Monday, October 06, 2008 Pulpul finishes 4th in WPA 10-ball
DEMOSTHENES Pulpul couldn’t think of a more eventful two weeks in his life.
“I still can’t believe my luck,” he said following his fourth place finish in the World Ten Ball Championship.
He’s certainly wishing for a better ending, but Pulpul is one contented soul right now.
The 23-year-old from Cagayan De Oro City turned from zero to hero in a span of two weeks.
After topping one of the qualifying rounds, Pulpul proceeded to become the best Filipino finisher in the biggest pool tournament in the world this year. He earned $15,000 for his effort.
The cash would serve a good purpose.
Part of his prize would be used for the baptismal of his newly-born daughter Kishalyn. “I’m excited to see my family, especially my new baby,” Pulpul said.
Kishalyn was born on Sept. 24. Two days later, Pulpul earned his place in the main draw of WTBC. “Lucky charm ko ‘yung baby namin. I was inspired to play better now that my family just got bigger.”
Pulpul had a chance to get a bigger paycheck, but folded down the stretch against Niels Feijen of the Netherlands. Unlike his semifinal loss to Wu Chia-ching, Pulpul got his game going early against Feijen.
Meanwhile, Darren Appleton foiled Wu Chia Ching’s bid to add the WPA 10-ball crown to his collection of 8-Ball and 9-Ball title with an 13-11 win in the final yesterday.
In the battle for third, Pulpul raced to a 5-3 lead and was at the table going for a three-rack cushion. But an unforced error on the rack let Feijen back on the table to start a four-rack run.
Feijen himself believes Pulpul has a great future ahead of him.
The reigning straight pool champion noted that Pulpul’s shot-making ability “is at-par with the best of them.”
“He just needs more exposure in big tournaments,” Feijen said.
Pulpul won his first six matches in the tournament. He beat Mohd Ali Al Bin of Qatar, 9-2, and Taiwanese ace Yang Ching-shun, 9-8, in group play.
On his way to the semifinals, Pulpul edged top ranked lady player Jasmin Ouschan of Austria, 9-8, toppled Kazuo Furuta of Japan, 9-4, repeated over Yang, 9-8, and rallied past Liu Haitao of China, 11-8.
Meanwhile, the World Pool Association president Ian Anderson made sure the WTBC won’t go anywhere.
“This early, there’s a strong clamor for the WTBC and it will definitely be back next year in Manila,” Anderson told sportswriters covering the event. “It will be staged October of next year and there’s also the Philippine Open to be held June of 2009.” (PR)
