Back to all news

CORTEZA, ORCOLLO THROUGH TO SEMIS

April 21, 2007, Jakarta – Two Filipinos dominated day two of competition in Jakarta as they march onwards to the semi finals of the 2007 Guinness 9Ball Tour here at the glamorous Golden Ballroom of the Sultan Hotel.

Lee Van Corteza, the newly crowned National Champion of the Philippines defeated compatriot and undisputed WPA world pool champion Ronato Alcano, 9-8 to gain a semi-finals berth. Joining him in the semifinals is 2006 World Pool League Champion Dennis Orcollo who gained a semis ticket by decimating former two-time world pool champion Chao Fong-Pang, 9-5 in a spectacular showcase of wit and skill.

There is a catch however. Being bracketed in the same group, the two friends have no choice but to duel each other for a chance to go to the finals of the annual-nation hopping event and remain as the lone Filipino standing in the tournament.

Earlier in the day, the immense pressure to perform for Alcano and Corteza was apparent as both players struggled to find their form early on with uncharacteristic misses and tentative approaches of the table much to the surprise of the audience who were obviously expecting top-notch pool action from the two Filipino champions.

The very first rack actually produced unforced errors from Alcano and Corteza which is truly surprising given that the two players rank among the best in a country dubbed by Billiards digest as "the epicentre of world class pool." Alcano missed a relatively easy one ball opportunity on the corner pocket while Corteza did an amateurish cue ball slice on his first attempt for the match resulting in a foul and a gimme 1-9 combo for Alcano to draw first blood, 1-0.

However in the next rack it was Alcano this time who had trouble with his stroke. Cruising through the rack in what looked to be his first run, the Calamba based wizard miscued on his 9ball as it refused to go down the mouth of the corner pocket giving Corteza the chance to level the score at one rack a-piece.

A golden break in the third rack gave the Negros Billiard Stable (NBS) bet Corteza the advantage but it was a short lived lead as Alcano amazingly countered with his own golden break in the fourth, 2-2.

Dry breaks and errors off the break were of common occurrence throughout the rest of the race-to-nine competition. Then again, champions as they are, the two contestants found other ways to advance their scores. Alcano pulled off a fantastic 3-9 combo in the fifth rack while Corteza cleaned up the dry break of Alcano in the sixth to still have the score tied at three racks all. The man nicknamed "the volcano" then capitalized on a sorry miss by the Philippine Champion on the one side pocket attempt via a miraculous rail kick to set up a routine table clean up and reclaim the lead, 4-3.

However, when play resumed after the mandatory 5 minute break after the seventh rack, Corteza turned on his game face and managed to claim the next three racks with a table rout on the eighth boosted by a superb 1-9 carom combo in the ninth and a magnificent 5-9 combo in the tenth rack to have the 6-4 advantage.

Not wanting to be left behind, Alcano battled back to once again tie up the game at 8-8 to have another mouth watering hill-hill contest.

In the end however, lady luck was smiling on Corteza's side as he successfully sank the stubborn black eight at the deciding rack to pave the way to victory against Alcano, 9-8.

Though it was a heart breaking loss for Alcano, accepted his defeat and bowed down with grace and admiration for his friend and fellow Filipino.

Asked about how he thought the match went, Corteza replied: "In the tournament, everybody has an equal chance to take the championship because all of the players are very good. The difference on who will emerge on top is how you handle the pressure. I think I handled the pressure rather well and also I was a bit lucky since he (Alcano) was having trouble with his stroke."

Dennis Orcollo on the other hand, had a much easier time on his road towards the semifinals. Knowing that he was up against an experienced campaigner in the form of Chao Fong-Pang, the 2006 World Pool League champion wasted no time in building an early lead. Cool and calculated, Orcollo pocketed balls left and right and at the same time dished out incredible safety shots to give his Taiwanese rival a bitter time on the table.

With unforced errors and mental lapses emanating from Chao, it did not take long for Orcollo to claim victory as his opponent struggled to keep up with the Filipino's pace. Try as he might Chao never really got his game going as he succumbed to Orcollo 5 racks to 9.

Still, another Taiwanese was able to make it through to the next round. Wu Chia Ching continued his imperious romp in the tournament after trumping Singaporean Bernard Tey Choon Kiat, 9-6 in their quarters showdown.

Wu will try to defeat either Indonesian bet Jimmy Jusman or his countryman Chang Jung-Lin, who were still battling as of press time, in the semifinals.

Formerly the Asian 9-Ball Tour, the Guinness 9-Ball Tour has been made bigger and better for players and fans alike with the new partnership between ESPN STAR Sports and Guinness. Total prize money has doubled to US$320,000 (from US$160,000 from last year's tour) and the Tour will feature a grand final in Bali for the Top 10 players. Winners of each leg will win US$15,000 while the Grand Final Champion will walk away with US$36,000.

The Guinness 9-Ball Tour remains the only ranking tour in Asia for players to qualify for the WPA World Pool Championship. The top ten finishers in the Guinness 9-Ball Tour Order of Merit will automatically qualify for pool's most prestigious event, this year's edition slated for a second straight staging for Manila in November.

Telecast details:

Sat Apr 21
17:30 – 19:00 Jimmy Jusman (INA) vs Chang Jung Lin (TPE)

Sun Apr 22
12:00 - 16:30 Finals

All schedules in Hong Kong Time

Further information can be obtained at www.guinness9balltour.com

Back to all news