TO this day, Efren “Bata” Reyes will always be synonymous with Philippine billiards.
Even when the pool legend, now 70 years of age, is no longer active in the world circuit, Bata Reyes remains the biggest crowd drawer and the main attraction whenever he graces an event with his presence.
His absence has inevitably led to billiards' decline, in more ways than one.
“Siya ang hinahanap ng tao eh,” said Puyat Sports owner and longtime Reyes patron Aristeo “Putch” Puyat. ”To be honest, nung medyo tumanda na si Efren at Django [Bustamante], nawala din yung mga sponsor.”
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It’s the double-edged sword that comes with the eminence of “The Magician.” In his absence, the sport took a major hit, affecting its popularity which at one time was close to that of basketball and boxing.
Though Filipino cue artists have been competing and winning tournaments abroad, billiards has somehow gone back to being regarded as a sport for gamblers: a money game, as they call it. The pandemic didn’t help.
And quite simply, there’s just none who have come remotely close to reaching the levels of Reyes. Not yet. Perhaps not ever.
Golden break
But even before the staging of the inaugural Reyes Cup, which was a joint venture of Matchroom Pool and Puyat Sports, there was already a growing resurgence for billiards in the country – a renaissance of sorts.
The success of a new generation of players overseas has a lot to do with it.
“Nakikita mo naman na Filipinos have been very consistent, both men and women,” said Rubilen Amit. “Just this year alone, ilang kampeonato na ang nakuha ng Pilipinas? We’ve been very consistent. Mas umiingay lang ngayon pero through the years, we’ve been ranking and winning on a consistent basis.”
Amit was one among the new wave of players. Just last September, “Bingkay” took home the 2024 WPA Women’s World 9-Ball Championship.
Carlo Biado also captured the 2024 WPA World 10-Ball Championship, while Johann Chua also came away with the 2024 Hanoi Open 9-Ball crown after finishing runner-up in the European Open and reaching the semifinals of the World Pool Championship.
Chua and James Aranas are the reigning World Cup of Pool champions, winning the 2023 edition and following the footsteps of past Philippine teams before including the team of Reyes and Bustamante who won the trophy twice.
‘Marboys’ never lose it
“When you see Filipinos do well in the international tournaments, it inspires more amateurs to take up the sport as well as the new generation of players. That’s important: having the pride that you get when you represent the country,” said JR Velasco, Marboys Billiards Café owner.
The businessman has been one of the leading proponents for Pinoy cue artists, establishing his own pool hall in 2019 in Paranaque before eventually forming a professional team last year.
“We started with James Aranas,” said Velasco, looking back at his stable as his support of Dodong Diamond in the 2023 World Pool Championship in Kielce, Poland kickstarted the whole thing.
Together with his friend Marvin Paringit, Velasco has been steadfast in his commitment to helping Filipino pros compete in the global stage through the Marboys Billiards Club while also guiding them in their life outside of the pool hall.
READ 'Bata' hopeful Manas, Sucal translate viral videos into success
And the proof is in the pudding as Marboys now house some of the top professional players in the country led by Chua and Aranas, as well as budding players like Jeffrey Ignacio, Jefrey Roda, Bernie Regalario, and Marvin Asis, among others.
“We’re trying to have 12 professional players,” said Velasco.
Even players like Biado, full-blooded Pinoy Robbie Capito of Hong Kong, and Indonesia’s Alvin Anggito consider themselves as honorary Marboys.
“I’ve always believed that the talent that we have in the Philippines is world-class. It’s just unfortunate that only the private organizations can actually see it and not much of the government. That’s why we’re trying to do in our own little way to be able to send more athletes to international competitions,” said Velasco.
Chua’s triumph in the Hanoi Open is definitely the highest point to date for the team, with the whole delegation making it through the Last 64.
And Velasco has bigger plans ahead. First, he’s looking to build the biggest pool arena in the Philippines by March 2025, and then, he plans on hosting a big competition in partnership with Matchroom Pool which will see the Philippines face off against the best players in the world.
Runout
Locally, pool halls have started to pop up like mushrooms, rekindling interest in the sport.
And these are nothing like the decrepit pool halls of old which reek of cigarette smoke and chalk-filled floors. Most are now high-end, featuring competition-level tables, top-notch cloth, and professional balls which are much like pool halls overseas.
Sharks is one of those who have upped the ante in Metro Manila, holding daily pro games and open tournaments before staging its own International Open in 2023, where Ko Ping Chung of Chinese Taipei bested Patric Gonzales in the final.
It eventually established its own professional league: the Sharks Billiards Association (SBA), the first of its kind in the country.
“We want to push billiards in the mainstream,” said SBA founder and chief executive officer Hadley Mariano. His league has four teams of five players each, namely Manila MSW Mavericks, Quezon City Dragons, Taguig Stallions, and Negros Occidental Pillars.
Some of the notable names in their roster include Jericho Banares, Jonas Magpantay, and Demosthenes Pulpul, with the dream that someday, these cue artists would become household names when it comes to pool.
