26th October, Jakarta: Top seeds, Jeong Tae Hwa of Korea and Bernice Lim of Singapore survived a second deciding match to capture the Men's and Women's Open Masters titles of the 12th Indonesia International Open Bowling Championships on Sunday.

Korean pro, Jeong Tae Hwa was also forced into the second deciding match after the top seed lost to challenger, Adrian Ang of Malaysia 198-217 in the first match.

But Ang suffered two open frames in the second and sixth while the Korean struck twice in frames three and fourth and then knocked down five-in-a-row to put the match beyond the Malaysia winning 245-214 for the title.

Ang dispatched second seed and compatriot, Syimir Abdul Razak and winner of the first match, Michael Mak of Hong Kong, 228-211-198 before settling for first runner-up.

Mak flew past fourth seed and a third Malaysian, Johnathan Chan and sixth seed, Hussain Al Suwaidi of UAE, 247-181-187 to advance to the next match.

Jeong pocketed the top prize of 150 milion rupiah (approx. US$12,500) as champion leaving 100 million rupiah to the first runner-up, Ang. Syimir settled for 60 million rupiah while Mak, Chan and Hussain took home 40, 25 and 17.5 million respectively.

Jeong finished as top seed in his earlier Stage 2 finals with 1882 followed by Syimir in second with 1859 and Ang third with 1856. Chan, Mak and Hussain made the cut in fourth to sixth positions with 1814, 1808 and 1798.

In the women's division, Bernice Lim had an early split in the second frame of the first match to trail Alisha by 20 pins but quickly recovered with four strikes-in-a-row from frame four. The Malaysian responded with three strikes to draw level at the eighth frame.

The Singaporean was unablle to string together more strikes as Alisah made no mistake to edge Lim, 217-214 to force a sudden-death decider.

Lim got off to a good footing with four strikes-in-a-row from frame two, but again Alisah answered back with five consecutive strikes of her own to open up an 18-pin lead at the eighth frame.

The top seed struck thrice and a 9=pin count in her last throw to finish with 248. Her opponent struck again in the ninth frame and looked set to win the decider and take the title.

Alisha left pin 10 standing in her last frame and only needed to spare to win the frame to defeat the Singaporean but lost her cool and failed to spare handing the tie and the title to Lim, 245-248.

Lim first won the Indonesia International Open crown in 2009 when she was just 15 and a return to the top podium after seven years brings back all those sweet memories.

Alisha had earlier earned the right to challenge the top seed, after she beat second seed, Joan Cheng of Hong Kong and winner of the first match, Geraldine Ng, 214-198-198 in the second match.

Ng, who was the defending champion and sixth seed, took the first match by beating fourth seed, Dayang Khairuniza of Malaysia and fifth seed, Ivana Hie of Indonesia, 201-144-192 to advance to the second match.

Lim topped the earlier Stage 2 finals with 1846 ahead of Cheng with 1798 and Alisha 1788. Khairuniza, Ivana and Ng made the cut in fourth to sixth position with 1730, 1723 and 1714.

Lim earned 50 million Indonesia rupiah (approx. US$4,200) as champion with the first runner-up, Alisha settling for 25 million rupiah. Cheng took home 12.5 million while Ng, Ivana and Khairuniza pocketed 10, 8 and 7 million rupiah respectively.

The top 16 men and top 16 women also qualified the ABF Tour Indonesia leg which will be held at the same bowling center tomorrow.

Photos by Terence Yaw in Jakarta.

25th October, Jakarta: Johnathan Chan of Malaysia and 2009-2012 champion, Sharon Limansantoso of Indonesia won Men's and Women's Open Stage 1 Masters finals the 12th Indonesia International Open Bowling Championships on Saturday.

Asian Schools Doubles bronze medalist, Iliya Syamin of Singapore set a cracking pace with a stunning 256 in her opening game to lead 2013 Asian Youth Singles bronze medalist, Cheya Chantika of Indonesia in second, 4 pins adrift.

