Custodio rules 10th DIBC-Delta bowling tilt in Dubai

MANILA, Philippines – Filipino Marc Dylan Custodio delivered a performance to remember as he topped the 10th DIBC-Delta Open Bowling Tournament at the Dubai International Bowling Centre over the weekend.

Custodio, a 20-year-old La Salle student, was nothing short of spectacular, amassing a total score of 1837 to claim the Open division crown and the cool top purse of AED 50,000 or P760,000 that went with it.

He bested 21 other finalists including Malaysians Hafiz Zainuddin and Ahmad Muaz, who scored 1827 and 1824 and finished second and third, respectively.

It was a magical performance for the 2022 International Bowling Federation Under-21 Championships bronze medalist, who was ranked 12th of the 22 bowlers who survived the ultra-competitive qualifying round that drew 315 participants from 29 nations.

Custodio was actually one of the four Filipinos who made the final round with the other three being Zach Sales Ramin, Stephen Luke Diwa and Dubai-based Hashim Guinomla.

The 18-year-old Ramin — the youngest ever bowler to rule the Singapore International Open a year ago and a member of the national team that struck gold in the Asian Youth Championship also last year — and Guinomla were seeded higher at seventh and 11th, respectively, while Diwa was at 21st.

But only Custodio struck gold by coming through with perhaps the game of his life.