PH cue artists Corteza, Centeno cop Las Vegas 10-Ball crown
2024-Feb-26 08:21
2024-Jul-14 10:09
PHOTO: Predator Pro Billiard Series
Philippine billiards stood tall in Las Vegas.
Filipino cue artists dominated the Predator Pro Billiards Series after topping the men's and women's divisions at the Rio All-Suites Hotel and Casino on Saturday, February 24.
This was after Lee Van Corteza and Chezka Centeno emerged as champions of their respective competitions.
Corteza edged Carlo Biado in the all-Filipino finals showdown, 4-2, 4-3, to pocket the $30,000 (P1.7 million) grand prize, while the latter took home $14,000 (P783,000) as the runner-up.
The 2013 World Cup of Pool winner, alongside Dennis Orcullo, overcame Maximiano Martinez and Aloysius Yapp in the elimination stage before finding himself relegated in the playoff phase after absorbing a stinging loss to second-ranked Fedor Gorst of the United States of America, 2-1.
He found his way back to contention by churning out a 2-1 victory.
Then, Corteza defeated countryman Roland Garcia in Round of 32, 2-0, and the USA's Skyler Woodward in the Last 16, 2-1. The six-time Southeast Asian Games gold medalist took down Greece's Alex Kazakis in the quarterfinals, 2-0, before beating Chinese Taipei's Ko Ping Chung in the semifinals, 2-0.
For his part, Biado reached the championship round after fending off top-ranked Francisco Sanchez-Ruiz, 2-0. The 2017 World Games gold medalist first outgunned Chinese Taipei's Chang Jung-lin in the Round of 16, 2-0, which he followed with a 2-1 triumph over USA's Tyler Styer in the quarterfinals.
Centeno, on the other hand, completed an unbeaten run as she swept former world nine-ball champion and China's Chen Siming, 4-2, 4-2, in the finale to bag the $18,000 top prize or P1 million.
With the win, the 24-year-old Zamboanga City native claimed her second crown. Centeno ruled the 2023 World Pool-Billiard Association (WPA) World 10-Ball Championship last October.
RELATED STORY: PH cue artists Corteza, Centeno cop Las Vegas 10-Ball crown
On her way to the gold medal bout, Centeno scored impressive victories against famed names in women's billiards.
She surpassed former world champion and Austria's Jasmin Ouschan in the winner's qualification, 2-1, before turning back Hall of Famer and Great Britain's Allison Fisher in the Last 16, 2-0. Come the quarterfinals, Centeno faced an adversary in Chieh-Yu Chou of Chinese Taipei but still emerged triumphant, 2-1.
She surpassed former world champion and Austria's Jasmin Ouschan in the winner's qualification, 2-1, before turning back Hall of Famer and Great Britain's Allison Fisher in the Last 16, 2-0. Come the quarterfinals, Centeno faced an adversary in Chieh-Yu Chou of Chinese Taipei but still emerged triumphant, 2-1.
Completing Centeno's victim list were USA's Emilyn Callado in the eliminations, 2-0, and Korea Republic's Seoa Seo in the semis, 2-1.
Corteza, Biado, and Garcia will compete in the World 10-Ball Championships scheduled on February 27 to March 2, while Centeno proceeds to the PBS Women's Showdown on February 27 to March 1 – both to be held in the same venue in Las Vegas.