Lining-Django strikes gold

BUSAN, South Korea – Antonio "Nickoy" Lining stood over the No. 9 ball on the green felt table for some agonizing moments while silence reigned in the hall.

When he stroked it into the right corner pocket, all hell broke loose. Partner Django Bustamante let out a primal scream, former world champ Bata Reyes rushed from the steps where he had camped in and the Filipinos from the stands roared out a deafening cheer.

Until that Lining’s nerve-wracking shot that won the gold in the nine-ball doubles, the billiards team was ready to scratch out.

It had only a silver to show through Warren Kiamco in the nine-ball singles and a bronze in the eight-ball through Reyes, a most feared billiards player on earth.

But on this warm autumnal afternoon at the Dongju College Gymnasium, the odd pair that was Bustamante and Lining gave Team Philippines another shining moment, beating the pesky team of Koreans Jeong Young-Hwa and Kim Won Suk, 11-9.

It was the Philippines’ second gold in the 14th Asian Games here in Busan following the victory of the bowlers in the men’s doubles, with the boxers now under siege to deliver from the original three Bs where the nation hopes to gold.

But it wasn’t easy. Although the Filipino pair was heavily credentialed and favored in the match, they struggled as much as the Koreans, who seized the initiative early in the race-to-11 match.

The Koreans raced to a 5-2 lead, lost that margin as the Filipinos rallied to make it 5-all, wrested back the lead at 7-5 and had the match under control anew at 9-all with Kim’s break on the 19th rack. That was when Bustamante showed the heart of a master, cleaned up the rack, and Lining, pale-faced in the grinding pressure, played the hero’s role in the 20th rack.

As flag-waving and cheering Filipinos converged on the playing hall, Jeong, who had carried the team with some superb shots and accounting for eight of Korea’s eight racks, broke down in tears and walked away.

"Hindi naman kami nape-pressure pero sa kagustuhan namin maka-gold para sa bayan, nagkaka-pressure din," said Bustamante who dedicated his win to the nation and to his family.

The 31-year-old Bustamante was very much in the subconscious of the sporting public back home when he grappled with grief on the untimely death of his daughter and went on to finish second in the World Pool championship in Cardiff.

"Kung individual play lang, hindi na bale kami matalo sa prize money, pero mahirap matalo dito dahil karangalan ang nakataya at mahirap tanggapin pag natalo," said Bustamante, who won eight racks.

The turning point was on the 17th rack when Bustamante, given a tough position on the table, took a gambit and jumped the cue ball for a safety, and when Jeong missed on his turn, the Filipinos went on to seize the lead at 9-8.

The pressure was thick and heavy, everybody was sitting on edge. And the Koreans were doing everything to turn the tide of battle in their team’s side.

A fire alarm sounded four times on the crucial 17th rack when Bustamante was on the brink of executing a shot and someone on the stand throated a cough so loud it could be heard on the parking lot.

But the Filipinos were equal to the occasion. As Kim succumbed to the pressure and missed out on his break, Django cleared up the rack anew, 10-9, and set up that gold medal-winning rack for Lining.

The 38-year-old native of Calapan, Oriental Mindoro, whose partnership with Bustamante was questioned no end, sank the No. 3 and No. 6 balls on the break. He then ran up the balls until he misjudged the speed of the cue ball setting up for No. 9 after sinking the eighth on the left corner pocket.

He studied the line, took a swig of mineral water on their side of the hall and went back anew. Then he rolled it in.

"Malakas ang pressure. Pagna-miss ko sila ang be-break at matatalo tayo," said Lining.

The two hugged each other as the No. 9 ball disappeared in the right side pocket but as true professionals of the discipline, they quickly rearranged the position on the table and, like chess grandmasters, replayed the shot that could have made it easier for Lining on the No. 9.

"Puro arthritis," said Bata Reyes, providing comic relief, alluding to the shaking hands of the newly minted Filipino heroes.

Bustamante and Lining’s win duplicated the feat by Gandy Valle and Romeo Villanueva in the same event four years ago in Bangkok – the lone gold won by the Philippines.

"We’re very very happy, we’re on schedule, we’re looking at four to seven golds. We’re halfway there, we have won two golds and this is a big win for us," said PSC chair Eric Buhain.

Said Philippine Olympic Committee president Cito Dayrit: "Thank the Lord for the blessings, sana may darating pa bago matapos ang Games."