San Miguel Asian 9-Ball Tour: Filipinos Dominate First Day of Competition

San Miguel Asian 9-Ball Tour: Filipinos Dominate First Day of CompetitionFilipinos dominated the first day of competition as all five players barged into the quarterfinals of the kickoff leg of the 2005 San Miguel Asian 9 Ball Tour at the Suntec Exhibition Hall. Defending champion Efren “Bata” Reyes led the Philippine onslaught as he defeated Vu Trong Khai of Vietnam 9–5. The 50-year old Reyes started off quickly as he established a 5–1 lead from the opening break.Second-ranked Francisco “Django” Bustamante and Antonio Gabica also made it to the final eight as they trounced separate opponents in the second round of the qualifying round. Bustamante pounded Nguyen Thanh Ham of Vietnam 9–2 and set up a meeting with Yang Ching Shun of Chinese Taipei on Saturday. Yang nipped Manan Chandra of India 9–7.
Gabica likewise nailed a quarterfinal berth with a 9–2 triumph over Toh Lian Han of Singapore. Gabica’s victory set up an all-Filipino meeting against Reyes. Interestingly, Gabica defeated Reyes in the P1-million Hope billiards championship, but he’s not about to let his guard down in the quest for the $10,000 leg winner’s prize. ``I had beaten him in Manila, but it’s going to be an entirely different story here. I just hope to keep on winning,’’ said Gabica.Two other Filipinos, Lee Van Corteza and Gandy Valle, carved out nail-biting come-from-behind victories, making it five for five for the Philippines. Corteza trailed 4–6 but showed tremendous toughness down the stretch as he edged Satoshi Kawabata of Japan 9–8. Valle likewise managed an escape act as he prevailed over William Ang Boon Lay 9–8. Valle capitalized on the Korean’s critical miscue in the 17th rack to close out the match. It was also a day of firsts as local bet Chan Keng Kwang became the first ever Singaporean to make it to the quarterfinals. Chan made history as he bounced Alok Kumar of India 9–2. He will next meet 16-year-old Wu Chia Ching. Ching upset fellow Taiwanese and 2000 World Pool champion Chao Fong Pang 9–8. After Singapore, the next stops of the 9-ball tour will be Jakarta, Kaohsiung, and Manila. The top ten players on the Tour Order of Merit qualify into the World Professional Pool Championships.Visit InsidePOOL for the latest news on the San Miguel 9-Ball Tour.

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