4th March, Doha: Qatar's Mubarak Al-Muraikhi regained the title he won in 2008 after beating No. 4 seed and challenger, Naif Oqab of UAE, 449-415 to capture the H.H. Emir Cup 2010 crown for the second time on Thursday evening.

Mubarak, who beat team-mate and No. 2 seed, Mansour Al-Awamy 459-397 in the earlier Step 4 semi-finals, lost to No. 4 seed, Naif Oqab of UAE, 202-212 in the first match to trail the Emirati by 10 pins.

In the second match, Mubarak made no mistakes as opposed to Naif's bad break in the fourth frame where he encountered a 7-10 split despite a seemingly perfect pocket shot. Thereafter, it was smooth sailing for the Qatari as he fired five strikes-in-a-row and then struck out from frame 10 to end the match with 247.

Naif managed two doubles in the fifth-sixth frames and eighth-ninth frames but only managed 203. Mubarak clinched the title with 449 over Naif's 415 and claimed the top prize of Qatar Riyal 75,000 (approx. US$20,600).

"I didn't settle down well in the first match and had two splits but thanks to a turkey and a double strike, I managed 202 in the end," said the delighted 34-year-old Qatari national bowler, Mubarak.

"But in the second match, I just told myself to put more focus on making good shots and hitting the target and when I was able to string together five strikes, I knew the title was there for me to take."

The champion sailed through Step 3 finals with a victory over Hong Kong's Wu Siu Hong, 387-356 before disposing off his team-mate, Mansour in the Step 4 semis. Naif also trashed his Emirati team-mate, Sayed Ibrahim Al-Hashemi, 458-396 in the first round.

Top seed, Remy Ong of Singapore, who breezed through the first round after he easily beat No. 8 seed, Yousif Falah of Bahrain, 479-387, lost to Naif, 397-455 in the Step 4 finals. The Singaporean also lost to Mansour Al-Awamy, 365-440 to finish fourth and took home QTR 10,000.

Mansour won QTR 20,000 for finishing third and Naif settled for QTR 40,000 for finishing second again. Naif had last week lost to Osku

Palermaa in the 1st Dubai Open despite advancing to the title match as top seed.

Former Qatar Bowling Federation president, Mr Salman Abdulla and current president, Mr Abdul Salam presented the prizes to the winners, witnessed by sponsors and invited guests.

Photos by Terence Yaw in Doha.

3rd March, Doha: 2009 Qatar Open champion, Remy Ong of Singapore is gunning for a second title in Doha after leading from start to finish in the Step 2 finals of the H.H. Emir Cup 2010 late Wednesday evening.

Remy Ong, who made the Step 2 finals as second seed, had a dream start in the 8-games Step 2 finals with an opening game of 263, just 8 pins ahead of two Qataris, Mansour Al-Awamy and Mubarak Al-Muraikhi.

But the 31-year-old Singaporean stamped his authority with another sizzling 268 to take a commanding lead of 72 pins from Kuwait's Basel Al-Anzi in second while the two Qataris followed closely behind.

Indonesia's Ryan Lalisang shot a superb 263 to move up to second as Ong continued his blistering pace with another good 234. Mansour bounched back with 258 to regain second spot and narrowed the gap to Ong by 40 pins at the halfway mark.

While Ong bowled consistenly wit 223, 221 and 235 in his next three games, a keen tussle had developed between Mansour, UAE's Naif Oqab and Mubarak all shooting 279s to stay with the leader.

The leader eased off with 185 to end the finals in pole position with 1839 followed by Mansour in second with 1817 and Mubarak a distant third with 1768. Naif took fourth spot with 1764 ahead of compatriot, Sayed Ibrahim Al-Hashemi fifth with 1743.

Hong Kong's Wu Siu Hong, who had a poor start, fought back to end the block in sixth on a total of 1724 while Lalisang and Bahrain's Yousif Falah held on to seventh and eighth position with 1711 and 1700.

