Efren Reyes
.jpg) Efren Reyes in the World 9-Ball Pool Championship |
||
| Medal record | ||
|---|---|---|
Representing  Philippines
|
||
|
Men's Eight-Ball |
||
| Asian Games | ||
 |
2002 Busan | Singles |
|
Men's Carom 1 Cushion |
||
| Southeast Asian Games | ||
|
2011 Palembang | Singles |
|
2013 Naypyidaw | Singles |
|
2015 Singapore | Singles |
|
Men's Carom 3 Cushion |
||
| Southeast Asian Games | ||
|
2011 Palembang | Singles |
Efren Manalang Reyes, OLD, PLH (born August 26, 1954), popularly known as Efren "Bata" Reyes and nicknamed 'The Magician', is a Filipino professional pool player. A winner of over 70 international titles, Reyes is the only person in history to win World Championships in two different disciplines in pool. Among his numerous titles Reyes is a four-time World eight-ball champion, the 1999 World Nine-ball champion, a three-time US Open champion, a two-time World Pool League champion and a 14-time Derby City Classic champion - including an unprecedented five "Master of the Table" crowns. By defeating Earl Strickland in the inaugural Color of Money event in 1996, Reyes took home the largest single event purse in pool history. Many analysts, fans, and current and former players consider Reyes to be the greatest pool player of all time.
Reyes was born in Pampanga in the Philippines in 1954. He moved to Manila with his family at the age of 5. In Manila, he worked as a billiards attendant at his uncle's billiards hall, where he started learning the various cue sports. Because he was not tall enough to reach the pool table, he played while standing on Coca-Cola cases that he moved around. At night, while he was dreaming of playing pool, the pool table was his bed.
Reyes is often referred to as "Bata," which is Tagalog for "Kid", because there was another older pool player named Efren when he was young. To distinguish between the two, he was referred to as Efren Bata. He was also called Efrey by his colleagues (Ef from Efren and rey from Reyes).
Gambling from a young age, Reyes played three cushion billiards in the 1960s and 1970s. After establishing himself as a winner, he was discovered by promoters. This gave him the opportunity to compete in big-time tournaments.
During the 1980s, when Reyes was considered a top-class player in his homeland but not yet internationally recognized, he went to the U.S. to hustle. Popular legend claims that Reyes earned US$80,000 in a week; this feat made him a folk hero back home.
...
Wikipedia