AFTER a quiet few years, Rubilen Amit made a resounding comeback, reclaiming her throne as the 9-ball queen last year and securing consecutive titles over the weekend.
Fresh off her triumph at the Women’s Challenge of Champions, Amit added another prestigious accolade to her name by winning the Las Vegas Women’s Open in the United States.
Her back-to-back victories in just two days have made her a hot topic in major billiards’ forums, with online fans ranking her among the world’s top three players—alongside China’s Han Yu and Siming Chen.
At 43, Amit is a three-time world champion, having won the 10-ball title in 2009 and 2013 and, most recently, the 9-ball world title in 2024.
Amit’s Las Vegas Women’s Open title marked her second championship in as many days, following her Challenge of Champions’ victory over Kristina Tkach.
In the Las Vegas Women’s Open final, the reigning World Women’s 9-Ball champion displayed her mastery by defeating China’s Han Yu in a grueLling match, securing the title with scores of 4-2, 4-1, 3-4, and 4-2.
Amit, who fought her way up from the losers’ bracket, ensured the Philippines’ second consecutive championship in the prestigious tournament, following Chezka Centeno’s victory last year.
Despite struggling with dry breaks, Amit capitalized on her opponent’s crucial miscues and positional mistakes. Reflecting on her victory, she expressed relief at closing out the match before a possible shootout.
“I felt that if we had gone to a shootout, with how I was playing in the third and fourth sets, I wouldn’t have been able to make any ball. I’m just so happy to win the event,” Amit shared in a post-game interview.
Her path to the championship was anything but easy.
Amit bested several elite competitors, defeating Kelly Fisher (3-1) 3-4, 4-2, 4-1, 4-2 in the Round of 16, Wan Ling Wang (3-1) 2-4, 4-3, 4-3, 4-2 in the quarterfinals, and Jasmin Ouschan (3-1) 1-4, 4-1, 4-0, 4-3 in the semifinals.
