Moh, who has the best international results among the current national snooker team players, showed his resilience and tenacity. Throughout the tournament, his strategic and tactical brains were a class above as he made his way to the title.

Having being crowned Malaysia Champion just a day before his wedding, we hope that he will win the Asian Games gold medal to celebrate the birth of his child during that period. We are confident that Moh and the national team wil bring honours to the country when they compete at the Asian Games. We look forward to many more international glories.

By Anthony Teh

©2010 Omin Snooker Cues & Accessories (Buy Only Original) Get News & Events From Malaysia. All Rights Reserved.

Hong Kong, a long time snooker friend of Malaysia, had requested to take part in the tournament as part of their Asian Games preparation. Amongst their players are the 1996 World Under 21 Snooker Champion, Chan Kwok Ming and 2009 World Ladies Snooker Champion, Ng On Yee as well as Fong Kwok Wai, no stranger to Malaysia snooker. Their other players, though not very well known here, are naturally expected to be as good since they are representing their country.  From Pakistan, we have Imtiaz Serwer who was one of the top players in Pakistan.  He has been here for more than 1 year and is known for his break building capabilities.

Who are the players to watch for? Well, there are plenty. There’s the top 4 seeds, Rory Thor, Moh Keen Hoo, Mohd Reza and Lai Chee Wei, all of whom has won or been in a final this year. Then there’s the resurgent old guards who are hitting form recently, Ng Ann Seng, Ooi Chin Kay and Sam Chong. Then there are the “sharks”, players who are capable of beating anyone on their day, such as Michael Tan, Lim Zhi Wei, Sebastian H’ng, Goh Boon Sun and many more.

This tournament indeed promises to be very exciting. Who will win it? Hard to say but deep down, I rooting for one of the “Golden Oldies”.

Here’s to a great and exciting tournament. Not everyday we get 2 world champions playing in our tournaments so all you snooker fans, please be there. Good luck to all and may the best player win.

By Anthony Teh

©2010 Omin Snooker Cues & Accessories (Buy Only Original) Get News & Events From Malaysia. All Rights Reserved.

Sam Chong, former Asian Champion was paired with the current Malaysia champion and former Asian under 21 champion Moh Keen Hoo in the last 16.  Sam won 4-2.  Ng Ann Seng, multiple SEA Games Gold Medalist, was pitted against Lai Chee Wei, currently ranked 4th in Malaysia, in the quarter finals. Ng won 4-2.  Ooi Chin Kay,another former Asian Champion defeated Rory Thor Chuan Leong, the current Malaysia Number One, in the final with a scoreline of 4-1.

The team of Sam, Ng and Ooi has won many honours for Malaysia in their heydays while Moh, Lai and Rory are Malaysia’s hopes for these few years.  Many would see this result as ominous for our current national team who will be fighting for our country in the upcoming Asian Games.  However, this writer does not think so.

The fact that the Malaysian legends chose to participate competitively and seriously can only be good for the current national team.  The legends’ experience and knowledge will ultimately be transferred to the likes of Moh, Lai and Rory as the young players will be forced to improve their game.  Also, playing against the legends at their competitive best was and is the type of sparring that the current national team needs.  It will make the young players tougher, more focused and work harder.  This will prepare them for the international stage where every player is just as good, if not better.

I look forward to an exciting future for Malaysia’s snooker with the return of the old guards. Our current national players can only get better as a result and I am optimistic that Malaysia’s gold drought in the SEA Games and ASIAN Games will end soon.  Cheers to Malaysia’s snooker heroes, past, present and future.

By Anthony Teh

©2010 Omin Snooker Cues & Accessories (Buy Only Original) Get News & Events From Malaysia. All Rights Reserved.

Ooi returned to the snooker scene after a long hiatus 2 years ago.  However, he could not rediscover the type of form that made him an Asian Champion and much feared proponent of the green baize.  Even for the first half of this year, he did not show that he will be a threat at all in the local snooker scene.  Many thought that he was past his prime.

Fortunately for his legion of fans, he found new self belief with encouragement from his friends and also, would you believe it, with a new pair of shoes.  Ooi has always complained about the height of the snooker tables especially those used nowadays which are a little to high for his liking. But his new shoes added a few centimeters and helped him adjust to the snooker tables better. It was like light at the end of the tunnel for him.

The round of 32 saw him faced his first test, against a seeded player. His opponent, Jimmy Teo was ranked 7th in Malaysia and also happened to be Ooi’s old friend and team mate in their teenage years.  Ooi scraped through with a 3-2 win. His first credible result in 2 years.

Ooi subsequently dispatched off Jerry Yap in the round of 16 and CK Lim in the quarter finals.  In the semi finals, Ooi was to faced his old Asian Games Doubles Gold Medal partner, Sam Chong. Ooi prevailed in a tough and entertaining match reminiscent of their battles in the 1990’s, with the score 4-3.  Sam made a 118 break but it was not enough.

In the final, Ooi faced the most consistent snooker player in Malaysia right now and current Malaysia number one.  In a display of masterful cue ball control and excellent tactical play, Ooi, to the thunderous cheers of the audience, won 4-1.  Watch out Malaysia, the crocodile kid has returned.

By Anthony Teh

©2010 Omin Snooker Cues & Accessories (Buy Only Original) Get News & Events From Malaysia. All Rights Reserved.

Following the success of Malaysia’s very own Rory (i.e. Thor Chuan Leong) in winning his first Malaysia Snooker Championship, Rory McLeod won his first professional title  by beating Andrew Higginson 6-1 in the final of the Masters qualifying event at Pontin’s, Prestatyn and booked a place at snooker’s most prestigious invitation tournament.

The 38-year-old from Wellingborough, whose parents are Jamaican, will make his Masters debut at Wembley Arena in January against either Mark King or Mark Williams.  World No 39 McLeod became the first black player to compete at the Crucible (World Professional Snooker Championship) early this year, and he is now set to mark an equivalent milestone at Wembley.

He has won five matches this week, culminating in a comfortable victory over Higginson, who seemed overcome by tension with so much at stake and managed a top break of just 29.  “It’s been a long time coming. I’ve won loads of pro-am events but this one is more prestigious and it’s great to be able to take home a trophy,” said father-of-three McLeod, who coaches the Qatar national team. “I wanted to win this all week, I just had to keep calm. I’ve done the job now so I’m happy.

“The Masters is such a big tournament, I went to Wembley to see Paul Hunter win it in 2001 and it was a great atmosphere. Only the big boys play there and after the Crucible it’s the next venue you want to get to.”  Asked if he considers himself an inspiration to black people aiming to succeed in snooker, McLeod added; “I’ve shown that you can do whatever you want if you put your mind to it. There will be a lot of people watching me and hopefully they will give snooker a go.”

The Masters runs from January 10 to 17 and will see Ronnie O’Sullivan trying to defend his title against the likes of John Higgins, Stephen Hendry and Neil Robertson.

And that’s not where the similarities between the 2 Rory’s end. Besides being successful recently, both Rory’s are using Original Omin Cues.

©2010 Omin Snooker Cues & Accessories (Buy Only Original) Get News & Events From Malaysia. All Rights Reserved.