29th July, Jakarta: Alex Liew of Malaysia, successfully defended the title of the Men's Open Masters title after trashing challenger, Wu Siu Hong of Hong Kong, 256-197 in the final stepladder match while Zara Glover of England wins the same title in two conescutive years.

Liew, the 2005 Asian ranked No. 1 had earlier triumphed over his same opponent, Wu Siu Hong when both tied in the Masters finals on identical scores of 3656, by defeating Wu, 225-217 to move into the stepladder finals as top-seed. Wu knocked out third-seed, Helmi Chew of Singapore and winner of the first match, David Sitorus of Indonesia to set up a rematch with the defending champion.

Despite missing a single pin in the third, the champion struck out from frame four onwards and gave no chance for Wu to mount any form of attack and easily crusied to a comfortable victory, 256-197. Liew, who took the title last year, also defeated Wu in the stepladder finals.

"I'm extremely happy with myself as I have bowled well throughout this week," said the 30-year-old member of the national elite squad. "This is the

first time ever that I have successfully defended a title and it couldn't be more sweeter. "I'm not sure that I have been picked for the Asian Championship next week and I hope this win will assure me a spot in the squad.

Wu settled for second while overnight leaderm Helmi Chew of Singapore took third spot. Stepladder finalists, David Sitorus of Indonesia, Fadhel Mousawi and Malaysia's Azidi Ameran finished fourth, fifth and sixth positions respectively.

Meanwhile, Malaysia could have landed a double had the winner of five international titles, Shalin Zulkifli triumphed in the Women's division. The 28-year-old ex-national went down to defending champion and Women's World Championship God medalist, Zara Glover of England in the stepladder finals.

But Shalin didn't go down without a fight. She took the first match, 212-188 to force the top-seed into a sudden-death decider was as it turned out, luck was not on her side as she lost the second match by just 2 pins, 193-195.

Shalin had won the second match knocking out third-seed, Rena Teng of Singapore and American, Melissa Belinder, 229-178-207 to have a crack at her sixth tite this year.

"I was a bit nervous in the first match especially when my opponent was Shalin," said the champion. "But I soon settled down in the second but just could repeat my shots. I thought my opponent was going to strike out to snatch the win but I guess luck was on my side.

Malaysia's Lai Kin Ngoh, who made the stepladder finals as fourth seed and Hong Kong's Joey Yip, went down to Belinder in the first match, 174-150-202 and remained fourth.

Photos by Terence Yaw.

28th July, Jakarta: Ex-national and 2004 Singapore national champion, Helmy Chew snatched the lead in the final game of the Men's Open first block Masters finals of the 4th Indonesia International Open which concluded Friday evening.

A strong field of 36 men contested the 8-game first block finals after nearly 10 days of grueiling qualifying rounds which saw 9 announcements of seven consecutive strikes made over the PA system at Jaya Ancol Bowl.

Malaysian national rookie, Muhd Nur Aiman set the pace with 255 but was immediately overwhelmed by Singapore's ex-national, Helmy Chew, who tool over the lead after a high game of 278 in the second. The 2004 national champion kept on a blistering pace to lead until the halfway mark when defending champion and another southpaw, Alex Liew mounting his challenge.

Two massive games of 279 and 265 saw Liew on course the right way but suffered two subsequent low games to end the block fourth. Last year's runner-up, Wu Sui Hong of Hong Kong took a brief lead in the sixth game but also dropped to third at the end.

Chew snatched the lead in the final game with a superb 258 ending the first block with a total of 1870. Kuwait's Fadhel Mousawi recovered from a low game in the seventh to strom home for second spot with 1805 while Wu amassed 1797 for third.

"I started to use the ball I qualified with but ran into all sorts of problems with an open fram and two splits in the first game," said the leader. "Fortunately, I made the switch to my Columbia and struck out. From then onwards, the ball had much more carry and I was able to bring home all the high games.

Newly-crowned Vietnam Open champion, Purvis Granger could only manage 13th with 1669 while ex-PBA, Tim Mack of USA finished one rung above his fellow compatriot win 12th spot with 1672.

Three Indonesians are still amongst the top 16 hoping to make the cut for the ABF Tour Indonesia leg which will be held on SUnday, 30th July. The field will continue their second block Saturday, 29th July and the top 6 will make the cut for the stepladder finals.

Photos by Terence Yaw.

28th July, Jakarta: Defending champion, Zara Glover of England looked set to taking a successive title as she topped the Women's Open first block Masters finals of the 4th Indonesia International Open underway at Jaya Ancol Bowl Friday morning.

After a week long instense qualifying round which ended late Thursday evening, the top 23 qualifiers and defending champion, Zara Glover took to the lanes for their first block of 8 games finals. Championship debutant, Melissa Belinder of Brunswick, USA immediately set a blistering pace with 248 and 237 in the first two games.

