Three Pinoys enter 10-ball semis

MANILA, Philippines - Former world No.1 Dennis Orcollo essayed an 11-6 victory over top US pro Charlie Williams to arrange a Final Four showdown with compatriot Warren Kiamco in the ninth Annual Predator International 10-Ball Championship at the Riviera Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada Friday.

Former world champion Alex Pagulayan pulled off an 11-9 win over Englishman Karl Boyes to make it a three-Filipino player cast in the semifinals of the $86,000 event.

Orcollo, who made it to the knockout stage via the one-loss side, outduelled Williams in the early going before pulling away to move within two wins from bagging the crown and the $20,000 top prize.

The 30-year-old Orcollo earlier dethroned last year’s winner Tony Drago of Malta, 10-6, at the start of the KO phase before posting a 10-6 victory over Rodolfo Luat in the Last 16.

Pagulayan will take on German ace Ralf Souquet, who beat Johnny Archer of the US, 11-3.

Orcollo, Pagulayan and Kiamco are all member of the Billiards Managers and Players Association of the Philippines (BMPAP) and Team Villards of Sen. Manny Villar.

The win over Williams was Orcollo’s fourth consecutive victory after falling to the losers’ bracket in the qualification phase. He trounced American Jeremy Sossei, 10-2, to get into contention.

Kiamco, who swept his way to the KO round, defeated Hiroshi Takenaka of Japan, 11-9, Rodney Morris of the US, 11-5, and Imran Majid of England, 11-4.

Like Kiamco, Pagulayan is also undefeated in the tournament. The 2004 World 9-ball winner won all his three classification stage matches, dropping only nine racks to become the second seed going into the KO phase.

He first subdued Vincent Facquet of France, 10-9, in the Last 32, before blasting Oscar Domiguez, 11-5, in the Last 16.