Puerto Princesa Cup Set For June 21-24

Puerto Princesa – "the City in a Forest" – will be the site of the second leg of the Philippine Pool Tour, a series of tournaments in the country's strategic cities organized by the Billiards & Snooker Congress of the Philippines.

With Mayor Edward S. Hagedorn as host and San Miguel Beer as presenting sponsor, the Puerto Princes Mayor's Cup will be staged on June 21 to 24 at the Puerto Princesa City Coliseum.

The international tournament, whose main draw will feature 32 foreign and Filipino players, will have the city's magnificent natural wonders as backdrop, according to BSCP spokesman June Diokno.

One of these wonders is the Subterranean River National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The park features a spectacular limestone karst landscape with its underground river, which flows directly to the sea. The area is a significant habitat for biodiversity conservation with its forests and marine ecosystem.

Side by side with nature is the bustling city of some 170,000 people. Puerto Princesa is a highly urbanized and first-class city. It is a major tourism destination in the Philippines. And it has numerous hotels, restaurants and shopping places to serve tourists and visitors.

Foreign players who played in the Mandaluyong Mayor's Cup last May 6-11 are expected to play anew in Puerto Princesa. And they will be joined by even more foreign players, particularly players from Europe, Taiwan, Indonesia and Thailand.

Leading the Filipino contingent will be Mandaluyong Cup champion Antonio Gabica and runnerup Marlon Manalo. Other local bets expected to compete are Jericho Banares, Leonardo Andam, Jeffrey De Luna, Leonardo Didal, Elvis Calasang, Luis Saberdo, Elmer Kalaquian and Edgar Acaba,

The Puerto Princesa Cup carries a prize fund of $30,000, with $10,000 going to the champion. Prizes will be given up to 32nd place in the tournament.

"The great bonus of playing in Puerto Princesa and in the PPT is that the player can play pool for handsome prizes and tour the Philippines at the same time," says Diokno. "Participating players, regardless of how they place in the tournament, will have a good time visiting our major tourism spots."

The tournament will be broadcast live nationally on Studio 23 by ABS, and internationally by the Filipino Channel.

Entry fee to the Puerto Princesa Cup is set at $50 or P2100. Players with a Philippine Pool Tour Card get a 50% discount on the entry fee. Likewise, members of the Philippine Billiards Foundation will pay only P1000 to enter. Players will get assistance in their passage to Palawan and hotel accommodations.