Filipino cue artists are finding the Taiwanese such a pain in the necks. In the recent grand finals of the 2008 Guinness 9-Ball Tour, the Taiwanese booted out the likes of Dennis Orcullo and Alex Pagulayan in the semifinals.
Current world No. 1 Dennis Orcullo, the Guanzhou leg champion, fell apart after the 13th rack to bow out of contention, beaten by Yan Ching Shun, 5-9. Pagulayan, who dominated the Singapore leg, fell 1-4 early in the game, worked his way to make it 6-8 but succumbed to 2004 World Pool champion Wu Chia Ching, 6-9.
This must have been a bitter loss for Orcullo as he vowed to make up after the stinging semis loss, he and Django Bustamante, suffered to eventual champs the US in the 2008 Party Pooker World Cup of Pool.
Yang ultimately won the grand finals, beating Wu, 11-9. With Yang’s triumph, the Philippines and Taiwan are now even-steven, 13-13, in titles won since the Guinness 9-Ball tournament started in 2003.
Orcullo and Pagulayan were in breathing fire in the quarterfinals as they routed their respective rivals. In between laying out my pages, I would peek and looked at the scores, and they were miles apart.
It was fast shaping up to be an All-Filipino finale but the Taiwanese spoiled the party. What I couldn’t understand is the sudden change in the games of Orcullo and Pagulayan - from almost perfect to mediocre. Or is billiards that unpredictable?
Orcullo and Pagulayan weren’t alone. Over at the US 9-Ball Open, Ronnie Alcano had his misfortunes as well. Alcano cruised into the finals, undefeated, and was the favorite to wrap up the crown until he lost to Finland’s Mika Immonen, 13-7.
Immonen came from the loser’s bracket, having absorbed an 11-6 beating from Alcano in the semis. On his way to the final, he beat another Filipino Warren Kiamco. The Finn more than made up for his earlier defeat by beating Alcano in the most important game, relegating Alcano to his second runner-up finish in the US Open.
All of a sudden, I’m missing the Magician. The last time I heard, Efren “Bata” Reyes has to skip the US 9-Ball Open due to health reasons. Let’s hope that he gets well soon and back in harness again.
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