Two big games of 249 and 231 from newcomer, Adien Y shot the Indonesian into the lead while 2013 ABF Tour Hong Kong leg champion, Milki Ng also shot two big games of 232 and 245 to take up second.

But it was an even bigger game of 279 from Limansantoso that gave her the lead after the third game following her first two games of 246 and 204. Malaysia's Radin Nur Najwa also registered big games to move up into second position.

Ng added another superb game in the fourth to take over the running briefly before Limansantoso bounced back to regain the lead after the fifth game.

The two-time champion added yet another strong game of 246 before easing off with two 181s to win the stage with 1764. Ng continued a strong pace to finish second with 1755, just 9 pins behind.

Adien settled for third position with 1734 while Aldila and Asian Games Incheon Team bronze medalist, Novie Phang stormed home to round out the top 5 with 1716 and 1715 respectively. Chantika made the cut as the fourth Indonesian in ninth position.

Sharon Koh of Malaysia was the cut in 15th position with 1587. Joan Cheng and Chan Shuk Han joined Ng to have three Hong Kong women in the next stage. Three Malaysians and three Singapore women also made the cut.

The Men's division was more of a battle for the lead between Johnathan Chan of Malaysia and newly-crowned Senior Masters champion, Gu Yong Jin of Korea. Chan set the early pace with stunning games of 258 and 290 while Gu responded with 213 and 279.

Chan continued a relentless pace with 203 and 279 in his next two games with Gu fighting on with 245 and 279. The Korean pro added another strong game of 237 in the fifth to Chan's 176 to take over the lead.

But the Malaysian rounded off the block with back-to-back 258 to win the stage with 1938. Gu settled for second with 1884 while Rafif I Santoso was Indonesia's best performer taking up third position with 1809.

2006 and 2008 champion, Alex Liew of Malaysia and his compatriot, Ahmed Dzikri Adam completed the top 5 with 1766 and 1760 respectively. Syimir Abdul Razak of Malaysia and Hong Kong's Wicky Yeung tie in 18th position but the Malaysian advanced due to a higher final game.

Seven Malaysians, five Indonesians, two Hong Kong nationals, two Korea pros and one Indian and one Emirati made up the top 18 men who will join the 6 seeded qualifiers for Stage 2 finals tomorrow.

Photos by Terence Yaw in Jakarta.

24th October, Jakarta: A second Malaysian, Jonathan Ding cracked into the top 3 bracket of the Men's Open Masters qualifying leaderboard of the 12th Indonesia International Open Bowling Championships with a stunning 801 3-game series.

Ding, who was ninth in the mixed pool with 1396 and in danger of being knocked off the cut, chalked up a stunning 801 series to take his 6-game tally to 1511 for second position in the overseas pool.

Ding will join his compatriot, Zulmazran Zulkifli, who topped ther standings with 1571. A third Malaysian Muhd Nur Aiman slipped down to third with 1499 knocking out Korean pro, Choi Won Young out of the top 3 bracket into fourth position.

Newly-crowned Senior Masters champion, Gu Yong Jin had earlier made the top 3 only to see himself dropping into fifth position. Noor Afizal Azizan of Malaysia occupied the last spot of the overseas pool with 1433.

Mike Chan of Hong Kong headed the mixed pool with 1421 while the cut, with three more squads to play, went to Hussain Al Suwaidi of UAE with 1397. This score look in danger as by the end of qualifying, it could easily pass 1420.

The top 3 local qualifiers who will advance into Stage 2 finals were Ryan Lalisang, Rudy Goenawan and defending champion, Yeri Ramadona.

Meanwhile there were no changes in the top 3 overseas pool positions of the Women's Open division with Bernice Lim of Singapore leading with 1416. Shalin Zulkifli of Malaysia is second with 1329 while defending champion, Geraldine Ng is third with 1327.

