PCAP 3rd Conference playoffs begin tonight

MANILA, Philippines – The playoffs of the Professional Chess Association of the Philippines are largely predictable. 

The top seeds gobble up the lower tier seeds in the quarterfinals then engage in a battle royale between themselves to see who makes it to the finals — which has been the playground of the San Juan Predators, Iloilo Kisela Knights and Pasig King Pirates, who have made multiple division and grand finals.

San Juan is the defending champion. 

The question therefore is — will there be any lower tier seeds capable of stunning the top flight clubs in the season-ending Open Conference Wednesday night?

In the spirit of the ongoing FIFA World Cup in Qatar, are there any Saudi Arabias, Japans, Irans or Costa Ricas that can pull off a stinging upset? On Bonifacio Day, will there be any Supremos among the lower squads to lead them more into a cry and into a full scale revolt of the professional chess order?

The Northern Division round of eight will see the match-ups of Pasig (31-2) and Rizal (14-19), Manila (23-10) and Cagayan (18-15), San Juan (30-3) and Cavite (15-18), and Laguna (24-9) and Isabela (17-16).

The Southern Division will find face-offs between Davao (31-2) and Tacloban (11-22), Toledo (23-10) and Palawan (15-18), Iloilo (29-4) and Camarines-Iriga (13-20), and Negros (28-5) and Surigao (14-19).

All but two clubs in the north and fourth in the south have losing records. Does that make them instant roadkill for the upper echelon teams?

We will find out tonight after all teams battle for two sets, and if need be, go into Armageddon.

The matches of PCAP can be viewed on streaming via the league’s or each team’s Facebook page.