13th May, Bangkok: Daniel Lim of Malaysia ended Tim Mack's charge to the top podium when Lim crushed the American, 213-171 in the final stepladder match of the Men's Open Masters to claim the 33rd MWA Thailand International Open title.

Daniel Lim, who held on to the lead of the Men's Open Masters second block finals this morning, looked poised to win a second international title for Malaysia. Lim opened accounts with a 9-pin spare in the first frame then struck three times for a turkey from the second frame onwards to take an early lead.

His challenger, Tim Mack had a bad start with a split in the first, the fourth and the sixth frame and was in all sorts of trouble. From then on, the Malaysian just made sure he made no mistake and when on to cruise to a confortable victory with 213.

Although Tim struck out in the final three frames, it was a bit too late and went down with 171. The American ended all four Thais when the sixth-seed ousted fourth-seed, Yannaphon Larpapharat and fifth-seed Somjed Kusonpithak, 207-178-188 in the first match.

Mack had a lucky break in the second match when he edged out second-seed and overnight leader, Siriphon Mayura and third-seed, Krichawat Jempakao, 199-192-180 in the second match to set up the finale with Daniel Lim.

"It has been extremely tough this week with the difficut lane conditions here," said the champion, Daniel. "I had to work very hard to make the finals after eight attempts but when it came to the finals, I was bowling well and kept close with the leader in the first block.

"I'm glad I finished as top-seed and when the match started, again the TV lanes were completely different so adjusting was tough too. Once I got a strike on the left lane, I knew I could come back to the right and get another.

"With the turkey, all I need to do was not to make any mistakes and make sure I do not open any frames. Tim is a good bowler and I remember I lost to him once in Singapore two years ago and I was determine to turn the table this time.

Meanwhile, the Ladies' Open Masters final stepladder was an all-Taiwanese affair between top-seed, Chien Hsiu Lan and her challenger, Liang Ya Ping. Liang, who made the stepladder finals in sixth position, knocked out fourth-seed, Evelyn Chan of Singapore and fifth-seed, Kim Young Ju of Korea, 211-199-202 in the first match.

Liang then eliminated two Thais, second-seed, Angkana Netrviseth and third-seed, Saowapha Kunaksorn, 211-167-190 in the second match to reach the finals and a match against fellow-countrywomen, Chien.

The runner-up just could repeat the form she displayed in the two earlier matches and struggled with two splits in the eighth and 10th frames to end the match with 171. Despite missing a single pin in the sixth frame and an open frame in the eighth, Chien's earlier double was sufficient to secure the victory.

The top 16 Asian men and top 16 women made the cut for the ABF Tour Thailand leg which will be played on Monday, 14th May at S.F. Strike Bowl. LIVE scores wil be featured at www.abftour.com.

Photos by Terence Yaw, MTBC.

12th May, Bangkok: Thai bowlers, Angkana Netrviseth and Siriphon Mayura both led the Ladies' and Men's Open Masters first block finals of the 33rd MWA Thailand International Open at S.F. Strike Bowl late Saturday evening.

The top qualifiers took to the lanes after an hour delay and World Youth Singles gold medalist, Angkana Netrviseth immediately took the lead with 234 followed with 229 in the second. A 174 in the third allowed Chinese Taipei's Chien Hsiu Lan to grab the lead in the third game.

The Thai regained the lead after 203 and 209 in the fourth and fifth while 15-year-old Malaysian, Sin Li Jane fired 255 and 201 to take up third behind Chien. A poor 160 allowed Jane to move up to second with 200 while still trailing Angkana by 90 oins after the sixth game.

The eader went on to round off the first block with 193 and 211 for a total of 1697 with Chien recovering with 187 and 226 to finish second on 1590. Chinese Taipei took third and fourth places when Liang Ya Ping and Wang Yu Ling finished strongly on totals of 1587 and 1561.

Indonesia's Shalima Zalsha did well to finish fifth with a total of 1552 while Sin Li Jane fizzled out into 11th spot. The 24 finalists will continue with their second block of 8 games on Sunday at 9.00am.

The large group of Thai supporters had plenty to cheer when Siriphon Mayura topped the Men's Open first block with 1794 denying Malaysia's Daniel Lim the lead. Siriphon took the lead at the halfway mark from another Malaysian, Adrian Ang for a 22 pins cushion.

Siriphon's lead was narrowed to just 2 pins going into the final game when Daniel Lim attempted to upstage the Thai. With the crowd cheering him on, the leader brought home a 234 in his last game although Daniel gave his best with 224.

Daniel settled for second with 1782 with two Thais, Somjed Kusonpithak and defending champion, Yannaphon Larpapharat storming home to take up third and fourth spots with 1684 and 1673 respectively.