Sharon Koh of Malaysia led the the rest with 1324 with Alisha Iman Cheong occupying the tenth and last spot of the overseas pool with 1252. Novie Phang of Indonesia headed the mixed pool with 1257 with the cut in ninth position going to Ira Nasution of Indonesia with 1188.

Tannya Roumimper continued to lead the local pool with 1376 followed by Putty Armein in second with 1348 and Ivana Hie third with 1331. Two-time champion, Sharon Limansantoso and Cheya Chantika will have to contest Stage 1 finals being in ninth and tenth position respectively.

Qualifiers for the Men's and WOmen's Open Stage 1 finals will bowl 8 games tomorrow and the top 18 men and top 15 women will join the 6 men and 6 women seeded qualifiers for another 8 games in Stage 2 on October 26.

The top 6 men and top 6 women at the end of Stage 2 will advance to the stepladder shootout finals to determine the champion.

Photos by Terence Yaw in Jakarta.

23rd October, Jakarta: Asian Games Team silver medalist and 2009 champion, Zulmazran Zulkifli of Malaysia took over the lead of the Men's Open Masters qualifying standings at the 12th Indonesia International Open Bowling Championships.

Zulmazran, who had made the top 3 bracket in third overnight, notched up a scintilating 793 3-game series to take his 6-game tally to a whoping 1571 to move into pole position. The Malaysian, who won the 2009 Men's title averaged an impressive 261 to make himself a firm title contender.

Overnight leader, Eric Tseng slipped down to second on 1478 while Korean professional, Choi Won Young joined the duo in the top bracket in third position with 1439. Mike Chan of Hong Kong missed the top 3 after settling for fourth with 1421.

Kenneth Chua of Philippines improved his lower series of 635 with 725 to take up fifth position with 1413 while two time champion, Alex Liew of Malaysia did well to finish sixth with 1409.

Asian Games Incheon Team bronze medalist, Michael Mak occupied the last spot in the overseas pool with 1377 as Khairul Naim Zainuddin of Malaysia headed the mixed pool with 1375.

The current cut at 11th position in the mixed pool went to Eu Yong Jin of Korea with 1356. Last year's cut stood at 1435 and is quite far from today's score. With half of today's qualifying and one full day tomorrow, this score could easily match that of last year.

There were no changes atop the local pool with the top 3 positions remaining to Ryan Lalisang with 1445 followed by defending champion, Yeri Ramadona in second and Hardy Rachmadian in third with 1406 and 1386 respectively.

In the women's division, Bernice Lim of Singapore took over the lead from overnight leader and Asian Games Incheon Doubles silver medalist, Shalin Zulkifli of Malaysia. Lim amassed a 6-game tally of 1416 to Shalin's 1329.

Defending champion, Geraldine Ng finished third with 1321 while 2013 ABF Tour Hong Kong leg champion, Milki Ng missed the top bracket to take up fourth in the standings with 1285. Sharon Koh of Malaysian rounded the top 5 with 1269.

Putty Armein of Indonesia remained the leader of the local pool with 1348 followed by compatriot, Ivana Hie in second with 1331 and 2009 champion, Tannya Roumimper in third with 1323.

Two time champion, Sharon Limansantoso dropped out of the top 3 bracket to take up fourth with 1319 while Cheya Chantika completed the top 5 with 1286. Tenth and last in the overseas pool went to Chan SHuk Han of Hong Kong with 1194.

Novie Phang of Indonesia headed the mixed pool with 1257 while the current cut in ninth position in the mixed pool is occupied by Regina of Indonesia with 984.

The top 3 qualifiers from the local pool and top 3 qualifiers from the overseas pool of both the men and women division will automatically advance to Stage 2 finals on October 26 while the rest of the qualifiers will contest Stage 1 finals on October 24.

The top 18 finishers from the men division and the top 15 finishers from the women division after Stage 1 finals will be joined by the 6 men and 6 women seeded qualifiers for Stage 2 finals.

Photos by Terence Yaw in Jakarta.

