22nd April, Bangkok: Shaker Al Hassan of UAE ended a two-year drought to win the Men's Open Masters title of the 39th MWA Thailand International Open while Kim Min Hee of Daejeon clinched her first international crown on Monday.

Top seed, Shaker needed only one match to take the title beating second seed, Annop Arromsaranon of Thailand, 222-180 in the championship stepladder match. The Emirati southpaw got off to a great start reeling in four stikes-in-a-row to open up a 24 pin lead over his challenger.

The 43-year-old brought home a clean game as Annop had two splits and an opened frame to settle for second position. The champion had earlier ended the Round 2 finals with 2135 to advance into the stepladder finals as top seed.

Annop earned a crack at the title after he narrowly beat No. 3 seed, Michael Mak of Hong Kong and winner of the first match, Dechochai Tinjiratip of Thailand, 172-169-137 in the semi-finals.

Dechochai defeated No. 4 seed, Khalid Al Dubyyan of Kuwait and Thailand Masters champion, Phumin Klanbida of Thailand, 212-191-188 in the first stepladder match.

Shaker picked up 300,000 Thai Baht (approx. US$10,480) as champion and Annop settled for 150,000 Baht as first runner-up. Mak took home 75,000 Baht as second runner-up. Dechochai, Khalid and Phumin earned 40,000, 25,000 and 20,000 Baht respectively.

Thailand was again denied a victory in the Ladies' Open division when another southpaw, Kim Min Hee of Daejeon Metropolitan City, Korea edged top seed, Yanee Saebe, 179-176 in the second deciding match. The Thai had a chance to take the title when she failed to spare her last frame.

Kim had narrowly taken the first match in a low-scoring, 166-153 to force the decider. The champion earned her spot in the finals after the 31-year-old ousted compatriot and No. 2 seed, Sung Gyeong Eun and Shinta Ceysaria of Indonesia, 211-179-169 in the semi.

Shinta won the all-Indonesian first match defeating No. 4 seed, Putty Armein and Round 1 leader, Ivana Hie 172-168-162 to advance into the second match.

Kim, who retained the Ladies' Open title for Daejeon, won her first international crown and the top prize of 100,000 Thai Baht (approx. US$3,490). Yanee, who topped the Round 2 finals with 2038, settled for 50,000 Baht.

Sung took home 25,000 Baht as second runner-up while the three Indonesians Shinta, Putty and Ivana earned 15,000, 10,000 and 5,000 Baht respectively.

The top 16 Asian men and top 16 Asian women also make the cut for the third ABF Tour Thailand 2013 which will be held tomorrow at S.F. Strike Bowl.

Photos by Terence Yaw in Bangkok.

21st April, Bangkok: Hong Kong's Wu Siu Hong led from start to finish to top the Men's Open Masters Round 1 finals of the 39th MWA Thailand International Open while Indonesians dominated the Ladies' Open with a top three finish.

2012 ABF Tour Thailand champion, Wu got off the mark with a superb 239 opening game to lead Thailand's Sivakorn Kritsaruenon by 3 pins as 33 finalists took to the lanes at S.F. Strike Bowl for their Round 1 finals.

The Hong Kong national kegler continued a blistering pace reeling in 223, 231, 210, 194, 246, 230, 179, 235 and closing out his 10-game finals with 200 to lead the round with 2187.

Badin Lerdpiriyasakulkit of Thailand got close to the lead after the eight game when he narrowed the lead to just 1 pin but had to settle for second with 2173, 14 pins adrift.

Defending champion, Surasak Manuwong of Thailand rounded out the top 5 with 2099. Indonesia's Jeanbarts Bungara survive the cut in 18th position with 1987 as Thailand Masters finalist, Peerawich Rungchareon of Thailand missed the cut in 19th by one pin.

Meanwhile, Indonesian women dominated the Ladies' Open Masters Round 1 finals taking up the top 3 spots. 2010 Asian Games Team silver medalist, Ivana Hie topped the field with 2033.

