IT WILL be a busy month of November for billiards as Metro Manila plays host to both the Philippine National Pool Championships (NPC) and the World Ten Ball Championship (WTBC) in succession.
The month-long sportsfest will open on November 3-8 with the 4th National Pool Championships for men and women which the Billiards and Snooker Congress of the Philippines will organize in cooperation with Raya Sports and Star Billiards.
This will be followed by the 2nd World Ten Ball Championship of the World Pool-Billiard Association from November 19 to 30, which is expected to bring to Manila over 200 top players and hundreds of billiards officials and enthusiasts from all over the world.
Open to all Filipino billiard players, the NPC offers a total prize fund of P600,000, with the men’s champion receiving P150,000 and the women’s titlist getting P50,000. Trophies will also be given to the top three placers in both divisions. Cash prizes will be given up to 32nd place in the men’s division, and up to 16th place in the women’s division.
The first four rounds of the tournament will be held at the Star Billiards Center in Quezon City from Nov. 3-6. The competition then moves to the SM North Edsa Annex from Nov.7-8, where the quarterfinals, semifinals and finals will be concluded.
The NPC is a 10-ball tournament under WPA rules. It features a double-elimination up to the Final Four, when the competition becomes a knockout affair.
The BSCP board and officers headed by Sebastian Chua (president) and Yen Makabenta (chairman) have set no player seedings and no limits to the number of players who can enter the national championships. They are inviting billiard clubs and associations all over the country to send their representatives to the tournament.
The entry fee in the men’s division is P600; in the women’s division, P300.
The defending champion in the men’s division is international titlist Marlon Manalo. In the women’s division, Zemonette Oryan is the reigning champion. Both will be defending their titles against a top-notch field of veterans and upcoming players.
Besides trophies and cash prizes, the NPC offers four guaranteed spots in the World Ten Ball Championship later in the month. Following tradition, the top four players in the tournament who are not yet qualified for the WTBC will be awarded the spots by Raya Sports.
Registration for the 2009 WPC will commence on Tuesday, September 22. Players should register with the following officials: Michael Tan at Star Billiards Center, Tel. 0909-2222225; Carlos Santos-Viola, BSCP, 0921-5014550; and Sol Gueco, Raya Sports, Tel. 0910-8875216. Provincial clubs and associations should send their entries direct to Mr. Santos-Viola, BSCP secretary-general.
