World Pool adds dash of royalty

Prince Muhtadee Billah of Brunei will pit his pool skills against Francisco "Django" Bustamante and two other players in one of the featured groups in the 2006 World Pool 9-ball Championship which unfolds Nov. 4-12 at the PICC.

The 32-year-old Crown Prince is one of 118 players already entered in the 32-group, 128-man main draw of the tournament. Ten other players will be chosen via qualifiers to be staged in the week before the main tournament.

The other members of Group 10 are Charles Bryant of the United States and Darren Appleton of England. The top two players after a round robin elims will advance to the last 64 of the event.

Prince Billah saw action in the Southeast Asian Games in Manila last December. Together with his doubles partner, he made it to the semifinals of the 8-ball doubles competition.

He is the first-born son and heir to the Sultan of Brunei Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah. He is also the Senior Minister at the Prime Minister’s Office in Brunei.

Meanwhile, organizers of the World Pool Championship announced that 10 spots will be up for grabs in the qualifiers slated Oct. 28-Nov. 1 at the Star Billiards Center in Quezon City.

Another berth has been added following the withdrawal of Troy Frank of the United States. Frank was originally one of 13 American players who qualified for a spot in the WPC, but he informed Matchroom Sports that he cannot make the trip to Manila.

Two events will be staged daily, with the winner of each event advancing to the main draw. Game time is 9 am for the first event, and 1:30 pm for the second event.

Winners of each qualifier will be given cash prizes, which will be based on the total number of participants per qualifier.

Entry fees in the qualifiers are pegged at $100 or P5000 for one event; $400 or P20,000 for five events.

Registration is ongoing with the deadline set on Oct. 27 at 12 noon. Listup is open at the Raya Sports office: 5F, PDAF Bldg., Puyat Ave., Makati City.