7th June, Singapore: Recently crowned Euro-Med Storm Masters and defending champion, Sin Li Jane of Malaysia captured the Women's Open Masters crown of the 47th Singapore International Open while Vincent Lim of Singapore won his first-ever Masters title.

Li Jane, who led Round 1 finals yesterday, finishing second to Shayna Ng of Singapore in today's Round 2 finals to advance into the stepladder finals. The two-time Singapore Open sailed past third-seed, Kristin Quah of Singapore and fourth-seed, Lara Posadas of Philippines with a 247-213-184 victory in the first match.

The Malaysian forced top-seed Ng into a sudden-death decider after winning the first game, 258-235 to set up the deciding finale.

Ng started off the second match better with a turkey as Li Jane spared her first two frames. Although Ng suffered a split in the fourth frame, she bounced back with four strikes-in-a-row. Li Jane responded with a turkey herself leaving the tie with very little between the two title contenders.

The Singaporean suffered another blow when she encountered another split in the crucial ninth frame and despite ending with 221, her opponent doubled up in the seventh and eighth frames and then went on to spare her last two frames to edge Ng with 223.

Li Jane, who has successfully defending her title for the second time, picked up S$6,000 as champion for the third time. Ng settled for S$3,000 while Quah and Posadas earned S$1,500 and S$1,000 respectively.

Meanwhile Vincent Lim gave the Singapore supporters plenty to cheer after he defeated challenger, Ahmad Muaz of Malaysia, 207-175 to win his first-ever international open title.

Lim, who finished first runner-up at the 40th Thailand International Open in April, made amends with his victory on home soil. The champion had earlier totaled 1969 in the 8-game Round 2 finals to advance into the stepladder finals.

Commonwealth Championship Doubles gold medalist, Muhd Jaris Goh who finished second was eliminated in the first stepladder match when Ahmad took the match against Jaris' and fourth-seed, Nguyen Thanh Pho of Vietnam, 245-193-226.

Lim was richer by S$20,000 with the title while Ahmad took home S$10,000 as first runner-up. Jaris earned S$7,5000 as second runner-up and Nguyen settled for S$4,500.

Ryan Lalisang of Indonesia, who led the Men's Open Round 1 finals, won the S$10,000 perfect game award. Mr Perry Neo, Chairman of Dynasty Travel International was on hand to present the prizes to the winners, accompanied by Mr Von Chan, Director and General Manager of Canon Singapore and Dr Robin Yap, Vice President of SBF.

Photos by Terence Yaw in Singapore.

6th June, Singapore: Two-time Singapore Open and defending champion, Sin Li Jane of Malaysia cruised into pole position in the Women's Open Round 1 Masters finals of the 47th Singapore International Open on Friday.

Li Jane, who was battling intensely with Singapore's Joey Yeo Ruoqi for the lead in the first six games, stamped her mark when she ended the 8-game round with 254 for a total of 1876 for top spot.

The 22-year-old Malaysian, who had recently became the first-ever women to win the prestigious Euro-Med Storm International Masters title in Manila last month, will be vying to win the women's crown for the third time and second consecutive year.

The 2012 Asian School triple gold medalist, Yeo settled for second spot with 1800, 76 pins adrift while early pace-setter, Kristin Quah of Singapore gave a good account for herself to take up third position with 1772.

This year's Malaysian International Open first runner-up, Daphne Tan took fourth position with 1738 while Rebecca Voukolos of Australia and newly-crowned Malaysian Open champion, Cherie Tan tied fifth position with 1679.

Malaysian women also gave a good account for themselves with Shalin Zulkifli and Sharon Koh taking up seventh and eighth positions with 1674 and 1661 respectively. Chinese Taipei's Tsai Hsin Yi and Macau's Julia Lam finished ninth and tenth positions.

Amanda secured her place in the next round in 11th while Jazreel Tan, who was in 15th position before the final game, shot 236 to also secure her place in 12th position. Alisha Iman Cheong of Malaysia missed the cut in 13th, just 8 pins away.

The top 12 women will be joined by the 3 local and 3 overseas seeded qualifiers for another 8 games Round 2 finals tomorrow. The top 4 at the end of the round will advance to the stepladder finals.

Photos by Terence Yaw in Singapore.

6th June, Singapore: Indonesians, Yeri Ramadona and fifth perfect gamer, Ryan Lalisang ruled the lanes at Orchid Bowl @ Orchid Country Club when the duo finished one-two in the Men's Open Round 1 Masters finals of the 47th Singapore International Open.

Ramadona, winner of the ABF Tour Hong Kong leg back in 2010, set a cracking pace with a stunning 279 opener to lead last year's Singapore Open first runner-up, Kang Bo Long of Malaysia in second, just 1 pin adrift.

