Tuesday, November 06, 2007 Corteza makes it to KO stage of World Pool By Charles Raymond A. Maxey
FACING elimination, Lee Vann Corteza of the Philippines came out with guns blazing Sunday night to score a double kill and advance to the last 64 of the 2007 World Pool Championships.
Corteza, the 28-year-old cue master from Davao City, toppled Chang Pei-Wei of Chinese Taipei, 9-4, then crushed Jeremy Jones of the US on the same note to avoid a shocking elimination in the world's biggest and most prestigious 9-ball tournament.
Corteza, the reigning national champion and Turning Stone Classic titlist, had absorbed a heartbreaking 7-9 defeat at the hands of Goran Mladenovic of Serbia right in his opening match Sunday morning.
With the loss, the Davao player needed to win his next two matches to advance.
And he did.
Against the fearsome Pei-Wie, Corteza summoned all his knowledge of the game before to pull through and force a winner-take-all match with Jones.
There was more fire in Corteza as he blitzed Jones next for a back-to-back triumph and a ticket to the knockout stage.
Former champion Alex Pagulayan, Francisco "Django" Bustamante and Ramil Gallego also advanced to the last 64 following impressive showings in the group matches.
Pagulayan, who won the event in 2004, zoomed past Hamza Mohammen Saeed Ali, 9-0, and then trounced Austria's Martin Kemper, 9-6, to reach the next phase.
Bustamante was likewise in dominating form, beating Zybneck Vaic, 9-4, and Jeong Young-Hwa of Korea, 9-0. Gallego won over Chan Keng Kwang of Singapore, 9-4 and Chang Jung Lin of Chinese Taipei, 9-1.
A day earlier, defending champion Ronato Alcano, Efren "Bata" Reyes, Joven Bustamante and Antonio Gabica had also advanced.
After two days, a total of eight Filipino players had already reached the last 64.
The number is expected to increase later Monday as Marlon Manalo, Dennis Ocollo, Leoanardo Andam and Jeff de Luna are scheduled to see action.