Her team-mate, Putty Armein who led most of the way, managed only 172 in her final game to settle for second with 2004. Shinta Ceysaria completed the top 3 for Indonesia in third with 1955.

Thailand's best women was Chantanee Sarnswang taking up fourth spot wuth 1945 while Malaysia's ex-international, Wendy Chai completed the top 5 with 1857. Natthida Sertluecha, who was third before the final game, bowled 164 to survive the cut in sixth position with 1826.

Song Si-Ra of Daejeon Metropolitan City missed the cut in seventh with 1920. Her compatriot, Jun Gwe-Ae also had a disappointing end managing only 11th while ABF Tour TOC winner, Chan Shuk Han of Hong Kong ended in 15th.

The top 18 men will be joined by the top 3 local and top 3 overseas seeded qualifiers for another 10 games in the second round. The top 6 women will also be joined by the top 3 local and top 3 overseas seeded qualifiers for tomorrow's Round 2 finals.

The top 6 men and top 6 women will advance to the stepladder shootout finals to determine this year's champions.

20th April, Bangkok: Ex-national youth and top seed, Phumin Klanbida of Thailand bagged the 2013 Thailand The Masters title after defeating fellow compatriot, Yannaphon Larpapharat, 277-170 in the second deciding stepladder match.

Second seed, Yannaphon had earlier beaten Phumin, 194-165 in the all-Thai first match to force the decider but the 20-year-old youth recovered with a stunning victory over his challenger in the decider.

Phumin, who topped ther 10-game finals after leading from start to finish with 2234 pinfalls, 6 pins over Yannaphon in second with 2228. A third Thai and national bowler, Badin Lerdpiriyasakulkit finished third with 2196.

2011 Thailand World Tour second runner-up, Peerawich Rungchareon took fourth spot with 2144 while desperado squad qualifier, Yaqoub Al Shatti of Kuwait and Noor Afizal Azizan of Malaysia made the stepladder finals in fifth and sixth positions with 2117 and 2105.

Noor Afizal sailed past fourth seed, Peerawich and fifth seed Yaqoub with a 211-165-175 victory in the first stepladder match to advance into the second match.

No. 2 seed, Yannaphon proved too good for No. 3 seed, Badin Lerdpiriyasakulkit and Noor Afizal, winning 235-201-151 to face the top seed in a twice to beat format. Both the finalists struggled but a quick ball change from Phumin helped the youngster to seal the deciding match.

Phumin picked up the big cheque of 350,000 Thai Baht (approx. US$12,200) as champion and Yannaphon settled for 200,000 Baht (approx. US$6,950). Badin earned 100,000 Baht while Noor Afizal, Yaqoub and Peerawich took home 80,000, 60,000 and 40,000 Baht respectively.

The 2013 Thailand The Masters is a special event inaugurated in conjuction with the 39th MWA Thailand International Open. Qualifying for the Open, Grade A and Grade B divisions will end late tonight.

A desperado squad for the Men's Open, Men's Grade A and B will be held to allow four additional players to join their respective Masters finals.

Photos by Terence Yaw in Bangkok.

20th April, Bangkok: 2010 ABF Tour Hong Kong champion, Jerry Ramadona of Indonesia cracked into the top 3 of the Men's Open Masters overseas qualifying pool at the 39th MWA Thailand International Open on Saturday.

Ramadona, who was sixth in the Men's Open Masters mixed pool, improved his lower 623 series with a stunning 743 attempt at the 1.00pm squad to leadfrog into second in the overseas pool with 1407.

But crucially, his improvment earned the Indonesian one bye into Round 2 finals. Ramadona trailed perfect gamer, Shaker Al Hassan of UAE, who remained in the lead with 1418.

Basel Al Anzi of Kuwait slipped down to third with 1384 and relegating Australia's Sam Cooley into fourth position on 1308. Colley had made the top 3 bracket yesterday pushing down Ramadona's compatriot, Ryan Lalisang into fourth and now fifth on 1369.

