Day of Surprises and Stunning Pool

Above: Dang Jin Hu and Lee Van Corteza

DAY TWO was a day of surprises and stunning pool. And none was more surprising and stunning than the feat of Lee Van Corteza of the Philippines.

To the disbelief of the sizable crowd that expected a thriller down to the finish, Corteza completely shut out Asian money-game king and much-feared Yang Ching-Shun of Chinese-Taipei, 9-0, to move into the round of 64.

Corteza’s play was absolute perfection. His game plan was simple – to keep his opponent on his seat and never allow him to get going.

Although Yang won the lag and was the first one to break, he couldn’t get a good opening. This opened the way for Corteza to rack up quickly to a 3-0 lead.

When the match turned into a battle of safety shots in the fourth rack, it was Corteza who again prevailed. And that became the theme throughout the match.

“I’ve played Yang several times over the years,” said Corteza, many times a gold medalist in the Southeast Asian Games. “But this is the only time that I caught him on a bad day. But that’s the game of pool. Even the best sometimes run out of luck -- and lose.”

The second big surprise Thursday was Dang Jin Hu of China, who made it to the main draw as a first alternate from the qualifiers. On Day One, he took down double-world champion Ronnie Alcano, leaving many in disbelief. On Day Two, he got them believing and a little awed. This time, he took down two-time world champion Johnny Archer of the United States, 9-5.

The third big surprise was Hayato Hijikata’s smooth and easy victory over Mika Immonen of Finland, the hottest player in international pool this year and the leading money winner. Hijikata led their match from the start and never allowed his formidable opponent to get untracked. When the smoke of battle cleared, the Japanese had prevailed by the score of 9-6.

Corteza, Dang and Hijikata head the cast of notables who earned entry into the round of 64, which include defending champion Darren Appleton, Niels Feijen, Dennis Orcullo and Antonio Gabica.

Appleton coasted to the next level trouble free with a 9-2 win over MB Alias of Brunei.

“Six more wins to defend the title,” Appleton boldly declared in an interview after the match.

Appleton, who vowed to prove to everyone that his title conquest last year was no fluke, dominated the game from start to finish.

“I think for a first timer, he seems OK,” said Appleton, referring to his rival from Brunei. “He had some good shots, but he had rookie jitters as well. I feel more comfortable now, but there’s a lot pressure building up game by game.”

Also sailing through to the next round was Dennis Orcullo. The man who ruled the Predator 10-Ball International Championship this year beat Thomas Kaplan, the man who beat the top seed of the WTBC. Orcullo prevailed 9-6.

Many were impressed by Orcullo’s play, except the player himself.

“I struggled in my first two games,” said Orcullo, referring to his two victories. “I’m still adjusting to the competition, particularly the table that we’re using. But I will get used to it.”

Other double winners and early entrants into the round of 64 were: Kuo Po-Cheng of Chinese Taipei, Kenny Kwok of Hong Kong, world junior champion Ruslan Chinakhov of Russia, Yukio Akakariyama of Japan, and Ernesto Dominguez of Mexico.

Kuo had a relatively easy time against Filipino Mario Tolentino, as he disposed of him by the score of 9-4.

Kwok stunned Nick van den Berg of the Netherlands, 9-3; Chinakhov shot down former straight pool champion Oliver Ortmann of Germany, 9-4; Akakariyama nipped Serge Das of Belgium, 9-7; and Dominguez surprised 2007 world 9-ball champion Daryl Peach, 9-5.

Also advancing were Neils Feijen of the Netherlands, who whipped Chang Pei-Wei of Chinese-Taipei, 9-5; Naoyuki Ooi, who nipped Vincent Facquet of France, 9-8; Ignacio Chavez, who won over Nguyen Anh Tuan of Vietnam, 9-5; Fu Jian Bo of China, who nosed out Marcus Chamat of Sweden, 9-8; Imran Majid, who defeated David Alcaide of Spain, 9-5; Li Hewen of China, who outlasted Jomar de Ocampo, 9-6; and Mario He of Austria, who subdued Mehmet Cankurt, 9-3.

While the big guns and surprise entries have already secured seats in the round-of-64, a highly-touted player crashed out of the tournament early – former US Open champion Shane Van Boening of the United States.

Van Boening lost to Konstantin Stepanov of Russia, 6-9, a day after losing his opening match against Nguyen Anh Tuan of Vietnam, 8-9.

Demosthenes Pulpul, a semifinalist in the first WTBC, exited early this time, falling to fellow Filipino Ronnie Alcano (9-5), who was also fighting for his life in the tournament.

