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ANTONIO Gabica continued his mastery of Marlon Manalo, 13-8, to
capture the title in the Mandaluyong Mayor’s Cup 10-Ball
Championship Sunday at the Mandaluyong City Hall Auditorium.
Gabica also took the measure of Manalo in the
Billiards and Snooker Congress of the Philippines qualifying
tournaments for the Guinness 9-Ball Tour and the World 8-Ball
Championship early this year.
His effort earned him the top prize $10,000 and
a slot for this year’s World 10-Ball Championship.
The Cebuano raced to a 5-2 lead and kept
Mandaluyong’s proud son at bay most of the way.
Manalo closed to within 8-9, but Gabica finished
him off with a four-rack cluster.
Earlier, Manalo stopped the surging Leonardo
“Dodong” Andam, 11-7, while Gabica ended the Cinderella run of
teenager Jericho Banares, 11-3.
Both were undefeated on their way to the
race-to-13 finals.
Gabica’s other wins came against Richard Rollo,
9-5, Silverio Tulabing, 9-4, Courtent Symons of England, 9-4, and
Tomoo Takano of Japan, 9-4. Manalo, meanwhile, also beat Luis
Saberdo, 9-6, James Al Ortega, 9-7, Gerald Carbonera, 9-4, and Allan
Soliman, 9-5.
Andam, who lost his first match in the
tournament presented by San Miguel Beer, bested Chien-te Chung of
Taiwan, 9-2, and Mario Tolentino, 9-7, to book a seat in the semis
while the 18-year-old Banares downed Leonardo Didal, 9-7, and former
world champion Thorsten Hohmann of Germany, 9-4.
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