There were no changes in the local pool with Yannaphon Larpapharat, Annop Arromsaranon and Sithiphol Kunaksorn occupying the top 3 spots with 1410, 1367 and 1362 respectively.

2011 ABF Tour Hong Kong champion, Kang Bo Long of Malaysia is the cut at 11th position in the mixed pool with 1272.

Meanwhile, Kim Min Hee of Daejeon Metropolitan City, Korea also cracked into the top 3 spots of the Ladies' Open Masters overseas pool with 1296, trailing leader Sharon Limansantoso of Indonesia in pole.

Her compatriot, Sung Gyeong Eun also made the cut in third with 1291 pushing down Putty Armein of Indonesia into fourth position with 1258. Two additional Koreans also made the cut.

Jun Gwi-Ae occupied seventh in the overseas pool with 1224 and Song Si-Ra fourth in the mixed pool with 1202. The cut for the Ladies' Open went to Anak Agung Ayu of Indonesia on 1165.

The 2013 Thailand Masters is currently on-going and the top 6 at the end of the 10-games finals will advance to the stepladder finals. Qualifying will end late tonight and a desperado squad for the Men's Open, Men's Grade A and B will be held to allow four players to join the finals.

Photos by Terence Yaw in Bangkok.

20th April, Bangkok: Sivakorn Kritsaruenon of Thailand won the Youth Under-18 Masters title of the 39th MWA Thailand International Open followed by Iffah Nadhirah of Malaysia and Kritin Kunumphon of Thailand third.

Kritsanakorn Sangaroon of Thailand got off to a superb start with 221 in his opening game to lead Iffah Nadhirah in second, 18 pins behind. But Iffah immediately moved into the lead after the Malaysian youth rolled 222 following her first game of 203.

Iffah kept her lead past the halfway mark when she started to fade off as 18-year-old Sivakorn Kritsaruenon of Thailand took over the running and opening up a gap of 63 pins over Ahmad Safwan of Singapore Sports School in second.

The Thai widened his gape to 102 by the seventh game and closed out his eighth and final game with 233 to win the title with 1706. Iffah recovered but settled for second with 1556, 150 pins adrift.

Kritin Kunumphon of Thailand stormed home with 222 to snatch third spot with 1555, just 1 pins further away while Indonesia's Shita Noen and Ahmad Safwan rounded out the top 5 with 1529 and 1505 respectively.

Charmaine Chang of Singapore Sports School and Manatsanan Wongvanichakit of Thailand finished in the money in sixth and seventh positions with 1477 and 1473.

The champion picked up 40,000 Thai Baht (approx. US$1,400) and a trophy with the first runner-up taking home 20,000 Baht and second runner-up 10,000 Baht.

The 2013 Thailand Masters finals will be staged at 1.00pm local time as qualifying rounds continue till late tonight.

Photos by Terence Yaw in Bangkok.

19th April, Bangkok: 2012 ABF Tour Saudi champion, Shaker Al Hassan of UAE rolled the tournament's third 300 en-route to taking over the Men's Open qualifying pole position of the 39th MWA Thailand International Open.

Shaker, who had a previous 6-game total of 1296, had slipped right down to 12th position in the overseas pool. The Emirati took to the lanes at the 3.30pm squad on lanes 37 and 38 to fire the perfect game.

His attempt improved his lowest 594 series to 716 giving him a new 6-game tally of 1418 to take over the lead in both the overseas pool and the overall standings.

Shaker will lead overnight leader, Basel Al Anzi of Kuwait (1384) and Ryan Lalisang of Indonesia (1369) as the top 3 qualifiers who have earned one bye into Round 2 finals on Monday.

There were no changes in the local pool with Yannaphon Larpapharat remaining in the lead with 1410. Annop Arromsaranon and Sitthipol Kunaksorn occupied the two remaining top 3 spots with 1367 and 1362.

Jassem Dariwsh of Kuwait headed the mixed pool with 1292 as the cut at 11th position went up to 1226 held by Hong Kong's Achilles Hung.

