Filipino darters win 2012 Malaysian Open Darts Championship

Filipino darters are silently making a name for themselves in the international scene, as Team Neeson Philippines became champions in the team category, at the recently-concluded 2012 Malaysian Open Darts Championship at Johor, Malaysia, held from August 31 to September 2.

 

Team Neeson Philippines bested 350 participants from different countries including Singapore, Brunei Darussalam, Hong Kong, Thailand, India, Australia, South Korea, New Zealand, and host country Malaysia.

 

Composed of Lourence Ilagan, Alexei “Ally” Salazar, Jerry Salenga, and Glenn Brunno Parungao, Team Neeson Philippines now becomes eligible to play at the World Masters Tournament. 

 

Parungao also bagged the individual championship in the singles category, while Salenga finished at the eighth spot.

It is not the first time the Philippine bagged awards in the competition. In 2008, Ilagan placed second runner-up, while Ronald Arby Briones was declared champion in the singles category in 2010.

 

“Darts has been very popular among Filipinos, not only as a hobby, but also as a serious sport. With this championship, the Philippines showed it has great potential to compete among world class players,” said Rod Neeson, the team's Australian manager.

 

Aside from individual medals and a team trophy, Team Neeson Philippines also walked away with a check amounting to RM12,000 (PHP 161,846), which was awarded to them by Malaysian Deputy Information, Communications and Culture Minister Datuk Maglin Dennis D'Cruz

 

The Malaysian Open Darts Championship is the only internationally-sanctioned tournament in Malaysia offering World Darts Federation world ranking points. - RAF/AMD, GMA News