5/8 | C. Reece/8XX/0 |
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18. MAWS |
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D. Nicholson/MMS/0 | R. Sanchez/WNW/0 | J. Eliason/BKN/7 | R. Curtin/RSK/0 |
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19. Reservoir Dogs |
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J. Doughan/BKN/0 | JR Tracy/ASL/7 | P. Barcafer/812/0 | M. Fagan/DUN/0 |
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20. Marty & the Beymas |
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M. Musella/PZB/0 | R. Beyma/BTF/6 | Ri Beyma/NW2/1 | B. Beyma/WZQ/0 |
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21. Koleszar-Lientz-Plat |
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S. Koleszar/TTN/2 | L. Koleszar/ACQ/0 | D. Platnick/PRO/3 | G, Lientz/SCT/1 |
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22. St. Paul Rejects |
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M. Backstrom/UNP/0 | S. Packwood/776/6 | J. Pack/GSR/0 | A. Daw/8XX/0 |
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23. We Ain't Dead Yet! |
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Br. Sinigaglio/AFK/2 | Bu. Sinigaglio/QGB/3 | F. Sinigaglio/CMS/0 | D. Greenwood/BKN/0 |
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24. Temp Agency |
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E. Beach/GC2/2 | T. Drueding/SOA/1 | M. Beach/PRS/0 | Paul Nied/GC3/2 |
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25. Railroad Racers |
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S. Okonski/RBN/0 | P. Van Bloem/EPB/1 | C. Foster/MOV/3 | K. Foster/ CAR/0 |
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