No, it was actually a belated feat as Liza del Rosario capped the Philippines’ superb showing in the international bowling stage in 2003 when she dethroned fancied defending champion Shalin Zulkifli of Malaysia to rule the Aviva Asian Bowling Tour’s Grand Slam finals at the jampacked National Service Resort and Country Club here yesterday.
Purvis Granger, the American mentor of the crack RP bowling squad which reaped honors in various lanes last year, including the World Cup by CJ Suarez in Honduras, made it a virtual sweep by the Filipino bets when he bested China’s Wu Siu Hong on the other side of the final to claim the men’s crown.
The 26-year-old Del Rosario, the 2003 Bowling of the Year awardee, who teamed up with Cecille Yap and Liza Clutario for the RP women’s stirring gold medal feat in the World FIQ championship, a first by the Asians, last September, clinched the win over Zulkifli with a strike on the 10th and last frame of their tightly-fought duel, 187-181.
And Granger, the 39-year-old mentor who had spent his last four years in Manila helping national coach Johnson Cheng transform some members of the national pool into world-class bowlers, became the first back-to-back champion of the event by whipping Hong Kong’s No. 1 player Wu Siu Hong, 191-144.
"The pressure was really too much in the final frame where I knew I needed a spare to win. But I kept my focus and put all behind my shot. Thank God for that strike," said Del Rosario, who finally bagged the trophy in her fourth finals stint in this event and the US$10,000 ladies’ champion purse.
"We should rewrite the success story of Philippine bowling. The season, our effort, sacrifices and triumphs for 2003 officially ended just today. Now we can start going for another best year," said Cheng.
Granger pocketed US$20,000 for his feat which he said will help him a lot as he and Cheng bring the celebrated world trios champion, Suarez, Chester King and Biboy Rivera to the lucrative US circuit late this month.
Granger, who beat Rivera, 189-144, in the semis earlier in the day, is credited for correcting a minor flaw in Del Rosario’s swing.
"I got a lot of help in my bowling career. The support of my parents, brothers and sisters, teammates, Boysen Paints and Columbia 300 brought me here. I dedicate this victory to them and the Filipino nation," said Del Rosario.
Zulkifli, who won the 2002 ABT by knocking Del Rosario out in the semis and went here only after beating the Filipino for the Hong Kong Open title last December, had a strike to close within 141-168 but settled for a spare in her final frame.
A spare could settle it all for Del Rosario, but she did more than that.
"I really wanted a great finish. Too bad, I missed another strike in my bonus roll. But I guessed all my emotions were out by then," added Del Rosario who beat ABT’s No. 1 ranked Jennifer Tan of Singapore, 219-176, in the semis.