INQUIRER Sports

TAIWAN -- Joven Bustamante felled his opponents one by one but surrendered the battle that mattered most, bowing to defending champion Chang Jung-ling, 11-5, in the finals of the 2008 Guinness 9-Ball Tour opening leg Sunday at the Taipei Gymnasium here.

Bustamante, the world?s sixth-ranked player, swept his way into the title match but was hounded by the partisan crowd and several crucial unforced errors.

The Filipino won the lag as well as the opening rack, but a dry break and a couple of unforced errors allowed Chang to erect a 5-1 lead.

Bustamante moved within a point twice, the last at 6-5, but the 22-year-old Taiwanese pounced on his every miscue to pocket the next five frames and the title, worth $15,000.

Chang reinforced Chinese Taipei?s strength in the annual six-city Asian series which it swept last year. He won two legs plus the grand finals in Bali at the expense of another Filipino, Lee Vann Corteza.

Bustamante settled for $6,000. He upended reigning junior world champion Ko Pin-yi, 9-7, to advance to the finals.

?I really wanted to win, but there?s too much pressure and I kind of fell into it,? said the 29-year-old Bustamante.

Still, it was a remarkable run for Bustamante, who made the tournament through an invitation from the organizers. The 24th and last slot was vacated following China?s refusal to send a player for political reason.

?Being a first-timer in this series, I?m very proud of making it to the finals,? said Bustamante. ?I?ll just have to go back, practice hard and do my best next time.?

Chang booked the second finals slot with a win over Yang Ching-shun.

Bustamante?s win over Ko made up for the loss of Marlon Manalo and Jeff de Luna to the Taiwanese in the tournament.

Ko also beat 2007 World Pool runner-up Roberto Gomez in the finals of the Taiwan Super Cup last December and Dennis Orcollo in the title-match of the Brunswick Open last week in Thailand.

A house pro (instructor) in a billiards hall in Kuwait before being recruited by businessman Perry Mariano to his Bugsy Promotions, Bustamante also made it to the semifinals of the 2007 World 8-Ball Championship. Steve Silva, contributor