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Surging Towards The Finish Line

After a day of dramatic thrillers, Taiwan’s Chang Jun Lin leads the charge into the quarterfinals at the Kuwait Open 9-ball Championship. By Ted Lerner – WPA Press Officer Photos By Takayama Takao (Kuwait City)–With the biggest prize fund in 9-ball pool this year, the Kuwait Open 9-ball Championship predictably attracted as good a collection of the professional games’ best to this Gulf nation of just over 4 million people. And on the third and penultimate day of the sport’s newest event, all that talent and all that promise came to a dramatic head. It was a day that saw the game’s best engage in one epic battle after the next, with match after match taking unexpected twists, with many going right down to the very last rack, and even the very last ball. 64 players commenced battle at 10am, and when it was over close to midnight, eight warriors were left standing, ready for what surely will be a thrilling showdown to the finish on the final day Saturday. In one quarterfinal, surprise entrant […]

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Orcollo Pulls a Second Great Escape

The Philippines Dennis Orcollo wins his second straight 9-8 match in as many days to advance to the knockout stage of the 2015 World 10-ball Championship in General Santos City. By Ted Lerner/WPA Press Officer Photos Courtesy Dong Secuya/philboxing.com (General Santos City, Philippines)–Filipino pool players have a standard answer when asked by the media, “How did you play?” Even if they just played the greatest round of pool in the history of the sport, the comeback will invariably be a humble, “I’m just lucky.” World number 7 Dennis Orcollo is definitely not being humble today as he profusely thanks the pool gods for the good fortune he’s been the beneficiary of here in General Santos City in the southern Philippines. For the second straight day Orcollo pulled a great escape from what looked like sure defeat, winning 9-8 yet again, and advancing to the single elimination round of 64 at the 2015 World 10-ball Championship. Playing against Pampanga’s Roland Garcia, Orcollo looked to be cruising into the knockout stages with an 8-5 lead in the […]