But the day belonged to 2006 Doha Asian Games Singles gold medalist, Ryan Lalisang when the 29-year-old rolled the tournament's fifth 300 in the second game to take over the running as PBA pro, Sean Rash of USA moved into second.

Lalisang's lead was short-lived as the 2011 PBA Player of the Year, Rash moved ahead into the lead with a 22 pin lead with Ramadona staying closely in third.

Lalisang turned in more consistent scores in the next three games before handing the lead to his fellow compatriot, Ramadona after the seventh game. Ramadona and Lalisang eventually finished one-two with 1910 and 1893 total.

Rash settled for third with 1878 while Ahmad Muaz of Malaysia and Kenneth Chua of the Philippines tied fourth position to round out the top 5 with 1844.

Lalisang's effort could earn him S$10,000 (approx. $7,900) as the first bowler to achieve the magical 300 during the masters finals. He will have to share this pot if there are more than one bowler scoring another 300.

Muhs Jaris Goh and Javier Tan gave Singapore some hope as the duo advanced into the next round with an eighth and 13th place finish with 1823 and 1770 respectively.

Zulmaran Zulkifli of Malaysia squeezed into the next round in 16th position with 1762 edging desperado squad qualifier, Chiam Yew Koon of Singapore by 15 pins.

The top 16 will advance to Round 2 finals for another 8 games tomorrow, joined by the four local seeded qualifiers and the four overseas seeded qualifiers. The Women's Open Round 1 finals will be held later today.

Photos by Terence Yaw in Singapore.

5th June, Singapore: Filipinos Biboy Rivera and Enrico Hernandez swapped top spot of the Men's Open Masters qualifying position as the 47th Singapore International Open entered its final day of qualifying on Thursday..

Hernandez made further inroads as the 18-year-old left-hander bettered another lower 3-game series with 746 to take his 6-game aggregate to a stunning 1522 total. The new leader edged overnight leader and team-mate, Rivera by 13 pins to take over the lead.

PBA pro and current PBA-WTBA World Bowling Tour ranked No. 1, Mika Koivuniemi of Finland stormed into the top bracket with two superb 790 and 708 to take up third spot with 1498 while Tomokatshu Yamashita of Japan clinched fourth position with 1478.

Filipinos are adapting well to the lane conditions here at Orchid Bowl when Kenneth Chua and debutant, Kevin Cu finished fifth and sixth positions to head the remaining overseas qualifiers fro Round 1 finals with 1476 and 1462 respectively.

The top 4 positions in the local pool remained unchanged with Suresh Elangovan, Vincent Lim, Tay Hui Chiang and Howard Saw sitting firmly to automatically qualify for Round 2 finals.

Several players made the cut namely, Ahmad Muaz of Malaysia in tenth in the local pool with 1441, Hardy Rachmadian of Indonesia in 12th with 1440 and current JPBA Ranked No. 1, Nobuhito Fuji of Japan in 14th position.

Yeri Ramadona of Indonesia headed the mixed pool with 1422 as PBA pro and 2011/12 PBA Player of the Year, Sean Rash languishing in ninth with 1408. The current cut at 1630 hrs went to newly-crowned Youth Boys Masters champion, Syaffiq Ikhwan of Malaysia with 1402.

Meanwhile in the Women's Open division, there were no drastic changes in the local pool with New Hui Fen, Shayna Ng and Krisha Darshini occupying the top 3 spots. However, Dayang Khairuniza of Malaysia overtook team-mate, Siti Safiyah to move ahead with 1389.

Siti settled for second spot with 1377 while fourth perfect gamer, Lara Posadas secured third position with 1373 relegating 2009 Singapore Open champion, Sharon Koh of Malaysia into fourth.

2013 Milo All-Stars Masters champion, Natasha Roslan of Malaysia held tenth position in the local pool with 1311 while Kristin Quah of Singapore headed the mixed pool with 1353. The current cut went to Tracy See of Singapore with 1289.

Qualifying will run through to the last squad late tonight and a one-game desperado squad will be staged to allow three Men to join Round 1 finals. Desperado squad will also be staged for the Men's Graded A.

The Men will contest 8-games Round 1 finals tomorrow morning while the Women will contest theirs at 3.30pm. The top 16 finishers in the Men's Open division will join the eight seeded qualifiers for Round 2 finals on June 7. The top 12 finishers in the Women's Open division will be joined by the top 6 seeded qualifiers for Round 2 Finals.

Photos by Terence Yaw in Singapore.