Early pace-setter, Adrian Ang dropped to fifth on 1663 ahead of Tim Mack of USA sixth with 1655. The 40 finalists will contest for the top 6 stepladder finals with another block of 8 games with pins carried forward on Sunday.

The top 16 Asian men and top 16 Asian women will also make the cut for the second leg of this year's ABF Tour Thailand which will be a knockout format of play and telecast LIVE on Channel UBC on Monday at the same S.F. Strike Bowl in Ngam Wong Wan Mall.

Photos by Terence Yaw, MTBC.

12th May, Bangkok: Malaysian national youth, Trish Khoo Wei Ling took her maiden international title when she outshone the boys to win the Youth Open Masters crown of the 33rd MWA Thailand International Open Saturday morning.

Armed with a handicap of 9 pins per game, teammate Nazrinnah Mohd Kamil set the pace to lead the field of 18 finalists but soon found local youngster, Dechochai Tinjiratip a little too hot to handle as Dechochai took over the lead after finals settled down.

Dechochai continued his relentless pursuit for the title to lead the pack for the next game building up his lead from 1 pin to as high as 64 pins after the sixth game. 2006 Asian Schools Team gold medalist, Trish Khoo, who was mid-field picked up her pace to trail the lead by 36 pins going inot the last two games.

A strong finish on 245 and 202 in the last two games allowed the Sabahan to snatch the victory with a total of 2121. The champion's pace picked up in the second half with incredible lines of 223, 236, 234, 245 and 202.

Dechochai was also pipped to the line by Oh Se Hun when the Korean youth posted 248 in his final game while the Thai managed only a 152. Oh amassed 2085 to take second place while Dechochai totaled 2044 to settle for third. Malaysia's Aris Ardilla and Nazrinnah Mohd Kamil completed the top 5 with 2030 and 1968 respectively.

The finals of the Youth Graded A saw local lad, Pornthip K. taking the title with 1874 pinfalls. The champion had a breif lead in the second but dropped into midfield leaving Singapore Sports School's Ng Chiew Pang and Malaysia's Chong Jun Foo battling for the lead.

Ng led for three games as Chong took over for another three games before handing the lead to the champion, Pornthip with the last two game left to play. Pornthip eventually won by just 6 pins from Chong who settled for second with 1868. Ng finished third with 1807.

The Ladies' and Men's Open Masters first block of 8 games will roll-off at 5.00pm this evening with the second block of 8 games on Sunday at 9.00am. The top 6 at the end of the finals will proceed to the stepladder finals to determine this year's champion.

Photos by Terence Yaw, MTBC.

11th May, Bangkok: Tim Mack, a one-time strong contender in championships held in Asia is vying for a come back to peak form as the American continue to lead the Men's Open Masters qualifying table of the 33rd MWA Thailand International Open.

Mack, who posted the highest 4-game series of 951 yesterday, looked firm as bowlers scramble for a spot in the masters finals on the final day of qualifying. Last year's second runner-up, Surasak Manuwong maintained second overall with 944 as well as leading the local pool.

Son Young Seok of Ulsan, Korea also remained third overall with 927 ahead of Singapore's Lee Yu Wen on 927. Mahmood Al-Attar of UAE improved to take up fifth, just 2 pins from Lee. Early leader, Yaqoub Al-Shatti of Kuwait rounded up the top five in the local pool with 923.

Others who have struggled in the past two days finally made the cut and they were Jason Yeong Nathan of Singapore (916), Euromed Storm International Challenge champion, Adrian Ang of Malaysia (914), Cyrus Cheung of Hong Kong (907), Isaac Russell of Malaysia (907) and Baze Al-Anzi of Kuwait (902).

The lane conditions at S.F. Strike Bowl obviously was taking its toll with the cut mark of only 856 and that was 13th in the mixed pool held by Haqi Armein of Indonesia as at 4.00pm squad. The top 13 local, top 13 overseas, top 13 mixed together with defending champion will contest their first block of 8 games finals at 5.00pm on the 12th May.

Meanwhile, there were no changes in the top 2 positions of the Ladies' Open division with Malaysia's Zatil Iman sitting comfortably on top with 927. Chinese Taipei's Wang Yu Ling and Chien Hsiu Lan occupied second and third spots with 886 and 873 respectively.

Hong Kong's Chan Shuk Han and Singapore's Jennifer Tan rounded up the top 5 of the overseas pool with 864 and 858 with Malaysia's Noorhanizah Abu Bakar, Shalima Zalsha of Indonesia and Kim Eun Jung of Korea rounding up the overseas pool.

In the local front, Angkana Netrviseth maintained pole with 890 with Saowapha Kunaksorn storming into second with 868 followed by Petchara Kaewsuk third on 841. The last spot in the mixed pool went to Kuwait International Open champion, Vanessa Fung on 820 tied with Korea's Kim Young Ju.

