Centeno thumps Amit for 10-ball gold

SEA Games 10-ball champ Chezka Centeno is hailed as the future of Philippine billiards by her teammate and runner-up Rubilen Amit. (Yummie Dingding)]

Chezka Centeno outplayed compatriot Rubilen Amit, 7-3, in the gold-medal match of the Women’s 10-Ball of the 30th Southeast Asian Games billiards at The Manila Hotel Tent on Saturday.

Playing a near-flawless game, Centeno raced to a 6-1 lead, allowing Amit just two more points before clearing the final rack on her break.

Amit threw in the towel before the 20-year-old Centeno took her final shot on the 10-ball, conceding the match for the silver medal.

“Aside from being the present, she’s also the future,” the 38-year-old Amit said of Centeno, whom she praised for her humility inspite of all her accomplishments.

It was Centeno and Amit’s third game for the day, with their team-up advancing to the quarterfinals of the 9-ball doubles before toppling their respective semifinal 9-ball opponents to arrange another finals duel.

Amit overpowered Thailand’s Kongkaket Vutthiphan, 7-2, while Centeno handed Singapore’s Jessica Tan Hui Ming a 7-1 beating.

In the doubles division, the duo pulled off a 7-4 victory over Vietnam’s Bui Xuan Vang and Doan Thi Ngoc Le.