PBC-PSC Open bowl under way

MANILA, Philippines - The Philippine Bowling Congress, in its continuing effort to discover and develop fresh talents, holds its 41st PBC-PSC (Philippine Sports Commission)-POC (Philippine Olympic Committee) Open Championships on Nov. 4 at the SM Bowling Center at the Mall of Asia in Pasay City.

“There is an urgent need to develop young bowlers with great potentials to help our country regain its old glory days in Asia and other parts of the world,” said PBC president Ernesto Lopa.

Members of the national team, led by 2006 world men’s champion Biboy Rivera, will be featured in the two-week kegfest, but this early Lopa is already excited to see how young, upcoming players like 16-year-old Enzo Hernandez and Alexis Sy will perform against the veterans.

Hernandez emerged first runner-up in the 2012 Bevida-Storm International Masters Challenge and silver medalist in the 2012 16th Asian Youth boys’ doubles event, while Sy bagged the girls’ Masters title in the same Asian Youth competition held in Egypt.

But Rivera, silver medal winner in the last SEA Games in Indonesia, remains the player to watch in the event together with Frederick Ong, first runner-up in the Masters event in the last SEA Games.

PSC, the POC, the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office, Department of Tourism and Boysen Paints are the sponsors of the P1.5 million tournament which, unlike in previous national competitions, will be limited only to local campaigners.

“We decided to change the old format featuring local and foreign bowlers because I want our bowlers to focus on their games so they can show their true potentials,” said Lopa. “Hopefully, we would be able to tap new faces to join our national squad.”

Four-time World Cup champion Paeng Nepomuceno will not be around to defend his Masters title because he is undergoing therapy in the US.

Fabulous prizes will be up for grabs in four events and five various Masters competitions.

The men’s and ladies’ Open Masters champions will receive P120,000 and P100,000, respectively, while the men’s and ladies’ Graded Masters titlists will pocket P80,000 and P40,000, respectively.