Karl Barbosa and Mariel de la Cruz ruled the men’s and women’s associate divisions of the 2023 Philippine International Open Tenpin Bowling Championships last Sunday at Coronado Lanes Bowling Center inside the Starmall in Mandaluyong.
Under the banner of the Sugar Bowl Tenpin Bowling Association Inc., the Bacolod-based Barbosa opened strong with a 208 tally and then had lines of 185, 167, 254, 202, 170 and 181 for a pacesetting score of 1567 pinfalls and a 178 average in the event organized by the Philippine Bowling Federation.
He finished comfortably ahead of the Central Luzon Tenpin Bowling Alliance’s Ramil Bonus and Dagupan Association of Tenpin Bowlers Inc., who took second (1462-167) and third (1458-182), respectively, in the meet backed by the Philippine Sports Commission.
“I’m glad I won as a way of inspiring my only son who I am encouraging to play bowling,” said Barbosa, referring to Kiel Andrey Barbosa, 13, who is a member of the PBF’s national developmental pool.
DATBI’s De la Cruz also showed the way on the distaff side, rolling lines of 166, 175, 177, 190, 157, 187, 185, 190 for a total winning output of 1427 and a 178 norm in the competition also backed by Senators Bong Go, Sonny Angara, CEL Logistics and the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp.
Settling for runner-up honors was PTBA-PSB’s Sol Balangay (1325-166) while CLTBA’s Jannet Escobar (1312-164) was third in the blue-ribbon tournament also supported by Cuisiniers, Starbalm, Robinson’s Land Corp., The Bowler and Pasig Bowling Association.
Also sharing the spotlight were CLTBA’s Rogel Vega (1507-188), PSB’s Roger Rivera (1478-185) and GMTBC’s Billy Hernandez (1466-183), who finished first, second and third, respectively, in the men’s classified senior masters division.
On the other hand, CLTBA swept the 1-2-3 spots in the mixed rookie category, led by Rey Lorenzo who took top honors (1417-177), Escobar (1403-175) was second, nipping third placer Cesar Bawiga (1402-175) by one pin.
“We are glad by the strong turnout of our local bowlers for the Philippine International Open, which is a strong sign that the sport is slowly regaining its legs after the long pandemic,” PBF president Ed Santos noted.
PSC commissioner and bowling legend Bong Coo also was encouraged by the strong participation of the local bowling squads in the tournament, saying: “This just goes to show that our local bowlers are really keen on competing after being out of action for so long.”