4th June, Singapore:2010 Asian Games Singles gold medalist, Biboy Rivera and 2010 Asian Schools Singles gold medalist, Enrico Hernandez stamped their mark at the 47th Singapore International Open by taking up the top 2 spots of the Men's Open Masters qualifying table on Wednesday.

Rivera improved his lower 3-game series of 669 with a splendid 782 series to leapfrog into top spot with a 6-game tally of 1509, becoming the only bowler to surpass the 1500-mark. His stunning performance would make the 40-year-old one of the top title contenders for the Masters crown.

His team-mate, Hernandez who was the overnight leader, retained second spot after improving his lower 3-game series of 692 with 776 for a new 6-game aggregate of 1499.

Ex-international, Tomokatshu Yamashita of Japan took up third position with 1478 while a third Filipino, Kenneth Chua rounded out the top 4 with 1469.

2013 AMF World Cup champion, Syafiq Ridhwan of Malaysia, who led the overseas pool with 1456 earlier today, dropped out of the top 4 to settle for fifth position.1499

There were no changes in the local pool with Suresh Elangovan maintaining the lead with 1499 followed by 2014 Thailand Open first runner-up, Vincent Lim in second with 1480. Tay Hui Chaing and Howard Saw completed the top 4 with 1479 and 1471 respectively.1499

Justin Lim Chia Loong headed positions 5 to 14 with 1467. Current cut in 12th position in the mixed pool was held by 2009 Singapore Open champion and current leader in the PBA-WTBA World Bowling Tour ranking, Mika Koivuniemi of Finland with 1370.

Siti Safiyah Amirah of Malaysia led the Women's Open Masters overseas pool with 1377 ahead of team-mate and 2009 Singapore Open champion, Sharon Koh on 1365. Macau's Julia Lam rounded out the top 3 with 1358.

Australia's Rebecca Voulcolas finished fourth with 1344 followed by Lara Posadas of the Philippines, who rolled the tournament's fourth perfect game, completing the top 5 with 1322.

Reigning Singapore national champion, New Hui Fen remained firmly in the lead of the local pool with 1491 followed by 2013 AMF World Cup champion, Shayna Ng in second with 1490.

Ex-national, Krishna Darshini improved her total to take up third position with 1459, relegating 2009 AMF World Cup champion, Jasmine Yeong-Nathan into fourth position with 1407.

The current cut in ninth position after the 6.00pm squad went to Malaysia's Esther Cheah with 1267 as qualifying continues for another day tomorrow.

Photos by Terence Yaw in Singapore.

3rd June, Singapore: Reigning national champion, New Hui Fen of Singapore took over top spot of the Women's Open Masters qualifying leaderboard at the 47th Singapore International Open on the eighth day of competition at Orchid Bowl @ OCC.

Hui Fen, who was second in the table during the first few days of qualifying rounds, improved her lower 3-game series with a stunning 777 to leapfrog into pole position with a total 6-game aggregate of 1491 and an impressive 248.5 average.

The 2013 Asian Indoor & Martial Arts Games bronze medalist will be hoping to improve her second runner-up position in the 2010 Singapore International Open after a superb performance in her qualifying rounds.

First perfect gamer and 2013 DHC-IBC Women's champion, Shayna Ng remained in second position with 1490 while ex-national youth, Krishna Darshini made up the top 3 places in the qualifying standings with 1459."

The top 3 qualifers in the local pool will earn a bye into Round 2 finals skipping Round 1. 2009 AMF World Cup champion, Jasmine Yeong-Nathan headed positions 4 to 10 of the local pool with 1407.

Siti Safiyah Amirah of the Malaysian national team topped the overseas pool with a superb 1377 pinfalls ahead of Wang Ya Ting of Chinese Taipei in second with 1368 while debutant, Zhang Chun Li of China finished third with 1303.

Likewise, the top 3 qualifiers in the overseas pool will advance automatically to Round 3 finals. 2009 Singapore Open women champion, Sharon Kohof Malaysia headed positions 4 to 10 with 1299.

Two-time Singapore Open (2010 and 2013) and defending champion, Sin Li Jane of Malaysia will automatically qualify for Round 1 finals but she will attempt to improve her ninth position in a hope to make the top 3 bye.

The current cut in ninth position in the local and overseas pool (mixed) is held by Sheena Go of the Philippines with a total of 1223. Positions 1 to 9 in the mixed pool will qualify for Round 1 finals.

Meanwhile, national bowler Suresh Elangovan remained in the lead of the Men's Open Masters qualifying table with 1499. The 21-year-old 2010 Singapore Open Youth Masters second runner-up has two splendid 782 and 717 series to give him top spot.

Ex-national, Vincent Lim of Singapore, who almost rolled the tournament's third perfect game but improved his position to second with a total of 1480. Lim was on the verge of picking S$10,000 if he had achieved the feat as his attepmt was during one of the designated perfect game squads.

