Chezka Centeno bows to Ouschan in epic hill-hill finals of World 8-Ball tilt

Unfortunately, it didn’t go Filipina ace Chezka Centeno’s way as Austrian terror Jasmin Ouschan showed nerves of steel and eked out an epic 9-8 hill-hill victory and crowned herself as inaugural WPA Women’s 8-Ball World Championship champion at the Oneida Casino in Green Bay, Wisconsin on Monday.

The 26-year-old former World 10-Ball titlist, who turned back Belarusian-born American Margarita Fefilova, 8-6, in the semis earlier, didn’t go out without a fight and rallied from 8-6 down to knot it at 8-8 and force a thrilling hill-hill showdown.

But when it mattered, Ms. Ouschan came through and won the break in the 17^th and final frame of this tournament using an alternate break format to crown herself the first queen of 8-Ball on the planet.

Although she came short of snaring her second world crown, Ms. Centeno, whose pool doors opened when she started playing as a five-year-old in dark-lit pool tables back home in Zamboanga City, was beaming with pride for making it that far.

“I’m proud of myself for pushing through those tough last matches, really happy with how I performed in my first 8-Ball tournament, and excited for more to come,” said Ms. Centeno.

For her feat, Ms. Centeno still pocketed a cool sum of $18,600, or P1 million, while Ms. Ouschan took home $30,000. — Joey Villar