The top 8 local, top 8 overseas and top 7 mixed pool together with the defending champion will make the cut for the finals. Qualifying will end in the early hours of Saturday.

Photos by Terence Yaw, MTBC.

10th May, Bangkok: 2006 Pahang Open champion, Zatil Iman of Malaysia, stormed into the lead of the Ladies' Open Masters qualifying leaderboard at the 33rd MWA Thailand International Open at S.F. Strike Bowl in Ngam Wong Wan.

The southpaw Malaysian national backup squad member, who also finished third runner-up at this year's Malaysian Open, set the lanes on fire with lines of 234, 223, 233 and 237 to become the only women to surpass the 900-mark scoreline.

Overnight leader, Wang Yu Ling of Chinese Taipei settled for second with a 4-game total of 886 followed by teammate, and Asian Championship Trios gold medalist, Chien Hsiu Lan third with 873. Newcomer from Hong Kong, Chan Shuk Han did well to take up fourth spot with 864 while Singapore's Jennifer Tan made up the top 5 on 858.

World Youth Singles Gold medalist, Angkana Netrviseth led the local pool with 890 but dropped to second overall. Fellow countrywomen, Petchara Kaewsuk finished second with 841 followed by Wawana Sakulrat third with 828.

The top 8 from the local pool, top 8 from the overseas pool and the top 7 from the mixed pool together with the defending champion, will make the cut for the finals. The current cut off at seventh was Hsiao Su Ling of Chinese Taipei with a score of 796.

Meanwhile, Tim Mack of USA continued to lead the Men's Open Masters qualifying table with 951, just 7 pins ahead of local pool leader, Surasak Manuwong of Thailand on 944. Son Young Seok of Korea did well to take up third with 933.

The top 13 from the local pool, top 13 from the overseas pool and the top 13 from the mixed pool together with the defending champion will contest for the title in the finals on Saturday, 12th May. The current cut off at 13th in the mixed pool was Syed Ibrahim of UAE on 828.

Qualifying will end on Friday, 11th May and the finals will be played over two blocks of 8 games on Saturday and Sunday. The top 6 at the end of the two blocks will proceed to the stepladder finals to determine the champion.

Photos by Terence Yaw, MTBC.

8th May, Bangkok: Local national bowlers impressed in the qualifying rounds of the 33rd MWA Thailand International Open underway at S.F. Strike Bowl in Ngamwongwan Shopping Centre as Surasak Manuwong and Angkana Netrviseth topped the Men's and Ladies' Open Masters table.

Surasak, who finished as second runner-up to fellow countrymen, Yannaphon Larpapharat, posted the highest 4-game qualifying series on 925. The Thai shot lines of 190, 226, 256 and 245 for an impressive 231.25 average.

Joint second was two-time Milo International Junior All Stars runner-up, Annop Arromsaranon and Asian Schools triple gold medalist, Somjed Kusonpithak of Storm Thailand with 901 with Pasut Punsanthaveekul and Badin Lerdpiriyasakulit rounded up the top 5 with 892 and 879.

Overall leader and topping the overseas pool was Tim Mack of USA, who shot 951 pushing down overnight leader, Son Young Seok of Korea into second. Son knocked down 923, 10 pins ahead of Yaqoub Al-Shati of Kuwait third with 923.

"We only had one week of practice at this bowling center before the start of the championship but I'm glad our bowlers have adapted well to the condition," said Kim Hui Young, chief coach for the Thai national team.

"I'm sure some of the best bowlers from Asia will be able to adapt to the conditions once they've got use to it," added Kim.

Meanwhile, the pole position in the ladies division remained with World Youth gold medalist, Angkana Netrviseth of Thailand with 890 for over a week until the foreign bowlers' arrival the night before. But her score put her firmly in front of the local pool and ahead of ex-national, Petchara Kaewsuk, who scored 841.

Taking over the overall lead was Singapore's Sabrina Lim posted an superb 939 this afternoon. Finishing a distant second was 2006 Asian Championship Trios gold medalist, Chien Hsiu Lan of Chinese Taipei on 873 followed by Hong Kong's Chan Shuk Han third with 864.

The highest 4-game qualifying series in the very difficult condition was posted in the Men's Graded A division. Sorapong Hongkhum of Thailand knoked down 977 for a 244.25 average to lead the division.

The top 2 in the Youth Open division also surpassed the 900-mark when Malaysia's national youth member, Aris Ardilla posted 906 in his 4-game qualifying round followed by Korea's Seo Seung Won, who downed 902.

Qualifying continues through to Friday, 11th May and the Open Masters finals will be contested over two blocks of 8 games on Saturday and Sunday. The top 6 at the end of the two blocks will make the cut for the stepladder finals. The top 16 Asian men and top 16 Asian women will also qualify for the second leg of this year's ABF Tour.

Photos by Terence Yaw, MTBC.