But her lead was brief as Singapore's Rena Teng put in her challenge posting 232 and 253 to tie for the lead with the American with Zara Glover in close company trailing only by 10 pins. At the halfway mark, the English women trailed new leader, Rena Teng by 39 pins.

Glover then picked up her pace to bring home two massive games of 278 and 279 in the fifth and seventh game and took control over the field to lead 48 pins with Rena and the surging Shalin Zulkifli of Malaysia third.

A moderate 186 was enough to assure Glover the lead with a total of 1898 but with the gap narrowed to just 22 pins. The Singaporean settled for second with 1876 ahead of double ABF Tour winner, Shalin Zulkifli third with 1757.

"I played on very similar lines when I won the title here last year and I'm extremely happy to be here and doing well," said Glover. "I had a bit of a problem in the final game on a pair of lanes that were very different and fortunately I'm still in the lead.

Malaysia's Lai Kin Ngoh ended the block in fourth on a score of 1706 followed by the pace-setter, Melissa Belinder and Joey Yip of Hong Kong fifth and sixth positions on scores of 1688 and 1679 respectively.

The women will continue their second block Saturday, 29th July and the top 6 will make the cut for the stepladder finals. The top 16 Asian finishers wil also qualify for the ABF Tour Indonesia leg which will be held on Sunday, 30th.

Photos by Terence Yaw.

27th July, Jakarta: Hazel Lam of Hong Kong ans Jason Tan Kok Leong of Singapore, captured the Ladies' and Men's Graded A Masters titles of the 4th Superbowl Vietnam International Open Friday morning.

As the masters finals got underway at the end of a week-long grueilling qualifying rounds, Hazel Lam from Hong Kong edged Malaysia's Ili Syazana in the 8-game Ladies' Graded A Masters finals with a total score of 1598. Syazana settled for second, just 8 pins adrift in second with 1590.

"I'm so surprised to have won my first-ever international title," said the 27-year-old clerk with an educational institute back in Hong Kong. Lam was only just seconded into the national team this year under the watchful eyes of national coaches, Pedro and Andrew Fung.

"I hope to do well if given the opportunity to compete internationally and maybe I have a chance one day to represent my country in an official championship," added the champion. Filipina, Sheena Goh claimed third spot with a total of 1507.

The men's title went to last year's Graded B Masters champion, Jason Tan Kok Leong of Singapore. Tan was unstoppable reeling off lines of 247, 256, 238, 236, 194, 247, 254, 213, 201 and 204 for a total of 2290, 102 pins ahead of his nearest opponent and fellow-countryman, Jeremy Fang in second with 2188.

"When someone told me that I was leading after the fourth game, I knew I had to remain focus and just enjoy the game," said the 27-year-old centre manager for Cathay Bowl SAFRA Tampines. "I was under no pressure since this is my first competitive championship after being promoted to Grade A," added the champion.

"I'll come back next year and I'll try my luck in the Open division. Who knows, I may be third time lucky. 1st Ampang Superbowl International Masters Challenge champion, Suhaimi Rahmat of Malaysia finished third with 2123.

The Ladies' Open Masters first block finals will commence at 1.30pm while the men will contest theirs at 5.00pm later today. The ladies' field will be cut to 12 and the men from 30 to 16 to move into the second block tomorrow.

Photos by Terence Yaw.

27th July, Jakarta: Singapore national, Mark Wong claimed his maiden international title when he triumphed in the Boy's Open Masters finals of the 4th Indonesia International Open while newly-crowned Ladies' Graded champion, Ili Syazana claimed the Girl's Open division.

Wong went into the finals as firm favourite after having topped the overseas qualifying pool and the 15-year-old started off the 10-game finals with a superb 224. Wong suffered a set back when he bowled two consecutive low games of 152 and 161 dropping him down the field of 18 finalists.

Quickly making the necessary adjustments, Wong came back strongly to string together a series of high games but was still some 58 pins behind the pace-setter and teammate, Christopher Hwang. But the champion stuck to his task and continued his relentless pursuit and narrowed the gap to 22 pins by the eighth game.

With two more games to go, Wong posted 234 and 201 to seal the victory and claimed his maiden international title with a total of 2112. Runner-up, Jack Leong also stormed home with two massive games to snatch second spot with 2089 while local favourite, Dennis Ranova settled for third with 2054.

Meanwhile, newly-crowned Ladies' Graded champion, Ili Syazana continued her fine form to win her second consecutive title by winning the Girl's Open crown with a total of 2000. The 16-year-old took over the lead from the second game onwards and never look back.

Singapore's national southpaw, Gina Lim, who at one stage drew level with the champion in the seventh game, bowled a low game of 161 in the eighth game to trail the leader by 21 pins. Despite a 204 and and 217 in her final two games, it was a bit too late and settled for second with 1987, just 13 pins adrift.

The champion's teammate, Christyn Chew stormed home in the final two games with 227 and 235 to snatch third spot with 1915 while second perfect gamer, Nor Amilia Mohd Noor missed the podium to finish fourth with 1885.