Basel Al-Azni of Kuwait missed the cut by 45 pins to finish in ninth with 1655 followed by defending champion, Partick Healey Jnr. completing the top 10 with 1600. The top 8 advanced into the Step 3 knockout stage which will be staged tomorrow at 2.30pm.

The top seed will meet the No. 8 seed, No. 2 seed will meet No. 7 seed and so on. They will bowl two games for total pinfalls and the winners will advance into Step 4 finals. Winners of the Step 4 finals will meet in the Step 5 semi-finals and finally the Step 6 title match.

Photos by Terence Yaw in Doha.

3rd March, Doha: Asian Indoor Games triple gold medalist, Naif Oqab of UAE snatched pole in the final game of the Step 1 Finals of the H.H. Emir Cup 2010 from pace-setter, Ryan Lalisang of Indonesia and Basel Al-Azni of Kuwait third on Wednesday.

Mubarak Al-Muraikhi of Qatar and Indonesia's Ryan Lalisang were locked together as the duo set a cracking pace with a 227 opening game to lead the field of 28 finalists in the Step 1 finals.

A poor break of 187 from the Indonesian saw the southpaw Qatari, Mubarak staying in front of the field with Kuwait's Mohammed Al-Zaidan taking over second spot while Lalisang slipped down ninth.

But Lalisang quickly recovered with a superb 257 to take up second spot from leader, Mubarak just 1 pin behind at the halfway point of the finals followed by Mohammed slipping to third. Bahrain's Ahmed Rashid Noaimi and UAE's Naif Oqab were making grounds to round up the top 5.

Mubarak failed to keep the lead after a poor 168 allowing Lalisang to take over the running with a strong 238. Southpaw, Naif stormed home with 257 and 236 to snatch pole position with 1310 leaving Lalisang in second with 1306.

Another Kuwaiti, Basel Al-Azni also finished strongly to take up third position with 1285 dislodging team-mate, Mohammed Al-Zaidan into fourth on 1267 ahead of Qatar's Khaled Al-Doseri, who did well to finish fifth with 1255.

Chan Shuk Han of Hong Kong, who made the finals from last night's desperado squad also impressed with 1248 to take up sixth position followed by early pace-setter, Mubarak in seventh with 1220.

The third Kuwaiti, Yaqoub Al-Shatti squeezed into the next stage with a superb last game of 221 to complete the top eight with 1219. The top 8 will join the top 8 seeded qualifiers for the 8-games Step 2 Finals later this evening.

Photos by Terence Yaw in Doha.

2nd March, Doha: Kuwaiti national bowlers are making an impact on the final day of qualifying of the H.H. Emir Cup 2010 at Qatar Bowling Centre as Jassem Darwish and Mohammed Al-Rajeebah topped Squads 15 and 16 on Tuesday afternoon.

9th GCC Championship Masters gold medalist, Jassem Darwish had found the going tough in the past few days of qualifying when he managed to chalked up two best 3-games series of 613 and 580 to finish 67th position with 1193.

But the 21-year-old youngster put in a concerted effort by topping the 1.30pm Squad 15 with 201, 248 and 242 for a score of 691 to inch himself nearer to the top 24 cut up from 67th to 36th position with 1304.

Jassem continued his next attempt in Squad 16 to fire 199, 213 and a strong 248 to end the round with 660. His effort gave him a new 6-game total of 1351 which put him in 20th position and crucially making the top 24 cut.

His compatriot, Mohammed Al-Rajeebah put in an equally impressive performance by topping Squad 16 with 705 to add to his other best 3-game series of 641 bowled in Squad 14 last night.

Mohammed's superb effort gave him a new total of 1346 and in 21st position in the qualifying standings, just one spot off Jassem. The best Kuwaiti performer thus far was Mohammed Al-Zaidan in ninth with 1406 and just missing the top 8 by 14 pins.

Another Kuwaiti, Khaled Al-Dubyyan also made the cut with 1397 in 12th position while Khaled's team-mate, Basel Al-Anzi also qualified in 16th position with 1380. The final Kuwaiti was Yaqoub Al-Shatti in 23rd position with 1343.