Action continues this Friday, with Alcano and many other players fighting on to stay in contention for the world championship. Day Three is called Judgment Day because the cast of the Last 64 will be fully decided. It’s win-or-go home for all players sporting 1-win-1-loss records.

Souquet, Alcano Upset in Opening Round

Above: Ralf Souquet and Ronnie Alcano

WINNING a third world title has become an uphill challenge for Ralf Souquet of Germany and Ronnie Alcano of the Philippines.

They learned this quickly on Day One of the World Ten Ball Championship as they suffered stinging setbacks against their respective foes at the World Trade Center. The two top guns in the tournament are now in a win-or-go-home situation in their loser’s bracket matches on Thursday, November 26.

It was Thomasz Kaplan of Poland who delivered the stunning blow against Souquet. Down 2-6, the Polish cue artist crept his way back into the contest, leveled the score at 6-6, and then stormed ahead to victory.

Kaplan racked up seven straight games to advance to the winner’s bracket of Group A in the WTBC.

“We’re in a group where anybody can beat anybody,” said Souquet, who is still confident of his chances of going to the next level. “It could happen even to the best players out there. He was composed in coming back. I knew he’s capable of winning because I’ve faced him in the European circuit.”

Alcano, world 9-ball champion in 2006 and world 8-ball champion in 2007, was similarly shocked in his triple-crown bid by a player who made it to the main tournament via the tough qualifying stage – Dang Jin Hu of China.

Dang dictated the match early, then held off Alcano in the endgame before prevailing, 9-7.

“That’s just the way it is. Only one man should win, not two,” said Alcano, who accidentally sank the orange No.5 ball on a different corner while trailing 8-7.

His Chinese rival quickly took advantage and went for the kill, sending the favored Filipino cue artist to the brink of elimination.

The prize of staying in the hunt for an ambitious third world title resumes Thursday for Alcano, who will next face compatriot Demosthenes Pulpul in a knockout match.

Pulpul, last year’s surprise semifinalist, lost to two-time world champion Johnny Archer of the United States, 7-9.

Pulpul also had tough luck, missing several shots that he made during his miraculous run to the Final Four last year.

“I missed three important shots. For seven games, I couldn’t get a good opening,” said Pulpul.

Pulpul’s crucial error happened in the 15^th rack while trying to shatter the game’s final deadlock at 7-7. He scratched the cue ball, allowing Archer to finish off the match.

In another upset, Nguyen Anh Tuan of Vietnam defeated former US Open champion Shane van Boening of the US in a hill-hill encounter, 9-8.

Another victim of the upset ax was world No.7 Jeff de Luna, who lost to Mehmet Cankurt of Turkey, 9-5.

While some Filipinos lost their matches, most others in the field finished off their first-round opponents. One such was Jomar de Ocampo, a player who entered the WTBC main draw via an exhausting qualifying stage. He came from behind to nip highly-touted Wang Hung-Hsiang of Chinese-Taipei, 9-8. It was sweet victory for De Ocampo, who had to battle back from 4-8 down before pulling off an upset win.

Dennis Orcullo had an easier time beating fellow Pinoy Steve Villamil, 9-6.

Defending champion Darren Appleton of Great Britain was a picture of focus in his game against Tey Choon Kiat of Singapore. The British ace won, 9-5, and appears set to advance to the round of 64.

“I feel good. I hope I feel better in Thursday’s game,” said Appleton, who ruled last year’s event at the Philippine International Convention Center.

The pride of the Netherlands --Neils Feijen and Nick van den Berg – also served notice of their title aspirations and made short work of their respective rivals.

Feijen, ranked No. 3 in the world, scuttled Scott Higgins of Great Britain, 9-1, to quickly enter the winner’s bracket. Van den Berg had a similar victory over Kim Wong Dae of Korea, 9-1, to join his compatriot in the winner’s bracket.

Chinese-Taipei’s Kuo Po Cheng outplayed Matjaz Erculz of Slovenia, 9-4.

