Orcollo ends billiards jinx
Filipino ace Dennis “Robocop” Orcollo ended the country’s disappointment in billiards after he captured the gold medal in the Men’s 10-Ball competition Wednesday night in the 27th Southeast Asian Games in Myanmar
Orcollo trailed compatriot Carlo “Black Tiger” Biado, 6-7 in the race-to-9 championship match, but won the next three racks to beat his fellow Bugsy International Promotions stablemate, 9-7 to pocket the men’s 10-ball singles title and end the country’s drought in billiards at the Wunna Theikdi Billiards Hall in Naypyitaw, Myanmar.
A former fisherman from Bislig, Surigao del Sur, Orcollo earlier beat Brunei’s Ahmad Taufiq Murni, 9-5; Nitiwat Kanjanasri of Thailand, 9-3; and Vietnam’s Anh Tuan Nguyen, 9-4, to arrange an all-Filipino battle for gold.
Biado, on the other hand, subdued Riyan Setiawan of Indonesia, 9-5; Keng Kwang Chan of Singapore, 9-4; and Thanh Kien Dang of Vietnam, 9-3.
Both Orcollo and Biado’s SEAG stints is supported by Bugsy Promotions of Perry and Verna Mariano.
The 10-ball gold was the first for the Philippine billiards team after the title favorite Filipinos stumbled in the Mens and Women’s 9 Ball and in One Cushion Billiards.
Article continues after this advertisementMeanwhile, Rubilen “Bingkay” Amit and Iris “Fighter” Ranola will attempt to go for gold again in the Women’s 10 Ball competition which started last night.
Amit, the reigning Amway world 10-ball champion, settled for the silver medal in 9-ball while Ranola, whose father died on the day she left for the biennial games, will try to put aside her personal grief in the hopes of bringing joy to the nation.