Meanwhile, twice high series award winner, Mansour Al-Awamy of Qatar remained firmly atop the leaderboard with 1510 followed by last year's Qatar Open champion, Remy Ong of Singapore in second with 1459.

Last year's champion and ex-PBA, Patrick Healey Jnr. of USA occupied third spot with 1457 ahead of 2009 Asian Ranked No. 1, Wu Siu Hong of Hong Kong fourth with 1448 while yesterday's high series award winner, Abdulla Haroon rounded up the top 5 with 1447.

Asian Indoor Games two gold medalist and perfect gamer, Hussain Al-Suwaidi of UAE, Bahrain's Yousif Falah and UAE's Sayed Ibrahim Al-Hashemi completed the top 8 who will be seeded for Step 2 finals.

Dubai Open first runner-up, Naif Oqab of UAE, who just topped Squad 17 with 672 improved his position in the table from 15th to 10th with a total of 1402. The final Squad 18 will be the final squad left for qualifying at press time.

Thereafter, a one-game desperado squad will be staged which will see the top 4 with the highest single game score to join positions 9 to 24 qualifiers plus the four seeded qualifiers from Squads 1 to 4 for the Step 1 finals tomorrow at 1.30pm.

Photos by Terence Yaw in Doha.

1st March, Doha: Patrick Healey Jnr. of USA is eying to retain the H.H. Emir Cup 2010 title after hauling himself up into second spot of the qualifying table to trail leader, Mansour Al-Awamy of Qatar at the end of Squad 12.

Healey, who took the title last year, was eighth with 1363 from two of his best attempts of 732 and 631. Determined to make the top 8 and earning a bye into Step 2 finals, the American took to the lanes for the 3.30pm Squad 12.

The ex-PBA pro fired an impressive 255 in his opening game but only managed 198 in his second game. But things went his way when he chalked up a sizzling 279 for a 3-game series of 732 to beat Emirati Naif Oqab's earlier squad of 730.

But his chance of pocketing the 500 Qatar riyal for the high series award was dashed as Qatar's Abdulla Haroon shot a scintilating 756 to pip the American by 24 pins. Healey's effort moved him up to second on 1457.

Mansour Al-Awamy of Qatar continued to lead the standings with 1510 while Abdulla Haroon's 756 also moved him up to third with 1447. Perfect gamer, Hussain Al-Suwaidi of UAE dropped two spots to fourth on 1445.

Mubarak Al-Muraikhi of Qatar, who finished third in Squad 12, was able to improve his standings to 16th position while UAE's Sayed Ibrahim Al-Hashimi, who finished fourth in the same squad, improved to take up fifth overall on 1420.

Remy Ong of Singapore dropped to sixth with 1411 despite shooting 707 in Squad 12. Hong Kong's Wu Siu Hong and Milki Ng completed the top 8 with 1394 and 1388 who would be seeded for Step 2 finals.

Naif Oqab, who led the earlier Squad 11 with 730 improved to 10th behind Qatar's Khalid Al-Doseri in ninth position with 1385. Two more squads will take place which will end the second last day of qualifying.

Four more squads will be held on the last day of qualifying tomorrow before the one-game desperado squad to be staged at 10.00pm in which four will have a chance to make the cut for Step 1 finals.

Photos by Terence Yaw in Doha.

28th February, Doha: Day 3 high series award winner, Mansour Al-Awamy of Qatar stretched his lead in the overall qualifying leaderboard of the H.H. Emir Cup 2010 with another award winning 756 series on Sunday.

Mansour Al-Awamy, who made the top 8 knockout stage last year but failed to make further progress, certainly has the pedigree to mount his challenge this year. The 31-year-old national bowler had topped the standings with 1426 from 754 and 672 series after three days of qualifying rounds.

The Qatari took to the lanes at the 1.30pm Squad 7 to fire 232, 256 and 266 for another sizzling 756 series to increase his tally to 1510 and stretching his lead in the standings. Mansour looked to be the strongest Qatari chalenger for this year's crown.

