Philippines Open Day 1: Bustamante Blanked, Manas Falls in Hill-Hill Heartbreak

Opening day at the 2026 Roobet Philippines Open Pool Championship delivered a reminder that in Manila, home underdogs do not read seedings. Three of the biggest names in the draw — two of them heroes of Team Asia's Reyes Cup defense — were gone before the first session ended.

Django's darkest day

Just three days after captaining Team Asia at the Reyes Cup, Francisco "Django" Bustamante suffered a brutal 0-10 whitewash at the hands of fellow Filipino Rodrigo Geronimo — one of the most lopsided scorelines of the legend's career.

"I feel tired, especially after last week's Reyes Cup," Bustamante said afterward. "My opponent is a very good player, one of the top ten in the Philippines."

Manas lets an 8-3 lead slip

AJ Manas was cruising at 8-3 up on Rommel Janael Santos when the match flipped. Santos reeled off rack after rack to force hill-hill, then closed it 10-9 for the comeback of the day.

"I missed the 6-ball to get on the hill, and he took his chance," Manas admitted. "He played really well, so he deserved the win."

The other casualties and the survivors

European Open champion Moritz Neuhausen — chasing a Mosconi Cup spot — fell 10-6 to Meynard Tipawan, the day's biggest name-dropper. "I missed the same ball three times," Neuhausen said. "I've paid the price."

The favorites who did survive were emphatic: defending champion David Alcaide cruised 10-1 past Rodlin Bautista, World No. 1 Aloysius Yapp dismissed Raphael Dabreo 10-2, and Johann Chua blanked Tony Piazza 10-1. Carlo Biado, Robbie Capito and Duong Quoc Hoang all advanced without dropping more than a couple of racks.

Why it matters

This is the final ranking cut-off for both the Mosconi Cup and the World Pool Masters — every early exit costs someone a ticket. Racing to 10 all the way through the quarterfinals, single elimination, 128 players: Day 2 continues today at Gateway Mall.

Sources: World Nineball Tour, Dugout Philippines, Absolute Pool.