WORLD No. 1 Dennis Orcollo manhandled archrival Yang Ching-shun, 9-1, in the semifinals and then subdued another Taiwanese, Wang Hng-shiang, 11-9, in the finals to rule the penultimate leg of the Guinness 9-Ball Tour 2008 on Sunday at the Garden Hotel in Guangzhou, China.

                The feat earned Orcollo, a stalwart of the star-studded Bugsy Promotions, the $15,000 (P705,000) top purse, and a slot in the Grand Finals from October 24 to 26 in Jakarta , where the champion will receive $36,000.

                “I’m very happy for this triumph, especially that I did it by beating players like Yang and Wang, who are among the best cue artists in the world,” said the 29-year-old Orcollo, whose campaign was also supported by the Billiards Managers and Players Association of the Philippines, Jebet Poker.com and Senate President Manny Villar’s Villards: Tulong sa Pagsulong ng Philippine Sports.

                Wang settled for the runner-up prize worth $6,000. He made it to the finals by edging former world champion and previous leg winner Alex Pagulayan, 9-8, in their Final Four match.

                Pagulayan fell short of winning his second consecutive leg but he also booked a slot in the Jakarta Grand Finals.

                With the match deadlocked at 8-all, Pagulayan, who won the previous leg in Singapore, had a golden opportunity to win as he had the break in the final rack.

                However, his break set up a bad lay-out on the two-ball and caused him to yield possession following a push shot. Wang then made a miraculous bank shot that pocketed the two-ball in the right corner pocket. Luck was simply on the side of the Taiwanese as he converted on an almost similar bank shot, this time on the five ball, before cleaning out the rack and clinching the first spot in the championship match of the six-city tour organized by ESPN STAR Sports.

                “I did my best, but sometimes the breaks don’t go your way,” said a visibly upset Pagulayan, who was penalized in the sixth rack for going over the 40-second shot clock. “I honestly did not hear the referee say that there were 10 seconds left so I took my time. If I wasn’t penalized, I would have probably been up 5-2 in the next rack instead of 4-3, but I can’t do anything about it anymore,” he lamented.

                Pagulayan settled for $3,500 (P164,500) for reaching the semifinals.

Rabeh, Eagles soar high

RABEH Al-Hussaini showed why he deserves the Most Valuable Player (MVP) trophy.

T-shirt business a hit in dream finals showdown

BEFORE the Blue Eagles and Green Archers buckled down to work inside the Araneta Coliseum, business went brisk outside the Big Dome hours before the big showdown.

Cardinals, Lions in do-or-die tiff

MAPUA tries to complete a mammoth upset and advance into its first finals appearance in 17 years as it goes up against defending champion and top seed San Beda in a do-or-die Final Four match in the 84th National Collegiate Athletic Association men’s basketball tournament today at the Cuneta Astrodome in Pasay City.

Orcollo pockets Guinness title

WORLD No. 1 Dennis Orcollo manhandled archrival Yang Ching-shun, 9-1, in the semifinals and then subdued another Taiwanese, Wang Hng-shiang, 11-9, in the finals to rule the penultimate leg of the Guinness 9-Ball Tour 2008 on Sunday at the Garden Hotel in Guangzhou, China.

Bleachers’ Brew: Behind the spotlight

AWAY from the glitz of the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) and the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), basketball isn’t all that crap that has turned the game into a slum book for Multiply or Facebook.