UAE's Hussain Al-Suwaidi, who was fourth overnight, shot the tournament's first perfect 300 and his career 24th en-route to moving

up the table into second spot with 1385. Day 1 high series awardee, Khaled Al-Doseri of Qatar dropped to third with 1363.

Dubai International Open second runner-up, Remy Ong of Singapore notched up a better series of 673 to add to his first attempt of 704 for a total of 1377 to take up fourth spot while Bahrain's Yousif Falah failed to better his lowest series of 643 to finish fifth despite a good 718 series.

Last year's champion, Partick Healey Jnr took sixth spot with 1354 while the two remaining positions seventh and eighth went to Day 2 high series winner, Ahmed Rashid Al-Noaimi of Bahrain and Kuwait's Yaqoub Al-Shatti.

Hong Kong's Milki Ng sprang a surprised series of 735 in Squad 8 to haul herself up into the top 24 with 1326 and became the best female qualifier so far. The top 8 will be seeded qualifiers for Step 2 finals.

Qualifying round will end March 2 and qualifiers in positions 9 to 24 will contest the Step 1 finals on Wednesday, March 3 joined by four Qatar youth qualifiers, four from Squads 1, 2, 3 and 4 plus four more from the desperado squad.

Photos by Terence Yaw in Doha.

27th February, Doha: National bowler, Mansour Al-Awamy of Qatar took the early lead in the qualifying leaderboard of the H.H. Emir Cup 2010 after chalking up the highest series of 745 in Squad 6 on Saturday.

Mansour Al-Awamy, who had posted 630 in Squad 3 and 650 in Squad 4 yesterday, made an improved effort in the last squad of the day with a sizzling 754 three-game sereis to take over pole position with 1404 after three days of qualifying.

The Qatari got off the block with 232 and then fired a superb 256 to give himself 88 pins over. Mansour rounded off the squad with another high game of 266 for the high series winning 754.

Bahrain's Yousif Falah, who arrived Doha today, immediately took to the lanes at Qatar International Bowling Center to fire 719 but was unable to better that in the following squad to knock down only 643.

His fine effort netted him second spot in the table with 1362. Another Bahraini, Ahmed Rashid Al-Noaimi, who won Day 2's high series award of 500 Riyal with 705 and led the table yesterday, dropped to third with a 6-game aggregate of 1338 with another 633 attempt in Squad 3.

Day 1 high series award winner, Khaled Al-Doseri of Qatar tied fourth spot with Kuwait's Yaqoub Al-Shatti with 1317. Dubai Open second runner-up, Remy Ong of Singapore shot 704 in his first attempt to finish second in Squad 6 behind Mansour but is not seeded yet.

Dubai Open third runner-up, Shaker Al-Hassan of UAE and fellow-compatriot, Hussain Al-Suwaidi finished third and fourth in the same squad with 697 and 678 respectively but will need another attempt before they can be seeded.

Qualifying will run through to March 2 which will see the top 8 qualifiers earning a bye into Step 2 finals. Positions 9 to 24 will advance to Step 1 finals joined by the top two qualifers from Day 1's Squad 1 and 2, top qualifier from Squads 3 and 4 and top qualifier from Squads 5 and 6.

Another four qualifiers from the one-game desperado squad on the final day of qualifying will also join the qualifiers for the 6-games Step

1 finals. The field will be cut to top 8 and together with the top 8 seeded qualifiers advance into Step 2 finals.

The 16 bowlers will play 8 games from scratch and the top 8 at the end of Step 3 finals will advance to the knockout stage where the top seed will be matched with the No. 8 seed, No. 2 seed with No. 7 seed and so on for a two-game total pinfall count.

The winners of the Step 3 finals will proceed to the semifinals and thereafter the 2-game total pinfalls title match to determine this year's champion and a top prize of 75,000 Riyal.

Photos by Terence Yaw in Doha.