There were also no changes in the top 3 spots of the Ladies' Open overseas qualifying pool and the local qualifying pool. Sharon Limansantoso of Indonesia topped the overseas pool with 1310 while Angkana Netrviseth led the local pool with 1368.

Putty Armein of Indonesia and Roskasmani Ramli of Malaysia occupied the other two spots in the overseas pool with 1256 and 1228 and Yanee Saebe and Korngunya Aree occupied the other two local spots with 1324 and 1265.

Jun Gwi-Ae of Daejeon Metropolitan City, Korea finished fourth in the overseas pool with 1224. Cheya Chantika of Indonesia headed the mixed pool with 1166 and the cut at 7th position went to Sariya Chongvarin of Thailand with 1093.

There were also no changes in the top 2 spots in the 2013 Thailand Masters qualifying table with Angkana and Yannaphon in first and second position with 1422 and 1410. Khairul Naim of Malaysia stormed into third spot with 1397.

The cut at 32nd position went to Dechochai Tinjiratip of Thailand with 1293. Qualifying will end extremely late tonight as the squads are delayed by more than 3 hours. There will be a one-game desperado squad held for four additional qualifiers.

Photos by Terence Yaw in Bangkok.

19th April, Bangkok: Jeong Dong Hun of Pasai University took his maiden victory when the Korean youth captured the Youth Under-21 Masters finals of the 39th MWA Thailand International Open on Friday at S.F. Strike Bowl.

Diwan Rizaldy of Indonesia set a blistering pace with three back-to-back 226s to lead Razif Sazali of Malaysia by 33 pins closely followed by Jeong Dong Hun in third. Diwan held the lead after the fourth despite managing only 194.

Razif quickened his pace to take over the running past the halfway-mark after a sizzling 248 in the fifth game as Diwan slipped down to second, 10 pins adrift. The 20-year-old Malaysian led for the next four games before handling the lead to Jeong at the ninth game.

Trailing only by 2 pins, Razif was unable to sustain his pace and only came home with 176. Jeong too hung on well with 188 to win the title with 2057, 14 pins ahead of Razif on 2043.

Diwan was unable to mount any threat coming home with 199 to snatch third spot with 2021 after having dropped away into fifth before his final game.

Thailand's best finisher was Saharat Piyasakulchai taking fourth spot with 2007 while A second Indonesian, Adhiguna Widiantoro completed the top 5 with 2006.

Jeong pocketed 50,000 Thai Baht (approx. US$1,750) as champion with Razif taking home 20,000 Baht and Diwan 10,000 Baht. Saharat and Adhiguna won 5,000 and 3,000 Baht for finishing fourth and fifth positions.

The Youth Under-18 finals will be contested tomorrow morning at 9.00am while the 2013 Thailand Masters will be staged at 1.00pm local time. Qualifying for both event will end tonight.

Photos by Terence Yaw in Bangkok.

19th April, Bangkok: Singapore Sports School's Keith Tan Wei An snatched the Youth Under-15 Masters title of the 39th MWA Thailand International Open by 3 pins after a keen tussle for the lead with Thailand's Lepasdanai Chuseang.

Tan set a cracking pace with 226 in his opening game, 17 pins ahead of Thailand's Pattharadanai Sawangwan in second. But the Singaporean youth lost the lead to another Thai youth, Lepasdanai Chuseang after the second game when Tan managed only 165.

As his main opponent suffered a similar low game of 163 in the third, Tan bounced back with a stunning 258 to regain the lead and opening up a gap of 53 pins.

Lapasdanai responded superbly with 241 in the fourth game to re-take the lead as Tan managed only 171. The Thai kept the lead after the fifth game despite a 172 while Tan downed oanother 171 to trail by 12 pins.

Tan prevailed to end the sixth and final game with 204 to snatch the title with 1200 as Lapasdanai rolled 194 to settle for second, just 3 pins adrift.

