Heritage Manila Tapped as Official Hotel of WTBC

HERITAGE Hotel Manila will serve as the official hotel of the 2009 World Ten Ball Championship when it takes place on November 25-30 at the World Trade Center in Pasay City, Metro Manila. This was officially announced by Raya Sports and Heritage Hotel during the formal contract signing on Friday, September 25 at the hotel’s headquarters on Roxas Boulevard.

As official hotel partner, the five-star hotel will host participating players, officials of the World Pool-Billiard Association, billiards executives and fans during the week-long event. It will also serve as the venue for the WPA General Assembly scheduled on November 27.

Mr. Eddie B. H. Yeo, general manager of Heritage Hotel Manila, and Mr. Yen Makabenta, chairman and CEO of Raya Sports, signed the memorandum of agreement between the two companies.

Heritage Hotel Manila is a member of the London-based international hotel group Millennium Hotels and Resorts. It has all the accommodations and amenities of a luxury hotel. It ushers its guests to 450 newly-refurbished rooms in contemporary design.

And it also houses the 24-hour Philippine Amusement and Games Corporation (PAGCOR) Casino.

Opened in 1994, Heritage is a popular hotel for corporate, convention and leisure travelers. It is centrally located with easy access to two major business districts, shopping, entertainment, and convention and exhibition centers. It is the nearest international hotel to the 60-hectare Mall of Asia Complex. And it is 15 minutes away from the Manila international and domestic airports.

According to the terms of the MOA, during the WTBC Heritage will provide, among others, a special room rate for tournament players, officials and guests and a regular shuttle service between the hotel and the venue.

To avail of the special rates and ensure accommodations, players and guests are urged to book early. They can make reservations through Raya Sports (email: nenyregino@prismphil.com) or direct to the hotel(email: guest@heritagehotelmanila.com).

You may also download a map to the Heritage here.

RP Pool Championships kick off busy November

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.

World Trade Center Hosts Pool for First Time

When the 2009 World Ten Ball Championship opens at the World Trade Center Metro Manila, it will be a first for both the event and the exhibition center. The world championship will use the prestigious venue for the first time after earlier stops at the Philippine International Convention Center and the Araneta Coliseum.

World Trade Center Metro Manila (WTCMM) has been the Philippines’ best international trade and exhibition hall for events for nearly two decades. Located along Roxas Boulevard in the Manila Bay area and in the heart of the city’s business and leisure district, it is easily accessible to events managers, exhibitors, visitors and guests because of its proximity to major thoroughfares, the Ninoy Aquino Airport, the country’s major seaports, the Metro Rail Transit (MRT), major first-class hotels, and top cultural and conference facilities.

The center started operations in January 1990, linking the Philippines for the first time to a global network that provides businessmen with services and facilities needed to make the conduct of international trade easier, faster and cheaper.

WTCMM is a member of the World Trade Centers Association (WTCA) in New York City which has around 100 World Trade Centers operating in almost 100 countries.

It is a private corporation owned by the Manila Exposition Complex and managed by the World Trade Center Management, Inc. World Trade Center Metro Manila belongs to the ICCP Group of Companies.

Through the WTCA, each World Trade Center becomes a branch office for all the others. This unique concept of reciprocity is passed along to all the business establishments affiliated with World Trade Centers, making membership in any center an entry to the international business community.

Adaptable and flexible to meet any event planner’s technically demanding requirements, WTCMM is the ideal venue to hold major trade exhibitions, international conventions and conferences, sports and entertainment events, product launches, gala dinners and parties. With its operable, floor-to-ceiling wall partition that is sound-proof, an exhibition can take place simultaneously in adjoining halls.

It has a seasoned and professional staff to assist an events manager in all aspects of event planning and execution, and to provide efficient service and quick response to all venue related needs.

WTCMM is the only Philippine exhibition venue recognized by the Union des Foire des Internationale (UFI). That is why its reputation as the country’s most prestigious international venue gives each event held therein a sense of distinction it cannot get from any other venue in the country.

World Ten Ball Championship Set in November

FOR the second consecutive year, the World Ten Ball Championship will be held in Manila, with the World Trade Center in the Philippine capital serving as venue when the event unfolds on November 25-30. This was jointly announced Monday (August 3) by the World Pool-Billiard Association and Raya Sports.

The only world men’s championship this year, the WTBC offers a total prize fund of $250,000 (champion’s prize, $75,000) and some 300 players from over 50 countries are expected to participate in the main tournament and qualifying tournament.

The World Trade Center, home to major international events and exhibitions in the Philippines, will be hosting a world pool championship for the first time. Like the 2008 venue, the Philippine International Convention Center, the WTC is located in the Manila Bay area, with many hotels, restaurants and malls close by.

The qualifying tournament, which comprises 10 events, will be held on Nov. 19-23 at the Star Billiards Center in Quezon City, which has hosted three world-championship qualifiers three years in a row.

