Ralf Souquet ends Manila jinx

MANILA—Ralf Souquet let out a scream after depositing the 9-ball in the corner pocket in front of a stunned crowd.

For someone who has endured a lot of heartbreak in Manila, though, any celebration would have been warranted.

Photo by August dela Cruz

Souquet ended a string of disappointments in the Philippines by downing World No. 1 Dennis Orcollo, 8-5, Monday night to capture a record sixth World Pool Masters crown before a huge crowd at The Block at the SM North Edsa in Quezon City.

Carrying the momentum of his stirring come-from-behind win in the semifinals, Souquet quickly capitalized on glaring errors by Orcollo in the ninth and 10th racks to lay the foundation for a five-rack run that left the Filipino crowd terribly disappointed.

“This is the icing on the cake,” said Souquet, who claimed the champion’s purse of $20,000 prize. “It’s a dream come true to win here with all the great players in this country. Winning a sixth title is overwhelming.”

Souquet has lost in four previous finals in major tournaments in Manila and was ranged against the in-form Orcollo, who lost just seven racks in three previous matches en route to the final.

But just as he did in the semifinals, where he edged Darren Appleton, 8-7, after coming back from 3-7 down, Souquet fought back, aided by Orcollo’s errors.

“I did not play my best,” admitted Orcollo, who settled for $10,000. “Maybe it was the pressure of playing in front of your countrymen. I lost my focus. There are just times when players choke.”

Ahead 5-3, Orcollo played a poor safety on the blue-2, giving Souquet an open table to clean up.

Orcollo blew another chance when Souquet broke dry on the next rack, as he left himself in a poor position on the pink-4 to give the German an opening.

On the way to the finals, Orcollo blitzed past Tony Drago, 8-2, Chang Jung-lin of Chinese-Taipei, 8-1, and China’s Fu Jianbo, 8-4, raising his hopes of becoming the first back-to-back winner of the prestigious event since 1994.