FOURTH LEG GUINNESS 9-BALL TOUR

ROOMMATE ALCANO AND CORTEZA, 2 OTHERS
TRY TO SNAP RP'S TITLE DROUGHT IN GUINNESS TOUR TODAY

Roomates, reigning double world champion Ronato "Volcano "Alcano and 2nd BSCP National Championships ruler Lee Vann "The Slayer" Corteza along with two other Filipinos try to snap the Philippines' title drought in the 2007 Guinness 9-Ball Tour as they open their respective bids in the fifth and final leg of the $320,000 event at the Shanghai Hotel in Shanghai, China today, Friday Aug. 3 till Sunday Aug. 5.

The other Filipinos are 2007 Oslo, Norway Battle of Scandinavia 9-ball champion Roberto "Pinoy Superman" Gomez and 2006 Doha Asian games 9-ball silver medalist Jeffrey De Luna, who replaced 2004 Taiwan World 9-ball Champion and 2005 US Open 9-ball Champion Alex "The Lion" Pagulayan.

The 34-year-old Alcano, who is fighting rape and child abuse cases filed against him by his teenage daughter before the Quezon City Prosecutors Office, is the only Filipino in the field who is assured a slot in the Grand Finale on August 31 to September 2 in Bali, Indonesia. He has compiled 110 points after the four city leg.

"I will do my very best for my flag and country, I'll hope in this last leg na manalo ako okaya kapwa Pilipino." said Alcano, in an exclusive interview with this writer at the Bugsy headquarters in Quezon City last Tuesday.

Alcano, comment on the rape and child abuse charges filed against him by his teenage daughter, "Matatapos din yan eh, pero s'yempre apektado tayo." Alcano has never won any major tournament since the cases were filed while the 2nd BSCP National Championships was on-going last March at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium.

Meanwhile, Alcano's roommate Corteza, the 28-year-old top ace of Negros Billiard Stable (NBS) is eyeing to advance in the Grand Finale by accumulating a total of 80 points in the tournament.

"Kailangan kong makapasok sa semis sa Shanghai leg para makatiyak ako sa top 10 tungo sa Grand Finals sa Bali, 120 points ang kailangan para makasiguro sa top 10." Corteza said in a separate interview last Tuesday, fresh from a third place finish in the 2007 Cebu 9-ball challenge last Sunday which was won by Alex Pagulayan.

After the Shanghai leg, both Alcano and Corteza will also carry the country's colors when the 2007 US$50,000 winner-take all dubbed as International Challenge of Champions gets underway on August 9 to 10 at the Mohegan Suns Casino in Uncasville, Connecticut in USA.

In last year's edition, the Philippines swept the four legs of the San Miguel Asian 9-Ball Tour behind pool maestro Efren "Bata" Reyes, who won twice, and countrymen Rodolfo Luat and Ramil Gallego who took one leg each.

Up for grabs in the Shanghai tourney is a total prize purse of $50,000 as well as points to qualify for the Tour's Grand Finals in Bali on Aug. 31-Sept. 2, which will feature the top 10 players in the overall Order of Merit. Winners of each leg receive $15,000 while the grand champion will pocket $36,000 in the three-day, annual nation-hopping event organized by ESPN STAR Sports, Asia's number one sports broadcaster.

Taiwanese Chang Jung-lin topped this year's inaugural Jakarta leg on April 20-22 and also ruled the third leg in Genting Highlands in Malaysia on June 15-17. Another Taiwanese, Yang Ching-shun, topped the second leg in Kaohsiung on May 18-20 and the fourth leg in Singapore last July 13-15.

(Report from MARLON BERNARDINO)