Johann Chua sealed a super sixth World Nineball Tour ranking title as the circuit debuted in Thailand, overcoming James Aranas 15-5 in an all-Filipino final to win the Pattaya Open.
Chua was in cruise control from the outset against his World Cup of Pool-winning teammate, adding to a haul of WNT ranking titles which already included the likes of the Hanoi Open Championship and the Battle of the Bull.
The world number four raced into a 5-1 lead, and despite Aranas receiving an opportunity at the table in almost every rack, it was a commanding performance from Chua, who pocketed the $12,000 top prize.
Chua had beaten the resurgent Dennis Orcollo, Michael Baoanan, Michael Feliciano, John Miraflor and Liu Cheng-Hsiung on his way to the final, the latter of which was a hill-hill affair in the last 64.
Aranas thrashed world number three Aloysius Yapp 9-1 in the last 64, while his run to a maiden ranking final also involved beating Thailand’s own Preecha Boonmoung and ex-snooker professional Stuart Pettman, as well as Alexis Ferrer in a 13-12 epic.
Elsewhere, Ronel Nalaunan reached his third ranking quarter-final already this season, bowing out after an Orcollo six-rack surge from 9-5 down, with Orcollo having beaten second seed Mickey Krause in the last 16.
Newly-crowned Premier League champion Duong Quoc Hoang was brushed aside 9-2 by Nalaunan in the last 16, while Robbie Capito was brutally denied in the quarter-finals after unfortunately scratching in the deciding rack against Ferrer.
Preecha Boonmoung avenged an early rounds defeat to AJ Manas by beating the Filipino teenager 9-6 in the last 64, before denying Carabao International Open runner-up Irsal Nasution 9-8 in the last 32 to be last-standing Thai player.
The World Nineball Tour now returns to Bosnia and Herzegovina for the first ranking major of the year, the European Open Championship, as Joshua Filler defends his prestigious title from March 10-15.
