Zerna collars Class A crown in Indian Ocean Resto Bar 9-ball tiff

After almost a year of trying his luck in the Queen City of the South, Ricky Zerna finally reaped the fruit of his efforts and sacrifices as he tamed Mandaue City's Eucel Bernadez, 11-8, to seize the Class A title of the 1st Indian Ocean Resto Bar 9-Ball Tournament recently at the Indian Ocean Billiards Hall along Escario Street, this city.

Zerna, who hails from the municipality of Mabinay in Negros Oriental, jumped off to a blistering 6-2 start and never looked back from there on the way to pocket the P10,000 champion's purse, the biggest paycheck he had ever received.

"I'm very thankful to God that at last, I already won a championship here in Cebu. Maybe luck was on my side at that time," said the 23-year-old Zerna, who is aiming to scale more tournaments up to national level.

Bernadez took home P5,000.

Event organizer Atty. Luisito Arma, himself a pool player and an avid supporter of the sport, said he is planning to hold another tournament before the year ends due to the successful staging of their initial offering.

"Hopefully by December we can get some sponsors because this is a very good tournament for our local players. This will give them a concrete avenue to further polish their skills at a very competitive level," said Arma.

Aside from Arma, on hand to grace the simple awarding rites last Wednesday was event backer and Indian Ocean Resto Bar proprietor Surjit "Johnny" Singh.