Ronnie Alcano wins Louisiana 9 Ball event
Ronnie Alcano is in fine form in the lead-up to the U.S. Open 9 Ball Championship as evidenced by a dominant victory in the Championship Cloth Annual Pro Classic 9 Ball event over the weekend.
The Calamba, Laguna, native, nicknamed "The Volcano" took out Robb Saez 11-7 in the final to bank the US$3,300 first prize in Emerald Billiards in New Iberia, Louisiana.
The 2006 world champion came from the loser's bracket to triumph over a tough field to win the title, defeating Francisco Bustamante, another Pinoy in Israel Rota, Americans Mike Davis, Shane Van Boening, and Charlie Williams, as well as 18-year old Chinese wunderkind Wang Can, and German pro Ralph Eckert.
The 39-year-old Alcano is known for his fluid, loose stroke that is the hallmark of the Pinoy player.
In the final Alcano and Saez were tied 5-5 when Saez put in a 5-7 combination. But under the tournament rules, the combo should have been called but was not, and Alcano gained control of the table.
Alcano seized the momentum and never looked back, cruising to victory.
Alcano is most famous for winning the 2006 World 9 Ball championship in Manila, defeating Germany's Ralf Soquet in the final. He also went on to win the 8 Ball world title the next year, to match the feat of Taiwan-born Wu Jia Qing ( Wu Chia Ching) who also held both 8 and 9 Ball crowns at the same time in 2005.
The tournament was a ranking event in the Association of Billiards Professionals, or ABP. It was held side-by-side with the Ozone Billiards US Amateur Open and was produced by Charlie Williams' Dragon Promotions. The event was co-sponsored by Predator Cues, its subsidiary Poison Cues, Aramith Balls, and Pool and Billiard magazine.
Van Boening was eliminated by Alcano in the loser's bracket but apparently he wasn't that bothered: he sponsored the Filipino in the event and will likely take a cut of Alcano's winnings.
Van Boening, a former U.S. Open champ, took the 10 Ball side of the tournament, beating Johnny Archer in the final.
The event is a lead-up to the U.S. Open 9 Ball in Chesapeake, Virginia that is just underway.
A very strong Pinoy contingent is taking part, with Alcano, Bustamante, Efren Reyes, Dennis Orcollo, Carlo Biado, Alex Pagulayan, Rota, Santos Sambajon, and the red-hot Warren Kiamco all trying their luck.
Kiamco has won three events, the Houston Open, the Johnny Archer Classic, and a Predator Tour stop in New York.
Only two Pinoys, Reyes and Pagulayan, have won the U.S. Open 9 Ball, with three other Pinoys, Alcano, Amang Parica, and Rodolfo Luat all falling in the final match.
Reyes has also lost a final in Chesapeake as has Pagulayan, when he fell to Souquet. Alcano has lost two finals in a row, like Parica.
The two-time defending champion is Darren Appleton, the current world 9 Ball champ.
We hope to bring you updates from Chesapeake right here on the Passionate Fan.
You can follow Dragon Promotions on its website, www.dragonpromotions.com. Or follow Dragon Promotions on Facebook, www.facebook.com/dragonpromotionsnews.
You can follow Bob on Twitter @bhobg333.
Editor's note: The blogger's views do not represent Yahoo! Southeast Asia's position on the topic or issue being discussed in this post.
More Yahoo! PH Sports blogs:
Despite Banal's loss, ALA Promotions a big winner in Pinoy Pride
