Player: Carlo Biado
Event: U.S. Open 9-Ball Championship
Location: Las Vegas, Nev.
Date: September 18, 2021



The semifinal of a U.S. Open 9-Ball Championship is going to produce unique moments – some great and a few not so perfect. At last fall's event in Las Vegas, Naoyuki Oi and Carlo Biado battled back and forth in a race-to-11, with the Filipino reaching the hill, 10-9, though the Japanese star had control of the table. But in a dramatic turn, Oi rattled the 2 ball in the jaws of the corner pocket, leaving the object ball deep between the points and the cue ball nearly a full table away. Biado ratcheted up the drama by misplaying shape on the 3 ball, a feeling every pool player can understand when playing position off a hanger.

With the 4 ball directly between the cue ball and the 3, Biado had no choice but to go on the defensive. And after two loose shots from the semifinalists, he pulled off a masterful display in safety play.

Kicking at the 3 off the long rail, Biado sent the cue ball across the table and back, with it eventually stopping an inch off the long rail. The 3 ball, meanwhile, headed downtable, gently rebounding off the bottom rail before coming to a stop a full table length from the cue ball–with the 4 ball directly in the path between the two.

Oi responded by kicking at the 3 off the left long rail, sending the object ball toward the bottom right corner. But the cue ball found its way into the top right corner, giving Biado ball-in-hand, five balls away from victory. He cleanly cleared the table, punching his ticket to the final, 11-9.

Biado went on to win the title against Singapore's Aloysius Yapp, 13-8, ending an unbelievable 27-year drought for the Philippines at the U.S. Open 9-Ball Championships.


(Video clip provided by Accu-Stats Video Productions.)

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