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2017 WPA World 9-Ball Championships
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Saturday 9 - Friday 15 December 2017

Carlo Biado of the Philippines
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The Philippines' Carlo Biado wins his first World 9-ball championship with a 13-5 win over fellow Filipino Roland Garcia.

By Ted Lerner
WPA Press Officer
Photos Courtesy of Bo Bader

For the last 12 years the Philippines� Carlo Biado did everything he needed to do to put himself on the road to being a champion. He dedicated endless hours in practice, money games, tournaments, and worldwide travel all in the hopes of one day reaching the top of the sport. And he also endured plenty of massive disappointments and near misses in big time events, including in more than a few world championships.

Those hard knocks and long days and nights finally paid off on Thursday afternoon in Doha, and in the biggest way possible, as Biado captured his very first WPA World 9-ball title, after a relatively easy 13-5 victory over fellow Filipino Roland Garcia in the final.

One could easily see the sense of relief and triumph on Biado�s face as the last nine ball fell and he realized he had finally accomplished his long cherished goal. Only two years ago, Biado came within a whisker of winning the World 10-ball crown in the Philippines, only to lose right at the wire to Taiwan�s Ko Pin Yi.

The humble and smooth shooting Filipino kept at it, however, and dedicated himself even more. He finally got his US travel visa and honed his skills in the States. Earlier this year he achieved his biggest triumph to date when he won a gold medal at the World Games in Poland.

It was clear all week in Doha that that win in Poland this summer had infused the Filipino with the type of confidence that would soon take him all the way to the pool mountaintop. With a dead-eyed, smooth stroke, cool demeanor and fast pace, the 34 year old Biado has all the tools and time to take this win to even further heights of greatness in the coming years.

For Garcia, his appearance in the final was a welcome revelation to pool fans who may never have heard of the hot shooting 36 year old. He grew up in the same Philippine town as the legend Efren Ryes, and learned much of the game from the Hall of Famer. Those who knew Garcia knew he always possessed surreal skills, and he was a favorite on the Philippine money game scene for years. In 2006 he played in the World Pool Championship in Manila but was way in over his head and fell out in the group stages. He had never produced much on the tournament circuit until he began traveling more in the last three years and he started to get some results. He has spent the last two years living and working in Thailand as a house pro.

This was Garcia�s first ever trip to the World 9-ball Championship since the event came to Doha in 2010 and what a week it was for the Filipino. Up until the final Garcia produced one master class after the next, including beat downs of Niels Feijen, Ko and young gun Klenti Kaci. There�s no doubt the pool world will be hearing more from this exceptionally talented Filipino. That two Filipinos ended up in the final of the World 9-ball Championship may have been a happy coincidence for Pinoy fans around the world, but it was certainly far from a guarantee when play began at 10am local time on Thursday. That�s because the two opponents of Biado and Garcia were also playing lights out throughout the week here.

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