23rd October, Jakarta: Malaysians Qalif Adnor Adam and Nor Syazana swept the Youth Under-20 Boys and Girls Masters titles of the 12th Indonesia International Open Bowling Championships at Jaya Ancol Bowling Center on Thursday.

Prasert Anansathaporn of Malaysia got off the block with a splendid 223 in his opening game to lead compatriot, Muhammad Naim Hashim by 3 pins with Justin Widjaya of Indonesia and Qalif Adnor Adam in third and fourth.

Widjaya shot into the lead despite managing only 183 as all the front runners suffered set backs with low games in the second. But Prasert bounced back with 216 following his poor 168 in the second to regain the lead, 23 pins ahead of Widjaya.

A stunning 238 from Qalif shot the Malaysian youth into the lead and building up a gap of 23 pins from his nearest opponent. Qalif too suffered a setback in the fifth game allowing a third Malaysian, Jason Syow to take over the running.

The trio of Qalif, Syow and Widjaya traded the lead for the next three games but Qalif hung on to clinch the title with 1982, just 3 pins ahead of Syow in second with 1979. Muhammad Naim settled for third position with 1946.

A fourth Malaysian, Wan Nadzmi Fikri stormed home to snatch fourth position with 1940 while Widjaya slipped away to finish fifth with 1921. Muhammad Aizudeen Mustaqim of Malaysia, Jomond Chia of Singapore and Patrick Hernandez of Indonesia finished in the money in sixth to eighth positions.

In the girl's division, Malaysian youths almost produced the same results as the boys but was spoilt by Asian Games Incheon Team bronze medalist, Alisha Nabila of Indonesia.

Siti Aishajan Hussin of Malaysia set the early pace but soon dropped out of contention as deutant, Nadine Kong of Malaysia led the next two games. Alisha shot into the lead breifly but Kong regained the lead at the halfway mark.

Alisha and Kong battled for the lead thereafter before Nor Syazana grab the lead after the eighth game. The Malaysian went on to capture the girl's crown with 1963 with Alisha settling for first runner-up with 1955.

Sheena Dina stormed home with 223 and 229 in her last two games to snatch third position with 1950 pushing Kong off the podium into fourth position with 1927. Tay Hui Wen of Singapore rounded out the top 5 with 1926.

Nor Syazana earned 5 million rupiah (approx. US$415) as the girl's champion. Alisha Nabila and Sheena Dina settled for 3.5 million and 2.5 million rupiah respectively. Qalif pocketed 8 million Indonesian rupiah (approx. US$665) as Syow and Muhammad Naim took home 5 million and 3 million rupiah for finishing first and second runner-ups.

The Senior Masters finals will be held later this evening while qualifying for the Open and Graded divisions will end on October 24.

Photos by Terence Yaw in Jakarta.

22nd October, Jakarta: Hong Kong national bowlers competing at the 12th Indonesia International Open Bowling Championships dominated the Men's Open Masters qualifying rounds by occupying the top two positions.

Asian Games Incheon Team bronze medalist, Eric Tseng had already made the top 3 bracket to skip Stage 1 finals by automatically qualifying for Stage 2 in third last night, improved his lower 3-game series of 576 with 728 to give himself a 6-game tally of 1478 to take over top spot.

His compatriot, Wicky Yeung also improved his lower 3-game series of 598 with 721 to give himself a 6-game aggregate of 1404 to occupy second in the standings. Debutant, Lau Kwun Ho of Hong Kong improved to finish seventh in the overseas pool with 1371 but will have to contest Stage 1 finals.

Zulmazran Zulkifli of Malaysia impressed by taking up third to join the Tseng and Yeung as the top 3 qualifiers with 1402.

Overnight leader and 2012 champion, Isaac Russell Paul of Maaysia, slipped out into fourth position with 1402. Jonas Baltasar of the Philippines took 12th position in the overseas pool with 1326 while his fellow-countrymen, Kenneth Chua headed the mixed pool with 1323. Current cut at 11th position in the mixed pool is held by Adhiguna Widiantoro of Indonesia with 1297.

