The Eliminator finally met his demise. After surviving each of the first seven Elimination Challenges to earn the notorious nickname, Kevin Taylor was ousted in the 12-week series by Gerry James and Brian Kontak.
Hiroshi Matsuo posted 12 points to remain the leader in the cumulative point standings after eight shows with 92, 11 better than Josh Warthen, who recorded the most points in the episode for the second consecutive week with 15.
Unfortunately, the Eliminator is gone, Kontak lamented. Im sad because I think he deserves to be here more than Gerry, but I am not disappointed that I will not have to face him in an Elimination Challenge again.
Big Break: Mesquite has implemented a scoring system to give the series a tournament feel. Each of the 12 shows will consist of challenges that allow the players to earn points that will be used to determine which players make or fail to make the cut. The cut line varies from episode to episode and is based on the players cumulative points for the series. The cut will be announced at the start of each show and will be applied directly after that episodes final Points Challenge. Players who make the cut advance directly to the next episode. Players who fail to make the cut will go to the Elimination Challenge. The competitor with the worst performance in a shows Elimination Challenge will be eliminated from Big Break: Mesquite.
Having been at the bottom of the rankings since the premiere episode, Taylor entered each episode knowing he was going to the Elimination Challenge. Living on borrowed time suited him as weekly he beat the pressure and opponent after opponent to advance.
Of course, Taylor seldom takes the path of least resistance. With his ponytail and earrings, Taylor doesnt look the part of the traditional professional golfer and, certainly, has taken a different road to get to Big Break: Mesquite.
Taylor came to the attention of the GOLF CHANNEL when a Tarheel Tour tournament director pointed him out and Big Break: Mesquite producers quickly discovered theres no one else like him. He started playing golf as a child with his father, a pharmacist, who played baseball at the University of North Carolina. Eventually, he and his father clashed and Taylor fell in with the wrong crowd in high school and was surrounded by alcohol and drugs. He ultimately ended up dropping out of high school and getting kicked out of the house.
One of the first big breaks in Taylors life was meeting Brandi, his future wife and what he calls the, brains of the operation at home. They met when she was a freshman at Appalachian State at a kegger party. He straightened out his life, got married and has a daughter, whose picture he carries with him in his golf bag.
Life experience makes me more aware that there are other things in life aside from golf, said Taylor, who later earned his high school equivalency.
Like his life, Taylors golf career has been a trip full of peaks and valleys. The low came last year when he was down to his last $100 and was ready to give up the game. Luckily, he turned things around after deciding to play one last event on the Tarheel Tour. Paired with Tommy Gainey, (champion of Big Break VII: Reunion), in the final round, he went on a scoring tear to win the event.
I have played a lot of golf with Kevin. We have gone neck-and-neck and he has gotten me a few times, said Gainey. Once he shot 65 in the last round to beat me. Anytime you shoot 65 in the last round that tells you he has no fear and also has some game.
In typical Taylor fashion, he rolls with what both life and golf has thrown his way. He says that you can sum up his biography in one word ' Moron. This is more indicative of his sense of humor than his intelligence because he clearly is nobodys fool.
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