Other opening day winners were: Mario Tolentino of the Philippines over Roman Hybler of Czech Republic (9-8); Kenny Kwok of Hong Kong over Ben Nunan of Australia (9-6); MB Alias of Brunei over Martin Kempter of Austria (9-8); Chang Pei-Wei of Chinese-Taipei over Elvis Calasang of the Philippines (9-3); Naoyuki Ooi of Japan over Allan Cuartero of the Philippines (9-5); Vincent Facquet of France over Christopher Feintjes of Germany (9-3); Ruslan Chinakhov of Russia over Han Hao Xiang of China (9-8); Oliver Ortmann of Germany over Ibrahim Bin Amir of Malaysia (9-1); Hayao Hijikata of Japan over Ricardo Jones of Great Britain (9-4); Mika Immonen of Finland over Basher Hussain of Qatar (9-1); Ignacio Chavez of Mexico Konstantin Stepanov of Russia (9-4); Yukio Akakariyama of Japan over Marko Vogel of Germany (9-8); Serge Das of Belgium over Tyler Edey of Canada (9-6); Marcus Chamat of Sweden over Bahram Lofty of Denmark (9-3); Imran Majid of Great Britain over Frailin Guanica of Venezuela (9-6); David Alcaide over Emil Martinez of the Philippines (9-3); Li Hewen of China over Jalal Youse of Venezuela (9-7); Mario He of Austria over Toh Lian Han of Singapore (9-8); Karl Boyes of Great Britain over Raymond Cruz of Canada (9-4); Cheng Tsung-Hua of Chinese-Taipei over Abdulah Fawal of Qatar (9-2); Daryl Peach of Great Britain over Lee Po Soon of Malaysia (9-8); Lee Van Corteza of the Philippines over Vegar Kristiansen of Norway (9-4); Yang Ching-Shun of Chinese-Taipei over Andreas Koukiadakis of Greece (9-4); Alain Martel of Canada over Phil Stojanovic of Croatia (9-4); Jericho Banares of the Philippines over compatriot Jundel Mazon (9-6); Jeong Young Hwa of Korea over Sandor Tot of Serbia (9-5); Bruno Muratore of Italy over Shaun Wilke of USA (9-4); Antonio Gabica of the Philippines over Ralf Mund of Germany (9-2); Oscar Dominguez of the USA over Kazuo Furuta of Japan (9-4); Wang Ming of China over Widi Harsoyo of Indonesia (9-7); Cheng Yu Lung of Chinese-Taipei over Ramil Gallego of the Philippines (9-8); Craig Osborne of Great Britain over Rashid Al Mari of Qatar (9-1); and Marlon Manalo of the Philippines over Stevie Moore of the USA (9-4).

Philippine Pool Ends Row

Above: BSCP Chairman Yen Makabenta and Bugsy Promotions President Perry Mariano

BSCP Vice President Edgar Acaba delivered the right adage on the right occasion to set things right in Philippine pool.

“United we stand, divided we fall,” said Acaba during the press conference of the World Ten Ball Championship (WTBC) Tuesday at the Heritage Hotel.

Those six words spiked by the prodding of emcee Ted Lerner officially ended a near two-year standoff in Philippine billiards that has divided the local pool community.

BSCP chairman Yen Makabenta and Bugsy Promotions President Perry Mariano, two of the key figures in the row, sealed it with a handshake in front of some of the biggest names in pool and a horde of sportswriters and photographers.

For Makabenta, communication was the key.

“We never stopped talking to each other to resolve the issues,” said Makabenta, also the chairman of Raya Sports.

Mariano for his part said, “It’s for the benefit of the players that we end this misunderstanding.”

It’s a huge moment in Philippine pool and a big shot in the arm for the WTBC. The unification gives top players like double world champion Ronnie Alcano, Dennis Orcullo and Lee Vann Corteza a chance to compete in the world stage. They now join the likes of Asian Games gold medalist Antonio Gabica, Marlon Manalo and Jeffrey de Luna in carrying the colors of the country in the only world pool championship this year.

German Ralf Souquet, the event’s top seed and current world No. 1 in the WPA rankings, thinks that this year’s WTBC is one of the toughest tournaments to win in history.

“The field is very deep especially with the top Filipino players competing,” said Souquet, who is also the reigning world 8-ball champ.

Orcullo, whose world ranking plummeted from No. 1 to never mind because of the standoff, couldn’t hide his excitement.

“I’m very happy because I can play again in the world championship,” said Orcullo.

Orcullo and Marlon Manalo are widely considered as the best players in the world without a world title.

Deeper, Better WTBC Gets Underway

Above: The World Ten Ball presscon

DEFENDING champion Darren Appleton of Great Britain believes a win in the 2^nd World Ten Ball Championship (WTBC) will be sweeter the second time around.

“I’m not saying that last year was not great. I just think that the competition this year will be up by another level,” he said.

World’s top ranked player Ralf Souquet of Germany goes to the extreme.

“This could be the best-ever field in world championship history,” said Souquet, who is gunning for pool’s version of the Triple Crown. He is the 1996 world champion in 9-ball and the reigning world champ in 8-ball.

Souquet and Appleton are the top two seeds in the WTBC, which unfolds with the group stages on Wednesday at the World Trade Center in Manila. Souquet will face Thomasz Kaplan of Poland in Group A while Appleton will play Tey Choon Kiat of Singapore in Group B in the first round.