On the local front, Indonesian top national bowler, Ryan Lalisang took pole position with 1445 followed by defending champion, Yeri Ramadona in second with 1406. Asian Games Incheon Doubles bronze medalist, Hardy Rachmadian finished third with 1386.

The top 3 qualifiers from the local pool and the top 3 qualifiers from the overseas pool will automatically advance to Stage 2 finals. Six local seeded plus local qualifiers positioned 10 to 12 together with overseas qualifiers positioned 4 to 12 and 11 qualifiers from the mixed pool will contest Stage 1 finals.

In the women's division, Asian Games Incheon two silver medalist, Shalin Zulkifli of Malaysia led with 1283. Bernice Lim of Singapore finished second with 1231 while Chan Shuk Han of Hong Kong joined the two in third with 1194.

The top 3 local qualifying spots went to Asian Games Incheon Team bronze medalists, Putty Armein in the lead with 1323 followed by Tannya Roumimper and Sharon Limansantoso in second and third with 1286 and 1257 respectively.

Qualifying will run through to October 24 and the Stage 1 finals will be contested on October 25 and Stage 2 finals on October 26. The top 6 men and top 6 women will advance to the stepladder shootout finals.

At the same time, the top 16 Asian men and top 16 Asian women will qualify for the ABF Tour Indonesia leg which will be held on October 27.

Photos by Terence Yaw in Jakarta.

21st October, Jakarta: 2009 champion and Asian Games Incheon Team bronze medalist, Tannya Roumimper of Indonesia set an early pace to lead the Women's Open Masters qualifying standings of the 12th Indonesia International Open on Tuesday.

Roumimper, who skipped the two previous championships when she was in Wichita, USA made her presence felt after earning a bye into Stage 2 finals by leading the local standings with 1323.

The Indonesian national bowler failed to defend the title she won in 2009 when she finished first runner-up the following year. With her recent form at the Asian Games Incheon in which she helped the team to win a bronze medal, she will surely be a firm title contender.

Her team-mate, Cheya Chantika took second spot with 1286 followed by Novie Phang in third with 1257. Nadia Pramanik, Alisha Nabila, Andien Y, Cheya Chantika and Ivana Hie are the local seeded qualifiers who would have to contest Stage 1 finals.

2006 and 2012 first runner-up and Asian Games Incheon two silver medalist, Shalin Zulkifli of Malaysia topped the overseas pool with 1235 ahead of Chan Shuk Han of Hong Kong in second with 1139. The top 3 would automatically qualify for Stage 2 finals.

Over in the Men's division, 2012 champion and ex-Malaysian national bowler, Isaac Russell Paul topped the overseas standings with 1401 followed by newcomer, Mahadzir Mohd Ali of Malaysia in second with 1333.

Asian Games Incheon Team bronze medalist, Eric Tseng of Hong Kong finished third with 1317 and will automatically advance to Stage 2 finals. Top Indonesian national bowler, Ryan Lalisang led the local pool with 1445.

Asian Games Incheon Doubles bronze medalist, Hardy Rachmadian of Indonesia took second spot with 1386 followed by defending champion, Yeri Ramadona third with 1367. The top 3 local qualifier will also advance to Stage 2 finals automatically.

The 12th edition of the popular open championship often attracts many bowlers from Malaysia. And this year is no exception with 127 Malaysians taking part. Malaysian Backup Elite and Youth team formed a big portion of the Malaysian bowlers.

The Hong Kong national team is also well represented. Singapore has a handful of bowlers and included a team of youths. Other international bowlers included India, Korea and UAE.

Qualifying will run until October 24 and the Stage 1 finals for Open division will be contested on October 25 and 26. The top 16 Asian men and top 16 Asian women from the Open division will also qualify for the ABF Tour Indonesia leg which will be held on October 27.

Photos by Terence Yaw in Jakarta.