Top honours for Centeno, Ko at Asian pool tourney

Wielding a beautiful blend of power, positional play and patience, 2015 world champion Ko Pin-yi is now the inaugural Asian 9-Ball Open men's champion.

About 200 spectators were treated to world-class pool action yesterday at the Aspire Recreation Centre at HarbourFront Centre as the Taiwanese world No. 61 beat Filipino James Aranas 13-11 to pick up the winner's cheque of $10,000. Runner-up Aranas took home $5,000.

Ko's delight was evident as he shouted "Yes!" after potting the final 9-ball.

The 33-year-old told The Straits Times: "Of course, there is pressure during the final for me to find a way back. But I don't feel the pressure from the former world champion tag. I treat every event as a stage to perform and enjoy.

"Every title means something to me and I'm very happy to be the first to win this tournament. Because of the Covid-19 pandemic, I have not played in Asia for three years, so this is something special."

In the final, world No. 101 Aranas won the lag to break first but did not have a clear shot at the 2-ball and after trading safety shots, Ko found an opening to clear the table.

With the alternate-break, first-to-13 format, Aranas did not capitulate but went on to run out on his next four breaks to keep the pressure on his more illustrious opponent, who missed a jump shot on the eighth rack as Aranas made it 4-4.

Both players showed tremendous composure, and it seemed Ko blinked first when he left the 4-ball hanging at the pocket in the 14th rack, but Aranas shockingly missed the easy shot and the opportunity to take a two-frame lead.

They continued to win on their break until the 21st rack when, with the score at 10-10, Aranas played a poor 1-8 combination and scratched on his next shot to hand the initiative to Ko, who went error-free to seal the win.

Aranas, 30, rued that fatal fault. He said: "It was a great match, but the 1-8 cost me the match. I hit it too hard and left myself hooked. But the way I played gives me confidence I can achieve greater things in my pool career."

In the women's competition, the Philippines' former pool prodigy Chezka Centeno beat 71st-ranked South Korean Seo Seoa 11-7 to become the first female champion.

Despite suffering an opening-round 7-6 loss to Singapore's Jessica Tan, who lost to Seo in the round of 16, Centeno fought through the losers' bracket to reach the knockout rounds.

Centeno, the sixth of seven children, picked up billiards when she was five, started playing tournaments from eight and finished third at the Philippine National Games when she was 11. At the 2015 SEA Games, she was just 15 when she won the 9-ball singles. She has since added three more golds and two silvers in the 9-ball and 10-ball in subsequent Games.

After coming back from 4-0 down to overcome Seo yesterday, Centeno, 23, said: "I feel so lucky, excited and proud to win my first international title since the pandemic. There is no secret, just three or four hours of practice every day and focus.

"I prefer 10-ball to 9-ball because it is more challenging. This is a big confidence boost for my ambitions to become 10-ball world champion one day."