TYSON Howie has won his fifth Bendigo snooker championship, defeating Castlemaine's Dave De Grandi in last week's grand final.
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Howie took advantage of De Grandi's nervous start to win first frame comfortably, and then won a close second frame to lead 2-0.
De Grandi settled in to grind out the win in the third frame, and when he made a fine 30 early in the fourth frame, the match looked in the balance.
In what turned out to be an incredibly high quality frame, Howie then hit back with a 37 of his own and finished off with a sequence of colours to take the frame and lead 3-1.
Howie made another break in the fifth frame and eventually went on to win his fifth Bendigo championship 4-1.
In the women's championship, Helen Cook continued her winning form from the qualifying night to defeat a gallant Karen Engi two frames to nil in the grand final.
Cook and Engi won through to the final by being the strongest two players in a highly competitive round robin qualifying night against newcomers Amy Crennan and Sue Turpie.
In the A-minor championship, Quinton Sawyer avenged his runner-up performance in last years final by defeating Chris Elston.
Sawyer made a fine 31 on the way to a 2-0 lead, before two very close and tactical frames resulting in a number of snookers and free-balls to either player.
Elston won the third frame, but it wasn't enough, as Sawyer eventually won 3-1.