WITH THE 2011 PartyPoker.net World Cup of Pool set for 6-11 September in Manila, local heroes Efren Reyes and Francisco Bustamante are confident of taking down pool's most coveted team title for the third time. Winners of the inaugural event in Newport, Wales in 2006, the veteran Filipino legends added to that in Manila in 2009, when they defeated the German pair of Ralf Souquet and Thorsten Hohmann in what was described as one of the greatest pool finals ever. Sporting a combined age of 103 years, the pair will be the oldest in the competition, but not many will be betting against them. “We still have some gas left in the tank,” said Bustamante. “The problem is when one of us misses a shot, our arthritis acts up,” he joked. “It was only two years ago when we won this title, and if we get on a roll I'm sure anything is possible for us,” he added. Reyes revealed that the pair was still trying as hard as ever; “We can still win even if we're older than the competition because we've been practicing for the event.” “The crowd here are a big help. When we won two years ago they made all the difference to us.” The event, which features 32 two-player teams from 31 nations, returns to the SM Mall North on EDSA and carries a $250,000 prize fund. Being the host nation, there are two Filipino teams in the event, with the other made up of the highly dangerous duo of World No.1 Dennis Orcollo and 2006 World Champion Ronnie Alcano. “China is still the team to beat because they are the defending champions but Chinese Taipei, Germany, and England are also strong,” said Orcollo. “Losing to China in last year's final was a massive disappointment but we are hoping to go one better this time.” The World Cup of Pool will be aired live in the Philippines on Solar Sports from September 6 to 11. Matchroom Sport will also produce 31 x one-hour highlights programmes, which will be broadcast around the world.