Amabel Chua Jia Ying of Singapore Sports School tied third spot with Malaysia's Ayra Nur Jehan with 1195 a further 2 pins away while a third SSP youth, Oh Han Qin rounded out the top 5 with 1193.

Tan picked up 20,000 Thai Baht (approx. US$700) as champion with Laparsdanai settling for 10,000 Baht (approx. US$350). Amabel and Ayra shared the combined third and fourth prize of 8,000 Baht.

Photos by Terence Yaw in Bangkok.

18th April, Bangkok: Kuwaiti national bowler, Basel Al Anzi grabbed the lead of the Men's Open Masters overseas qualifying pool of the 39th MWA Thailand International Open from overnight leader, Ryan Lalaisang of Indonesia on Thursday.

Basel registered 727 and 657 for a 6-game tally of 1384 to take over the lead from Ryan Lalisang, who led yesterday with 1369. The Kuwaiti's total felled short by 15 pins to topple the overall leader, Yannaphon Larpapharat of Thailand.

Newcomer, Jaenbarta Bungara gave Team Indonesia plenty to cheer as he stormed into third spot in the overseas pool with a superb affort of 1343. Basel's team-mate, Khalid Al Dubyyan slipped out of the top 3 to finish fourth with 1335.

The top 3 in the overseas qualifying pool will earn one bye into Round 2 finals so will Thai national bowlers, Annop Arromsaranon and Sithiphol Kunaksorn, who finished second and third in the local pool with 1367 and 1362 respectively.

Another Kuwaiti, Jassem Darwish did well to lead the mixed pool with 1292 while the current cut at 11th position was held by Hong Kong's Joshua Chow with 1196.

Meanwhile, 2012 Indonesia Open champion, Sharon Limansantoso of Indonesia took over the lead of the Ladies' Open Masters overseas qualifying pool with 1265. Overnight leader, Putty Armein slipped down to second to give Indonesia a one-two finish with 1258.

2012 Penang Pesta Ladies' Open champion, Roskasmani Ramli of Malaysia took up third spot to join the two Indonesians and earned one bye into Round 2 finals.

2012 Sinai Open champion, Angkana Netrviseth of Thailand, Yanee Saebe and Korngunya Aree continued to occupy the top 3 spots in the local pool with 1368, 1324 and 1265 and also earned one bye into Round 2 finals.

Another Indonesian newcomer, Anak Agung Ayu topped the mixed pool with 1139 while the cut for the Ladies' Open in seventh position went to Hong Kong's Cookie Lee with 979.

2012 ABF Tour Tournament of Champions winner, Yannaphon Larpapharat improved his lower 692 series with 707 but remained second in the 2013 Thailand Masters qualifying standings with a 6-game aggregate of 1410.

His team-mate, Angakana continued to top the standings with 1422 after having led for the past five days. Men's Open overseas pool leader, Basel Al Anzi also notched up 1372 to finish third.

The first Masters final will be staged tomorrow for the Youth U-15 division in the morning followed by the Youth U-21 Masters in the afternoon as qualifying continues.

Photos by Terence Yaw in Bangkok.

17th April, Bangkok: Indonesians, Ryan Lalisang and Putty Armein topped the Men's Open and Ladies' Open Masters overseas qualifying pool of the 39th MWA Thailand International Open on Wednesday at S.F. Strike Bowl.

ABF Tour 2012 ranked No. 1, Ryan Lalisang, who was third before he improved his 3-game series of 611 to 695 to add to his other 3-game series of 674, took over the lead in the overseas pool with 1369.

2012 Dubai Open and H.H. Emir's Cup champion, Kim Bolleby of Sweden slipped down to second after having led yesterday.The 22-year-old Swede posted 669 and 637 for a 6-game tally of 1306.

2012 ABF Tour Bahrain leg champion, Hussain Al Suwaidi of UAE finished second with 1300 ahead of three Kuwaitis, Yaqoub Al Shatti, Jassem Darwish and Basel Al Anzi occupied the next three spots with 1247, 1226 and 1211 respectively.