The 128 players in the main draw are divided into 16 groups headed by the top seeds based on the World Pool-Billiard Association (WPBA) ranking.

In order, they are Souquet, Appleton, Niels Feijen of the Netherlands, Mika Immonen of Finland, Shane Van Boening of the United States, Marcus Chamat of Sweden, Jeffrey De Luna, Demosthenes Pulpul, Daryl Peach of Great Britain, Jerico Banares, Ko Pin-yi of Chinese Taipei, Marlon Manalo, Charlie Williams of the United States, Radoslaw Babica of Poland and Lu Hui-chan and Fu Che-wei of Chinese Taipei.

The first phase of the tournament will be double elimination with the four survivors from each group advancing to the next round. With only eight players per group, two wins are enough to move on.

The Last 64 will be single elimination. Loser goes home.

Chances are there will be a lot of Filipinos in the knockout round. There are 20 of them in the group stage – Dennis Orcollo and Steve Villamil in Group A, Allan Cuartero in Group C, Emil Martinez in Group F, De Luna and Jomar De Ocampo in Group G, Pulpul and Ronnie Alcano in Group H, Lee Vann Corteza in Group I, Banares and Jundel Mazon in Group J, Antonio Gabica in Group K, Manalo and Ramil Gallego in Group L, Roberto Gomez in Group M, Warren Kiamco and Michael Feliciano in Group N, Carlo Biado and Antonio Lining in Group O, and Victor Arpilleda in Group P.

Pulpul, a semifinalist and the best Filipino finisher in last year’s WTBC, will face tough opposition to make it to the knockout round.

The luck of the draw, or his lack of it, pits him against former world 9-ball champ and many-time US Open winner Johnny Archer of the United States in the first round of Group H.

If he wins, he will be up against the winner between two-time world champion Ronnie Alcano and Chinese Dang Jin-hu. If he loses, he will face the loser between Alcano and Dang in a knockout match.

Pulpul’s group also includes 2007 World Pool Championship semifinalist Karl Boyes of Great Britain and Taiwanese Cheng Tsung-Hua.

De Luna, the top ranked Filipino in the field at seventh, will have an easier time as he goes up against Mehmet Cankurt of Turkey in the first round of Group G.

His group also includes De Ocampo, who will first meet Wang Hung-Hsiang of Chinese Taipei.

Orcullo, arguably the best player in the world without a major tournament title, opens his bid against Villamil in Group A. A win will set him up for a potential showdown against Souquet.

There will also be an all-Filipino affair in the opening round of Group J with Banares taking on Mazon.

Manalo, another marquee player without a major title, tackles American Stevie Moore in the first round of Group L. Waiting for him in the next round is either former world champion Thorsten Hohmann of Germany or Ryu Seung Woo of Korea.

Gallego is on the other half of the draw in Group L. His first assignment will be Chang Yu-Lung of Chinese Taipei.

The other first round matches involving Filipinos pit Cuartero against Naoyuki Ooi of Japan in Group C, Martinez against David Alcaide of Spain in Group F, Corteza against Vegar Kristiansen of Norway in Group I, Gabica against Ralf Mund of Germany in Group K, Gomez against Alphonse Hoge of South Africa in Group M, Kiamco against Phil Burford of Great Britain and Feliciano against Rafael Guzman of Spain in Group N, Lining against Lu Hui-chan of Chinese Taipei and Biado against Liu Haitao of China in Group O, and Arpilleda against Kasper Kristoffersen of Denmark in Group P.

While the locals have the numbers, the visitors have the titles.

All four of the world championships in pool belong to European players. Peach holds the world 9-ball title while Feijen is the current world straight pool champ. And Appleton and Souquet own the world 10-ball and 8-ball crowns, respectively.

But none of them is hotter than Immonen.

The player called the “Iceman” because of his cool demeanor recently won his second straight US Open title. He also ruled two other international tournaments this year.

Immonen may prove too much for Basher Hussain of Qatar in the opening round of Group D.

Peach is heavily favored against Lee Poh Soon of Malaysia in the opener of Group I. Feijen, however, is expected to have his hands full against former snooker ace Scott Higgins of Great Britain in Group C.

Also fancied to advance are usual suspects Kuo Po-cheng of Chinese Taipei from Group A, Nick van den Berg of the Netherlands from Group B, Chang Pei-Wei of Chinese Taipei from Group C, Oliver Ortmann of Germany from Group D, Yang Ching-Shun of Chinese Taipei from Group I, Ricky Yang of Indonesia from Group M, Corey Deuel of the United States from Group N, and Thomas Engert of Germany from Group P.