FILIPINO Dennis “Robocop” Orcollo advanced to the Last 32 of the $275,000 China Open 9-ball Championships after scoring two emphatic victories on Thursday at the Shanghai Pudong Yuanshen Stadium in Shanghai, China.
Orcollo, the reigning World Pool-Billiard Association 8-ball champion, routed Zhao Feng Bang of China, 9-2 and Singaporean Chan Kweng Kwang, 9-4 to lead Group A.
A total of 64 men and 48 women are competing in the annual event, which is a WPA ranking tournament.
The men have been divided into eight groups of eight while the women have been put into six groups of eight. They play a double elimination format in the group stage, with the top four from each group moving on to the knockout stage.
The men’s division champion will receive $162,800 while the women’s winner will get $112,800.
American Corey Deuel joined Orcollo in the Last 32 in Group A after beating Kenichi Uchigaki of Japan, 9-3 and Neils Feijen of the Netherlands, 9-8.
Also through to the Last 32 is Fu Che Wei of Chinese-Taipei, former WPA World 9-ball ruler Daryl Peach of Great Britain, Murni Ahmad Taufiq of Brunei, former double world champion Mika Immonen of Finland, Chris Melling of Great Britain, Wang Ming of China and Yukio Akakariyama of Japan.
In women’s play, world women’s 10 ball champion Rubilen “Bingkay” Amit of the Philippines took a bye in the first round but lost to Li Jia of China, 7-3, in the second round.
The Cebuana Amit needs to win all her remaining games in Group E to progress. Correspondent MARLON BERNARDINO