Efren Reyes
Philippine billiards icon Efren "Bata" Reyes conjured up some old-fashioned magic to win the Philippine Bigtime Billiards (PBB) Face Off Series late Friday (December 30, 2011) at the Pagcor Airport Casino in Parañaque City.
The 57-year-old Reyes defeated Jia Qiang Wu (formerly Chia-ching Wu from Chinese-Taipei), 9-6.
A 2005 WPA World 9-Ball Champion and 2005 WPA World 8-Ball Champion, Chia-ching Wu is now playing for mainland China and carrying a new name Jia Qing Wu. Wu who goes by the moniker "Little Genius from Taishan" is scheduled to celebrate his 23rd birthday on February 9, 2012.
"Luck played a part in my victory. Wu is a very tough opponent and I really had a hard time beating him," said the 1999 WPA World 9-ball Champion and 2004 WPA World 8-Ball Champion Reyes, playing under the banner of sportsman/businessman Aristeo "Putch" Puyat, the acknowledged Godfather of Philippine billiard.
It was a sweet revenge for the Angeles City, Pampanga cue master Reyes, because Wu beat him in their quarter-final encounter of the 11th Predator International 10-Ball Championship last September.
"I hope to play with him again as it's really exciting going up against one of the world's best cue artists." he added.
The win was worth $5,000 for Reyes while Wu settled for $2,500 in the event, jointly organized by the Mega Sports World and BRKHRD Corp and aired live over Solar Sports, Sky Channel 70 and Destiny Channel 34, and also aired worldwide through the Internet, live streaming at www.megasportsworld.com and www.philippinebigtimebilliards.com.
The PBB Face Off is a joint undertaking of Mega Sports World and BRKHRD Corp., and organized in cooperation with Airport Casino Filipino, Crown Sound System Sakura Amplifiers and Home Theater Systems, Malungai Life Oil, Diamond Billiard table, Hermes Sports Bar, I-Bar, Golden Leaf Restaurant, Bugsy Promotions, Mandarin Sky Sea Food Restaurant, Billiards Managers and Players Association of the Philippines (BMPAP) with The Philippine Star as official media partner.
Among the Filipino stars who have played in the PBB Face off series are Carlo "The Black Tiger" Biado, Dennis "Robocop" Orcollo, Ronato "Volcano" Alcano, Francisco "Django" Bustamante, Lee Vann "The Slayer" Corteza and Roberto "Superman" Gomez.
The PBB Face Off will resume on February 18, 2012 with a new format. The organizing committee lined up a match pitting Philippines versus The Rest of Asia, Asia versus Europe and East versus West.
