Philippine Open Pool: Indonesian Rachmanto secures Qualifier No. 8

For two straight nights, Yoni Rachmanto of Indonesia was knocking on the door of the main draw of the Philippine Open Pool Championship. Early Monday morning, he finally got what he wanted. Rachmanto drubbed Filipino Jephtah Palencia, 9-5, in a marathon finals encounter that lasted for over two hours at the Star Billiards Center. The two players disputed Qualifier No. 8 before the clock struck at 11 p.m. Sunday. The match ended past 1 a.m. on Monday. But for Rachmanto, it was worth the wait. Denied of an opportunity to make it to Stage 2 late Saturday night by his compatriot, Mohamad Zulfikri, Rachmanto was able to vent his ire on the Filipino cue artist, who couldn’t pounce on several lapses of his Indonesian rival. Perhaps the worst among the miscues made by Palencia was when he missed the No. 10 ball of the 12th rack at the height of his rally. That missed shot was costly as it pushed the Indonesian towards the brink of wrapping up the match, 8-4. Still, Palencia was given another chance when Rachmanto missed an easy shot on No. 4 at the corner. The Filipino was able to clean up the table for an 8-5 count in favor of the Indonesian. Off a dry break in the 14th, Palencia saw another opportunity when Rachmanto was called for a foul. The Filipino player was able to develop some sort of momentum, but he scratched while taking on No. 4. The Indonesian finished it off for the final tally. Action in the Philippine Open Pool Championships resumes Monday at the Star Billiards Center as players from the men and women’s division dispute the last two seats for the qualifying stage. Qualifiers No. 9 and 10 are up for grabs in the morning and afternoon matches of the men’s category, while the third and fourth spots are on the line for the lady players. - KY, Rey Joble, GMA News