FOR someone who on Day One said he's only a shell of his old self, Earl "The Pearl" Strickland did himself quite a favor.
The brash American claimed the WNT Legends title, besting Francisco "Django" Bustamante, 11-6, in the final on Friday at Gateway Mall in Cubao.
READ Strickland says 71-year-old Bata 'still puts fear in a guy'
Strickland picked up where he left off a day prior, jumping to a 4-0 start and gaining a 9-6 advantage after the Filipino legend leveled things up at five racks apiece.
Bustamante just could not shake off his struggles, leaving an open 2 on Rack 15 and once again missing on 8 the following rack as Strickland pocketed the last two balls for the victory.
Strickland, who also beat longtime rival Efren 'Bata' Reyes a day earlier, raced home from there to rule the three-day event featuring four of the best players to ever play the game.
Ralf "The Kaiser" Souquet also secured third place by beating Reyes, 11-9.
"The Magician" committed a costly error on Rack 20 when he ran out of time in his shot at the 5, giving the German the ball in hand to clean up the rack.
Strickland and Souquet were also victorious in the doubles match against Reyes and Bustamante, 5-4, to complete a sweep of the titles.
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