Biado captures elusive World 9-ball title

BIADO

Carlo Biado ended the year in style, beating compatriot Roland Garcia, 13-5, on Thursday night to capture the 2017 World 9-Ball Championships at the Al Arabi Sports Club in Doha, Qatar.

“I’m very very happy right now,” said Biado after the game. “It’s been a long time. I worked very hard, had many disappointments. And now finally I won the world title.”

“In the semis I had a bit of pressure against Wu but I got lucky in one of the racks when I missed the bank shot on the four ball but it went in the other pocket. So I got lucky,” said Biado referring to his 11-6 semifinal win earlier Thursday.

“There was less pressure in the final because even if I don’t win, at least a Filipino will get the title. I was very comfortable that’s why I played well. Also the balls were always in an easy position after the break.”

The victory was worth a whopping $40,000 for Biado.

“When I won the world games there was a lot of pressure, more so here because there were so many people watching. After I won in Poland against Jayson Shaw I just felt so good and so much more confident when I entered other events. That was a really big help to my confidence and I know it definitely helped me this week and today.”

Garcia meanwhile, was grateful for the chance to compete against the best and made it to the final. He crushed Albanian Klenti Kaci, 11-6 in the semis.

“It’s still a wonderful feeling to be a part of this prestigious event,” Garcia said. “And the fact that my friend and countryman Carlo won means I’m also a winner. I’m very proud of Carlo. He deserved it more than I do, Garcia said. “Anyway, I’m really happy. This is the first time that I joined this event and I made it this far. Hopefully next year I can use this experience to have more success,” added Garcia.
Garcia pocketed $20,000 while Lin and Kaci received $8,000 each.

Last Wednesday, Biado bombed Liu Haitao, 11-0, in the quarterfinals to face Lin, an 11-7 winner over Taiwan’s Hsieh Chia Chen. Garcia, on the other hand subdued Venezuelan-Jordanian Jalal Yousef, 11-4, while Kaci outplayed Maung Maung of Myanmar, 11-7.

With the World 9-ball crown safely tucked under his belt, Biado now joins other Filipino World 9 ball winners Efren “Bata” Reyes, Francisco “Django” Bustamante, Alex “The Lion” Pagulayan and Ronnie “Volcano” Alcano.

Former World 9-ball semifinalist Marlon “Marvelous” Manalo, a snooker specialist, said Biado’s win is a big morale booster for Filipino cue artists.

“Once again our flag has been raised in a foreign land after our kababayan Carlo Biado won the prestigious World 9-ball title in Doha, Qatar,” said Manalo.