Tay Hui Chaing and second perfect gamer, Howard Saw made up the top 4 with 1479 and 1471 who will automatically qualify for Round 2 finals. Justin Lim Chia Loong headed position 5 to 14 with 1467.

Qualifiers in position 5 to 14 will have to battle out the finals in Round 1 of which eight of the qualifiers are Singapore national bowlers.

2010 Asian School Singles gold medalist, Enrico Hernandez of the Philippines occupied No. 1 position of the overseas pool with 1415. He is joined by three-time Malaysian International Open champion, Zulmazran Zulkifli of Malaysia in second with 1413.

Another Chinese debutant and early leader, Yin Shu Yu took third position with 1405 while 2010 Guanzhou Asian Games Singles gold medalist, Biboy Rivera of the Philippines completed the top 4 with 1396.

The top 4 men of the local pool and the top 4 men of the overseas pool will advance directly to Round 2 finals. 2010 Asian Games Singles silver medalist, Kenneth Chua of the Philippines headed positions 5 to 14 with 1390.

2009 Singapore Open first runner-up and 2011-12 PBA Player of the Year, Sean Rash of Montgomery, Ill, USA sits in 13th position with 1350. He will surely be making more attempts to get into the top 4 bracket.

Another PBA pro and 2007 Singapore Open champion, Mika Koivuniemi of Finland has yet to make his qualifying rounds after his arrival in Singapore.

Qualifying rounds will end June 5 and the Open Masters Round 1 finals will be held on June 6. The top 16 finishers in the Men's Open Round 1 finals will advance to Round 2 together with the eight seeded qualifiers (top 4 local men and top 4 overseas men).

The top 12 finishers in the Women's Open Round 1 finals will also advance to Round 2 together with the six seeded qualifiers (top 3 local women and top 3 overseas women).

Photos by Terence Yaw in Singapore.

30th May, Singapore: National bowler, Howard Saw rolled the tournament's second perfect game of the 47th Singapore International Open 2014 en-route to taking second position in the Men's Open Masters qualifying standings underway at Orchid Bowl @ OCC.

After four days of intense qualifying rounds at Orchid Bowl, Orchid Country Club where a one perfect game had been achieved, Howard took to the lanes to roll his eighth career 300 and the tournament's second.

His 300 and 3-game series of 757 propelled him into second spot in the Men's Open Masters qualifying table with 1471 after adding his other 3-game series of 714.

"I was focusing on repeating shots during the qualifying rounds as advised by coach, Remy Ong during taining," said the 21-year-old, whose last perfect game was achieved during the 7th National League.

In fact, Howard was bowling with an injured finger after breaking his finger nail on the first day of qualifying. "The feeling was different when throwing a shot with a broken nail but now I'm recovering," added Howard.

After Day 4, Suresh Elangovan remained in the lead with 1486 followed by Howard in second. Justin Lim Chia Loong and Javier Tan made up the top 4 with 1467 and 1461 respectively.

The top 4 in the local pool and top 4 in the overseas pool will earn a bye to automatically qualify for Round 2 Finals, skipping Round 1. Alexander Tan occupied fifth spot with 1433 and will lead positions 5 to 13 for ROund 1 finals.

AIBC U22 Singapore leg champion, Kuek Qi En headed the mxed pool with 1347 while the current cut in 11th and 12th position is shared by Osman Bin Tik and Christopher Chiam with 1271.

Meanwhile, reigning national women champion, New Hui Fen claimed top spot in the Women's Open Masters qualifying standings with 1491 from two stunning 777 and 714 3-games series. 2013 IBC and 2012 AMF World Cup champion, Shayna Ng surged into second spot with 1490 after scoring the tournament's first perfect game.

Another AMF World Cup champion, Jasmine Yeong-Nathan found her old spark after she took third spot with 1407. The top 3 in the local pool and top 3 in the overseas pool will earn a bye into Round 2 Finals.

Early leader and newly-crowned Malaysian Open Women's Masters champion, Cherie Tan slipped down to fourth with 1397 ahead of Geraldine Ng rounding out the top 5 with 1392. Malaysian Open first runner-up, Daphne Tan is the cut in 10th position of the local pool with 1303.

Qualifying will heat up with the arrival of the majority of the overseas participants, particularly from Australia, Brunei, Chinese Taipei, Guam, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, UAE and USA.

The first of the Masters finals will be staged tomorrow, May 31 for the Youth Under-15 division and on June 1 for the Youth Under-18 division. Qualifying for the open division will end on June 4.

Photos courtesy of SingaporeBowling.