Earlier today, Corteza and Bustamante defeated Jeong Young Hwa of Korea and Wu Chia Ching of Chinese Taipei, respectively, to book their seats in the final.

Taipei leg finalist Jeong Young Hwa looked to gain consecutive final appearance in the Tour when he started the game with 4-0 lead. But then he made nine pocketing mistakes in the next ten racks and let Corteza take ten racks in a row. It was too late for him to win the 15th rack and thus he bowed out with Corteza the 11-5 winner.

In the clash between the legend of the game and a promising rising star, Django and Wu had a tight game as they tied 4-4 after eight racks. But the turning point occurred at 12th rack when Wu missed pocketing the 2 ball twice and was then never able to catch Django in this semifinal. The 11-5 victory will be a good lesson to Wu from Django.

The Manila leg is the last chance for the 32 participating players to garner qualifying points towards the World Pool Championships in July.  Top 10 o­n the Tour Order of Merit is Efren Reyes; Warren Kiamco; Francisco Bustamante; and Lee Van Corteza from the Philippines; Chao Fong Pang and Yang Ching Shun from Chinese Taipei; Jeong Young Hwa and Park Shin Young from Korea; Satoshi Kawabata from Japan; and Alok Kumar from India will directly qualify into the World Pool Championships. The 2004 World Pool Championship will be held in Taipei from July 10-18, with comprehensive LIVE coverage from STAR Sports.

Adding to the stakes is the total prize money purse of $250,000 USD up for grabs o­n this regional tour, which started in Singapore (February 28-29) and featured subsequent stops in Ho Chi Minh City (March 13-14), Hong Kong (April 17-18), Taipei (May 7-9) and Manila (May 28-30). The main draw includes 32 top Asian players from 12 countries/ regions.

San Miguel Asian 9-Ball Tour Final Ranking 2004 (Top 10)Rank Name Representing Ranking Points

1 Efren REYES Philippines 280

2 Warren KIAMCO Philippines 160

3 JEONG Young Hwa Korea 150 

4 CHAO Fong Pang Chinese Taipei 150

5 PARK Shin Young Korea 140

6 Francisco BUSTAMANTE Philippines 130 

7 Satoshi KAWABATA Japan 130

8 YANG Ching Shun Chinese Taipei 120

9 Lee Van CORTEZA Philippines 110 

10 Alok KUMAR India 110

Sanctioned by the Asian Pocket Billiard Union, the San Miguel Asian 9-Ball Tour is organized by ESPN STAR Sports’ Event Management Group (EMG). San Miguel Beer is the title sponsor for the Tour. Iwan Simonis and Aramith supply the official tablecloth and official balls, respectively. STAR Sports is the official broadcaster. The 2004 Manila leg is also supported by Puyat Sports as the local coorganiser and Robinsons Galleria as the official venue provider. The 2004 Tour has five legs in Singapore, Ho Chi Minh City, Hong Kong, Taipei, and Manila. Besides total prize money of $250,000 USD, the top 10 o­n the Tour Order of Merit every year will directly qualify into the World Pool Championships.

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