“With the volume of players that we have in the Philippines, we want to give them these opportunities and exposure through the SBA,” said Mariano.
Safety battle
That's not to say the road is paved. Perennial problems continue to plague the sport, beginning with association to gambling.
“Nangyayari kasi ngayon, nage-ending lagi sa pustahan,” said Puyat.
Mariano echoed Puyat's words: “Players spend to join open tournaments and are not guaranteed a sure income, so if they lose in the first few rounds, usually they don’t get paid and tend to turn to money games to recuperate lost earnings. It hurts the credibility of the sport.”
Worse, some resort to match fixing. One young player recently lost his sponsorship after being accused of such acts.
Clean shot
Still, the Philippine billiards scene looks to be coming back to life.
“Yung billiards dito sa atin, bumabalik na yung dating sigla. Parang tulad nung pagkapanalo namin ni Pareng Efren na nag-boom yung billiards, parang ganito na ulit yung nangyayari,” said Francisco “Django” Bustamante.
One need not look far to see promising talents led by AJ Manas, who was triumphant in the 99 Billiards Club Tournament in Vietnam and also reached the round of 32 in the Hanoi Open, and Jaybee Sucal with their highlights plastered all over social media.
But highlights are just that, and the legends know that advancing the sport entails levelling up in competition not just in the country but also internationally.
“Maraming magagaling dito sa atin ngayon kaya lang, hindi pa sila nakikilala dahil mga bata pa. Hindi pa sila na-expose,” said Reyes. “Yung mga na-expose dito, yung mga naglalaro lang ng mga tournaments so kailangan nila lumaban sa mga ganoong competition.”
Bustamante added: “Natutuwa naman kami ni Pareng Efren na may sumusunod sa yapak namin, kaya sana pagbutihin nila at manalo sila ng marami. Pero ang kailangan nila, ma-expose pa sila sa mataas na competition.”
But Puyat said that their development must start very early. “Marami ngang batang magaling pero dapat maaga pa lang makapagpakita na sila,” he said.
Manas and Sucal may lead the next generation, but there’s already plenty among the emerging cue pros in the present.
Anton Raga, who made it to the 2023 European Open final, is only 26 years old; 2023 Women’s WPA World 10-Ball Champion Chezka Centeno is 25; Hanoi Open semifinalist Jefrey Roda is 24; and rising star Bernie Regalario is just 19.
“There are so many young talents. I think we have so many talents and we’ll see more Filipinos make it to the finals in the coming tournaments,” beamed Velasco.
Glory run
The success of the Reyes Cup, where Chua and Biado headlined Team Asia’s victory over Team Europe, also helped in rekindling the Filipinos’ love for billiards as it drew the crowds in over four days at Ninoy Aquino Stadium.
“Tingin ko ito na yung simula na maibabalik sa atin yung crowd ng billiards. Masayang masaya kaming mga players lalo na at nasaksihan ng mga kabataan natin yung ganitong event,” said Biado.
“Nakikita natin na patuloy yung pag-angat ng billiards. So ang laking bagay na yung mga kapwa Pilipino natin were able to watch them live,” chimed in Aranas.
Amit also had the same thought. “Sana magtuloy-tuloy yung mga ganitong events para mas marami pang ma-inspire at marami pang maging interesado sa sport natin kasi sa billiards, dito talaga tayong mga Pilipino ang magaling eh.”
More than the audience, Chua believes that having these world-class events in our shores can only benefit the growth of the sport, thankful to be an inspiration to young players much like Bata and Django were to him.
“Sobrang thankful ako na nagkaroon ako ng chance na kahit papaano maka-inspire ng mga tao na maglaro at mangarap din sa billiards,” he said. “Dati, isa lang din ako na nangangarap at na-inspire kila champ Efren at sir Django. Ngayon, nandoon na ako sa spot na yun. Kaya thankful ako kay Efren at Django dahil kung hindi dahil sa kanila, wala ako dito.”
Next rack
Yet the question remains, are we close to seeing the next Bata?
Chua said not in this lifetime.
“Sobrang saya na naiisip ng mga tao na kami yung papalit kila champ Efren. Pero to be honest, tingin ko hindi na yun mangyayari kasi kung ano yung nagawa nila sa game, wala nang makakapantay noon in this lifetime,” he said, speaking in high reverence for an icon considered the GOAT.
His fellow pros agree, that as much as they’re doing their best to keep the Philippines in the world map when it comes to pool, reaching the heights attained by Reyes is just not possible.
“Kailangan tuloy-tuloy lang at hindi matigil. Kung walang susunod sa yapak ng legends natin, baka wala nang ma-idolize yung mga kabataan natin,” said Aranas.
“Hindi naman habang buhay nandoon kami. Tulad nila tatay Efren na tumatanda na rin sila, kahit ganoon yung edad, magaling pa rin,” added Biado. “Kailangan mayroong susunod sa amin kasi hindi habang buhay nandoon kami. Abangan na lang natin yung mga darating na event para sa mga players at mga kabataan.”
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