Photos by Terence Yaw.

26th July, Jakarta: Hong Kong bowlers are making an impression at the on-going 4th Indonesia International Open as national bowler, Joey Yip and Wu Sui Hong continued to occupy the top 2 positions of their respective Open Masters qualifying leaderboard at Jaya Ancol Bowl.

Yip, the lanky national bowler from Hong Kong, posted 196, 215, 266 and 246 for a four-game total of 923 to surge to second in the women's table behind current leader and double ABF Tour winner, Shalin Zulkifli of Malaysia.

"This is my second attempt and I'm happy to have made the finals this early," said Yip, who has been with the national team for over 4 years. "Art Mckee, our new technical consultant from USA has been extremely helpful and he advised me to use a bowling ball that suited the conditions here," added Yip.

Manila SEA Games Masters Gold medalist, Liza Clutario also impressed with a score of 915 to take up third in the overseas pool while 14-year-old Malaysian national, Sin Li Jane shot 873 and Malaysian Open runner-up, Choy Poh Lai posted 871 for fourth and fifth spots respectively.

The second perfect game of the championship came when STBA'04 team member, Nor Amilia Mohd Nor of Malaysia posted 816 in her open division attempt. The 15-year-old started off with a poor 165 but came back with 300 in the second game. The first perfect game was shot by Commonwealth Championship Doubles Gold medalist, Mohd Noer Said of Malaysia two days ago.

Meanwhile, Hong Kong's Wu Sui Hong lost the lead when Kuwait's Fadhel Mousawi chalked up lines of 267, 176, 274 and 253 for a total of 970. Wu settled for second with 951 posted two days ago. Wu made the stepladder finals last year only to loose to eventual champion, Alex Liew.

Ex-international, David Sitorus of Indonesia occupied the top local seeded qualifier with the national men missing in action at the championship. The 44-year-old has had several major successes during his prime and is making a comeback.

Muhd Nur Aiman was the best qualifier in third with 942 from lines of 241, 242, 264 and 195 ahead of southpaw, Ben Heng in fourth with 939. The first perfect gamer, Mohd Noer shot 937 for fifth spot.

Ex-PBA bowler, Tim Mack of USA, who is shouldering a slight injury to his right arm still managed to shoot 907 and taking up 11th spot while newly-crowned Vietnam International Open champion and compatriot, Purvis Granger finished 12th with 906.

Qualifying will end tomorrow, 27th July for the chance to make the cut for the Masters finals. The Ladies' Graded B Masters finals will also kick off tomorrow morning followed by the Youth in the afternoon.

Photos by Terence Yaw, MTBC.

25th July, Jakarta: Newly-crowned CCM 2nd Selangor International Open champion, Shalin Zulkifli topped the Women's Open Masters qualifying table of the 4th Indonesia International Open at Jaya Ancol Bowling Center.

Fresh from capturing her fifth international title this year, the 28-year-old ex-national has captured the Thailand Women's Open Masters in April, the 3rd Kuwait Open in May, and the ABF Tour Thailand and Philippines legs, Shalin signalled her intentions to bag a sixth on a superb first attempt score of 978 for the lead.

Following her in second was Hong Kong's Joey Yip, who posted 923 while Asian Youth Team Gold medalist, Zatil Iman chalked up 866 to take up third spot in the overseas pool. Asian Schools Masters Bronze medalist, Wan Nur Attiqa of Malaysia claimed fourth position with a score of 864 while newcomer to Jakarta, Melissa Belinder of USA was fifth with 863.

With the top Indonesian national women missing from the championship due to preparations for the 19th Asian Championship just two weeks away, Agung Ayu, Lani Sardadi and Sheanny Gunawan took the top three seeded qualifing positions to lead the local challenge.

Meanwhile, in the Men's division, Hong Kong's Wu Sui Hong stormed into the top of the leaderboard with an impressive 951 disloging birthday boy and overnight leader, Ben Heng of Malaysia into second with 939.

Commonwealth Championship Doubles Gold medalist, Mohd Noer Said of Malaysia improved to take up third spot with 937 ahead of ABF Tour Grand Slam champion and teammate, Daniel Lim in fourth with 915. Newly-crowned CCM 2nd Selangor International Open champion, Azidi Ameran of Malaysia, completed the top 5 in the overseas pool with 912.

Like the women, the Indonesian national men were barred from competing in this championship as recommended by the national body and henceforth, ex-international, David Sitorus topped the seeded qualifing list with Freddy Iskandar and Jansen in second and third spots.

Qualifying continues for another two days from 26th July and the Masters finals will take place on the 28th and 29th July. The top 35 men plus defending champion, Alex Liew of Malaysia and the top 23 women with Zara Glover defending will play two block of 8 games over the two days finals.

Photos by Daniel Winardi, JAB.