The WTBC is organized and promoted by Raya Sports, franchise holder of the event and promoter of the last two world 9-ball championship in 2006 and 2007.

“Although the prize fund is smaller on account of the global recession, we expect this year’s championship to be bigger and more competitive in every other way,” said JP Fenix, Raya executive director. “Ten Ball has taken off all over the world, and top players from every region will be eager to contest the top prize and trophy.”

The prestigious event will again be televised worldwide, with ESPN Star Sports broadcasting it live to some 33 countries, and ABS-CBN’s Studio 23 handling the free TV Philippine broadcast.

The main tournament consists of 128 players, who earn their spots through rankings or selection by the WPA and continental federations, or through the various qualifiers conducted by Raya. Assured of spots are the top 10 players in the WPA world-ranking system and the reigning world champions in all disciplines.

The competition format divides the 128 participants into 16 groups. Each group goes through a double elimination competition to determine four players who will qualify for the Round of 64. From there, the competition becomes a knockout affair in which players will compete in race-to-9 matches up to the final. The final will be a race-to-11 match.

Darren Appleton of Great Britain won the first World Ten Ball Championship by beating Wu Chia Ching at the PICC in October last year. He will defend his championship in Manila this November.

For further information on the WTBC visit the Raya website: www.rayasports.com.

Cerna is 2009 Philippine Juniors Champion

After three days of grueling competition, John Carlo Cerna of Pasay City emerged Sunday night from the field of 61 young Filipino cue artists to become the 2009 Philippine juniors pool champion.

Cerna took the crown by beating Zoren Bantayan of Quezon City, 11-7, in the exciting finale at the Star Billiards Center in Grace Village, Quezon City.

Cerna dominated early in the match, racing to a lead of 6-2. But Bantayan stormed back to close the count to 7-6.

Unfazed, Cerna bore down and answered straight back with a string of three racks. From there he coasted to the finish to take the title. He was undefeated throughout the three-day tournament, which attracted participants from all over the country.

The Philippine Juniors Pool Championship is held annually by the Billiards and Snooker Congress of the Philippines (BSCP) among players 19 years of age and below. The winner gets to represent the country in the yearly WPA World Juniors Championships organized by the World Pool Association (WPA).

Cerna, 19, became the third junior player to capture the prestigious title. Previous winners are Aristotle Mendoza (2007 champion) and Jerico Banares (2008 champion).

Besides taking the champion’s trophy, the pride of Pasay City also pocketed the top prize of P50,000 and earned an outright spot in the 2009 World Ten Ball Championship scheduled in November in Manila.

Victory was sweet for Cerna, who finally made it to the top after three tries. He finished runner-up to Banares last year.

In the semifinals Cerna bested Jonas Magpantay of Oriental Mindoro 9-6. Bantayan topped Jestoni Magadia of Quezon province 9-4 in the other semifinal.

In the battle for third place, Magadia beat Magpantay 9-4.

Billiards aficionados and tournament officials were one in observing the high level of play displayed by the teenage players in the competition.

“This year’s crop of players showed abundant talent and maturity in their games,” said tournament director Sol Gueco. “This proves that the BSCP program of developing young players and fostering more tournaments for them is starting to pay off.”

The 2009 World Juniors Championship will be held in Managua, Nicaragua on November 4-8.

3rd Philippine Juniors Pool Championship Kicks Off July 10

For the third year in a row, the Billiards and Snooker Congress of the Philippines (BSCP) will be holding the annual Philippine Juniors Pool Championship on July 10-12 at the Star Billiards Center in Quezon City .

The governing body for billiard sports in the country, the BSCP says it expects young players from all over the country to take part in the competition. It has mobilized billiards clubs to send representatives.

The event is open to all male players 19 years old and below. No entry fee is required. All interested participants, however, must submit a valid birth certificate to satisfy the age requirement.

Besides the highly coveted title of Philippine Junior Champion, the tournament this year offers an attractive prize fund of P140,000. The champion will receive P50,000 and the right to represent the country in the World Junior Pool Championship slated in the US in December.

The runner-up in the competition will get P25,000. Prizes will be given up to eighth place.

Previous winners of the Philippine Junior Pool Championship were Jerico Banares, 2008 champion who went on to place second in the world junior championship in Reno Nevada, and Macmac Mendoza, 2007 champion who represented the country in the 2007 championship in Germany.

Registration in the tournament is now ongoing. Interested participants may register at Star Billiards Center in Quezon City, tel. no. 3646041; BSCP secretary general Boying Santos-Viola at mobile no. 09215014550; or at Raya Sports, tel. 8952021.

For participants from the provinces, write and register with the tournament director, Mr. Sol Gueco. Email address: solgueco@rayasports.com.

See current World Pool Ranking at http://ping.fm/mZywY