By KRISTEL SATUMBAGA
Veteran Rubilen Amit opened her 2024 WPA World 9-Ball Women’s Championship in style, trouncing Canada’s Veronique Menard , 4-1, 4-0, on Tuesday, Sept. 3, in Hamilton, New Zealand.
The 42-year-old Manadue native banked on her superb shots to frustrate Menard in the race-to-4, best-of-three preliminary stage.
The triumph set up Amit her next match against Chinese Taipei’s Chen Chia Hua, who earned a first-match bye.
Amit, a two-time world 10-ball champion, seeks to clinch the elusive 9-ball crown this time. She came close to the title in 2007 held in Taoyuan, Chinese Taipei but lost to Chinese Pan Xiaoting – the best finish made by any Filipina in the history of the tournament.
Meanwhile, multiple Southeast Asian Games champion Chezka Centeno was battling Spaniard Mayte Ropero at presstime after earning a first-match bye.
A world junior 9-ball champion in 2015, the 25-year-old Zamboanga standout is coming off a title victory at the 2024 Las Vegas 10-Ball Women’s Open.
Meanwhile, Carlo Biado bowed out of contention in the WPA World 8-Ball Men’s Championship after yielding to China’s Gao Zhankui, 8-7, in the second round of the loser’s bracket held at the same venue.
The reigning world 10-ball champion stumbled early in his first match against Chinese Taipei’s Jui-an Ryan Hsu, 8-6, and was relegated in the loser’s bracket, but managed to bounce back by toppling Japanese Kenko Suzuki, 8-5.
But found Gao too hard to crack.