In the local pool, ABF Tour TOC winner, Yannaphon Larpapharat continued to lead the standings with an improved 1399 while his team-mate, Annop Arromsaranon amassed 1367 to take up second spot.

Ex-national, Sithiphol Kunaksorn rounded out the top 3 with 1362. The top 3 qualifiers in the local pool and top 3 qualifiers in the overseas pool will earn a bye into Stage 2 finals.

Meanwhile, there were no changes atop the Ladies' Open Masters local qualifying pool with Angkana Netrviseth leading with 1368 ahead of Yanee Saebe in second with 1324 and Korgunya Aree in third with 1265.

Putty Armein of Indonesia topped the Ladies' Open Masters overseas qualifying pool with 1244 after rolling 637 and 607. 2012 Penang Pesta Ladies' champion, Roskasmani Ramli took second spot with 1228 while Sharon Limansantoso of Indonesia finished third with 1208.

The 2013 Thailand Masters qualifying table also remained unchanged with Angkana, Yannaphon and Annop occupying the top 3 spots with 1422, 1399 and 1367. The best non-Thai was Mohd Zul Fauzi of Malaysia in seventh with 1333.

Kim Bolleby took up tenth ahead of Ryan Lalisang in 11th position. Qualifying for the Youth U-15 and Youth U-21 will end tomorrow and their Masters finals will be contested on April 19 morning at 9.00am and 2.00pm.

Photos by Terence Yaw in Bangkok.

16th April, Bangkok: ABF Tour TOC winner, Yannaphon Larpapharat and Angkana Netrviseth set the qualifying pace to lead the Men's and Ladies' Open Masters qualifying standings of the 39th MWA Thailand International Open underway at S.F. Strike Bowl.

Fresh from bagging his biggest tour win in Kuwait last month, the 29-year-old Yannphon registered two 3-game series of 692 and 689 for a 6-game total aggregate of 1381 to lead the Men's Open Masters table.

His compatriot and 2005 Thailand Open champion, Sithiphol Kunaksorn making a comeback after two year's absence, totaled 1362 to take up second spot while Thai youngster, Phumin Klanbida finished third with 1348.

The top 3 in the local pool will earn one bye to Round 2 finals. Annop Arromsarannon missed the top 3 position in fourth position with 1336 with Peerawich Rungcharoen rounding out the top 5.

Qualifiers in positions 4 to 11 from the local pool will qualify for Round 1 finals. 2012 Dubai Open and 2012 H.H. Emir Cup champion, Kim Bolleby of Sweden occupied top spot in the overseas pool with 1306.

Thai women also set the early qualifying pace with 2012 Sinai Open champion, Angkana Netrviseth leading the Ladies' Open standings with 1368. Twice Thailand Open second runner-up, Yanee Saebe took second spot with 1324.

Korngunya Aree finished a distant third with 1195 while the only overseas women, Sabeena Athica of India topped the table with 1041. The top 3 qualifiers in the local and top 3 qualifiers in the overseas pool will earn a bye into Round 2.

Angkana also topped the Thailand Masters 2013, a new event held in conjunction with this year's Thailand Open, with 1422 including a 9-pin handicap. Yannaphon and Sithiphol finished second and third with 1381 and 1362.

The top 32 together with four from the desperado squad will bowl 10 games in the finals on April 20 and the top 6 finishers will advance to the stepladder finals. The champion will win 350,000 Thai Baht (approx. US$12,000) with second and third position taking home 200,000 and 100,000 Thai Baht respectively.

With the Malaysian national bowlers missing from this championship as they are competing in the National Championships and the Singapore national bowlers not taking part due to tight budget, competition may be less intensive.

But with bowlers from Australia, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Korea, Kuwait and United Arab Emirates arriving Bangkok today, competition will heat up for sure.

Qualifying ends April 18 for the Youth U-15 and Youth U-21 Masters, April 19 for the Youth U-18 and the Thailand Masters. The last day of qualifying for the rest of the divisions will end on April 20.

Photos by Terence Yaw in Bangkok.