1st Kadaugan sa Mactan 9-Ball Championships: Local bet pockets P50T grand prize

Hosting the first Kadaugan sa Mactan 9-Ball Championships proved rewarding for the city government of Lapu-Lapu as hometown idol Boots Agusto successfully waded through a tough field of opposition to clinch the title of the four-day poolfest on Sunday night at the Rhodiet Billiards Hall.Fighting under the wings of Magi Stable, Agusto vanquished Demosthenes “Plong-Plong” Pulpul of Cagayan de Oro City in the race-to-nine final, 9-5, to pocket the P50,000 champion’s purse - by far the biggest paycheck in his budding career.

The 19-year-old shotmaker from Sitio Latag, Maribago displayed cool and smart plays as he never allowed the Mindanao visitor to recover after racing to a 2-0 start.

The best Pulpul could muster was to knot the count at 5-all as Agusto swept the next four racks to the delight of the large throng of spectators. Despite the setback, Pulpul still has something to cheer about as he will go home P20,000 richer.

Agusto, who had to scrape through several nerve-wracking moments before reaching the road to finals, was humble in victory. “I was just a bit lucky,” he said. “I really didn’t expect to win the championship because I even almost lost in my first round match.”

In the last 16 knockout stage, Agusto subdued his foes by the narrowest of margins, getting past Charlon Alcidera, Dave Pamulagan and Burt Gutobat with uniform scores of 7-6. That made his triumph even more sweeter and memorable.

In the battle for third place, Gutobat defeated Edgardo Villarin, 7-5, to claim P10,000. Villarin got P5,000 consolation prize. Both Gutobat and Villarin are Agusto’s stablemates.

On hand to award the prizes to the winners were Lapu-Lapu City Councilors Rodolfo “Kons” Potot and Junard “Ahong” Chan.

“I’m happy that the tournament was successful. It is mainly because of the support of the players. Even some of them are from faraway places, they took time out to come here and compete,” said Potot, the event organizer who is also the owner of Rhodiet Billiards Hall. “We will make it an annual event and hopefully more players will be joinining next year.”

The tournament, which drew over 50 cue masters all over the country, was among the highlights of the week-long celebration of the Kadaugan sa Mactan commemorating the victory of Datu Lapu-Lapu over the Spanish conquistadors led by Portuguese navigator Ferdinand Magellan five centuries ago.